对牛弹琴

对牛弹琴 Playing Music for a Cow

从前有个人，琴弹得非常好。 Long ago, there was a man who played the guqin extremely well.

有一天他看见一头牛在吃草，就坐下来给牛弹了一首曲子。 One day, he saw a cow eating grass, so he sat down and played a tune for it.

曲子很好听，可是牛只顾低头吃草，一点反应也没有。 The tune sounded beautiful, but the cow only kept its head down eating grass and showed no reaction at all.

他想了想，换了一种弹法。 He thought for a moment and changed the way he played.

这一次，琴声像小牛在叫，像蚊子在飞。 This time, the guqin sounded like a calf calling and a mosquito flying.

牛抬起头，摇着尾巴，认真听了起来。 The cow raised its head, swished its tail, and began to listen carefully.

原来不是琴不好，是他一开始弹错了曲子。 It turned out that the guqin was not the problem; he had played the wrong tune at first.

说话要看对象，否则对方可能听不懂。 When you speak, consider your audience; otherwise, they may not understand.

你跟小朋友讲大道理，他听不懂，这就是对牛弹琴。 If you explain big ideas to a young child and he cannot understand, that is 对牛弹琴.