Chapter Five
敬慎
RESPECTFULLY CAUTIOUS
微漸
Taking Precautions
282.
積善之家，必有餘慶；積不善之家，必有餘殃。
（卷一 周易）
282.
A family that accumulates many good deeds will bring wealth and blessings to its descendants. A family that accumulates many bad deeds will bring calamities to its descendants.
Scroll 1: Zhou Yi
【註釋】
①慶：福澤。
【白話】
積累善行的人家，必然給後世子孫帶來福澤；積累惡行的人家，必然給後世子孫帶來禍殃。
283.
善不積不足以成名，惡不積不足以滅身。小人以小善為無益而弗為也，以小惡為無傷而弗去也，故惡積而不可掩，罪大而不可解也。
（卷一 周易）
283.
If acts of goodness were not accumulated, one’s name could not be established. If acts of evil were not accumulated, one’s life could not be destroyed. To a petty person, a minor good deed that cannot bring him any recognition is not worthy of his effort; a minor bad deed that cannot bring him much harm is not worthy of correction. Hence, his wickedness grows until it cannot be concealed, and his guilt grows until it cannot be pardoned.
Scroll 1: Zhou Yi
【白話】
善行不積累就不足以樹立名聲；惡行不積累也不足以身敗名裂。小人做事，完全以利害關係為出發點，以為做出小小的善事不會得到什麼好處，便索性不去做，以為做些小的惡事無傷大體，便不改過，所以日積月累，惡行積累到不可掩蓋的程度，罪責大到無法解脫的地步。
284.
夫十圍之木，始生而如櫱（ㄋ一ㄝˋ），足可搔而絕，手可擢而拔，據其未生，先其未形也。磨礱（ㄌㄨㄥˊ）砥礪，不見其損，有時而盡；種樹畜養，不見其益，有時而大；積德累行，不知其善，有時而用；棄義背理，不知其惡，有時而亡。
（卷十七 漢書五）
284.
A gigantic tree that ten people can wrap their arms around started as a young shoot. When the shoot was not well formed, it could be easily snapped with one step of our foot or uprooted by a simple pull. When we sharpen a knife on a whetstone, we may not see that it is wearing away the whetstone, but after a certain period the attrition will break the stone into half. When we plant trees and raise domesticated animals, we may not notice their growth, but after a certain time we can see that they have become mature. Likewise, when we accumulate virtue and benevolence, we may not see their benefits immediately, but after a certain period the effects that they produce will become visible. If we abandon benevolence and righteousness and go against the law of nature, we may not feel anything wrong now, but there will come a time when disasters will befall us.
Scroll 17: Han Shu, Vol. 5
【註釋】
①櫱：樹木砍去後重生的枝條。亦泛指物始生。
②礱：磨。
③砥礪：砥，質地較細的磨刀石。礪，質地較粗的磨刀石。
【白話】
十圍粗的樹，是從小小的嫩芽長起來的，當時用腳一碰就會折斷，用手一提就可以拔出來，因為它還沒有生長，沒有成形。在磨刀石上磨刀，看不見磨刀石被減損，到了一定的時候，卻被磨損殆盡了；栽種樹木、飼養家畜，看不見它們在成長，到一定的時候，卻不知不覺長大了；積累仁德和善行，並沒有感覺到它的好處，而到一定的時候卻發生作用；拋棄仁義，違背天理，並沒有感覺到它的壞處，到一定的時候卻走向敗亡。
285.
傲不可長，欲不可從（ㄗㄨㄥˋ），志不可滿，樂不可極。此四者，慢游之道，桀紂所以自禍也。
（卷七 禮記）
285.
Do not let arrogance grow; do not let desire fly loose; do not let ambition become excessive; do not let pleasure flow unchecked.
Scroll 7: Li Ji
【註釋】
①從：「縱」的古字。放縱。
【白話】
傲慢不可滋長，欲望不可放縱，志向不可過於自滿，享樂不可沒有節制。
286.
蓋明者遠見於未萌，知者避危於無形，禍固多臧（ㄘㄤˊ）於隱微，而發於人之所忽者也。
（卷十八 漢書六）
286.
Insightful people can anticipate troubles ahead of time. Wise people can anticipate danger before danger takes shape. Catastrophes always lurk in hidden places and appear at the moment least expected.
Scroll 18: Han Shu, Vol. 6
【註釋】
①蓋：發語詞，提起下文，無義。
②知：「智」的古字。聰明、智慧。
③臧：「藏」的古字。隱藏。
【白話】
見識高明的人在事情還未萌生前就能預見，有智慧的人在危險還未形成前就能避開；禍患大多藏在隱密細微之處，而在人們疏忽時發生。
287.
