| | 仲長統昌... : |
教化以禮義為宗，禮義以典籍為本。常道行于百世，權宜用于一時。高辛巳往，則聞其人不見其書；唐虞夏殷，則見其書不詳其事。周氏已來，載籍具矣。 |
| | Moral instruction takes rites and righteousness as its foundation, while rites and righteousness take classical texts as their basis. Perpetual principles prevail through countless generations, whereas expedient measures are applied only for a time. Gaoxin has already passed away; one may have heard of the man but not seen his writings; Tang, Yu, Xia, and Yin dynasties saw their writings but did not fully understand the events. Since the Zhou dynasty, records have been complete.
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| | 仲長統昌... : |
後嗣愚王見天下莫與之違，奔其私情，騁其邪欲，君臣宣淫，上下同惡。目極角觝之觀，耳窮鄭衛之聲。入則騁于婦人而不反，出則馳于田弋而不還。信任親愛，寵貴后妃，命移運去，不自知也。 |
| | Later foolish kings, seeing that none in the world dared to oppose them, gave way to their private emotions and indulged their wicked desires; rulers and ministers openly engaged in licentiousness, while superiors and inferiors shared in evil. Their eyes were filled with the spectacle of jiaodi contests, their ears overwhelmed by the music of Zheng and Wei. Within, they indulged in concubines without returning to duty; outside, they roamed hunting grounds without returning home. Trusting and favoring beloved ones, honoring empresses and consorts, their fate shifted and fortune departed, yet they were unaware of it themselves.
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| | 仲長統昌... : |
建旗伐鼓，高烽明候，守邊之猛將，非中國之良吏。和鑾法駕，清道而行，便辟揖讓，諸夏之威儀，非夷狄之有也。 |
| | Raising banners and beating drums, raising high beacons and clear signals, the fierce generals guarding the borders are not good officials of China. Harmonizing the 銮 (luan) and following the prescribed procession, proceeding with a cleared path, courteous bows and yielding gestures—these are the dignified rites of Zhuxia, not possessed by the Yi and Di.
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| | 仲長統昌... : |
董賢之于哀帝，無骨肉絲髮之親，又不能傳其氣類，定其繼嗣，以丈夫宴接之歡，自成膠漆也。 |
| | Dong Xian and Emperor Ai had no blood relation, not even the slightest kinship; he could neither pass on his lineage nor establish a successor. The joy of a man's intimate companionship became as inseparable as glue and lacquer.
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| | 仲長統昌... : |
景帝顯位，刺史者皆是宦臣子弟，猶如豺狼守肉，鬼魅侍疾，曰：「在天之內，在人之外。」 |
| | When Emperor Jing ascended the throne, all cishi officials were sons of eunuchs; they were like jackals guarding meat and ghosts tending to illness, saying: "Within Heaven's domain, beyond humanity's reach."
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| | 仲長統昌... : |
人愛我，我愛之；人憎我，我憎之。 |
| | If people love me, I will love them in return; If people hate me, I will hate them in return.
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| | 仲長統昌... : |
天下士有三俗：選士而論族姓閥閲，一俗；交游趨富貴之門，二俗；畏服不接于貴尊，三俗。天下之士有三可賤：慕名而不知實，一可賤；不敢正是非于富貴，二可賤；向盛背衰，三可賤。 |
| | There are three vulgarities among the scholars of the world: selecting officials based on family name and lineage, is one vulgarity; seeking friendships by rushing to the doors of the wealthy and noble, is a second vulgarity; fearing and obeying without connecting with those in high positions, is a third vulgarity. There are three things that make scholars of the world contemptible: admiring names without knowing their substance, is one thing to be despised; failing to uphold right and wrong in the face of wealth and nobility, is a second thing to be despised; turning toward prosperity while abandoning decline, is a third thing to be despised.
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| | 仲長統昌... : |
天下學士有三姦焉：實不知，詳不言，一也；竊他人之記以成己說，二也；受無名者移知者，三也。 |
| | Among the scholars of the world there are three kinds of deceit: lacking true knowledge yet pretending to remain silent, is one; stealing others' writings to form one's own arguments, is two; accepting knowledge from the nameless while transferring it to those who know, is three.
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| | 仲長統昌... : |
知言而不能行謂之疾。此疾雖有天醫，莫能治也。 |
| | Knowing words but being unable to act upon them is called illness. This illness, though a heavenly physician were present, could not be cured.
