"Born in sorrow, died in peace and happiness"

Shun was born in the garden, Fu Shuo was raised in the building, Jiao Ge was raised in the fish and salt, Guan Yi Wu was raised by the soldiers, Sun Shuao was raised by the sea, and Baili Xi was raised by the city.

Therefore, when Heaven is about to assign a great responsibility to a person, he must first strain his mind and will, strain his muscles and bones, starve his body and skin, deplete his body, and mess up his actions, so his mind and forbearance are tempted. It has been beneficial to what it cannot do.

People always make mistakes, and then they can change; trapped in the heart, balanced by considerations, and then act; marked by color, produced by sound, and then metaphor. If you enter, you will be unable to control the people at home, if you leave, you will be invincible to foreign patients, and the country will be permanently destroyed.

Then you realize that you are born from sorrow and die from happiness. Notes: (1) Selected from "Mencius 6.1 Gaozi Xia". The title was added by the author. Gaozi, surnamed Gao, was a student of Mencius and a scholar of Confucianism and Mohism. Some versions of the excerpt here are titled "Shun Fa Yuan Mu".

(2) Shun (shùn) was born in the fields (quǎn): Shun was appointed from the fields. Shun originally farmed in Mount Li. When he was thirty years old, he was appointed by Yao and later succeeded Yao as king. Fa, start, means to be appointed. Yu, preposition, from. 玎, field ditch, furrow in the field. Mu, field ridge. "玎acre" generally refers to fields, fields and fields. Shun, the legendary ancient emperor.

(3) Fu Yue (yuè) was raised between the building blocks: Fu Yue was raised from among the plasterers who built the wall. Fu said that a man from the Shang Dynasty originally worked as a plasterer in Fu Yan, building walls for people. King Wu Ding of Yin visited him and made him his prime minister. To lift, to be promoted, to be selected. When building a wall, put soil between two sandwich boards and pound the soil with a pestle to make it solid. Version, plywood for building earth walls. A pestle used for building and pounding soil.

(4) Jiao Ge (gé) was raised from fish salt: Jiao Ge was raised from merchants who sold fish salt. Jiao Ge, a wise minister of the Shang Dynasty, initially sold fish and salt, but King Wen of Zhou recommended him to Zhou. Later, he assisted King Wu of Zhou. Yu, preposition, from.

(5) Guan Yiwu was promoted to a scholar: Guan Yiwu was released from the prison officer and was hired. Guan Zhong (Yi Wu) was originally a minister of Prince Jiu of the State of Qi. Prince Xiaobai (Dong Huan of Qi) competed with Prince Jiu for position. Jiu failed. Guan Zhong was escorted back to his country as a sinner. Duke Huan of Qi knew that he had talent and made him his prime minister. . To be cited as a scholar means to be released from prison officials and hired. Sergeant, prison officer. To be promoted to a scholar means to be released from the hands of a prison officer and appointed.

(6) Sun Shuao was promoted to the sea: Sun Shuao was promoted to the imperial court from his seclusion by the sea. Sun Shuao, a native of Chu during the Spring and Autumn Period, lived in seclusion on the seaside. King Zhuang of Chu knew that he was talented and made him his commander.

(7) Bailixi was promoted from the market: Bailixi was promoted from the market and ascended to the throne. Bailixi was a senior official of the Yu State during the Spring and Autumn Period. After the King of Yu was captured, he entered Qin from Jin and then fled to Chu. Later, Duke Mu of Qin used Wuxi (gǔ, black ram) sheepskin to redeem him and made him a senior official. Market, bazaar, place for doing business.

(8) Delegating major responsibilities: assigning major responsibilities or the responsibility of governing the country. Descend: Release. Responsibility, responsibility, mission.

(9) So people also: (give great responsibility) to such people. Yes, demonstrative pronoun, this. Also, used at the end of the first half of a sentence, it means to pause for an explanation in the second half of the sentence.

(10) His mind must be made painful first: his heart must be made painful first. Bitter, the adjective is used as a causative, making... painful.

(11) Work his muscles and bones: make his muscles and bones tired. Lao, to make... tired. Its, pronoun, his.

(12) Starve his skin: It means to make him suffer from hunger, causing his skin to become thin. Hungry, use the usage method to make... endure the pain of hunger.

(13) Empty: It means making him suffer from poverty. Empty: To make...poor. Weak: Absolutely. This refers to making a person suffer from poverty. Scarcity: Lack of resources, i.e. poverty, making... unfavorable.

(14) What he does is confusing: what he does is not smooth, which makes what he does confusing. Whisk: violate. What you do, what you do. Chaos: to disturb, to cause confusion.

(15) So: used to (come through this way...).

(16) Tempting his heart and toughening his temper. To move, to startle... To endure, to make... tenacious.

