1. There is no place to be found even if you wear iron shoes, and it takes no effort to get it.
From: "Queju" by Xia Yuanding (Southern Song Dynasty)
Translation: Poetic inspiration that cannot be found even after wearing iron shoes can be obtained in practice without any effort at all.
2. If you plant flowers intentionally, they will not bloom, but if you plant willows unintentionally, they will create shade.
This is a classic line from the second chapter of Guan Hanqing's "Bao Tai Zhi Zhi Kills Lu Zhai Lang".
Translation: I didn’t pay attention to this willow tree, but it grew vigorously, and its profound meaning is: it encourages people to be strong, confident, and brave, making them amazing. It also means that people who are not valued can often gain more than those who are valued.
3. The flower path has never been swept by visitors, but now the gate is opened for you.
From "The Arrival of Guests" by Du Fu of the Tang Dynasty
Translation: The courtyard path full of flowers and grass is not cleaned to welcome guests, but just for your arrival, the grass gate of my house is opened for the first time.
4. Mountains and rivers are full of doubts and there is no way out.
From "Crossing Shanxi Village" by Lu You in the Northern Song Dynasty
Translation: The mountains are overlapping and the water is twisting. Just when I am worried that there is no way to go, suddenly another mountain village appears in front of me, with lush green flowers and colorful flowers.
5. Therefore, when Heaven is about to entrust a person with a great responsibility, he must first strain his mind and will, strain his muscles and bones, starve his body and skin, deplete his body, and mess up his actions. Benefit from what it cannot do.
"Born in sorrow, died in peace and happiness" is selected from "Mencius·Gao Zixia"
Translation: Therefore, God is going to place a great responsibility on such a person, and it must be We must first make his mind suffer, make his muscles and bones tired, make him starve, make his body poor and lacking, make him hinder and interfere with his work, and use these to stimulate his will, make his temperament tough, and increase Talents he does not possess.