Huan Chong's Classical Chinese Essay on Replacing Sheep

1. Translation of the classical Chinese text "Replace Cows with Sheep"

Original source of "Replace Sheep with Sheep" King Xuan of Qi asked: "Has anyone heard about the affairs of Qi Huan and Jin Wen?" Mencius He said to him: "Zhongni's disciples did not do anything about Dao, Huan and Wen, which will not be passed down to future generations.

I have not heard of it. If there is no ③, then who is the king?" He said: "De How can he be a king? " Said: "If you protect the people and become a king, you can't control it."

Said: "If you are a man of few people, can you protect the people?" He said. He said: "How do you know that I can do it?" He said: "I heard that Hu He said that the king was sitting in the hall, and a cow passed by the hall. The king saw it and said, 'Where is the cow?'" He said to him :'I will challenge Zhong ⑥.

'The king said: 'I can't bear it! If he is innocent, he will die.' "How can it be abolished? You don't know what it is?" He said: "This is the king's heart." , I know that the king cannot bear it. "

The king said: "There are indeed people in Qi. Why do you love an ox? If you can't bear to see it, it will die if you are not guilty, so you can change it with a sheep." He said: "The king is no different from the people who love the king. Xiao Yi Da, he knew it? If Wang Ruo hides his innocence and dies, what will he choose between cattle and sheep? "The king laughed and said: "I don't care about his wealth, so it is suitable for the people. It’s called my love.”

Said: “No harm, this is the art of benevolence. When you see the cattle, you don’t see the sheep. The gentleman sees the animals alive and cannot bear to see them die; Hearing his voice, he couldn't bear to eat his meat.

This is why a gentleman lives far away from the kitchen." Notes ① King Xuan of Qi: His surname is Tian and his given name is Bijiang.

The son of King Qi Wei and the father of King Qi Min, he reigned from about 319 to 301 BC. ② Qi Huan and Jin Wen: refer to Duke Huan of Qi and Duke Wen of Jin.

Duke Huan of Qi was the king of Qi in the Spring and Autumn Period. His surname was Jiang and his given name was Xiaobai. He reigned from 685 BC to 643 BC and was the first overlord in the Spring and Autumn Period.

Duke Wen of Jin was the king of Jin during the Spring and Autumn Period. His surname was Ji and his given name was Chong'er. He reigned from 636 BC to 628 BC and was one of the "Five Hegemons of the Spring and Autumn Period". ③ Wuyi: no last resort, the same as "already".

④Hu He: Name of a person, a close official around King Xuan of Qi. ⑤: verb, go, go.

⑥Chaozhong: A new bell is cast, and the blood of an animal is killed to smear the pores of the bell for sacrifice. According to ancient etiquette, whenever a new artifact of the country or an ancestral temple begins to be used, an animal must be killed and its blood must be sacrificed.

⑦觳 (hu)觫 (su): trembling with fear. ⑧Love: Stingy.

⑨褊(bian): narrow. ⑩Different: verb, strange, suspicious, blame.

⑾Hidden: love, pity. ⑿ Wushang: It doesn’t matter, it doesn’t matter.

⒀Chef: kitchen. Translation; King Xuan of Qi asked: "Can you tell me about the hegemony of Duke Huan of Qi and Duke Wen of Jin in the Spring and Autumn Period?" Mencius replied: "None of Confucius' students talked about the hegemony of Duke Huan of Qi and Duke Wen of Jin. So it has not been passed down to future generations, and I have never heard of it.

If your Majesty wants me to tell you, then I should talk about the royal way of unifying the world with morality." King Xuan asked, "How about morality? Can we unify the world?" Mencius said: "Everything is done to make the people live and work in peace and contentment. No one can stop the people like me from unifying the world." Can I live and work in peace and contentment?" Mencius said: "Yes."

King Xuan said: "How do you know that I can?" Mencius said: "I once heard something from your Majesty. One day when someone was sitting in the main hall, someone was leading a cow and passed by His Highness. You saw it and asked, "Where are you taking the cow?" The man holding the cow replied, "I'm going to kill the bell for blood sacrifice."

You then say: ‘Let it go! I couldn't bear to see it trembling with fear, like it was being executed everywhere for no crime.

’ The man holding the cow asked: ‘Then we won’t sacrifice the bell? ’ You said, ‘How can we not worship the bell? Use sheep instead of cows! ’-----I wonder if this is the case? King Xuan said, "It is true." Mencius said: "With your benevolence, Your Majesty, you can unify the world."

After hearing about this, the people thought you were stingy, but I know that you are not stingy, but because you cannot bear it. King Xuan said: "Yes, some people do think so."

However, although our country of Qi is not big, how can I be so stingy that I can't bear to part with a cow? I really couldn't bear to see it trembling with fear, as if it was sentenced to death for no crime, so I replaced it with a sheep. Mencius said: "Your Majesty, don't blame the people for thinking you are stingy."

They only saw that you used small sheep to replace big oxen. How could they know the deeper meaning? What's more, if your Majesty takes pity on it but is slaughtered without any sin, what's the difference between a cow and a sheep? King Xuan laughed and said, "Yes, even I don't know what kind of psychology it is." It is true that I am not stingy with money so I use sheep instead of cows. However, the people do have their reasons for thinking this way. "

Mencius said: "It doesn't matter. Your Majesty's intolerance is a sign of kindness, just because you saw the cows with your own eyes but not the sheep.

