The Old Man Yu Gong Moving the Mountains

This is a household fable in China. Lie Zi, a thinker and philosopher of the Warring States Period (475-221 BC), created this story based on folk tales popular in the areas near the Taihang and the Wangwu mountains in present-day Jiyuan, Henan Province, which was included in Lie Zi (The Book of Lie Zi).

Legend has it that once upon a time, there lived an old man, called Yu Gong ("foolish old man"), near the two great mountains – Taihang and Wangwu. As these two mountains blocked the way of his family to the south, Yu Gong decided to have them removed with the support of his sons. Their effort, however, was ridiculed by another old man, Zhi Sou ("wise old man"), who called the family "foolish" and their mission "impossible." Yu Gong replied, "I may be old, but after I die, my sons and grandsons will carry on, followed by their sons and grandsons, and so on to infinity. These two mountains, however, will not grow any taller. As long as we keep digging the earth and rocks away bit by bit, the day will eventually come when they are completely removed." Time flew, and Yu Gong kept on working day and night as determined as ever. His persistence moved the Heavenly Emperor, who dispatched two immortals to carry the two mountains away and thus helped Yu Gong realize his dream of having an unblocked way leading to the outside world.

For centuries, the story of Yu Gong has been passed down from generation to generation. His spirit, as an important symbol of the fine traditional Chinese culture, lends some deep insights. First, one needs to aim high to transform the world so that it will benefit all. Second, one needs to press ahead with fortitude in the belief that great visions, simple though, can come true through solid actions. Third, people need to support each other and build the world into one big family. The perseverance of Yu Gong is still inspiring contemporary Chinese to realize the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation through hard work together.

愚公移山

愚公移山是中國家喻戶曉的寓言故事。戰國時期思想家、哲學家列子以流傳在太行、王屋山區（今河南濟源）的民間故事為原型，創作了《愚公移山》，收錄在《列子·湯問》中。

相傳北山山下住著一位名叫愚公的老人。他的家門南面有兩座大山擋住出路，一座叫太行山，一座叫王屋山。愚公下決心要挖走這兩座大山，率領兒子們鑿石挖土。有位名叫智叟的老人譏笑愚公一家的行為太愚蠢了，認為僅憑愚公父子幾人要挖掉兩座大山是完全不可能的。愚公回答說：“我雖然老了，但我死后有我的兒子，還有孫子，子子孫孫是沒有窮盡的。這兩座高山卻不會再增高了，挖一點就會少一點，怎么會挖不平呢？”春去秋來，愚公移山的意志不變，日夜搬山不止。愚公的堅持感動了天帝，他派兩個神仙下凡，背走了那兩座山，幫助愚公實現了移山通路的理想。

千百年來，愚公移山的故事為人們代代傳頌、反復解讀，成為中華文化史上獨具特色的智慧故事。愚公移山精神作為中華優秀傳統文化的重要標識，蘊含深刻內涵：其一，志存高遠，改造世界，實現大道之行，天下為公；其二，務實重干，勇毅前行，做到大道至簡，實干為要；其三，萬眾一心，團結互助，實現大道不孤，天下一家。這一精神激勵著當代中國人團結奮進，為實現中華民族偉大復興的中國夢而努力奮斗。