小石潭记 The Little Stone Pool

从小丘西行百二十步，隔篁竹，闻水声，如鸣佩环，心乐之。 cóng xiǎo qiū xī xíng bǎi èr shí bù, gé huáng zhú, wén shuǐ shēng, rú míng pèi huán, xīn lè zhī.
A hundred and twenty paces west of the little hill, through a stand of bamboo, I heard water sounding like clinking jade ornaments, and it delighted me.

伐竹取道，下见小潭，水尤清冽。 fá zhú qǔ dào, xià jiàn xiǎo tán, shuǐ yóu qīng liè.
We cut through the bamboo to make a path, and below us saw a little pool whose water was especially clear.

全石以为底，近岸，卷石底以出，为坻，为屿，为嵁，为岩。 quán shí yǐ wéi dǐ, jìn àn, juǎn shí dǐ yǐ chū, wéi chí, wéi yǔ, wéi kān, wéi yán.
A single mass of stone formed its bed. Near the bank, the stone bed curved up above the water, making low islets, small islands, rough rocks and crags.

青树翠蔓，蒙络摇缀，参差披拂。 qīng shù cuì màn, méng luò yáo zhuì, cēn cī pī fú.
Green trees and emerald vines covered, entwined, swayed and trailed over it, hanging in uneven strands.

潭中鱼可百许头，皆若空游无所依。 tán zhōng yú kě bǎi xǔ tóu, jiē ruò kōng yóu wú suǒ yī.
There were perhaps a hundred fish in the pool, all seeming to swim in empty air with nothing supporting them.

日光下澈，影布石上，佁然不动； rì guāng xià chè, yǐng bù shí shàng, yǐ rán bù dòng;
Sunlight reached the bottom, and their shadows lay on the stone as they stayed motionless;

俶尔远逝，往来翕忽，似与游者相乐。 chù ěr yuǎn shì, wǎng lái xī hū, sì yǔ yóu zhě xiāng lè.
then suddenly they darted away, flashing back and forth as if playing happily with the visitors.

潭西南而望，斗折蛇行，明灭可见。 tán xī nán ér wàng, dǒu zhé shé xíng, míng miè kě jiàn.
Looking southwest from the pool, the stream turned like the Dipper and wound like a snake, appearing and disappearing from view.

其岸势犬牙差互，不可知其源。 qí àn shì quǎn yá cī hù, bù kě zhī qí yuán.
Its banks jutted unevenly like a dog's teeth, and its source could not be found.

坐潭上，四面竹树环合，寂寥无人，凄神寒骨，悄怆幽邃。 zuò tán shàng, sì miàn zhú shù huán hé, jì liáo wú rén, qī shén hán gǔ, qiǎo chuàng yōu suì.
Sitting by the pool, with bamboo and trees closing around it on every side, I found it deserted and silent. It chilled my spirit and bones, gloomy, deep and secluded.

以其境过清，不可久居，乃记之而去。 yǐ qí jìng guò qīng, bù kě jiǔ jū, nǎi jì zhī ér qù.
Because the place was too desolate, I could not stay long, so I wrote this record and left.

同游者：吴武陵，龚古，余弟宗玄。 tóng yóu zhě: wú wǔ líng, gōng gǔ, yú dì zōng xuán.
My companions on the excursion were Wu Wuling, Gong Gu and my younger brother Zongxuan.

隶而从者，崔氏二小生：曰恕己，曰奉壹。 lì ér cóng zhě, cuī shì èr xiǎo shēng: yuē shù jǐ, yuē fèng yī.
Following as attendants were two young men of the Cui family, called Shuji and Fengyi.