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The only problem unconsciously assumed by all Chinese Philosophers to be of any importance is: How shall we enjoy life, and who can best enjoy life? No perfectionism, no straining after the unattainable, no postulating of the unknowable, but taking poor, mortal human nature as it is, how shall we organize our life so that we can work peacefully, endure nobly2 and live happily?
不知不觉中，所有的中国哲人都认为最重要的一个问题是：该怎样享受生活？谁最能享受生活？没有至善论，没有未果的追求，没有无知的假定，仅仅是把可怜的、致命的人类本性视为生命。我们该怎样组织我们的生命，以使我们能携带着崇高平静地工作、幸福地生活？
Who are we? That is the first question. It is a question almost impossible to answer. But we all agree that the busy self occupied in our daily activities is not quite the real self. We are quite sure we have lost something in the mere pursuit3 of living. When we watch a person running about looking for something in a field, the wise man can set a puzzle for all the spectators to solve: what has that person lost? Some one thinks it is a watch; another thinks it is a diamond brooch; and others will essay other guesses. After all the guesses have failed, the wise man who really doesn’t know what the person is seeking after, tells the company, “I’ll tell you. He has lost some breath.” And no one can deny that he is right. So we often forget out true self in the pursuit of living, like a bird forgetting its own danger in pursuit of a mantis, which again forgets its own danger in pursuit of another prey, as is so beautifully expressed in a parable by Chuangtse.
第一个问题我们是谁？这是一个几乎无法回答的问题。但是，我们都认为日常生活中忙碌的自我，并不是十分真正的自我。我们相当确定，在纯粹的生活追求中我们丢失了一些什么。当我们看到一个人在一片田地中来回地寻找什么东西时，智者会为旁观者设置一个迷：那个人丢失了什么?有人认为丢了手表，有人认为是钻石胸针，还有人作着其他的猜测。然而，所有的猜测都是错误的，后来，那个其实并不知道真相的智者告诉那些人说：“我来告诉你们吧，他丢了一些气息。”没有人能够否认他的话的正确性。因此，在生活的追求中我们往往会忘记真实的自我，就像庄子的寓言——一只鸟在捕食螳螂时忘记了自身的危险，而那只螳螂在捕捉另一只猎物时也忘记了自身的危险一样，惟妙惟肖。
