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A long time ago, Confucius and his students walked on a road to the kingdom of Wei. They stumbled upon a hermit at least a hundred years old.
很久以前，孔子和他的学生在去魏国的路上行走。他们偶然遇见了一位至少一百岁的隐士。
The man was gathering some grain that farmers had dropped and he was singing while doing so. One of the students, a young man named Tzu-Kung, was confused.
这位隐士正在收集农民掉落的谷物，一边收集一边唱歌。其中一位名叫子贡的年轻人感到很困惑。
He couldn't comprehend why the old hermit was so happy, as he must have been very poor and alone, having to scour for harvest scraps.
他无法理解为什么这位老隐士如此快乐，因为他一定非常贫穷和孤独，不得不在收割后寻找残羹剩饭。
Tzu-Kung walked over to the hermit and showed compassion for his sad fate. But the old man smiled and said: "Why do you feel sorry for me? Am I that pathetic in your eyes?"
子贡走到隐士身边，对他悲惨的命运表示同情。但老人笑着说：“你为什么可怜我？我在你眼里就这么可怜吗？”
"Well, sir," Tzu-Kung said, "I assumed you didn't work hard in your younger years and didn't care about success and status. And so you couldn't find a wife and have children to look after you. You're all alone. How could you laugh and sing?"
“嗯，先生，”子贡说，“我以为你年轻时不努力工作，不在乎成功和地位。所以你找不到妻子，没有孩子来照顾你。你孤身一人。你怎么能笑着唱歌？”
"Listen, young man," the hermit said, "I laugh and sing because I feel happy! If I had worked hard in my younger years, competing with others, I wouldn't have gotten so old and healthy.
“听着，年轻人，”隐士说，“我笑着唱歌是因为我感到快乐！如果我年轻时努力工作，与他人竞争，我就不会变得如此年老和健康。
And not having a wife and children? That's great. I don't have to worry about their lives either. It's peaceful. Why shouldn't I laugh and sing?"
至于没有妻子和孩子？那太好了。我也不必担心他们的生活。很平静。我为什么不笑着唱歌呢？”
This story is from a Taoist scripture called Lieh Tzu. It shows a typical Taoist way of thinking, namely, that there's always gain in what we perceive as loss.
这个故事出自道家经典《列子》。它展示了一种典型的道教思维方式，即我们认为的损失总是有收获。
Even though the elderly man is not conventionally well-off, he is quite the archetypical "loser" in today's language; he's well aware of his many blessings in disguise.
尽管这位老人并不富裕，他是当今语言中典型的“失败者”，但他很清楚自己有许多因祸得福。
But for most people, it's probably challenging to have this attitude. We're easily swayed by societal standards and concerned with other people's opinions.
但对于大多数人来说，拥有这种态度可能具有挑战性。我们很容易受到社会标准的影响，并关心别人的看法。
This is where Taoist philosophy becomes especially valuable. It contains the wisdom to worry less, not just about what other people think but about almost anything.
这就是道教哲学变得特别有价值的地方。它包含着减少担忧的智慧，不仅仅是担心别人的想法，而是担心几乎所有事情。
Isn't that something we need today? Just look around—distractions are everywhere, and times are changing rapidly.
这难道不是我们今天所需要的吗？环顾四周，到处都是干扰，时代在迅速变化。
Life is stressful and demanding, with many suffering from burnout and depression and others on the verge.
生活充满压力和要求，许多人患有倦怠和抑郁，其他人则处于边缘。
This video shares three insights from ancient Taoist sages to help you care less in an overly serious world.
这段视频分享了古代道家圣贤的三个见解，帮助您在过于严肃的世界中减少担忧。
If you want to support Einzelganger, consider joining my Patreon page, which allows access to ad-free videos and free merch. Thank you, and I hope you'll enjoy this video.
如果您想支持Einzelganger频道，请考虑加入我的Patreon页面，该页面允许访问无广告视频和免费商品。谢谢，希望你会喜欢这个视频。
The Taoist sage Zhuangzi observed long ago how people are hung up on things like fame, wealth, and status.
道家圣贤庄子很久以前就观察到人们如何沉迷于名誉、财富和地位等事物。
In his time, people pursued luxuries, such as expensive food and fine clothes, and traveled to far places to enjoy the sights.
在他的时代，人们追求奢侈品，例如昂贵的食物和精美的衣服，并前往遥远的地方欣赏风景。
Today, we see nothing has changed. Moreover, our modern-day media constantly pressures us to live a high life.
今天，我们看到什么都没有改变。此外，我们的现代媒体不断向我们施压，要求我们过上高品质的生活。
Our tendency to seek out that new, shiny thing, whether luxury or experience, is being exploited. The more lavish, the better.
我们追求新奇闪亮事物的倾向，无论是奢侈品还是体验，都被利用了。越奢华越好。
Society teaches us to have great careers, big houses, nice cars. We get raised under the imperative to be successful and, if possible, wealthy.
社会教导我们要有伟大的事业、大房子、好车。我们从小就被灌输要成功，如有可能要富有的观念。
Material success, status, and achievement are the metrics by which we decide people's worth. It's what the world "honors," argues Zhuangzi.
物质上的成功、地位和成就是我们衡量人的价值的标准。庄子认为，这就是世界所“尊崇”的。
"If they do not got these things, they are very sorrowful and go on to be troubled with fears," he said.
