There were two pots on the bank of a river. One was made of brass, and the other was made of clay.
When the water rose they both floated off down the river. The earthen pot tried to stay away from the brass one.
So the brass pot cried out, “Fear nothing, friend, I will not hit you.”
“But I may come in contact with you,” said the earthen pot. “If I come too close, whether I hit you or you hit me, I shall suffer for it.”
After that the earthen pot floated away.

两口锅
　　
　　●河中漂流着一个瓦锅和一个铜锅。
　　
　　　　●每当潮涨潮落时，瓦锅就尽量地远离铜锅。铜锅大叫：“别害怕，朋友，我不会撞你的。”
　　
　　　　●“但是我有可能会和你接触，”瓦锅对铜锅说,“如果我离你太近，无论是你碰到我，或者是我自己不小心碰到你，我都会碎的。”
　　
　　　　●然后，瓦锅就漂走了。
A young man was caught stealing, and sentenced to death three days later.
He wanted to speak with his mother before the execution. Of course this was granted.
When his mother came to him, he said, “I want to tell you something.” He said something but she could not hear. He whispered again, and when she came close to him, she put her ear to his mouth. He nearly bit off her ear. All the bystanders were horrified.
“It is to punish her,” he said. “When I was young I began stealing little things, and brought them home to mother. “Instead of punishing me, she laughed and said, ‘It will not be noticed.’ It is because of her that I am here today. ”

小偷和他的母亲
　　
　　●一个小偷被抓住了，被判处死刑，三天后执行。
　　
　　　　●他想在行刑前与他的母亲话别，得到了允许。
　　
　　　　●当他妈妈来到他的面前，他说：“告诉你一件事。”他轻轻说了一遍，但是她听不到；等她走近些，小偷又轻声说了一遍。母亲将耳朵贴近时，儿子突然咬住母亲的耳朵，差点撕下来，周围的人都惊呆了。
　　
　　　　●“这是对她的惩罚，”小偷说，“我小时候小偷小摸，把偷的东西带回家时，她不但不惩罚我，反而笑着说‘别让人看见。’就是因为她我才落个今天这样的下场。”
An eagle was flying in the sky. As soon as it saw a rabbit, it swooped down on its prey.
Suddenly it was hit by an arrow.
It fluttered slowly down to the earth, and blood was pouring from the wound.
When the eagle looked down, he found that the shaft of the arrow was feathered with one of its own plumes. “Alas!” it cried. “We often give our enemies the means for our own destruction.”
鹰和箭
　　
　　
　　　　●鹰在天空中飞翔，当他看见一只野兔时，就俯冲下来捕捉猎物。
　　
　　　　●突然，有人一箭射中了它。
　　
　　　　●鹰扇着翅膀降落在地面上。鲜血从伤口中喷涌而出。
　　
　　　　●它低头看到箭尾竟是由一根它自己的羽毛制成的，就痛苦地说：“唉，我们总是给敌人提供毁灭我们自己的工具！”
Once upon a time there was a miser. He hid his gold under a tree. Every week he used to dig it up.
One night a robber stole all the gold. When the miser came again, he found nothing but an empty hole.
He was surprised, and then burst into tears. All the neighbors gathered around him.
He told them how he used to come and visit his gold.
“Did you ever take any of it out?” asked one of them. “No,” he said, “I only came to look at it.” “Then come again and look at the hole,” said the neighbor, “it will be the same as looking at the gold. ”

守财奴
　　
　　●从前，有个守财奴将他的金块埋到一棵树下，每周他都去把他挖出来看看。
　　
　　　　●一天晚上，一个小偷挖走了所有的金块。 守财奴再来查看时，发现除了一个空洞什么都没有了。
　　
　　　　●守财奴便捶胸痛哭。哭声引来了邻居，他告诉他们这里原来有他的金块。
　　
　　　　●问明了原因后，一个邻居问：“你使用过这些金块吗？” “没用过，” 他说，“我只是时常来看看。”“那么，以后再来看这个洞，”邻居说，“就像以前有金块时一样。”
When the fox first saw the lion he was terribly frightened. He ran away, and hid himself in the woods.
The second time, however, he came near the lion. He stopped at a safe distance, and watched him pass by.
The third time they came near one another.
The fox went straight up to the lion, and stayed the whole day with him. He asked the lion how his family was, and when they would meet again.
They soon became good friends.