子曰：「人而無遠慮，必有近憂。」
（卷九 論語）
287.
Confucius said: “If a man takes no thought about what is distant, he will find sorrow near at hand.”
Scroll 9: Lun Yu
【白話】
孔子說：「一個人如果沒有深遠的思慮，他必然隨時遭遇不可預測的憂患。」意謂，就辦事方面，無論大小，目標要遠大，辦法要周詳，又要預防流弊；做人方面，也要有遠大的志向、長久的規劃，否則憂患就在眼前。
288.
子曰：「危者安其位者也，亡者保其存者也，亂者有其治者也。是故君子，安不忘危，存不忘亡，治不忘亂，是以身安而國家可保也。《易》曰：『其亡其亡！繫于苞桑。』」
（卷一 周易）
288.
Confucius said: “He who rests safe in his seat will bring danger upon himself. He who presumes order is secured will face ruin. A nation that presumes its political environment is stable will face chaos. Therefore, a superior person, when resting in safety, does not overlook that danger may arise; when all seems stable he does not overlook that ruin may happen; when all is in a state of order he does not overlook that chaos may erupt. In this way his person is kept safe, and his states can be preserved for a very long time. The book of Yi Jing says: ‘(Always alert yourself) The end is near! The end is near! And the security of the state will be firm as if bound to a clump of bushy mulberry trees.’”
Scroll 1: Zhou Yi
【註釋】
①苞桑：桑樹的根。
【白話】
孔子說：「凡是招致危險的人，都是因為他先前安逸於他的職位上；滅亡的國家，是因為先前自以為國家可以長存；敗亂的國家，是因為先前自以為已經治理穩定。因此君子安居而不忘傾危，生存而不忘滅亡，整治而不忘敗亂，自身則可常安而國家可以永保。」《易經》上說：「心中時時警惕著，將滅亡了！將滅亡了！天下的治安，就像繫在堅固的桑樹根上一樣安穩。」
289.
禍兮福之所倚，倚，因，夫福因禍而生，人遭禍而能悔過責己，修善行道，則禍去福來。福兮禍之所伏，禍伏匿於福中，人得福而為驕恣，則福去禍來。孰知其極？禍福更相生，無知其窮極時也。
（卷三十四 老子）
289.
Misery—happiness is to be found by its side! Happiness—misery lurks beneath it! Who can tell what either will come to in the end?
Scroll 34: Lao Zi
【白話】
災禍啊，福氣倚靠在旁；福氣啊，災禍潛伏在它之中。誰能知道它們轉化的微妙呢？意謂人遭禍能反躬自省，斷惡修善，則禍去福來；人得福卻驕奢淫逸，則福去禍來。
290.
「教人曲突遠薪，固無恩澤；燋（ㄐ一ㄠ）頭爛額，反為上客。」蓋傷其賤本而貴末，豈夫獨突薪可以除害哉？……後世多損於杜塞未萌，而勤於攻擊已成，謀臣稀賞，而鬥士常榮。
（卷四十四 桓子新論）
290.
“People who advised others to curve the chimney and move the firewood away were not thanked with gratitude. In contrast, those who saved fire victims and got badly burnt and injured were treated as guests of honor.” This description laments the fire victims’ mistake of inverting priorities. So it is not just a story about curving the chimney and removing firewood to avoid a disaster. …People often do not take adequate precautions. Instead, they do their best to control the damage after the fact. Rare indeed are strategists rewarded, while fighters are frequently honored.
Scroll 44: Huan Zi Xin Lun
【註釋】
①教人曲突遠薪，固無恩澤；燋頭爛額，反為上客：典故出自班固《漢書‧霍光傳》。有客人看見主人家煙囪是直的，灶旁又堆放木柴，好心勸告主人將煙囪改建成彎的，並將木柴搬走，以免發生火災。主人不聽勸告，後來果然失火，幸好鄰里將火勢撲滅。主人為了答謝鄰家，便設宴款待救火的人，卻將提出建議的客人給遺忘了。
【白話】
「教人改彎煙囪、移開柴草的，卻不認為有恩澤；幫助救人而被燒得焦頭爛額的人，反而成為貴客。」這是痛感失火人家的本末倒置，哪裡僅僅是指改灶移柴可以免除災禍的這件事情呢？……後世的人大多在防患於未然方面做得不夠，卻努力於搶救已經造成的後果，謀臣們很少受到獎勵，而鬥士常常受到尊崇。
291.
玩人喪德，玩物喪志。以人為戲弄，則喪其德矣；以器物為戲弄，則喪其志矣。
（卷二 尚書）
291.
