Now beckons the wine in the golden goblet,
But do not drink yet! First I will sing you a song!
The song of worry resounds laughing in the soul.
When worry grows near, barren lie the gardens of the soul,
Joy and song wither and die.
Dark is life, is death.

Master of this house!
Your cellars hold an abundance of golden wine!
Here, I take up my lute!
Playing the lute and draining the glasses,
These are things that go well together!
A full goblet of wine at the right time
Is worth more than all the riches of this earth!
Dark is life, is death.

The sky remains forever blue and the earth
Will always remain and bloom in spring.
But you, Man, how long do you live?
Not a hundred years may you delight yourself
In all the mortal things of this earth!
Look over there! In the moonlight on the graves
Perches a wild and ghostly form ¡X
It is an ape! Listen to it, how its howls
Cry out in the sweet breath of life!
Now take the wine! Now is the time, revelers!
Drain your golden goblets to the ground!
Dark is life, is death!

(After Li T'ai-po)