Man has the ambition to reach the sky, but he cannot get there without luck. A horse has a thousand-mile journey, but it cannot go there without riding.

The correct order of this sentence should be "A horse has a journey of a thousand miles, and it cannot go there without a rider; a man has aspirations to reach the sky, but he cannot go there without luck." It means: A good horse can gallop a thousand miles, but There is no way to go back and forth without someone driving it. Everyone has lofty ambitions, but without opportunities, success cannot be achieved.

Source: Song Dynasty Lu Mengzheng's (doubtful) "Broken Kiln Ode"

Original text:

The sky is unpredictable, and people are prone to misfortune and fortune. A centipede with hundreds of legs cannot fly as fast as a snake; a rooster with two wings cannot fly as fast as a crow. A horse has a journey of a thousand miles, and it cannot go there without a rider; a man has aspirations to reach the sky, but he cannot go there without luck.

Gai Wen: In life, wealth cannot be immoral, and poverty cannot be changed. The article is unparalleled, Confucius was troubled by Chen Bang; the military strategy is outstanding, Taigong fished in the Wei River. Yan Yuan was short-lived, but he was not a vicious person; Robber Zhi was old, so he was not a kind person. Emperor Yao was a wise man, but he gave birth to an unfilial son; Gusou was foolish and stubborn, but he gave birth to a filial son. Zhang Liangyuan was a commoner, and Xiao He was a county official. Yanzi, who was not five feet tall, was appointed prime minister of Qi; Kongming lived in a thatched hut and was able to serve as a military advisor to Shuhan. Although the Chu Ba was powerful, he was defeated by the Wu River and committed suicide; although the King of Han was weak, he actually had thousands of miles of territory. Li Guang has the power to shoot tigers, and he will never have a title until he is old; Feng Tang has the talent to ride a dragon, which he will never meet in his life. Before Han Xin met, he did not have three meals a day. When he met, he had a three-foot jade seal hanging on his waist. Once he became old, he would die at the hands of Yin people.

Some are poor first and then rich, and some are old and strong but young and old. He was full of articles, but his white hair failed him; he had little talent and little knowledge, but he passed the exam at a young age. The palace maids in the deep courtyards are destined to become prostitutes and concubines when they are out of luck; the romantic prostitutes come and become wives from time to time.

A young and beautiful woman is married to a stupid husband; a handsome man is married to a rough and ugly woman. The dragon has not been seen yet and dives among the fish and turtles; the gentleman loses his time and surrenders to the villain. Although his clothes are torn, he still retains his appearance of etiquette; his face is sad, but his arms are full of peace. When things go wrong, you should just live in poverty and keep your status; if you are not deceived, you will be proud and proud. A gentleman who is poor at first will have natural bones; a villain who will be rich at first will not be able to escape from poverty.

If the sky is not in season, the sun and moon will have no light; if the earth is not in season, vegetation will not grow; if water is not in season, the wind and waves will be uneven; if people are not in season, luck will not flow. Blessings and fortunes are already arranged in your destiny. Who doesn’t want wealth? If a person does not follow the basic eight characters, how can he be a minister?

I used to live in Luoyang, seeking meals from monks in the morning, and sleeping in a broken kiln at night. I thought that clothes could not cover my body, and I thought that food could not relieve my hunger. I was hated by superiors and disgusted by inferiors. Humanity said that I was cheap and not me. Don't give up. Now he is living in the court, his official position is the highest, and he is one of the three nobles. Although he is bowed below one person, he is ranked above tens of thousands of people. He has a staff to beat hundreds of officials, a sword to cut off stingy people, and thousands of boxes of Luo Jin to think about his clothes. If you think about food, you will have all kinds of delicacies and delicacies. When you go out, you will be a strong man holding a whip. When you enter, you will be a beautiful woman holding a cup. Your superiors will favor you and your inferiors will support you. It is not my ability to say that I am noble. This is due to time, luck, and fate.

Ouch! In life, you can't use your wealth to your fullest, and you can't deceive yourself about your poverty or lowliness. Just let the cycle of heaven and earth come over and over again.

