It means that only by being tolerant and tolerant can you achieve great things. Metaphor for being broad-minded. That is to say, one must be modest, prudent, and broad-minded. This is also a sign of a person's cultivation. Yuan Keli, a famous official in the Ming Dynasty, was demoted to the rank of civilian by Emperor Wanli because of his upright opinions. He only found success in twenty-six years. These are his own words of life insights. People regard those who have a mind as broad as the sea as respectable people.
"Being humble is the only thing that benefits, and tolerance is great" was first seen in the self-encouragement couplet written by Yuan Keli, the Minister of the Ministry of War in the Ming Dynasty, in his own "Fu Guotang" in Suizhou, Henan. Two hundred years later, there was an eight-character couplet written by Lin Zexu, a national hero in the late Qing Dynasty, in his study room: "The sea embraces all rivers, and tolerance is great; standing on a wall of thousands of feet, without desire is strong." The original intention is to metaphorize a broad mind like the sea. This is a description of man’s extraordinary magnanimity based on the infinite capacity of the sea that can accommodate countless rivers and streams.
The ancients often said: "The sea accepts hundreds of rivers, and it is big if it has tolerance; if it stands thousands of feet high on the wall, it is strong if there is no desire." It is a praise of the majesty of mountains and rivers, showing that the sea is big and the mountains are straight. It can also be used as a metaphor for people's broad-mindedness and generosity. They must have a tolerant character and be upright. They must not have any selfish desires. Only by being selfless can they stand firm and act righteously. Being selfless means being fearless.
Mr. Qian Mu explained in "A New Interpretation of the Analects of Confucius" that "How can one be strong if one has desires?" It means "if there are too many people who are addicted to desires, they will give in to things and not be strong." "This chapter only says that having too many desires cannot lead to strength. It does not mean that having no desires means being strong. For example, in Taoism, Zhuang Lao has no desires and practices judo, which is not a strong virtue." I think Lin Zexu's meaning is closer to this article in the Analects, which is Confucianism is a kind of ethics for being an official, which is not the same as the "no desire" taught by Buddhism and Taoism.