兰亭集序　

                       （晋）王羲之　【1】
                     Preface to the Lanting Poetry Anthology
                        Written by Wang Xizhi(Jin Dynasty) 
                

In the beginning of late spring in the ninth year of Yonghe, namely the GuiChou year, there was a meeting held in Lanting, which is in the Shanyin Town of Kuaiji County, for executing the Xiuxi ceremony. The celebrities in the county, including the young and old, all came to attend this ceremony. Around the place, there are high mountains and lofty hills, flourishing woods and tall bamboo bushes, and clear streams full of the rushing water from both the left and right sides. All guests sat by a winding canal in a row and drank with one wine cup floating on it so as to wash away minousness. Although without the grand situation of string and wind instruments, however some were drinking and some were expressing their heart feelings in verse or song, so that it was also enough to talk cheerfully their intense emotions.

是日也，天朗气清，惠风和畅，仰观宇宙之大，俯察品类之盛，所以游目骋怀，足以极视听之娱，信可乐也。
This day had clear and fresh air under the blue sky and a gentle breeze was freely blowing. Facing up to look at the vast expanse of the universe and bowing down to examine the flourish matter category, skimming over every thing in the universe and giving free rein to extend their range of vision, then people can be enough to get the pleasure of seeing through and hearing about to the extreme. Actually, it should look as very happy.

夫人之相与，俯仰一世，或取诸怀抱，晤言一室之内；或因寄所托，放浪形骸之外。虽取舍万殊，静躁不同，当其欣于所遇，暂得于己，快然自足，不知老之将至。及其所之既倦，情随事迁，感慨系之矣。向之所欣，俯仰之间，已为陈迹，犹不能不以之兴怀。况修短随化，终期于尽。古人云：“死生亦大矣。”岂不痛哉！

Yet, people deal and cope with others in all their lives. When alive, they get each other in embracing; or talk freely what are on their hearts in a room; or place their emotions to others as to be unrestrained out of the formality. Although fetch or abandon of each one is very different, and their tempers may be not alike, for instance, or quiet or impetuous, when enjoying for getting something from opportunity, they may think that they have obtained achievements and feel self-sufficiency. However, they do not know old and death will come before long. Until they are tired of what have been obtained and their emotions changed together along with what have happened，and then sighs with emotion have to be approached. The joy of them in the past，in an instant, have become an old trace，unable to give rising to their new desire. Moreover，the length of life lies on luck and at last must be finished. Therefore, the ancients had said, "One person's life and death is the most important thing for himself." Isn't that painful?

每览昔人兴感之由，若合一契，未尝不临文嗟悼，不能喻之于怀。固知一死生为虚诞，齐彭【6】殇为妄作。后之视今，亦犹今之视昔。悲夫！故列叙时人，录其所述，虽世殊事异，所以兴怀，其致一也。后之览者，亦将有感于斯文。

While viewing the reasons of the sighs with emotion of the ancients, if it evokes my sympathy，I always sigh of sorrow but cannot explain why it is？ I originally understand that the thoughts such as "life is equated with death" is only an absurd and so-called that "no body has long age more than a died young child'' and "Pangzu，who lived to the age of eight hundred，is also merely a short age person'' are the preposterous opus. I consider, that the later generations regard contemporary is same as the contemporary regard their ancients！How sad it is？ So in this paper，I appraised the current people on a list and wrote down their brilliant expositions. Though their experiences and affairs were very different, from the viewpoint of sighs with emotion, their results are the same. The readers of later generations, I consider，would have the same feeling that I expressed in this preface. 
             
译注
【1】Wang Xizhi (321～ 379 A.C.) , styled Yishao, was born in Langya of Linyi (Linyi is a city in Shandong Province today) and resided in Shanyin Huaiji (Shaoxing is a city in Zhijiang province today) in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. He was skilful in painting and calligraphy, and the Chinese characters he wrote is graceful, exquisite and statuesque. He, as a famous calligraphist in our country has exerted tremendous influence on the later generations. Therefore, he acquired the title of “Calligraphy Sage” in China. He was a man of broad-minded, and very fond of the scenery with hills and water . He had taken up the office of Inner Historian in Huaiji and had promoted to the office of the General of Right Side Army, so that the people of later ages often called him as Wang Right General.

