Recalling the Past That We Have Been in Heaven and Hell
Fu Hao

Translated by himself

Recalling the past, we find that we have been in heaven and hell,

not because we did good, nor because we committed evil.

Both heaven and hell are under our feet, one next to another as stairs

(only the number of hells is at least twice as many as that of heavens):

and we keep walking down them like children playing the game of divination: not knowing where the last foot will land!

And we are not able, or more likely disdain to turn back to tell the truth to our sucessors (only oneself knows one’s situation): some will say we’ve gone or should have gone to heaven, others may argue we’ve gone or must have gone to hell, and then all forget us.