中国传统文化经典哲理故事(英汉对照)
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Harmony of Human and Nature
天人合一
〖
Zhuangzhou Dreamed a Butterfly
〗
One day at sunset
,
Zhuangzi dozed off and dreamed that he turned
into a butterfly
.
He flapped his wings and made sure enough he was a
butterfly
.
He
had
such
a
joyful
feeling
as
he
fluttered
about
that
he
completely forgot that he was Zhuangzi
.
Soon though
,
he realized that
proud butterfly was really Zhuangzi who dreamed he was a butterfly
.
Or
was it a butterfly who dreamed he was Zhuangzi?
Maybe
Zhuangzi
was
the
butterfly
,
and
maybe
the
butterfly
was
Zhungzi? This is what is meant by the
“
transformation of things
.
”
庄周梦蝶
一天,
落日时分,< br>庄子梦见自己变成一只蝴蝶。
他扑打扑打翅膀,
确信自己已经变成一只蝴蝶。
这 时他十分惬意,
飘飘然竟完全忘记了
自己是庄子。一会儿醒来,
他明白了,那只骄傲的 蝴蝶正是梦见自己
变成蝴蝶的庄子。或许是蝴蝶做梦自己变成了庄子也未可知。
庄子是蝴蝶
?
亦或蝴蝶是庄子
?
这 正是所谓的“事物转换”的道理
啊
!
〖
A Fond Dream of Nanke
〗
In the Tang Dynasty
,
there lived a person called Chun Yufen
.
One
day
,
his
friends
came
to
celebrate
his
birthday
,
and
Chun
Yufen
was
drinking
under
an
old
pagoda
tree
.
When
he
became
drunk
,
he
fell
asleep
.
Suddenly
,
Chun Yufen met with two atomies who took him into a
giant hole in the tree
,
having a ride to the great Kingdom of Pagoda
.
Chun
Yufen found himself in a fairy world with many red gates
,
magnificent
palaces
,
luxuriant pavilions and beautiful gardens
.
南柯一梦
在中国唐朝,有个人叫淳于棼 。一天他过生日,在门前大槐树下
摆下宴席和朋友饮酒作乐,好不快活。喝醉了之后,他便睡着了。迷< br>迷糊糊之中,
他突然感觉有两个使者请他上车,
马车朝大槐树下一个
树洞驶去, 驶向“槐安国”
。
他发现树洞里另有一番仙境。有许多
朱红色的 大门,
大门里面是华丽的宫殿,
周围是亭台楼阁和美丽的花
园。
The
king
appreciated
him
very
much
so
that
he
was
named
the
mayor of Nanke
,
a small town in the Kingdom
.
Soon after
,
he married the
king
’
s beautiful daughter
.
Chun Yufen was so happy with the life there
that
he
totally
forgot
his
hometown
.
Twenty
years
passed
,
and
Chun
Yufen
stayed
as
the
very
successful
mayor
of
Nanke
and
raised
a
big
family of five sons and two daughters
.
国王非常欣赏淳 于棼,封他为“南柯郡太守”
。后来,国王还将
公主许配给他。淳于棼与公主过得非常幸福以致 完全忘了自己的家
乡。淳于棼上任南柯郡太守后,前后二十年的时间,把南柯郡治理得
井井有条,还和公主生了五个儿子,两个女儿。
However,
the
kingdom
was
invaded
by
another
country
and
Chun
Yufen had to lead the troops to hold out the enemies
.
Unfortunately
,
his
troops were defeated and his wife died
.
Chun Yufen decided to leave the
Kingdom of Pagoda
.
He was sent home by the 2 atomies. As soon as he
arrived home
,
he woke up to realize what had happened was just a dream.
It was only a short nap
,
even though in his dream he had experienced a
whole 20 years of life
.
Chun
Yufen
’
s
friends
were
interested
in
his
dream.
They
looked
down
the
tree
and
found
an
ant
nest
connected
to
a
smaller
nest
in
the
south direction. Obviously
,
these nests explained what
“
Pagoda Kingdom
”
and
“
Nanke
”
really were!
不料,有个国家突然入侵,淳于棼不得不率兵 迎击,不过他还是
打了败仗。这时公主又不幸去世了。淳于棼决定离开“槐安国”
,仍
是由
两名使者送行。淳于棼回到家中,突然惊醒过来,原来是一场梦。不
过是小睡一 会儿,而梦中经历却整整二十年。
淳于棼把梦境 告诉朋友,
大家感到十分有趣,
一齐找到大槐树下,
挖出一个很大的蚂蚁洞,旁边有孔 ,通向南边树枝,那里有一个小蚂
蚁洞。很显然,这就是所谓的“南柯郡”
、
“槐安国”
!
〖
The Penumbras and the Shadow
〗
The penumbras asked the shadow
,
“
A moment ago you were looking
down and now you are looking up
;
a moment ago your hair was tied up
and now it is hanging loose
;
a moment ago you were sitting and now you
are standing
;
a moment ago you were walking and now you are standing
still
.
