Korean Song - The leopard of the kilimanjaro - 킬리만자로의 표범 - By 조용필

Singer : Cho Yong-Pil (조용필) This song was released in 1985. Lyrics ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Because of the limitation of the length of the description, I had to post only the translated lyrics. I also captioned this videoclip. [narration] Have you ever seen a hyena which roams around the foot of the Mountain, searching for something to eat. It always seeks the putrid flesh of dead animals. I don't want to be a hyena, but a leopard. I want to be the leopard which climbs to the top of the snow-covered Kilimanjaro and then starves to death. [narration] Sometimes I become great when I wake up, and sometimes I become shabby when I wake up. Now I am resting for a while in a dark corner of the Earth. My existence cannot be traced in any light of the city full of ambitions. What does it matter if I am thoroughly dumped alone in the center of this large city? For there was a man called Gogh, who lived a more miserable life than me. [song] I can't come to this world like a wind and leave it like a droplet of dew. I have to leave my trace behind. Even though I may disappear totally like a strand of smoke. I will burn like a brilliant flame. [song] Don't ask me. Don't ask me why I struggle so hard to climb such a lofty place. What if there is no one who understands the blazing soul of a solitary man? [narration] When you feel your life is empty and lacking, there is nothing to solace you in this poor world. But they say what makes such a poor world look rather beautiful is love. They easily say that, because they don't understand that love makes one absolutely solitary. They easily say that, because they don't realize that the deeper the love, the deeper the solitude. [narration] You said you loved crickets. I also love crickets. You said you loved lilacs. I also love lilacs. You said you loved nights. I also love nights. And I also love what is splendid in one aspect and desolate in another, and is filled in one aspect and void in another. Cheers to my youth! [song] To love is to become lonely because you put your fate at stake. Because everything is put at stake, you feel lonely. Both love and ideal demand everything. To put everything at stake is to be lonely. [song] Love is the heart-breaking passion which entails parting. What is left in the end of the passion? To love is not to regret even in the case that everything is lost. Only after that, you can say you had a love. [narration] No matter how deep the night is, I will stand as a streak of light. No matter how barren and scorched the soil is, I will stand as pure sound of a stream of water. Even though the intense storm sweeps away grass and trees, I will stand as a tree which is not broken. The reason why I live now in this world is that the 21st century needs me desperately. [song] Is that cloud or snow, over there in the lofty peak of the Kilimanjaro? Today also I will climb with a backpack on my back. Shaking hands with the solitude encountered in the Mountain, I will become the Mountain at the spot. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The lyrics, written by Yang In-Ja (양인자), were inspired by the short story, "The Snows of Kilimanjaro," by Earnest Hemingway. Cho Yong-Pil was awarded the Medal of Culture by the Minister of National Resources and Tourism of Tanzania Government, Zakia Meghji, on September 26, 2001, for promoting the Mount Kilimanjaro through this song in Korea.

Have you ever seen a hyena which roams around the foot of the Mountain, searching for something to eat. It always seeks the putrid flesh of dead animals. I don't want to be a hyena, but a leopard. I want to be the leopard which climbs to the top of the snow-covered Kilimanjaro and then starves to death. Sometimes I become great when I wake up, and sometimes I become shabby when I wake up. Now I am resting for a while in a dark corner of the Earth. My existence cannot be traced in any light of the city full of ambitions. What does it matter if I am thoroughly dumped alone in the center of this large city? For there was a man called Gogh, who lived a more miserable life than me. I can't come to this world like a wind and leave it like a droplet of dew. I have to leave my trace behind. Even though I may disappear totally like a strand of smoke. I will burn like a brilliant flame. Don't ask me. Don't ask me why I struggle so hard to climb such a lofty place. What if there is no one who understands the blazing soul of a solitary man? When you feel your life is empty and lacking, there is nothing to solace you in this poor world. But they say what makes such a poor world look rather beautiful is love. They easily say that, because they don't understand that love makes one absolutely solitary. They easily say that, because they don't realize that the deeper the love, the deeper the solitude. You said you loved crickets. I also love crickets. You said you loved lilacs. I also love lilacs. You said you loved nights. I also love nights. And I also love what is splendid in one aspect and desolate in another, and is filled in one aspect and void in another. Cheers to my youth! To love is to become lonely because you put your fate at stake. Because everything is put at stake, you feel lonely. Both love and ideal demand everything. To put everything at stake is to be lonely. Love is the heart-breaking passion which entails parting. What is left in the end of the passion? To love is not to regret even in the case that everything is lost. Only after that, you can say you had a love. No matter how deep the night is, I will stand as a streak of light. No matter how barren and scorched the soil is, I will stand as pure sound of a stream of water. Even though the intense storm sweeps away grass and trees, I will stand as a tree which is not broken. The reason why I live now in this world is that the 21st century needs me desperately. Is that cloud or snow, over there in the lofty peak of the Kilimanjaro? Today also I will climb with a backpack on my back. Shaking hands with the solitude encountered in the Mountain, I will become the Mountain at the spot.