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Citations from the Book Role Model to the World by Yuan Cai

2007-07-19

It became the first book to be a compulsory read at many private schools. Intellects throughout history have thought highly of the book. I am citing a part of its contents here to give readers a flavour of the divine culture of China, in which people respect heaven and comply with their fate, and emphasize respect and morality. This way we can understand the standard that ancient people have lived by.

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Stories from Ancient China: Emperor Tang Taizong's Virtuous Sparing

2007-07-17

The main ingredient was the fat from mutton but the process of obtaining it was tricky because it was not supposed to congeal. The emperor asked an imperial official in charge of food at Guanglu Temple on how to obtain the fat. The official was not sure and sought advice from another official by the name of Hao Chujun. Hao Chujun thought about it and remembered that the Emperor could not take an animals life. So he came up with a plan.

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Stories from Ancient China: A Place of Idyllic Beauty

2007-07-13

A fisherman lived in Wu Lin District of Wuhan. One day, he paddled a boat along a river. The boat was floating and floating. He did not know how far and how long he had been floating, until all of a sudden, he found himself going into a paradise full of peach blossoms. Grasslands were situated on both banks of the river, where the fresh green grass was set off by the luxuriant peach blossoms.

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Poem: Teaching

2007-07-10

Countless hardships, one after the next,Diligently studying the texts,Bringing me closer to the right fruit.

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Stories from Ancient China: Four Stories About Tolerance and Forgiveness

2007-07-09

Tang Suei replied: "When someone hates me, this is something I must know. If I owe someone, then I must try to repay him. If someone misunderstands me, then I should kindly clarify myself. I should not harbor hatred toward others, and I must be forgiving in order to dissolve that in my heart. But in the process of dissolving it, I must avoid bringing frustration and anxiety to others."

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Watermelon - The Melon King

2007-07-08

The watermelon is not only a popular fruit in summer, its juice and skin can also be used as medicines. The Ben Cao Gang Mu says that the watermelon "can relieve thirst and heat, cure a dry and painful throat, help urination, is good for constipation and resolves alcoholism". Traditional Chinese medicine calls the watermelon skin the jade cloth with a sweet taste and cold nature, which can cure a swollen throat and apotheosis. The root and leaves of the watermelon can be used to treat diarrhea and intestinal inflammation.

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Stories from Ancient China: Nothing Gained and Nothing Lost

2007-07-05

These two men held different attitudes towards the gifts they received. Li Shiheng took them lightly and didn't pay much attention to them, and he lost nothing. Meanwhile Yu Ying took great care of his possessions and gained nothing.

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Stories from Ancient China: Great Wisdom

2007-07-02

Everyone likes to be with superior people and it is easy to be sincere with them. However, it is much harder to deal with inferior people. The mentality of ordinary people is that if you are nice to me, then I'll be nice to you; if you are not nice to me, why should I be nice to you? In that way, when we see that others are having a problem, we point it out bluntly. As a consequence, this will make the inferior man angry and look for the opportunity to retaliate.

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Stories from Ancient China: A King and His Imperial Subjects

2007-06-29

During the Spring and Autumn Period, Qi Jing Gong, King of the Qi State, went sightseeing up on Niu Mountain. When Qi Gong looked to the North, he saw the capitol and the palace. He sighted and said, "How beautiful my kingdom is! The trees and vegetation are so lush! I am getting older, day by day, but what can I do? If people could live forever, that would really be nice!" His two imperial officials, Shi Kong and Liang Qiu, also shed tears...

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Poem: Re-Creation

2007-06-28

More wonderful than everThe cosmos bathes in splendourRe-Creation willedVows of old fulfilled

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Sories from Ancient China: Respect and Honor Thy Teacher

2007-06-25

Later Liu Zhuang was enthroned as Emperor Mingdi. Even as an emperor, he still treated his teacher, Huan Rong, with respect and honor. At 80, Huan Rong felt he was too old and sought to resign from his official duty, but Emperor Mingdi did not grant the request and instead bestowed more rewards upon him.

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Stories from Ancient China: The Dragon Girl

2007-06-23

The Emperor had a dream: a beautiful woman wearing a high chignon and a gown with loose sleeves went to the bedroom and bowed: "I am the dragon girl in Ling Bo Pond and have gained merit by guarding the dragon palace. Since the Emperor is proficient in music, could you please give a composition to our dragon family?" So the Emperor composed the Tune of Dancing on Water with Hu Qin. When he woke up, he was still able to remember the tune and practiced the music with the imperial musicians.

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Poem: China's Song of Spring

2007-06-22

Poisoned mindsblinding skiesa brutal reignand storm still raging.Clouded eyesparading smilesa "party's" facadeand chapter soon fading.

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Stories from Ancient China: The Stolen Chicken

2007-06-21

When he returned to this world, he asked his wife whether she had once stolen a chicken from her neighbour. His wife denied it in the beginning. When he told his wife what he had seen in the nether world, she admitted it. She explained that because the chicken ate the grain she had spread outside to dry she accidentally killed it. She was afraid of being rebuked by her neighbour so she hid the chicken to conceal what she had done.

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Stories from Ancient China: Be Generous and Forgiving

2007-06-20

Wei Ba, a high ranking official during the Eastern Han Dynasty of ancient China and came from a place called Juyang. He was born into a family that was well educated and knew right from wrong. For generations, there were many high ranking officials in his family. In dealing with people, Wei Ba followed one simply principle: Be generous and forgiving.

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