How is all this?
”
罔两问影
虚影问影子说:
“你先前低着头现在仰起头,先前 束着发髻现在
披着头发,先前坐着现在站起,先前行走现在停下来,这是什么原因
呢
?
”
The shadow said
,
“
Gentlemen
,
why do you bother asking me such
trifling questions? I do these things but I don
’
t know why
.
Am I like the
shell of a cicada or am I like the slough of a snake? I look like the real
thing
,
but I am not the real thing
.
I appear with the flame or the sun
,
but
fade with the shade or the night
.
影子同答:
“你为什么拿这样微不足道 的事情烦我呢
?
我就是这样地
随意运动,我自己也不知道为什么会是这样。我,就如同 寒蝉蜕下来
的壳、蛇蜕下来的皮,跟那本体事物相似却又不是那事物本身。火光
与阳光使我显现 ,阴暗与黑夜使我隐形。
Do I depend on the real thing? But the real thing itself has to depend
on something else! when the real thing comes
,
I come with it; when the
real thing goes, I go with it; when the real thing moves to and fro
,
I move
to and fro with it. What is there to ask
about?”
我依赖有形的事物吗< br>?
而有形的事物又依赖什么呢
?
有形的物体
到来我便随之而来,
有形的物体离去我也随之而去,
有形的物体俳徊
不定我就随之不停地运动。这有什么可问的呢
?
”
〖
Lips Gone
,
Teeth Cold
〗
The King of Jin was going to attack Guo
,
a state on the other side of
Jin
’
s neighbor country Yu
.
The Jin troops had to have Y
u
’
s permission to
go
through
its
territory
,
which
,
most
likely
,
the
King
of
Yu
would
refuse
.
The King of Jin could not work out a plan
.
One day
,
Xun Xi
,
one of his ministers
,
put forward a suggestion
,
“
Your Majesty
,
if you send
your most precious gifts to the King of Yu
,
he will probably be bribed
into giving consent
.
”
唇亡齿寒
晋国的国君想要攻打虢国,
但隔着一个虞国,
讨伐虢国必须经过
虞 地。对此,虞国的国君可能会拒绝。晋君一直没能想出个好办法。
一天,大臣荀息献计说:
“大 王,如果您能将珍宝献给虞国,他不会
不答应借道的。
”
The
King
of
Jin
looked
reluctant
,
so
Xun
Xi
said
,
“
Even
if
he
accepts the gifts
,
it doesn
’
t mean that he possesses them
,
as they will soon
be taken back by us
.
Then what is there to be worried about?
”
Thus the
King of Jin took up his plan
.
晋献公一听有点舍不得,荀息就说:
“即使他接受了礼物,也 不
意味着他就会拥有它们,很快,我们还会把它们拿回来的。您担心什
么呢
?
”晋献公采纳了荀息的计策。
The King of Yu agreed at once as soon as he saw the gifts. But Gong
Zhiqi
,
a minister of Yu
,
took objection to it
,
saying
,
“
Guo is our neighbor
country
,
our reliable friend, and the relationship between us is just like
that between lips and teeth. As an old saying goes,
‘
when the lips are gone
,
the teeth will feel cold
’
,
so will our country be in danger when Guo is
conquered
.
If
we
let
the
Jin
troops
pass
,
the
gap
between
Guo's
destruction and ours is only a period of morning to evening
.
”
But Gong
’
s advice was rejected. What happened thereafter just proved what Gong
had said.
虞国 国君见到礼物,
当时就满口答应下来。
虞国大夫宫之奇听说
后,赶快阻止道:
“虢国是虞国的近邻,有事可以彼此帮助,我们之
间就好像嘴唇和牙齿之间的关系。俗话说:
‘ 唇亡齿亡’
,万一虢国灭
了,我们虞国也就难保了。
如果我们借道给晋国,那么虢国和 虞国的
灭亡就是旦夕之间的事了。
”但虞国国君没有听从宫之奇的劝说,结
果不久晋国 就灭掉了虢国和虞国。
〖
Perfectly Impartial
〗
King Jin
Pinggong once
asked
his
minister
Qi
Huangyang
,
“
I
am
going
to
appoint
a
magistrate
and
send
him
to
govern
Nanyang
County
.
Who do you think will fit the of-fice?
”
Qi answered without hesitation
,
“
Xie Hu may be the choice
.
”
The
King
feit
surprised
and
said
,
“
Isn
’
t
Xie
Hu
your
personal
enemy?
”
大公无私
晋平公有一次问大臣祁黄羊说 :
“南阳县缺个县长,你看,应该
派谁去当比较合适呢
?
”
祁黄羊毫不迟疑地同答说:
“解狐。
”
平公惊奇地问:
“解狐不是你的仇人吗
?
”
“
Yes
,
”
Qi replied
,
“
but Your Majesty
,
you ask me who will fit the
post
,
not who is my enemy
.
