The Master said, “What a worthy man was Yan Hui! Living in a narrow alley, subsisting upon meager bits of rice and water—other people could not have borne such hardship, and yet it never spoiled Hui’s joy. What a worthy man was Hui!” (Analects 6.11)
Coarse rice to eat, water to drink, my bended arm for a pillow - therein is happiness. Wealth and rank attained through immoral means are nothing but drifting clouds.
With coarse rice to eat, with water to drink, and my bent arm for a pillow - I have still joy in the midst of all these things.
He who needs only coarse food, water and drink, and as pillow his folded arms will find happiness without further search.
Slater soaks into the mind as water into low and marshy places, where it becomes stagnant and offensive.
Time flows away like the water in the river.
Balance is the perfect state of still water. Let that be our model. It remains quiet within and is not disturbed on the surface.
The wise find pleasure in water; the virtuous find pleasure in hills. The wise are active; the virtuous are tranquil. The wise are joyful; the virtuous are long-lived.
A man of wisdom delights in water.
Wisdom delights in water; love delights in hills. Wisdom is stirring; love is quiet. Wisdom is merry; love grows old.
With coarse rice to eat, with water to drink, and my bent arm for a pillow -- I have still joy in the midst of all these things.
As long as I have rice to eat, and pure water to drink, I can find joy within.