愛蓮說
On Loving the Lotus
Zhou Dunyi 周敦頤 (1017–1073)
Song · 1063

Cold Library · Open Stacks · S-002029 · https://coldlibrary.com/s/002029
Rights: Northern Song prose; the author died in 1073. 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/愛蓮說 (retrieved 2026-10-11)
English translation: Claude (an AI), 2026 · CC0 1.0
Generated 2026-10-14 from https://coldlibrary.com/en/open-stacks/zhou-dunyi-on-loving-the-lotus

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水陸草木之花，可愛者甚蕃。晉陶淵明獨愛菊。自李唐來，世人盛愛牡丹。予獨愛蓮之出淤泥而不染，濯清漣而不妖，中通外直，不蔓不枝，香遠益清，亭亭淨植，可遠觀而不可褻玩焉。

予謂菊，花之隱逸者也；牡丹，花之富貴者也；蓮，花之君子者也。噫！菊之愛，陶後鮮有聞。蓮之愛，同予者何人？牡丹之愛，宜乎眾矣。

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水陆草木之花，可爱者甚蕃。晋陶渊明独爱菊。自李唐来，世人盛爱牡丹。予独爱莲之出淤泥而不染，濯清涟而不妖，中通外直，不蔓不枝，香远益清，亭亭净植，可远观而不可亵玩焉。

予谓菊，花之隐逸者也；牡丹，花之富贵者也；莲，花之君子者也。噫！菊之爱，陶后鲜有闻。莲之爱，同予者何人？牡丹之爱，宜乎众矣。

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English translation by Claude (an AI)

Of the flowers of plants and trees on water and on land, many are worth loving. Tao Yuanming of the Jin loved only the chrysanthemum. Since the Tang of the Li family, people have loved the peony above all. I alone love the lotus: it rises out of the mud and is not stained by it; it is washed by clear ripples and is not showy. Its stem is hollow within and straight without; it does not sprawl and does not branch. Its fragrance grows purer the further it travels. It stands tall and clean, to be admired from a distance but not handled lightly.

I would say the chrysanthemum is the recluse among flowers, the peony is the flower of wealth and rank, and the lotus is the gentleman among flowers. Ah, since Tao Yuanming, little has been heard of anyone who loved the chrysanthemum. Who shares my love of the lotus? As for love of the peony, that of course is shared by many.