This is a self-encouragement couplet composed by Xie Zi, the grandfather of poet, novelist, and essayist Bing Xin (Xie Wanying), who collected ancient famous sayings and used it as a family motto for educating future generations. "Be content with what is not enough, do nothing" means: be content with some things, such as life; never be satisfied with some things, such as study and career; some things must be done, and some things must not be done. Do.
The so-called contentment is not difficult to understand from the literal meaning. It is nothing more than knowing to be satisfied with what you have already obtained. This thing includes both material and spiritual levels. When people know how to be satisfied, they will not have any unreasonable thoughts, they will not do unattainable things, they will be able to face many complex problems calmly, and society will tend to be harmonious. It can be seen that harmony is based on contentment. Building a harmonious society is a relatively fashionable idea nowadays. What is harmony? My understanding is: The so-called "harmony" is the word "禾" plus the word "口", which means that everyone has food to eat. The so-called "harmony" is the word "yan" plus the word "Ji", which means that everyone can speak. Everyone has food to eat and everyone can express their opinions. If people are satisfied with this, this society will definitely be harmonious.
Therefore, contentment has necessary prerequisites. Guanzi said, "If you have a solid warehouse, you will know etiquette; if you have enough food and clothing, you will know honor and disgrace." Maslow in the West also has a hierarchy of needs theory, which believes that human needs are divided into five levels, among which the lowest and most basic level is the need for survival, and the highest level is the need for self-actualization. If the basic levels are not met, it is impossible to even obtain the need for respect, let alone the need for self-actualization. Therefore, when talking about contentment, it should be based on certain material conditions. The rich live in silk fabrics and feasting every day, while the poor have no clothes or food to eat. It is impossible for the poor to be content. Not only is it impossible, but they also have to rise up in rebellion. Otherwise, where would there have been so many uprisings in history? and revolution.
After basic material and spiritual conditions are met, people should know how to be content. Tolstoy said it well, "The smaller the desire, the greater the happiness." The toad wants to eat the flesh of the swan but does it knowingly that it cannot be done. The result will only be a laughing stock. Many people in life are unsatisfied with their duties. They look up from one mountain to another, look at those whose level and ability are higher than their own, who live a more prosperous life than themselves, and become full of complaints and even jealousy, and do many irrational things. Come on, I still don’t know why.
In order for individuals to make progress and society to move forward, they must also understand their shortcomings. To know your shortcomings means to know your shortcomings and your imperfections. It is the so-called "know your shame and then be brave". Only when we are aware of our shortcomings can we have the intrinsic motivation to improve ourselves and promote social progress. Throughout the ages, arrogant, arrogant, and arrogant people have almost never ended well. Why? Because he never understands the principle of "taking further steps forward", he never understands the principle of "there is heaven outside the sky, and there are people outside the world", and he never understands the principle of "the sea is open to all rivers, so it becomes great". He naively thinks that he He is a genius, unparalleled by anyone in the world, and the result can only be complacency, stagnation, and a miserable end.
We must work hard, work diligently, and create the necessary material and spiritual wealth to achieve a state of contentment. We must also be modest and prudent, pursue unknown areas diligently, and gain strength from insufficient knowledge to promote the progress of human society. I think this should be the dialectical relationship between scientific contentment and lack of knowledge.
"Action or inaction". "Youwei" means doing something. That is to say, cherishing life is to wait for the opportunity to make a difference; taking care of the body is to hope to make a difference. This is a positive attitude towards life and work. "Do not do" refers to resolutely not doing things that are not in line with justice and morality. The general idea is that people have to do something before they can do something. The boundary between doing and not doing: that is, we should actively do good things, good deeds, and things that benefit the country and the people; we should insist on not doing wrong things, evil things, and things that harm others and benefit ourselves. Xu Teli, a Chinese proletarian revolutionist and educator, wrote a couplet to several young shop assistants on the subject of "what to do and what not to do": "Reading books about the country and the country often is not beneficial to the body and mind, and nothing can be done." It gave people a clear guide to self-cultivation. direction.