No bullets could smother our fury
“Arise!” cry Hongkongers in defiance
To defend our liberty
Terror is the mate of tyranny
Yet, batons shall not submit us to fear
The blood we shed will soak and grow the seeds
of freedom in our country
Nightly mist, in shackles and despair
On the Rock, the farthest herald we will hear
Now’s the time
The battle is here
In full hearts and gear
Valour and wisdom never fail
Liberation beckons with the break of dawn
Children of Hong Kong, our future is born!
We’ll overcome the tyrant at the darkest hour
Pride and Glory to Hong Kong!
I took the liberty to add a “reprise”.
Reprise:
Revolution spells the end of tyranny
Children of Hong Kong, reclaim our destiny!
We know too well that freedom is never free
May Hong Kong forever be!
This is my creative rendering of the Cantonese original. It is not meant to be a literal or faithful translation, but a natural and (hopefully) catchy English version to blend with the already marvellous tune into an anthem to be sung. It adheres to the general theme in each section, but there is deviation and re-creation.
We need some modern lyrics to our anthem that will capture the true spirit of our times, I believe.
I also think that in the lyrics we need elements of the current Movement and reference to Hong Kong in general. You may have already noticed them.
Just as I finished writing the lyrics I noticed the dgx team had posted an English version of the anthem on YouTube, which is better than other existing versions, in my humble opinion.