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| | 仲長統昌... : |
同于我者，何必可愛？異于我者，何必可憎？知足以立難成之事，能足以圖難致之功。附者不黨，疎者不遺。 |
| | Those who are the same as I am—why must they necessarily be loved? Those different from me—why must they necessarily be hated? Knowledge sufficient to accomplish difficult tasks, ability adequate to achieve arduous feats. Those who attach themselves are not biased; those who remain distant are not neglected.
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| | 仲長統昌... : |
婦人有朝哭良人，暮適他土，涉歷百庭，顔色不愧。今公侯之宫，美女數百；卿士之家，侍妾數十。晝則以醇酒淋其骨髓，夜則以房室輸其血氣。 |
| | A woman may weep for her husband in the morning and marry another by evening, passing through a hundred courtyards with no shame on her face. Now, within the mansions of marquises and dukes, there are hundreds of beautiful women; in the homes of high officials, dozens of concubines serve. By day they drown their bone marrow in strong wine; by night they drain their vital energy through excessive sexual activity.
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| | 仲長統昌... : |
人之性。有山峙淵渟者，患在不通；嚴剛貶絕者，患在傷士；廣大闊蕩者，患在無檢；和順恭慎者，患在少斷；端慤清潔者，患在拘狹；辯通有辭者，患在多言；安舒沈重者，患在後時；好古守經者，患在不變；勇毅果敢者，患在險害。 |
| | Human nature. Some are like mountains standing tall or deep pools still, their problem is being closed off; those who are stern and harshly dismissive, their problem lies in harming scholars; those broad and unrestrained, their problem is lacking restraint; those gentle, compliant, and cautious, their problem lies in indecisiveness; those upright, sincere, and pure, their problem is narrow-mindedness; those eloquent and articulate, their problem lies in excessive speech; those calm, relaxed, and ponderous, their problem is falling behind the times; those who love antiquity and adhere to classics, their problem lies in being inflexible; those brave and resolute, their problem is taking on perilous risks.
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| | 仲長統昌... : |
疏濯胸臆，澡雪腹心，使之芬香皓潔，白不可污也。道德仁義，天性也。織之以成其物，鍊之以致其精，瑩之以發其光。 |
| | Clearing the mind and purifying the heart, making them fragrant, bright, and pure—so white they cannot be sullied. Virtue, morality, benevolence, and righteousness are natural dispositions of human nature. Weave them to form things, refine them to achieve their essence, polish them to reveal their brilliance.
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| | 仲長統昌... : |
幽暗則攻人之所短，會同則述人之所長。負我者，我又加厚焉；疑我者，我又加信焉。難必相恤，利必相反。 |
| | In darkness they attack others' weaknesses; in harmony they speak of others' strengths. Those who wrong me, I treat them even more kindly; those who doubt me, I respond with even greater trustworthiness. In hardship we must support each other; in profit we inevitably turn against one another.
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| | 仲長統昌... : |
事君不為君所知，忠未至也；與人交不為人所信，義未至也。 |
| | Serving a ruler without being known by the ruler means loyalty has not reached its height; Making friends without being trusted by them means righteousness has not reached its depth.
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| | 仲長統昌... : |
父母不好學業，惡子孫學之，可違而學也；父母不好士，惡子孫友之，可違而交也。 |
| | If parents do not like learning, yet dislike their descendants studying—it is permissible to defy them and pursue learning; if parents do not value scholars, yet hate that their descendants befriend them—it is permissible to disobey them and make such friends.
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| | 仲長統昌... : |
英辭雨集，妙句雲來。 |
| | Brilliant expressions fall like rain; exquisite lines arrive as clouds.
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| | 仲長統昌... : |
愛惡相攻，理之自然也。惬快以志，人之所欲也。 |
| | Love and hatred clash—this is the natural order of things. Pleasure and satisfaction in one's aspirations are what people desire.
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| | 仲長統昌... : |
嗽舌下泉咽之，名曰胎食。得道者生六翮于臂，長毛羽于腹，飛無階之蒼天，度無窮之世俗。 |
| | Swallowing the saliva produced by licking the tongue is called tai shi (fetal food). Those who attain the Dao grow six wings on their arms and long feathers on their bellies, flying to the boundless blue sky, transcending the endless mundane world.
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| | 仲長統昌... : |
北方寒而人壽，南方暑而人夭。如蠶寒而飢，則引日多，溫而飽，則引日少。 |
| | The north is cold and its people live long; the south is hot and its people die young. If silkworms are cold and hungry, they will live longer; if warm and well-fed, their lifespan is shorter.
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| | 仲長統昌... : |
湯，契後；秦，益後。益即臯陶子也。 |
| | Tang was the descendant of Ji; Qin was the descendant of Yi. Yi was the son of Gao Yao.
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