There is an idiom in our country, which comes from the "Book of Songs", called "One Sing and One Harmony", which means that when one person starts singing, the other person will echo and sing along, describing the tacit understanding between the two people.
Ancient literati often liked to do this kind of thing when they had gatherings and recited poems in pairs. Someone would recite a poem first, and others would follow along and harmonize the poems according to the meaning, making the singing and harmony unique. Whoever makes peace will be applauded and admired by everyone, and his vanity will be greatly satisfied.
The saying "Color is a steel knife that scrapes bones, and colorless people cut off the road" is exactly the product of singing and harmonizing. The meaning is to use dialectics to view "color". Color can destroy a person like a steel knife, and people who are addicted to women will not have a good death. However, the world cannot be without sex. If everyone eats fasts, chants Buddha's name, and has a pure mind, there will be no one to carry on the family lineage. The country's population will grow less and less, or even become extinct, and the production and construction of various social sectors will be reduced. Can't go on.
It can be seen that the latter sentence is more philosophical, elevating the influence and role of "color" to the level of governing the country and being related to the entire human society, highlighting the wisdom of looking at problems from a far-sighted perspective.
The historical origin of these two sentences is actually related to four famous figures in the Northern Song Dynasty.
The great writer Su Shi (1037-1101) usually liked to drink tea and discuss Taoism with his good friend and Zen master Foyin (1032-1098). One time, when they were drinking in great spirits at the Daxiangguo Temple, Foyin suddenly became inspired by poetry and recited a poem: Wine, sex, and wealth were the four walls, and everyone hid inside the walls. Whoever can jump out of the wall will live a long life even if he does not live to be a hundred years old. By the way, I sang this poem and wrote it on the wall. Foyin wrote this poem, which is not only a true portrayal of his own situation, but also reflects his concern for people in the mortal world.
Su Shi twirled his beard and looked at it carefully. He felt that his old friend's literary talent and calligraphy were both good, so he secretly swore that I, Su Dongpo, was famous for my poetry and calligraphy. How could I lose to a Buddhist? , he brought up a writing brush and a poem: Drinking without being drunk is the highest, seeing sex without being obsessed is a hero. Don't take worldly wealth unjustly, be patient and let your anger subside on its own. It is also written with flying dragons and phoenixes, and the literary talent is flying. He looked at these issues with the open-minded mentality of a man in the world of mortals.
About a few days later, Wang Anshi (1021-1086) accompanied his superior leader Song Shenzong (1048-1085) to Daxiangguo Temple to burn incense and worship Buddha, and accidentally saw the poems of Foyin and Su Shi. . After Song Shenzong read the two poems on the wall, he looked at Wang Anshi again and said: Wang Wengong, what do you think of their poems?
Wang Anshi stroked his beard, his eyebrows suddenly relaxed, and he casually chanted: There is no wine in the world without courtesy, and the world is colorless and sparsely populated. Only when the people work hard for wealth can the state be full of vitality. Wang Anshi is very smart. He is a person who understands politics after all. He immediately thought of the national economy and the people's livelihood.
Song Shenzong laughed and said loudly: Wen Gong is good at literary talent, good at literary talent! Wait for me to sing a song too.
Song Shenzong frowned, wandered around for a few times, and finally stopped and recited loudly: Wine helps rituals and music help the country to be healthy, and sex nourishes the soul. With abundant wealth and food, the country is prosperous, and the Qi of the Song Dynasty is as solid as the rising sun. Wine is a poison that penetrates the intestines, color is a steel knife that scrapes bones, wealth is a tiger descending from the mountain, and anger is the root of trouble. It seems that these four words are harmful, so it is better to write them off; without wine, there is no etiquette, without color, the road is blocked and sparsely populated, and without wealth, it is difficult to travel. , so lackluster that you will be bullied. It seems that the four words are useful. I advise you to tailor your clothes to suit your needs.
As the king of a country, Song Shenzong thought more and cleverly connected the poems of the first three people from all angles, turning it into the famous "Song of Wine, Sex and Wealth", which has been spread to Today, with simple and profound words, I told people a profound truth: everything must be measured and grasped well.