狐狸和狮子
　　
　　
　　　　●狐狸第一次见到狮子时非常害怕，赶紧藏到森林里。
　　
　　　　●当他第二次遇到狮子时，则站在附近看狮子经过。
　　
　　　　●第三次遇到狮子时，他竟有胆量，走了上去，与狮子进行十分亲切的谈话。
　　
　　　　●不久，他们变成了好朋友。
One morning a countryman went to his goose’s nest, and saw a yellow and glittering egg there.
He took the egg home. To his delight, he found that it was an egg of pure gold.
Every morning the same thing occurred, and he soon became rich by selling his eggs.
The countryman became more and more greedy. He wanted to get all the gold at once, so he killed the goose, when he looked inside, he found nothing in its body.

生金蛋的鹅
　　
　　
　　　　●一天早晨，一位农夫发现自家的鹅窝中有一只金灿灿的蛋。
　　
　　　　●他将蛋带回家，惊喜地发现这是一个金蛋。
　　
　　　　●此后，农夫每天都能得到一个金蛋。从此，他靠卖他的金蛋变得富有起来。
　　
　　　　●农夫变得越来越贪婪，他想一下子得到鹅肚子中所有的金蛋。于是他杀死了鹅，但是，鹅肚子中什么也没有。
Long ago, there was a big cat in the house. He caught many mice while they were stealing food.
One day the mice had a meeting to talk about the way to deal with their common enemy. Some said this, and some said that.
At last a young mouse got up, and said that he had a good idea.
“We could tie a bell around the neck of the cat. Then when he comes near, we can hear the sound of the bell, and run away.”
Everyone approved of this proposal, but an old wise mouse got up and said, “That is all very well, but who will tie the bell to the cat?” The mice looked at each other, but nobody spoke.

老鼠开会
　　
　　●从前，一所房子里面有一只大猫，他抓住了很多偷东西的老鼠。
　　●一天，老鼠在一起开会商量如何对付他们共同的敌人。会上大家各有各的主张，最后，一只小老鼠站出来说他有一个好主意。
　　●“我们可以在猫的脖子上绑一个铃铛，那么如果他来到附近，我们听到铃声就可以马上逃跑。”
　　●大家都赞同这个建议，这时一只聪明的老耗子站出来说：“这的确是个绝妙的主意，但是谁来给猫的脖子上绑铃铛呢？”老鼠们面面相觑，谁也没有说话。
The hare was once boasting of his speed before the other animals. “I have never been beaten,” he said, “when I run at full speed, no one is faster than me.”
The tortoise said quietly, “I will race with you.” “That is a good joke,” said the hare. “I could dance around you the whole way.”
The race started. The hare darted almost out of sight at once. He soon stopped and lay down to have a nap.
The tortoise plodded on and on. When the hare awoke from his nap, he saw the tortoise was near the finish line, and that he had lost the race.

