#菜根譚 四。 閒適篇

Words from Lean Times Part 4: Tranquility

1.

龍可豢 非真龍，  虎可搏 非真虎，
故 爵祿可餌榮進之輩 必不可籠淡然無欲之人，
鼎鑊可及寵利之流 必不可加飄然遠引之士。

The dragon that may be penned is no true dragon;
The tiger that may be bound is no true tiger.
Hence, titles and riches may bait glory-pushers but
Never cage tranquil persons free of desire, while
Punishment and torture may reach gain-seekers but
Never change lofty scholars removed from temptation.

#Caigentan

Project wiki: https://wiki.writeout.ink/ljwrites/translation/caigentan/start

#菜根譚 三。 評議篇

Words from Lean Times Part 3: Deliberations

1.

物莫大於天地日月 而子美云 日月籠中鳥 乾坤水上萍，
事莫大於揖遜征誅 而康節云 唐虞揖遜三杯酒 湯武征誅一局棋，
人能以此胸襟眼界 吞吐六合 上下千古，
事來如漚生大海 事去如影滅長空 自經綸萬變 而不動一塵矣。

What among beings is greater than Heaven and Earth, Sun and Moon?
 Yet the saintly poet Du Fu spake:
 The Sun and Moon are but birds in a cage,
 while sky and ground are duckweed on water.
What among deeds is greater than diplomacy and conquest?
 Yet the scholar poet Kangjie spake:
 The sage kings Yao and Shun exchanged kingdoms like drinking cups,
 while the kings of Shang and Zhou conquered like a game of Go.
With such thoughts and perspectives
 whole dimensions come and go in a breath
 and one climbs the ages in their highs and lows;
Events but roll in like foam on ocean vast
 and roll out like fading shades in far-off skies,
 eternal change in all things are ably governed
 without a single mote of dust shifting out of place.

#Caigentan

Project wiki: https://wiki.writeout.ink/ljwrites/translation/caigentan/start

#菜根譚 二。應酬篇

Words from Lean Times Part 2: Relationships

1.

操存 要有真宰 無真宰 則遇事便倒 何以植頂天立地之砥柱，
應用 要有圓機 無圓機 則觸物有礙 何以成旋乾轉坤之經綸。

To preserve the core of being there must be a central pillar.
 Without a central pillar one's being collapses with every issue;
 how would one then erect an unyielding stanchion to hold up Heaven and tread Earth?
To live in the world there must be well-ordered functioning.
 Without well-ordered functions every contact with the world is an obstacle;
 how would one then achieve governance to revolve the sky and turn the earth?

#Caigentan

Project wiki: https://wiki.writeout.ink/ljwrites/translation/caigentan/start

This will be a thread transcribing and translating the Ming-era spiritual/self-help book #菜根譚 Caìgēntán, a collection of 360 phrases, verses, and aphorisms by 洪應明 Hong Yingming. I am using the edition with Korean translation and commentary by Buddhist monk, classical scholar, poet, and independence activist 한용운 Han Yong-un. The plan is to practice #Chinese typing in #Bopomo and also bulk up my knowledge of Classical characters & grammar. It's going to be a LONG thread if I get it going long enough, so every post will be tagged #Caigentan for easy filtering and you can also mute the whole thread.

EDIT: I made a wiki page where all the translations will be added as I go. https://wiki.writeout.ink/ljwrites/translation/caigentan/start