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SIR JOHN LUBBOCK'S
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THE
CONFUCIAN ANALECTS
44
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CONFUCIUS.


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.
Confucius
Sir John Lubbock's hundred Books
論語
​EA ET
THE
Confucian Analects
A TRANSLATION, WITH ANNOTATIONS
AND AN INTRODUCTION
BY
WILLIAM JENNINGS, M.A.
RECTOR OF GRASMERE
LATE COLONIAL CHAPLAIN, INCUMBENT OF ST. JOHN'S CATHEDRAL
HONG KONG
London and New York
GEORGE ROUTLEDGE AND SONS
LIMITED

BL
1830
.C75
E5
1895
7
CET
***
Sw
RS
-
Dir.
alley
19-21-49
69108
CONTENTS.
INTRODUCTION
Note on the Translation
Note on the Chinese Characters for the Five Virtues
PRONUNCIATION OF PROPER NAMES.
M
書
​•
BOOK I.
Chiefly on learning-its pleasures, inducements and
aims, Filial, fraternal, and other duties-Miscel-
laneous sayings
BOOK II.
Good government— Filial piety-The 'superior man
Miscellaneous sayings
BOOK III.
Chiefly on the abuse of the proprieties in ceremonial
and music
BOOK IV.
The social virtue, E-The superior and inferior
man-More about filial duty-Maxims .
BOOK V.
Opinions respecting certain of his disciples and others
-Approach of a disciple to the 'golden rule'-
Miscellaneous
PAGE
II
35
36
38
39
45
52
62
67
63
8
J
The Confucian Analects.
به
BOOK VI.
More characteristics of disciples-Obiter dicta— Wisdom
--Philanthropy
BOOK VII.
Chiefly characteristics of Confucius himself--What he
thought of himself—And what others thought—
An incident during a time of sickness.
BOOK VIII.
Miscellaneous-Sayings of Tsăng-Sentences of the
Master-Characters of ancient worthies
BOOK IX.
More sayings respecting himself-His favourite dis-
ciple's opinion of him and of his doctrines-
Another incident during a serious illness-Debetur
puero reverentia-Miscellaneous
▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬
•
BOOK X.
Confucius in private and official life-Description of
his habits, dress, diet, and general deportment in
various circumstances
•
BOOK XI.
Comparative worth of certain disciples-Death of the
favourite one-Four of them tell their wishes
•
BOOK XII.
The Master's answers when consulted about fellow-
feeling, the superior man, enlightenment, govern-
ment, litigations-Virtue, vice, and illusions—
Philanthropy-Friendships.
•
PAGE
77
87
96
103
112
122
132
...
نے
Contents.
BOOK XIII.
✓
More answers on the art of governing-How to deal
with dense populations-Different estimates of
'straightforwardness '-The social virtue again
- Qualifications for office - Consistency-The
superior man-How to prepare the people to
defend their country
•
BOOK XIV.
Good and bad government-Superior men and humane-
ness-Miscellaneous sayings-Estimate of histori-
cal characters-Murder of a duke-The superior
man-Returning good for evil-Worthies retiring
from the world—A king's mourning—A renegade
disciple-A precocious youth.
K
•
BOOK XV.
Lessons of practical wisdom-The social virtue again—
Ancient precedents for good government-
Righteousness an essential thing-The superior
man-Reciprocity the rule of life- Praise and
blame-Respect for what the majority of the
people like and dislike-Duty and mercenary aims
Intellectual attainments to be controlled by
'humanity'—Miscellaneous sayings - Considera-
tion for the blind.
•
BOOK XVI.
Against intestine strife-Supreme ruler should never
part with his authority-Good and bad friend-
ships-Errors to be avoided by inferiors and su-
periors-Classification of men as regards know-
ledge-Nine things the superior man should be
9
PAGE
143
154
170
..
·
E
IO
The Confucian Analects.
mindful of People's opinion of wealth without
virtue and virtue without wealth-Conversation
between a disciple and the son of Confucius
•
K
BOOK XVII.
