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 reign, Teng Zijing was demoted to serve as the governor of Baling Commandery. The following year, with governance smooth and the people living in harmony, all neglected tasks were revived. He then had the Yueyang Tower restored, expanding its original scale, and had poems and prose by Tang dynasty scholars and contemporary writers inscribed on its walls. He asked me to write an essay to record this event.
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？
若夫霪雨霏霏，連月不開；陰風怒號，濁浪排空；日星隱曜，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。
Now, when the rain falls endlessly and the sky remains overcast for months on end; when bitter winds howl and murky waves surge into the sky; when the sun and stars hide their light, and mountains are swallowed from view; when merchants and travelers cannot go on their way, and masts topple and oars break; and at dusk, darkness descends, with tigers roaring and apes wailing — when one ascends this tower, one feels a longing for home, a dread of slander and mockery, and a bleak desolation fills the eye, stirring deep sorrow 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，靜影沉璧，漁歌互答，此樂何極。登斯樓也，則有心曠神怡，寵辱皆忘，把酒臨風，其喜洋洋者矣。
When spring arrives and the weather warms, the lake is calm and unruffled. Above and below, the sky and water merge into one vast expanse of green. Gulls skim and gather along the shore, colorful fish dart and swim among the shallows. On the banks, orchids flourish, lush and fragrant, their scent drifting through the air. When mist clears entirely and a bright moon stretches a thousand miles, moonlight glimmers like dancing gold on the surface, while its serene reflection sinks like a flawless jade. Fishing songs answer one another in the night—what joy could surpass this? Standing on this tower, one feels a sense of liberation, the heart open and the spirit serene, all thoughts of favor and disgrace forgotten. Holding a cup of wine in the breeze, one is filled with sheer delight and contentment.
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」歟！噫！微斯人，吾誰與歸？
時六年九月十五日。
On the fifteenth day of the ninth month, in the sixth year (of the reign).