中国传统文化经典哲理故事(英文)4.doc

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 butterflyHe flapped his wings and made sure enough he was a butterflyHe had such a joyful feeling as he fluttered about that he completely forgot that he was ZhuangziSoon though，he realized that proud butterfly was really Zhuangzi who dreamed he was a butterflyOr 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，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 YufenOne day，his friends came to celebrate his birthday，and Chun Yufen was drinking under an old pagoda treeWhen he became drunk，he fell asleepSuddenly，Chun Yufen met with two atomies who took him into a giant hole in the tree，having a ride to the great Kingdom of PagodaChun 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 KingdomSoon after，he married the kings beautiful daughterChun Yufen was so happy with the life there that he totally forgot his hometownTwenty 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 enemiesUnfortunately，his troops were defeated and his wife diedChun Yufen decided to leave the Kingdom of PagodaHe 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 Yufens 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 stillHow 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 dont know whyAm 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 thingI 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?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 Jins neighbor country YuThe Jin troops had to have Yus permission to go through its territory， which，most likely，the King of Yu would refuseThe King of Jin could not work out a planOne 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 doesnt mean that he possesses them，as they will soon be taken back by usThen 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 conqueredIf we let the Jin troops pass，the gap between Guos destruction and ours is only a period of morning to evening”But Gongs 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 CountyWho do you think will fit the of-fice?” Qi answered without hesitation，“Xie Hu may be the choice” The King feit surprised and said，“Isnt 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 ones virtue and talent，brushing aside any thought of whether one was his en-emy or relativeHe 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!” 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 criticalSo the King of Zhao sent Lord Ping Yuan to the State of Chu for helpLord Ping Yuan intended to lead twenty assistants to accomplish this missionNineteen qualified people were select-ed，and one more was neededAt this time，Mao Sui volunteered to forward a plea to go with Lord Ping YuanAlthough 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 Chus support，but made no progressAccordingly，Mao Sui said to the King of Chu，“We come here to ask you to send relief forces，but you did not utter a wordPlease dont 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 Suis 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：“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 Suis 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 poetsOne was called Chang Jian and the oth-er，s name was Zhao GuZhao Gus poems were much appreciated by Chang Jian.Once Zhao Gu was going to SuzhouWhen 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 therefirst and wrote two lines of a poem on a conspeincus wall in hope of Zhaos completion.Soon after,Zhao Gu arrived at hte temple.He noticed the incom-plete poem on the wall immediately and completed the poemChang Jians first two sen-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 Gus，but he stimulated Zhao to write down excellent onesPeople call it an action of“to casting a brick to attract jade”，which refers to putting forth ones superficial suggestion or article in order to draw out othersbetter 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-erthe torrents were so violent that it was impossible to distinguish an ox from a horse from the other side of the riverThen the River God was overwhelmed with joy，feeling that all the beauty under the heaven belonged to him aloneDown the river he traveled east until he reached the North SeaLooking 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 themI 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 Its said that in the past days there was a tailor in Beijing City.When he made dresses for people，apart from asking their size，he also would like to ask the customersdisposition，age，the time when they passed the imperial examination and so onThe 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 whyHe 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 excitedHe 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 shorter.The 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 LuNobody had seen such a bird before，so they called it the“holy bird” 鲁侯养鸟 从前有只海鸟，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”。 Duke Lu ordered his men to capture the seabird aliveThey kept it in a golden cage and brought it to the Imperial Ancestral TempleDuke Lu treated the seabird as though it were his guest of honorEach day there would be banquets where dainties and delicacies of every kind would be offered to the seabirdEven the Duke Lus musicians had to per-form for the seabirds 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 grandness.It became so frightened and sad that it dared not eat or drinkAfter three days,it died.Duke Lu thought that he had beena good host to his guestWhy 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 fleshSwiftly the clam folded her shell and clamped down on the snipes bill tightlyThen each one was handicapped by the other，and neither could move an inchThe snipe sneered，“If it doesnt rain for a couple of days，lets 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 inJust 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 paintingEvery day many people always called at his home to ask for his paintingsWhat 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 leavesWhenever he had gained a new understanding, he went back to his study and drew what was in his mind on the paperOver 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 mindSo 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 eyesTherefore 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 Tongs 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 ones 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 yearSpring passed and winter came When Qis soldiers finally conquered Guzhu，they got lost and couldnt find their way back to the State of Qi Qis minister Guan Zhong came up with an ideaHe let the soldiers take out sever-al old horses to lead the wayThe 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。 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 PeriodOne of his students appeared impressive in every word he said which was closely reasoned and well arguedConfucius 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 lessonsCon-fucius felt very sorry at it and said：“It is impossible to carve in rotten woodThe same goes for painting walls made of dung and dirtWhat he says doesnt aword with what he doesHe 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 dont keep company with people who have no talents，”he told his disciples.One day a man dressed in ra