Читать книгу Chinese Proverbs and Popular Sayings - Larry Herzberg - Страница 5

Few other societies in the history of the world have for so long revered learning through study as have the Chinese. Starting as early as the seventh century, China chose all its government officials, except for the emperor, exclusively through an examination system based on the study of classical literature. Although it was much more difficult for a boy who did not come from the landed gentry to afford the books and instruction necessary to pass the various exams required to become a governor or imperial adviser, Chinese history is filled with examples of young men of humble beginnings who rose to prominent positions through self-education.

It is therefore only to be expected that Chinese culture has always promoted respect for teachers, because education has been the path to success. The most revered teacher of all time in China is, of course, Confucius. To this day temples all over the country are dedicated to his memory and to the realm of books and of study that he represents.

Here are some of the most famous quotes related to teaching, learning, and knowledge.

TEACHERS

Whoever is your teacher, even for a day, consider your father (to respect and care for) your whole life.

Yírì wéi shī, zhōngshēn wéi fù.

一日为师，终身为父。—Confucius

When we walk together with three people, (at least) one of them will have something to teach us.

(Whenever you encounter any group of people, whether 3 or 33, there is something to be learned from at least one of them.)

Sān rén xíng, bì yǒu wú shī.

三人行，必有吾师。—Confucius

Never tire of studying, and never tire of teaching others.

Xué ér bú yàn, huì rén bú juàn.

学而不厌，诲人不倦。—Confucius

Every master has his/her own teaching methods; every trick has a different sleight of hand.

Gè shīfu gè chuánshòu, gè bǎxì gè biànshǒu.

各师傅各传授， 各把戏各变手。

What you learn depends on whom you study with; if you study with a butcher, you’ll never become a cobbler.

Gēn shénme rén xué shénme yàng, gēnzhe túfū xué bùchéng píjiàng.

跟什么人学什么样，跟着屠夫学不成皮匠。

If you study with a sorceress, you’ll learn to dance about in a trance.

(The person with whom you study is the person you’ll emulate.)

Gēnzhe shá rén xué shá rén, gēnzhe wūpó huì tiào shén.

跟着啥人学啥人，跟着巫婆会跳神。

To teach students for three years is to teach yourself.

(We learn something best by teaching it.)

Jiāoshū sānnián jiāo zìshēn.

教书三年教自身。

Give a man a fish, and he’ll have food for a day [three meals]; teach a man to fish, and he’ll have a skill to use all his life.

Shòu rén yǐ yú sān cān zhī xū, shòu rén yǐ yù zhōngshēn zhī yòng.

授人以鱼三餐之需，授人以渔终身之用。

First be a student, then be a teacher.

(One must learn something well before one can teach it to others.)

Xiān zuò xuéshēng, hòu zuò xiānsheng.

先做学生，后做先生。

Teaching by example is better than teaching by preaching.

(Actions speak louder than words; the best form of teaching is to model the virtues you teach.)

Shēn jiào zhòngyú yán jiào.

身教重于言教。

EXPERIENCE, INCLUDING FAILURE AND SUFFERING, CAN BE THE BEST TEACHER: THE SCHOOL OF HARD KNOCKS

If previous experiences are not forgotten, they can be the teachers in later matters.

(We can learn from previous experience only if we make the effort.)

Qián shì búwàng hòu shì zhī shī.

前事不忘后事之师。

Hearing about something a hundred times cannot compare to seeing it once for yourself.

(“A picture is worth a thousand words”; “Seeing is believing”)

Bǎi wén bùrú yíjiàn.

百闻不如一见。

If you do not experience anything, it’s impossible to gain knowledge.

Bùjīng yí shì, bùzhǎng yí zhì.

不经一事，不长一智。

Eat/suffer a fall into the pit, gain in your wit.

(One often gains in wisdom after suffering [eating] misfortune.)

Chī yíqiàn zhǎng yízhì.

吃一堑长一智。

Without experiencing the cold of winter, one cannot appreciate the warmth of spring.

Bùjīng dōng hán, bùzhī chūn nuǎn.

不经冬寒，不知春暖。

Out of hunger comes wisdom; out of poverty comes cleverness.

Èchūlái de jiànshí; qióngchūlái de cōngmíng.

饿出来的见识；穷出来的聪明。

Receive one blow, and you’ll learn a lesson; receive ten blows, and you’ll end up a genius.

[lit.: you’ll become like Zhuge Liang, a legendary master strategist and clever man]

Ái yì quán, dé yì zhāo, ái shí quán, biàn Zhūgé.