”
So
Xie
Hu
took
office
,
and
he
did
do
a
lot
of
good
things
for
common people in
:
Nanyang County
.
Some time later when the King inquired who could take command
of the army
,
Qi responded readily
,
“
Qi Wu is most suited
.
”
The King was puzzled again
,
said
,
“
Well
,
I wonder if Qi Wu is your
son
.
”
祁黄羊回答说:
“是的,但陛下问我谁合适,并没有问谁是我 的
仇人呀
!
”
于是,解狐就被派到南阳县上任了。到任后,他确实为百姓办了
许多好事。
过了一些日子,
当平公需要一个人去指挥军队的时候,
祁黄羊说:
“祁午能够胜任。
”
平公又奇怪起来了,问道:
“祁午不是你的儿子吗
?
”
“
Yes
,
he is
,
”
Qi answered
,
“
but what has that to do with the point
at this issue? Your Majesty
,
you just ask who is competent as a general
,
and I aired my opinion
.
”
So Qi Wu was appointed a general
,
which later proved one of the
wisest appoint- ments
.
Hearing
about
this
,
Confucius
spoke
highly
of
Qi
for
his
recommendation in consid-eration of one
’
s virtue and talent
,
brushing
aside any thought of whether one was his en- emy or relative
.
He said that
it was really perfectly impartial
.
祁黄羊说:
“是的,
但这和推荐有什么关系呢
?
您只问我 谁可以胜
任,我就表达了我的想法。
”
平公就派了祁午去做指挥官,
他的表现,
证明了这是一个最明智
的选择。
孔子听到这两件事,
十分赞赏祁黄羊
“内举不避亲,
外举不避仇”
的荐才标准,并且说:
“这才够得上‘大公无私’呀< br>!
”
〖
Every Word Counts
〗
During
the
Warring
States
Period
,
the
troops
of
the
State
of
Qin
surrounded
Han
Dan
city
,
the
capital
of
the
State
of
Zhao
,
and
the
situation was very critical
.
So the King of Zhao sent Lord Ping Yuan to
the
State
of
Chu
for
help
.
Lord
Ping
Yuan
intended
to
lead
twenty
assistants
to
accomplish
this
mission
.
Nineteen
qualified
people
were
select-ed
,
and one more was needed
.
At this time
,
Mao Sui volunteered
to forward a plea to go with Lord Ping Yuan
.
Although Lord Ping Yuan
was dubious about his capability
,
he still asked Mao Sui to go with them
in the end
.
一言九鼎
战国时,
秦国的军队团团包围了赵国的都城邯郸,
形 势十分危急,
赵国国君派平原君到楚国去求援。
平原君打算带领二十名门客前去完
成这 项使命。已挑了十九名,尚少一个定不下来。这时,毛遂自告奋
勇提出要去,
平原君虽然对他的 能力有所怀疑,
但最终还是带着他一
起前往了楚国。
As soon as Lord Ping Yuan arrived in the State of Chu
,
he started to
lobby for Chu
’
s support
,
but made no progress
.
Accordingly
,
Mao Sui
said to the King of Chu
,
“
We come here to ask you to send relief forces
,
but
you did
not utter
a
word
.
Please
don
’
t
for- get
,
although
you
are
stronger than us
,
you have lost many battles and even your capital. From
my point of view
,
uniting Zhao against Qin is more urgent for you
.
”
Mao
Sui
’
s comments made the King of Chu State sincerely convinced
,
and
promised to send refief forces immediately
.
平原君到了楚国后,立即与楚王谈及“援赵”之事,谈了半天也
毫无结果。这时,毛遂对楚王说:< br>“我们来请你派兵援助,你却一言
不发。别忘了,虽然楚国比赵国强大,却连连吃败仗,连国都也 丢掉
了,依我看,楚国比赵国更需要联合起来抗秦呀
!
”毛遂的一席话说
得楚 王心服口服,立即答应出兵援赵。
After Lord Ping Yuan came back to the State of Zhao
,
he said with
emotion
:
“
Mao Sui
’
s words are more important than nine huge tripods
.
”
平原君回到赵国后感慨地说:
“毛遂的一席话真是重于九鼎大吕。
”
〖
Cast a Brick to Attract Jade
〗
In the Tang Dynasty
,
there were two poets
.
One was called Chang
Jian and the oth-er
,
s name was Zhao Gu
.
Zhao Gu
’
s poems were much
appreciated by Chang Zhao Gu was going to Suzhou
.
When
hearing Zhao Gu would visit Lingyan Temple
,
抛砖引玉
唐代有两个诗人,一个叫常健,一个叫赵嘏。
常健很仰慕赵暇
的 诗才。一次,赵嘏要去苏州。当常健听说他会去灵岩寺时,使先赶
到灵岩,
Chang
Jian
went
there
.
first
and
wrote
two
lines
of
a
poem
on
a
conspeincus
wall
in
hope
of
Zhao
’
s
after,Zhao
Gu
arrived
at
hte
noticed
the
incom-plete
poem
on
the
wall
immediately and completed the poem
.
