face

True Friends

A long time ago in China

there were two friends,

one who played the harp skillfully

and one who listened skillfully.
When the one played or sang about a mountain,

the other would say:

"I can see the mountain before us."
When the other played about water,

the listener would exclaim:

"Here is the running stream!"

But the listener fell sick and died.

The first friend cut the strings of his harp

and never played again.

Since that time the cutting of harp strings

has always been a sign of intimate friendship.