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唐 Tang · 文 Prose

陋室铭

The Inscription of the Humble Room

刘禹锡

Liu Yuxi

唐Tang Dynasty 刘禹锡Liu Yuxi 铭Inscription 闲适Leisure 高洁Noble Purity

山不在高，有仙则名。
水不在深，有龙则灵。
斯是陋室，惟吾德馨。
苔痕上阶绿，草色入帘青。
谈笑有鸿儒，往来无白丁。
可以调素琴，阅金经。
无丝竹之乱耳，无案牍之劳形。
南阳诸葛庐，西蜀子云亭。
孔子云：何陋之有？

Mountains need not be high; with immortals they become renowned.
Waters need not be deep; with dragons they become numinous.
This is a humble room — only my virtue makes it fragrant.
Moss marks creep up the steps, green;
Grass colors enter the curtain, blue.
In talk and laughter there are great scholars;
In comings and goings there are no unlettered men.
I may pluck the plain zither and read the Golden Sutra.
No strings and pipes disturb my ears;
No official papers weary my body.
It matches Zhuge Liang's thatched hut in Nanyang
And Ziyun's pavilion in western Shu.
Confucius said: "How could it be humble?"

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Meaning

Liu Yuxi declares that although his room is physically humble, his virtuous character imbues it with fragrance and worth. He takes pride in the refined company he keeps and the simple pleasures of zither and sutras, rejecting worldly noise and official drudgery. By comparing his dwelling to those of Zhuge Liang and Yang Xiong and citing Confucius, he affirms that true nobility lies in the dweller, not the dwelling.

山不一定要高，有仙人便出名；水不一定要深，有龙便显灵。这虽是简陋的居室，只因我的德行而芬芳。苔痕漫上石阶一片青绿，草色映入帘内满目青葱。谈笑往来的都是博学的儒者，绝无粗鄙之人。可以弹弹素琴，读读佛经。没有嘈杂的音乐扰耳，没有公文劳形伤神。它好比南阳诸葛亮的草庐，西蜀扬子云的玄亭。孔子说：有什么简陋的呢？

Appreciation

The piece opens with analogies of mountains and waters to establish that intrinsic value determines fame and efficacy. It then pivots to the main thesis: 'This is a humble room, yet only my virtue makes it fragrant.' Vivid imagery of moss and grass, descriptions of scholarly visitors, and the quiet enjoyment of zither and sutras elaborate the theme of moral refinement. The concluding references to ancient sages and Confucius's rhetorical question elevate the personal declaration to a universal truth. In only eighty-one characters, Liu achieves a perfect balance of substance and form.

【白话串讲】 “山不在高，有仙则名。水不在深，有龙则灵”——刘禹锡写陋室铭。“斯是陋室，惟吾德馨”——“苔痕上阶绿，草色入帘青”——“谈笑有鸿儒，往来无白丁”——“南阳诸葛庐，西蜀子云亭。孔子云：何陋之有”——他住陋室，却自比诸葛、扬雄。【意象与手法】开篇以“山”“水”起兴引出“斯是陋室，惟吾德馨”的主旨；以苔痕草色、鸿儒往来、素琴金经铺陈室中之雅；再以诸葛庐、子云亭类比，结以孔子“何陋之有”反诘。骈散相生、音节铿锵，仅八十一字。【情感与主旨】刘禹锡被贬和州时所作的托物言志名篇，将安贫乐道、不慕荣利的高洁襟怀写得从容洒脱，突破铭文歌功颂德的常规，以小品文笔调言志，对后世书斋文化“陋室不陋”的精神传统影响深远。【名句点睛】常考“斯是陋室，惟吾德馨”以德馨写陋室不陋；“南阳诸葛庐，西蜀子云亭。孔子云：何陋之有”以诸葛子云自比写安贫乐道。

Background

It is generally believed that Liu Yuxi wrote this piece when he was demoted to Hezhou (now He County, Anhui) after the failure of the Wang Shuwen reform. Legend says the local magistrate deliberately gave him a cramped dwelling, and Liu responded by writing this inscription on his room. Regardless of the anecdote's authenticity, the poem embodies the indomitable spirit of Confucian scholars who maintain integrity despite adversity.

