第九辑 圣贤之音 - 文化与道德的乐章 Volume 9: Culture & Virtue - Echoes of the Sage
今天，我们从中小学到大学的教育，更多的是在教知识、技术、专业，唯独缺少文化。我们培养了很多精致的利己主义者，很多高学历的野蛮人，他们是冷冰冰的。
Today, our education system, from primary school to university, focuses more on imparting knowledge, skills, and specialized expertise, but it lacks a focus on culture. As a result, we have produced many sophisticated egoists and highly educated barbarians who are cold and indifferent.
有句很有名的话：知识就是力量。中国人耳熟能详，而且对它很是认同。从历史上看，1840年以后，中国面对西方的科学技术，不堪一击，于是得出一个结论：落后就要挨打。这个落后，就是指科学技术的落后。
There is a famous saying: "Knowledge is power." It is well-known among the Chinese people, and they strongly identify with it. Looking back at history, after 1840, China faced the scientific and technological advancements of the West and proved vulnerable. As a result, a conclusion was drawn: "Being backward leads to being beaten." This backwardness referred specifically to the backwardness in science and technology.
从现实上看，如果今天我们不能用知识很好地答出一份标准化试卷，可能就读不了好大学、好专业，找不到好工作，以更好地满足自己物质的欲望。
From a practical perspective, if we cannot perform well in a standardized test with our knowledge today, we may not be able to get into a good university or pursue a desirable major, which can potentially hinder us from finding a good job and fulfilling our material desires more effectively.
无论从历史经验还是现实压力，我们都知道知识太重要了。但是我今天要对大家讲的是，尽管知识确实重要，但知识也有局限性。
Regardless of historical experience or present pressures, we all know how crucial knowledge is. However, today, I want to talk to you about the limitations of knowledge, despite its undeniable significance.
01 这根胡萝卜把他一辈子都拴死了
01 This carrot has tied him down his whole life
首先，知识是无限的。什么叫知识？知识是对这个世界所有事实的认知。既然世界是无限的，那么知识也是无限的，可悲剧的是人生是有限的。庄子就说过：“吾生也有涯，而知也无涯；以有涯随无涯，殆矣。”世界是无限的，我们的生命是有限的，用有限的生命去追求无限世界所包含的无限知识，那我们的人生就会废掉。
Firstly, knowledge is infinite. What is knowledge? It is the understanding of all the facts in this world. Since the world is boundless, knowledge is also boundless. The tragic aspect is that our lives are finite. Chuang Tzu once said, "My life has its limit, while knowledge has no limit; with a limited life to pursue limitless knowledge, it will lead to exhaustion." The world is boundless, and our lives are limited. If we use our limited lives to pursue the infinite knowledge contained within the boundless world, our life will be wasted.
当知识不成体系时，它是无用的，只是碎片。举个例子，曾有一家报社搞国学知识竞赛，找了一批专家出了一套国学题目。题目出完后，编辑想让我审一下。我看了5分钟，对它的判断就是6个字：无趣、无聊、无用。
When knowledge is not systematic, it is useless, simply a collection of fragments. For example, there was a newspaper that organized a competition on traditional Chinese culture knowledge. They invited a group of experts to create a set of questions on traditional Chinese culture. After the questions were completed, the editor asked me to review them. After looking at it for 5 minutes, my judgment was summarized in six words: uninteresting, boring, and useless.
比如有一道题目问：在中国历史上哪一个时代的宦官是可以娶妻的？这是非常严肃的知识。如果你专门研究宦官，把他们的生存状况、心理状态以及他们在中国历史上的地位、影响、作用都搞明白，你将会成为一名了不起的专家。可是假如你的主要精力不在此，这样的知识碎片，对你一点用处都没有。
For example, there was a question asking: "During which period in Chinese history were eunuchs allowed to marry?" This is a very serious piece of knowledge. If you specialize in studying eunuchs and thoroughly understand their living conditions, psychological states, as well as their positions, influence, and roles in Chinese history, you will become an extraordinary expert. However, if your main focus is not on this topic, such fragments of knowledge will be of no use to you.
