Declination to Throne (5)
讓王(五)
1 Duke Ai of Lu was eager to seek talents. When he heard that Yan He was a hard-won potential minister candidate, he sent his trusted envoy with munificent gifts to meet him and invited him to work for the country.
魯哀公求才若渴，當他聽說顏闔是位難得的宰相人才時，他派親信持厚禮到顏闔那兒，邀請他為朝廷出力。
魯君聞顏闔得道之人也，使人以幣先焉。
2 The envoy read up the address and found Yan He’s house which was located in a remote and poor village. The envoy said to himself, “My duke must make a mistake. In this shabby house, is it possible to have a guy who is worthy of being invited gingerly with munificent presents to be in the vital post?”
哀公的使者按照地址在一個窮鄉辟野的小村落裡，找到了顏闔的家。使者心想：「魯王有沒搞錯啊！在這樣破舊的房子裡，怎麼會有人值得魯王這麼慎重，以厚禮邀其出任要職呢？」
3 When he arrived, Yan He in sackcloth was grazing oxen outdoor. The envoy asked, “Is this Yan He’s house?”
使者到達時，顏闔穿著一件粗布衣服，正在門外餵牛。使者問他：「這是顏闔家嗎？」
顏闔守陋閭，苴布之衣而自飯牛。魯君之使者至，顏闔自對之。使者曰：「此顏闔之家與？」
4 Taking a look at the sturdy envoy in flamboyant clothes, he replied, “Yes. It is.” The envoy told him his purpose and presented the gifts. After forwarding the duke’s invitation, he was eager to leave since he didn’t want to stay at the shabby and stinking lane.
顏闔看了看衣衫華麗，虎背熊腰的使者。他說：「沒錯這是顏闔家。」使者報明來意，將禮物送上，並將魯哀公的意思傳達後，就想離開。在這個臭氣沖天的陋巷內，他是一分鐘也不想多待。
顏闔對曰：「此闔之家也。」
5 Yan He didn’t accept the gift. He told the envoy, “Hey! You should have made a mistake. Look at me, am I the person who is qualified to receive so precious gifts? Not to mention the important post. You had better go back and clarify again. I am afraid that you make a mistake and will be blamed by your boss.”
顏闔沒有接下禮物。他對使者說：「喂！你有沒搞錯啊！你看我這樣子像是收這麼貴重禮物的人嗎？更不要說出任要職了。我看你還是回去問清楚再來吧！我怕你送錯了禮，受上面的指責。」
使者致幣，顏闔對曰：「恐聽謬而遺使者罪，不若審之。」
6 The envoy also feeling curious at first, after Yan He’s reminding, he doubted even further. He thought, “Ok! Let’s me return to clarify the truth. It is nothing to lost, but come again. If I mistook to give the precious presents to a wrong person, I could not take upon myself the consequence and could not afford to pay for.”
使者心裡本來就覺得奇怪，經顏闔這麼一提醒，那就更加深了他的疑慮。他心想：「這樣也好！等我回去問清楚了再來，最多是多跑一趟，禮送錯了，我可擔當不起，也賠不起。」
7 So, the envoy came back to ask and knew that the stinking old guy was truly the man he suppose to looking for. When he returned to the house, he found Yan He and his family gone and nobody knew where they went.
使者回去問清楚後，知道就是那個臭老頭。可是，再回到原址時，顏闔已經舉家遷離，不知去向矣！
使者還，反審之，復來求之，則不得已。
8 Common scholars usually regard themselves aloof and lofty—they declare that they don’t work for salary. However, when they face the opportunity for promotion and fortune, they jump at it faster than anyone and are afraid of losing it. Yan He, who practiced the aloof and the lofty himself and was not lured by fortune and position, was the admirable man of wisdom.
一般讀書人，平時都自命清高，什麼不願為五斗米折腰。可是，一旦面臨升官發財的機會，就跑的比誰都快; 明爭暗鬥，唯恐失之交臂。像顏闔這樣身體力行，不為富貴所動，才是令人佩服的智者。
故若顏闔者，真惡富貴也。
9 Men of practice should understand that the purposes of practice are to improve self-nature, to cultivate a sound, tranquil and peaceful heart and so, to open the great wisdom. Only when they have extra energy and time out of practice, they therefore, will consider working for nation and doing public works. So to speak, governance for the King is an unimportant work while cultivation of morality and nature is the most important course instead.
修行的人一定要明白，修行的主要目的是在提昇自性，是在培養一顆沉穩，安寧，祥和的心，以期大智慧的開啟。行有餘力，才會出來為國家社會做點事，再有空閒才考慮從政，去管理眾人之事。所以，我們也可以說，「帝王之功只是修行人修煉之餘的閒事，修身養性才是最重要的課題」。
故曰：道之真以治身，其緒餘以為國家，其土苴以治天下。
10 The common scholars in society take risk for winning the fame, interest, honor, wealth and desire that belong to the objective environment. In order to attain these, they are tired out as the saying ‘Spare no effort in pursuit until death.’ Don’t you think that they are very pitiful?
社會上一般的知識份子，他們為了客觀環境的名利、榮譽、財富、慾望等置自身於險境。為了這些身外之物，累得筋疲力盡。所謂「鞠躬盡瘁，死而後已」，你想這些人是不是很可憐呢？
由此觀之，帝王之功，聖人之餘事也，非所以完身養生也。今世俗之君子，多危身棄生以殉物，豈不悲哉！
11 Before action, the men of perfect practice will appraise the influence of a thing on practice and its meaning. Common people, however, don’t think so. They shoot the very far and small sparrow with the bullet of a precious pearl. If people doing that way, we might think that those guys are idiots. However, when they spend their life in pursuing the external things, we don’t think they are stupid. Don’t we evaluate that the life is more precious than the pearl?
修行完備的人他們在行動前，必先評估這件事對修行有什麼影響？以及做這件事有什麼意義？一般世俗凡人則不這麼想，他們以珍貴的明珠為子彈，去打那千尺之外的小麻雀。如果有人這麼做，我們一定認為那個人是白癡，是笨蛋。可是當人們以自己寶貴的生命，虛耗在那些身外之物上，我們又不覺得他們笨，他們傻了。難道我們不認為，生命比明珠更要寶貴嗎？
凡聖人之動作也，必察其所以之與其所以為。今且有人於此，以隨侯之珠，彈千仞之雀，世必笑之。是何也？則其所用者重而所要者輕也。夫生者，豈特隨侯之重哉！