9.19 子曰：“譬如为山，未成一篑1，止，吾止也。譬如平地，虽覆一篑，进，吾往也。”
【译文】
孔子说：“好比积土堆山，只差一筐土就可堆成了，然而停止了，那是我自己停息下来的。好比在平地堆山，虽然才倒上一筐土，但继续堆下去，那是我自己在往前努力。”
【YZG解释】
孔子说：“好比积土堆山，只差一筐土就可堆成了，然而停止了，那是我自己决定停止的。譬如在平地堆山，虽然才倒上一筐土，但继续堆下去，那也是我自己要继续下去的。”
【English Translation】
Confucius said: “It is like piling up a mound of earth. Even if there is last one basket of earth needed to complete it, if I stop, it is my own decision to stop. When piling up a mound on level ground, although only one basket of earth has began to be added, if I continue to pile up, it is also my own decision to continue.”
注释
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篑（kuì）：盛土的竹筐。 ↩