Source: Lu You's Reading on a Winter Night in the Song Dynasty.
Original text:
The ancients learned nothing, and it takes time to grow old.
What you get on paper is so shallow that you never know what you have to do.
Translation:
The ancients spared no effort in learning, worked hard when they were young, and achieved nothing when they were old.
After all, the knowledge gained from books is not perfect. If you want to know things thoroughly, you must practice it yourself.
Extended data:
Reading on a Winter Night for Children is a poem by Lu You, a poet in the Southern Song Dynasty. The first sentence is a compliment to the hard-working spirit of the ancients, warning children to go all out in their studies without reservation; The second sentence is about the difficulty of learning; In the last two sentences, the poet further pointed out the importance of practical experience. This poem wins by thought and philosophy, and makes people benefit from rational speculation.
It contains profound philosophy: direct experience and indirect experience are two ways for people to acquire knowledge. The four short poems are catchy, profound in artistic conception and memorable.