“大道至简”出自道家思想，意思是宇宙间最根本的道理，往往可以用最朴素的话说清楚。
'The great way is utterly simple' comes from Daoist thought: the most fundamental truths of the universe can usually be stated in the plainest words.
乔布斯生前笃信这一点：他把手机做到只剩一个按键，把复杂统统藏进看不见的地方。
Steve Jobs believed this deeply: he pared the phone down to a single button and hid all the complexity out of sight.
他说过，简单比复杂更难，因为你必须把思考打磨得足够清晰。
Simple, he said, is harder than complex, because you must polish your thinking until it is clear enough.
反观我们的生活，却在不断做加法：衣柜塞满衣服，日程排满会议，手机装满应用。
Our own lives, by contrast, are endless exercises in addition: wardrobes stuffed with clothes, calendars packed with meetings, phones loaded with apps.
我们误以为拥有得越多，就离幸福越近，结果被物欲压得喘不过气。
We mistakenly assume that the more we own, the closer we are to happiness — and end up so crushed by material craving that we can hardly breathe.
其实，删繁就简是一种更高级的能力：知道自己不要什么，比知道要什么更难。
In truth, cutting the complicated down to the simple is a higher-order skill: knowing what you do not want is harder than knowing what you want.
山从不解释自己的高度，海也从不炫耀自己的深度。
A mountain never explains its height, and the sea never shows off its depth.
真正的丰盛，往往以极简的面目出现。
True abundance often appears wearing the plainest face.
懂得做减法的人，才算真正读懂了“大道至简”。
Only those who have learned to subtract can be said to have truly understood that the great way is simple.
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Key words 生词
朴素pǔsùplain; unadorned
笃信dǔxìnto believe firmly
打磨dǎmóto polish
物欲wùyùmaterial desire
删繁就简shān fán jiù jiǎnto cut the complex down to the simple
炫耀xuànyàoto show off
Grammar note 语法点
反观……
Literary 'turning to look at… (by contrast)' — introduces a contrasting subject right after an example. 反观我们的生活，却在不断做加法。
他天天锻炼；反观我，连楼都懒得下。— He works out every day; I, by contrast, can't even be bothered to go downstairs.
以……的面目出现
'to appear in the guise of…' — literary 以 here means '用/带着'. 真正的丰盛，往往以极简的面目出现。
机会常常以困难的面目出现。— Opportunity often shows up wearing the face of difficulty.
Check yourself 小测验
1. How did Steve Jobs apply simplicity to the phone?
2. Why did Jobs say simple is harder than complex?
3. According to the author, what is harder than knowing what you want?
More HSK 6 reading practice
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