Old Man Catching Tiger Classical Chinese Translation

Original text about an old man hunting tigers:

When clan brother Zhonghan learned about Jingde County, there was a tiger rampage near the city and several hunters were injured, so they could not be hunted. The people of the city asked, "We can't get rid of this problem unless we hire Tang from Huizhou to hunt." Tigers are not my descendants. If the descendants of future generations cannot kill tigers, they are not my descendants." Therefore, the Tang family will be able to hunt tigers.)

He sent officials to report back to the Tang family. Choose two people with the best skills, and they will do it. Then there was an old man with bright beard and hair, who clucked and coughed from time to time, and a boy with sixteen or seventy-year-old ears, who was very disappointed and asked for food.

The old man was dissatisfied with the meaning. He knelt down and said, "I heard that this tiger is not five miles away from the city. I went to catch it first. It's not too late to give him food."

Then he ordered him to serve. Lead to. When they arrived at the mouth of the valley, they didn't dare to go. The old man said: "I am here, are you still afraid?"

Halfway into the valley, the old man Gu Tongzi said: "This animal seems to be sleeping, you call to wake it up."

The boy roared like a tiger, and then he came out of the forest and attacked the old man. The old man held a short-handled axe, an inch long and a half wide. He stood upright with his arms raised, and the tiger pounced on him. He turned his head to give way, and the tiger jumped over from the top. , has been bleeding to the ground. Looking at it, from the bottom of the chin to the tail, they are all cracked by the axe. It was a generous gift.

The old man said that he had been refining his arms for ten years and his eyes for ten years. His eyes were swept with a broom, and his arms made a strong man climb on them. He was hanging down and unable to move. "Zhuangzi" said: "Those who are accustomed to conquering the gods will not be able to enter the door of those who are skilled."

(It means: skilled people can admire people with superior skills, but skilled craftsmen will not dare to be in the door of skilled people. Passed by before. There are no two sentences in Zhuangzi. It may be that the author misremembered) Nobufu.

I saw Si Biao, a member of the Shi family, secretly grabbing a pen and writing a banner, which was no different from holding a candle. I also heard that Jinghai, who was very dedicated to writing, cut a hundred pieces of square-inch paper and wrote a word on them. It's just a matter of practice, it's not a mistake or cleverness.

Old Man Catching Tiger Translation:

During the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, tigers appeared in Jingde County, Anhui Province. Within a few months, more than a dozen people who went out of the city in the evening were eaten by tigers. Several groups of merchants passed by because they were trying to hurry, and many of them were injured by tigers at dawn. At that time, one of Ji Xiaolan's brothers, Ren Zhixian, recruited local hunters several times to search for tigers. As a result, several hunters were also eaten. For a time, the whole city was in panic, and daily necessities such as vegetables, salt, oil, and rice began to be out of stock. In desperation, a local man suggested: "Let's invite Tang Hunting from Huizhou! Unless he comes, we can't eliminate this disaster!" Ji Xiaolan's brother of the same race asked: "Who is Tang Hunting? Does he have this ability?" The man said, "Sure!" He told a story about an old man catching a tiger and his explanation. Probably in the Ming Dynasty, there was a man named Tang in Huizhou (now Shexian County, Anhui Province). He had just been married for a few days and was eaten by a tiger when he went into the mountains one day. His wife was very sad. After the child was born, she prayed to heaven: "When you grow up, if you can't kill a tiger, you are not my son! If your descendants can't kill a tiger, they can't be considered my descendants!" When the child grew up, he sought out famous teachers everywhere and finally mastered the skill of hunting tigers. From then on, the Tang family became famous in the local area for their skills in hunting tigers from generation to generation. After hearing this, Ji Xiaolan's brother from the same clan discussed with everyone. Many people knew about Tang Hunting and agreed with this suggestion. So, the next day, the Yamen sent someone with a gift to invite Tang to hunt. A few days later, the person who was sent came back and said, "The Tang family has specially selected two people with the best skills. They are already on the way and will arrive soon." After arriving, everyone saw that they were very disappointed. . It turned out that the Tang family sent these two people: a thin old man with completely white hair and beard. He giggled and coughed from time to time when he spoke. It seemed that he might fall to the ground at any time and never get up again; the other was ten years old. The six or seven year old boy looked like he had no strength at all. Everyone couldn't believe that since the Tang family sent people to travel such a long way, let the old man catch the tiger and explain it first. At this time, the old man suddenly came forward, half-kneeling and said: "Don't be busy. I heard that the tiger is less than five miles away from the city. Go and catch it first, and then eat!" Ji Xiaolan's brother of the same race After saying a few polite words, he sent someone to lead them to find where the tiger was. It was noon. The people from the county government showed the old man hunting tigers and explained his explanation to the entrance of the valley, and they did not dare to go further inside. The old man looked at it and smiled slightly: "As long as I am here, what are you afraid of?" Everyone had no choice but to bite the bullet and move forward. When we reached the depths of the canyon, several people were already shivering and unwilling to go any further.

The old man looked at the big boy and said, "Look at the situation, this beast seems to be still sleeping. Wake it up." The big boy opened his mouth to imitate the tiger's roar, which shook the trees and caused leaves to fall. After a while, the tiger came out of the forest. Everyone was so frightened that they backed away. The big boy also stepped back a dozen steps and then stood still at a distance. The old man was left standing there. When he felt someone in front of him, he stopped and suddenly rushed towards the old man! The old man was holding a short ax about an inch long and four or five inches wide in his hand. He looked at the charging tiger, raised his right arm and stood still. The tiger fell down in mid-air, and the old man turned his head to avoid the tiger's attack. In the blink of an eye, the tiger passed over the head, and when it hit the ground, it was covered in blood. It trembled a few times and then stopped moving. Everyone came running, convinced that the tiger was really dead, and went to see it. Only then did I realize that there was a long crack in the tiger's body, from its jaw, belly to tail, which had already broken the old man's ax into two pieces! At this time, everyone realized that the old man was not a mortal, and they all came forward to salute and ask for advice. The old man said that he had been practicing his arm strength for ten years just for this move. When someone waved a broom in front of his eyes, his eyes would not blink; when his arms were raised flat, several strong men could pull them down, and the strong men would hang and shake vigorously, but the old man's arms would not move.

Author: Ji Jun (1724-1805), a scholar and writer in the Qing Dynasty, with the courtesy name Xiaolan and Chunfan. He was a Jinshi during the Qianlong period, became a minister of the Ministry of Rites, and co-organized a bachelor's degree. His posthumous title was Wenda. Able to write poems, he mostly promoted feudal ethical concepts and praised virtues. In his later years, he wrote "Notes of Yuewei Thatched Cottage". The whole book focuses on promoting feudal morality and karma, and there is too much discussion and preaching. However, the text is simple and concise, covering a wide range of topics, and reflects the author's knowledge and insights in many aspects. There is "Ji Wenda Gong's Collection".