After the stealing of fire, Zeus became increasingly unkind to men. One day he ordered his son Hephaestus to build an image of a beautiful maiden out of clay. He then asked the gods and goddesses to a...
Narcissus was a handsome youth. His lovely face and graceful form were the admiration of all who looked upon him. And he knew it. He was proud that he thought no one buthimself was worthy to see his y...
Aphrodite loved Adonis more than she did anybody else, for he was a brisk, lovely young hunter. She gave up her home at olympus and took to the woods. In the woods she dressed herself up like a huntre...
A lawyer's dog, running about unleashed, beelines for a butcher shop and steals a roast. Butcher goes to lawyer's office and asks, "If a dog running unleashed steals a piece of meat from my store, do...
Bianque was a famous physician in ancient China. One day the King of Wei asked him, "You and your two brothers are all skilled in medicine, which of you is the best?" Bianque answered, "My eldest bro...
This incident occurred one morning outside Albert Sch-weitzer's hospital in the African jungle. A patient had gone fishing in another man's boat. The owner of the boat thought he should be given all t...
One day, a man named Ai Zi said to the rich man, "Your sons are so stupid and know nothing about the world. How can they take your property over after your death?" Hearing these words, the rich man be...
A siege of the city of the enemy, the city residents to get together to discuss common fight against the enemy's approach.一座大城被敵軍圍困了,城中的居民們聚在一起,共同商議對抗敵人的辦法。 A build Car...
Towards the end of the Age of Bronze the human world became very cruel.Men grew hungry, impolite and ungodly（邪惡的） . Neither right nor law was respected any longer, and the rule of hospitality was for...
A long time go, there lived a poor man whose real name has been forgotten. He was little and old and his face was wrinkled, and that was why his friends called him Mr. Vinegar. His wife was also littl...
Hecuba's life was one of grief and sorrow. She saw with her own eyes her eldest born Hector killed and insulted（侮辱） by Achilles. She saw her son Polites slain in front of her by Pyrrhus. And she saw...
Far out in the sea there was an island, on the rocky edge of which lived three Sirens, the three sisters of magic song. Half human and half bird, the Siren sisters sat in a field of flowers, singing i...
Tiresias was a blind, darkseeing prophet（先知） of Thebes. He was struck with blindness in his youth, because he had spied unwittingly on the goddess Athena. He was wandering in the woods one day when qu...
There was once a farmer who had a fine olive（橄欖樹） orchard（果園） . He was very hardworking, and the farm always prospered under his care. But he knew that his three sons despised（輕視，看不起） the farm work...
A young shoemaker left his village. Along the way, he found some ants, who were very sad because a bear had destroyed their anthill（蟻冢，人群密集的地方） . The shoemaker helped them rebuild it, and the an...
A Roc's flight of ten thousand li-A bright future
In the Chinese classic 《Chuangtze》, there is a legend like this:
Once upon a time, a gigantic fish named Kun lived in the northern sea....
Do not burn you house to get rid of a mouse
there is a story in "Hanshu" telling of a rich man, who being a lover of s and had a large collection. Among them was a rare vase made of jade. The...
Be there just to make up the number
During the Warring States Period (475-221BC), the King of the State of Qi was very fond of listening to yu ensembles. He often got together 300 yu players t...
Give up halfway
During the Warring States Period (475-221BC), there was a man called Yue Yangzi in State Yue. One day he saw a piece of gold on the road and picked it up. He took it home and g...
The plum tree sacrifices itself for the peach tree-Sacrifice oneself for another person
This idiom comes from a old folk song. the last two stanzas go like this:
One family has five broth...
A broken mirror joined together
During the Southern and Northern Dynasties (420-589), there lived a beautiful, intelligent princess name Lechang in the State Chen. She and her husband Xu Deyan...
A bird startled by the mere twang of a bow-string
During the time of the Warring States (475-221 BC)， there lived a well-known archer named Geng Ying whose art in shooting was excelled by none...
Give the wrong-doer a way out
Beginning with Yu the GREat, the Xia Dynasty had lasted about four hundred years before Jie became the supreme ruler.
And that was in the 18th century BC. Jie...
Perfectly impartial
During the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BC), a very noble official caled Qi Huangyang lived in the State of Jin. One day, the king summoned him to court and asked, "No...
Uphold justice at the cost of one's blood relation
During the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476BC), there was many dukedoms under the king of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty. These dukedoms often fou...
What is Said Carries Weight
In ancient times, there was a prime minister named Shang Yang in the State of Qin. He was held in high regard by the King. In the year 359 BC, he prepared for a pol...
