Source: "The Analects of Confucius·Li Ren": "A gentleman wants to be slow in words but quick in deeds."

An example of Song Dynasty Zhu Xi's "Reply to Wang Jinsi Shu": "You must not be careful about yourself. Be cautious in speaking and acting quickly to change the fallacy of old habits."

The original explanation of this article cannot reflect the essence of this entry. The real meaning is: people should be careful when speaking, because disaster comes from the mouth. If you speak carelessly, you may hurt yourself and others, cause trouble or even disaster. And you should be able and diligent in doing things. In short, it warns people to talk less and do more, which is the guideline that most people in today's society should follow.

As the saying goes: "Too many words lead to mistakes" and "Diseases come in from the mouth, and disasters come out from the mouth." However, caution does not mean that we are not allowed to speak, but it tells us that we must be cautious when speaking.

Confucius said: "If there is an ambition, the words should be loyal and the words should be sufficient. Who knows the ambition if you don't say it? If words are not written, they will not go far.' Be careful with your words." It means: , it has been recorded in ancient books: Speech is used to express moral integrity, grammar and rhetoric are used to express speech. If he doesn't speak out, who can know his integrity? If the speech is not modified and assisted by words, how can it be spread for a long time? It can be seen that words must be cautious.

You cannot say words casually. If you talk too much, you will definitely make a mistake. Therefore, you should say it when you should say it, and never say it when you should not say it. This has a certain warning effect on our daily words and deeds. Be careful when speaking so that you don't say everything and leave no room for yourself. What we advocate is to speak in a flawless and appropriate manner, with less nonsense and clichés, but we should not be so cautious that we do not speak at all. Being quick in action means that you must quickly commit to what you have said. Don't just talk about it, but do more practical work. In short, we cannot be "giants in language and dwarfs in action". Talk less, do more. This is definitely a wise saying.

Mao Zedong’s two daughters, who were born in Yan’an during the Anti-Japanese War, were named Li Min and Li Na. Among them, "Min" and "Na" come from "The Analects of Confucius Li Ren" "A gentleman wants to be slow in words but quick in deeds." From the name given to his daughter, we can understand that Mao Zedong hoped that his daughter would grow up Be a person who does more practical things and talks less empty words.

English translation

be awkward in one's speech and earnest in one's conduct