He would not take a blade of grass for
himself.(一介不取)
The king who founded the Shang dynasty in
China was named Zi Tang, also known as Shang Tang. After establishing the
dynasty, he hired a renowned scholar to serve as prime minister in the central
government. The scholar's name was Yi Yin.
During the Warring States period in China,
a famous Confucian scholar named Meng Ke once discussed Yi Yin, a renowned
prime minister from ancient China, with his friends.
Meng Ke said to his friend:
There are two folk sayings about how Yi Yin
entered the central government of the Shang dynasty.
The first is that the king of the Shang
Dynasty hired him as a royal chef because his cooking skills were so good.
However, the founding king of the Shang
Dynasty later discovered that Yi Yin's talents extended far beyond cooking. He
also had a wealth of knowledge and unique insights, so the king made him an
official in the central government.
Yi Yin performed well at work and, as a
result, the founding king trusted him more and more. Finally, Yi Yin became the
prime minister of the Shang Dynasty.
I think this story is incorrect.
Meng Ke paused, then continued speaking to
his friend.
'I think another statement is more in line
with historical facts.'
After establishing the Shang Dynasty, Shang
Tang knew that, to manage it well, he would need many talented people to join
the central government and assist him.
Shang Tang had heard that Yi Yin was a very
talented person with a great deal of knowledge about history. He was familiar
with how some of the greatest kings in ancient China had governed their
kingdoms.
Shang Tang went to Yi Yin's residence to
meet him in person. He promised to give him a high salary. He asked Yi Yin to
join the central government of the Shang dynasty he had established, and did so
with great sincerity.
Yi Yin was an upright and principled man.
Even if it was a blade of grass, he would
not take anything that did not belong to him.
The high salary promised by Shang Tang did
not sway him, and he did not agree to his request.
However, Shang Tang did not give up and
continued to meet with Yi Yin.
Later, Yi Yin said to Shang Tang:
'I was originally only concerned about
myself. I just wanted to be happy and prosperous, but your sincerity touched
me.
After thinking about it for a while, I have
changed my mind. I am willing to contribute my abilities to help you manage the
Shang dynasty, so that all its people can live happy and prosperous lives.
This idiom means that he would not take a
blade of grass for himself.
It is used to describe a person who is very
honest.
Dear friend, what thoughts or inspiration
have you gained from this story?
Do you only care about your own life and
ignore how others live? What is your highest principle in life?
I hope this story brings you new insights.
一介不取(He would not take a blade of grass
for himself.)
創立中國的商王朝的國王的名字叫做(子湯)，他也被稱為(商湯)，他建立了商王朝之後，聘請了一個當時很有名的學者進入中央政府擔任宰相，這個學者的名字叫做(伊尹)。
中國的戰國時代，儒家有一個名字叫做(孟軻)的著名學者曾經與他的朋友討論到伊尹這個中國古代著名的宰相。
孟軻對他的朋友說。
關於伊尹如何進入商王朝的中央政府，民間有兩種說法。
第一種說法是因為伊尹的廚藝很好，所以商王朝的國王聘任擔任皇家廚師。
商王朝的開國國王後來發現伊尹的才能遠不止廚藝，伊尹還有很豐富的學問與很獨特的見解，所以商王朝的開國國王讓他擔任中央政府內的官員。
伊尹由於工作表現很好，所以商王朝的開國國王愈來愈信任他，伊尹最後成為商王朝的宰相。
我認為這種說法是錯的。
孟軻停頓了一下繼續對他的朋友說。
我認為另外一種說法比較符合史實。
商湯建立商王朝之後，他知道如果自己要管理好商王朝、那麼自己就需要很多有才能的人進入中央政府協助自己。
商湯聽說伊尹是一個很有才能的人，而且伊尹對於歷史很有研究，伊尹熟知中國古代的一些偉大的君王如何治理好自己的王國的方法。
商湯便親自到伊尹住的地方去見伊尹，商湯承諾要給伊尹很高的薪水，商湯用很誠懇的態度請求伊尹加入他所建立的商王朝的中央政府。
伊尹是一個很正直的人，他做人很有原則。
如果不屬於自己的東西，那麼就算是一根小草他也不會據為己有。
他沒有被商湯所承諾的很高的薪水所打動，他沒有答應商湯的請求。
但是商湯並不死心，他持續不斷的去見伊尹。
伊尹後來對商湯說。
我原本只顧自己，我只想要讓自己生活的快樂與富足，但是你的誠意打動了我。
我經過這段時間的思考後，我已經轉變了我的想法，我願意貢獻出我的能力，幫助你把商王朝管理好，讓所有商王朝的百姓都可以跟我一樣過著快樂與富足的生活。
這句成語直接翻譯的意思是一根小草他也不會據為己有。
這句成語被用來形容一個人非常的清廉。
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。
你是一個只顧自己的生活過得好而不理會他人的生活過得如何的人嗎?你做人的最高原則為何呢?
我期待這故事能讓你產生一些新的收穫。
出處為墨子-尚賢下-3條
https://ctext.org/mozi/exaltation-of-the-virtuous-iii/zh
出處為孟子-萬張上-7條