"Horse Theory" is an article written by Han Yu about Bole and the Chollima. Let's learn about it together. Below is the "Original Text and Translation of Ma Shuo" that I compiled for everyone. It is for reference only. You are welcome to read it.
Original text of Horse Theory
There is Bole in the world, and then there is the thousand-mile horse. A thousand-mile horse often exists, but a bole does not always exist. Therefore, even though there is a thousand-mile horse, it will be carelessly grown and be dead in a stall, never being called as a thousand-mile horse.
A horse that travels a thousand miles can eat as much grain as a stone. Those who eat horses don’t know that they can travel thousands of miles and eat. Although this horse is capable of running a thousand-mile, it is not full of food, lacks strength, and its talent and beauty are not visible externally. Moreover, if you want to be like an ordinary horse, you cannot expect it to be able to run a thousand-mile.
If you don’t drive it according to the right way, you can’t feed it to its full potential, you can’t understand its meaning when you sing it, you come to it with the policy in hand and say: “There is no horse in the world.” Woohoo! Is there really no horse? In fact, I really don’t know about horses!
Translation of Horse Theory
Only after Bole existed in the world could the thousand-mile horse be discovered. A thousand-mile horse often appears, but Bole does not always appear. Therefore, even if there is a thousand-mile horse, it will only be humiliated in the hands of the servant coachman and die in the stable with the ordinary horses, and there is no need to call it a "thousand-mile horse".
A horse that can travel thousands of miles a day may be able to eat a load of grain in one meal. People who feed horses do not know how to feed horses according to the characteristics of their ability to travel thousands of miles a day. Therefore, even if such a horse has the ability to travel thousands of miles a day, it is not full of food and has insufficient strength. Its special talents and heroic posture cannot be displayed. Moreover, it cannot be equal to an ordinary horse, so how can it be done? How about asking it to travel thousands of miles a day?
To control it, but not in the same way as to control a thousand-mile horse; to raise it, but not to fully display its talents; to listen to its neighing, but not to understand its meaning. (The horse breeder) walked up to it with a whip and said: "There is no thousand-mile horse in the world!" Alas! Is there really no thousand-mile horse? I'm afraid they really can't recognize Chollima.
Comments on the Theory of Horses
1. Bole: A native of Qin Mugong during the Spring and Autumn Period, his real name was Sun Yang, and he was good at horse-drawing. Now refers to people who can discover talents.
2. Just: Just. Humiliation: This refers to talents that have been buried due to humiliation.
3. Slave: In ancient times, it also referred to servants, here it refers to the person who feeds the horse.
4. Parallel death: death in parallel. Parallel: Two horses riding together.
5. Stable: a food container for feeding livestock. Stable: stable, stable.
6. Not to be praised as a thousand-mile horse: Not to be praised as a thousand-mile horse. To, according to, preposition. Praise, praise, praise.
7. The Thousand-mile Horse: The horse (among them) can run a thousand miles. Yes, particle. In this sentence, "horse" and "thousand-mile person" are partly compound referents.
8. Yishi (shí): Eat food once. Or: sometimes.
9. Eat all the millet and one stone: Eat all the millet and one stone. To finish is used as a verb here, which means "to eat up". One stone weighs ten buckets, and one stone weighs about 120 kilograms.
10. Food (sì): means "feed", to feed.
11. Qi: Refers to a thousand-mile horse, a pronoun. Able to travel a thousand miles: Able to walk a thousand miles.
12. Yes: This is a demonstrative pronoun.
13. Ability: talent.
14. Talent and beauty should not be shown externally: Talents and strengths cannot be shown externally. See, same as "appear", reveal.
15. If you want to be like Chang Ma, you can’t get it: Qi: Jie, still. Desire: Want, want. Wait: Quite. Not available: impossible. De, can, means that objective conditions allow it.
16. An: How, where, interrogative pronouns.
17. The policy is not the right way: policy: whipping. It refers to a thousand-mile horse, a pronoun. In its way: use (treat) its method.
18. Make the best of it: use all its talents. Cai, the same as "cai", refers to the ability to travel thousands of miles.
19. Mingzhi: (horse) neighing. Understand its meaning: communicate with its mind.
20. Implementation: Holding a whip. Ce, the whip used to drive horses, noun. Linzhi: Lin looks at the horse. Come on, look down from a high place.
21. Wuhu: Expressing exclamation, equivalent to "Alas".
22. Q: Could it be that it means speculation.
23. Xie: It is connected with "ye" and expresses doubt, which is equivalent to "ye".
24. Its: Actually.
25. Zhi: Understand.
About the author of Ma Shuo
Han Yu (768─824), courtesy name Tuizhi, was born in Heyang, Hanoi (now Meng County, Henan). The ancestor borrowed from Changli (now Tongxian County, Hebei Province) and always called himself Han Yu in Changli, so he was called Han Changli in the world. Tang Dezong was a Jinshi in the eighth year of Zhenyuan (792). At the end of Zhenyuan, he was appointed as the censor. He offended those in power by writing a letter and was demoted to the magistrate of Yangshan (now Yangshan County, Guangdong). During the reign of Emperor Xianzong, he followed Prime Minister Pei Du to quell the rebellion in Huaixi and was promoted to Minister of Justice. However, because Shangshu opposed the reception of Buddha's bones, he was demoted to the governor of Chaozhou (now Chaozhou, Guangdong). During the reign of Emperor Mu Zong, he was promoted to Minister of the Ministry of Personnel. Han Yu and Liu Zongyuan were both advocates of the ancient prose movement, and their prose was ranked first among the "Eight Great Masters of Tang and Song Dynasty".
He advocated inheriting the prose tradition of the pre-Qin and Han Dynasties, and opposed the parallel style prose since the Six Dynasties that emphasized rhythm and counterpoint but ignored the content. He advocated prose style. He advocated that literary language should "words must come from one's own words" and "only statements should be left to the task." The development of prose played a certain positive role. His essays are strong in various styles, powerful, smooth in structure, and concise in language. He is one of the outstanding essayists in the history of literature after Sima Qian. Han Yu's poetry also has its own characteristics, with grand momentum, vigorous writing, striving for novelty, and making it unique. He started the trend of "using text as poetry", which had a great influence on later Song poetry. However, some poems are dangerous and strange, which is their shortcoming and has a great influence on Song poetry. There is "Collection of Mr. Changli".