Being disrespectful and playing pranks on others will ruin our virtues. Over-indulgence in things that give us pleasure will ruin our ambitions.
Scroll 2: Shang Shu
【白話】
不尊重他人，隨意輕慢戲弄，就會喪失做人應有的道德；沉溺於所喜好的事物之中，乃至於不能自拔，就會喪失自己原有的志向。
292.
箕子者，紂親戚也。紂為象箸，箕子歎曰：「彼為象箸，必為玉杯，為玉杯，則必思遠方珍怪之物而御之矣，輿馬宮室之漸，自此始，不可振也。」
（卷十一 史記上）
292.
Jizi was the uncle of the despot King Zhou. When King Zhou began using ivory chopsticks, Jizi lamented: “Since his majesty is using ivory chopsticks, he will start drinking from a jade goblet. After drinking from a jade goblet, he will start craving for exotic things to satisfy his appetites. And so the chase after luxurious horse-drawn chariots and palace chambers will begin. By then, our country will have no hope of reversing its misfortune.”
Scroll 11: Shi Ji, Vol. 1
【註釋】
①御：使用、應用。
【白話】
箕子是紂王的親戚。紂王開始使用象牙筷時，箕子感嘆說：「紂王既然用象牙筷子，接下來必然用寶玉做杯，製造了玉杯，必然還會渴望得到遠方的奇珍異物以供自己享用，車馬、宮室逐漸奢侈華麗，從此開始，國家將無法振作、挽救了。」
293.
圖難於其易，欲圖難事，當於易時，未及成也。為大於其細。欲為大事，必作於小，禍亂從小來也。天下難事，必作於易；天下大事，必作於細。是以聖人終不為大，處謙虛也。故能成其大。天下共歸之也。
（卷三十四 老子）
293.
Anticipates things that are difficult while they are easy, and does things that would become great while they are small. All difficult things in the world are sure to arise from a previous state in which they were easy, and all great things from one in which they were small. Therefore the sage, while he never does what is great, is able on that account to accomplish the greatest things.*
*James Legge, transl.
Scroll 34: Lao Zi
【白話】
圖謀難事要趁容易的時候下手，實現遠大目標要從細微處做起。天下的難事，必從容易時入手；天下的大事，必從小事做起。所以聖人始終不自以為偉大，只是踏踏實實從小地方做起，最終能成就大事。
294.
煖（ㄒㄩㄢ）曰：「王獨不聞魏文侯之問扁鵲耶？曰：『子昆弟三人，其孰最善為？』扁鵲曰：『長兄最善，中兄次之，扁鵲最為下也。』文侯曰：『可得聞耶？』扁鵲曰：『長兄於病視神，未有形而除之，故名不出於家。中兄治病，其在毫毛，故名不出於閭。若扁鵲者，鑱（ㄔㄢˊ）血脈，投毒藥，割肌膚，而名出聞於諸侯。』」
（卷三十四 鶡冠子）
294.
Pang Nuan said: “My lord, haven’t you heard that Marquis Wen once asked Doctor Bian Que this question: ‘In your family of three brothers, whose medical skill is the best?’ Bian Que answered: ‘My eldest brother’s medical skill is the best, my second brother’s comes second, and mine is considered the last of the three.’ Marquis Wen asked: ‘Why do you say so? Can you explain it to me?’ Bian Que said: ‘When my eldest brother diagnoses a patient, he examines his appearance and complexion. Before the pathogen could cause a disease, he has already cured the patient. This is why he is not a well-known doctor; his reputation only stays within the house. My second brother is able to cure his patient immediately when the symptoms of an illness begin to manifest themselves, so he is better known. But his reputation does not go beyond our neighborhood. As for me, I use acupuncture to improve blood circulation. I also prescribe medicinal soups that are potent, and I perform surgeries on my patients. That is why my good reputation is well known among the feudal lords.’”
Scroll 34: He Guan Zi
【註釋】
①讒：刺、錐。
【白話】
龐煖說：「大王難道沒聽說過魏文侯曾問過扁鵲嗎？魏文侯說：『你們家兄弟三人，哪一位醫術最好？』扁鵲回答說：『大哥最好，二哥其次，我是最差的。』魏文侯說：『為什麼？能講給我聽聽嗎？』扁鵲說：『我大哥治病是看病人的神色，在疾病還沒有形成的隱微階段，就把病治好了，所以他的名聲不出家門。我二哥治病是在病情剛剛發作時，把病治好，所以他的名聲不出巷子。而我治病，用扎針來疏通血脈、下有副作用的湯藥、動手術來救治病人，因此我的名聲響遍諸侯。』」
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