还有一道题目：胡萝卜是什么时候传入中国的？如果你能把它变成系统的知识进行分析研究，它是有意义的。但是假如一个人并没有这样的意愿和目标，他只知道胡萝卜是什么时候传入中国的，这样的知识对他不仅没用，还可能产生负面影响。
There was another question: When was the carrot introduced to China? If you can transform it into systematic knowledge for analysis and research, it becomes meaningful. However, if someone lacks the willingness and purpose to do so and is only concerned with knowing when the carrot was introduced to China, such knowledge is not only useless to them but may also have a negative impact.
因为他知道大多数人都不知道答案，心里一阵窃喜，觉得自己是世界上最牛的人，并且他特别想让别人知道这一点。于是，他天天等着别人提问，以期收获别人的敬佩。为了等到这一天，他可能每次和朋友吃饭的时候都点胡萝卜，别人吃得很香，他却只等着一个问题。
Because he knew that most people didn't know the answer, he felt a sense of secret delight in his heart, considering himself the most knowledgeable person in the world. He especially wanted others to know this about him. As a result, he waited eagerly every day for someone to ask, hoping to gain admiration from others. To achieve this, he might order carrots every time he dined with friends. While others enjoyed their meals, he patiently waited for that one question.
这根胡萝卜把他一辈子都拴死了。
This carrot tied him down for his entire life.
02 你们的知识总量都超过孔子
02 Your total amount of knowledge surpasses that of Confucius
德国哲学家尼采写过一篇文章叫《我为什么这么聪明》。他的结论就一句话：我之所以这么聪明，是因为我从来不在不必要的事情上浪费精力。
The German philosopher Nietzsche wrote an article titled "Why I Am So Clever." His conclusion can be summarized in one sentence: "The reason I am so clever is that I never waste my energy on unnecessary things."
有一次我坐出租车，司机正在收听一档知识竞赛节目。节目中，主持人放了5个音乐片断，每个片断几秒钟，随后提问：这5个音乐片断，有2个片断属于同一首歌，你们谁知道？一个小伙子抢答说他知道，并且回答正确。
Once, I was in a taxi, and the driver was listening to a knowledge quiz program. In the program, the host played five music clips, each lasting a few seconds, and then asked, "Out of these five music clips, two of them belong to the same song. Who knows which ones?" A young man eagerly responded that he knew and answered correctly.
紧接着第二个问题是：其中有2首歌出自同一张音乐专辑，你知道吗？这时我紧张了，我怕他知道。他不知道，说明他还是正常人，如果他知道，他这一辈子可能就废了。但是没想到他真知道。这时我让司机把收音机关掉。司机吓一跳，问为什么？我说：“它在侮辱我们的智商，并且在误导我们生命的流向。”
Following that, the second question was: "Do you know which two songs are from the same music album?" At this point, I became anxious, fearing that he might know the answer. If he didn't know, it would mean he was just an ordinary person. But if he did, it could ruin his life. However, unexpectedly, he knew the answer. At that moment, I asked the driver to turn off the radio. The driver was surprised and asked why. I said, "It's insulting our intelligence and misleading the direction of our lives."
这就叫无用的知识，生活中有太多这样无用的知识。比如，很多人关心某个明星喜欢的颜色是什么，星座是什么，结了几次婚，又离了几次婚。当一个人把精力花在这些地方时，他可能获得了知识，并且在饭桌上能与人聊天，但他会变得特别琐碎。
This is what we call useless knowledge, and there is too much of such useless knowledge in life. For example, many people are concerned about the favorite color of a certain celebrity, their zodiac sign, how many times they got married, and how many times they got divorced. When a person invests their energy in these areas, they may acquire knowledge and be able to chat with others at the dinner table, but they will become particularly trivial.
我们的生命本来就不可能占有无限的知识。更可悲的是，无聊的知识会让人生变得无聊，琐碎的知识会让人格变得琐碎，甚至猥琐。
Our lives were never meant to possess infinite knowledge. What's even more lamentable is that trivial knowledge can make life become dull, and fragmented knowledge can erode one's character, even leading to pettiness.
