bīng xíng xiàng shuǐ 兵形象水 Troops Should Charge Forward like the Flow of Water. 用兵作战之法就像水流一样。这是古代兵家孙武（前545？—前470？）提出的兵学命题。意思是说，指挥打仗，不能拘泥于固定的战法，必须根据具体情况，迅即进行调整变换，扬长避短，就像水流随着地形地势的变化而呈现不同的形态一样。犹今之所谓采取灵活机动的战略战术，掌握战场主动权。 Troops should charge forward like the flow of water. This military concept was formulated by Sunzi (545?-470? BC), the ancient military strategist. It means that in directing a battle, one must not adhere to a predetermined plan. Depending on the […]

běnwú 本无 benwu / Original Non-being 绝对的空无。东晋时各家多用“本无”表达般若空义，指出事物根本上是不存在的。这种观点在僧肇（384或374—414）等人看来有将“无”坐实、落入虚无主义的危险，故僧肇著文批评，重申缘起性空的中道观。但在后世作品中，同样运用“本无”，有时指缘起性空义，而非绝对的虚无，需加以鉴别。 Benwu, or original non-being, is a term used to refer to void. Philosophical schools in the Eastern Jin Dynasty used it to bracket the doctrine of emptiness from the Prajñāpāramitā literatures (“The Perfection of Wisdom”), arguing that things are fundamentally non-existent. In the view of Seng Zhao (384 or

bàdào 霸道 Despotic Governance 霸者之道，指凭借武力与强权手段进行统治（与“王道”相对）。春秋时代，周王室式微，有的诸侯凭借自己的强大实力，操纵周天子和其他诸侯，维持秩序，成为诸侯领袖（初写作“伯”，后来写作“霸”）。他们的统治原理或政策，被称为“霸道”。它不重仁义道德，而重功利强权；不是以德服人，而是以力服人；不重文的感化，而重武的压迫；不使人怀德而使人畏威，甚至只顾本国利益，不顾他国苦难。中华民族崇文而不尚武，自古提倡“王道”，贬斥“霸道”。此为今日中国反对霸权主义、反对强权政治的历史文化渊源。 This term refers to the rule of a state by means of force and power as opposed to “benevolent governance.” The ruling court of the Zhou Dynasty began to decline in the Spring and Autumn Period while some of its vassal states grew stronger. Some state rulers, who were dukes

ài guó rú jiā 爱国如家 Love the Country as One Loves One’s Family 像爱自己的家一样爱自己的国。原本指帝王、诸侯等掌权者像爱自己的家一样爱国爱民——因为在古代中国，家国同构，后来演化为有志之士乃至一国内所有人都崇尚的基本操守。其中隐含着这样的观念：热爱祖国的人都不分彼此，如同一家人，每个人都像爱自己的家一样爱国爱民。爱国是中华民族深厚持久的传统，是中华民族精神的核心，是每一个中国人的坚定信念和精神依靠。 Originally, the concept denoted that kings, princes, and other rulers should love their kingdoms and their people the same way they did their own families. This is because in ancient China, family and state were considered same in structure. Later on,

āi jǐng xiě lè 哀景写乐 Depict Sorrowful Scenery to Express Happiness 以哀伤的景致描写愉快的情绪。属于情景相衬、对面落笔的描写手法。以乐景写哀伤比较常见，以哀景写快乐却不常见。因此，对“哀景写乐”的理解可以与“乐景写哀”综合起来，它们都是指言情而不直露，借用景物描写抒发情致，情与景互相映衬，彼此交融，作品的审美效果含蓄婉转，别有韵味。 Depicting sorrowful scenery to express happiness is a technique which integrates sentiment and scenery and indirectly expresses sentiment through describing scenery. Although it is quite common to express sadness through joyful scenes, artists rarely describe sorrowful scenery to express joy. Thus, we can

wénbǐ 文笔 Writing and Writing Technique 泛指各类文章。经历了不同时期的概念变化，两汉时泛指文章的技法、风格及各类文章。魏晋南北朝时期，文论家们认识到不同文体的特性，首先将文笔与经典解释类著作相区分，用“文”“笔”分别指纯文学写作和应用文写作；继之又以外部形式作为区分标准，将诗赋颂赞等文学类作品与奏章书策等“杂笔”进行区分，提出有韵为文、无韵为笔的观点。梁元帝萧绎以内容为尺度，进一步提出文（诗赋等）不仅有韵，还应该表达内心的情感并有华丽的辞藻；而笔（应用文）只需要一般写作能力即可。今“文笔”主要指文章的技法与语言风格。 The term generally refers to different types of writings. Its meanings have evolved over time. During the Western and Eastern Han dynasties, it generally referred to writing techniques, writing styles, and various types of articles. During the Wei, Jin, and the Southern and Northern dynasties, literary scholars began

