He was a simple and pure person with almost
no desires.(清簡寡欲)
During the Northern and Southern Dynasties
period in China, four dynasties rose and fell in the south within a very short
time.
During this period, there was a very famous
and important minister named Zhang Xu, whose story is recorded in history
books.
His family was prominent in politics at the
time; his father was a minister in the Liu Song dynasty. Despite growing up in
a wealthy environment, he did not develop extravagant or wasteful habits.
His simple and pure nature, coupled with
his minimal desires, made him the centre of attention from a young age. His
uncles valued and liked him greatly.
After reaching adulthood, he worked in the
central government of the Liu Song and Southern Qi dynasties. He remained true
to himself; he never discussed money with others and donated his entire salary
to the less fortunate. He enjoyed sitting and contemplating, ate very little
and never sought anything from others. He was content with his current
situation.
When he died, he left behind some final
words. He told his family, 'Please hold my funeral in the simplest way
possible. Use the most ordinary oxcart to pull my coffin. The cart needs no
decorations; a few reeds will suffice.
"Don't prepare any food for my
funeral. Just a cup of water and a stick of incense will be enough."
Zhang Xu had a cousin named Zhang Rong who
held him in high regard. After Zhang Xu's death, Zhang Rong brought a bottle of
Chinese rice wine to the funeral to pay his respects. He wept bitterly, saying:
'I will never see my cousin's free and unrestrained spirit again. How could he
leave us so suddenly, like the wind?'
This idiom translates as: His personality
was simple and pure, and he had almost no desires.
Dear friend, what did you find interesting
or inspiring after hearing this story?
Have you ever thought about how you would
like your funeral to be? Is there someone you particularly respect and miss?
I hope this story gives you some new
insights.
清簡寡欲(He was a simple and pure person with
almost no desires.)
中國的南北王朝時代，中國的南方在很短的時間內就更迭了四個王朝。
當時有一個非常著名的重要的大臣，他的名字叫做(張緒)，歷史書上記載了一個他的故事。
他的家族是當時著名的政治世家，他的父親是劉宋王朝的一個大臣，他從小在非常富裕的環境內生長，但是他的個性沒有因此養成奢侈與浪費的習慣。
他的個性簡單乾淨而且他幾乎沒有欲望，這讓他從小就受到家中的長輩們的注意，他的幾個叔叔都很重視他也都很喜歡他。
他成年後進入了劉宋王朝與南齊王朝的中央政府內工作，他保持著他的個性，他從來不跟他人討論如何賺錢，他把他領到的薪水全部都拿出來捐贈給一些有需要的人，他喜歡坐著思考，他吃的東西也很少，他從來不跟他人主動索取任何東西，他滿足於自己的現況。
他死的時候，他留下了他的遺言，他對他的家人們說，我的喪事請用最簡單的方式來舉辦，請用最普通的牛車來拉我的棺木，這輛牛車上面不需要任何的裝飾物，只需要插上幾根蘆葦就好了。
我的靈堂上也不要準備任何的食物來祭拜我，只需要準備一杯清水與一根香就足夠了。
張緒有一個名字叫做張融的堂弟，張融非常的尊敬張緒，當張緒死後，張融帶著
一瓶中國米酒到靈堂前祭拜張緒，張融痛哭，然後哭著說我這輩子再也無法看到我的堂哥那種像風一樣流動的自由自在且不受拘束的風采了，他怎麼就像風一樣，突然之間就離開我們了呢?
這句成語直接翻譯的意思是他的個性簡單乾淨而且他幾乎沒有欲望。
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。
你是否想過如何舉辦自己的喪禮嗎?你心中是否有令你感覺到特別尊敬與懷念的人呢?
我希望這個故事能讓你產生一些新的收穫。
出處為南史-卷31-張緒傳
https://zh.wikisource.org/wiki/%E5%8D%97%E5%8F%B2/%E5%8D%B731