孔子的学生子夏早就说：“虽小道，必有可观者焉”，但是“致远恐泥，是以君子不为也”。即使是胡萝卜什么时候传入中国的这样的知识，你可以拿来吹吹牛，但如果你老是把认知集中在这种信息上，你的一生肯定不会有什么成就。你用琐碎的知识把人生变成了碎片，所以君子不为。
Confucius' student, Zixia, said long time ago, "Even in a small path, there must be something worth observing," but he also warned, "Being absorbed in trivial matters can lead to stagnation; hence, a true gentleman does not engage in them." Even if it's just knowledge like when carrots were introduced to China, you can use it to brag yourself, but if you consistently focus your cognition on such information, your life will surely lack achievements. By filling your life with trivial knowledge, you turn it into fragments, and that is why a true gentleman does not indulge in them.
荀子曾提出过对知识的鉴别。
Xunzi once proposed a discernment of knowledge.
他说有些知识是无聊的、无用的、无趣的，这样的知识荀子有一个判断，叫“不知，无害为君子；知之，无损为小人。”你知道了这样的知识，并不能够因此成为君子，你不知道这个知识也不会因此成为小人。
He said that some knowledge is dull, useless, and uninteresting. Xunzi made a judgment on such knowledge, saying, "Not knowing it does not prevent one from becoming a noble person; knowing it, one could still be a petty person." Knowing such knowledge does not make you a noble person, and not knowing it doesn't turn you into a petty person.
有的知识对你的人生，一分都没加，又何必耗费精力和时间呢？但是在生活中，确实有不少人专心致志、兴高采烈、兴趣盎然地用琐碎的知识，把自己的人生切割成碎片。
For certain knowledge, it adds nothing to your life, so why waste energy and time on it? However, in life, there are indeed many people who, with great enthusiasm and interest, immerse themselves in trivial knowledge and end up fragmenting their own lives.
实际上，在知识之外有一种更重要的东西。
In fact, there is something more important beyond knowledge.
《列子》里面有篇文章叫《两小儿辩日》，在座的都读过。两个小孩辩论说，太阳早晨离我们近，还是中午离我们近。两个人都有根据，说早晨近是因为早晨的太阳比中午大；说中午近是因为中午的太阳比早晨热。
In the book "Liezi," there is a chapter called "Debating the Sun's Position" that many of you have read. Two children were debating whether the sun is closer to us in the morning or at noon. Each had their reasons: one argued that it was closer in the morning because the sun appears bigger, while the other claimed it was closer at noon because the sun feels hotter.
孔子活得真有压力，他几乎是那时候的“谷歌”和“百度”，大家有什么问题都跑去问他。两个小儿问孔子，但孔子没法判断。于是作者就借小孩的口吻讽刺孔子：“谁说你知识多？”作者大概是想，只要否定孔子的知识多，那就否定了孔子的价值。
Confucius lived under significant pressure; he was practically the "Google" and "Baidu" of his time, as everyone would come to him with their questions. Two children asked Confucius a question, but he couldn't give a judgment. Consequently, the author used the children's tone to satirize Confucius, saying, "Who says you know so much?" The author probably intended that by denying Confucius' extensive knowledge, one could deny his value.
这个思路显然是错误的。在人生知识的考场上，谁能站到最后？我今天跟大家打个赌，我可以出一套100分的知识类题目，每道都有标准答案，但我能让在座所有人都得零分。反过来，你们也可以给我出100分的知识类题目，让我一分都得不到。
This approach is evidently incorrect. In the examination of knowledge in life, who can stand until the end? Today, I will make a bet with all of you. I can present a set of knowledge questions, each with a definite correct answer, and I can ensure that everyone present scores zero. Conversely, you can also give me a set of knowledge questions worth 100 scores, and I won't be able to get a single score.