(17) Zeng benefited what he could not do: added what he could not do, so that he could increase his talents. Zeng means "increase", increase. So, a particle, and "can't" form a noun phrase to refer to an object that cannot be reached. Can't: A talent that doesn't exist.

(18) Heng: often, often.

(19) Guo: Negligence, here refers to fault.

(20) Then you can change it: This way you can change it in the future.

(21) Trapped in the heart: inner troubles. Sleepy, worried. Yu, preposition, in.

(22) Weighing on considerations: blocking by thoughts. Heng means "horizontal" and obstruction refers to disobedience.

(23) Then act: Only then can you act. To work, to rise up, means to make a difference.

(24) Characterized by color: expressed on the face. It means haggard and withered, which is reflected in the color. Zheng, levy, test, here has the meaning of expression.

(25) Sent from the sound: It means that the breath of chanting and sighing comes from the sound.

(26) Later metaphor: (See his face, hear his voice) Then people understand him. Metaphor, understand, know.

(27) In the country, if there are no ministers who adhere to the law and wise men who assist the monarch, they will be helpless. Enter, inside, refers to the country. Legalists, ministers who can adhere to the law. Fu Shi is a wise man who can assist the monarch. Fu: Same as "弼", auxiliary, assistant. Then, if.

(28) Invincible foreign patients: There are no hostile countries or emergencies abroad. Enemy country: a country with equal power and status.

(29) The country will perish: The country will often perish. Constantly, often.

(30) Then you will know that you are born from sorrow: Only then will you understand that you can survive and develop because of sorrow. Then, after this. Yu, preposition, because, express reason. To give birth to, to make... survive.

(31) Dying of ease and pleasure: Coveting for ease and enjoyment will make people languid and die. Death: To cause death. [Edit this paragraph] Reference translation {Chinese version}

Shun was selected from among the fields, Fu Yue was selected from among the bricklayers who built the wall, Jiao Ke was selected from among the fish and salt sellers, Guan Yiwu was promoted after being released from the prison officer, Sun Shuao was selected from the seclusion of the seaside, and Baili Xi was selected from the market. Therefore, when God assigns a great responsibility to such a person, it must first cause pain to their hearts, fatigue their muscles and bones, make them endure hunger, make them suffer from poverty, and make them have difficulties in doing things. The heart is frightened, which strengthens his character and adds talents that he does not possess.

People often make mistakes before they can correct them; (when they make mistakes) they are troubled in their hearts and can only rise up [or do something] after being blocked by thoughts; a haggard and withered look is reflected on their face, and they chant and sigh. The anger comes from the sound, and then it is understood. If there were not ministers who can uphold the law and the Magi who can help the monarch, and if there were no neighboring countries to rival it and no foreign disasters, a country would often perish. People survive and develop, but enjoying happiness makes people die from exhaustion.

{Another version}

Mencius said: "Shun grew up from working in the fields, Fu Yue was selected from the work of building walls, and Jiao Ge was selected from the fish and salt industry. In the transaction, Guan Zhong was promoted to the position of prisoner, Sun Shuao was discovered from the sea, and Baili Xi was redeemed from the market. Therefore, when God is going to send a major mission to someone, he must first make his will. Being tempered makes his muscles and bones tired, makes his body suffer from hunger, makes him suffer from poverty, and makes him always unable to do things smoothly. This shakes his mind and strengthens his character. , to increase his talents. People always have to make mistakes before they can correct them; only when they are depressed and thoughtful can they work hard; can they be understood by others if they are expressed in their faces and voices. A country that does not have law-abiding ministers and auxiliary wise men at home, and does not have the worries of a country with comparable power abroad, is often prone to destruction. From this we can know that people can survive because of worries, but they can be destroyed because of ease and enjoyment. ”

(Examination required version)

Born in sorrow, died in happiness

Shun was appointed in the fields, Fu Yue was selected among the masons, Jiao Ge Among the fish and salt merchants, Guan Yiwu was released from prison officials and appointed, Sun Shuao was selected from seclusion on the seaside, and Baili Xi was selected from the market.

So if God wants to send a major mission to such a person, he must first make his heart suffer, make his muscles and bones tired, make him suffer hunger, make him suffer poverty, and make his work difficult. By this means his heart is stirred, his character is strengthened, and his talents which he lacks are increased.

People often make mistakes so that they can correct them later. The heart is troubled, the thoughts are blocked, and then something is done. The haggard and withered appearance is reflected in his face, and the breath of chanting and sighing comes from his voice. Only then do people understand him. If there are no ministers who abide by the law or wise men who help the monarch, and if there are no hostile countries or disasters abroad, the country will often perish.

After this, you will understand that you can survive and develop in sorrow, but you will languish and die in ease and enjoyment.