Forgetting the important things and chasing
after the unimportant things(背本逐末)
During the Three Kingdoms period in China,
there was a famous minister in the Kingdom of Cao Wei, and his name was (Wang
Chang).
History books tell a story about him.
He attached great importance to the
education of children, and he wrote an article for his two sons.
There is a paragraph in the article that
reads as follows
You are still very young, you are living in
this stage of life, I think you should pay attention to these three points.
1- Take care of your body.
2- You must correct your own behaviour.
3- Make your family proud of you.
These three points seem very simple, but
they are very difficult to do.
Many young people ignore them. When these
young people reach adulthood, their personal health and financial crisis often
occurs. They are often unable to live a kind and positive life.
You also need to cultivate yourself to have
the four qualities of filial piety, respect, benevolence and justice.
A good character can enable you to behave
well and produce correct values.
A filial person, a person who respects
others, will have harmonious interpersonal relationships.
A benevolent and just person will win the
respect of others.
You must always keep this in mind.
A person's character and moral cultivation
are like the roots of a tree, which are the most important assets in your life.
All the money, wealth, and power on the
outside, all the compliments and flattery from other people, are like the
leaves of a tree.
The leaves may be very beautiful and lush,
but if the roots of the tree rot, the leaves of the tree will soon die and rot.
I am not saying these words to ask you not
to be a rich and famous person,
I just want to remind you that you should
always practice your own character and moral cultivation, and use reasonable and
legal methods to get the money, power and wealth you want.
You must first know what is most important
in your life.
You don't forget the most important things
and chase after the unimportant things.
This idiom means to forget the most
important things and chase after the unimportant things.
Dear friend, what kind of inspiration or
thought do you have after listening to this story?
What do you think is the most important
thing in your life? Is everything you are chasing now really what you want?
I hope this story can give you a new
harvest.