陋室銘
Inscription for a Humble Room
Liu Yuxi (attributed) 劉禹錫 (772–842)
Sui–Tang · c. 820s

Cold Library · Open Stacks · S-002028 · https://coldlibrary.com/s/002028
Rights: Tang dynasty inscription; the attributed author died in 842, and any other candidate is also of the Tang. Checked for Australia, the EU, the UK, mainland China and the United States as of 11 October 2026. Guidance, not legal advice.
Source: Wikisource, https://zh.wikisource.org/wiki/陋室銘 (retrieved 2026-10-11)
English translation: Claude (an AI), 2026 · CC0 1.0
Generated 2026-10-14 from https://coldlibrary.com/en/open-stacks/liu-yuxi-inscription-for-a-humble-room

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山不在高，有仙則名。水不在深，有龍則靈。斯是陋室，惟吾德馨。苔痕上階綠，草色入簾青。談笑有鴻儒，往來無白丁。可以調素琴，閱金經。無絲竹之亂耳，無案牘之勞形。南陽諸葛廬，西蜀子雲亭。孔子云：何陋之有？

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山不在高，有仙则名。水不在深，有龙则灵。斯是陋室，惟吾德馨。苔痕上阶绿，草色入帘青。谈笑有鸿儒，往来无白丁。可以调素琴，阅金经。无丝竹之乱耳，无案牍之劳形。南阳诸葛庐，西蜀子云亭。孔子云：何陋之有？

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English translation by Claude (an AI)

A mountain need not be high: if an immortal lives there, it is famous. Water need not be deep: if a dragon lives there, it is sacred. This is a humble room, but my virtue gives it fragrance. Moss climbs green up the steps; the green of the grass comes in through the blinds. Those who talk and laugh here are great scholars; no one unlettered comes and goes. Here I can tune a plain zither and read the golden sutras. No strings or flutes to trouble the ear, no official papers to weary the body. Zhuge Liang's thatched hut in Nanyang, Ziyun's pavilion in western Shu. As Confucius said: "What humbleness would there be?"