比如，复旦大学自主招生出过一道题，老师对学生提一个要求：“你现在问我一个问题，必须满足两个条件，第一是要我回答不出来，第二是你必须要有标准答案。”很多人说这个题目太雷人了，可我就觉得出得很好。因为它告诉我们，在知识的考场上，没有人可以站到最后。有一个聪明的学生马上问：“老师，你知道我祖父的名字吗？”
For instance, Fudan University once included a question in their independent enrollment examination. The teacher made a requirement to the students: "You must ask me a question now that meets two conditions: first, it must be a question I cannot answer, and second, you must have a standard answer." Many people found this question quite shocking, but I think it's brilliant. It tells us that in the examination of knowledge, no one can stand until the end. A clever student immediately asked, "Teacher, do you know my grandfather's name?"
我也可以按照这个思路给大家出题，不需要费劲，就能让大家都得零分。你们知道我祖父的名字吗？知道我祖母的名字吗？知道我祖父的二大爷的名字吗？在座的谁能答出来，今晚我请客。可见，知识可以把任何一个人打倒。
I can also follow this approach and give you all a question without any effort, ensuring that everyone scores zero. Do you know my grandfather's name? Do you know my grandmother's name? Do you know the name of my grandfather's second uncle? Whoever can answer, I'll treat you tonight. You see, knowledge can bring down anyone.
如果要算知识的总量，我相信今天在座的人，你们的知识总量都超过孔子。比如说，我可以出计算机、物理、英语、数学之类的题目，孔子肯定答不过你们。
If we were to measure the total amount of knowledge, I believe that everyone present here today would surpass Confucius. For example, I could present questions related to computer science, physics, English, mathematics, and the like, and Confucius would undoubtedly be unable to answer them compared to all of you.
但我们就比孔子的境界高吗？这就要思考另一个问题了：决定孔子境界的不是知识的总量，而是另外一种东西。孔子自己早就说过：“吾有知乎哉？无知也。”我有知识吗？不，没有。苏格拉底也曾经说：“我比别人多知道的那一点，就是我知道自己是无知的。”
But does that mean we are at a higher level than Confucius in terms of inner development? This brings up another question: what determines Confucius' inner development is not just the total amount of knowledge but something else. Confucius himself had long said, "Do I truly possess knowledge? No, I do not." Do I have knowledge? No, I don't. Socrates also once stated, "What I know more than others is simply my awareness of my own ignorance."
他们说这些不是谦虚，只不过说出了一种真相。面对世界的无限，我们短暂生命里的知识可以忽略不计。所以，我们应该允许自己的无知，也应该宽容别人的无知。
They say these things not to be humble, but simply to speak the truth. Faced with the boundlessness of the world, the knowledge in our fleeting lives can be disregarded. Therefore, we should allow ourselves to acknowledge our ignorance and also be tolerant of others' ignorance.
你看我不顺眼，给我出一道数学题。我为了防备下一次再有人给我出数学题，于是我天天学数学，学了10年以后，解放日报文化讲坛大概已经到6800期了，我终于有勇气上台演讲，突然又有人说：“鲍老师，我这有一套物理题。”你不会这样干，对不对？因为你们会宽容我的无知，我们也会宽容他人的无知，但是有种情况是不能宽容的，那是什么呢？没有良知。
You find me unpleasant and want to give me a math problem. To prevent others from giving me math problems again, I studied math every day for ten years. By the time the Liberation Daily's Cultural Forum reached around 6800 issues, I finally had the courage to give a speech. Suddenly, someone said, "Teacher Bao, I have a set of physics questions." You wouldn't do something like that, right? Because you would be tolerant of my ignorance, just as we should be tolerant of others' ignorance. However, there is one situation we cannot tolerate, and that is the lack of conscience.
03 没有知识可以被宽容，没有良知不可以被宽容
03 Ignorance can be tolerated, but the lack of conscience cannot be tolerated.
没有知识可以被宽容，没有良知不可以被宽容。我们遇到标准化的试卷，回答不好没有问题，但是涉及良知判断、是非判断、善恶美丑判断，如果出了问题，那就是大问题。
Ignorance can be tolerated, but the lack of conscience cannot be tolerated. When faced with standardized exams, it's okay to answer incorrectly, but when it comes to matters of judgment in conscience, right and wrong, good and evil, if there are problems, it becomes a serious issue.
