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房屋与家庭——之一
抄写之笔墨不必过求其佳，若施之缣素则不可不求其佳。诵读之书籍不必过求其备，若以供
稽考则不可不求其备。游历之山水不必过求其妙，若因之卜居则不可不求其妙。
辟疆曰：外遇之女色不必过求其美，若以作姬妾则不可不求其美。
永清曰：观其区处条理，所在经济可知。
One need not be too particular about pen and ink when doing copy
work, but should be particular when writing things to be framed.
Also one can have a random collection of books for reading, but
should insist on good, adequate reference works. Likewise, what
landscape one sees in passing in travel is not too important, but
that of the place where one is going to build a house and settle
down is of prime importance.
Pichiang: Women with whom one has casual affairs need not be
especially beautiful, but the
mistress one is going to live with at home must be.
Yungching: There is a sense of relative importance shown in
Pichiang’s statement.
房屋与家庭——之二
忙人园亭宜与住宅相连，闲人园亭不妨与住宅相远。
竹坡曰：真闲人必以园亭为住宅。
A busy man must plan to have his garden next to his house, but a
man of leisure can afford to have it some distance away.
Chupo: A real man of leisure would make the garden his home.
房屋与家庭——之三
园亭之妙在丘壑布置，不在雕绘琐屑。往往见人家园亭屋脊墙头雕砖镂瓦，非不穷极工巧，
然未久即坏，坏后极难修葺，是何如朴素之为佳乎。
弟木山曰：予尝悟作园亭与作光棍二法，园亭之善在多回廊，光棍之恶在能结讼。
The essential thing in a garden with terraces is plan and
composition, and not ornamental details. I have often seen homes
which expended a great deal of effort on such carvings and
ornamentations.These are difficult to keep in good condition and
costly in repairs. Better have a simpler taste.
[Younger brother] Mushan: It occurred to me that house gardens and
crooks have something in
common; garden homes achieve their effect by deceptive curving
corridors, and crooks and cheats play the same game of
hide-and-seek with the law.
房屋与家庭——之四
艺花可以邀蝶，累石可以邀云，栽松可以邀风，贮水可以邀萍，筑台可以邀月，种蕉可以邀
雨，植柳可以邀蝉。
（曹）秋岳曰：藏书可以邀友。
（崔）莲峰曰：酿酒可以邀我。
（尤）艮斋曰：安得此贤主人。
慧珠曰：贤主人非心斋而谁乎。
永清曰：选诗可以邀谤。
天池曰：不仁可以邀富。
Planting flowers invites the butterflies, and in the same way rocks
invite clouds, the pine invites winds, a water pond invites
duckweed, a terrace may be said to invite the moon, bananas invite
the rain, and willows invite cicadas.
Chiuyo: A library attracts friends.
Lienfeng: The brewing of wine attracts me.
Kentsai: Where can we find such a host?
[Miss] Hueichu: Shintsai is one.
Yungching: Making an anthology of poetry invites criticism.
Tienchih: A grasping nature invites riches.
房屋与家庭——之五
梅边之石宜古，松下之石宜拙，竹傍之石宜瘦，盆内之石宜巧。
Different types of rocks should be selected for different places:
“primitive” ones should be placed with the plum tree, rugged, heavy
ones near pines, slender slabs near bamboos, and delicate varieties
in a flowerpot or tray.
房屋与家庭——之六
一日之计种蕉，一岁之计种竹，十年之计种柳，百年之计种松。
星远曰：千秋之计其著书乎？
竹坡曰：百世之计种德。
In planting trees, so much depends on in how many years you want to
see the results. For
immediate results, choose bananas; planning for one year, choose
bamboos, for ten years, willows, and for a hundred years, pine
trees.
Shingyuan: Planning for a thousand years, write books.
Chupo: For a hundred generations, plant ”virtue”.
房屋与家庭——之七
一恨书囊易蛀，二恨夏夜有蚊，三恨月台易漏，四恨菊叶多焦，五恨松多大蚁，六恨竹多落
叶，七恨桂荷易谢，八恨薜萝藏虺，九恨架花生刺，十恨河豚多毒。
菂庵曰：黄山松并无大蚁，可以不恨。
天外曰：予另有二恨，一曰才人无行，二曰佳人薄命。
There are ten kinds of worries or things to look out for: (1) Moths
in book bags. (2) Mosquitoes on summer nights. (3) A leaky terrace.
