An elder monk gives a younger monk a quick lesson in following the spirit of the law, rather than the letter of the law.
从前，有一大一小两个和尚出门化缘，起到一条河边时，看见一个妙龄女子被水围困着不能过河，于是大和尚毫不犹豫地将她背起过了河。小和尚大为不解，晚上便忍不住问道：
“师兄，出家人六根清净，你背了那女人，不是犯了戒吗?”
大和尚答道：“我背那女子一过河就放下了，可师弟你，为什么到现在还背着她放不下来?”
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| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 从前 | cóng qián | previously; formerly; once upon a time |
| 有 | yǒu | to have; there is; (bound form) having; with; -ful; -ed; -al (as in 有意[you3 yi4] intentional) |
| 一 | yī | one; single; a (article); as soon as; entire; whole; all; throughout; "one" radical in Chinese characters (Kangxi radical 1); also pr. [yao1] for greater clarity when spelling out … |
| 大一 | dà yī | first year of university |
| 小 | xiǎo | small; tiny; few; young |
| 两 | liǎng | two; both; some; a few; tael, unit of weight equal to 50 grams (modern) or 1⁄16 of a catty 斤[jin1] (old) |
| 个 | gě | used in 自個兒|自个儿[zi4 ge3 r5]; variant of 個|个[ge4] |
| 和 | hé | old variant of 和[he2]; surname He; (literary) harmonious (variant of 和[he2]) |
| 尚 | Shàng | surname Shang |
| 出门 | chū mén | to go out; to leave home; to go on a journey; away from home; (of a woman) to get married |
| 化 | huā | variant of 花[hua1] |
| 缘 | yuān | cause; karma; predestined affinity; hem; along |
| 起到 | qǐ dào | (in an expression of the form 起到[qi3 dao4] + … + 作用[zuo4 yong4]) to have (a (motivating etc) effect); to play (a (stabilizing etc) role) |
| 条 | tiáo | strip; item; article; clause (of law or treaty); classifier for long thin things (ribbon, river, road, trousers etc) |
| 河边 | hé biān | river bank |
| 时 | shí | old variant of 時|时[shi2]; surname Shi |
| 看见 | kàn jiàn | to see; to catch sight of |
| 一个 | yī ge | a; an; one; the whole (afternoon, summer vacation etc) |
| 妙龄 | miào líng | (of a girl) in the prime of youth |
| 女子 | nu:3 zǐ | woman; female |
| 被 | bèi | quilt; to cover (with); (literary) to suffer (a misfortune); used to indicate passive voice (placed before the doer of the action like "by" in English passive-voice sentences, or, … |
| 水 | Shuǐ | surname Shui; Shui ethnic group |
| 围困 | wéi kùn | to besiege |
| 着 | zhāo | variant of 著|着[zhao1]; a move in chess (Taiwan pr. [zhuo2]); trick; tactic; (dialect) okay; all right; (dialect) to put in; to add |
| 不 | bù | no; not so; (bound form) not; un- |
| 能 | Néng | surname Neng |
| 过河 | guò hé | to cross a river |
| 于是 | yú shì | thereupon; as a result; consequently; thus; hence |
| 大 | dà | big; large; great; older (than another person); eldest (as in 大姐[da4 jie3]); greatly; freely; fully; (dialect) father; (dialect) uncle (father's brother) |
| 毫不 | háo bù | hardly; not in the least; not at all |
| 犹 | yōu | as if; just as; yet |
| 豫 | Yù | short name for Henan 河南[He2 nan2] |
| 地 | de | -ly; structural particle: used before a verb or adjective, linking it to preceding modifying adverbial adjunct |
| 将 | jiāng | will; shall; to use; to take; to checkmate; just a short while ago; (introduces object of main verb, used in the same way as 把[ba3]) |
| 她 | tā | she |
| 背 | běi | the back; behind (bei4); to recite from memory (bei4); to carry on the back (bei1) |
| 起 | qǐ | to rise; to raise; to get up; to set out; to start; to appear; to launch; to initiate (action); to draft; to establish; to get (from a depot or counter); verb suffix, to start; sta… |
| 过 | Guō | surname Guo |
| 了 | le | (completed action marker); (modal particle indicating change of state, situation now); (modal particle intensifying preceding clause); (bound form) clear in one's mind; to understand clearly |
| 河 | hé | river (CL:條|条[tiao2],道[dao4]); (bound form) the Yellow River; (bound form) the Milky Way; (bound form) (on restaurant menus) rice noodles 河粉[he2 fen3] |
| 大为 | dà wéi | very; greatly |
| 不解 | bù jiě | to not understand; to be puzzled by; indissoluble |
