【有价值】《要生活得写意》 作者（法）蒙田

回归爱

“梦想岛”分享： "我知道恺撒与亚力山大就在活动最繁忙的时候，仍然充分享受自然的、也就是必需的、正当的生活乐趣。"这真是一个机密，因为我们从历史教科书上学不到。他 们认为，享受生活乐趣是自己正常的活动，而战事才是非常的活动。所以这真是一个智慧人说的话，“我们最豪迈、最光荣的事业乃是生活得写意，一切其他事情， 执政、致富、建造产业，充其量也只不过是这一事业的点缀和从属品。”我们许多人，包括自己，往往把它搞倒了。

To live to purpose

When I dance, I dance; when I sleep, I sleep. Nay, when I walk alone, in a beautiful orchard, if my thoughts are some part of the time taken up with foreign occurrences, I some part of the time call them back again to my walk, to the orchard, to the sweetnees of the solitude, and to myself.

   Nature has with a motherly tenderness observed this, that the actions she has enjoyed us for our necessity should be also pleasant to us; and she invites us to them, not only by reason, but also by appetite, and it is injustice to infringe her laws.

   When I see both Caesar and Alexander in the thickest of their business, so fully enjoy human and corporal pleasures, I do not hold that they slackened their souls, but wound them up higher, by vigour of courage, subjecting these violent employments and laborious thoughts to the ordinary usage of life: wise, had they believed the last was their ordinary, the first their extraordinary, vocation.

   We are great fools. ” He has passed over his life in idleness,” say we: ” I have done nothing today.” What? Have you not lived? That is not only the fundamental, but the most illustrious of all your occupations.” Had I been put to the management of great affairs, I should have made it seen what I could do.” Have you known how to meditate and manage your life, you have performed the greatest work of all. For a man to show and set out himself, nature has no need of fortune; she equally manifests herself in all stages, and behind a curtain as well as without one. Have you known how to regulate your conduct, you have done a great deal more than he who has composed books. Have you known how to take repose, you have done more than he who has taken cities and empires.

The great and glorious masterpiece of man is to know how to live to purpose; all other things, to reign, to lay up treasure, to build, are, at most, but little appendices and props.

译文

跳舞的时候我便跳舞，睡觉的时候我就睡觉。即便我一人在幽美的花园中散步，倘若我的思绪一时转到与散步无关的事物上去，我也会很快将思绪收回，令其想想花园，寻味独处的愉悦，思量一下我自己。天性促使我们为保证自身需要而进行活动，这种活动也就给我们带来愉快。慈母般的天性是顾及这一点的。它推动我们去满足理性与欲望的需要。打破它的规矩就违背情理了。

我知道恺撒与亚力山大就在活动最繁忙的时候，仍然充分享受自然的、也就是必需的、正当的生活乐趣。我想指出，这不是要使精神松懈，而是使之增强，因为要让激烈的活动、艰苦的思索服从于日常生活习惯，那是需要有极大的勇气的。他们认为，享受生活乐趣是自己正常的活动，而战事才是非常的活动。他们持这种看法是明智的。我们倒是些大傻瓜。我们说：“他一辈子一事无成。”或者说：“我今天什么事也没有做……”怎么！您不是生活过来了吗？这不仅是最基本的活动，而且也是我们的诸活动中最有光彩的。“如果我能够处理重大的事情，我本可以表现出我的才能。”您懂得考虑自己的生活，懂得去安排它吧？那您就做了最重要的事情了。天性的表露与发挥作用，无需异常的境遇。它在各个方面乃至在暗中也都表现出来，无异于在不设幕的舞台上一样。

我们的责任是调整我们的生活习惯，而不是去编书；是使我们的举止井然有致，而不是去打仗，去扩张领地。我们最豪迈、最光荣的事业乃是生活得写意，一切其他事情，执政、致富、建造产业，充其量也只不过是这一事业的点缀和从属品。（梁宗岱 黄建华 译）（回归爱，回归——有趣、有爱、有价值的人生！全球精选，分享小伙伴）