English Original
Have you heard of the frog that lived in a shallow well? It once said to a turtle from the East Sea, "I am so happy! When I go out, I jump about on the railing by the well's mouth. When I return, I rest in the holes of the broken wall. If I jump into the water, it comes up to my armpits and buoys my cheeks. If I walk in the mud, it covers my feet. I look around at the wriggling worms, crabs, and tadpoles, and none can compare with me. I am the lord of this trough of water and stand tall in this well. My happiness is complete. Why don't you come more often to see my domain?"
Before the turtle could even get its left foot into the well, its right knee became stuck. Hesitating, it retreated. The turtle then described the East Sea to the frog: "A distance of a thousand li cannot convey its width; a height of a thousand ren cannot convey its depth. In the time of King Yu, there were floods nine years out of ten, yet the sea's waters did not rise. In King Tang's time, droughts struck seven years out of eight, yet the sea did not shrink. The sea does not change with time, nor does its level rise or fall with the rain. The greatest joy is to live in the East Sea."
Hearing this, the frog from the shallow well was struck by the realization of his own insignificance and became deeply uneasy.
中文翻译
你听说过那只住在浅井里的青蛙吗？它曾对来自东海的乌龟说：“我多么快乐啊！我出去时，就在井口的栏杆上跳来跳去；回来时，就在井壁的破洞里休息。跳进水里，水漫到我的腋窝，托起我的脸颊；走在泥里，泥浆没过我的脚面。我环顾四周那些蠕动的虫子、螃蟹和蝌蚪，没有谁能比得上我。我是这汪水的主宰，在这浅井中昂首挺立。我的快乐是完满的。你何不常来我的领地看看呢？”
乌龟的左脚还没踏进井里，右膝就被卡住了。它犹豫了一下，退了回来。接着，乌龟向青蛙描述了东海：“千里之遥，不足以形容它的宽广；千仞之高，不足以形容它的深邃。大禹时代，十年有九年洪水，海水却不曾上涨；商汤时代，八年有七年大旱，海水却不曾减少。大海不随时间改变，水位也不因雨量增减。最大的快乐，就是生活在东海啊。”
听了这番话，浅井里的青蛙猛然意识到自己的渺小，变得十分不安。