(4) Dry chrysanthemum leaves. (5) Big ants near pines. (6) Too many
fallen leaves of bamboos. (7) Too quick wilting of lotus flowers.
(8) Snakes near creepers. (9) Thorns on a trellis of flowers. (10)
Being poisoned from eating globefish.
Ti-an: There are no big ants near pines on the Yellow
Mountain.
Tienwai: I have two worries or regrets: first, that brilliant men
have no character, and secondly that beautiful women often have
tragic lives.
房屋与家庭——之八
窗内人于窗纸上作字，吾于窗外观之，极佳。
It is wonderful to see from the outside a man writing characters on
window paper from the inside.
房屋与家庭——之九
冰裂纹极雅，然宜瘦不宜肥，若以之作窗栏，殊不耐观也。
Latticework is all right, but it should consist of fine lines. If
lines are heavy, it would not look nice on windows.
房屋与家庭——之十
养花胆瓶，其式之高低大小须与花相称，而色之浅深浓淡又须与花相反。
竹坡曰：夫如此，有不甘去南枝而生香于几案之右者乎？名花心足矣。
（王）宓草曰：须知相反者正欲其相称也。
The vases used for arranging flowers should be chosen so that their
size and shape agree with the flowers but their dark or light
shades of color contrast with them.
Chupo: With such a regard for beauty, the flowers may be willing to
part from their branches
without regret. They will be satisfied with their new home.
Mitsao: The contrast in shade is for the purpose of making the vase
and the flowers look unified in effect.
房屋与家庭——之十一
虽不善书，而笔砚不可不精；虽不业医，而验方不可不存；虽不工奕，而楸枰不可不备。
含徵曰：虽不善饮，而良酝不可不藏，此坡仙之所以为坡仙也。
Certain things must be provided in the home: good pens and ink
stone, although the owner himself is not a calligraphist; a home
book of medical recipes, although not a doctor; and a chessboard
although he may not play.
Hanchen: And a good cellar, although the owner may not drink.
房屋与家庭——之十二
居城市中，当以画幅当山水，以盆景当苑囿，以书籍当朋友。
A man living in the city must make scrolls of painting serve as a
natural landscape, have flower arrangements in pots serve as a
garden, and have books serve as his friends.
房屋与家庭——之十三
如何是独乐乐，曰鼓琴；如何是与人乐乐，曰奕棋；如何是与众乐乐，曰马吊。
（蔡）铉升曰：与少乐乐，与众乐乐，孰乐？曰不若与少。
To amuse oneself, play the chin, to amuse oneself with a friend,
play chess, and to have general entertainment, play matiao [a game
of cards, ancestor of mahjong].
Shuansheng: Rather enjoy a small party than a big
one.
房屋与家庭——之十四
宜于耳复宜于目者，弹琴也，吹萧也；宜于耳不宜于目者，吹笙也，擪（ye）管也。
圣许曰：宜于目不宜于耳者，狮子吼之美妇人也。
Musical instruments that are good to listen to and to look at
playing are the chin and the shiao [a flute]; those good to listen
to, but not to look at playing are the sheng [small reed organ held
close to the mouth] and the kuan [oboe-like instrument].
Shengshu: What is beautiful to look at but not to hear is the
scolding and screaming from a
beautiful young wife.
房屋与家庭——之十五
天下器玩之类，其制日工，其价日贱，毋惑乎民之贫也。
竹坡曰：由于民贫，故益工而益贱，若不贫如何肯贱。
The quality of things made, vessels, utensils, and toys, has
steadily improved in these years, while their prices have steadily
gone down. It must be that the artisans are becoming poorer.
Chupo: It must be due to poverty. The artisans have no choice, but
to put more work into it and sell a product for less.
房屋与家庭——之十六
镜不幸而遇嫫母，砚不幸而遇俗子，剑不幸而遇庸将，皆无可奈何之事。
When a good mirror meets an ugly owner, a good inkstone meets a
vulgar person, and a good
sword finds itself in the hands of a common general, there is
nothing these things can do about it.
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