Can birds foresee good and bad luck? (Lesson 1)

The following passage comes from LESSON ONE in the text "Introduction to Literary Chinese," by J. Brandt. If you click on the link, the lesson will explain the vocabulary and grammar of the passage. Why would anyone turn down a free lesson?

吉(길)凶(흉)

有(유)鴉(아)集(집)庭(정)樹(수). 引(인)頸(경)而(이)鳴(명). 兒(아)叱(질)之(지). 父(부)曰.(왈) 是(시)何(하)害(해). 兒(아)曰(왈) 常(상)聞(문)人(인)言(언). 鵲(작)鳴(명)吉(길). 鴉(아)鳴(명)凶(흉). 今(금)鳴(명)者(자)鴉(아)也(야). 故(고)叱(질)之(지). 父(부)曰.(왈) 人(인)之(지)智(지)識(식)遠(원)勝(승)於(어)鳥(조). 尙(상)不(불)能(능)預(예)知(지)吉(길)凶(흉). 而(이)況(황)鳥(조)乎(호).
 

There are crows gathered in a garden tree. They stretch out their necks and caw. When a child hoots at them, his father asks, "How are they harmful?"  

The child says, "I have always heard people say that if a magpie cries, it is a good omen, but if a crow cries, it is a bad omen. Now those that are crying are crows. Therefore, I hoot at them."  

The father says, "Man's knowledge and experience are much higher than that of birds. Still, he cannot foresee good and bad luck, much less can birds."

Can I study Literary Chinese online for free?

Yes. You can learn Literary Chinese from an online book entitled, "Introduction to Literary Chinese," by J. Brandt. You can choose to read it online or to download it in a variety of file formats, including Kindle.

What are the Korean lyrics for this Japanese song?

Who was Sama Gwang (司馬光)?

Sama Gwang (司馬光) was a historian, scholar, and high chancellor during  the Song Dynasty (960 - 1279). The Chinese pronunciation of his name is Sima Guang. Sama (司馬) was his 2-character family name, and Gwang (光) was his given name. You can read more about Sama Gwang HERE.

The following passage describes something Sama Gwang did as a child that made people realize he was no ordinary child.

司(사)馬(마)光(광)幼(유) 與(여)群(군)兒(아)戲(희) 一(일)兒(아)墜(추)大(대)水(수)甕(옹)中(중)

已(이)沒(몰) 群(군)兒(아)驚(경)走(주) 不(불)能(능)救(구)光(광)取(취)石(석)破(파)甕(옹)

兒(아)得(득)出(출) 人(인)知(지)其(기)智(지)不(불)凡(범).

 

When Sama Gwang (司馬光) was a child (幼), he, with (與) a group of (群) children (兒), was playing (戲) when one (一) child (兒) fell (墜) into (中) a big (大) water (水) jar (甕) and had already (已) sunk below the surface (沒). The group (群) of children (兒) were afraid (驚) and ran away (走), so they could not (不能) save (救) him. Gwang (光) picked up (取) a rock (石) and broke (破) the jar (甕) so the child (兒) could (得) get out (出). People (人) realized (知) his (其) wisdom (智) was not (不) ordinary (凡).

"The Loss of Dignity," by Gerry Bevers

When a man has lost his dignity
and given up on sobriety,
he tends to lose his ability

to function in our society.

He searches for anonymity
in places of ignobility,
hiding from the cruel reality
of society's hostility.

How should the 就 in 就必有德 be translated?

I have been translating the old Korean text "Sa Ja So Hak" (四字小學 - 사자소학), which was once used to teach Chinese writing (漢文) to Korean children, when I came upon the following:

近(근)墨(묵)者(자)黑(흑)	People (者) near (近) ink sticks (墨) become black (黑).
近(근)朱(주)者(자)赤(적)	People (者) near (近) cinnabar (朱) become red (赤).
居(거)必(필)擇(택)隣(린)	When one takes up residence (居), one must (必) select (擇) neighbors (隣).
就(취)必(필)有(유)德(덕)	That is (就), they must (必) have (有) virtue (德).