The Master induced to take office-Nature and habit-
Two classes that never change-Banter with
disciples - Humaneness - Advantage of study.
ing the Odes-Love for externals-Ancient and
modern failings-'Does Heaven speak?'-The
Master'not at home '-Reasons for three years'
mourning for parents-Some men hopeless-
Valour without righteousness-Hatreds in superior
men-Age at which the character is fixed
BOOK XVIII.
Good men, ancient and modern, who withdrew into
seclusion owing to disordered times-Duke of
Chow's advice to his son-A wonderful family 199
INDEX
•
BOOK XIX.
Teachings and opinions of various chief disciples--
Judgements respecting the Master
. 188
•
BOOK XX.
Extracts from the Book of History respecting the prin-
ciples and ways of celebrated emperors and
founders of dynasties, including a prayer to the
Supreme Being-Five excellent rules for govern-
ment given by Confucius, and four evils to be
avoided-Three things necessary to be known
PAGE
180
•
2c6
214
• 221
INTRODUCTION TO THE
ANALECTS¹.
BY THE TRANSLATOR.
CONFUCIUS is the greatest personage of the
largest empire.' So begins a learned writer of
my acquaintance, the Rev. Ernst Faber, in his
valuable little work Lehrbegriff des Confucius-
a systematic digest of his doctrines. But,' he
adds truly, 'there is a sharp line of demarcation
to be drawn between the historical Confucius and
the one who is wrapped up in the incense of
sacrifices—between the doctrine which was promul-
gated by himself and the explanations of later
centuries.'
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¹ The Chinese name for the book is given on the title-
page, 論語 ​Lun Yu. Both words are akin to our
'discussions.' It is the first of what the Chinese call The
Four Books, as distinguished from The Classics. The second
and third books are The Great Learning and The Doctrine of
the Mean-digests of the Lun Yu, made by disciples and
other savants of the Sage's school; and the fourth is The
Works of Mencius.
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12
The Confucian Analects.
His name is held in the highest honour in the
whole Chinese empire from the highest in the
land to the lowest peasant. In every city there
is a temple erected at the expense of the govern-
ment for his worship. This temple contains either
a statue or a tablet on which his titles are in-
scribed. In a hall at the rear of the chief one are
tablets to certain of his ancestors and others, and
also to his chief disciples. The building is generally
the most conspicuous in the city, its walls being
painted red. Every spring and autumn worship
is paid him there by the chief officers of the city,
and offerings of the fruits of the earth are set forth
before him, and incense burnt. The emperor him-
self is required to attend in state at the imperial
college to perform these functions. Twice he kneels
and twice three times he bows his head to the
ground, and then utters the words, 'Great art
thou, O perfect Sage! Thy virtue is full, thy
doctrine complete. Among mortal men there has
not been thine equal. All kings honour thee.
Thy statutes and laws have come gloriously down.
Thou art the pattern in this imperial school.
Reverently have the sacrificial vessels been set
out. Full of awe, we sound our drums and bells ¹.'
1 I am indebted for these words to Legge's Classics, vol. i.
Prolegomena, p. 92.
Introduction.
13
Then follow more praises and particular eulogies.
In every school in China worship is paid him by
master and scholars, on the first and fifteenth of
each month, on the day of his birth, and at the
opening and closing of the school each year. In
every village school his titles are written on red
paper and affixed to the wall; and the characters
on the paper are usually these:
大成​至聖​先​師​孔夫子​神位
​i.e. ‘The shrine-tablet of the most accomplished,
holy, first and most eminent teacher, K'ung.'
The selector of the Hundred Books did well to
choose from the body of Confucian literature the
book which contains the most authentic of his
sayings. In the Analects we have the essence of
his teaching such as it was, given by various
disciples-crude enough, it is true, in substance
and arrangement, but bearing every trace of
genuineness.
