1. Translation of the classical Chinese text "Come and eat"

During the Spring and Autumn Period, there was a famine in Qi. Someone was giving alms and food on the road and said to a hungry person, "Come and eat". People say, I just don’t eat “food that comes from my mouth.” Finally he died without eating (see "Book of Rites·Tan ??Gong"). Later, it generally refers to humiliating charity, and honest people will not be fed. ——"Book of the Later Han·Biography of Women"

People will say that this person has backbone and will not bend down for a bite to eat. I will also raise my big thumb for him. I really agreed." A man with lofty ideals will not drink water from a stolen spring, and an honest person will not be fed by someone who comes to him. "At that time, I didn't know what the social consciousness was like, but now I think that eating something that comes without complaining is wrong. A person's life is only once, but there are N opportunities. It is necessary to save life. Thirty years to the east of the river, thirty years to the west of the river. There is an old saying, "Salted fish will turn over." It depends on whether you can catch it. In ancient times, Han Xin achieved great deeds after being humiliated. That is a wise man , It is a fool not to be fed by sighs.

Is it the story of Gou Jian, the king of Yue, who "lies on fuel and tastes courage"? In order to restore the country, Gou Jian fed his husband's horse, took off his shoes, and served him to the toilet. Gou Jian endured everything. Gou Jian was a wise man. How could he not bow his head when he was under the eaves? You are a wise man who will tolerate it. Your heart must be able to fill the sea, and you must also learn to carry out your virtues. .Cherish life and everything will be fine.

It is said that one year, there was a great famine in Qi State, and people everywhere were fleeing the famine and begging for food. The rich man Qian Ao kindly helped the victims and placed food on the roadside. A man staggered over because of hunger. Qian Ao shouted to him: "Hey! Eat!" Unexpectedly, the man stared at Qian Ao and said, "I am so hungry because I don't eat the food I brought." That's what it looks like." Later, although Qian Ao apologized, the man did not eat the food Qian Ao gave him until he died of starvation. The learned Zengzi thought that the victim was too stubborn. He said: If someone greets you rudely, you can walk away, but when someone has apologized, you should eat it. 2. Translation of the ancient text "The Food of the Lai"

Story: The Food of the Lai

During the Warring States Period, the vassal states fought against each other, and the people were not at peace. If natural disasters were added to the mix, the people would be in trouble. There is no way to live. This year, there was a severe drought in Qi. It didn't rain for three months in a row. The fields were dry and cracked, and the crops were all dead. The poor ate the leaves and bark, and the grass seedlings and roots. They all starved to death. . But the granaries in rich people's homes were full, and they still enjoyed spicy food.

There was a rich man named Qian Ao. Seeing the poor people staggering from hunger, he took pleasure in their misfortune. He wanted to take out some food for the victims, but he also pretended to be a savior. He placed the cooked cornstarch on the roadside and gave it to the hungry people passing by. Whenever a hungry man came over, Qian Ao would throw out a cornbread and shouted arrogantly: "Beggar, let me feed you!" Sometimes, when a group of people came over, Qian Ao would throw out several cornbreads for the hungry people to fight with each other. Qian Ao looked at them mockingly, feeling very happy that he was really a living Bodhisattva with great kindness and virtue.

At this time, a skinny hungry man came over. He had a messy head of hair and ragged clothes. He tied a pair of tattered shoes to his feet with a straw rope. He covered his face with his sleeves and walked unsteadily. Since he hadn't eaten for several days, he could no longer support his body and was walking a little staggeringly.

Qian Ao saw the appearance of this hungry man, so he specially took two steamed buns and a bowl of soup, and shouted loudly to the hungry man: "Hey, come and eat!" The hungry man didn't seem to hear him. As if, ignoring him. Qian Ao shouted again: "Hey, did you hear that? Here's something to eat!" The hungry man suddenly perked up, looked at Qian Ao with wide eyes and said, "Put away your things, I'd rather I don’t want to eat such food even if I starve to death!”

Qian Ao never expected that the starving people who were staggering with hunger could still maintain their personal dignity, and he was suddenly ashamed and said no for a moment! Speak up.

Originally, relief and helping others should be done sincerely and not as a savior. Well-intentioned help is acceptable; however, when it comes to "food that comes", it is the spirit of the hungry people with backbone that deserves our praise.

Explanation

The idiom "嗟来之食" means giving alms that is insulting or malicious. Sigh: A rude greeting, equivalent to the current "hello". 3. Classical Chinese translation of "嗟来之食"

Vernacular interpretation:

There is a serious famine in Qi. Qian Ao prepared meals on the roadside for the hungry people passing by. A hungry man walked towards the place, covered his face with the sleeve, his feet shoddy, and his eyes dull.

