His family's ancestral temple was destroyed and sacrifices have ceased.(覆宗絕祀)
The Xia dynasty was the first in Chinese
history, existing from around 2070 to 1600 BC. The third Xia dynasty king was
named Tai Kang, and his story is recorded in historical texts.
The Xia Dynasty was founded by a leader
named Yu who deeply cared about the lives of his people. Tai Kang was Yu's
grandson and the third Xia king.
Yu and his son governed the Xia Dynasty
diligently, and it enjoyed a long period of peace and prosperity.
However, Tai Kang had never experienced
hardship or suffering in his privileged childhood, which fostered a love of
pleasure.
He loved hunting and continued to pursue
this hobby even after becoming king. However, he neglected the lives of his
people and failed to govern the Xia Dynasty effectively. During his reign, the
political, economic and military situations of the Xia Dynasty deteriorated,
and the people became increasingly dissatisfied with him.
On one occasion, he led a group of servants
and confidants on a hunting trip that lasted over 100 days. During this time,
he neither returned to the capital nor appointed a proxy, plunging the central
government into chaos.
The Xia Dynasty's discontent with Tai Kang
reached breaking point and erupted. They organised themselves and, under the
leadership of a man named Hou Yi, refused to allow Tai Kang to continue as
king. They refused to allow him to return to the lands ruled by the Xia
dynasty, and he never returned to his homeland until his death.
Following this event, Tai Kang's five
younger brothers wrote several poems to document it and express their views.
The fourth poem roughly translates as follows:
'Yu was my great ancestor who led all the
nations and was revered by them.
He established a complete set of laws and
regulations, which he left to his descendants.
He established and standardised weights and
measures. Under his leadership, the Xia dynasty grew stronger day by day. Its
economy improved, its people prospered and its treasury overflowed with
reserves.
However, Tai Kang indulged in pleasure and
did not continue the system left by Yu.
The foundation laid by Yu has now fallen
into ruin. The ancestral temples of the royal family of the Xia dynasty have
destroyed and sacrifices have ceased.
This idiom translates directly as "His
family's ancestral temple was destroyed and sacrifices have ceased.".
It is used to remind us of the
disappearance and demise of a family or kingdom.
Dear friend, what are your thoughts or
feelings after hearing this story?
Is your family currently prosperous? Are
they cohesive or fractured?
I hope this story gives you some new
insights.
覆宗絕祀(His family's ancestral temple was
destroyed and sacrifices have ceased.)
夏王朝是中國歷史上的第一個王朝，其存在時間大約為西元前2070年至西元前1600年之間。夏王朝的第三任國王的名字叫做(太康)，歷史書上記載了一個他的故事。
夏王朝的開國國王的名字是(禹)，他是一個非常關心百姓的生活的領導者，太康是(禹)的孫子，他是夏王朝的第三任國王。
(禹)與他的兒子很用心的管理夏王朝，夏王朝處於長期的和平富足的狀態。
太康從小就沒有受過艱難，也沒體驗過困苦的滋味，優越的生活條件養成了他喜歡享樂的個性。
太康很喜歡打獵，他在成為國王之後仍舊延續這項愛好，他不關心百姓的生活，也不用心去治理夏王朝，夏王朝在他的治理之下，政治與經濟還有軍事情況都愈來愈差，人民也對他愈來愈不滿。
有一次，太康帶領著一群僕役與親信去打獵，這次打獵的時間超過100天，在這100多天中，他沒有回到首都，也沒有設置代理人，中央政府陷入一片混亂。
夏王朝人民對太康的不滿累積到臨界點而爆發，所有的人民組織起來，在一個名字叫做后羿的領袖的帶領下，百姓們決定拒絕讓太康繼續成為夏王朝的國王，百姓們不讓太康回到夏王朝所統治的土地上，太康至死都沒有再次回到他的家鄉。
這件事情發生後，太康的五個弟弟寫了幾首詩，他們用這些詩來記錄這個事件與藉由這些詩表達他們的看法，其中第四首詩的大概意思如下。
(禹)是我的偉大的祖先，他領導萬國，他受到萬國的尊崇。
他訂定了一套完備的典章與法則，他把這套制度留給他的子孫與後代。
他設定並且統一了度量衡的標準，在他的領導之下，夏王朝一天比一天更強盛，經濟一天比一天更好，人們生活富足，王國的國家府庫中都著豐富的儲備。
(太康)貪圖享樂，他沒有延續(禹)所留下的這套制度。
(禹)所建立的基業如今已經變得荒廢，夏王朝的王室的家族宗廟傾覆而且祭祀斷絕。
這句成語直接翻譯的意思是宗廟傾覆而且祭祀斷絕。
這句成語被用來提醒一個家族或是王國的消失與滅亡。
親愛的朋友，你聽完這個故事有怎樣的感受或有怎樣的想法呢。
你的家族現在是否興盛嗎?你的家族的凝聚力強大或是鬆散呢?
我希望這故事能讓你產生一些新的收穫。
出處為尚書-五子之歌
https://zh.wikisource.org/zh-hant/%E5%B0%9A%E6%9B%B8/%E4%BA%94%E5%AD%90%E4%B9%8B%E6%AD%8C