守望彼岸

For ages I’ve been sitting here still

Watching the waves of the rivers for thousands of years

Guarding the land on the shore

Witnessing the transmigration in the mundane world

Qingyi River dances with the wind from Mingjiang River

Dadu River rises and falls

The three rivers flow eastwards as time goes by

Echoing with the laughters and talks among Confucianists, Buddhists and Taoists

Once I was a rock in the mountains

Craftsmen carved me into a buddha

With Monk Haitong’s selfless dedication and devotional prayer

Thousands of sails cross the rivers safely

Once I was a rock in the mountains

With innumerable sculpting and carving

Bodhi and Prajna were engraved upon my heart

Enabled I am, to guard and bless the land of Jiazhou on the other shore

Qingyi River dances with the wind from Mingjiang River

Dadu River rises and falls

The three rivers flow eastwards as time goes by

Echoing with the laughters and talks among Confucianists, Buddhists and Taoists

Once I was a blade of grass in the mountains

Quietly, peacefully and perpetually

I saw sorrows and joys，and partings and reunions of people

who passed by and found the true self between mountains and rivers

Once I was a pure land in the mountains

Away from the material and complex world

The white tower is my brush

With which, I paint the blue sky freely

Am I a saint, a god, a human or a buddha?

I laugh, I anger, I travel and I rest

In my dream I rise up and walk to the shore

Scoop the water from the rivers and drink a toast

To Heaven and Earth, for your infinite benevolence

Once I was a rock in the mountains

With innumerable sculpting and carving

Bodhi and Prajna were engraved upon my heart

Enabled I am, to guard and bless the land of Jiazhou on the other shore

Year after year I watch silently the waves roll away

And guard on this shore the mumdane world