我讲一个故事。有一位父亲发现15岁的女儿不在家，留下一封信，上面写着：
I will tell you a story. One day, a father discovered that his 15-year-old daughter was not at home and had left behind a letter. In the letter, it said,
“亲爱的爸爸妈妈，今天我和兰迪私奔了。兰迪是个很有个性的人，身上刺了各种花纹，只有42岁，并不老，对不对？我将和他住到森林里去，当然，不只是我和他两个人，兰迪还有另外几个女人，可是我并不介意。我们将会种植大麻，除了自己抽，还可以卖给朋友。我还希望我们在那个地方生很多孩子。在这个过程里，也希望医学技术可以有很大的进步，这样兰迪的艾滋病可以治好。”
"Dear Mom and Dad, today I eloped with Randy. Randy is a very unique person with various tattoos all over his body. He is only 42 years old, which isn't old, right? We will be living in the forest together. Of course, it won't be just the two of us; Randy has a few other women with him, but I don't mind. We will be growing marijuana there, not only for ourselves but also to sell to our friends. I also hope we can have many children in that place. During this journey, I also hope that medical technology can make significant advancements so that Randy's AIDS can be cured."
父亲读到这里，已经崩溃了。然而，他发现最下面还有一句话：“未完，请看背面。”
The father, upon reading this, was already devastated. However, he noticed that there was another sentence at the bottom: "To be continued, please read the back."
背面是这样写的：
On the back, it was written:
“爸爸，那一页所说的都不是真的。真相是我在隔壁同学家里，期中考试的试卷放在抽屉里，你打开后签上字。我之所以写这封信，就是告诉你，世界上有比试卷没答好更糟糕的事情。你现在给我打电话，告诉我，我可以安全回家了。”
"Dad, everything written on that page is not true. The truth is that I was at my classmate's house next door, and the midterm exam papers were kept in the drawer. You can sign on it after opening. The reason I wrote this letter is to tell you that there are things worse than not doing well on a test paper in this world. Please call me now and let me know that I can safely come back home."
这封信说明，一个人在知识的试卷上可以犯错，甚至不止一次犯错，一辈子犯错，我们到老了都是无知的。但是在良知问题上，可能犯一次错，我们就万劫不复了。所以，比事实判断更重要的是价值判断。事实判断，我们做不到什么都懂，但是做人要有良知，要有价值判断力，这一点还是应该尽量做到的。
This letter illustrates that a person can make mistakes on the test paper of knowledge, and may even make mistakes not just once but throughout their entire life, leaving us ignorant even in old age. However, when it comes to matters of conscience, making one mistake can be irreversible. Therefore, what is more crucial than factual judgment is value judgment. When it comes to factual judgment, we may not be able to know everything about factual matters, but as a person, one should have a conscience and the ability to make value judgments as human beings. This is something that we should strive to as much as possible.
今天中国社会的一个问题，就是缺乏判断力。中国教育的一个问题，就是缺乏文化素养。比如，为了抵制日货，很多年轻人走到大街上砸同胞的车，甚至伤害同胞的身体。他们带着一腔热血，以为在爱国，但实际上却是在“碍国”。
One of the issues in Chinese society today is the lack of critical thinking. A problem with China's education is the lack of cultural literacy. For instance, to resist Japanese products, many young people take to the streets and smash others' cars, and even harm others physically. They carry a passion in their hearts, thinking they are showing "loving the country," but in reality, they are "harming the country."
为什么一个带着良好爱国热情的人，会去做妨碍国家、损伤中国人形象的事？他们缺少的是什么呢？良知。
Why would someone with a strong sense of patriotism engage in activities that hinder the country and damage the image of Chinese people? What are they lacking? Conscience.
知识就是力量，但我要告诉大家，良知才是方向。我们常常说落后就要挨打，我还要告诉大家，野蛮也会招打。
Knowledge is power, but I want to tell everyone that conscience is the direction. We often say that falling behind invites defeat, but I also want to tell everyone that barbarism will also attract trouble.
易明之光 Mini读书@2023