人生——之十九

胸藏丘壑，城市不异山林；兴寄烟霞，阎浮有如蓬岛。梧桐为植物中清品，而形家独忌之
甚，且谓梧桐大如斗，主人往外走……俗言之不足据，类如此夫。

含徵曰：爱碧桐者遂艰于白镪。造物盖忌之，如靳之也，有何吉凶休咎之可关。只是打秋
风时，光棍样可厌耳。

In possession of a lively imagination, one can live in the cities and feel like one is in the mountains, and following one's fancies with the clouds, one can convert the dark continent of the south into fairy isles. A great wrong has been committed on the plane tree by the necromancers who regard it as bringing bad luck, saying that when a plane tree grows in the yard, its owner will live abroad...Most superstitions are like that.

Hanchen:Those who love the plane tree are often poor. But that is because the Lord does not want us to have all the blessings at the same time. It is true, however, that in autumn its bare-knuckled and knobbed branches are difficult to look at.

人生——之二十

有地上之山水，有画上之山水，有梦中之山水，有胸中之山水。地上者妙在邱壑深邃，画
上者妙在笔墨淋漓，梦中者妙在景象变幻，胸中者妙在位置自如。

星远曰：心斋《幽梦影》中文字，其妙亦在景象变幻。
（殷）日戒曰：若诗文中之山水，其幽深变幻，更不可以名状。
含徵曰：但不可有面上之山水。
（余）香祖曰：余境况不佳，水穷山尽矣。

There are hills and waters on the earth,in paintings,in dreams,and in one's
imagination.The beauty of such hills and waters on the earth is in their
grace and variety;that in paintings,richness of ink and freedom of the
brush;that in dreams,their changefulness;and that in one's imagination,good
composition.

Shingyuan:The writing of this book has grace and variety also.
Jihchieh:In literature,the changes and surprises are even more exciting and
difficult to describe.
Hanchen:But please not those changes of expression on the face(of snobbery,etc.)!
Shiangtsu:But sometimes when one meets hardships,the hills seem blocked and
the waters come to a dead end,as in my case.

人生——之二十一

鳞虫中金鱼，羽虫中紫燕，可云物类神仙。正如东方曼倩避世金马门，人不得而害之。

含徵曰：金鱼之所以免汤镬者，以其色胜而味苦耳。昔人有以重价觅奇特者，以馈邑侯。
邑侯他日谓之曰：“贤所赠花鱼殊无味。”盖已烹之矣。世岂少削圆方竹杖者哉。

Be a goldfish among the fish and a swallow among the birds.There are like
Taoist fairies who go through life like the witty Tungfang Manching,safe from
harm from those in power.

Hanchen:The goldfish escapes from harm because its flesh is bitter to the
taste.Once there was a man who paid a high price for a beautiful variety and
sent it as a present to a magistrate.Later the magistrate said to him,"The
beautiful fish you sent me seemed to be perfectly tasteless." He meant that
he had cooked and tasted it.There are such people in the world!