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In the Spring & Autumn Period (722-403 BC), a man named Yan Hui went with his father Yan Lu to Confucius for studying his theories.
Yan Hui’s family was very poor. Usually he could only have a small bowl of rice and a tiny ladle of soup for his dinner. He lived in a rough house. Others could not live a life like him but he could survive it and even enjoy it. Confucius said that he was a capable and respectable young man.
After studying under Confucius for a while, Yan Hui told his father: “The more I look into the theories told by the teacher, the more profound I find they are. These theories are more and more complicated and undecipherable as my research goes further forward. Sometimes I seem to be able to get close to understanding them but later I find it impossible to completely catch them.”
Yan Hui sighed: “Confucius taught me progressively and enlightened me with his words and wisdom. He constrained my behaviors with courtesies. So I cannot stop studying even though I want to. Though I have run out of my power (in studying), I am still far away from understanding the theories Confucius told me. I want to catch up with it but I am unable to do it.”
Knowing this, Confucius encouraged Yan Hui by telling him that efforts and diligence could make everything. This gave Yan Hui the confidence to continue his study.
When Yan Hui died some time later, Lord Ai of the State of Lu, where Yan Hui was born, asked Confucius: “Who is your most hardworking disciple?”
Confucius said: “Once I had a student named Yan Hui. He was very diligent in studying. Also gentle and mild, he never lost his temper easily or made the same mistake twice. Unfortunately he passed away at such a young age. After his death I have no diligent students.”
Yan Hui’s family was very poor. Usually he could only have a small bowl of rice and a tiny ladle of soup for his dinner. He lived in a rough house. Others could not live a life like him but he could survive it and even enjoy it. Confucius said that he was a capable and respectable young man.
After studying under Confucius for a while, Yan Hui told his father: “The more I look into the theories told by the teacher, the more profound I find they are. These theories are more and more complicated and undecipherable as my research goes further forward. Sometimes I seem to be able to get close to understanding them but later I find it impossible to completely catch them.”
Yan Hui sighed: “Confucius taught me progressively and enlightened me with his words and wisdom. He constrained my behaviors with courtesies. So I cannot stop studying even though I want to. Though I have run out of my power (in studying), I am still far away from understanding the theories Confucius told me. I want to catch up with it but I am unable to do it.”
Knowing this, Confucius encouraged Yan Hui by telling him that efforts and diligence could make everything. This gave Yan Hui the confidence to continue his study.
When Yan Hui died some time later, Lord Ai of the State of Lu, where Yan Hui was born, asked Confucius: “Who is your most hardworking disciple?”
Confucius said: “Once I had a student named Yan Hui. He was very diligent in studying. Also gentle and mild, he never lost his temper easily or made the same mistake twice. Unfortunately he passed away at such a young age. After his death I have no diligent students.”