..續本文上一頁 them arc not only phony, but selfish and self-centered. To teach children to accord with courtesy as well as reason, we must start by educating them in ethics. The earlier ethical education begins, the better; what is more, parents and teachers have to be good role models.

　　記得有一部英國影片，描寫的是在一所私立住宿高中，有位講義氣的學生，因帶頭反對校長對其室友的嚴苛態度，要被校方開除了。校長是人品高尚的紳士，以管教嚴格出名；不但學生敬畏他，老師也敬畏他。最後真相大白，原來是這位室友，無意中發現校長的隱私，受到校長的要脅；而校長爲了掩飾自己的第一個錯誤，一錯再錯，造成很多悲劇。

　　I remember an English film in which the setting was a private boarding school. The protagonist was a righteous student who was going to be expelled, because he had led a protest against the principal for his harsh treatment of his roommate. The principal was a morally upright gentleman who was known for strictness. He was held in awe and respect by students and teachers alike. In the end, it turns out that the roommate had been threatened by the principal after he accidentally found out that the principal was having an affair. In order to cover up his first mistake, the principal made one mistake after another, leading to many tragedies.

　　先是那位懦弱的室友，不堪身心折磨而自殺；接著是一位老師辭職，因爲他不願像別的老師和學生一樣，做僞證以嫁禍該學生；最後是無所適從的學生互打出手，造成學校被封鎖。那學生在法庭朗讀他自殺的室友的遺書時，所有的學生都哭了！遺書中有一句話：“我這麼懦弱的人，一直茍且偷生，只因爲我想維護我最敬愛的人。今天我勇敢地選擇這樣死去，實在是因爲我破裂的偶像已不堪維持了！”

　　First the weak-willed roommate broke down under the pressure and committed suicide. Then one of the teachers resigned, because he refused to bear false witness against that student, the way the other teachers and students had done. Then the leaderless students started fighting among themselves, until the school finally had to be blockaded. When the student read the letter written by his dead roommate, all the students cried. One of the lines in the letter said, “ Being a weak person, I had continued living only because I wished to protect the person I respected the most. Today I have bravely chosen to die in this way, because my shattered idol is no longer worth protecting.”

　　父母師長們！如果我們希望教育子弟能誠乎其中，宜乎進退，就請以身作則，按著《弟子規》，先自我教育吧！

　　Fellow parents and teachers! If we wish to teach our children and students to be earnest and proper in their interactions with others, let us be good models for them. Let us first learn to follow the, “Rules for Being a Student.” ourselves.

《弟子規淺釋 Standards for Students 第叁章﹕悌 Chapter Three﹕ FRATERNITY - 8》全文閱讀結束。