The tail is too big to swing easily(尾大不掉)
During the Spring and Autumn Period in
China, after the Kingdom of Chu had defeated the Kingdom of Cai, the Kingdom of
Chu occupied the land of the Kingdom of Cai.
The King of Chu built several large cities
on the land of Cai as military bases, and then he considered who to send to
rule the land.
The King of Chu had a conversation with a
wise minister called Shen Wu Yu.
The King of Chu said
I would like to give this land, which
originally belonged to the Kingdom of Cai, to my younger brother to administer.
What do you think?
Shen Wu Yu replied.
If a branch on a tree grows too big, it
will break easily; if an animal's tail is too big, it will not be able to use
its tail flexibly.
I think your idea of giving this land to
your brother to manage is not a good one. You need to think again.
asked the king.
Why do you think my idea is bad?
Shen Wu Yu replied.
We have just acquired this land, and there
are still many forces opposing the Kingdom of Chu in this land, so I believe
you will give your brother a very powerful army so that he can manage this land
effectively.
You have built several large cities in this
land as important military bases. Your brother will lead his army in many
military exercises.
Your brother has royal blood. I think that
after your brother has this land and this powerful army, he might rebel.
said the king with a smile.
I trust my brother very much and have a
good relationship with him. I don't think he would betray me.
Shen Wu Yu replied.
I think you need to think again, because
according to the history books I have read, similar situations have happened in
at least four kingdoms, so you should not trust your brother too much.
The king replied firmly.
I think my decision will be the right one,
and I will still do what I originally thought.
Two years after this incident, the king's younger
brother staged a military coup, the king was forced to commit suicide, and his
younger brother became king of Chu.
The literal translation of this idiom is
that a tail is too big to swing easily.
It is used to describe a situation where a
leader in a company or country is unable to control his subordinates because
the power of his subordinates is too great.
Dear friends, what inspiration or thoughts
do you have after listening to this story?
Have you ever been betrayed by someone
close to you? Would you betray someone who trusted you just to gain power and
money?
I hope this story can give you some new
insights.
尾大不掉(The tail is too big to swing easily)
中國的春秋時代，楚王國打敗蔡王國後，楚王國佔領了蔡王國的土地。
楚王國的國王在這塊蔡國的土地上建設了好幾座大城市做為軍事據點，接著他考慮要派遣誰來管理這塊土地。
楚王國的國王跟一個很有智慧的名字叫做(申無宇)的大臣對話。
楚王國的國王說。
我要把原本屬於蔡王國的這塊土地交給我的弟弟管理，你覺得如何呢?
申無宇回答。
一棵樹上如果有一隻樹枝長得很大、那麼這根很大的樹枝就能夠被輕易地折斷，一隻動物的尾巴如果太大，那麼這隻動物就無法靈活地運用它的尾巴。
我認為你要把這塊土地交給你的弟弟管理的這個想法並不好，你必須再次慎重考慮。
國王問。
你為何覺得我的這個想法並不好呢?
申無宇回答。
我們剛獲得這塊土地，這塊土地上面還有很多反對楚王國的勢力，所以我相信你一定會給你的弟弟一隻很強大的軍隊，這樣他才能夠有效地管理這一塊土地。
你有在這塊土地上建設了幾座大城市當作重要的軍事據點。你的弟弟會帶領他領導的這支軍隊進行很多的軍事演練。
你的弟弟有皇室血統，我認為你的弟弟擁有了這塊土地與這隻強大的軍隊後，他有可能會叛變。
國王笑著說。
我很信任我的弟弟，我跟他的感情很好，我認為他不可能叛變。
申無宇回答。
我還是認為你必須要再次考慮，因為根據我所讀的歷史書，指少有四個王國都發生過類似的情況，因此你不應該太信任你的弟弟。
國王很堅定的回答。
我認為我的決定會是正確的，我還是會照我原本的想法去做。
這件事情發生的兩年後，國王的弟弟發動了一場軍事政變，國王被迫自殺，他的弟弟成為楚王國的國王。
這句成語直接翻譯的意思是尾巴太大就擺動不易。
這句成語被用來形容一個公司或國家中的領導者無法掌控他的部下，因為他的部下掌握的勢力太過強大。
親愛的朋友，你聽完這個故事有怎樣的啟發或有怎樣的想法呢。
你有過被非常親近的人背叛的經驗嗎?你會因為要得到權力與金錢而背叛信任你的人嗎?
我希望這故事能讓你產生一些新的收穫。
出處為左傳-昭公11年
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