Chang Jian
’
s first two sen- < br>在一面显眼的墙上题写了两行诗,
希望赵嘏看到后能续成一首。
不久
赵嘏到了灵 岩寺,他一眼就看到了墙上不完整的诗,便续上一两行,
tences were not as good as Zhao Gu
’
s
,
but he stimulated Zhao to write
down
excellent ones
.
People
call
it
an
action
of
“
to
casting a
brick to
attract jade
”
,
which refers to putting forth one
’
s superficial suggestion or
article in order to draw out others
’
better views or works
.
将诗补充完整。常健的诗没有赵嘏写得好,却能引出赵嘏的佳句。后
来的人,就把这种做法叫作“抛砖引 玉”
,以此比喻用粗浅的意见或
文章引发别人发表更高明的见解或作品。
〖
A Sigh of River
〗
At the time of autumn floods when hundreds of streams poured into
the Yellow Riv-er
.
the torrents were so violent that it was impossible to
distinguish an ox from a horse from the other side of the river
.
Then the
River God was overwhelmed with joy
,
feeling that all the beauty under
the heaven belonged to him alone
.
Down the river he traveled east until
he reached the North Sea
.
Looking eastwards at the boundless expanse of
wa- ter
,
he changed his countenance and sighed to the Sea God
,
saying
,
“
As the popular say-ing goes
,
‘
There are men who have heard a little
about Tao but still think that no one can surpass them
.
’
I am one of such
men
.
”
望洋兴叹
秋汛的 季节到了,无数条溪流汇入黄河,河水猛涨,河面宽得连
对岸的牛马都辨不清。这样一来,河伯就洋洋自 得起来了,以为世界
上
所有壮丽的景色都集中在自己身上了。
他顺看河水向 东行,
一直来到
北海,向东一望,一片辽阔的大海,看不见水的边际。这时,河伯才
改 变了他骄傲的神态,望着海洋感慨地说:
“俗话说‘有人的只学到
分之一的道理,就以为谁也比 不上自己’
,我正是这样的人啊!
”
Nature of Doctrine and law
道法自然
〖
Make Dresses according to Measurements
〗
It
’
s said that in the past days there was a tailor in Beijing
he made dresses for people
,
apart from asking their size
,
he also would
like to ask the customers
’
disposition
,
age
,
the time when they passed the
imperial examination and so on
.
The
量体裁衣
传说以前北京城里 有个裁缝,
在替人做衣服时,
除了量身材尺寸
外,还要询问对方的性情、年纪以及中举 时间等等。人们感到奇怪,
folks felt strange and asked him why
.
He said
,
“
If a man passed the
imperial examination at a young age
,
he must become arrogant
,
and hold
his
head
high
when
he
walks
,
so
I
need
to
make
the
front
of
clothes
longer than the back
;
on the contrary
,
a man who passed the imperial
examination at an old age will not feel so excited
.
He always be
问他为什么要这样。他说:如果是青年 中举,必定性情骄傲,走起路
来抬头挺胸,因此衣服要做得前长后短;如果是老年中举,大都没那
his back when walking,so the front of his clothes should be made a little
bit
quick
temper
prefers
shorter
clothes
;
whereas
the
slow
temper
prefers longer
clothes.
”
Later
,
this idiom
describes
somebody
who can deal with different problems according to different situations.
么兴奋,走路不免弯腰曲背,衣服就要做得前短后长;性情急躁的,
衣服要做得短;性子慢的,衣服应做得长些。后来“量体裁衣”这个
成语泛指人们根据具体的情况处理问 题。
〖
Duke Lu Raised a Seabird
〗
A seabird was once seen perching on the city gate of the capital of
Lu
.
Nobody had seen such a bird before
,
so they called it the
“
holy bird
.
”
鲁侯养鸟
从前有只海鸟,< br>在鲁国城门上栖息。
因为从来没有人见过这种鸟,
所以人们都叫它“神鸟”
。< br>
Duke Lu ordered his men to capture the seabird alive
.
They kept it in
a golden cage and brought it to the Imperial Ancestral Temple
.
Duke Lu
treated the seabird as though it were his guest of honor
.
Each day there
would be banquets where dainties and delicacies of every kind would be
offered to the seabird
.
Even the Duke Lu
’
s musicians had to per-form for
the seabird
’
s sole amusement
.
鲁侯命侍从活捉海鸟。
侍从将海鸟关在金笼内,
并放 在太庙里供
养。鲁侯视海鸟如国宾。每天都有各式各样的珍馐百味供海鸟
品尝,甚至鲁侯的乐师,也要为海鸟演奏。
But
the
seabird
was
terrified
by
all
this
became
so
frightened
and
sad
that
it
dared
not
eat
or
drink
.
After
three
days,it
Lu thought that he had beena good host to his guest
.
Why not?
He was treating the seabird the same way he treated himself.
