This translation is for those learning Classical Chinese in mind and not solely for reading enjoyment. However, for a translator, a balance between the local flavor of the source and the grammar of the target is crucial. A word by word translation is not practical as there are too many cultural differences one has to deal with. At the same time, it won't be appropriate to use modern language for translation when the original text is written in an archaic form. It just don't have the same feeling or be immersed in days gone by.
愛蓮説,周敦頤 - Talk About the Love For Lotus by Chou Dun Yi
01 水陸草木之花, Flowers of the trees and grasses, from the land and water,
02 可愛者甚蕃, Plentiful are their admirers.
03 晉陶淵明獨愛菊 Tao Ming of the Jin dynasty is the most ardent admirer of chrysanthemums.
04 自李唐來, Ever since the Li-Tang dynasty,
05 世人盛愛牡丹 People favor the peony most.
06 予獨愛蓮, ‘tis I, who alone love the lotus -
07 之出淤泥而不染 Thou rises from muddy sludge but never stained.
08 濯清漣而不妖 Bathed by cleansing ripples - nary a bewitching beauty be.
09 中通外直, Clear in the inside, upright on the outside,
10 不蔓不枝 Neither tendrilled nor branched.
11 香遠益清, Further thy fragrance be, more subtle thou becometh.
12 亭亭淨植 Tall and undeviating, never adulterated.
13 可遠觀而不可褻玩 Be admired from afar but never be dallied with!
14 焉,予謂菊花之隱逸者也 Thus, I declare that chrysanthemums are recluses;
15牡丹花之富貴者也 Peonies are the rich and privileged and
16 蓮花之君子者也 Lotuses – the embodiment of nobleness!
17 噫, 菊之愛陶後, Alas, after the love of chrysanthemums from Tao,
18 鮮有聞 Rare it is to hear another with passionate for them.
19 蓮之愛同予者, Lovers of the lotus like me,
20 何人? Who wouldst they be?
21 牡丹之愛, The love for the peony—
22 宜乎眾矣! Of course, always so befitting to the masses.
01 The original text is “water and land” because it sounds better than the other way round but in English, it is the opposite as land is more prominent than the sea etc. 木 here means tree and not wood.
02 蕃 – luxuriant, flourishing, to reproduce, to proliferate, teeming with, etc.
03 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jin_dynasty_(266%E2%80%93420)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tao_Yuanming
07 之 here means “this”, “it” and not the possessive meaning.
08 濯 - ”to wash”, “to bathe”; 清 – cleanse, 漣 – ripples, 妖 – seductive in a salacious manner like a demon to tempt, etc. Here it means “incorruptible nobleness of high moral calibre”.
09 The “hollowness inside” means straight forward, without ulterior motives.
10 Follows a straight path and not be distracted from its goal.
11 益 here means “more/added” as a comparison, same semantics as 更 or 越. 清 here means “uncomplicated”, “quietude and calmness”, unlike the heavy fragrances of a whore.
12 植 is used as a verb, “to be planted”. Some sources state that it is synonymous with 直. However, I do not believe so since 直 is used in line 9. My understanding is that Mother Nature had given (planted) the innate nature of it to be noble. “Adulterated” means to debase by mixing something inferior. What 亭亭淨植 means that the noble nature of lotus cannot be influenced by external factors. Hence “adulterated” is used metaphorically.
14 From context, 焉 means “thus” and not a particle for questioning like “how”, “why” etc.
16 Usually, 君子 is translated as “gentleman”. This can be very misleading because in English it implies someone is of gentle birth (born to a family of high social station) especially with wealth, power and a life of leisure. In Chinese, however, a beggar can be a 君子 if he has great moral standing.
18 One of the more obscure meanings of 鮮 is rare, uncommon etc.
22 宜乎 means 當然 – ”of course”. 矣 is an end particle conveying “ah” or similar to the modern use of 了, modal particle intensifying preceding clause.
Tuesday, April 1, 2025
13 可遠觀而不可褻玩 Be admired from afar but never be dallied with!
14 焉,予謂菊花之隱逸者也 Thus, I declare that chrysanthemums are recluses;
15牡丹花之富貴者也 Peonies are the rich and privileged and
16 蓮花之君子者也 Lotuses – the embodiment of nobleness!
17 噫, 菊之愛陶後, Alas, after the love of chrysanthemums from Tao,
18 鮮有聞 Rare it is to hear another with passionate for them.
19 蓮之愛同予者, Lovers of the lotus like me,
20 何人? Who wouldst they be?
21 牡丹之愛, The love for the peony—
22 宜乎眾矣! Of course, always so befitting to the masses.
01 The original text is “water and land” because it sounds better than the other way round but in English, it is the opposite as land is more prominent than the sea etc. 木 here means tree and not wood.
02 蕃 – luxuriant, flourishing, to reproduce, to proliferate, teeming with, etc.
03 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jin_dynasty_(266%E2%80%93420)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tao_Yuanming
07 之 here means “this”, “it” and not the possessive meaning.
08 濯 - ”to wash”, “to bathe”; 清 – cleanse, 漣 – ripples, 妖 – seductive in a salacious manner like a demon to tempt, etc. Here it means “incorruptible nobleness of high moral calibre”.
09 The “hollowness inside” means straight forward, without ulterior motives.
10 Follows a straight path and not be distracted from its goal.
11 益 here means “more/added” as a comparison, same semantics as 更 or 越. 清 here means “uncomplicated”, “quietude and calmness”, unlike the heavy fragrances of a whore.
12 植 is used as a verb, “to be planted”. Some sources state that it is synonymous with 直. However, I do not believe so since 直 is used in line 9. My understanding is that Mother Nature had given (planted) the innate nature of it to be noble. “Adulterated” means to debase by mixing something inferior. What 亭亭淨植 means that the noble nature of lotus cannot be influenced by external factors. Hence “adulterated” is used metaphorically.
14 From context, 焉 means “thus” and not a particle for questioning like “how”, “why” etc.
16 Usually, 君子 is translated as “gentleman”. This can be very misleading because in English it implies someone is of gentle birth (born to a family of high social station) especially with wealth, power and a life of leisure. In Chinese, however, a beggar can be a 君子 if he has great moral standing.
18 One of the more obscure meanings of 鮮 is rare, uncommon etc.
22 宜乎 means 當然 – ”of course”. 矣 is an end particle conveying “ah” or similar to the modern use of 了, modal particle intensifying preceding clause.
Tuesday, April 1, 2025