| 晚上 | wǎn shang | evening; night; CL:個|个[ge4]; in the evening |
| 便 | biàn | plain; informal; suitable; convenient; opportune; to urinate or defecate; equivalent to 就[jiu4]: then; in that case; even if; soon afterwards |
| 忍 | rén | to bear; to tolerate |
| 住 | zhù | to live; to reside; to stay; to stop; to cease; (result complement indicating firmness or a stable achieved state) |
| 问道 | wèn dào | to ask the way; to ask |
| 师 | Shī | surname Shi |
| 兄 | xīong | elder brother |
| 出家人 | chū jiā rén | monk; nun (Buddhist or Daoist) |
| 六 | lìu | six; 6 |
| 根 | gēn | root; basis; classifier for long slender objects, e.g. cigarettes, guitar strings; CL:條|条[tiao2]; radical (chemistry) |
| 清净 | qīng jìng | peaceful; quiet; tranquil; purified of defiling illusion (Buddhism) |
| 你 | nǐ | you (informal, as opposed to courteous 您[nin2]); you (Note: In Taiwan, 妳 is used to address females, but in mainland China, it is not commonly used. Instead, 你 is used to address both males and females.) |
| 那 | Nā | surname Na |
| 女人 | nu:3 rén | woman |
| 不是 | bù shì | no; is not; not |
| 犯 | fàn | to violate; to offend; to assault; criminal; crime; to make a mistake; recurrence (of mistake or sth bad) |
| 戒 | jiè | to guard against; to exhort; to admonish or warn; to give up or stop doing sth; Buddhist monastic discipline; ring (for a finger) |
| 吗 | má | (coll.) what? |
| 答 | dā | bound form having the same meaning as the free word 答[da2], used in 答應|答应[da1 ying5], 答理[da1 li5] etc |
| 道 | dào | road; path (CL:條|条[tiao2],股[gu3]); (bound form) way; reason; principle; (bound form) a skill; an art; a specialization; (Daoism) the Way; the Dao; to say (introducing a direct quot… |
| 我 | wǒ | I; me; my |
| 就 | jìu | (after a suppositional clause) in that case; then; (after a clause of action) as soon as; immediately after; (same as 就是[jiu4 shi4]) merely; nothing else but; simply; just; precise… |
| 放下 | fàng xià | to lay down; to put down; to let go of; to relinquish; to set aside; to lower (the blinds etc) |
| 可 | kě | (prefix) can; may; able to; -able; to approve; to permit; to suit; (particle used for emphasis) certainly; very; but; however |
| 弟 | dì | younger brother; junior male; I (modest word in letter) |
| 为 | wéi | as (in the capacity of); to take sth as; to act as; to serve as; to behave as; to become; to be; to do; by (in the passive voice); variant of 為|为[wei2] |
| 什 | shén | what |
| 么 | má | exclamatory final particle; variant of 麼|么[me5] |
| 到 | dào | to reach; to arrive; to leave for; to go to; to (a place); until (a time); up to (a point); (verb complement indicating arriving at a place or reaching a point); considerate; thoug… |
| 现 | xiàn | to appear; present; now; existing; current |
| 在 | zài | to exist; to be alive; (of sb or sth) to be (located) at; (used before a verb to indicate an action in progress) |
| 还 | Huán | surname Huan |
| 放不下 | fàng bu xià | to have no room to put sth; to be unable to let go |
| 来 | lái | to come; (used as a substitute for a more specific verb); hither (directional complement for motion toward the speaker, as in 回來|回来[hui2 lai5]); ever since (as in 自古以來|自古以来[zi4 gu3… |
Long ago, there was one elder and one younger monk who went out to beg for alms, when they reached the riverbank, they saw a fair young lady who was surrounded by water and couldn’t cross the river. So without the slightest hesitation the elder monk carried her across the river on his back. The younger monk didn’t understand at all, and that night couldn’t help but ask: “Older brother, those who take the robes follow the Six Precepts of purity and cleanliness, you carried that woman on your back, is that not a violation of the commandments?”
The elder monk replied: “I carried that woman and put her down as soon as I crossed the river. But Little Brother, how is it that you are still carrying her and have not yet put her down?”