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Song 1 (Part 1) Dispel Your Sorrows Everyone has sorrows that weigh on the mind. The first step is you must somehow dispel these sorrows; Sorrows give you no peace. Dispel these sorrows and then you will have finished with them. The sea of bitter sorrow is wide, and most of those in it are ill-fated; But should you be able to draw from this bitter sea of sorrow some happiness you are one of the blessed. If you are unable to put up with all these sorrows, you have indeed come to a pretty pass; But even this were better than to enter the hell-gates of a court, where you would be the more to be pitied. Stand back a little from your sorrows and see the wide expanse of heaven and ocean; you do not need to bemoan your fate. Dispel all you worries, and you will truly be in a land of endless joy. If no matter what you do, you cannot completely dispel your worries, then set about doing good secretly. Oh, you must be circumspect in all your affairs. There is no danger in storing up for yourself good deeds: See now, your distant reward is in the life to come; your immediate reward is in the present. Song 1 (Part 2) Dispel Your Sorrows It is hard to dispel sorrows from the heart. But dispel them you must until you are completely free of them. Looking hard and straight at the word 'dispel' will lighten everything. I think a thousand sorrows are a thousand sicknesses. No words can ever express the depth of your sadness. 'Infatuation' is a deep-seated sickness; 'passion' is another. Unless you eradicate these enslaving thoughts, not even the most potent medicine can cure you.1 1 See Songs 12 (Part 1), line 9; 83, line 8. Song 1 (Part 1) Dispel Your Sorrows Everyone has sorrows that weigh on the mind. The first step is you must somehow dispel these sorrows; Sorrows give you no peace. Dispel these sorrows and then you will have finished with them. The sea of bitter sorrow is wide, and most of those in it are ill-fated; But should you be able to draw from this bitter sea of sorrow some happiness you are one of the blessed. If you are unable to put up with all these sorrows, you have indeed come to a pretty pass; But even this were better than to enter the hell-gates of a court, where you would be the more to be pitied. Stand back a little from your sorrows and see the wide expanse of heaven and ocean; you do not need to bemoan your fate. Dispel all you worries, and you will truly be in a land of endless joy. If no matter what you do, you cannot completely dispel your worries, then set about doing good secretly. Oh, you must be circumspect in all your affairs. There is no danger in storing up for yourself good deeds: See now, your distant reward is in the life to come; your immediate reward is in the present. Song 1 (Part 2) Dispel Your Sorrows It is hard to dispel sorrows from the heart. But dispel them you must until you are completely free of them. Looking hard and straight at the word 'dispel' will lighten everything. I think a thousand sorrows are a thousand sicknesses. No words can ever express the depth of your sadness. 'Infatuation' is a deep-seated sickness; 'passion' is another. Unless you eradicate these enslaving thoughts, not even the most potent medicine can cure you.1 1 See Songs 12 (Part 1), line 9; 83, line 8. 60 Cantonese Love Songs It is easy to become ensnared among the 'flowers and willows' [i.e. in the houses of entertainment];2 Devise some ingenious strategy to quit the 'gentle village' [i.e. the house of entertainment]. You must see through the speciousness of outward appearances3 [i.e. the phenomenal, the worldly, that which changes and disappears; the desirable, especially feminine attraction] before you can cross the frontier to happiness. If you are infatuated for long with the 'flowers and willows' you will sink to the depths in the city of sorrow.4 Arouse yourself! Realize This world is inconstant: a willow tree, and men's passions, I tell you, Veer this way and that before each gust of wind. Song 2 Choosing a True Heart In this world you will...

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