Don’t help -- on the big chariot; You will only make yourself dusty. Don’t think about the sorrows of the world; You will only make yourself wretched. Don’t help -- on the big chariot; You won’t be able to see for dust. Don’t think about the sorrows of the world; Or you will never escape from your despair. Don’t help -- on the big chariot; You’ll be stifled with dust. Don’t think about the sorrows of the world; You will only load yourself with care.
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Confirmed with Arthur Waley, Chinese Poems, 2005 (first published 1946), Oxfordshire: Routledge, p. 34.
Authorship
- by Arthur Waley (1889 - 1969), "The big chariot", first published 1946 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
- a text in Chinese (中文) by Anonymous/Unidentified Artist, appears in Shi Jing (or Schi-King) - Classic of Poetry - Book of Songs -- Book of Odes -- Chinesische Liederbuch [text unavailable]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive)
- by (Edward) Benjamin Britten (1913 - 1976), "The big chariot", op. 58 no. 1 (1957) [ tenor and guitar ], from Songs from the Chinese, no. 1, Boosey & Hawkes [sung text checked 1 time]
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2014-11-04
Line count: 12
Word count: 82