Bai Juyi: Cranes Reply to the Crows

Cranes Reply to the Crows

鹤 答 乌

吾 爱 栖 云 上 华 表
汝 多 攫 肉 下 田 中。
吾 音 中 羽 汝 声 角
琴 曲 虽 同 调 不 同。

He Da Wu

Wu ai qi yun shang hua biao
Ru duo jue rou xia tian zhong.
Wu yin zhong yu ru sheng jiao
Qin qu sui tong diao bu tong.

Cranes Reply to the Crows

I love to dwell above the cloud surface radiance
You snatch your meat below, amid the fields.
My musical notes are higher on the scale compared to you
Qin instrument melodies appear the same, but the tones are all different.