《菜根谭》是明朝还初道人洪应明收集编著的一部论述修养、人生、处世、出世的语录集。 其文字简炼明隽，兼采雅俗。似语录，而有语录所没有的趣味；似随笔，而有随笔所不易及的整饬；似训诫，而有训诫所缺乏的亲切醒豁。
《菜根谭》（多病未羞、无病是忧）
泛驾之马可就驰驱，跃冶之金终归型范。只一优游不振，便终身无个进步。白沙云：“为人多病未足羞，一生无病是吾忧。”真确论也。
An unruly horse can still be ridden after taming. Melted metals from the smelting furnace are returned to the mould. A man devoted to idleness and devoid of enthusiasm will make no progress as long as he lives. The hermit Baisha said, “Making mistakes is no cause for shame. What worries me most would be a lifetime without mistakes.” How true those words are!
（保罗·怀特 译）
A wide horse can be tamed for ride. Spattered metal will eventually be picked up and put back into the mould again. As for a person, if he passes his days just in idleness and low spirits, he will be unable to make any progress. Mr. Baisha1 said, “It is not a shame if one recognizes that he has made many mistakes. What worries me most is that one claims not to have made any mistakes in his life.” How true the phrases are!
（周文标 译）
The violent horse that upsets the carriage can be broken for riding, and the molten metal that flies out of the furnace is put in the matrix in the end. But if someone is idle and dispirited, he will get nowhere all his life. The scholar Chen Xianzhang said: “It is no shame for one to have faults: what I worry about is to have no faults all ones life.” How true that is!
（蒋坚松 译）