挨一拳，得一招； 挨十拳，变诸葛。

Only if you have endured the bitterest suffering can you become a superior person.

Chī dé kǔ zhōng kǔ, fāng wéi rén shàng rén.

吃得苦中苦，方为人上人。

REGARDING TALENTED STUDENTS

[Expressing a teacher’s hope that his student will surpass him in knowledge in the future]

Indigo comes from blue but exceeds blue [in its beauty].

Qīng chū yú lán, shèng yú lán.

青出于蓝，胜于蓝。

A fast horse needs only one lash of the whip; a quick student needs only one word [of wisdom].

Kuài mǎ yì biān, kuài rén yì yán.

快马一鞭，快人一言。

Teachers open the door; you enter by yourself.

[lit.: The master leads the student through the door, but perfecting one’s skill is up to the student.]

(A teacher can only expose students to knowledge; then it’s up to the student to work hard to learn what he or she has been taught.)

Shīfu lǐng jìn mén, xiūxíng zài gèrén.

师傅领进门，修行在个人。

If jade is not cut and polished, it can’t be made into anything useful (and beautiful).

(You can’t become anyone of consequence without the proper training and discipline.)

Yù bù zhuó bù chéng qì.

玉不琢不成器。

If you want people to know you, study diligently; if you are afraid for people to know you, don’t do things that are wrong.

(To be known and respected, study hard; to remain unknown, do nothing bad.)

Yào rén zhī, zhòng qín xué; pà rén zhī, shì mò zuò.

要人知，重勤学；怕人知，事莫做。

LEARNING IS AN ENDLESS TASK THAT REQUIRES GREAT EFFORT

Live ’til you’re old and study ’til you’re old, but there’s still 30% you’ll never learn.

Huódào lǎo xuédào lǎo, hái yǒu sānfēn xuébudào.

活到老学到老，还有三分学不到。

You are never too old to learn.

Xué bú yàn lǎo.

学不厌老。

Even a hundred-foot-high bamboo can still grow taller.

[lit., advance one step further]

Bǎi chǐ gāntóu gèng jìn yíbù.

百尺竿头更进一步。

When trees get old, their trunks become half-empty [hollow]; when people get old, they are full of knowledge about many things.

Shù lǎo bàn xīn kōng; rén lǎo shìshì tōng.

树老半心空；人老事事通。

There is no end of books to read, [just as there is] no end of roads to travel.

(It is impossible for anyone to ever know all there is to know.)

Dú bú jìn de shū, zǒu bù wán de lù.

读不尽的书，走不完的路。

To have half-knowledge of ten things is not as good as thorough knowledge of just one.

(Better to master one thing than try to be a “Jack of all trades, master of none.”)

Shí shì bàn tōng bùrú yí shì jīngtōng.

十事半通不如一事精通。

Learning has no boundaries.

Xué wú zhǐ jìng.

学无止境。—Confucius

Learning is like rowing a boat against the current; if you don’t advance, you’ll regress.

Nì shuǐ xíng zhōu, bú jìn zé tuì.

逆水行舟，不进则退。

Familiarity can engender skill.

(Practice makes perfect.)

Shú néng shēng qiǎo.

熟能生巧。

“A LITTLE LEARNING IS A DANGEROUS THING”

Better to go without books than to believe everything they say.

(Don’t believe everything you read.)

Jìn xìn shū bù rú wú shū.

尽信书不如无书。

Learning without thinking is ignorance; thinking without learning (study) is dangerous.

Xué ér bùsī zé wǎng, sī ér bù xué zé dài.

学而不思则罔，思而不学则殆。

If you know [something], to recognize that you know it; and if you don’t know [something], to realize that you don’t know it—that is [true] knowledge.

Zhī zhī wéi zhī zhī bù zhī wéi bù zhī shì zhī yě.

知之为知之不知为不知是知也。—Confucius

[Don’t be like] a frog at the bottom of a well.

(This proverb is based on an ancient fable of a frog that lived at the bottom of a well. He thought that the well was the entire world, until one day a sea turtle fell in and informed him of a much larger world outside the narrow confines of that well. The Chinese, as well as the Japanese, use this fable to describe people with a provincial, narrow-minded view of things due to ignorance.)

Jǐng dǐ zhī wā.

井底之蛙。

TRUE KNOWLEDGE

One can know the world without going outside. One can see the Way of Heaven without looking out the window.

Bù chū hù, zhī tiānxià; búkuì yǒu, jiàn tiān dào.

不出户，知天下；不窥牖， 见天道。—Lao Zi