可是,海鸟却被这些豪华排场所吓倒,心里既惊慌又悲痛,不敢
饮食,过了三天,终于死去。鲁侯以为他款待海鸟已十分周到。可不
是
吗?他是用对待自己的方法去对待海鸟的。
〖
Grappling between a Snipe and a Clam
〗
A
clam
was
lying
on
the
edge
of
the
water
with
her
shell
open
to
enjoy
the
sun.
The
sweet
flesh
Of
the
clam
attracted
a
snipe
strolling
along the river bank.
鹬蚌相争
一只河蚌躺在河滩上张开壳儿 晒太阳。
河蚌鲜美的肉吸引了一只
沿着河岸散步的鹬鸟。
The snipe at once pounced on the clam and pecked her flesh
.
Swiftly
the
clam
folded
her
shell
and
clamped
down
on
the
snipe
’
s
bill
tightly
.
Then each one was handicapped by the other
,
and neither could
move an inch
.
The snipe sneered
,
“
If it doesn
’
t rain for a couple of days
,
let
’
s wait to see what will become of you!
”
The clam retort,
“
Surely in the
same time you will either starve to death or thirst to death
.
”
鹬鸟立刻扑过 来啄河蚌的肉,
蚌灵敏地合拢了自己坚硬的壳,
把
鹬鸟尖尖的长嘴紧紧夹住。
现在,
他们都被对方钳制住了,
动弹不得。
鹬
对蚌说:
“ 今天不下雨,
明天不下雨,
你就会晒死。
”
蚌也对鹬说:
“你
的嘴今天拔不出,明天拔不出,你就要渴死饿死
!
”
So they argued and abused each other for quite a long time
,
neither
ready to give in
.
Just then
,
a fisherman happened to pass by. He saw the
snipe
and
the
clam
,
and
to
his
delight
,
he
caught
them
both
with
the
greatest ease
.
鹬和蚌就这样争吵咒骂了半 天,谁也不肯让步。这时,一个渔翁
碰巧打这儿经过,看到这一情景,十分高兴,跑过去毫不费力地把他
们都捉住了。
〖
Ready Images of Bamboo in Bosom
〗
Wen
Tong
who
styled
himself
Yuke
was
an
artist
in
the
Song
Dynasty. He enjoyed widespread renown for his bamboo painting
.
Every
day many people always called at his home to ask for his paintings
.
What
was
his
knack
of
painting
bamboos?
Actually
,
wen
Tong
had
grown
various bamboos everywhere around his house. No matter what season it
was
and
no
matter
whether
it
was
sunny
or
rainy
,
he
often
went
to
observe how they
胸有成竹
宋代画家文同,字与可。他画的竹子远近闻名,每天总有许多人
登门求画。文同画竹 的妙诀在哪里呢
?
原来,文同在自己家的房前屋
后
种上了各种竹子。无论春夏秋冬,阴晴风雨,他都经常去观察竹子
were growing. He pondered over the length and breadth of the bamboo
poles as well as the shapes and colors of the leaves
.
Whenever he had
gained
a
new
understanding,
he
went
back
to
his
study
and
drew
what
was in his mind on the paper
.
Over a long period of time
,
the images of
bamboos in different seasons
,
under different weather conditions and at
different moments were deeply imprinted in his mind
.
So whenever he
stood before the paper and picked up a painting brush with concentrated
attention
,
the
various
forms
of
the
bamboos
which
he
had
observed
at
ordinary days at once rose before his eyes
.
Therefore every time he was
painting bamboos he appeared confident and at ease, and all the bamboos
he had painted were very vivid and true to life
.
的生长变化情况,琢磨竹枝的长短粗细,叶子的形态、颜色。每当有新的感受就回到书房,把心中的印象画在纸上。日积月累,竹子在不
同季节、不同天气、 不同时辰的形象都深深地印在他的心中,只要凝
神提笔,
在画纸前一站,
平日观察到的 各种形态的竹子立刻浮现在眼
前。所以每次画竹,他都很从容自信,画出的竹子,无不逼真传神。
The poet Chao Buzhi who had made a profound study of Wen Tong
’
s art of paintings wrote
:
“
When Yuke was painting bamboos
,
he had their
images ready in his bosom.
”
The
idiom
indicates
having
ready
plans
or
designs
in
one’s
mind
before doing a certain job so that its success is guaranteed.
诗人晁补之对文同的画很有研究,曾写下诗句:
“与可画竹,胸
中有成竹。
”
“胸有成竹”
比喻做事之前已作好充分准备,
对成功十分有把握。
〖
Old Horse Knows the Way
〗
During the Spring and Autumn Period
,
King Huan of Qi invaded the
State of Guzhu
.
The army was stuck in Guzhu for a whole year
.
Spring passed and
winter came
.
When Qi
’
s soldiers finally conquered Guzhu
,
they got lost
and couldn
’
t find their way back to the State of Qi
.
Qi
’
s minister Guan Zhong came up with an idea
.
