The moon rises from beneath the sea,
And travels to the southeast sky.
When it stands right at heaven's peak,
It shines upon a thousand-fathom pool.
The pool's heart is windless, the moon unmoving,
Its reflection pierces into the Purple Stone Cliff.
Moonlight pure, water clear, the stone gleaming bright,
Moved by this dark soul, it comes to dwell within.
Ever since the moon entered this stone,
Heaven's two luminaries have become three.
Its clear radiance, through all ages, never wears away,
A treasure of heaven and earth, impossible to conceal.
The Lord of Heaven calls the Thunder God,
Who at night wields a giant axe to split the towering cliff.
A piece falls from a thousand ren,
A gleaming cold mirror in a jade casket.
The toad and the white hare flee across the sky,
Leaving only the cassia shadow, sparse and still.
Jingshan obtained it but could not keep it,
He gave it to me, a gift worth a thousand gold.
He himself says, whenever the moon is full,
The stone in the dark room sheds light beyond the eaves.
Vast, indeed, is the space between heaven and earth,
Its myriad wonders are hard to fully tell.
Alas, I, without measure,
In all things seek to probe to the depths.
Wishing to match what my ears and eyes perceive,
Against Creation's work, contending for the finest detail.
Resplendent move the three celestial bodies,
The sun and moon are especially august.
If they were lowered to compare with worldly things,
Among the teeming myriad beings, who would gaze upon them?
If not, then what is this stone after all?
With a mouth wishing to speak, yet tongueless as if clamped.
I marvel at Master Su's mind,
Where all phenomena are arrayed and contained.
Not only is his mind broad, his courage too is great,
Repeatedly his words startle the dull and common.
Since I obtained this stone,
I've not seen Master Su's heart feel shame.
Without the old craftsman's prior judgment and decision,
Whose hand would dare to apply chisel and engrave?
I summon a painter to depict the stone and send it to you,
I hope you will heed it and not be modest.