Notice that I translated the 就 (취) in the final sentence as "that is" (곧), which is one of the meanings of the character. However, Koreans have translated the 就 (취) in this sentence as 나아가다, which means "to go forward" or "to proceed to." That is also a meaning of the character, but it does not really make sense in the sentence here. Here is how Koreans translate the Chinese:

 나아갈 때엔 반드시 덕 있는 사람에게 가라

When you approach, be sure to go to people of virtue.

I think my translation of 就 (취) is correct. It fact,  就 seems to be a synonym of the character 卽 (즉), which also means 곧 and 나아가다.

In China, they write "that is" as 就是 (취시) or 卽 (즉), which is more evidence that 就 should be translated as "that is" in the above case.

UPDATE: I now think the original Korean translation was correct since the Chinese philosopher Sunja (荀子 - 순자), which the Chinese pronounce as Xun Zi, said something very similar, as is written in the text "Encouraging Learning" (勸學 - 권학).

故(고)君(군)子(자)居(거)必(필)擇(택)鄉(향)，遊(유)必(필)就(취)士(사)

所(소)以(이)防(방)邪(사)辟(벽)而(이)近(근)中(중)正(정)也(야).

Therefore (故), when a gentleman (君子) takes up residence (居), he must (必) carefully select (擇) the village (鄉), and when he associates (遊), he must (必) approach (就) educated men (士). In this way (所以), he guards against (防) wickedness (邪) and unfairness (辟) and (而) is nearer to (近) balance (中) and correctness (正).

The 也 (야) character at the end of the above passage marks the end of the sentence, acting as a kind of period.

"Faraway," by Gerry Bevers

Sometimes I wanna go faraway,
Not to crowded cities like LA.
But to a place with a quiet, blue bay,
palm trees, sand, and a shady cafe.

Start my mornings with a fish filet,
Coconut juice and a nice fruit tray.
Discuss the politics of the day
Meet and greet and exchange hearsay.

If a cute, young waitress comes my way,
I'll smile and order a fruit frappe.
If she smiles back, winks, then says, "Okay,"
I'll wish I weren't so old and grey.

"My Philosophy" by Gerry Bevers

My Philosophy

 

My goals are truth and fairness.
My motivators ignorance and deceit.
My methods are honesty and directness.
My motto is never retreat.

 

My agenda is set by the brazenness
Of those who lie through their teeth.
My resolve is tireless pursuit–unless,
I’m tired or want to eat.

Are Fish More Caring than Birds?

I have been studying Classical Chinese using Paul Rouzer’s book, “A New Practical Primer of Literary Chinese.” The book is good because Mr. Rouzer explains the grammar very well, but one problem I have with the book is that it is big and unwieldy. It is not something you would want to carry with you on a bus or subway.

Another thing I like about the book is the Translation Exercises from Chinese to English and English to Chinese. One of the reasons I like them is that many of the sentences are unitentionally comical. Here are a few examples from today’s lesson:

1) The bird raised its tongue and laughed. The fish was in the water and did not hear.
鳥擧舌而笑. 魚在水而不聞

2) The father wants to leave the house and drink in a tall tree.
其父欲去家而飮於高樹

3) Water that is shallow is not as good as trees that are tall.
水之淺者不如樹之高者

4) The bird roosted in a lofty tree for its own sake, whereas the fish abandoned shallow water for the sake of its children.
鳥爲己宿高樹, 而魚爲其子去淺水

I think Mr. Rouser may have mistranslated Sentence #4. Instead, I think it should be translated as follows:

“Birds roost in tall trees for their own sake, but fish go to shallow water for the sake of their offspring.”

去(거) can mean “to go," “to leave” or “to abandon.” Mr. Rouzer translated 去(거) as “abandoned,” but I think it should be translated as “go to.”

Birds build their nests in tall trees because it is safer for them and their offspring, but fish lay their eggs in shallow water, possibly to prevent their eggs from being eaten by big fish. However, by going to shallow water to lay its eggs, a big mother fish risks being caught by an animal or becoming stranded in the shallow water. Therefore, I think the “proverb” meant to say that a fish risks its life for its offspring, but a bird does not.