Translation:

The weather is uncertain and unpredictable; people will also face various problems in their lives, and it is difficult to predict what disasters there will be. A centipede has many legs, but its crawling speed is not as fast as a snake without legs. Domestic chickens also have two wings, but they cannot fly as high as crows. A good horse can gallop thousands of miles, but it cannot go back and forth without a driver. Everyone has lofty ambitions, but without opportunities, success cannot be achieved.

People often say: In life, when you are rich, you can control yourself and not squander; when you are poor, you should not change your will. Confucius wrote more articles than anyone else in the world, but he was besieged by the state of Chen; Jiang Ziya, a literary and military man, also fished in the Weishui River and waited for an opportunity. Although Yan Hui, a student of Confucius, died young, he was by no means a vicious person. Although Robber Zhi lives a long life, he is not a kind person. Although Yao and Shun were wise and sage, they gave birth to unworthy sons. Shun's father Gusou was stubborn and ignorant, but he gave birth to a filial son like Shun. Zhang Liang turned out to be just a commoner, and Xiao He was just a county official. Yan Zi was less than five feet tall, but he was named the prime minister of Qi; Kong Ming lived in a thatched hut, but he was able to serve as the military advisor of Shu. Although Xiang Yu was powerful, he ended up being defeated and killed himself in Wujiang River; although Liu Bang was weak, he eventually took charge of the world. Although Han general Li Guang had the reputation of shooting tiger stones, he was never granted the title of marquis in his life. Although Feng Tang had the ability to govern the country and secure the country, he never saw the talent he had in his life. When Han Xin was in bad luck, he couldn't even eat. When luck came, he became a general in the palm of his hand. But once his luck failed, he died of a sinister plot.

Some people are poor first and then become rich, and there are also people whose ambitions fade in their youth when they are old.

He is full of beautiful articles, but has not yet been admitted to the imperial examination until his hair is gray; a person with little talent and little knowledge may be awarded a gold medal at a young age. The concubines in the deep palaces of the imperial city may become concubines and prostitutes during the turmoil. A romantic prostitute can also become a noble lady as time goes by. Young and beautiful women married stupid husbands, while handsome young men found ugly wives. When a dragon has no chance, he can only hide among the fish and turtles; when a gentleman has no chance, he can only succumb to the villain. Although his clothes are shabby, he always maintains respect and etiquette, and his face is sad, but he may have the ambition to help the world. When you have no ambition, you can only settle down in poverty and stick to your duties, and be open-minded that one day you will be proud and proud. A gentleman can be proud even if he is poor, but a villain who suddenly gets rich can't get rid of his inner poverty.

When the weather is bad, the sun and moon will not shine; when the land does not have suitable climate conditions, no vegetation will grow. When water does not get the right environment, it will create huge waves; when people do not get opportunities, good luck will not flow smoothly. Wealth and glory are all planned in life, who doesn't want it? If a person does not live according to the Eight Virtues, how can he become a high-ranking official or prime minister?

In the past, when I lived in Luoyang, I went to temples to eat vegetarian meals during the day and lived in dilapidated cave dwellings at night. The clothes he wore could not completely cover his body, and the porridge and rice he ate could not ward off hunger. The upper-class people hate me, the lower-class people hate me, and everyone calls me mean, but I haven't had the chance yet. Now I have entered the court as an official. My official position reaches the highest level, and my status reaches that of the Three Dukes. I am only below the emperor and above tens of millions of people. I have the power to manage hundreds of officials and the power to punish despicable and stingy officials. The clothes I wear are made of brocade, the food I eat is delicacies from the mountains and the sea, I am protected by warriors when I go out, and I am served by servants when I come home. The emperor loves me, and all the officials support me. Everyone says that I am noble, but it is not that I really have much ability. This is what I get. The blessing of time and destiny.

Hey! Therefore, when people live in the world, they should not just enjoy themselves when they are rich and prosperous, nor should they give up on themselves when they are poor and humble. Listen to the cycle of heaven and earth and what happens over and over again!

Notes:

Wing: Wings.

Gai: modal particle, not translated.

Wen: Heard.

Fornication: excessive; uncontrolled.

Shift: change; shake.

Eyu: trapped.

Unfilial: generally refers to being unfilial.

Stupid and stubborn: ignorant and stubborn.

