Book-storing Cave

Time：2024-09-29 11:31:25

The Book-storing Cave is located about 100 meters southwest of Shengchang Temple. On the flat ground, visitors can see a stone cave that can accommodate about ten people. According to legend, when it rained, Confucius and his disciples took refuge in the cave and stored their books there, hence its name "Book-storing Cave".

Legend has it that in 492 BC, Confucius and his disciples were enjoying the scenery and lecturing in Shengrenchang (a place named after Confucius as a sage). An elderly shepherd passed by and said to Confucius, "It's going to rain. Everyone should hurry and take shelter in the cave." Confucius looked up at the sky and said, "The weather is nice today. How could it rain?" The shepherd replied, "There are rain clouds in the northeast. You can see that the stone slabs at your feet are wet. This is called 'chariot rut rain,' and the rain will be here soon." While Confucius was still hesitant, a gust of wind blew, and a shower came with it. Confucius and his disciples quickly gathered their books and took refuge in the Book-storing Cave. Confucius praised the shepherd, saying, "You are so talented! You are truly a sage of the people!" The shepherd modestly replied, "It's nothing special. I spend all day shepherding, and over the years, I've learned about the weather changes in this area. Practice makes perfect!"

It may seem like a trivial matter for Confucius to enter the cave to take shelter from the rain, but Liu Ziruo, a nationally outstanding tour guide, based this legend and created a couplet that has challenged everyone: "Kong enters the empty Kong, Kong hides in Kong; Kong exits the empty Kong, empty Kong is empty." (Note: Kong here refers to Confucius, and the homophones in Chinese create a playful and challenging puzzle.) Confucius entered the empty cave—Kong enters the empty Kong; the cave hid Confucius—Kong hides in Kong; after the rain passed and the sky cleared, Confucius came out of the empty cave—Kong exits the empty Kong; there was no Confucius in the empty cave anymore—empty Kong is empty. This is basically an absolute couplet. Try your hand at it. Whoever can come up with a matching couplet will truly be "talented! A sage of the people!"