慶曆四年春，滕子京謫守巴陵郡。越明年，政通人和，百廢具興，乃重修岳陽樓，增其舊制，刻唐賢今人詩賦於其上；屬予作文以記之。

In the spring of the fourth year of the Qingli Era, Sung Dynasty, Teng Zhijing was banished and downgraded to magistrate of Baling County. In the next year that followed, he acquitted himself brilliantly in public affairs and relations and had boosted all constructions that lagged behind. So he refurbished the Yueyang Tower, enhancing its original scales, inscribing on its walls, and pilliarizing the poems and verses written by the distinguished authors of the Tang Dynasty and of modern times. In commemoration of the event, he asked me to write an epigraph accordingly.

 予觀夫巴陵勝狀，在洞庭一湖。銜遠山，吞長江，浩浩湯湯，橫無際涯；朝暉夕陰，氣象萬千；此則岳陽樓之大觀也，前人之述備矣。然則北通巫峽，南極瀟湘，遷客騷人，多會於此，覽物之情，得無異乎？

From my observation, I can see the major attractions of Baling County are mainly located around Lake Tongting, which stretches to the faraway mountains and contains the floods from the Yangtze River, making it a naturally aquatic scenery of magnificence and vastness. Gleaming glows at dawn and overcast skies at dusk display a picturesque variety viewed from Yueyang Tower, which has been well captured by many writers before our time. However, werent the travelers and the leterati who often converged at this mecca, a place that connects Wu Gorge at the north and Xiaoxiang at the south, having nuances of mood when watching the spectacular views? 

 若夫霪雨霏霏，連月不開；陰風怒號，濁浪排空；日星隱耀，山岳潛形；商旅不行，檣傾楫摧；薄暮冥冥，虎嘯猿啼；登斯樓也，則有去國懷鄉，憂讒畏譏，滿目蕭然，感極而悲者矣。
When the rainy season comes, it will rain for months, and people will not be able to see any clear sky. During the rainy days, howls the cold, damp wind, breaks the swollen, turbid lake water, blurs the light of the sun and stars, and hides the remote mountains. The storms topple the mainmasts and destory the oars of vessels, thus deterring merchants and travelers from moving on. Amid twilights, the sounds of roaring tigers and crying apes are audible. Stepping onto the tower in an inclemency fraught with bleak void, one may harbor the sentiments of loneliness and nostalgia, or the feelings of being afraid of gossip and insinuation, which are conducive to extreme sadness and grief. 

 至若春和景明，波瀾不驚，上下天光，一碧萬頃；沙鷗翔集，錦鱗游泳，岸芷汀蘭，郁郁青青。而或長煙一空，皓月千里，浮光躍金，靜影沉壁，漁歌互答，此樂何極！登斯樓也，則有心曠神怡，寵辱偕忘、把酒臨風，其喜洋洋者矣。

And then there comes bracing springtime and a bright landscape. The blue, tranquil waters of the lake, barely with ripples, streatch endlessly to the horizon and merge with the sky. Sand birds are hovering, while colorful carp are swimming. The verdant grass on the shore and the fresh orchids on the sandbar are all lush and fragrant. In the nights when the mist is gone and the moon is shedding its lights all over the lake, the golden dots of moonbeams glisten on the ripples, and the reflection of the moon stays at the bottom of the lake like a huge piece of sunk jade. Fishermen greet each other with songs, and how happy they can be! How happy the tourists are! Again, stepping onto the tower in these halcyon days, one can feel relaxed and composed, forget any grace or disgrace as well, and intoxicate oneself in the breeze with a cup of wine in hand.

嗟夫！予嘗求古仁人之心，或異二者之為，何哉？不以物喜，不以己悲，居廟堂之高，則憂其民；處江湖之遠，則憂其君。是進亦憂，退亦憂；然則何時而樂耶？其必曰：「先天下之憂而憂，後天下之樂而樂」乎！噫！微斯人，吾誰與歸！時六年九月十五日。

Alas! I have tried to understand why there is a difference in the notion between the noble-minded of ancient times and the two completely opposite ideas above-mentioned. Why? The noble-minded would
not feel pleased by external gains, especially those jobs in the office, nor would he feel saddened when he loses the jobs. When in high position, what concerns him most are the fellow countrymen he is serving; when out of position, what concerns him most are the emperor and state affairs. Therefore, the noble-minded person is always concerned about others, whether he is in the office or not. Then when will he be relaxed and intoxicate himself? Certainly he will say, "For public affairs, I will bear the tribulation before anybody else, and I will enjoy the fruits after anybody else, too." Oh, without such noble persons, who will be the ones I hope to emulate?

Written on the 15th day of September, the sixth year of the Qingli Era.