A rooster plucked the feathers off its own
tail.(雄雞斷尾)
Su Shi was a renowned politician and
connoisseur during the Song dynasty in China. He was also an exceptional writer
and calligrapher. He is considered one of the most beloved poets in Chinese
history.
A story from the Zhou dynasty is recorded
in Chinese history books. One day, a minister and his servant saw a large
rooster with beautiful feathers on the roadside. This rooster had beautiful
feathers all over its body.
The rooster then did something very strange.
It used its beak to pull off its own tail feathers one by one.
The minister was puzzled and asked his
servant why the rooster was acting so strangely.
The servant answered the minister.
'There will be a grand sacrificial ceremony
soon.' The feathers on this chicken are very beautiful. I think it did this to
avoid being selected as a sacrificial chicken.'
After hearing this story, Su Shi wrote a
poem.
The poem's general meaning is as follows:
There was a rooster with beautiful
feathers. To avoid being cooked, it broke the feathers on its tail.
Having heard some Buddhist classics in
recent years, the rooster also practises according to the Dharma like humans.
The rooster is very old. It is afraid of
the cold and cannot crow loudly when the sun rises like a young rooster.
The rooster is very worried. It worries
that it will not live long enough to complete its practice.
I think the rooster should forget how old
it is. It just needs to focus on the present moment, because then it will have
the opportunity to achieve its goal of practising the Dharma.
This idiom means that a rooster breaks the
feathers on its own tail.
It is used to describe a person who
voluntarily gives up their power or status to avoid disaster or loss.
Dear friends,
What thoughts or feelings did you have
after listening to this story?
Have you ever felt anxious about getting
older? Would you give up your interests to avoid disaster?
I hope this story brings you new insights.
雄雞斷尾(A rooster plucked the feathers off
its own tail.)
蘇軾是中國的宋王朝的一個著名的政治家與美食家，他還是一名傑出的文學家與書法家。他更是中國歷史上最受人喜愛的詩人之一。
中國歷史書上記載了周王朝的一個故事，有一個大臣跟他的僕人看到路邊有一隻羽毛很漂亮的大公雞，這隻大公雞的身上有著漂亮的羽毛。
這隻大公雞做出很奇怪的行動，牠用牠的嘴巴把自己尾巴上的漂亮羽毛一支一支的拉斷。
這個大臣覺得很奇怪就問他的僕人為何這隻雞的行動那麼怪。
僕人回答這個大臣。
最近將會有一場盛大的祭祀活動，這隻雞身上的羽毛非常漂亮，我認為這隻雞為了避免自己被選作祭祀用的雞、所以牠才會做出這麼奇怪的行動。
蘇軾看完這個故事後寫了一首詩。
這首詩的大概意思如下。
有一隻有著漂亮羽毛的公雞，牠為了讓自己不被烹煮，所以牠把自己的尾巴上的毛折斷。
那隻雞最近幾年聽到了佛教的一些經典的要義，所以牠也跟人一樣，牠依照佛法修行自己
這隻公雞已經非常老了，牠非常的怕冷、牠已經不能像是年輕的公雞一樣在太陽剛出來的時候大聲啼叫。
這隻公雞很憂慮，牠擔心自己活著的時間不夠牠完成修行。
我認為這隻公雞應該要忘記自己的年紀已經如此老邁，，牠只需要專注地活在當下，牠就有機會讓自己達成修行佛法的目標。
這句成語直接翻譯的意思是一隻公雞扯斷牠自己的尾巴上的羽毛。
這句成語被用來形容一個人為了躲避災難或損失，所以這個人自願放棄自己的力量或地位。
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。
你曾經對你的年紀感到焦慮嗎?你會為了躲避災禍而做出放棄自己的利益的行為嗎?
我期待這故事能讓你產生一些新的收穫。
出處為左傳-昭公22年
https://ctext.org/chun-qiu-zuo-zhuan/zhao-gong-er-shi-er-nian/zh
出處為蘇軾-僧爽白鸡