He was unwilling to pluck a hair from his
body.(一毛不拔)
The Zhou dynasty ruled China from 1046 BC
to 256 BC.
The period from 770 BC to 476 BC was known
as the Spring and Autumn Period, while the period from 476 BC to 221 BC was
known as the Warring States Period.
At that time, the highest leader in China
was the king of the Zhou dynasty.
The Zhou king divided the land among more
than 100 princes, who each established their own kingdom.
There were many tragic wars between these
kingdoms for land and resources.
It was an extremely chaotic era.
However, it was also a golden age of
Chinese thought. Many famous thinkers lived during this period. These thinkers
proposed their own solutions to the social and lifestyle problems of the time.
Some believed that moral education was key
to creating a stable society, while others emphasised the importance of clear
laws in building a better society.
At that time, the kings of various kingdoms
tried out the various methods proposed by these thinkers in an attempt to strengthen
their kingdoms.
Various social experiments were conducted
in different Chinese kingdoms.
One such thinker was Yang Zhu, whose views
formed a prominent school of thought at that time.
He believed that we should prioritise our
own interests and stand on our own standpoint to make the most favourable
choice for ourselves when doing anything.
If something is not beneficial to us, we
should not do it.
To illustrate his point, he gave an
example.
'Suppose that pulling out a hair could
benefit people all over the world, but it would not benefit me.
Then, I will refrain from pulling out my
hair.
To further prove the correctness of his
views, he cited two famous leaders in ancient China as examples. He said:
The founder of the Xia Dynasty was named
Yu, and he worked hard for the people, damaging his body through excessive
labour.
Another prince of the Xia dynasty, Bo Cheng
Zi Gao, was unwilling to work hard for the people. He chose to return to the countryside
and live an ordinary life in health and comfort.
These two examples can be used to draw a
conclusion.
If each of us only considers our own
interests, we can all live relaxed and happy lives.
However, if everyone acts in their own
self-interest, no one will want to benefit from others or gain benefits that do
not belong to them by sacrificing others. If everyone thinks this way, the
relationships between people in society will naturally become harmonious and
stable.
The direct translation of this idiom means
that he is unwilling to pull out a hair from his body.
It is used to describe a selfish person who
is unwilling to contribute to the group.
It can also be used to describe someone who
is extremely stingy.
Dear friends, what inspiration do you take
away from this story?
Do you agree or disagree with Yang Zhu's
point of view? How should society ensure that everyone's interests are
balanced?
I hope this story gives you something new
to think about.
一毛不拔(He was unwilling to pluck a hair from
his body.)
中國周王朝的政權從公元前1046年延續到公元前256年。
其中從公元前770年到公元前476年這段時間被稱為春秋時代，公元前476年到公元前221年這段時間被稱為戰國時代
當時中國的最高領導人是周王朝的國王。
周王朝的國王把土地分封給100多個諸侯，這些諸侯各自成立的自己的王國。
這些王國之間為了爭奪土地與資源而發生許多慘烈的戰爭。
那是一個極度混亂的年代。
那是一個中國思想上的黃金時代，有許多著名的思想家生活在那個年代，這些思想家針對當時的社會問題與人生問題提出了各自認為最好的解決的辦法和思想。
有些思想家認為要用道德教育來讓社會更安定，有些思想家強調要用明確的法律來建構一個更好的社會。
當時各王國的國王為了讓自己的王國更強大，所以各個王國的國王分別嘗試了這些思想家所提出的各種方法。
當時的中國的各個王國中進行著各種不同類型的社會實驗。
其中有一個思想家的名字叫做楊朱，他的看法在當時是一門顯學。
他認為我們每個人都應該以自己的利益為優先，我們做任何事情的時候都應該要站在自己的立場去做出對自己最有利的選擇。
如果對我們自己本身沒有利益的事，我們就不應該做。
他舉了一個例子說明他的觀點，他說。
假設我拔了一根毛髮的這個行動可以讓全世界的人都得到益處，但這件事情唯獨對我沒有益處。
那麼，我會選擇不拔我這根頭髮。
他又舉了兩個中國古代的著名的領導者作為例子進一步論證他的看法的正確性。他說。
夏王朝的創立者的名字是(禹)，他為了人民的生活付出極大的心力，他的身體因為過度的勞動受到很多的損害。
另外一位夏王朝的諸侯的名字是(伯成子高)，他不願意為了人民的生活付出心力，他選擇回到鄉下過一個普通人的生活，他健康舒適的度過一生。
從這兩個人的例子中可以得到一個結論。
如果我們每個人都只考慮自己的利益，那麼我們每個人都可以把生活過得輕鬆愉快。
我們如果每個人都只考慮自己的利益，而且這種想法成為所有人的共識，那麼每個人就都不會希望從別人那裡得到利益，每個人都不會希望藉由犧牲別人而獲得那些原本就不屬於自己的利益，如果每個人都這樣認為，那麼這個社會中的人與人之間的關係自然就會變得和諧與穩定。
這句成語直接翻譯的意思是他不願意拔一根自己身體上的毛髮。
這句成語用來形容一個非常自私，這個人不肯為群體貢獻出些微的力量。
這句成語也可以用來形容一個人極度吝嗇。
親愛的朋友，你聽完這個故事有什麼樣的或有什麼樣的啟發呢。
你認同還是不認同楊朱的觀點呢?你認為一個社會應該要用怎樣的方式來讓每個人的利益都能夠保持平衡呢?
我希望這個故事能讓你產生一些新的收穫。
出處為列子-楊朱-11條
https://ctext.org/liezi/yang-zhu/zh
出處為孟子-盡心上-26條