He readily accepts all good advice and suggestions, treating them as smoothly as a flowing river.(從善如流)
He readily accepts all good advice and
suggestions, treating them as smoothly as a flowing river.(從善如流)
The Zhou dynasty in China lasted from 1046
BC to 256 BC.
The period from 770 BC to 476 BC is known
as the Spring and Autumn period, while the period from 476 BC to 221 BC is
known as the Warring States period.
At that time, the supreme leader of China
was the king of the Zhou dynasty.
The Zhou king established more than 100 vassal
states, each of which became a kingdom.
These kingdoms waged many fierce wars for
land and resources, sometimes cooperating and sometimes opposing each other. It
was an extremely chaotic era.
During the Spring and Autumn period, the
kingdom of Qi had a renowned king named Jiang Xiaobai who led Qi to become the
most powerful kingdom of the time. His story is recorded in history books.
More than 100 years after his death, his
achievements were still praised and revered by the various states of the time.
One day, two ministers of the Jin Kingdom
were conversing. One minister commented on Jiang Xiaobai as follows:
'Jiang Xiaobai was favoured by his father,
but this did not make him arrogant.
In the central government he led, many
virtuous and upright ministers assisted him. With their help, he governed the
kingdom well internally and maintained harmonious relations with other kingdoms
externally.
He was a humble man. He did not despise the
Zhou dynasty king because of the military and national strength of the Qi
kingdom. He always observed proper etiquette towards the Zhou royal family,
earning the respect of other kingdom leaders.
He took the good advice offered by upright
ministers seriously.
He readily accepts all good advice and
suggestions, treating them as smoothly as a flowing river.
He was an incorruptible man, as were the
officials in his central government. He did not indulge his desires; he treated
everyone with kindness and found joy in doing so. He cared for everyone
continuously without ever growing weary.
Jiang Xiaobai had so many virtues that it
is no wonder he became a great leader.
The idiom literally means that he readily
accepts all good advice and suggestions, treating them as smoothly as a flowing
river.
It is used to describe someone who is happy
to accept good opinions and suggestions from others.
Dear friend, what insights have you gained
from this story?
If you were a leader, would you be willing
to accept advice or criticism? What qualities do you think a good leader should
possess?
I hope this story gives you some new
insights.
從善如流(He readily accepts all good advice
and suggestions, treating them as smoothly as a flowing river.)
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，這些王國之間有時候相互合作有時候彼此敵對，那是一個極度混亂的年代。
中國的春秋時代的齊王國有一個著名的國王，他的名字叫做姜小白，他帶領齊王國成為當時最強大的王國，歷史書上紀錄了一個他的故事。
姜小白離世大約100年後，他的功績仍然被當時的各個國家所讚美與尊崇。
有一天，晉王國的兩個大臣在對話，其中一個大臣評價姜小白的話如下。
姜小白的受到他的父親的寵愛，但是他的個性並沒有因此變的驕傲自大。
他所領導的中央政府中，有很多賢能與正直的大臣來輔佐他，在這些大臣的幫助下，他對內把王國治理的很好且對外跟其它王國保持很和睦的關係。
他是一個謙遜的人，他沒有因為齊王國的武力與國力強大而藐視周王朝的國王，他對周王朝的王室始終保持應有的禮節，他的行為贏得了當時其它的王國的領導者的尊敬。
他很嚴肅地認真看待那些正直的大臣提供給他的好的建議。
他接受所有好的意見或建議，他對待這些好的意見或建議的態度就像河流一樣順暢。
他是一個清廉的人，他所領導的中央政府中的官員也很清廉，他不放縱自己的慾望，他以仁慈對待所有的百姓並且以此感到快樂，他持續的關懷所有的人且不會感覺到倦怠。
姜小白有那麼多的優點，難怪他可以成為一個偉大的領導者。
這句成語直接翻譯的意思是他接受所有好的意見或建議，他對待這些好的意見或建議的態度就像河流一樣順暢。
這句成語被用來形容一個人樂於接受他人所提出的好的意見與建議。
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。
你如果是一個領導者，你會願意接受別人的建議或批評嗎?你認為一個好的領導者應該有那些特質呢?
我希望這個故事能讓你產生一些新的收穫。
出處為左傳-昭公13年
https://ctext.org/chun-qiu-zuo-zhuan/zhao-gong-shi-san-nian/zh