The Profound Chinese Language (Episode 3): Turtle
(Clearwisdom.net) An opening poem recitation by a group of children: Although turtles are slow walkers, Ms. Wang: In today's Nature class, we will observe turtles! Children: Wow! Ying Ying: Wow! Their skins are wrinkled like old men. Yuan Yuan: Why do they swim so slowly? Xiao Bei: They look kind of dumb. An Unidentified Student: It is rather incredible that a turtle can outrun a
hare. Ms. Wang: Although turtles are slow walkers and they appear slow-witted, they
know and accept their weaknesses. They always choose to tolerate problems, big
or small. Normally they work hard and do everything diligently despite their
lack of speed. In the event of enemy attacks, they retract their heads and limbs
into their shells and are impervious to the provocation from the outside. They
know that tolerance is a good way to resolve a crisis. Lao Zi, a renowned Taoist
philosopher in ancient China, said, "The weak will ultimately prevail over
the strong." A slow walker is not necessarily a dimwit! Ying Ying: What kind of food do turtles like? Ms. Wang: Turtles are not picky eaters. They eat vegetables, fruits, small
shrimp and small fish. The average lifespan of a turtle is much longer than that
of a human being. According to ancient legends, some turtles lived to be a few
thousand years old! Class: Wow! They are incredible animals! Ms. Wang: Back in the Shang Dynasty in ancient China, before they had to make
any important decision, the emperor and his royal court officials would roast a
turtle shell over fire and read the shapes of cracks on the shell, believing
they would foretell the future. They also inscribed significant events on turtle
shells or cow bones. The inscriptions are what we know as oracle-bone
scriptures. They are the earliest form of Chinese language. Therefore, we have
turtles to thank for the preservation of Chinese culture! Narrator: After school Ying Ying: Today's Nature class was a lot of fun! Yuan Yuan: I think so too. Ying Ying: Grandpa Brush Pen! Grandpa Brush Pen: Would you like to hear a story about a turtle? Xiao Bei: Yes! Please tell! Narrator: In an ancient Chinese book titled "A Collection of Encounters
with Immortals" there is a story about a turtle. During the Jin Dynasty,
there was a Chinese soldier from Wuchang, Hubei Province. He saw a cute white
turtle on sale in the market. He felt sad to see it had been taken from its
home, so he bought the white turtle and kept it in an aquarium at his home. When
the small white turtle grew bigger, the soldier decided it would be safe to
release it back to water. He hoped it would reunite with its family. Several
years later, the Jin Dynasty had a major battle with a neighboring state,
resulting in Jin's defeat. All the surviving Jin soldiers were driven into a
river. Most of them drowned because they were weighed down by the heavy armor
that they were wearing. This soldier was also driven into the river. When he was
about to drown, he felt that his feet had touched a giant rock. He looked down
and saw that the giant rock under his feet was actually the white turtle that he
had rescued and released years ago. The white turtle carried the soldier to the
other side of the river. It then nodded repeatedly toward the solider to thank
him and then returned to the river. This is the famous historical story of the
white turtle repaying its rescuer. Grandpa Brush Pen: Turtles were highly valued by ancient Chinese people. In
oracle-bone scriptures, there were many variations of the character for turtle.
Some of them were based on the front view of a turtle. Some were based on the
side view of a turtle. Some variations included one foot, two feet or four feet.
Some variations included a long tail or a short tail. All the variations
resembled a real turtle and looked very lovely. In Grandpa Brush Pen: Ying Ying and Yuan Yuan, I guess you often wrote the
Chinese character, "turtle" wrong in the past. Yuan Yuan: Indeed I have! Grandpa Brush Pen: Now that you have heard many stories about turtles, I
trust you have a better understanding of this Chinese character! Ying Ying: Yes! From now on, I will remember every stroke in this character! Yuan Yuan: Me too! First published in English at http://www.pureinsight.org/pi/articles/2006/1/2/3638.html
They are very gentle and not dumb at all.
Turtles walk diligently on the land or swim diligently in the sea.
They have saved people from drowning in the sea.
Turtles do not compete with others and are very tolerant.
They pass on good character and morality to their descendants.
Small Seal calligraphy, the character for turtle included a head in the top
portion, a turtle shell on the right, a turtle's feet on the left and a long
hook in the middle to represent a turtle's tail. It was based on a side view of
a turtle; therefore, it included only two feet.
Chinese version available at
http://www.zhengjian.org/zj/articles/2005/12/17/34978.html
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