On children

Your children are not your children.

They are the sons and daughters

Of Life's longing for itself.

They come through you,

But not from you,

And though they are with you,

Yet they belong not to you.

你的孩子，并不是你的孩子

他们诞生于生命对于自身的渴望

他们借助你来到这个世界，

却非因你而来,

他们陪伴你，

却从不属于你

You may give them your love,

But not your thoughts,

For they have their own thoughts.

你可以给予他们你的关爱，

却不能给予你的思想，

因为他们有自己的思想。

You may house their bodies，

But not their souls,

For their souls dwell

In the house of tomorrow,

Which you cannot visit,

Not even in your dreams.

你可以庇护他们的身体，

却无法安置他们的灵魂

因为他们的灵魂属于明天，

属于你在梦境中也到达不了的明天。

You may strive to be like them,

But seek not to make them like you.

For life goes not backward

Nor tarries with yesterday.

你可以拼尽全力，

变成他们的样子，

却不要试图让他们变成你,

因为生命不会向后退进，

也不在过去停留。

You are the bows

From which your children

As living arrows are sent forth.

The archer sees the mark

Upon the path of the infinite.

And he bends you with his might

That his arrows may go swift and far.

你是弓，

而孩子是从你那里射出的箭

弓箭手遥望在无限之路上竖起的靶子，

用尽力气将你拉开，

把箭轻盈地射远,

Let your bending in the archer's hand

Be for gladness;

For even as he loves the arrow that flies,

So he loves also the bow that is stable.

在弓箭手的手中，

你快乐地弯起腰

因为他爱那飞驰向前的箭，

也爱那稳定的弓。