【Preface】

‘Cherish one’s own beauty, respect other’s beauty, and when both beauties are respected and cherished, the world will become one”（各美其美，美人之美，美美与共，天下大同——费孝通）, said Fei Xiaotong, a famous Chinese sociologist at a cerebration party in honor of his eightieth birthday about thirty years ago. In a time of growing interest in intercultural communication today, these words sound especially wise and far sighted. Translation, as one of the most important means for cultural communication, is usually done into one’s mother tongue from other languages by native translators. This largely guarantees the quality of translated text, so far as the linguistic readability is concerned. However, this method implies a one-sidedness in correspondence, as only the translator’s ‘respect for other’s beauty” is concerned, regardless, though not completely, of how the local people look upon and cherish their own beauty. It should be compensated by translations on the other way, that is, works selected, interpreted, and translated by the local people themselves into languages other than their own. This approach may go directly against the prevalent views in modern translation theories but, in my opinion, is worthy of practicing. It is perhaps an even more effective way to bring about successful communication in cultures, and the beauties of the world can really be shared by the world’s people. It is with such understanding that the Shanghai Foreign Languages Education Press is organizing a new series of books, entitled Readings of Chinese Culture, to introduce Chinese culture, past and present, to the world, with works selected and translated by the Chinese scholars and translators. 

The series will cover a wide range of writings including but not restricted to works of different literary genres. For the first batch, we are glad to provide three books of essays and two books of short stories, all written by authors of the 20th century. They will be continued by a batch of serious academic writings on premodern Chinese classics in philosophy, literature, and historiography, written by influential scholars of our time. Later, we will offer more books on classical Chinese drama, classical Chinese poetry, etc. 

Some of the books in the series have been published before, but they have been revised and rearranged for the new purpose to meet the current needs of broader readers. We are looking forward to hear comments and suggestions on the series for future improvement.

【译者简介/About the translator】

卓振英 教授

曾担任汕头大学典籍英译研究中心主任（2001-2006），兼任中国英汉语比较研究会常务理事、典籍英译学科委员会召集人及全国典籍英译研究会副会长（2004-2014），现任浙江师范大学典籍翻译研究中心首席专家。已出版《华夏情怀—历代名诗英译及探微》《大中华文库·楚辞》《英译宋词集萃》《李渔诗赋楹联赏析》《汉诗英译论纲》等著作14部。

Zhuo Zhenying, full professor of English, is now Chairing Professor of the Center of Researches on the Translation of Classics, Zhejiang Normal University. He has published 14 books, such as The Chinese Sentiments. As Expressed in 128 Oft-quoted Poems. The Verse of Chu (in Library of Chinese Classics), An Annotated Anthology of Yue Songs Ancient and Modern and A Theoretic Outline of Verse Translation. Postitions he had held include Director of STU Center of Researches on Classics Translation, Member of the Standing Committee of National Association of Comparative Studies Between English and Chinese, Vice Chairman of the National Association of Classics Translation, Director of ZNU Institute of Researches on the Translation of Classics, etc.

 Introduction

 Selected Ci-Poems of the Song Dynasty

 The Southland in Spring

 Pride of the Fisherman

 Temple Music

 Bells in the Rain 

 Watching the Sea Tide

 An Eight-Beat Song of Ganzhou

 Buddhist Dance

 The Lily Magnolia

 The Jade Tower in Spring 

 Rinsing Yarn in the Brook

 The Butterfly Fluttering around the Flowers

 Hawthorns in the Wilderness

 Waves Washing the Sand

 The Return of Ruan the Native

 Fragrant Is the Cassia Twig

 The Jade Tower in Spring

 Immortals over the River

 The Diviner

 Buddhist Dance

 Prelude to Melody of Flowing Waters

 The Riverside Town

 Charming Is Niannu

 The Butterfly Fluttering around the Flowers

 The Riverside town

 Yearning for the South

 Immortals over the River

 Partridges in the Sky

 Taming the Waves and winds

 Celebrating Peace and Order

 Immortals on the Magpie Bridge

 Walking on Grassland

 The Half-dead Parasol

 Life Journey Is Full of Perils

 Rinsing Yarn in the Brook

 The Butterfly Fluttering around the Flowers Temple Music

 Yu the Beauty

 A Blessing at Hand

 Yanshan Pavilion

 Liuyao Melody

 Beats Slowing Down

 Tipsy in the Shade ofFlowers

 A Dreamy Strain

 In Memory of the Belle of Qin

 A Twig of Plum Flowers

 Pride of the Fisherman

 The Lily Magnolia (A Simplified Version)

 Spring in Wuling

 Pride of the Fisherman 

 The River All Red

 The Butterfly Fluttering around the Flowers Charming Eyes

 Partridges in the Sky

 Partridges in the Sky

 Phoenix Hairpin

 Relating Heartfelt Aspirations

 Immortals on the Magpie Bridge

 Immortals on the Magpie Bridge

 Immortals on the Magpie Bridge

 The Diviner

 Charming Is Niannu

 Partridges in the Sky 

 Rinsing Yarn in the Brook 

 Buddhist Dance

 The Desk of Green Jade

 The Moon over the West River

 The Joy of Lasting Acquaintanceship Fumbling for Fish

 Undermining the Battle Array

 Celebrating Peace and Order

 Hawthorns in the Wilderness

 Prelude to Melody of Flowing Waters Charming Is Niannu

 Song of Yangzhou with a Slow Rhythm Urging Spring to Stay

 Celebrating Peace and Order

 Congratulations to the Bridegroom Green Are the Willow Twigs

 Celebrating Peace and Order

 Libation to the Moon over the Rill