Use Di to paint the ground: used to praise the mother for teaching her son well

Source: "Biography of Ouyang Xiu" in the Song Dynasty. When Ouyang Xiu was young, his mother Zheng used Di to paint the ground to teach her son to read. The father was orphaned at the age of four, and his family was poor and had no resources. The lady painted the ground with grass and taught calligraphy. Recite more ancient passages. It was a little longer, and there was no book to read at home, so the scholars in Luli borrowed it to read it, or copied it. So much so that he forgets to sleep and eat day and night, only reading is his main task. He has written poems and texts since he was a child, and he has written like an adult.

Translation:

Mr. Ouyang Xiu's father passed away when he was four years old. His family was poor and had no money for him to study. The wife used reed stalks to draw pictures on the sand and taught him to write.

He also taught him to recite many ancient chapters. When he got older and there were no books to read at home, he would go to nearby scholars' homes to borrow books and read them, and sometimes copy them. In this way, I worked day and night, forgetting to eat and sleep, just studying. The poems and texts written in small letters are as high as those of an adult.

Extended information

The Four Wise Mothers

1. Meng’s Mother

Meng’s Mother was the mother of Mencius during the Warring States Period, ranking among the “Four Great Mothers”. The first of the Great Virtuous Mothers. Her son Mencius was a famous thinker and educator in ancient China. He was a Confucian master second only to Confucius and was known as the "Senior Sage". The reason why Meng's mother was able to raise such an outstanding son was all due to her careful education of her children. Her most widely-sung story is the story of "Meng Meng's mother moving three times".

Meng's mother lost her husband in her early years, but she was determined not to remarry. She raised Mencius through all kinds of hardships by herself. At first, she and Mencius lived near her husband's tomb so that they could worship her husband every day. But after living in such a place for a long time, the young Mencius actually imitated the mourning behavior of mourners. Meng's mother felt that such a living environment was not conducive to the growth of her children, so she moved her family to the market.

But after moving his family to the market, Mencius followed the example of hawkers and merchants and started a shouting business. Meng's mother did not want her son to become a villain in the future, so she moved her family near the school. From then on, Mencius followed the scholars in school and learned to "study hard and make progress every day". The reason why Meng's mother moved three times was because she understood a truth: "The environment will affect a person's growth."

Meng's mother also taught Mencius that if you give up your studies halfway, it will be like a half-woven piece of cloth. It cannot be used by others. Similarly, if a person does not study well when he is young, he will only be able to do hard labor when he grows up, and he will have no future. From then on, Mencius worked hard to study and eventually became a generation of unparalleled Confucian scholars.

2. Tao Mu

Tao Mu is the mother of Tao Kan in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. Tao Kan was a famous general who made great achievements in stabilizing the turbulent political situation in the early years of the Eastern Jin Dynasty. At that time, the story of Tao's mother "cutting off the guests at the banquet" and "closing the altar and retreating" was also widely circulated.

Tao Kan was an orphan when he was young, and his family was poor. Tao's mother also lost her husband early in life. She worked hard to make a living by spinning and weaving linen, and supported Tao Kan in his studies. When it comes to educating her son, Tao’s mother has always taught her son that when making friends, he must make friends with people who are more qualified and educated than himself.

Once, Fan Kui, a member of Xiaolian (that is, Juren) from the same county, was visiting Xian and met with heavy snow, so he stayed at Tao Kan's house. It was freezing cold and there was no feed for the horses, so Tao's mother took off the straw mat from her bed and chopped it into pieces to feed the horses. Since her family was too poor to entertain guests, Tao's mother secretly cut off her own long hair and sold it to her neighbors. , exchange money to buy food and drinks.

In the Chinese concept, hair cannot be cut easily. Tao's mother's behavior shows her sincerity in hospitality. Therefore, Fan Kui was greatly moved and recommended Tao Kan to be appointed as a doctor by the county officials. From then on, Tao Kan embarked on a prosperous official career. This is the allusion of "cutting off the guests at the banquet".

3. Ou Mu

Ou Mu was the mother of Ouyang Xiu in the Northern Song Dynasty. Ouyang Xiu was an outstanding politician, writer, and historian in the Northern Song Dynasty, but his achievements were inseparable from his mother's great education.

Oumu is a single mother. Her husband passed away when her son was four years old, leaving her alone to raise her son. When Ouyang Xiu's father was alive, the family was relatively well off, but since his death, the family has plummeted and become increasingly poor. Later, it came to the point where "there was not a single room in the house and not a single ridge of land." One can imagine the difficulties faced by orphans and widowed mothers living in such a situation.

Ou Mu is a strong-willed woman. Her family is poor and ambitious. She raised her son with her own hard work and taught Ouyang Xiu how to read in the most primitive way - this is the famous "Hua Di teaches his son": When Ouyang Xiu was five years old, Ou's mother taught him how to read, read, and behave.

It’s just that the family was poor at the time and had no money to buy pens, inks, paper and inkstones, so Ou Mu had to use reed sticks instead, spread some sand on the ground, use the ground as paper, and teach Ouyang Xiu to write stroke by stroke.

Children from poor families were early masters. Under the careful guidance of his mother, Ouyang Xiu became particularly sensible, so he worked hard and achieved excellent academic results. He became a high school scholar in the eighth year of Renzong Tiansheng (AD 1030).

When Ouyang Xiu was an official, he actively supported Fan Zhongyan in maintaining the new law, and was later demoted for this. But Ou's mother did not complain about her son's poor career, but comforted her son and said: "You were demoted for justice, which cannot be said to be disgraceful. Our family is used to living a poor life. As long as you are not burdened in your mind and your spirit is not weak, I am happy. "

4. Mother-in-law

My mother-in-law is the mother of Yue Fei, a famous general in the Northern Song Dynasty.

When Yue Fei was fifteen or sixteen years old, the Jin people from the north invaded the south. The people in power in the Song Dynasty were corrupt and incompetent, and they were retreating steadily. The country was at a critical moment of life and death. Many selfish mothers do not want their children to go to the front line, hoping to preserve the blood of their children in the war years. But the mother-in-law is different from ordinary mothers. She is upright and upright, takes the initiative to encourage her sons to join the army, and serves the country with loyalty. In order to let her son always remember the admonition of a man to "serve the country with loyalty", she even used an embroidery needle to tattoo these four words on Yue Fei's back!

Due to the active encouragement of his mother-in-law, Yue Fei fought bravely and without hesitation after joining the army. He soon made many military exploits and was promoted to Bingyilang. Once, when Kaifeng, the capital of the Song Dynasty, was besieged by the Jin army, Yue Fei went to the rescue with deputy marshal Zong Ze and defeated the Jin army many times. Zong Ze appreciated him and praised him as "intelligent, brave and talented, which cannot be surpassed by ancient generals". Later, Yue Fei finally became a famous anti-golden hero and was respected by people of all generations.

These are the "Four Great Wise Mothers" in ancient China. The stories of how they taught their children fully illustrate the importance and greatness of maternal education.

Baidu Encyclopedia—Four Wise Mothers