中文：王羲之（公元321～379年）字逸少，东晋琅琊临沂（今山东临沂市）人，居会稽山阴（今浙江绍兴市）。他擅长书画，字写得峻拔挺秀，为我国著名的书法家，对后世的影响很大，有“书圣”的称号。为人胸怀旷达，爱好山水。曾任会稽内史，官至右军将军，故世称王右军【7】。

【2】 Ninth year of Yonghe（353 A.C.): Yonghe was the title of Emperor Mu of the Eastern Jin Dynasty; the ninth year of Yonghe is equivalent to 353 A. C. in the Christian era.
中文：永和九年：即公元353年。永和是东晋穆帝的年号。

【3】GuiChou: Gui is the last of the Ten Heavenly Stems; Chou is the second of Twelve Earthly Branches; In the lunar calendar, the years are designated by the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches, the cycle of the way of counting years in the system of Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches is sixty years.

中文：癸丑，癸是中国天干地支记元中天干（12个）中的最后一个，丑是地支（10个）中的第二个，在中国用天干地支记年、月、日，周期为六十。

【4】Lanting: Lanting is located at the foot of the Lanzhu Mountain in the West-South of Shoaling city in China. Wang Xizhi, a famous calligraphist in the East Jin Dynasty ; he invited 41 persons with literary reputation here to execute a local memorial ceremony named Xiuxi in the ninth year of Yonghe (353 A.C.) . And then，a famous article named Preface to the Lanting Collection was written by him. The existing building and garden in Lanting were rehabilitated in the twenty-seventh year of Jiaqing (1548 A.C.) . There is a little stream of water passing through this place, called the crooked water. Nearby the water can find the Liuchang pavilion, Wang Xizhi's statue is standing in the ancestral temple of Wang Right General. In the temple, there are Mohua Pond and Mohua Pavilion，which has two corridors and on its walls the stone carvings were embedded and the practicing calligraphy by the calligraphists in successive Dynasties after the handwriting of Wang Xizhi are shown there. Behind the Liuchang pavilion, there is the Emperor Stele Pavilion, where standing Lanting Stele written by the Emperor Kangxi (Qing Dynasty). Thirty meters before this pavilion is the Goose Pond and a stone tablet is standing in the pavilion. On the tablet two large Chinese characters “鹅池” （the Goose Pond）were written. According to legend, these two large Chinese characters are the true handwriting of the famous calligraphist, Wang Xizhi.

中文：兰亭,位于中国浙江省绍兴市西南的兰渚山下。东晋书法家王羲之在永和九年（ 353 ）邀请名士41人在兰亭修禊，由王作《兰亭序》。现存建筑和园林是明嘉靖二十七年（1548 )重建的。有小溪流经此处，称为曲水。临溪有流觞亭，亭内有王右军祠，祠内正殿中有王羲之像，内有墨华池、墨华亭，两廊壁上嵌有历代书法家临王羲之书法的石刻。流觞亭后有御碑亭，内立有清康熙书兰亭碑一块。亭前30米处为鹅池。 庭中立有刻有“鹅池”两大字的石碑一块，相传为王羲之书。

【5】Xiuxi: Xiuxi was a custom in ancient China. The ancient Chinese people set the up the Ji day (Ji is the sixth of the Twelve Earthly Branches) of the first ten-day of the third month as the day of Xiuxi (After the Wei Dynasty, adopted the third day of the third month） . On this day, people held a kind of memorial ceremony. They kept closed to the river, washing for eliminating the ill omens.

中文：修禊是中国古代的一种风俗，中国古代老百姓设置了一个名为“巳”的日子，即地支中的第六天。一般把农历三月中第一个十天中的第六天定为“修禊”日，在魏朝后，这一天改为三月份的第三天。在这一天里，人们在河边举行祭奠仪式，洗涤沐浴以清除不祥。

【6】Pangzu: An ancient old man in the Chinese legend; he lived to the age of eight hundred.
中文：彭祖，相传古代中国的一位老人，他活到了800岁。

【7】The General of Right Side Army: From the Dynasty Wei, Jin to the Northern and Southern Dynasties, the central authority of China government had set up some positions of the army as the middle, front and back generals. However, those positions were not the official position for really commanding the army.

中文：王右军，中国古代从魏、晋到南北朝，朝廷设置了像军队里将军名称的官职，如“中将军”、“前将军”。“后将军”等。但这类官职并非真正用来指挥军队的。王羲之曾担任过“右将军”的官职。

墨华：Mohua: In Chinese words, Mohua has the meaning of Chinese ink stick cream.
康熙：Kangxi: The title of Emperor Shengzu of the Qing Dynasty.
嘉庆：Jiaqing: The title of Emperor Shizong of the Ming Dynasty.