Translation of "Fan Zhongyan Encourages Learning":
In the spring of the fourth year of Qingli, Teng Zijing was demoted to Baling County as the prefect. In the second year, political affairs went smoothly, the people were happy, and all kinds of neglected undertakings were started. So the Yueyang Tower was rebuilt, expanded to its original size, and the poems and songs of famous people from the Tang Dynasty and today were engraved on it. Ask me to write an article to record this incident.
I see that the beautiful scenery of Baling County is all on Dongting Lake. Dongting Lake contains the mountains in the distance and handles the water of the Yangtze River. It is vast and boundless. Cloudy and sunny changes in the morning and evening, and the changes in scenery are endless. This is the majestic scene of Yueyang Tower, which has been described in detail by predecessors.
In this case, it leads to Wu Gorge in the north and Xiaoshui and Xiangshui in the south. Most of the officials and poets who were demoted and transferred to distant places gathered here. The emotions triggered by seeing the natural scenery may be Be different.
Like that continuous drizzle falling one after another, when it doesn't clear up all month long, the cold wind roars and turbid waves rush into the sky. The hidden brilliance of the sun, moon and stars, the mountains have also disappeared. Merchant travelers were unable to pass, the masts were down and the oars were broken. In the evening it was dark and all you could hear was the roar of tigers and the mournful cries of apes.
When you climb up to the Yueyang Tower, you will have the feeling of missing your hometown after leaving the capital, worrying about slander, and fear of ridicule. When you look up again, you will see a desolate and desolate scene. You must be filled with emotions and very sad.
Another example is when the spring breeze is gentle and the sun is shining brightly, there are no stormy waves, the sky above and below and the lake light meet, and it is green and vast. Seagulls on the sandbank sometimes fly and sometimes rest, beautiful fish swim around, and the orchids on the small island are rich in fragrance and green in color.
Sometimes the large smoke dissipates completely, and the bright moonlight pours out thousands of miles away. The moonlight floating on the water is shining with gold, and the silent moon is like a piece of sinking jasper. The fisherman's song sounds and he sings in harmony. How can there be such fun? Exhausted?
When you climb up to the Yueyang Tower, you will feel open-minded and happy. You will forget the glory and humiliation. In the breeze, you will drink wine and you will feel really happy. Awesome.
Alas! I once explored the thoughts and feelings of people with noble moral character in ancient times. Perhaps they were different from the moods of the above two people. Why is this? People with noble moral character in ancient times did not feel sad or happy because of the quality of external objects or their own gains and losses. If you are an official in the court, you will worry about the people. If you are in a remote river or lake, if you are not an official in the court, you will worry about the king.
I am worried about being an official in the imperial court, and I am also worried about being in remote rivers and lakes. In this case, when will they be happy? Then they will definitely say, "Be sad before the people in the world are sad, and be happy after the people in the world are happy." Alas! If there are no such people, who would I be with?
The original text of "Fan Zhongyan Encouraging Learning":
In the spring of the fourth year of Qingli, Teng Zijing was relegated to Baling County. In the next year, the government will be harmonious and people will be harmonious, and everything will be prosperous. Then the Yueyang Tower was rebuilt, its old structure was added, and poems by Tang Xian and modern people were engraved on it. It belongs to me and I will write it down to remember it.
I watched my husband Baling Shengsheng in a lake in Dongting. It carries distant mountains and swallows up the Yangtze River, which is a vast and boundless river. The sun shines brightly in the evening, and the scenery is endless. This is the grand view of Yueyang Tower, which has been described by predecessors. However, it is connected to Wu Gorge in the north and Xiaoxiang in the South Pole. Many foreigners and poets gather here, and the feeling of looking at the things is the same.
Ruofu is raining, the moon is not open, the wind is howling, and the turbid waves are rowing. The sky is empty; the sun and stars are dim, and the mountains are hidden; business travel cannot be carried out, and the rafts are toppled and destroyed; the dusk is dim, and the tigers roar and the apes cry.
