弟子规全文中文英文对照版(6)

人有私。切莫说。

The personal business of others

Should not be the subject of talk.

If a person has a secret,

I will not tell others.

道人善。即是善。

Praising the virtue of others

Is itself a virtuous deed.

Praising the goodness of others

is a good deed in itself.

人知之。愈思勉。

When people hear they’ve been praised,

They will want to improve even more.

When people are being praised and approved of,

they will be encouraged to try even harder.

扬人恶。即是恶。

There is never anything good

In talking of others’shortcomings.

Spreading rumors about the wrongdoings of others

is a wrongdoing in itself.

疾之甚。祸且作。

If they hear, they will surely resent it;

They will see you mean nothing but trouble.

When the harm done has reached the extreme,

misfortunes will surely follow.

善相劝。德皆建。

We should urge each other towards goodness

And develop our virtue together.

When I encourage another to do good,

both of our virtues are built up.

过不规。道两亏。

If our faults are not corrected,

We will surely stray from the Way.

If I do not tell another of his faults,

we are both wrong.

凡取与。贵分晓。

The amount you give and you get

Should always be clearly distinguished.

Whether I take or give,

I need to know the difference between the two.

与宜多。取宜少。

Make sure that your giving surpasses

The amount that you receive.

It is better to give more

and take less.

将加人。先问己。

Before you begin to blame others,

First you should question yourself:

What I ask others to do,

I must first ask myself if I would be willing to do.

己不欲。即速已。

“Would I want to be scolded and blamed?”

If not, then don’t do it to someone else.

If it is not something I would be willing to do,

I will not ask others to do it.

恩欲报。怨欲忘。

Kindness must be returned.

Let enmity just fade away.

I must repay the kindness of others and

let go of my resentments.

报怨短。报恩长。

Grudges are better forgotten;

Make kindness increase day by day.

I will spend less time holding grudges and

more time paying back the kindness of others.

待婢仆。身贵端。

Treat your employees with fairness.

Be proper and just with each one.

When I am directing maids and servants,

I will act honorably and properly.

虽贵端。慈而宽。

And not only proper and just—

You should also be kind and forgiving.

I will also treat them kindly and generously.

势服人，心不然。

If you try to rule others by force,

You will never win over their hearts.

If I use my influence to make them submissive,

their hearts will not be with you.

理服人，方无言。

If you lead them with virtue and reason,

Then they won’t feel oppressed and apart.

If I can convince them with sound reasoning,

they will have nothing to object to.

第六章 亲仁

Chapter 6 On Drawing Near to Goodhearted People

Chapter 6 Be Close to and Learn from People of Virtue and Compassion

同是人。类不齐。

Many different kinds of people

All live on the earth together.

We are all human,

but we are not the same.

流俗众。仁者希。

There are many who follow the crowd.

There are few who are truly humane.

Most of us are ordinary;

only a very few have great virtues and high moral principles.

果仁者。人多畏。

Yet those who are truly humane

Are often feared by other people,

A truly virtuous person

is greatly respected by others.

言不讳。色不媚。

For they don’t hide behind words

Or try to please with their looks.

He will not be afraid to speak the truth and

he will not fawn on others.

能亲仁。无限好。

To follow the truly humane

Will bring immeasurable good.

If I can be close to and learn from people of great virtue and compassion,

I will benefit immensely.

德日进。过日少。

Virtue will grow day by day;

Mistakes will slowly fade away.

My virtues will grow daily and

my wrongdoings will lessen day by day.

不亲仁。无限害。

Not to follow the truly humane

Will bring immeasurable harm,

If I choose not to be close to and learn from people of great virtue,

I will suffer a great loss.

小人进。百事坏。

Unworthy people will draw near you,

And everything will go awry.

People without virtue will get close to me and

nothing I attempt will succeed.

第七章 余力学文

Chapter 7 On Studying Whenever We Can

Chapter 7 After All the Above Are Accomplished, Study Further and Learn Literature and Art to Improve Your Cultural and Spiritual Life

不力行。但学文。

Cultural refinements have value,

But not at the expense of real work.

If I do not actively practice what I have learned,

but continue to study on the surface,

长浮华。成何人。

If you’re just superficially polished,

Then what can you expect to become?

even though my knowledge is increasing, it is only superficial.

What kind of person will I be?

但力行。不学文。

But if you do nothing but work

And have no understanding of culture,

If I do apply my knowledge diligently,

but stop studying,

任己见。昧理真。

You will be bound by your own narrow views,

And your notions of truth will be murky.

I will only do things based on my own opinion, thinking it is correct.

In fact, what I know is not the truth.

读书法。有三到。

When you’re pursuing your studies,

On the “three places” focus attention:

There are methods to study correctly.

They involve concentration in three areas:

心眼口。信皆要。

Your mind, your eyes and your mouth.

It’s important to train all these three.

my mind, my eyes, and my mouth.

To believe in what I read is equally important.

方读此。勿慕彼。

When you’ve taken up study of something,

Don’t let yourself become sidetracked.

When I begin to read a book,

I will not think about another.

此未终。彼勿起。

Be sure that you’ve finished one project

Before starting off on another.

If I have not completed the book,

I will not start another.

宽为限。紧用功。

Let your goals be lofty and broad.

Let your efforts be focused and steady.

I will give myself lots of time to study,

and I will study hard.

工夫到。滞塞通。

Once you have skill and experience,

You’ll solve every problem with ease.

If I devote enough time and effort,

I will thoroughly understand.

心有疑。随札记。

When a question comes up in your reading,

Make note of it before you forget.

If I have a question,

I will make a note of it.

就人问。求确义。

Then ask someone else who will know,

And who can explain the meaning.

I will ask the person who has the knowledge

for the right answer.

房室清。墙壁净。

Your room should be kept neat and tidy,

With walls and floors uncluttered and clean.

I will keep my room neat,

my walls uncluttered and clean,

几案洁。笔砚正。

Your desk should be kept in good order,

Pencils, paper, and pens well arranged.

my desk tidy and

my brush and inkstone properly placed.

墨磨偏。心不端。

If your desk and papers are messy,

It is likely your mind’s mixed up too.

If my ink block is ground unevenly,

it shows I have a poor state of mind.

字不敬。心先病。

If your writing is sloppy and careless,

It’s likely your mind is not focused.

When words are written carelessly, showing no respect,

this shows my state of mind has not been well.

列典籍。有定处。

Each of the books that you use

Should have its proper place on the shelf.

My books should be classified, placed on the bookshelves,

and in their proper places.

读看毕，还原处。

After you’ve finished your reading,

Put them back in the place they belong.

After I finish reading a book,

I will put it back where it belongs.

虽有急。卷束齐。

Although you may be in a hurry,

You should close your books the right way.

Even if I am in a hurry,

I still must neatly roll up and bind the open bamboo scroll I have been reading.

有缺坏。就补之。

If the pages or covers are damaged,

Be sure to take time to repair them.

Any missing or damaged pages

ought to be immediately repaired.

非圣书。屏勿视。

What hasn’t been written by sages

Is not something you should be reading.

If it is not a book on the teachings of the saints and sages,

it should be discarded and not even looked at.

蔽聪明。坏心志。

Such books block your intelligence

And undermine your resolve.

Such books can block my intelligence and wisdom, and

will undermine my aspirations and sense of direction.

勿自暴。勿自弃。

Don’t ever look down on yourself

Or fail to progress toward goodness.

Neither be harsh on myself,

nor give up on myself.

圣与贤。可驯致。

We all can gradually learn

To become worthies and sages.

To be a person of high ideals, moral standards and virtue

is something we can all attain in time.