zìqiánɡ-bùxī 自强不息 Striving Continuously to Strengthen Oneself 自己努力向上，强大自己，永不懈怠停息。古人认为，天体出于自身的本性而运行，刚健有力，周而复始，一往无前永不停息。君子取法于“天”，也应发挥自己的能动性、主动性，勤勉不懈，奋发进取。这是中国人参照天体运行状态树立的执政理念和自身理想。它和“厚德载物”一起构成了中华民族精神的基本品格。 The term means that one should strive continuously to strengthen himself. Ancient Chinese believed that heavenly bodies move in accordance with their own nature in a vigorous and forever forward-going cycle. A man of virtue, who follows the law of heaven, should be fully motivated and work […]

zhǐɡēwéiwǔ 止戈为武 Stopping War Is a True Craft of War. 能制止战争、平息战乱才是真正的武功。这是春秋时代楚庄王根据“武”字的字形提出的著名的军事思想。“止”即止息；“戈”即武器，借指战争。将“武”释为止战，既符合以形表意的汉字文化特质，也表现了中国人以武禁暴的军事政治观及崇尚和平、反对战争的文明精神。 To be able to stop war is a true craft of war. This famous military view was first raised by King Zhuang of Chu in the Spring and Autumn Period, on the basis of the structure of the Chinese character wu (武). Wu is composed of

zhīxínɡ 知行 Knowledge and Application “知”指对人伦日用之道的认知和体察，“行”指践行人伦日用之道。中国古代所讨论的“知行”，并不是一般意义上的对外物的认知以及利用和改造外物的行为，而是针对人伦日用之道的体认与践行。人通过目见耳闻或心思感悟等不同方式实现“知”。对于“知”“行”的难易，或认为知难行易，或认为知易行难，或认为知难行亦难。而在“知”“行”关系上，有人主张知行合一，也有人认为知行有别。这些对“知行”的理解决定了不同的道德养成及人伦教化方式。 “Knowledge” refers to awareness and examination of the principles underlying human relations in everyday life, and “application” refers to the implementation of these principles in everyday life. “Knowledge and application,” used in ancient China, were not in the general sense of having knowledge of external objects, or taking action

zhènɡzhì 政治 Decree and Governance / Politics 主要有两种用法：其一，指治理国家所施行的一切措施。“政”指统治者规定的法令、制度、秩序；“治”指对百姓的管理、治理，是“政”的具体实施。其二，指国家治理达到稳定良好的状态，即政治清明、经济繁荣、天下太平。近代以降，“政治”转指政府、政党、社会团体或个人在国内、国际事务中采取的政策、措施和行为等。 The term has two meanings. First, it refers to all measures for governing a country. Zheng (政) stands for decrees, rules, and ordinances, and zhi (治) refers to their implementation, that is, the way in which the people are governed. Second, it refers to a state of stable and

yuán 元 Yuan (Origin) 事物发生的端始。“元”在天地万物之先，包括人在内的天地万物都始于“元”。“元”有多种具体的表现形式。汉代的人将“元”理解为“元气”，也即是产生和构成万物的某种原始物质材料。《周易·彖上》以“乾元”“坤元”作为万物生成的端始。《春秋》纪年以“元年”为“第一年”。“元年”标志着一个新的历史时期的开始，是万物终始交替的法则在人事上的一种体现。 The term means the primal source from which all things originate, both animate and inanimate, including human beings. Yuan (元) manifests itself in different forms. In the Han Dynasty, it was considered a kind of primal physical material that both produced and made up the myriad things of the world.