When climbing the tower, there are those who are nostalgic for their country, worried about slander and fear of ridicule, their eyes are full of desolation, and they feel extremely sad. When spring comes and the scenery is bright, the waves are calm, and the sky above and below is a vast expanse of blue; sand gulls gather in the sky, and the golden scales swim;
The orchids on the bank are lush and green. Or when the long smoke disappears, the bright moon shines thousands of miles away, the floating light leaps into the gold, the silent shadow sinks into the jade, and the fishermen answer each other's songs, how wonderful is this joy! When you climb the tower, you will feel relaxed and happy, forgetting your favors and disgrace together, drinking wine in the wind, and you will be overjoyed.
Sigh! Why should I try to seek the benevolent heart of the ancients or do something different from the two? Don't be happy with things, don't be sad with yourself; if you live high in a temple, you worry about its people; if you live far away in the rivers and lakes, you worry about your king. It means that you are worried when you advance, and you are also worried when you retreat.
But when will you be happy? Surely it must be said, "Be worried about the worries of the world first, and be happy after the joys of the world"? Alas! Weisi people, who can I return to?
Extended information:
"Encouraging Learning" comes from Fan Zhongyan's "Yueyang Tower" in the Northern Song Dynasty
Fan Zhongyan's works include twenty volumes of "Collected Works" and four volumes of "Part Collection" There are two volumes of "Chi Shou", fifteen volumes of "Zou Yi" and eight volumes of "Danyang Bian". In the Northern Song Dynasty, there was a engraved version of "Collected Works of Fan Wenzhenggong". In the Southern Song Dynasty, there were a revised edition of Qiandao engraved edition and a engraved edition of Suihantang of Fan's family school, both of which were twenty volumes.
The poems include:
"The Fisherman on the River", "Crane Couplet", "Climbing the Sea Tower", "Ode to the New Year on the River", "Visiting Mount Lu", "Visiting the Lake in Spring" and "New Feelings" "Five Poems", "Repaying Huang Taibo", "Jiangzhou Garden", "Sending Wei Jie to Jiangxi for Tips", "Returning to Wild Geese", "Climbing the Biaohai Tower", "Passing the Baita Temple in Yuhang", "Visiting Wei Shushi in the Suburbs of Shaanxi";
"Ten Wonders on Guarding the Tonglu Road", "Singing Flowers with the Prime Minister of Gehong Temple", "Huaiqing Shuotang", "Spring Lake Tour", "School Master Zhao's Remuneration and Punishment" and "Gu Jian" "Passing through the Taiqing Palace", "Farewell to Shi Manqing", "Yue Gutang Poems";
"To Mr. Zhang", "Ballads of the Shanghan Dynasty", "Wild Colors", "Ode to the River", "Send Off the Return of Taifu Xianggong" "Two Poems on Shi Zi Jian" and "Ode on Plum Blossoms by Yu Lingwu".
The poems include:
"Su Muzhe·Nostalgia", "Fishermen's Proud·Autumn Thoughts", "Taking Silver Lamps·Setting with Mr. Ouyang on the Banquet", "Royal Street Tour·Autumn Day" "Nostalgia" "Ding Fengbo·Produced by Baihuazhou in the former Erfu Town Rangxiaying".
The essays include:
"The Story of Yueyang Tower", "A Letter to the Officials of the Tang Dynasty", "Answers to the Imperial Edict", "A Letter to Han Qi", "Lingwu Fu", and "A Letter to the Governor" "Mr. Yan's Ancestral Hall", "Two Strategies for Upward Attack and Defense", "Shanglu Xianggong and Presented to Zhongcheng's Counselor" and "Pizhou Establishment Records".
The calligraphy includes:
"Tao Fu Praise", "Shi Lu Tie", "Yuan Xing Tie" and "Bian Shi Tie".