The authorship of this poem is disputed. It is sometimes attributed to Pusŏl (flying snow) kŏsa. Kŏsa is a title for a Buddhist adept who is not a monk. Pusŏl kŏsa was a Paekche man and the chances of him being the author are very remote. The poem is built on twelve uses of the chuk (bamboo) character, which is interpreted in its Korean meaning of tae “as it is” or “unchanged,” “what will be, will be” in the translation. The English tries to show how Kim Sakkat breaks free of classical convention and creates a new world of poetic possibility in hanmun and Korean.
Things come, things go; what will be, will be.
Winds blow, waves break; what will be, will be.
Rice is rice; gruel is gruel; take what you get;
what will be, will be.
Right is right, wrong is wrong; accept it; what will be, will be.
Hospitality for a guest? Let the pocket decide what will be.
Trading in the market? Let the times decide what will be.
The affairs of the world are not under my control;
what will be, will be.
So, so, so! That’s the world; go with the flow.
What will be, will be.