Full of articles: Full of knowledge and articles. The metaphor is very talented.

Short of talents and shallow learning: not very talented and not very knowledgeable (mostly used as a self-effacing expression).

Suddenly rich: suddenly become rich.

Residence: In ancient times, it refers to bureaucrats and nobles who live in other countries; later, it generally refers to landowners, gentry and other people who have lost their power and live in other countries.

Group: wine glass.

Creative background:

Lü Mengzheng was born in poverty and deeply understood the suffering of the poor, so he studied diligently, worked diligently, and loved the people diligently. When he was young, he once studied in Poyao with Kou Zhun, and experienced the warmth and warmth of the world. Later, when he became prime minister, he realized the favor and disgrace of people's hearts. So he wrote a section of "Ode to the Broken Kiln".

Appreciation:

"Broken Kiln Ode" reveals the idea of ??life's destiny and the natural cycle of changes in the world. The article uses his own experience from misery to wealth to list the historical events since ancient times. The various fates and tribulations experienced by many famous people in the world are presented with facts and truth to explain the ups and downs of life's destiny in this world.

From the beginning to the end of life, in the natural cycle of time and space changes between no luck and luck, gain and loss of time, there will be completely different and unexpected man-made and natural changes. Only those who have experienced too many hardships and vicissitudes and great ups and downs can understand the most profound changes in the impermanence of heaven and the warmth and warmth of human relationships. Only those who can understand the tremendous changes in destiny in the cycle of human hardship, man-made changes and the natural changes of heaven and earth. Ups and downs and many helpless endings in life.

What Lu Mengzheng is seeking is his life wisdom of listening to the cyclical changes of heaven and earth, not being able to use up wealth, and not being deceived about poverty and poverty. The beginning of the poem is "There are unforeseen circumstances in the sky, and people are prone to misfortunes and blessings", and finally "In life, you can't use all your wealth, and you can't deceive yourself when you are poor", and you should "allow yourself to the cycle of heaven and earth, over and over again." Lu Mengzheng revealed in his works This kind of thought: in the specific and previously unexpected changes of the cycle of heaven and earth, people can't use it all if they want to be rich, and they can't deceive themselves if they are poor. The thought of people working hard in poverty.

There are still unforeseen events in the sky, and there are still misfortunes and blessings for people. Lu Mengzheng reminded people to pay attention to the changes in nature. As time changes, people and things will bring about huge gaps and have a great impact on people. The cycle of heaven and earth begins again and again, so people must face the smooth road and the bumpy road calmly.

Lu Mengzheng used a considerable amount of space to list the ups and downs of the fortunes of many famous people in history, and the huge gap between success and hardship. He deliberately listed such a large number because It should be explained that many people want to conquer God, but in reality most people cannot conquer Heaven. Many people live in this world and do not accept reality and cope with changes. "A horse has a thousand-mile hooves, and no one can go there by itself; a man has the ambition to reach the clouds, and he cannot reach it without luck." Although some people are "full of knowledge", they will not be able to become officials even when they are old, but they will not be able to become officials even when they are old. Although a person is "scarce in talent and knowledge", he or she "passes the exam at a young age", that is, he becomes an official at a young age. This is called "luck", which is what people often call "good fortune". "Ode to the Broken Kiln" reminds people that the impermanence of nature and the warmth and warmth of human relationships are the normal state of the world, and reminds people to accept reality and respond to changes in time and space.

About the author:

Lü Mengzheng (944~1011), courtesy name Shenggong, was a native of Luoyang, Henan. His ancestral home was in Junzhai Village, Chenggang Road Street, Laizhou City today. Prime Minister in the early Northern Song Dynasty. In the second year of Taiping and Xingguo's reign (AD 977), after passing the first prize in the examination, he was awarded the title of Prime Minister and appointed as the general magistrate of Shengzhou. He rose through the ranks step by step, ascended to the throne three times, was granted the title of Duke of Xu, and was granted the title of Prince and Grand Master. He is generous and upright, speaks politely to his superiors, and is tolerant and elegant to his subordinates. He died in the fourth year of Dazhong Xiangfu (AD 1011) at the age of sixty-eight. He was posthumously given Zhongshu Ling and his posthumous title Wenmu.