yǔzhòu 宇宙 Universe / Cosmos 本义指屋檐和栋梁，引申指空间和时间，及由无限空间和无限时间所构成的世界整体。“宇”指天地四方，也即是包括上、下、东、西、南、北的整个空间；“宙”指往古来今，也即是包括过去和未来的整个时间。“宇宙”在空间上可以无限扩展，在时间上可以无限延续。中国哲学以“宇宙论”指称探讨世界本体及世界发生发展进程的学问。 The original meaning of the term is the eave and beam of a house, while its extended meaning is time and space as well as the whole world composed of limitless time and space. The first character yu (宇) means heaven and earth as well as all the directions of

yìxìnɡ 意兴 Inspirational Appreciation “兴”中所蕴含的意或者“兴”发时心物交会所产生的意（意义、趣味等）。是作者通过对景物感受到某种意趣、意味等之后直接创作出富有一定含义的艺术形象。这一术语主张作者将思想情感自然而然地融入对于描写对象的感受之中，并通过艺术形象和审美情趣传达出来，从而激发读者的联想，产生更丰富的领悟。 The term refers to the meaning implicit in an inspiration, or meaning and charm generated when poetic emotion encounters an external object or scene. It is an artistic image an author creates when appreciating the beauty and charm intrinsic in an object or scene. According to this term, an author

yìjìnɡ 意境 Aesthetic Conception 指文艺作品所描绘的景象与所表现的思想情感高度融合而形成的审美境界。“境”本指疆界、边界，汉末魏晋时期佛教传入中国，认为现实世界皆为空幻，唯有心灵感知才是真实的存在，“境”被认为是人的心灵感知所能达到的界域。作为文艺术语，“境”有多重含义。“意境”由唐代著名诗人王昌龄提出，侧重指文艺作品中主观感知到的物象与精神蕴涵相统一所达到的审美高度，其特点是“取意造境”“思与境偕”。相对于“意象”，“意境”更突出文艺作品的精神蕴涵与美感的高级形态，它拓展了作品情与景、虚与实、心与物等概念的应用，提升了文艺作品及审美活动的层次。后经过历代丰富发展，“意境”成为评价文艺作品水准的重要概念，是历代经典作品层累的结果，也是优秀文艺作品必须具备的重要特征。“意境”这一术语也是外来思想文化与中华本土思想融合的典范。 The term refers to a state where the scene described in a literary or artistic work reflects the sense and sensibility intended. Jing (境) originally meant perimeter or boundary. With the introduction of Buddhism into China during the late Han, Wei and Jin dynasties, the idea gained popularity that the physical

yìshù 艺术 Art 原指儒家六艺及各种方术，后引申指艺术创作与审美活动。儒家的“六艺”指诗、书、礼、乐、射、御等六种用以培养君子人格的教育内容，包括后世意义上的艺术；有时也指《诗》《书》《礼》《易》《乐》《春秋》六部经书。庄子则强调技与艺相通，是一种体悟道的融身心为一体的创作活动。儒家、道家与佛教关于艺术的思想，是中国艺术的内在精神与方法。中国艺术追求艺术与人生的统一、感知与体验的结合、技艺与人格的融会等，以意境为旨归。近代西方艺术学传入中国后，艺术成为人类主观精神与物态化作品相结合的技艺与创作，成为专门的学科，涵盖各类艺术。现在的艺术概念是传统艺术内涵与现代西方艺术学的有机融合。 Originally, the term referred to six forms of classical arts and various crafts, but it later extended to include artistic creation and aesthetic appreciation. The six forms of arts as defined by Confucianism are poetry, writing, rites, music, archery, and driving horse-pulled carriages. These constituted the basic requirements for cultivating a

yǎnɡmín 养民 Nurturing the People 养育人民，包括满足人民的生活需要和对人民进行教育。《尚书·大禹谟》将其作为“善政”（良好政治）的目的；为了实现这一目的，治国者必须治理、协调好“六府三事”。“六府”是指金、木、水、火、土、谷，即人民生活所需的各种物质资料；“三事”是指“正德”（端正人民品德）、“利用”（使物质资料为百姓所用）、“厚生”（使人民生活充裕）。这是一种以民为本、物质文明和精神文明兼顾并举的治国理念。 This term means to provide the people with necessities of life and educate them. According to The Book of History, this is what constitutes good governance. To reach this goal, the ruler must manage well the “six necessities and three matters,” the six necessities being metal, wood, water, fire,