《陋室铭》一般认为是刘禹锡被贬和州（今安徽和县）时所作。据宋人笔记，他因参加王叔文革新失败，长期贬谪南方，任和州刺史时，当地知县故意刁难，先让他住偏窄之屋，他安然自若，连写三间陋室并题此铭，遂成佳话。故事真伪难全考，但「贬谪中作铭明志」的情境，与刘禹锡屡黜不屈的生平高度吻合。铭本是用于颂功纪事的文体，多刻于金石，体例庄重。刘禹锡却借铭的壳，写一间破屋子，这是文体上的「以庄写谐、以重写轻」——把最高规格的文体，用来安顿最卑微的居所，本身就含一股傲气。他要说的不是屋子多好，而是「人」多好：屋子陋不陋，不在砖瓦，在住它的人的德行。中唐士人屡遭党争倾轧，贬谪几成常态，如何在逆境中自处，是那一辈人共同的课题。刘禹锡的回答是「惟吾德馨」——不怨不怒，不慕荣利，以精神之丰代偿物质之薄。这种安贫乐道，并非消极退隐，而是一种主动的精神胜利。读懂这点，才明白末句「何陋之有」不是自我安慰的赖词，而是理直气壮的宣言。此铭之流传千年，正因它替所有身处困顿而心有不屈的人，说出了一句最体面的话。

Art

Structurally, the piece employs a four-part progression: analogy, thesis, elaboration, and allusion. The opening pairs of mountains/waters and immortals/dragons establish the logic that intrinsic qualities outshine external appearances. The middle section uses sensory details (green moss, grass color), social distinction (great scholars vs. common folk), and activities (playing zither, reading sutras) to concretize the ideal. The double negatives 'no ... disturb' and 'no ... fatigue' create a resonant vacuity. Parallel couplets are intertwined with prose-like lines, producing a rhythmic cadence. The ending allusions to Zhuge Liang and Yang Xiong, capped by Confucius's rhetorical question, give the humble room a timeless cultural pedigree.

此铭的艺术，首在「起兴—铺陈—类比—反诘」的四段式结构，层层递进，逻辑极清。开篇「山不在高，有仙则名。水不在深，有龙则灵」以山水起兴，用两个否定式判断，先立「价值不在外物之巨，而在其中之物」的命题，顺手引出「斯是陋室，惟吾德馨」的主旨。这是先讲道理再亮态度，读者还没看见屋子，已先服了这层理。中段「苔痕上阶绿，草色入帘青。谈笑有鸿儒，往来无白丁」转为写景写人，以视觉之青绿、交游之高雅，把「德馨」具体化；「可以调素琴，阅金经。无丝竹之乱耳，无案牍之劳形」再写日用，以「无」字两度排拒喧嚣与俗务，反向衬托出室中之静、之雅。句式上四言为主，间以五言，骈散相生，读来音节铿锵。末段「南阳诸葛庐，西蜀子云亭」以两位古贤的陋居类比，把自己的破屋一下抬进历史正典；结以「孔子云：何陋之有」的反诘，引圣人语作终判，气足神完。全篇八十一字，起承转合如法，用最少的字，完成了一次从具体到超越的精神飞跃。它示范了小品文如何「以小见大、以浅寓深」。

Allusions

The 'thatched hut of Zhuge Liang' recalls the Shu Han chancellor who once farmed in Nanyang before being summoned by Liu Bei. 'Ziyun's pavilion' refers to Yang Xiong (Ziyun), the Han dynasty scholar renowned for erudition despite poverty. By likening himself to these worthies, Liu claims spiritual kinship with the tradition of virtuous men living in plain dwellings. The final line quotes Confucius from the Analects (9.14): when asked about living in the 'nine barbarian tribes,' Confucius replied, 'If a gentleman dwells there, how could it be humble?' Liu thereby transforms his personal assertion into a classical axiom.

此铭用典虽少，却都压在要害处。「诸葛庐」用诸葛亮隐居南阳草庐事，《三国志》载其「躬耕于南阳」，后出佐刘备；「子云亭」用扬雄（字子云）事，扬雄校书天禄阁，著《太玄》《法言》，其居清贫而学富。刘禹锡把自己比于诸葛、扬雄，不是比功业，而是比「身处陋居而精神不陋」，一下子把私人居所接入了「贤者固穷」的士人传统。结尾「何陋之有」直接引《论语·子罕》：「子欲居九夷。或曰：陋，如之何？子曰：君子居之，何陋之有？」孔子本说君子所居则化，本无简陋；刘禹锡截此四字作结，等于请出圣人给自己背书，使「陋室不陋」从个人宣言升级为经典结论。这种「以经证我」的收束，是古文里极常见也极有效的手法。此外，「仙」「龙」起兴，亦承《易经》「云从龙，风从虎」与神仙道教语境，把山水灵异归之于「有物」，恰与后文「惟吾德馨」的「有德」形成隐喻对位：仙龙是山水的灵，德馨是陋室的灵。全篇意象虽简，却都在经典与传统的脉络里，绝非率尔之笔。