“如果他们得不到这些东西，他们就会非常悲伤，并继续被恐惧所困扰，”他说。
Once you commit yourself to pursuing all these celebrated external things, it seems to be never enough. Once you get a nice car, you will likely want a better one.
一旦你致力于追求所有这些值得称道的外在事物，似乎就永远不够。一旦你有了一辆好车，你很可能会想要一辆更好的车。
Once you have your dream house, things get old quickly; the luxury no longer feels that special.
一旦你有了梦想中的房子，东西很快就会过时；奢侈不再那么特别。
The euphoric happiness generated by this once so-much-desired (but pricey) house fades into normalcy.
这座曾经如此渴望（但价格昂贵）的房子所带来的快乐逐渐消退，成为常态。
But despite not feeling much happier in the long run, you still have to make your mortgage payments. Over time, you become trapped—a slave to your possessions.
但尽管从长远来看你不会感到更快乐，你仍然需要偿还抵押贷款。随着时间的推移，你会陷入困境——成为财产的奴隶。
From Zhuangzi's viewpoint, this is a stressful mode of living. People living like this wear themselves out. "This is a stupid way to treat the body," he stated.
从庄子的观点来看，这是一种压力很大的生活方式。这样生活的人会把自己累坏。“这是一种对待身体的愚蠢方式，”他说。
And isn't he correct, looking at the rates of burnout, anxiety, and depression in modern-day societies?
看看现代社会中倦怠、焦虑和抑郁的发生率，难道他说的不对吗？
In pursuit of riches, we are wearing ourselves out. In the quest for fame on social media, we're exploiting ourselves.
为了追求财富，我们把自己累坏了。为了在社交媒体上出名，我们在剥削自己。
We're doing it because we think it makes us happy. Many do it so other people hold them in high esteem.
我们这样做是因为我们认为这会让我们快乐。很多人这样做是为了让别人尊敬他们。
Others do it to belong, but they're nothing more than cogs in the consumerist machine: a never-ending pursuit of stuff and fame that never satisfies, rarely leading to lasting happiness;
其他人这样做是为了归属，但他们只不过是消费主义机器中的齿轮：永无止境地追求物质和名誉，却永远无法满足，很少能带来持久的幸福；
something ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus also realized, as he saw many of the things we pursue nowadays as unnecessary and vain.
古希腊哲学家伊壁鸠鲁也意识到了这一点，他认为我们现在追求的许多东西都是不必要的和徒劳的。
At the same time, Zhuangzi observed that people look down on poverty, bad reputation, and what we'd call "irrelevance" today.
与此同时，庄子观察到人们看不起贫穷、坏名声以及我们今天所说的“无关紧要”的东西。
Nobody wants to be a nobody. You don't want to be a loser, do you? Losers are the modern-day untouchables.
没有人想成为一个无名小卒。你不想成为一个失败者，对吧？失败者是现代的贱民。
These people don't have the finest clothes, don't eat oysters and caviar, and don't get to see the many fabulous sights of the world.
这些人没有最好的衣服，吃不到牡蛎和鱼子酱，也看不到世界上许多美妙的景色。
They are to be met with contempt and avoidance. But Zhuangzi said we can't judge right and wrong by the world's standards.
他们应该受到蔑视和回避。但庄子说，我们不能用世界的标准来判断是非。
He proposes "doing nothing," as doing nothing leads to perfect enjoyment.
他提出“无为”，因为无为会带来完美的享受。
"Heaven does nothing, and thence comes its serenity; Earth does nothing, and thence comes its rest," he stated.
“天无为以之清，地无为以之宁。”
We could ask ourselves: do all these external things truly make us happy? Or can happiness be found in the simplest things?
我们可以问问自己：所有这些外在的东西真的能让我们快乐吗？还是说最简单的事情就能让我们找到快乐？
Isn't the mere cessation of trying to pursue happiness when happiness arises? The reason we're unhappy seems to be that we try too hard to be happy.
当快乐出现时，难道不是停止追求快乐吗？我们不快乐的原因似乎是我们太努力地追求快乐了。
And we do so following a dead-end path. How about we stop striving and let enjoyment unfold?
我们这样做是走上了一条死路。我们何不停止奋斗，让快乐自然展开？
Our achievement society scares us into being useful, self-exploiting members of the capitalist system.
我们的功绩社会吓得我们成为资本主义制度中有用、自我剥削的成员。
We're expected to be good for "something" to participate in the rat race and to be successful in what we do so we can respect ourselves and gain the respect of others.
我们被期望在“某事”上有所成就，才能参与到激烈的竞争中，并在所做的事情上取得成功，这样我们才能尊重自己，赢得他人的尊重。
From the Taoist point of view, we're all playing a silly game. We adopt specific beliefs, mark them as the truth, and act accordingly, taking it all very seriously.
从道教的角度来看，我们都在玩一个愚蠢的游戏。我们接受特定的信仰，把它们标记为真理，并据此采取行动，非常认真地对待这一切。
Hence, we care greatly about walking in line and what people think about us.
因此，我们非常在意循规蹈矩和别人对我们的看法。
People generally fear being disliked and seen as odd, worthless, or inadequate, whatever that means.
人们通常害怕被讨厌，被视为奇怪、无用或无能，不管这意味着什么。
