Stop Comparing Yourself to Others, Best Be Yourself
By Xiaoqing
The Romance of the Three Kingdoms is one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature. Zhou Yu and Zhuge Liang, two characters in this masterpiece, were both very wise. At the time of the battle, they served different masters, and always pitted their wits and strength against each other. Zhuge was good at observing weather signs, which gave him an edge over Zhou. And for this reason, Zhou often suffered defeat. Unwilling to be surpassed by Zhuge Liang, Zhou harbored a long-standing grudge against Zhuge, and swore that he would defeat Zhuge. However, when he took the West River Land, he acted on a dare from Zhuge, and thus fell for his trick. Afterward, he received a letter from Zhuge in which he implied a sneer at Zhou’s failure. He felt so humiliated that he felt sick due to his long-standing grudge and had a relapse. In the end, he said with a long sigh before he died, “Heaven! Since thou made Zhou Yu, why did thou also create Zhuge Liang?”. Zhou Yu was a brilliant young man who was skilled at strategy, but ended up dead simply because he could not accept falling behind Zhuge. When it comes to the death of Zhou, later generations think it a pity.
However, aren’t we sometimes just like Zhou Yu? In real life, we often pit ourselves against others for the sake of our reputation and benefit, thus living in unbearable pain.