Commentary

Since the Song dynasty, this inscription has been celebrated as a model of witty brevity. It cleverly subverts the solemnity of the traditional inscription genre by applying it to a dilapidated room, thereby asserting the author's unyielding spirit. Commentators have noted the apparent elitism of 'no unlettered men' but interpret it as symbolic of intellectual affinities rather than social snobbery. Its enduring popularity lies in its universal message: inner worth can transcend outer poverty. It became a cornerstone of Chinese study culture, often inscribed on study walls and plaques.

此铭自宋以来，几乎篇篇选本必收，地位在铭文中极特殊。宋人尤重其「安贫乐道」之气，朱熹论人每以「君子固穷」相期，此铭正合其辙。明人吴讷《文章辨体》论铭，称「铭者，名也，在乎自戒」，而此铭却以明志为主，已开铭体新用；清人姚鼐《古文辞类纂》将其归入「箴铭类」，推为小品正格。近人论此文，多赏其「以小见大」与「反用文体」：本该颂功纪事的铭，被用来写破屋，这种反差本身就是一种风骨。也有论者指出，刘禹锡的「无白丁」「有鸿儒」，并非真要排挤常人，而是以交游之雅写精神之足，不宜读作势利；其「无丝竹之乱耳，无案牍之劳形」，亦是对官场喧嚣的温和拒绝，而非厌世。更有意味的是接受史：此铭因语言浅近、道理正大，自明清便入蒙学、入楹联、入书房匾额，成为「书斋文化」的精神图腾。「陋室不陋」四字，遂从一个被贬文人的自况，化作中国读书人面对困顿时共同的心理防线。一篇短文能长成一种文化符号，足见其力量。

Prosody

Form Inscription (ming) style; a prose-rhyme composition dominated by four-character lines interspersed with five-character and free cadences.铭文（散文体韵文，以四言为主，间以五言，骈散相生，句式错落）

Rhyme The entire piece follows one rhyme scheme on level tones (gēng/qīng rhymes) — 名, 灵, 馨, 青, 丁, 经, 形, 亭 — with the final word '有' closing on an oblique tone, creating a final short stagger.通篇押韵，以平声庚青韵为主：名、灵、馨、青、丁、经、形、亭，一韵贯穿；末以「有」字收束（有属上古之部，与前面青韵形成开合变化，亦暗合《论语》原句读音）。韵脚密布，使散文体仍有铿锵乐感。

Tone pattern As an inscription, there is no fixed regulated tonal pattern, but parallel couplets and symmetric syntax give it a strong musical pulse.铭文本不拘近体平仄，而重偶句协韵与句式对称。全文以四字句为骨（山不在高／有仙则名），间以「斯是陋室，惟吾德馨」「孔子云：何陋之有」等参差句，骈句（苔痕上阶绿，草色入帘青）与散句（可以调素琴，阅金经）错落，读来疾徐有致。

Reading note The rhythmic beauty lies in the alternation of strict parallel couplets (e.g., 苔痕上阶绿 / 草色入帘青) with looser prose lines (e.g., 可以调素琴，阅金经). The opening and closing use sparse, even lines, while the middle gains density. The rhyme sounds in level tones evoke clarity and distance, fitting the refined mood; the final short '有' acts like a terminating beat.铭是刻石颂戒之体，传统上讲究音节顿挫、便于诵记，故多用偶句协韵。《陋室铭》虽内容写破屋，形式却严守铭体的韵文骨架：四言为主、韵脚绵密，使八十一字读来如击玉。它的声律妙处，在「骈散相生」。纯粹的骈文易板，纯粹的散文易散；此铭以「苔痕上阶绿，草色入帘青」「谈笑有鸿儒，往来无白丁」等工对撑起骨架，又用「可以调素琴，阅金经」「无丝竹之乱耳，无案牍之劳形」等散句化开，再于首尾以「山不在高」「何陋之有」的疏朗句式提挈，张弛得法。押韵上，庚青韵属开口呼，清亮悠远，与「清雅」的基调恰合；而末句突然落到「有」这个短促收声，像把话轻轻一顿、留个回响，反使「不陋」的结论更显笃定。这种「前扬后顿」的韵脚安排，是小品韵文最难学的地方，刘禹锡于此举重若轻。

Line by line

斯是陋室，惟吾德馨。

This plain room becomes truly fragrant because of my virtue — the moral character of the occupant transforms the physical space.

