useless stuff(xiǔ mù bù kě diāo)

useless stuff

Rotten wood can not be carved from the Analects of Confucius gongyechang. It is said that Confucius' disciple Zaiyu was eloquent and eloquent, which was appreciated by Confucius, but later he gradually showed his laziness. One day when Confucius was giving a lecture, he found that Zai Yu had not come to the lecture. After he sent his disciples to look for it, he learned that Zai Yu was sleeping. Confucius said: "rotten wood can't be carved, and the wall of dung can't be built.".

Since the story spread, people use "rotten wood can't be carved" to describe a person who is always unable to transform or whose quality is extremely bad and has no remedy. In addition, it also refers to the fact that things and situations are doomed and irreparable.

Idiom explanation

Rotten wood cannot be carved. Now it is used to describe that people can't be made or things and situations are corrupted and incurable. It is also called "rotten wood is hard to carve" or "rotten wood is not carved". This idiom, also known as "rotten wood and dirt", refers to the fact that a person has been ruined beyond cure.

source

come from

In the Analects of Confucius gongyechang, Zaiyu sleeps in the daytime. Confucius said, "you can't carve rotten wood, and you can't build walls of dung."! What's the difference between Yu Yu and you Confucius said, "in the beginning, I used to listen to people's words and believe in their deeds; now I use people's words and observe their deeds and give and change."

notes

① Masonry: painting. ② And: modal particles, with "Er", the following "Yu Yu and Gaishi" in the "and" synonymous. ③ Blame. ④ Yu Yu and Gai: changed the original view. Yes, pronouns.

translation

Zaiyu sleeps in broad daylight. Confucius said, "rotten wood can't be carved, and walls made of rubbish can't be painted. What is there to blame for such a person as Zai Yu? " Confucius said, "at first, I believed in people's behavior after listening to what they said. Now, I still have to observe people's behavior after listening to what they said. This is due to the change of the original view of Zaiyu."

Interpretation

When the student slaughtered Yu to sleep in broad daylight, Confucius not only scolded him for "not carving rotten wood, not building walls of dung", but also expressed his emotion about knowing someone. After reading the Analects of Confucius, this is probably the most angry time for the gentle sage Kong? That tone is a bit similar to today's Lao Tzu scolding his son: "you are such a disheartened thing, I don't care if I don't say it!" If you think about it, Zaiyu's "rotten wood" is not only about sleeping in broad daylight, such as taking a nap, but also probably dozing off in the teacher's class Li. Otherwise, according to our living habits today, what's the crime of taking a nap? Could Mr. Kong be so angry? The problem is that in Kawakami, Tzu said, "time passes like a husband! Day and night. " In our words, it is "an inch of time, an inch of gold, an inch of gold can't buy an inch of time." Therefore, Mr. Kong will never agree with our view on siesta. In this way, his anger is not difficult to understand. As for "listening to his words and observing his actions", as the Confucian Master Zhu Xi quoted Hu's words in volume 3 of the Analects of Confucius to remind us, "how can a saint know to listen to his words and observe his actions now? It's not true that Jae Yu doesn't trust everyone just because he does. It's just a case study of Zaiyu, asking us to do more and talk less, so that our words and deeds are consistent. " And the reason why it is necessary is that there are some people in the world who speak better than sing. Therefore, we should not only listen to what he says, but also polish our eyes to observe what he does!

allusion

Zai Yu, a disciple of Confucius, has beautiful words and pleasant speech. At first, Confucius liked this disciple very much and thought that he must be very promising. But soon, Zai Yu revealed his laziness. One day, Confucius gave a lecture to his disciples. When he found that Zai Yu had not come to the lecture, he sent his disciples to look for him. After a while, the disciples came back and reported that Zai Yu was sleeping in his room. Confucius said sadly, "rotten wood can't be carved, and walls like dirt can't be painted. At first, when I heard what others said, I believed that his behavior must be the same as what he said. Now, after listening to what others said, I want to examine his behavior. I've changed my attitude since I killed my son. "

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