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原文（全文，节选自《汉书·司马迁传》）
司马迁
太史公牛马走司马迁，再拜言，少卿足下：
曩者辱赐书，教以慎于接物，推贤进士为务，意气勤勤恳恳，若望仆不相师，而用流俗人之言。仆非敢如此也。请略陈固陋。阙然久不报，幸勿为过。
仆之先人非有剖符丹书之功，文史星历，近乎卜祝之间，固主上所戏弄，倡优畜之，流俗之所轻也。假令仆伏法受诛，若九牛亡一毛，与蝼蚁何异？而世又不与能死节者比，特以为智穷罪极，不能免，卒就死耳。何也？素所自树立使然也。
人固有一死，或重于泰山，或轻于鸿毛，用之所趋异也。太上不辱先，其次不辱身，其次不辱理色，其次不辱辞令，其次诎体受辱，其次易服受辱，其次关木索、被箠楚受辱，其次剔毛发、婴金铁受辱，其次毁肌肤、断肢体受辱，最下腐刑极矣！传曰：“刑不上大夫。”此言士节不可不勉励也。猛虎在深山，百兽震恐，及在槛阱之中，摇尾而求食，积威约之渐也。故士有画地为牢，势不可入；削木为吏，议不可对，定计于鲜也。今交手足，受木索，暴肌肤，受榜棰，幽于圜墙之中。当此之时，见狱吏则头枪地，视徒隶则心惕息。何者？积威约之势也。及以至是，言不辱者，所谓强颜耳，曷足贵乎！
且西伯，伯也，拘而演《周易》；仲尼厄而作《春秋》；屈原放逐，乃赋《离骚》；左丘失明，厥有《国语》；孙子膑脚，《兵法》修列；不韦迁蜀，世传《吕览》；韩非囚秦，《说难》《孤愤》。《诗》三百篇，大底圣贤发愤之所为作也。此人皆意有所郁结，不得通其道，故述往事，思来者。乃如左丘无目，孙子断足，终不可用，退而论书策，以舒其愤，思垂空文以自见。
仆窃不逊，近自托于无能之辞，网罗天下放失旧闻，略考其行事，综其终始，稽其成败兴坏之纪，上计轩辕，下至于兹，为十表，本纪十二，书八章，世家三十，列传七十，凡百三十篇。亦欲以究天人之际，通古今之变，成一家之言。草创未就，会遭此祸，惜其不成，是以就极刑而无愠色。仆诚以著此书，藏之名山，传之其人，通邑大都，则仆偿前辱之责，虽万被戮，岂有悔哉！然此可为智者道，难为俗人言也！
且负下未易居，下流多谤议。仆以口语遇遭此祸，重为乡党所笑，以污辱先人，亦何面目复上父母之丘墓乎？虽累百世，垢弥甚耳！是以肠一日而九回，居则忽忽若有所亡，出则不知其所往。每念斯耻，汗未尝不发背沾衣也！身直为闺阁之臣，宁得自引深藏于岩穴邪？故且从俗俘辱，时论传焉。
古者富贵而名摩灭，不可胜记，唯倜傥非常之人称焉。盖文王拘而演《周易》；仲尼厄而作《春秋》；屈原放逐，乃赋《离骚》；左丘失明，厥有《国语》；孙子膑脚，《兵法》修列；不韦迁蜀，世传《吕览》；韩非囚秦，《说难》《孤愤》。《诗》三百篇，大底圣贤发愤之所为作也。此人皆意有所郁结，不得通其道，故述往事，思来者。……
仆虽怯懦，欲苟活，亦颇识去就之分矣，何至自沉溺缧绁之辱哉！且夫臧获婢妾，犹能引决，况仆之不得已乎？所以隐忍苟活，幽于粪土之中而不辞者，恨私心有所不尽，鄙陋没世，而文采不表于后也。
古者富贵而名摩灭，不可胜记，唯倜傥非常之人称焉。……
退论书策以舒其愤，思垂空文以自见。
中文翻译
司马迁
太史令司马迁叩首再拜，致信任安：
前些日子承蒙您赐信，教导我待人接物要谨慎，以举荐贤才为己任。您的殷切期望，我岂敢忽视？只是未能及时回复，请勿怪罪。
我的祖先并无封侯受爵的功绩，仅是掌管文史星历的小官，近似于占卜巫祝之流，被君主轻视如倡优。若我伏法受死，不过是九牛一毛，与蝼蚁何异？世人也不会将我与坚守气节者相提并论，只会认为我是智尽罪极、罪有应得。为何如此？皆因我平素立身处世的方式使然。
人总有一死，或重于泰山，或轻于鸿毛，全取决于死的意义。……
西伯（周文王）被拘禁时推演《周易》；孔子困厄时著《春秋》；屈原流放后创作《离骚》；左丘失明后作《国语》；孙子被膑脚后修《兵法》；吕不韦被贬蜀地传《吕览》；韩非囚禁秦国著《说难》《孤愤》。《诗经》三百篇，多为圣贤抒发郁结之作。这些人皆心怀愤懑，不得志于时，故述往事以启迪后人。即便左丘失明、孙子断足，仍著书立说，以寄愤懑，留名后世。
我虽不才，近年以拙劣文辞，网罗散佚史料，考证史实，梳理兴衰缘由，上起黄帝，下至当下，撰成十表、十二本纪、八书、三十世家、七十列传，共一百三十篇。旨在探究天道与人事的关系，贯通古今变迁，成就一家之言。书稿尚未完成，却遭此横祸。我甘愿受刑而不悔，只盼藏书名山，传于后世，以偿前辱之债。纵使万次受戮，亦无怨尤！然此心只能与智者共勉，难与俗人言说。
况且，背负耻辱难以立足，身处卑贱多遭非议。我因直言而遭此祸，被乡里耻笑，污辱先人，有何面目再祭父母陵墓？纵使百世之后，污名愈深！因此，我肠中一日九转，居家恍惚若失，出门不知所往。每念及此耻，冷汗浸透衣背！身为宫廷臣仆，岂能隐居深山？故暂且屈从世俗，忍受屈辱，任由世人评说。
古时富贵者湮没无闻者不可胜数，唯有卓越不凡之人能名垂青史。……
我虽怯懦，贪生怕死，但也懂得进退之分，怎会甘愿受此牢狱之辱？即便是奴婢婢妾，尚能决然赴死，何况我这般不得已之人？我忍辱偷生，苟活于污秽之中，只因私心未了，若默默死去，岂非鄙陋无名？
古时富贵者湮没无闻者不可胜数，唯有卓越不凡之人能名垂青史。……
我退而著书，以抒愤懑，以空文自见。
英文翻译
Letter to Ren An (Full Text, Records of the Grand Historian, Sima Qian)
Sima Qian, Grand Historian, bows in greeting to Lord Ren An:
Your recent letter, urging me to tread carefully in human dealings and prioritize recommending the virtuous, weighs heavily on my heart. I dare not dismiss your counsel. For too long, I have delayed my reply—please forgive this oversight.
My ancestors held no grand titles, merely serving as scribes and astronomers, their work scorned as trivial. If I were executed today, my death would be as meaningless as a hair lost from an ox—or an ant crushed underfoot. Yet the world would not honor me as a martyr; they would dismiss me as a coward who met his just deserts. Why? Because my life’s path has led me here.