这虽是简陋的居室，只因我的德行而芬芳。

This is a humble room; only my virtue makes it fragrant.

这八个字是全篇的「文眼」，也是刘禹锡所有铺陈最终要落的点。前四句以山水起兴，绕了一大圈，为的就是稳稳托出这一句。「斯是陋室」先坦然承认屋子破——不遮不掩，反倒显出底气；「惟吾德馨」随即把评判标准从「屋」翻到「人」，用一「惟」字把全部价值压在德行上。「德馨」二字出自《尚书·君陈》「黍稷非馨，明德惟馨」，原说祭祀唯德为香；刘禹锡借来，把道德比作能弥散的香气，陋室因主人之德而自芳。这个比喻极妙：香气无形，却充盈四壁，恰足以抵消砖瓦之陋。一个「惟」字最见傲骨——世人以富贵论居，他偏以德行论居，除此之外别无凭仗，却也别无缺憾。读懂这一句，后面所有的苔痕草色、鸿儒素琴，都只是「德馨」的注脚而已。

These eight words are the 'eye' of the whole, the point toward which all Liu Yuxi'sdetailing finally tends. The first four lines begin with water and mountain, circling wide, only to set this line firmly down. 'This is a humble room' first admits the room's plainness openly, no concealment, and within it the confidence; 'only my virtue makes it fragrant' at once flips the standard of judgment from the 'room' to the 'man', the one word 'only' pressing all value onto virtue. 'Virtue fragrant' comes from the Book of Documents, 'millet and sorghum are not fragrance; bright virtue is the only fragrance', originally meaning that in sacrifice only virtue is scent; Liu Yuxi borrows it, comparing moral character to a scent that diffuses, the humble room growing fragrant of itself through the master's virtue. The metaphor is exquisite: scent is formless, yet fills the four walls, exactly enough to offset the bricks' plainness. The word 'only' shows the pride of bone — the world judges a dwelling by wealth, he judges it by virtue, no other reliance, yet no lack. Once this line is read, all the moss traces and grass color, the scholars and the plain qin below, are only footnotes to 'virtue fragrant'.

苔痕上阶绿，草色入帘青。

The moss growing on the steps and the grass color entering through the curtain show that the room is close to nature, serene and unadorned, a sign of the owner's simple and refined taste.

苔痕漫上石阶一片青绿，草色映入帘内满目青葱。

Moss traces climb the steps, green; grass color enters the curtain, blue.

这一联是全篇最富画意的两句，也是「德馨」的第一个具象证据。它写的是陋室之外的自然：苔痕漫上石阶，草色映进帘内，一个「上」一个「入」，把植物写得有主动、有生气，仿佛自然情愿来依傍这间小屋。绿与青两种冷色，既是实写江南湿润的墙阶，也是写主人不事雕饰、任其天成的闲适。值得注意的是，苔痕草色本是「荒陋」的记号——屋子久无人修、阶生苔、庭长草，在俗人眼里正是破败；刘禹锡却反转其意，把它们写成清幽、写成与天地相接的雅趣。这就是「以陋为美」的眼光：不是屋子变了，是看屋子的心变了。两句对仗工稳，「上阶绿」对「入帘青」，空间由外而内，色由绿而青，读来如展一幅水墨。它不动声色地告诉读者：真正让这屋子高级的，不是陈设，而是主人与自然相处的方式。

This couplet is the most pictorial of the whole, the first concrete evidence of 'virtue fragrant'. It writes the nature outside the humble room: moss traces creep up the stone steps, grass color shines through the curtain, the one word 'climb' and one 'enter' writing the plants as active and alive, as if nature chose to lean on this small house. Green and blue, two cold colors, both the real wet walls and steps of the southland, and the ease of a master who adorns nothing, letting nature be. Notable: moss traces and grass color are the marks of 'desolation' — a house long unrepaired, steps mossy, courtyard grassy, the vulgar eye sees ruin; yet Liu Yuxi reverses the meaning, writing them as seclusion, as elegance joined with heaven and earth. This is the eye of 'making beauty of the humble': the room has not changed, the eye that looks at it has. The couplet is exact — 'climb the steps, green' against 'enter the curtain, blue', the space from without to within, the color from green to blue, reading like an unfolded ink painting. It tells the reader, without moving a muscle: what truly makes this room fine is not the furnishing, but the master's way of being with nature.

孔子云：何陋之有？

Citing Confucius, the author asks rhetorically, 'How could it be humble?' Because a virtuous person dwells here, the room is not humble at all; the quotation elevates the theme to a classic truth.