He let the soldiers
take
out
sever-al
old
horses
to
lead
the
way
.
The
army
followed
the
horses closely
,
and finally made their way out of Guzhu and back to their
homeland
.
老马识途
春秋时期,齐国国王齐桓公带兵攻打孤竹国。
< br>齐国大军在孤竹国困了整整一年的时间。
春去冬来,
当齐军终于
打败了孤竹国的 时候,
却发现他们迷失了方向,
找不到回齐国的路了。
这时候,
大臣管仲想出了个办法。
他让士兵牵出几匹老马在前面
带路。
大军紧紧地跟在后面,
就这样终于走出了孤竹国,
回到了故乡。
〖
Impossible to Carve in Rotten Wood
〗
Confucius
is
a
great
educationist
during
the
Spring
and
Autumn
Period
.
One of his students appeared impressive in every word he said
which was closely reasoned and well argued
.
Confucius thought that this
student would make great achievements in the future
.
But before long
the student exposed his laziness
.
朽木难雕
孔子是 春秋时期一位伟大的教育家。
他有一个学生,
说起话来头
头是道,
很有自己的 理论和见解。
孔子以为这个学生日后会有很大的
成就。可不久后,这个学生就暴露出懒惰的毛病 。
One
day
he
was
sleeping
soundly
in
his
room
as
Confucius
was
giving lessons
.
Con-fucius felt very sorry at it and said
:
“
It is impossible
to carve in rotten wood
.
The same goes for painting walls made of dung
and dirt
.
What he says doesn
’
t aword with what he does
.
He has taught
me a lesson that I should value a student through his practical con-duct
instead of his words
.
”
有一天,孔子 在给学生讲课,这个学生却在房间里睡大觉。孔子
知道后很难过,他说:
“朽烂的木头是不能雕 刻的,粪土一样的墙壁
是
粉刷不了的。
那是一个说话与行为不一致的学生。
他给了我一个教训:
我应该以实际行为而不是言谈来评价学生”
。
Later,people use this phrase “Xiu Mu Nan Diao”(impossible to carve
in
rotten
wood)to
describe
a
hopeless
person
who
is
not
likely
to
be
improved by education.
后来,人们用这个成语“朽木难雕”比喻那难以教化、不能造就
成才的人。
immense image without Shape
大象无形
〖
Never Trust Appearance
〗
In
the
State
of
Zhao
,
there
was
once
a
scholar
by
the
name
of
Gongsun Long
.
“
I don
’
t keep company with people who have no talents
,
”
he
told
his
day
a
man
dressed
in
rags
came
up
to
him
saying
,
“
Please take me as your disciple.
”
After looking the man up and
down
,
Gongsun Long said
,
“
Tell me about your talents.
”
不可貌相
赵国有个学者名字叫公孙龙。他曾对弟子说:
“我 不会和没有本
领的人交往。
”一天,有个衣衫褴褛的人,走上前对他说:
“请您收我< br>做
徒弟吧
!
”公孙龙打量了那人一番,问道:
“你有何本领
?
”
“
Well,
”
said the man
,
“
I have a loud voice which can travel very
far
.
”
Is there any-one among you who has a loud voice?
”
Gongsun Long
asked his disciples
.
“
No
,
sir!
”
they n Long took the man
as his disciple
.
His other disciples were laugh- ing
.
“
What is the use of a
loud voice?
”
they sneered
.
那人回答说:
“我有一个洪亮的嗓音,它能传得很远。
”公孙龙 问
弟子道:
“你们当中有没有声音洪亮的
?
”弟子回答说:
“没
有。
”于是公孙龙收那人做徒弟。其他弟子窃窃私语,还嘲笑道:
“声
音洪亮有什么用
?
”
A few days later
,
Gongsun Long and his disciples had to make a trip
to the State of Yan
.
They had to cross a wide river
.
However
,
there was
only
one
boat
lying on the
dis-tant shore
.
Gongsun
Long told
his new
disciple to prove his man gladly heed-ed the request and yelled
loudly
.
Very soon the boat was rowed over to ferry them all.
过了几天,公孙龙和弟子们要到燕国去。他们来到一条大河前,
可是岸边却没有渡船,
只有一艘船停泊在远远的对岸。
公孙龙就令新
弟
< br>了施展其技。新弟子欣然答允,便大喊一声。很快,那艘渡船就划了
过求,载他们渡河去。
〖
Two Concubines
〗
Yangzi went to the State of Song and spent the night in an inn
.
The
innkeeper had two concubines
.
One was very beautiful
;
the other was
very ugly
.
The ugly one was fa-vored
;
the beautiful one
,
on the contrary
,
was not favored
.
Yangzi asked why this was
.
The innkeeper replied
,
“
The
beautiful concubine considers herself very beautiful
,
but I certainly do not
think she is beautiful
.
The ugly concubine considers herself very ugly but
I certainly do not think she is ugly
.
