Poem: The Book 宋诗《观书有感》

ɡuān shū yǒu ɡǎn
观书有感
Zhū Xī （Sònɡ）
朱熹（宋）

Bàn mǔ fānɡ tánɡ yí jiàn kāi,
半亩方塘一鉴开，
tiān ɡuānɡ yún yǐnɡ ɡònɡ páihuái.
天光云影共徘徊。
Wèn qú nǎ dé qīnɡ rúxǔ,
问渠哪得清如许,
wèi yǒu yuántóu huó shuǐ lái.
为有源头活水来。

evaluation

半亩大的方形池塘像一面镜子一样展现在眼前，天空的光彩和浮云的影子都在这面镜子中一起荡漾。要问为什么它（那方塘）的水会这样清澈呢？是因为有那永不枯竭的源头为它源源不断地输送活水啊。
The oblong pool as large as half a mu lies ahead like a mirror, wher the light and shadow of clouds in the sky float on its surface. People may wonder why it can be so clear, because there is always fresh water flowing from its source.
这首诗用方塘来比喻读书——池塘并不是一潭死水，而是常有活水注入，因此像明镜一样，清澈见底，映照着天光云影。这种情景，同一个人在读书中搞通问题、获得新知而大有收益、提高认识时的情形很相似，形象地表达了作者的读书感受——人要想达到心境清明，思想活跃的境界，就必须要经常读书，及时补充新知识，后来人们也常用后两句诗来比喻只有以开阔的胸襟，接受种种不同的思想、鲜活的知识，广泛包容，一个人才能新的想法不断，新的思想如水一样长流。
In this poem, the oblong pool is a metaphor for book reading. It is not a pool of stagnant water because there is always fresh water flowing within. That’s why the pool looks like a mirror; the reflection of the sky and clouds is crystal clear. It is the same with reading a book. We ought to read many books in order to gain new knowledge and to refresh and updat our learning. The metaphor of the oblong pool conveys the poet’s ideal that people have to read books frequently for new knowledge if they want to inspire and enlighten themselves. The last two lines of the poem are frequently quoted to indicate that if people can be broad-minded enough to tolerate and embrace different ideas, they will be able to have ever-flowing fresh thoughts.
Explanation

池塘 (chítánɡ ) : n. pool
荡漾(dàngyàng) : v. ripple
清澈 (qīnɡchè): adj. limpid
枯竭 (kūjié): adj. dried up
源头 (yuántóu): n. source
活跃 (huóyuè): adj. active
开阔 (kāikuò): adj. open; broad-minded
胸襟 (xiōnɡjīn): n. breadth of