Chinese practice
沾沾自喜
self-satisfied; complacent
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
照片:維基共享資源
(zhan1 zhan1 zi4 xi3)
此處介紹的兩個成語都是用來形容自滿,一個源自古中國,一個源自古希臘。
《史記》〈魏其武安侯列傳〉是記載漢景帝時竇太后堂姪竇嬰的生平。
漢景帝一日與其弟等人宴飲,酒酣耳熱之際,說將來要讓同為竇太后之子的弟弟繼承自己的王位,也在場的竇嬰聽了便加以反對,說此舉將破壞朝廷規矩。竇嬰此言觸怒了寵愛兒子的竇太后,便將竇嬰逐出朝廷。後來吳王與楚王造反,竇嬰再被請出來擔任將軍,平定了叛亂,而竇嬰也因此功勞被冊封為魏其侯。竇太后很讚賞竇嬰的表現,便建議漢景帝起用竇嬰作宰相。但漢景帝不以為然,說道:「魏其者,沾沾自喜耳,多易。難以為相,持重。」(魏其侯這個人,立了點功勞就沾沾自喜,辦事傲慢輕浮,很難擔當宰相這個重任。)
由此,成語「沾沾自喜」便用來形容人有點過於自滿。
古希臘人由西元前六世紀起,每四年舉辦一次祭獻太陽神阿波羅(Apollo) 的皮西安競技會(Pythian Games),與奧林匹克競技會相隔兩年,以祭獻太陽神阿波羅(Apollo)。當時的神話傳說,阿波羅愛上了女神黛芙妮,而月桂葉即代表了黛芙妮。由於此神話故事,希臘人便頒給比賽的得勝者一頂月桂冠。因此to rest on one’s laurels(靠在他的月桂冠上)這個片語是隱喻仰賴過去的成功,現作貶義,以勸誡自滿及怠惰。
(台北時報編譯林俐凱譯)
只贏了一兩次就沾沾自喜、得意忘形,你也太不長進了吧!
(Well, you’re pretty satisfied with yourself after just a few victories, aren’t you. You have a ways to go yet.)
這一點小成功是我們再精進的動力,我們絕不能沾沾自喜、以此自滿。
(This small success will spur us on. We cannot be complacent, and satisfied with this alone.)
英文練習
rest on one’s laurels
These two idioms are about complacency. One comes from ancient China, the other from ancient Greece.
The “Biographies of the Marquis of Weiqi and the Marquis of Wu’an” chapter of the Records of the Grand Historian concerns the life and times of Dou Ying, a nephew of the Empress Dowager Dou, and an official in the court of her son, Emperor Jing of the Han dynasty.
During a drinking session, an inebriated Emperor Jing suggested that his own brother — the Empress Dowager’s son — succeed him, but Dou Ying dissuaded him, worried that this would destabilize the dynasty. The Empress Dowager was furious, and had Dou banished from court. He was later persuaded to return, however, to serve as a general to suppress a rebellion by the states of Chu and Wu, and his success in this campaign saw him elevated to Marquis of Weiqi.
The Empress Dowager was evidently impressed, and later suggested that he be asked to serve as prime minister. Emperor Jing was not so sure, however, and said, “The Marquis of Weiqi is too enamored of his own ability and cavalier in his actions. He would not be suitable for a weighty position as prime minister.”
From this, the idiom 沾沾自喜 has come to describe someone a little too satisfied with themselves.
The ancient Greeks held the Pythian Games every four years, two years apart from the Olympic Games, from the 6th century BC on, in honor of the god Apollo. According to contemporary myth, Apollo was in love with the nymph Daphne, whom he associated with laurel leaves. Inspired by this myth, the Greeks would present wreaths made of laurels to winners in the games. To rest on one’s laurels, then, is a metaphorical reference to resting on past success. It is now used in a pejorative sense, as an admonishment to complacency and laziness.
(Paul Cooper, Taipei Times)
You’re good, but don’t stop training. You shouldn’t rest on your laurels.
(你很優秀,但別停止訓練。你不該以此自滿而不求長進。)
They’ve become less competitive in the last few years. I think they’re guilty of resting on their laurels a bit.
(他們近幾年競爭力下降,我想這是因為他們有點自滿了。)
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