A man who has not uprooted his hankering for fame and fortune, even if he disdains enormous wealth and delights in plain living, will in the end descend to the level of the vulgar world.
A man who has not eradicated all baleful external influences from his nature, even if his benevolence extends to all the world and for ten thousand generations, will show no more than futile gestures.
名根未拔者，纵轻千乘甘一瓢，总堕尘情；客气未融者，虽泽四海利万世，终为剩技。
Notes
The illusion of renunciation
Outwardly rejecting wealth or embracing poverty means nothing if the inner craving for recognition persists. It is performance, not liberation.
The emptiness of grand achievement
Even world-changing deeds become “hollow branches” if driven by artificial virtue. Action without essence is barren.
Inner state as the true root
Just like that stated in The Strange Tales from Liaozhai by Pu Songling:
“Unintentional wrong, though wrong, deserves no punishment;
Intentional good, though good, merits no reward.”
Ultimate Wisdom:
This passage from Tending the roots of wisdom( also known as Vegetable Roots Discourses) reveals that:
Only when we uproot the inner thirst for fame, poverty becomes true freedom;
When melt the artificial temperament, service becomes sacred;
Value lies not in what we renounce or achieve, but in why and how.
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