龟兔赛跑
　　
　　
　　　　●兔子向动物们夸耀他的速度，“我从来没有失败过，”他说，“当我奔跑时，没有人比我更快。”
　　
　　　　●乌龟平静地说：“我要与你比赛。”“真是笑话，我可以边玩边和你赛跑。”兔子说。
　　
　　　　●比赛开始了，一眨眼工夫，兔子已经跑得不见了踪影，但是他觉得自己跑得快，对比赛掉以轻心，躺在路边睡着了。
　　
　　　　●乌龟慢腾腾地却持续不停地走，当兔子一觉醒来，他看到乌龟已经快到终点线了。兔子输了比赛。
During the Spring and Autumn period, Zhi Bo of the Spring and Autumn period, Zhi Bo of the State of Jin destroyed Fan’s family. Taking advantage of this occasion, a man went to Fan’s house and tried to steal something. As soon as the man entered the gate, he saw that there hung a big bell in the courtyard. The bell was cast in high-quality bronze, and was beautiful in design and shape. The thief was very glad, and decided to carry this beautiful bell back home. But no matter how hard he tried, he could not move the bell, because the bell was both big and heavy. He thought and thought again, and believed there was only one way to solve the problem. He had to break the bell to pieces before he was able to carry them back to his home separately. The thief found a big iron hammer, with which he struck the bell with all his might. The striking produced an enormous crashing sound, which might. The striking produced an enormous crashing sound, which made the thief terribly frightened. The thief got flurried, thinking that it was too bad to have produced the crashing sound which would himself on the bell, trying to muffle the crashing sound with his arms. But how could the crashing sound of the bell be muffled? The crashing sound still kept drifting melodiously to distant places. The more he listened to the sound, the more frightened hw became, He subconsciously shrank back, and covered his ears hard with his hands. Hey, the sound becomes fainter, inaudible, the thief became cheerful at once, wonderful! The sound of the bell can not be heard when the ears are covered. He immediately got some odd bits of cloth, made two rolls with them, and had his ears plugged with the two cloth rolls. He thought that in this way nobody could hear the sound of the bell. Feeling relieved, he began striking the bell, one blow after another. The resounding sound of the bell was heard at distant places, and finally people caught the thief by gracing the sound. This story comes from Knowing Yourself in The Annals by Buwei, written just before the Qin Dynasty ( 221 – 207 B.C. ) was founded. Allegedly, when Li Yuan, Emperor Gao Zu of the Tang Dynasty ( 618 – 907 ) , read this story, he felt it simply ridiculous and said, This is what is called plugging one’s ears while stealing a bell. Later, people have used the set phrase plugging one’s ears while stealing a bell to refer to he ignorance and foolishness of the person who deceives himself as well as others.
春秋时侯，晋国贵族智伯灭掉了范氏。有人趁机跑到范氏家里想偷点东西，看见院子里吊着一口大钟。钟是用上等青铜铸成的，造型和图案都很精美。小偷心里高兴极了，想把这口精美的大钟背回自已家去。可是钟又大又重，怎么也挪不动。他想来想去，只有一个办法，那就是把钟敲碎，然后再分别搬回家。 　　小偷找来一把大锤，拼命朝钟砸去，咣的一声巨响，把他吓了一大跳。小偷着慌，心想这下糟了，这种声不就等于是告诉人们我正在这里偷钟吗？他心里一急，身子一下子扑到了钟上，张开双臂想捂住钟声，可钟声又怎么捂得住呢！钟声依然悠悠地传向远方。他越听越害怕，不由自主地抽回双手，使劲捂住自已的耳朵。“咦，钟声变小了，听不见了！”小偷高兴起来，“妙极了！把耳朵捂住不就听不见钟声了吗！”他立刻找来两个布团，把耳朵塞住，心想，这下谁也听不见钟声了。于是就放手砸起钟来，一下一下，钟声响亮地传到很远的地方。人们听到钟声蜂拥而至把小偷捉住了。
A fox’s tail was caught in a trap. When he was trying to release himself, he lost his whole tail except the stump.
At first he was ashamed to see the other foxes because he had no tail, but he was determined to face his misfortune. He called all the foxes to a meeting.
When they had gotten together, the fox said that they should all do away with their tails.
He said that their tails were very inconvenient when they met with their enemies.
He did not talk about any advantages of the tail. “You are right,” said one of the older foxes, “but I don’t think you would advise us to do away with our tails if you hadn’t lost it yourself first.”
一只狐狸的尾巴被夹住了，当他试着脱身的时候，挣断了整条尾巴。
　　●开始时，他看到其他狐狸的时候感到很羞愧。后来，他决定面对这种不幸，就召集了所有的狐狸开会。
　　●大家到齐后，他极力劝说其他狐狸也割掉尾巴，说尾巴在遭遇敌人时很不方便，尾巴一点儿作用也没有。
　　●可他没有说有尾巴的任何好处。
　　●一只老狐狸站出来说：“如果你没有失去你的尾巴，你是不会来劝大家都割去尾巴的。 ”
寓意: 有些人为了自己的利益而劝告他人，我们不能轻信他们的意见。
This story took place more than 2000 years ago, in the Warring States period ( 475 – 221 B.C. ). Tradition has it that in the State of Song at that time there was a man who was famous for staying by a stump waiting for more hares to come and dash themselves against it.

He was a young farmer, and his family had been farmers for generations. Year after year and generation after generation, farmers used to sow in spring and harvest in autumn, beginning to work at sunrise and retiring at sunset. In good harvest years, they could only have enough food to eat and enough clothing to wear. If there was a famine due to crop failure, they had to go hungry.

This young farmer wanted to improve his life. But he was too lazy and too cowardly. Being lazy and cowardly over everything, he often dreamed of having unexpected blessings.

A miracle took place at last. One day in late autumn, when he was ploughing in the field, two groups of people were hunting nearby. As shoutings were rising one after another, scared hares were running desperately. Suddenly, a blind hare dashed itself headlong against the stump of a dead tree in his field and died.

That day, he ate his fill.

