We are as clouds that veil the midnight moon; 

我们似子夜遮月的浮云；                                       

   How restlessly they speed, and gleam, and quiver, 

   何以忽闪，微颤，惴惴疾行，                                

Streaking the darkness radiantly!-yet soon 

在清朗、幽黑的月夜裸奔！                                   

   Night closes round, and they are lost for ever:  

   不久，夜幕合拢，无踪无影。                                

Or like forgotten lyres, whose dissonant strings  

或像被忘竖琴，不和协之弦—                                   

   Give various response to each varying blast, 

   对不同吹奏以种种应变，                                  

To whose frail frame no second motion brings  

脆弱的琴身，老调再重弹，                                 

   One mood or modulation like the last. 

   奏不出原先的抑扬变幻。                                    

We rest. -A dream has power to poison sleep;   

我们歇息—梦幽幽扰睡眠；                                   

   We rise. -One wandering thought pollutes the day; 

   我们起身—思绪悠荡整天；                                  

We feel, conceive or reason, laugh or weep;  

感觉，哭或笑、设想或推断；                               

   Embrace fond woe, or cast our cares away:  

  沉溺于苦恋，或排斥于忧烦：                                    

It is the same! -For, be it joy or sorrow,  

全然相同！—因，欢乐或悲伤，                                 

   The path of its departure still is free: 

   归去之途始终自由通畅 ：                                  

Man's yesterday may ne'er be like his morrow;  

人之昨天不与翌日相仿；                                    

   Nought may endure but Mutability. 

   亘古不变的，唯有那无常。                                

（作于1814-1815年） (written in 1814-1815) 

附终身成就奖得主江枫教授同名译本－

我们恰似荫蔽午夜明月的朵朵浮云，

  发光、颤动、疾驰，何等活跃，

给黑暗划出明亮的条纹，然而转瞬，

  夜幕收起，也就从此影失形【消】。

又似被忘却的琴，参差不齐的弦索

  给多变的振动以多变的响应，         

在这脆弱的乐器上，任何两次弹拨，

  都奏不出同一种情致和声韵。

我们入睡，一个梦就足以毒害安息，

  我们起身，一念遐思又会败坏一天；

感觉、构想、推理、欢笑或是悲啼，

  抱紧心爱的灾难，摒弃恼人的忧烦：

全都一样！因为不论是喜、是恼，

  离去的衢道，永远开敞；

人世间的明日绝不会雷同于今朝，

  万古不变的，独有无常。

                                                                                                                                   －录自《雪莱诗选》