郊眠寺

新语言 旧语言
该怎样回答 不眠的时间
星河下 电子荒原
亿万场冷暖 亿万泥污人

切断电缆 朝霞晚风
临时收入 临时生活
切断电缆 数字云烟
免费月光 免费惊险

月光熔铁星 铸我神与心
月光熔铁星 铸我神与心

渤海地产 太行水泥
宗教医保 慈善股票
幻觉贸易 阶级电梯
高级魔术 高级发明

凝聚神与心 建此不夜城
凝聚神与心 建此不夜城

演员失业 电缆失窃
共享富裕 共享恐惧
东方睡衣 涌上街头
街头嘈杂 公共聋哑

紧急换电缆 循环追捕令
紧急换电缆 循环追捕令

我有迷魂 额头滚烫
我有迷魂 人间明暗
鸟兽暗语 危险消息
自然友谊 自然躲避

西郊有密林 助君出重围
西郊有密林 助君出重围

人间明暗 人间明暗
人间明暗 人间明暗

新语言 旧语言
该怎样回答 不眠的时间
星河下 电子荒原
亿万场冷暖 亿万泥污人

English #1 – A Night at a Remote Temple

Vocabularies, new and old
How do we answer to the ever-wakeful time?
Electronic wastelands lie under the stars
Millions of happiness and hardships, millions of men struggling in the mud

Cut off the cables for morning clouds and evening breeze
ad hoc salary for an ad hoc life
Cut off the cables: these digital puffs
Free moonlight and a free thrill ride

Moonlight melts the iron sparks1to cast my heart and soul
Moonlight melts the iron sparks to cast my heart and soul

Bohai Sea real estate and Taihang Mountains cement
Religion and healthcare; charity and stockmarket
Illutionary trade; elevator of social classes
Advanced magic and advanced inventings

Unite our hearts and souls to build a city that does not sleep
Unite our hearts and souls to build a city that does not sleep

Actors umemployed; Cables stolen
Shared wealths and shared fears
Oriental pajamas flocked the streets
Uproarious streets and deafness of the public

An emergency cable replacement and a circular manhunt
An emergency cable replacement and a circular manhunt

I am a stray soul and my forehead is burning
I am a stray soul and I saw earthly lights and shades
Birds and beasts are whispering messages of danger
Nature’s friendships and nature’s hiding

Deep woods lie in west countryside. There you will break free.
Deep woods lie in west countryside. There you will break free.

Earthly lights and shades, earthly lights and shades
Earthly lights and shades, earthly lights and shades

Vocabularies, new and old
How do we answer to the ever-wakeful time?
Electronic wastelands lie under the stars
Millions of happiness and hardships, millions of men struggling in the mud

1.星 = star/planet/spark. I can only guess the author’s intention and I chose “spark” because of the smelting scene. However, it could be “moonlight melts (our) planet of iron.”
https://lyricstranslate.com
Submitted by Wei Leran

Author’s comments:
The lyrics consists mainly of noun phrases (as is common in Chinese poems). I added a few prepostions to complete the sentence, but some of the beauty lies in the ambiguity itself, and I might have guessed wrong.

I am a native speaker of Chinese but not so fluent in English. I was so struck by the lyrics that I boldly translated it. I wish I’ve conveyed at least some of the charm in the original text. If you have any corrections or suggestions, do leave a comment.