Qian Ao held food in his left hand and soup in his right hand and said: "Hey! Come and eat!" The hungry man raised his head and looked at him and said: "Because I don't eat the food given by others, That's why we ended up in this situation!" Qian Ao caught up with him and apologized, but he eventually starved to death because he didn't eat. After Zengzi heard about this, he said: "I'm afraid it doesn't have to be like this! When Ao rudely called, of course he could refuse, but after he apologized, he could go and eat."

Original text:

If you don’t eat, you will be hungry if you eat. Qian Ao placed food on the road, waiting for the hungry to eat. If there are hungry people, they will pick up their clothes and come here. Qian Ao held food on his left and a drink on his right, saying: "Come! Come eat!" He raised his eyes and looked at it, saying: "I will not eat the food that came to me, what a shame!" Then he thanked him and died without eating. . Zengzi heard about it and said: "Weiyu! If you sigh, you can go away; if you give thanks, you can eat it."

This article comes from "Book of Rites" written by Dai Sheng of the Western Han Dynasty.

Extended information

Writing background:

It is said to be written by the seventy-two disciples of Confucius and his students. It was compiled by the Western Han Dynasty ritual scholar Dai Shengsuo. The "Poems", "Books", "Rites", "Music", "Yi", "Spring and Autumn" and "Six Classics" taught by Confucius to his disciples are the carriers of the highest philosophy in Chinese classical culture.

However, it is difficult to read through ancient texts and profound meanings, so more interpretations are made to assist understanding. The "Li" in the Six Classics, later called "Yili", mainly records the crown, marriage, and rituals of the Zhou Dynasty. The "etiquette" of funeral and sacrificial rites is limited by the practice, and almost does not involve the "etiquette" behind the ceremony.

Without understanding the etiquette and meaning, the ceremony becomes a worthless ceremony. Therefore, in the process of studying the rituals, the post-seventy-year-old scholars wrote a large number of essays elucidating the meaning of the scriptures, which are generally called "notes" and are appendages to the "Rituals".

After the First Emperor of Qin burned books and harassed Confucian scholars, there were still many "notes" written in ancient pre-Qin Chinese that could be seen in the Western Han Dynasty. "Hanshu·Yiwenzhi" contains "one hundred and thirty-one".

"Sui Shu·Jing Ji Zhi" said that this batch of documents was collected from the people by King Xian of Hejian. It also said that when Liu Xiang examined the classics, he also obtained "Mingtang Yin Yang Ji", "Confucius's Three Dynasties" and "Wang Wang". "Historical Records", "Yue Ji" and dozens of other chapters, the total number increased to 214.

Due to the large number of "Ji" and the varying quality and roughness, by the Eastern Han Dynasty, two anthologies appeared in the society. One was the 85-chapter edition of Dade, which is commonly known as "Da De". "Book of Rites".

The second is the forty-nine-chapter version written by Dai De’s nephew Dai Sheng, which is commonly known as the "Little Dai Li Ji". "The Book of Dadai Liji" is not widely circulated. Lu Bian of the Northern Zhou Dynasty once annotated it, but its decline continued. By the Tang Dynasty, most of it had been lost, with only thirty-nine chapters remaining. "Shu", "Tang" and "Song" The "Jing Ji Zhi" and other historical records did not even record it.

The "Book of Rites of Xiaodai" was famous and popular in the world due to Zheng Xuan's excellent annotations, so later generations simply called it the "Book of Rites".

Article Appreciation:

The famous saying "Don't eat what comes to you" means that in order to show your integrity as a human being, you should never accept charity from others humbly, even if it means starving yourself to death. The reason why the hungry man refused to eat Qian Ao's food was because Qian Ao was arrogant and regarded the poor as pigs and dogs, and his charity was insulting. Chinese tradition attaches great importance to being a person with integrity. In popular terms, people live with one breath, and even if they suffer, they cannot lose this breath.

There are also some similar sayings, such as a poor man with a strong ambition, he would rather have a piece of jade than a piece of brick, a man wants face, a tree wants bark... all express the importance of integrity and human dignity. Emphasize that the traditional concept of attaching importance to the human spirit still has its value and rationality. Between human spirit and body, between spiritual pursuit and material pursuit, between human dignity and groveling, the former is higher and more important than the latter.

When the two cannot be satisfied, it is better to abandon the latter and sacrifice the latter than to become a walking corpse and a beast in disguise. This is probably the difference between humans being humans and not zombies.