Passing through the State of Song in Humble Attire
文、攝影 / 歐修梅
故事出處：《史記．孔子世家》
The story comes from Records of the Grand Historian: The House of Confucius
孔子去曹適宋，與弟子習禮大樹下。
宋 司馬桓魋 欲殺孔子，拔其樹。
孔子去。弟子曰：「可以速矣。」
孔子曰：「天生德於予，桓魋其如予何！」
During a journey from the State of Cao to the State of Song, Confucius and his disciples engaged in the studies of the rites under the boughs of a large tree.
Harboring the thought of slaying Confucius, Commander Huantui ordered the tree to be felled.
Confucius took his leave. A disciple noted, “We should hasten our steps.”
Confucius replied, “Heaven has bestowed virtue upon me; what can Huantui truly bring upon me?”
孔子周遊列國，游說各國國君推行仁政、德政，雖然面見了多國的國君與大夫，也曾說動了齊景公等國君，但終究還是因為遭到排擠和讒言毀謗，所以，始終未能得到重用，而且，有時甚至還會有生命的危險。
Confucius traveled across various states, persuading their kings to adopt benevolent and virtuous governance. Although he successfully secured audiences with many kings and ministers, and even convinced rulers such as Lord Jing of Qi, he was never heavily trusted due to ostracism, slander, and defamation. At times, he even faced life-threatening dangers.
在栖栖惶惶的旅途中，孔子與學生也仍然不中斷學習。公元493年，孔子和弟子離開曹國要往宋國的路上，在大樹下與弟子演習禮儀。宋國的司馬桓魋想殺孔子，就派人將孔子與學生遮蔭的大樹砍除，藉此恐嚇孔子。有學生說：「為了預防不測，我們還是快走吧！」
During this unsettled journey, Confucius and his disciples continued their studies. In 493 B.C., as they left the State of Cao for the State of Song, Confucius and his students practiced rituals under a large tree. Huantui, a military commander of Song, intended to murder Confucius. He sent someone to chop down the tree which provided shade to Confucius and his students as a gesture of intimidation. A student suggested, “To prevent any unforeseen danger, we should leave quickly!”
孔子回答：「上天既然降下『德』在我身上，桓魋他又能拿我怎麼樣呢？」也就是說：道德雖然是由個人修養而來，但那也是因為上天先降下「德」在人身上，個人才能夠順著這「德」去修養。桓魋厭惡的是孔子之德，縱使可以殺了孔子的肉身，也奪不去孔子之德，因為這「德」是由天而來，並不專在孔子，只要有人承續了孔子由天而來之「德」，桓魋便怎麼也殺不完。
Confucius replied, “Since Heaven has bestowed virtue upon me, what can Huantui do to me?” This means that, while morality stems from personal cultivation, a person can only develops his virtue when Heaven has bestowed it upon him. Huantui despised Confucius for his virtue. However, even if Huantui could kill Confucius’ physical body, he could not take away his virtue. The virtue is bestowed by Heaven and does not belong solely to Confucius. As long as others continue to embody the heavenly virtue that Confucius received, Huantui will never be able to kill them all.
此畫正是描繪孔子這段事跡。但所取材的，並不是桓魋派人來砍樹警告的那危急時刻，而是以孔子為了避禍，於是微服（改穿平民便服）而行，在經過宋國時，派一名童子問路的場景。圖中可見，孔子雖然微服，但仍然受到文雅之士的敬重。
The painting depicts this episode from the life of Confucius. It does not portray the perilous moment when Huantui sent someone to cut down the tree as a warning. Rather, this picture depicts the scene where Confucius sent a young student to ask for directions as they passed through the State of Song. To avoid danger, Confucius was dressed in modest civilian garments. It is evident that, despite his plain outfits, Confucius was still revered by the literati.
