愚公移山 – Chinese philosophy and culture

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yúgōng-yíshān 愚公移山

The Foolish Old Man Who Moved the Mountains

比喻有恒心和毅力,敢于知难而进。出自《列子·汤问》,是中国古代著名的寓言故事。愚公年近九十,门前正对大山,出门需绕行很远。为了不受大山阻隔,他终年率子孙凿山移石,遭智叟嘲笑而不放弃,终于感动天帝派天神移走了大山。在历史语境中,它蕴含着对于愚与智、有限与无穷、人力与自然力、人道与天道关系的思考。唐宋以降,寓言中勇于面对和挑战困难并且持之以恒的内涵被发掘,自此“愚公移山”成为迎难而上、坚持不懈的代名词。

This famous ancient Chinese fable from Liezi extols perseverance, determination and eagerness to surmount difficulty. Two huge mountains lay directly in front of the Foolish Old Man’s house. The Foolish Old Man, who was almost ninety years old, had to take a long detour whenever he went out. To get rid of this inconvenience, he led his sons and grandsons in chipping away at the mountains year after year. They would not give up despite jeers of the Wise Old Man, and eventually moved God, who sent heavenly spirits to move the mountains away. Originally, this fable pondered the relationship between foolishness and wisdom, the finite and the infinite, the forces of humans and the forces of nature as well as the relationship between the ways of humans and the ways of heaven. Since the Tang and Song dynasties, however, its underlying message about courage and perseverance in the face of challenge and adversity has gained increasing appreciation. Since then, the “Foolish Old Man Who Moved the Mountains” has become a synonym for forging ahead in the face of difficulties and persevering to the very end.

引例 Citations:

◎河曲智叟笑而止之曰:“甚矣,汝之不惠。以残年余力,曾不能毁山之一毛,其如土石何?”北山愚公长息曰:“汝心之固,固不可彻,曾不若孀妻弱子。虽我之死,有子存焉;子又生孙,孙又生子;子又有子,子又有孙;子子孙孙无穷匮也,而山不加增,何苦而不平?”(《列子·汤问》)

(河曲智叟嘲笑并阻止愚公说:“你太不聪明了! 就凭你在这世上最后的几年和剩下的这点儿力气,还不能毁掉山上的一根草木,能把这大山的土石怎么样呢?”北山愚公长叹了一口气说:“你的脑子太顽固,顽固得不开窍,连寡妇、孤儿都比不上。即使我死了,还有我儿子在呀;儿子又生孙子,孙子又生儿子;儿子又有儿子,儿子又有孙子;子子孙孙永无穷尽,可是这两座山却不会再增高了,还愁什么挖不平呢?”)

The Wise Old Man of the River Bend laughed at the Foolish Old Man and tried to stop him, saying, “You’re really too foolish! With the few years and little strength that you still have, you wouldn’t even be able to fell a tree on the mountain. How can you possibly move all the soil and rocks?” The Foolish Old Man of the North Mountain heaved a long sigh and said, “You are so pigheaded! Even widows and orphans know better. It is true that I will die, but my sons will survive and they will have sons. Then their sons will have sons, and those sons will also have sons, and I will have endless sons and grandsons, but these two mountains will grow no higher. Why can’t they be leveled?”(Liezi)

◎精卫填海、愚公移山,志之谓也。(杨亿《处州龙泉县金沙塔院记》)

(精卫填海和愚公移山,讲述的都是立志。)

The tales of the mythical bird Jingwei filling in the ocean and of the Foolish Old Man moving the mountains are about determination. (Yang Yi: A Record of the Jinsha Temple in Longquan County, Chuzhou Prefecture)

◎各奋愚公之愿,即可移山;共怀精卫之心,不难填海。(蔡锷《劝捐军资文》)

(大家如果都立下愚公那样的志向,就可以搬走大山;人们都怀抱精卫那样的雄心,填平大海也不再困难。)

If everyone has the determination of the Foolish Old Man, we can move mountains; if we have the ambition of Jingwei, it will not be hard to fill in the ocean. (Cai E: A Call for Donations to the Army)

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