”
Yangzi said
,
“
Disciples
,
remember
these words
,
if a person can do virtuous deeds while ridding himself of
any feelings of conceit
,
then where could he go without being welcomed?
”
逆旅二妾
阳子到宋国去,住 在旅馆里。旅馆的主人有两个姨太太,一个很
美丽,另一个很丑陋。丑的受宠,美的反倒不受宠。阳子问 店主为什
么会是这样,店主回答说:
“那个美的觉得她自己很美,可是我并不
感到她美;那个丑的觉得她自己很丑,可是我并不感到她丑。
”阳子
说:
“徒弟们记住这句话,
要是一个人做高尚的事,
又没有觉得自己很高
尚的心理,那么他 到哪儿都会受到欢迎的。
”
〖
The Frog in the Shallow Well
〗
A
frog
who
lived
in
a
shallow
well
met
a
turtle
who
lived
in
the
sea
.
The Frog said
,
“
I am so happy!When I go out
.
I jump about on the
railing beside the well
.
When I come home
,
I rest in the holes on the
broken
wall
of
the
well
.
If
I
jump
into
the
water
,
it
comes
up
to
my
armpits and holds up my cheeks
.
If I walk in the mud
,
it cover up my
feet
.
I look around at the wriggly worms
,
crabs and tadpoles
,
and none
of them can compare with
井底之蛙
一只青蛙住在井里。
有一天,
青蛙在井边遇上了一只从海里来的
大龟。青蛙就对大龟夸口说:
“你看,我住在这里多么快乐啊
!
高兴的
时
候,可以在井栏边跳跃玩耍;疲倦的时候,就回到井里睡在砖洞里。
如果我跳入 水中,水流穿过我的腋窝,支撑我的头部。如果我在泥地
上走,泥浆便盖过我的脚面。我看看周围的蚯蚓 啦、螃蟹啦、还有蝌
蚪
me
.
Moreover
,
I am the lord of this trough of water and I stand tall in
this shallow well
.
My happiness is full
.
My dear turtle
,
why don
’
t you
come often and take a look around my place?
”
Before the turtle from the sea could get its left foot in the well
,
its
right knee got stuck
.
It hesitated and retreated
.
The turtle told the frog
:
等,他们哪里能跟我比呢
?
我是这个井里的主人,自由自在的好不
逍遥快乐
!
亲爱的海龟,你常到我的井里来游玩吧
!
”
大龟试着把它的左脚伸进井里去,
但是右腿已经被绊住了。
它踟
躇 着退却下来,对青蛙说:
“
Have
you
seen
the
sea
before?Even
a
distance
of
a
thousand
li
cannot give you an idea of the sea
’
s width
;
even a height of a thousand
zhang cannot give you an idea of its depth
.
In the time of the Xia Dynasty
,
there were floods nine years out of ten
,
but the wa-ters in the sea did not
increase
much
.
In
the
time
of
the
Shang
Dynasty
there
were
droughts
seven
Years
out
of
eight
,
but
the
waters
in
the
sea
did
not
decrease
real happiness is to live in the sea
.
”
Hearing
these
words
.
the
frog
of the
shallow
well
was
shocked
into
realizing his own insignificance
.
“你见过大海吗
?
海的广大,何止千里;海的深度, 何止千丈。
夏朝的时候,每十年中有九年发大水,但是海里的水并不涨;到后来
商
< br>朝,
每八年中有七年大旱,
海里的水,
也没有少了多少。
住在大海里,
才是真正的快乐呢
!
”
青蛙听了海龟的话,吃惊不小,开始认识到自己的浅薄和无知。
〖
Yu Gong Removed the Mountains
〗
Taihang
and
Wangwu
are
two
mountains
,
with
an
area
of
seven
hundred square li and a great height of thousands of zhang.
North
of
the
mountains
lived
an
old
man
called
Yugong
who
was
nearly ninety vears old
.
Since his home faced the two mountains
,
he was
troubled by the fact that they blocked the way of the inhabitants who had
to take a roundabout gathered his families together to discuss the
matter
.
“
Let
us
do
everything
in
our
power
to
flatten
these
forbidding
mountains so that there is a direct route to the south of Yuzhou reaching
the
southem
bank
of
the
Han
River
.
What
do
you
say?
”
Everyone
applauded his suggestion.
愚公移山
太行、王屋两座山,方圆七百里,高数万丈。
< br>北山住着一个名叫愚公的老人,
年纪将近九十岁了。
他的家门正
面对着这两座大 山。愚公苦于道路阻塞,出去进来都要绕远路,便召
集全家人商量说:
“我和你们尽力挖平两座 大山,直通到豫州南部,
到达汉水南岸,好吗
?
”大家纷纷表示赞同。
Therefore
,
Yugong took three sons and grandsons who could carry a
load on their shoulders
.
They broke up rocks and dug up mounds of earth
which were transported to the edge of the Bo Sea in baskets
.