From that day on, he no longer went in for farming again. From morning till night, he stayed by that miraculous stump, waiting for miracles to take place again.

This story comes from “The Five Vermin” in The Works of Han Feizi. Later generations often use the set phrase “staying by a stump waiting for more hares to come and dash themselves against it” to show grusting to chance and windfalls or dreaming to reap without sowing. It is also used to show adhering to narrow experiences and not being able to be flexible.
相传在战国时代宋国，有一个农民，日出而作，日入而息．遇到好年景，也不过刚刚吃饱穿暖；一遇灾荒，可就要忍饥挨饿了．他想改善生活，但他太懒，胆子又特小，干什么都是又懒又怕，总想碰到送上门来的意外之财。

　　奇迹终于发生了。深秋的一天，他正在田里耕地，周围有人在打猎。吆喝之声四处起伏，受惊的小野兽没命的奔跑。突然， 有一只兔子，不偏不倚，一头撞死在他田边的树根上。

　　当天，他美美地饱餐了一顿。

　　从此，他便不再种地。一天到晚，守着那神奇的树根，等着奇迹的出现。

　　成语“守株待兔”，比喻亡想不劳而得，或死守狭隘的经验，不知变通。

Once upon a time, an old farmer planted a plot of rice. Everyday he went to the field to watch the seedlings grow. He saw the young shoots break through the soil and grow taller each day. But still, he thought they were growing too slowly. He got impatient with the young plants. “How could the plants grow faster?”

He tossed in bed during the night and could not sleep. Suddenly he hit upon an idea. He had an idea not wait for daybreak. He jumped out of the bed and dashed to the field. By the moonlight, he began working on the rice seedlings. One by one, he pulled up the young plants by half an inch. When he finished pulling, it was already morning. Straightening his back, he said to himself, “What a wonderful idea! Look, how much taller the plants have grown one night!”

With great satisfaction, he went back home. He told his son what he had done in a triumphant tone. His son was shocked. Now the sun had risen. The young man was heart-broken to see all the pulled-up young plants dying.

People now use “Ba Miao Zhu Zhang” to describe the behavior of those who are too eager to get something done only to make it worse. The idiom is a bit like the English proverb “Haste makes waste” – to spoil things by excessive enthusiasm.
拨苗助长

从前，有个农夫，种了稻苗后，便希望能早早收成。每天他到稻田时，发觉那些稻苗长得非常慢。

他等得不耐烦，心想：“怎么样才能使稻苗长得高，长很快呢?

想了又想，他终了想到一个“最佳方法”，就是将稻苗拨高几分。

经过一番辛劳后，他满意地扛锄头回家休息。心想：明天稻苗长得一定更高了。

隔天早晨．一早起身，他迫不及待地起去稻田看他的“成果”。

哪知，他跑到稻田时，却看到所有的稻苗都枯萎了。
Near China’s northern borders lived a man well versed in the practices of Taoism. His horse, for no reason at all, got into the territory of the northern tribes. Everyone commiserated with him.
“Perhaps this will soon turn out to be a blessing,” said his father.
After a few months, his animal came back, leading a fine horse from the north. Everyone congratulated him.
“Perhaps this will soon turn out to be a cause of misfortune,” said his father.
Since he was well-off and kept good horses his son became fond of riding and eventually broke his thigh bone falling from a horse. Everyone commiserated with him.
“Perhaps this will soon turn out to be a blessing,” said his father.
One year later, the northern tribes started a big invasion of the border regions. All able-bodied young men took up arms and fought against the invaders, and as a result, around the border nine out of ten men died. This man’s son did not join in the fighting because he was crippled and so both the boy and his father survived.
战国时期，靠近北部边城，住着一个老人，名叫塞翁。塞翁养了许多马，一天，他的马群中忽然有一匹走失了。邻居们听说这件事，跑来安慰，劝他不必太着急，年龄大了，多注意身体。塞翁见有人劝慰，笑了笑说：“丢了一匹马损失不大，没准会带来什么福气呢。”
　　邻居听了塞翁的话，心里觉得很好笑。马丢了，明明是件坏事，他却认为也许是好事，显然是自我安慰而已。过了几天，丢失的马不仅自动返回家，还带回一匹匈奴的骏马。
　　邻居听说了，对塞翁的预见非常佩服，向塞翁道贺说：“还是您有远见，马不仅没有丢，还带回一匹好马，真是福气呀。”
　　塞翁听了邻人的祝贺，反而一点高兴的样子都没有，忧虑地说：“白白得了一匹好马，不一定是什么福气，也许惹出什么麻烦来。”
　　邻居们以为他故作姿态纯属老年人的狡猾。心里明明高兴，有意不说出来。
　　塞翁有个独生子，非常喜欢骑马。他发现带回来的那匹马顾盼生姿，身长蹄大，嘶鸣嘹亮，膘悍神骏，一看就知道是匹好马。他每天都骑马出游，心中洋洋得意。
　　一天，他高兴得有些过火，打马飞奔，一个趔趄，从马背上跌下来，摔断了腿。邻居听说，纷纷来慰问。
　　塞翁说：“没什么，腿摔断了却保住性命，或许是福气呢。”邻居们觉得他又在胡言乱语。他们想不出，摔断腿会带来什么福气。
　　不久，匈奴兵大举入侵，青年人被应征入伍，塞翁的儿子因为摔断了腿，不能去当兵。入伍的青年都战死了，唯有塞翁的儿子保全了性命。
During the Spring and Autumn period ( 770 – 476BC ) , the State of Wu launched an attack against the State of Yue. The King of Wu was seriously wounded and soon died. His son Fu Chai became the new King. Fu was determined to get revenge. He drilled his army rigidly until it was a perfect fighting force. Three years later, he led his army against the State of Yue and caught its king Gou Jian. Fu took him to the State of Wu.

