In the past, a man in the State of Qi went off into wild flights of fancy all day long. He was afraid that the sky might collapse, the land might cave in and he would have no place to live. He was so worried that he could neither eat nor sleep.

One man who was worried about him came to enlighten him by saying: "The sky is only an air mass. All men's activities are inside this mass. Why do you worry that the sky would fall?"

The man of Qi asked: "If the sky were really an air mass, then wouldn't the sun, the moon and the stars fall down?"

That man said:"The sun, the moon and the stars are only things that can shine in this mass. Even if they fall down, they would not harm people."

The man of Qi asked again: "Then what can I do when the land sinks?"

The man said: "The land is only piled-up earth. There is earth everywhere. Every day you walk on the land. Why do you worry that it would sink?"

When the man of Qi heard this, his worries vanished at once and he became very glad. The man who enlightened him and cured his melancholia was very pleased too.

從前，祀國(guó)有個(gè)人整天胡思亂想。他害怕天會(huì)塌下來(lái)，地會(huì)陷下去，自己會(huì)沒(méi)有地方生存，急得飯也吃不下，覺(jué)也睡不好。

有一個(gè)人，很為他擔(dān)心，就跑來(lái)開(kāi)導(dǎo)他說(shuō)：“天只不過(guò)是一團(tuán)氣體，人的一切活動(dòng)都在這團(tuán)氣體當(dāng)中，你為什么要擔(dān)心它會(huì)塌下來(lái)呢?”

祀人問(wèn)道：“天如果真的是一團(tuán)氣體的話，那么日月星辰會(huì)不會(huì)掉下來(lái)呢?”

那個(gè)人說(shuō)：“日月星辰只不過(guò)是這團(tuán)氣體中會(huì)發(fā)光的東西罷了。即使掉下來(lái)，對(duì)人也不會(huì)有什么傷害的。”

祀人又問(wèn)道：“那么，如果地陷下去了怎么辦呢?”

那個(gè)人說(shuō)：“地只不過(guò)是堆積起來(lái)的土罷了，四面八方都是土。你每天都行走在大地上，為什么還要擔(dān)憂它會(huì)陷下去呢?”

祀人聽(tīng)了，不但疑慮立刻消失了，而且十分高興。那個(gè)跑來(lái)開(kāi)導(dǎo)的人，幫助祀人治好了憂郁癥，也十分高興。

In the past, a man in the State of Qi went off into wild flights of fancy all day long. He was afraid that the sky might collapse, the land might cave in and he would have no place to live. He was so worried that he could neither eat nor sleep.

One man who was worried about him came to enlighten him by saying: "The sky is only an air mass. All men's activities are inside this mass. Why do you worry that the sky would fall?"

The man of Qi asked: "If the sky were really an air mass, then wouldn't the sun, the moon and the stars fall down?"

That man said:"The sun, the moon and the stars are only things that can shine in this mass. Even if they fall down, they would not harm people."

The man of Qi asked again: "Then what can I do when the land sinks?"

The man said: "The land is only piled-up earth. There is earth everywhere. Every day you walk on the land. Why do you worry that it would sink?"

When the man of Qi heard this, his worries vanished at once and he became very glad. The man who enlightened him and cured his melancholia was very pleased too.

從前，祀國(guó)有個(gè)人整天胡思亂想。他害怕天會(huì)塌下來(lái)，地會(huì)陷下去，自己會(huì)沒(méi)有地方生存，急得飯也吃不下，覺(jué)也睡不好。

有一個(gè)人，很為他擔(dān)心，就跑來(lái)開(kāi)導(dǎo)他說(shuō)：“天只不過(guò)是一團(tuán)氣體，人的一切活動(dòng)都在這團(tuán)氣體當(dāng)中，你為什么要擔(dān)心它會(huì)塌下來(lái)呢?”

祀人問(wèn)道：“天如果真的是一團(tuán)氣體的話，那么日月星辰會(huì)不會(huì)掉下來(lái)呢?”

那個(gè)人說(shuō)：“日月星辰只不過(guò)是這團(tuán)氣體中會(huì)發(fā)光的東西罷了。即使掉下來(lái)，對(duì)人也不會(huì)有什么傷害的。”

祀人又問(wèn)道：“那么，如果地陷下去了怎么辦呢?”

那個(gè)人說(shuō)：“地只不過(guò)是堆積起來(lái)的土罷了，四面八方都是土。你每天都行走在大地上，為什么還要擔(dān)憂它會(huì)陷下去呢?”

祀人聽(tīng)了，不但疑慮立刻消失了，而且十分高興。那個(gè)跑來(lái)開(kāi)導(dǎo)的人，幫助祀人治好了憂郁癥，也十分高興。