Know when to be satisfied and when to stop.(知足知止)
There was once a famous minister in China's
Southern Liang dynasty. His name was Xiao Dahuan. There is a story about him in
history books.
After the end of the Jin dynasty, China
fell into a long period of chaos.
From 439 to 581 AD, five dynasties rose and
fell in northern China.
From 420 to 589 AD, four dynasties changed
in the south. These were the Liu Song, Southern Qi, Southern Liang and Southern
Chen dynasties.
He lived in this chaotic era.
He once wrote an article. The first half of
the article reads as follows:
'I want to leave this place. I want to go
back to the countryside and live in seclusion. I want to resign my official
position. I want to give up my power because I cannot realise my ideals in this
place.'
Several celebrities in Chinese history
treat the gains and losses of the world with a calm mind. Their spiritual
freedom is not controlled by the world. They are people I want to emulate.
Although my current position gives me power
and money, these also become constraints and sources of pressure. Therefore, I
want to return to the countryside and live a civilian life — a leisurely and
relaxed one.
There are several smart people in Chinese
history who, after achieving great things, chose to leave. They bravely forged
a new path in life.
I am neither smart nor good at my job, so I
think I should leave my current living environment as soon as possible and
start living the life I want.
I need to have the wisdom to know when to
be satisfied and when to stop. I want to live a simple, peaceful, worry-free
life. I want to live in seclusion in the mountains, away from the world and all
its trappings.
This idiom means knowing when to be
satisfied and when to stop.
Dear friends,What thoughts or feelings did you have after listening to this story?
Are you a contented person? Is the life you
are living now the life you want?
I hope this story brings you new insights.
知足知止(Know when to be satisfied and when to
stop.)
中國的南梁王朝有一個著名的大臣，他的名字叫做蕭大圜，歷史書上記載了一個他的故事。
中國的晉王朝結束之後，中國陷入一段長時間的混亂狀態。
西元439年到西元581年，這段期間內中國的北方更換了五個王朝。
西元420年到西元589年，這段期間內中國的南方更換了四個王朝，這四個王朝的名字依序是劉宋王朝、南齊王朝、南梁王朝與南陳王朝。
他就生活在這個混亂的年代。
他曾經寫過一篇文章，這篇文章的前半部的大概內容如下。
我想要離開這個地方，我想要回到鄉下去隱居起來，我想要辭去我的官職，我想要捨棄我的權力，因為在這個地方無法實現我的理想。
中國歷史上有幾個名人，他們用平靜的心情對待人世間得與失，他們的心靈自由不被這個世界所掌控，他們是我想要效法的對象。
我現在的職位讓我擁有權力與金錢，但是這些同時也成為我的束縛與壓力，因此我想要回到鄉下過著平民的生活，我想要過一個悠閒自在而且輕鬆的生活。
中國歷史上還有幾個著名的聰明人，他們在建立的偉大的功業之後選擇離開，他們勇敢地替自己的人生開拓出了一個全新的格局。
我不聰明而且工作能力也很差，所以我認為我更應該要盡快離開我現在的生活環境，我應該去過我想要過的生活。
我應該要擁有知道何時應該滿足與何時應該停止的智慧，我想要過的簡單平靜而且沒有煩惱的生活，我要隱居在山上遠離這個塵世並且脫離一切世俗的事物。
這句成語直接翻譯的意思是知道何時應該滿足與何時應該停止。
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。
你認為你是一個知足的人嗎?你現在過的生活是你想要的嗎?
我期待這故事能讓你產生一些新的收穫。
出處為周書-卷42-蕭大圜傳
https://zh.wikisource.org/zh-hant/%E5%91%A8%E6%9B%B8/%E5%8D%B742