As for birds and beasts, a gentleman cannot bear to see their dead areas when he sees them alive; he cannot bear to eat their flesh when he hears their cries. Therefore, a gentleman always stays away from the kitchen. ” 2. Translation of Ox and Sheep in Classical Chinese

Mencius replied: “Confucius’s disciples did not talk about the affairs of Duke Huan of Qi and Duke Wen of Jin, so it was not passed down to later generations, and I have not heard of it. If you have to tell me, then let’s talk about the principle of unifying the world with benevolence, okay? "'

King Xuan asked: "How can benevolence and virtue unite the world? "

Mencius replied: "If he caressing the people and unifying the world, no one can stop him. King Xuan asked: "Can a king like me care for the people?" "

Mencius said: "Okay. "

King Xuan asked: "How do you know that I can do it? "

Mencius said: "I heard from Hu He that (once) the king was sitting in the hall, and a man led an ox and passed by the hall. The king saw it and asked: ' Where to take the cow? ’ (The man) replied: ‘I want to use it to sacrifice the bell. ’ The king said, ‘Let it go! I couldn't bear to see it trembling in fear and being dragged away to be killed without any guilt. ’ (The man) asked: ‘Then we don’t need to sacrifice the bell? ’ The king said, ‘How can you not want it? Replace it with sheep! ’ I wonder if this is the case? King Xuan said, "There is such a thing." "

Mencius said: "With such a heart, you can unify the world! (Using sheep instead of cows to sacrifice the bell) The people all thought that the king was stingy, but I knew that the king could not bear it. King Xuan said, "That's right. There are indeed people who talk like this." Although Qi is a small country, how can I begrudge one cow? It was because he couldn't bear to see it trembling in fear and being dragged away to be killed without any guilt, so he replaced it with a sheep. "

Mencius said: "Your Majesty, don't blame the people for thinking you are stingy. If you replace a big cow with a lamb, how can they understand what you are doing? (Because) Your Majesty, if you pity the livestock and kill them innocently, what is the difference between cattle and sheep? King Xuan smiled and said: "What kind of mentality is this? I am not stingy with money and exchange sheep for cattle. No wonder the people say that I am stingy."

Mencius said: " It doesn't matter, this is the way to express benevolence, (because you only saw the cattle but not the sheep). As for animals, when you see them alive and kicking, you can't bear to see them die; listen. When they moan and groan, they can no longer bear to eat their meat. Because of this, a gentleman should place his kitchen far away from himself.

” 3. Classical Chinese translation of Yang Zi’s neighbor died a sheep

Notes: 1. Yang Zi: Yang Zhu, a famous thinker during the Warring States Period.

2. Lead his party: lead his relatives . Party, relatives.

3. Shift: long time.

Translation: Yang Zi’s neighbor led his family to go. After chasing him, he asked Yang Zi's servant to help him pursue it.

Yang Zi said: "Hey! A sheep has escaped, why do so many people have to chase it? "The neighbor said: "There are too many side roads in this area. When the neighbor came back, Yang Zi asked, "Have you found the sheep?" The neighbor replied: "I can't find it." "

Yang Zi asked: "How did you run away? The neighbor said: "The road forked again and again. We didn't know where the sheep went, so we had to come back." " Yang Zi's expression suddenly changed after hearing this. He didn't speak for a long time and didn't smile for a whole day.

His students felt strange and asked (Yang Zi) for advice: "Sheep are just *** beasts. , and it is not your teacher, but it makes you unsmiling. Why is this? "Yang Zi did not answer, and (his) students did not get his answer in the end. It inspires those who seek to learn if they often change their learning content and learning methods, they will lose their nature, lose their direction, and even lose their lives. Only by grasping the fundamental things and unifying Only by holding on to the essential things will we not go astray.

From this fable, we can further understand that not only must we firmly grasp the fundamental things and consistent essential things in learning, This is how you should observe and deal with everything. Objective things are complicated, and you must be focused on everything you do. You can't be half-hearted and change your mind.

If you don't have your own opinion and want to go another way when you see a side road, you will go astray. As the fable of the lost sheep warns, in the end you will gain nothing and may even risk losing your nature or even your life. The idioms "lost sheep on the wrong road" and "lost sheep on various paths" condensed from this fable are metaphors for complex and changeable situations. Or if you are not focused, you will lose your nature, lose your direction, go astray, achieve nothing, and have serious consequences. 4. The rich man begged for sheep in classical Chinese

This

means

It satirizes the unkindness of being rich, shepherding ① ninety-nine sheep: satisfaction

If there are ③ in the city, then the number of herds is enough. If a greedy person wants ② hundred, then the number of sheep I have is enough. . When I visited an old friend in the city, his neighbor had a sheep. The rich man asked the poor man to raise it. Ninety-nine sheep, now give me this one. There is one sheep: seeking

⑥;

Notes

①Herding, now you have ⑥one surplus ⑤ Visit, I have raised ninety-nine sheep and hope to have one hundred sheep: I have ninety-nine sheep: I hope

④ I wish to worship the rich in the village and say:

He once sought an acquaintance in his village. His neighbor was a poor man, and I increased it to one hundred:

Translation

There was a rich man in the state of Chu 5. Rich. A classical Chinese essay about begging for sheep

Original text

A rich man in Chu herds ① ninety-nine sheep, but he wishes to have ② a hundred. When he visits an old friend in the city, his neighbor is poor and has only one sheep, and he is rich. He bowed and said: "I have ninety-nine sheep. If one of your six sheep becomes my hundred, then the number of sheep will be enough." He had ninety-nine sheep and hoped to have one hundred sheep. He once asked an acquaintance in his village. His neighbor was a poor man who had a sheep. The rich man asked the poor man, "I have ninety-nine sheep. Now give me one." I will increase it to a hundred, then the number of sheep I have will be enough.

"

Notes

①Mu: raising

②Ying: contentment

③Yili: rural area

④Wish: Hope

⑤Visit: Seek

⑥: This

Meaning

It satirizes people who are greedy and greedy. /p>