10月10日

浮生六記
清 沈復 ( 1763~1825 )

世事茫茫，光陰有限，算來何必奔忙？人生碌碌，競
短論長，卻不道榮枯有數，得失難量。看那秋風金谷，
夜月烏江，阿房宮冷，銅雀臺荒，榮華花上露，富貴草
頭霜。

機關參透，萬慮皆忘，誇什麼龍樓鳳閣，說什麼利鎖
名韁。閑來靜處，且將詩酒猖狂，唱一曲歸來未晚，歌
一調湖海茫茫。逢時遇景，拾翠尋芳。約幾個知心密友，
到野外溪旁，或琴棋適性，或曲水流觴；或說些善因果
報，或論些今古興亡；看花枝堆錦繡，聽鳥語弄笙簧。

──選自《浮生六記》

October 10

Six Notes About Life
Shen Fu (1763 - 1825, Qing Dynasty)
English translation: William Chong and Miao Guang

There are countless mundane affairs, yet so little
time; so why get involved in all this hustle and
bustle? We busy ourselves with life, competing and
comparing endlessly, yet no one tells us that fame or
dishonor is limited, and that success or failure is hard
to measure. Look! The autumn wind blows over the
luxurious gardens of the fallen rich, and the darkness
that falls over the Wu River*, the bleak Epang Palace,
and the desolate Tongque Tower. Name and glory are
but dew on a flower; riches and fame are just frost on
a grass' tail.

Seeing through that ploy, forgetting all troubles,
what of the royal palaces is there to praise for, or the
shackles of profit and fame? Upon the moment of
leisure and quietude, let us indulge in wine and poetry,
singing the lyrics of "It's Not Too late to Return" and
the tune of "The Vast Sea." On proper occasions, let us
invite a few intimate friends, either to the wilderness
besides the creeks, play the zither to your heart's
content, let your pains flow away along the bends of
the river, speak of good causes and retributions,
or discuss the rises and falls throughout past and modern
times. Or we can appreciate brocades of beauty atop
flower stems, and listen to the melodious chirping of
the birds.

── from Fu Sheng Liu Ji (Six Notes of Life)

* Xiangyu was a renowned commander-in-chief during the time
of the Three Kingdoms, who valiantly died while fighting vastly
outnumbered.