Sonnet 129

The expense of spirit in a waste of shame           将精气神耗在耻辱的荒原，

Is lust in action: and till action, lust            便是贪欲出动，在出动前

Is perjur'd, murderous, bloody, full of blame,      贪欲做伪证行凶残忍冷面，

Savage, extreme, rude, cruel, not to trust;         浑身恶行残暴粗野走极端

Enjoy'd no sooner but despised straight;            不义之徒未尽兴即判不堪。

Past reason hunted; and no sooner had,              越礼追赶，然而一旦得手便

Past reason hated, as a swallow'd bait,             立刻粗鲁无礼地表现厌烦

On purpose laid to make the taker mad:              像为引中计者发疯专设陷，

Mad in pursuit and in possession so;                追猎之时发疯，拥有时狂癫，

Had, having, and in quest to have, extreme;         已有现有和将有全都不管，

A bliss in proof,— and prov'd, a very woe;         幸福时狂喜过后惹上灾患，

Before, a joy propos'd; behind a dream.             事前假想快乐事后一梦魇。

All this the world well knows; yet none knows well  世人皆知，可都不知其详，

To shun the heaven that leads men to this hell.     躲开这引人入地狱的天堂。

－by William Shakespeare (1564－1616)                东海仙子译