英语短文名人故事 哲学思想家 第20期:庄子

 2 Zhuangzi 2 庄子

Zhuangzi was probably the poorest among the philosophers before the Qin Dynasty.  在先秦哲学家中，庄子可能算是最穷困的了。

During the difficult times, according to his disciples,  根据他弟子的说法，在生活窘迫的时候，

he had to earn his living by making straw sandals and even borrowed food from others when he did not know where his next meal would come from. 他就靠打草鞋过日子，甚至是吃了上顿没下顿，不得不向别人借粮过日子。

Once he went to see the King of Wei in a patched dress of coarse cloth and a pair of straw sandals with broken strings,  有一次他去见魏王，穿的是补了又补的粗布衣服，草鞋上的带子也是断了再接的，

but he was not at all bothered about it.  但他却觉得无所谓。

When the King of Wei asked him why he was so distressed¹, he immediately replied that he was not distressed,  所以当魏王问他为什么如此潦倒时，庄子马上说："我不是潦倒，

but just poor and born at the wrong time, just like a monkey finding itself among prickly thorns, trapped in an unfavorable situation,  只是穷，是生不逢时；就像一只落在荆棘丛里的猴子，在不利的环境中，

with its hands and feet tied, not being able to bring its abilities to full play. 被捆住了手脚，不能充分施展自己的才能。"

Here is another story in Records of the Grand Historian.  《史记》中记载了这样一件事，

Hearing that Zhuangzi was very talented, King Wei of Chu sent two envoys² with a big reward to invite him to be the prime minister.  楚威王听说庄子很有才干，就派两名使臣带重金见他，邀请他来当宰相。

Zhuangzi said to the envoys with a smile,  庄子笑着对使者说：

"A thousand pieces of gold is indeed a large sum and the prime minister is of course a high position,  "千金固然是重利，宰相也当然是高位，

but you might as well take a look at the ox serving as the sacrificial offering.  但你们不妨看看那祭祀的牛，

It can usually enjoy good food and beautiful clothes.  虽然平时吃的是美味，披的是锦衣，

But once it becomes the sacrificial offering, it's no longer possible to live as carefree as a piglet.  但一旦成为祭品，想做自由的小猪也不可能了。

Please leave and do not try to corrupt³ me.  你们快走开，不要玷污我，

I would rather be like a small fish having fun in the mud than being constrained⁴ by the lords." 我宁愿像一条小鱼，在泥水中快乐地游来游去，也不愿受君主们的束缚。

In another story, Zhuangzi compared himself to the noble phoenix,  在另一个故事中，庄子把自己比喻为高雅的凤凰，

dismissing the high position of the prime minister held by his friend Hui Shi as a rotten rat. 而他的朋友惠施所任的宰相这一高位就像腐烂的老鼠，令人不耻。

1 distressed   

痛苦的

参考例句：

• He was too distressed and confused to answer their questions. 他非常苦恼而困惑，无法回答他们的问题。
• The news of his death distressed us greatly. 他逝世的消息使我们极为悲痛。

2 envoys   

使节( envoy的名词复数 )； 公使； 谈判代表； 使节身份

参考例句：

• the routine tit for tat when countries expel each other's envoys 国家相互驱逐对方使节这种惯常的报复行动
• Marco Polo's travelogue mentions that Kublai Khan sent envoys to Malgache. 马可波罗游记中提到忽必烈曾派使节到马尔加什。

3 corrupt   

v.贿赂，收买；adj.腐败的，贪污的

参考例句：

• The newspaper alleged the mayor's corrupt practices.那家报纸断言市长有舞弊行为。
• This judge is corrupt.这个法官贪污。

4 constrained   

adj.束缚的,节制的

参考例句：

• The evidence was so compelling that he felt constrained to accept it. 证据是那样的令人折服，他觉得不得不接受。
• I feel constrained to write and ask for your forgiveness. 我不得不写信请你原谅。