An
old
man
called
Zhisou
who
lived
in
Hequ
,
near
a
bank
of
a
branch of the Yellow River
,
was amused and dissuaded Yugong
,
“
How
can you be so foolish?With your ad-vanced years and the little strength
that
you
have
left
,
you
cannot
even
destroy
a
blade
of
grass
on
the
mountain
,
not to speak of its earth and stone
.
”
愚公于是带领子孙中能挑担子的三个儿子和孙子们干了起来。
凿
石头,挖泥土,用畚箕运送到渤海的边上。
住在 黄河支流边河曲的一个名字叫智叟的老人笑着阻止愚公说:
“你怎么那么傻呀,
凭你的有生之年 和余力,
尚不能毁掉山上的草木,
更不用说泥土和石头啦
!
”
Yugong heaved a long sigh
.
“
Though I die
,
my son lives
follow sons and grandsons follow sons
.
My sons and grandsons go on and
on without end
,
but the moun-tains will not grow in size
.
Then why worry
about
not
being
able
to
flatten
them?
”
Zhisou
of
Hequ
was
bereft
of
speech
.
God was movedby Yugong
’
s sincerity and commanded the two sons
of Kua
’
eshi to carry away the two mountains on their backs
:
one was put
east
of
Shuozhou
and
the
other
south
of
Yongzhou
.
From
that
time
onwards
no
mountain
stood
between
the
south
of
Yuzhou
and
the
southern bank of the Han River.
愚公长叹一声说:
“即使我死了,还有儿子在呀;儿子又生孙子,孙
子 又生儿子;子子孙孙没有穷尽的,可是山不会增高加大,何愁挖不
平它们呢
?
”河曲智 叟没有话来回答。
天帝被愚公的诚心感动,命令夸娥氏的两个儿子背走两座山,
一
座放在朔州的东部,
一座放在雍州的南部。
从此以后,
从豫州的南部,
直
到汉水的南面,再也没有大山挡路了。
〖
Showing off One
’
s Skill before Lu Ban
〗
In ancient times
,
Lu Ban was supposed to be a consummate master
in
construction
and
sculpture
.
Carpenters
respect
him
as
their
ancestor
master
.
It is said that he once carved a colorful wooden phoenix that was
so
lifelike
that
it
actually
flew
in
the
sky
for
three
days
.
Thus
it
was
considered the height of folly to show off one
’
s skill with an axe in front
of Lu Ban
.
This
idiom
excoriates
those
who
show
off
their
slight
accomplishments in front of experts
.
班门弄斧
从古代时起,
鲁班被认为是一个建筑与雕塑方面的艺术大师,
木
匠 们把鲁班奉为他们的始祖。
据说,
他曾经惟妙惟肖地雕刻出一个木
凤
凰,
木凤凰栩栩如生竟然真的在天上飞了三天。
谁敢在鲁班面前卖弄
使用斧子的技术 ,也就是说,想在大行家面前显示自己的本领,被
人们认为是十分荒唐可笑的行为。
这个成语用来讽刺那些在专家面前卖弄的人。
〖
Mr
.
Dong Guo
〗
Mr
.
Dongguo
was
a
very
kind
scholar
who
enjoyed
helping
day
,
Mr. Dongguo was walking on the road
,
carrying a full
bag of books
.
Suddenly
,
he saw a wolf running towards him
.
The wolf
said to Mr
.
Dongguo
,
“
Help
,
pl ease!Somebody wants to kill me
.
”
东郭先生
东郭先生是一个仁慈的学者,很乐于助人。一天,他背着书袋在
路上走着。忽然,从后面跑来一只狼 。狼对东郭先生说:
“先生,
救救我吧
!
有人要杀我
!
”
So Mr
.
Dongguo took the books out of the bag
,
and let the wolf get
in
.
Soon
,
a man came and asked
,
“
Is there a wolf here?
”
Mr
.
Dongguo
said
,
“
No
,
there isn
’
t
.
”
After
the
man
went
away
,
the
wolf
cried
,
“
Let
me
out!
”
Mr
.
Dongguo let the wolf out
,
but the wolf said
,
“
Mr
.
Dongguo
,
I
’
m hungry
,
I must eat you!
”
At this moment
,
a farmer came along
.
Mr
.
Dongguo told him what
happened and asked him for heip
.
However
,
the wolf said to the farmer
,
“
Mr
.
Dongguo put me into his bag
.
which almost choked me
.
Shouldn
’
t I eat him?
”
于是东郭先生倒出口袋里的书,把狼藏了进去。
不一会儿,一
个人找了来,问东郭先生:
“看见一只狼没有
?”东郭先生说:
“我
没看见。
”
猎人走了,狼在口袋里喊到:
“让我出去
!
”东郭先生 把它放了出
来。狼嚷道:
“我要饿死了,东郭先生,我要吃了你
!
”
这时有个农夫走过来。
东郭先生急忙把事情的经过 告诉他,
求他
救命。狼却对农夫说:
“他把我装进口袋,差点把我闷死。我不应该
吃他吗
?
”