Your character and talents are as noble and
rare as a *hulian*, a type of Chinese vessel.(瑚璉之器)
Confucius's name was Kong Qiu. 'Kong Fuzi'
is the respectful title given to him.
He was an exceptional teacher. He is one of
the most influential thinkers in Chinese history.
He had over 3,000 students, 72 of whom were
particularly outstanding. Historical records document stories about his
disciples.
Each of Confucius's students had their own
strengths: some were of excellent character, some were eloquent, some were
highly capable and some were suited to focused scholarly study.
One of these students, Duanmu Ci, possessed
sharp eloquence and skillful speech.
Confucius once said to Duanmu Ci:
'The most important crops in ancient China
were millet and sorghum.' During the annual harvest ceremony held by the kings
after the harvest, a vessel called a hulian was used to hold that year's millet
and sorghum harvest.
I believe your character and talent are as
noble and rare as this fine vessel.'
History records a story about Duanmu Ci.
Around 483 BC, the King of Lu received
intelligence that the Kingdom of Qi, led by a general named Tian Chang, was
preparing to attack Lu.
Lu was very weak, so the king was very
afraid. He consulted Confucius, who told him:
'I recommend one of my students, Duanmu Ci,
to serve as Lu's diplomat.' I believe he can help you resolve this crisis
smoothly.'
With no better option, the King of Lu
appointed Duanmu Ci as diplomat and sent him to Qi to try to resolve the
crisis.
Upon arriving in Qi, Duanmu Ci sided with
General Tian Chang and helped him clarify the true intentions behind the war.
He persuaded General Tian Chang not to attack Lu, but to attack the Kingdom of
Wu instead.
Duanmu Ci then travelled to the Kingdom of
Wu. Considering the situation from the perspective of the King of Wu, he
persuaded him to help the weaker Kingdom of Lu resist the invasion of the
powerful Kingdom of Qi.
After leaving Wu, Duanmu Ci travelled to
the palace of the Kingdom of Yue, which had long been oppressed by Wu, and met
with its king.
He presented the King of Yue with a
comprehensive plan, saying: "If you wish to overthrow Wu and escape its
oppression, you must follow my instructions."
The King of Yue was convinced and agreed to
obey Duanmu Ci's instructions completely.
Duanmu Ci then went to the powerful Kingdom
of Jin. He told the King of Jin, 'According to my intelligence, after Qi
attacks Lu, they will then attack Jin.
Therefore, when Qi attacks Lu, you must
mobilise your army to help Lu attack Qi.'
After completing these tasks, Duanmu Ci
returned to the Kingdom of Lu.
Several months later, a major battle broke
out between the Kingdom of Wu and the Kingdom of Qi, resulting in a crushing
defeat for Qi.
Following Wu's victory, the Kingdom of Jin
took advantage of the fact that the Wu army was unable to rest and regroup, and
defeated them.
When the army led by the King of Wu was
defeated and retreated back to Wu, the Yue army launched an attack, leading to
the downfall of Wu.
As these powerful states were at war with
each other, they had no time to attack the Kingdom of Lu, which enjoyed ten
years of peace as a result.
This idiom literally means that 'Your
character and talents are as noble and rare as a *hulian*, a type of Chinese
vessel.
It is often used to describe someone of
noble character or exceptional ability.
Dear friend, what inspiration or thoughts
did you gain from this story?
Which diplomat do you admire most? What
famous diplomatic events have you heard of?
I hope this story gives you some new
insights.
瑚璉之器(Your character and talents are as
noble and rare as a *hulian*, a type of Chinese vessel.)
孔子的名字是(孔丘)。孔夫子是人們對他的尊稱。
他是一位傑出的教育家。他是為中國歷史上最有影響力的思想家之一。
他的學生超過3000人，其中特別傑出的學生有72個，在歷史書中紀錄了他的弟子之間的一些故事。
孔子的學生們各有其特長，其中有些人的品德很好，有些人的口才很棒，有些人的工作能力很強，有些人適合專心研究學問。
孔子有一個學生的名字叫做端木賜，他有著鋒利的口才與巧妙的言詞。
孔子曾經對端木賜說。
中國古代最主要的農作物是黃米與小米，中國古代的國王在每年年末收成後所舉辦的祭祀土地的典禮之上，會用一種名字叫做(瑚璉)的器皿來裝當年收成的黃米與小米。
我認為你的品格與才能就像是(瑚璉)這種器皿一樣又高貴又珍稀。
歷史書上記載了一個關於端木賜的故事。
大約是在西元前483年，魯王國的國王收到一個情報，這個情報就是齊王國在一個重要的名字叫做(田常)的將軍的主導之下，齊王國準備派遣軍隊來攻打魯王國。
魯王國非常的弱小，所以魯王國的國王非常害怕，他詢問孔子的意見，孔子對魯王國的國王說。
我推薦我一個名字叫做端木賜的學生擔任魯王國的外交官，我相信他可以協助你順利地解決這個危機。
魯王國的國王沒有其他更好的選項，他讓端木賜擔任外交官並且派遣他前往齊王國去試著解決這個危機。
端木賜到了齊王國之後，他站在田常將軍的立場協助田常將軍釐清了為何要發動戰爭的真正意圖，他說服了齊王國的田常將軍不要攻打魯王國而改成攻打吳王國。
端木賜接著又到了吳王國，他站在吳王國的國王的立場去思考，他讓吳王國的國王決定協助弱小的魯王國去對抗強大的齊王國的侵略。
端木賜離開吳王國之後，他到了被吳王國長期壓制的越王國的王宮並見到了越王國的國王。
他對越王國的國王說明了一套完整的計劃之後對越王國的國王說，如果你想要戰勝吳王國並且擺脫他對你的壓制，那麼你就應該照我的指示去做，
越王國的國王被端木賜所說服，他答應會完全聽從端木賜的指示。
端木賜接著又到了強大的晉王國，他對晉王國的國王說。
根據我得到的情報顯示，齊王國攻打魯王國之後，接著他就會發動軍隊來攻打晉王國。
因此當齊王國攻打魯王國時，你一定要發動軍隊協助魯王國攻打齊王國。
做完這些事情之後，端木賜回到魯王國。
幾個月後，吳王國與齊王國之間發生了一場大戰，齊王國大敗。
吳王國勝利之後，晉王國利用吳王國的軍隊尚未修息整頓好的機會打敗了吳王國。
吳王國的國王所領導的軍隊被打敗後退回吳王國時、越王國的軍隊發動對吳王國的攻擊並且造成吳王國滅亡。
因為這幾個大國之間彼此戰爭，這幾個大國無暇顧及魯王國，魯王國因此有著十年的安定。
這句成語直接翻譯的意思是你的品格與才能就像是(瑚璉)這種器皿一樣又高貴又珍稀。
這句成語被延伸用來形容一個人品格高貴或者一個人擁有非常強大的能力。
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。
你最佩服的外交官是誰呢?你有聽過那些外交上的著名的事件呢?
我期待這故事能讓你產生一些新的收穫。
出處為史記-卷66-仲尼弟子列傳
https://zh.wikisource.org/wiki/%E5%8F%B2%E8%A8%98/%E5%8D%B7067