孔子说：有什么简陋的呢？

Confucius said: what is humble about it?

这是全篇的收束，也是精神的总判决。前面所有论证——山水起兴、德馨立主、苔草写境、鸿儒写交、素琴写心、诸葛子云写类比——到此都汇成一句反问：「何陋之有？」它直接引《论语》孔子语，等于把私人感慨升格为圣人定论，气势陡然不同。「何陋之有」是反问，不是陈述。陈述说「此室不陋」，只是个人看法；反问说「有什么简陋的呢」，则把「陋」这个选项彻底取消，带着不容辩驳的理直气壮。一个「云」字，把孔子请来站台，使短文有了经典重量。更妙在它用「云」而非「曰」，语气更从容，像闲闲一提。全篇到这四个字戛然而止，却余音很长：读者合卷，仍觉那股「不陋」的底气在。这也正是反诘收束比直叙收束更有力量的地方——它把结论交给读者自己去点头。

This is the close of the whole, the final verdict of the spirit. All the argument above — the water and mountain opening, 'virtue fragrant' as the thesis, moss and grass as scene, scholars as company, the plain qin as heart, Zhuge Liang and Yang Xiong as analogies — all converges here into one counter-question: 'what is humble about it?' It quotes Confucius directly from the Analects, raising the private lament to a sage's verdict, the momentum suddenly different. 'What is humble about it?' is a counter-question, not a statement. The statement 'this room is not humble' is only a personal view; the counter-question 'what is humble about it?' cancels the option of 'humble' altogether, with an unanswerable rightness. The word 'said' brings Confucius to stand on the platform, giving the short prose the weight of the classics. The beauty further lies in 'said' rather than 'uttered', the tone the more easy, like a casual mention. The whole stops short on these four words, yet the aftersound is long: the reader closes the book, and still feels the confidence of 'not humble'. This is where the counter-question's close is more forceful than the plain statement — it leaves the conclusion for the reader to nod at himself.

Study

Word focus

德馨 Virtuous fragrance. Derived from the Book of Documents, comparing virtue to a perfume that pervades and ennobles a place. Here it is the core concept: the occupant's moral integrity transforms the humble room. 「德馨」二字，是全篇价值体系的总开关。它本于《尚书》「明德惟馨」，把道德比作可弥散的香气。刘禹锡借此二字，完成了一次评判标准的偷换：世俗以屋之华简论贵贱，他改为以人之德馨论荣辱。香气无形而充盈，正好抵消砖瓦之陋，使「陋室」在精神上反转为「馨室」。一个词，既承经典，又立新意，是全篇最重的四两拨千斤。

鸿儒 / 白丁 A key expression in this poem; read it with the Chinese note below. 「谈笑有鸿儒，往来无白丁」一组对比，历来被误读为刘禹锡势利。其实「鸿儒」与「白丁」在这里是精神趣味的代号，而非身份歧视：他要说的是陋室之中交游皆雅、绝无粗鄙，是以交往之质反衬居处之「不陋」。这对反义词把「德馨」落到人际关系上——屋子虽破，往来的却是可以论道谈艺的博学者，这本身就是一种富足。读懂其喻指，便不致坐实成门第之见。

无 A key expression in this poem; read it with the Chinese note below. 「无丝竹之乱耳，无案牍之劳形」连用两个「无」，是全篇最具态度的一组否定。丝竹代表世俗享乐的喧闹，案牍代表官场事务的缠累；两个「无」字，等于把这两种外人求之不得的东西，主动从自己的生活里请出去。这种「以无为有」的写法，把「陋」重新定义为「不被打扰的自由」。两个「无」排比而出，语气决绝又安然，是小品文里最见性情的笔触。

何陋之有 'What humility is there?' A rhetorical question quoting Confucius, turning the entire argument into an unanswerable affirmation of the room's nobility. 结句「何陋之有」四字，是炼句也是炼意。它用《论语》成句，以反问取消「陋」的合法性，比任何直说都更有力。更有巧思的是「之」字提宾的句式，把「陋」字推到句尾重读，余味如撞钟。一篇短文以圣人之语收束，既得其重，又得其简，是古文「引经自重」手法的范本。「何陋之有」用《论语》成句，以反问取消「陋」的合法性，比直说更有力；「之」字提宾把「陋」推到句尾重读，余味如撞钟。一篇短文以圣人之语收束，既得其重又得其简，是古文引经自重的范本，也让不陋从个人宣言升为经典结论。

陋室铭