All men must die. Some deaths weigh more than Mount Tai; others lighter than a feather—depending on their purpose. …
King Wen of Zhou composed the Book of Changes in confinement; Confucius wrote the Spring and Autumn Annals amid hardship; Qu Yuan penned Li Sao in exile; Zuo Qiuming, though blind, authored the Discourses of the States; Sun Bin, crippled, perfected the Art of War; Lü Buwei, exiled, compiled the Lüe of the Spring and Autumn Annals; Han Fei, imprisoned, wrote Difficulties of Persuasion. The Book of Songs itself arose from the sorrows of sages. These men channeled their anguish into works that outlived empires.
I, too, have dared to pick up my pen. I have gathered scattered records, cross-checked events, and pieced together the rise and fall of dynasties—from the Yellow Emperor to our own age. My aim? To unravel the threads of fate, illuminate the past, and forge a new historiography. But before I could finish, calamity struck. Let the finished work be buried in mountain caves, passed to future sages. If it fulfills its purpose, even a thousand deaths would bring no regret. Yet this truth can only be understood by the wise—not the vulgar crowd.
Moreover, shame clings to the fallen, and slander follows the lowly. I, through reckless words, have incurred this disaster, becoming a mockery among my kin and a stain upon my ancestors’ memory. How can I ever face their graves? Even a hundred generations hence, this disgrace will linger! Thus, my bowels churn daily; at home, I wander as if lost; abroad, I know not where to turn. Each time I recall this shame, sweat drenches my robe! Though I serve as a palace official, how could I retreat into seclusion? Thus, I endure humiliation, allowing the world to judge.
In history, the wealthy and famous fade into oblivion, but the extraordinary endure. …
Though timid, I cling to life, yet I understand the boundary between submission and dignity. Would I, a mere servant, willingly endure the filth of prison? I endure this degradation in silence, buried in filth, because my private ambitions remain unfulfilled. To die now, nameless and forgotten, would be a far greater shame.
In ancient times, the noble who suffered humiliation left their mark. …
Thus, I turn to writing, pouring my rage into words, hoping these empty scribbles might one day speak for me.
背景补充
- 历史意义：
- 此信是司马迁在遭受宫刑后写给友人任安的回信，坦陈忍辱著书的动机，堪称中国文学史上最悲怆的自我剖白。
- 信中列举周文王、孔子、屈原、左丘明、孙子等圣贤的遭遇，提出“人固有一死，或重于泰山，或轻于鸿毛”的生死观，强调以著述留名青史的永恒价值。
- 思想内核：
- 士节与尊严：批判“刑不上大夫”的虚伪，揭露权力对士人精神的摧残。
- 发愤著书：将个人苦难升华为创作动力，奠定中国史学“以史为鉴”“以文载道”的传统。
- 历史观：主张“究天人之际，通古今之变，成一家之言”，突破儒家正统叙事，展现独立思考。
- 文学价值：
- 语言慷慨激昂，情感浓烈，兼具抒情性与哲理性，被誉为“千古至情之文”。
- 叙事与议论交织，以自身悲剧映射时代困境，对后世文人精神影响深远。
- 现代启示：
- 在逆境中坚守信念、转化苦难为创造力的精神，至今仍具现实意义。
- 对权力压迫与个体尊严的反思，呼应现代社会对人权与自由的追求。
此信不仅是司马迁个人的血泪宣言，更是中华文化中“发愤著书”的典范，其精神内核跨越时空，成为人类共同的精神遗产。
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