wénxué 文学 Literature 原义为博通前代文献，“文”指文献，“学”是关于文献的学问。后泛指文章、文献以及关于文章、文献的各种知识与学问。主要含义有三：其一，先秦两汉时期，指关于古代文献特别是诗书礼乐、典章制度等人文方面的知识与学问。魏晋南北朝以后，“文学”一词大体与今天的文学概念接近，但也包含人文学术的内容。近代以来，西方的文学观念传入中国，“文学”一词逐步演变指用语言创造审美形象的一门艺术，但传统意义上的“文学”范畴仍为章太炎等少数学者沿用。这一术语的最初含义决定中国现当代主流的文学观念仍坚持从大文化的意义上看待文学现象，强调文学的审美价值与人文学术的内在联系，而与西方的“文学”术语强调文学之独立审美价值有所区别。其二，泛指古代各类文章及文献。其三，指以著书立说、教学等方式传播学问的文人与掌管文教的官员。 Originally, the term meant to command a good knowledge of documents from pervious dynasties. Wen (文) referred to documents, and xue (学) referred to the study of these documents. Later, the term referred to articles and documents in general as well as the knowledge about those documentations. The term had three main meanings.

wénzhānɡ 文章 Literary Writing 泛指一切著述，包括今天意义上的文章和著作。先秦时这一术语包含在文学之内，两汉时“文章”一词与“文学”对举，指一切用文字写下来的文辞、篇章、史书、论著，六朝时“文章”与“文学”并列，开始指后世所说的审美范畴的“文学”，但仍作为统括一切文体的范畴使用。“章”意为一曲音乐演奏完毕，或一曲完整的音乐，故此术语强调作品意义和结构的完整，注重文章写作手法与技巧；“文”和“章”都有花纹、色彩错杂的意思，“文章”相当于美的形式，故此术语隐含了审美观念，早期“文章”的概念与“文学”概念有一定联系又有所区别。“文章”偏重于辞章美文，说明了人们对于文章审美价值的逐渐重视。 The term refers to all kinds of writings, including what we call essays and books today. In the Pre-Qin period, this term was subsumed under literature. During the Han Dynasty, the term referred to writings other than wenxue (文学documents of previous dynasties) to specifically mean essays, articles, history books, and treatises.

Wú-Yuè-tónɡzhōu 吴越同舟 People of Wu and Yue Are in the Same Boat. 吴、越两国人同乘一条船。比喻双方虽有旧怨，但面临共同的危难困境，也会团结一致，相互救助。春秋时代，吴、越是相互仇视的邻国，但当两国人同船渡江，遭遇风浪时，他们却相互救援，如同一个人的左右手一样。它包含的思想是：敌友不是绝对的，也不是永恒的，在一定的境遇下可以化敌为友。 In the Spring and Autumn Period, Wu and Yue were neighboring states which were hostile to each other. Wu and Yue people being in the same boat is a metaphor for overcoming old grievances to face common danger. When people from these

wǔjīnɡ 五经 Five Classics 《诗》《书》《礼》《易》《春秋》等五部儒家经典的合称。先秦时期有“六经”之说，指《诗》《书》《礼》《乐》《易》《春秋》，因《乐》已亡佚（一说无文字），故汉代多称“五经”。从汉武帝立“五经博士”起，“五经”之学成为中国学术、文化和思想的根本。从内容上来说，“五经”各有所偏重，如《诗》言志、《书》言事等，因其不同而互补，故构成一个整体。历代儒者通过对文本的不断解释，为这些经典赋予了丰富的意义。“五经”之学包括了中国传统文化对于世界秩序与价值的根本理解，是道的集中体现。 The term refers to the five Confucian classics: The Book of Songs, The Book of History, The Book of Rites, The Book of Changes, and The Spring and Autumn Annals. In the pre-Qin period, the term “Six Classics” was used, referring to The Book of Songs, The Book of History, The