范仲淹 wrote it in 1046 at the request of his friend
滕子京, who had rebuilt the tower above
洞庭湖. It describes the lake in rain and in sunshine and the moods each brings, then turns to the ideal official, who stays steady whatever happens:
不以物喜，
不以己悲 'not cheered by things, not saddened by his own lot'.
