The tree is diseased;
no one rests in its pavilion.
When it stood tall and verdant, no one passed it by.
But the leaves
have fallen, the boughs are broken; not even birds perch there now.
----------
What happens if you pull down
beams and supports?
A host of opinions greet the leaning, skeleton house.
Carpenters
with rulers and ink keep milling around.
-- Chong Ch'ol (1536-1593), translated and collected by Kevin O'Rourke, in Shijo Rhythms, Eastward Books, Seoul, 2001: pp. 44-47