In order to avenge his father’s death, Fu let him live in a shabby stone house by his father’s tomb and ordered him to raise horses for him. Gou pretended to be loyal to Fu but he never forgot his humiliation. Many years later, he was set free. Gou secretly accumulated a military force after he went back to his own state. In order to make himself tougher he slept on firewood and ate a gall-bladder before having dinner and going to bed every night. At the same time he administered his state carefully, developing agriculture and educating the people. After a few years, his country became strong. Then Gou seized a favorable opportunity to wipe out the State of Wu.

Later, people use it to describe one who endures self-imposed hardships to strengthen one’s resolve to realize one’s ambition.
A man of the state of Chu had a spear and a shield for sale. He was loud in praises of his shield.
“My shield is so strong that nothing can pierce it through.”
He also sang praises of his spear.
“My spear is so strong that it can pierce through anything.”
“What would happen,” he was asked, “if your spear is used to pierce your shield?”
It is impossible for an impenetrable shield to coexist with a spear that finds nothing impenetrable.
这个成语出自《韩非子•难一》。
　　古时候，矛和盾都是作战用的武器。矛用来刺杀敌人，盾则用来保护身体，以免被对方的矛刺中。
　　传说很久以前，楚国有个卖兵器的人，在市场上卖矛和盾。为了让人家愿意买他的货，他先举起盾向人们夸口道：“你们看，我的盾是世上最坚固的盾，任何锋利的东西都不能刺穿它。”接着又举起他的矛，向人吹嘘说：“你们再看看我的矛，它锋利无比，无坚不摧，无论多么坚硬的盾，都挡不住它，一刺就穿！”
　　围观的人听了他的话都觉得很好笑，人群中有人问道：“依你的说法，你的矛无论怎样坚硬的盾都能刺穿，而你的盾又是无论多么锋利的矛也不能把它刺穿。那就拿你的矛来刺你的盾吧，看看结果怎么样？”
　　卖兵器的人听了张口结舌，无从回答，只好拿着矛和盾走了。
　　“自相矛盾”就是由这个故事演变而来的。现在人们用它来比喻做事、说话前后自相抵触。
A man from the state of Chu was crossing a river. In the boat, his sword fell into the water. Immediately he made a mark on the boat.
“This is where my sword fell off,” he said.
When the boat stopped moving, he went into the water to look for his sword at the place where he had marked the boat.
The boat had moved but the sword had not. Is this not a very foolish way to look for a sword?
战国时，楚国有个人坐船渡江。船到江心，他一不小心。把随身携带的一把宝剑掉落江中。他马上掏出一把小刀，在船舷上刻上一个记号，说：“这是我宝剑落水的地方，所以我要刻上一个记号。”

　　船靠岸后，那楚人立即从船上刻记号的地方跳下水去捞取掉落的宝剑。捞了半天，仍不见宝剑的影子。其实他又怎么找得到宝剑呢？船继续行驶，而宝剑却不会再移动。像他这样去找剑，真是太愚蠢可笑了。