Men are asking, and at the present day par-
ticularly, What is Confucianism? And what is it
that has made Confucius so great, and to have
exercised such immense influence over his country-
men during twenty-four centuries? To the first
question Sir Thomas Wade has lately given a sort
of answer-see Contemporary Review, November,
14
The Confucian Analects.
1894-in which he speaks of Confucianism not as
a religion—which most certainly it is not-but as
'a common ethico-political bond enabling millions
of human beings to be governed from one centre,'
as the tie between all the various races that make
up the vast conglomeration-the hundreds of
millions-that are called Chinese. Confucius was
no transcendentalist; he never troubled himself
over such matters as first causes, scarcely ever
dealt with anything in the abstract, knew nothing
about science, and not as much as one of our young
school-boys about the physical universe; was no
speculative thinker; and he himself disclaims, as
will be seen in the following pages, to have pro-
duced anything original, but calls himself merely
a 'transmitter.' He was distinctly not a theo-
logian, and the reader will here look in vain for
any thoughts of his about God or a future life, or
any direct worship of a Supreme Being. In this
he stands out in marked contrast with what the
ancients before him believed; and it is strange
that with all his professed respect for ancient
beliefs and ancient ways, and for the Odes-in
which the name of God frequently appears-he
does not once in these 'Sayings' mention the
sacred name. The truth is that religion had all
along been deteriorating. The fur:her back we go


--
Introduction.
15
in Chinese history the more lofty and pure seems
to have been the religion. And Confucius was
sceptical (in the original sense at least of that
term), and to his scepticism is largely due the
gradual decay of religious sentiment in the Chinese
ever since his day. Yet religious sentiment dies
hard; and no wonder that the people welcomed
Buddhism, Tauism, or anything else that came in
their way, in addition to dry ethical teaching.
He
will be found to speak freely enough of 'Heaven,'
it is true, but we cannot gather much from the
expression. He seems to have grasped indeed, in
common with minds great and small, the idea of
immortality, for sacrificial offerings to departed
relatives most certainly imply that; but he at-
tached little importance to it, and has nothing to
say of it, nor does he speak of any retribution for
good and evil after death, any redress or restitution
for inequalities and wrongs, or any judgement to
come. Very characteristic replies are those to
a disciple who questioned him about the spirits
of the departed and about death (XI. 11), 'How
can one serve them, if one cannot serve the living?
How can one know about death, when one does
not understand life¹?'
¹ But see note on that paragraph, p. 125. A still greater
instance of reserve is found in a book in the hands of
*.
16
The Confucian Analects.
1
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His
It is to be regretted that we have no writings
of Confucius that we can call genuine, and that
we have scarcely any methodical and detailed
statements of his on any one subject. A lecture
to his students would have been valuable. But
it is doubtful whether he even lectured.
method of teaching seems to have been like that
of his (almost) contemporary in the West, Socrates;
throwing out a truth here and there in the form
of paradox or aphorism, and asking questions with
a view to exposing men's ignorance or unwisdom
and leading them on to better knowledge. He
liked his disciples also to start questions (see
XV. 15). Socrates was in many respects like him ;
both used the tongue rather than the pen, and would
have been glad not to have had occasion to use
the tongue (XVII. 19); both dealt with reforms in
ethics and the State; and the memoirs of both
all Chinese, called Household Sayings. A disciple desired to
know whether the spirits of the departed were possessed
of consciousness or not. He replied, 'If I were to say
they are endowed with consciousness, then sons filled with
filial piety would waste all they have upon mourning
festivities and monumental tombs; whereas if I were to
say they have no consciousness, then sons devoid of filiaľ
piety would neglect the graves of their ancestors. Do not
wish now to inquire into this matter: later on it will of
itself fall within the range of your own experience.'
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...
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Introduction.
17
have many points of similarity. Memorabilia '
would be a better name, perhaps, for this book
than The Analects.
95
What is it, then, that has made his name so
great, that he is even now looked up to by his
countrymen as almost the sole fountain-head of
knowledge, and worshipped as the inimitable model
of virtue and sagacity and good manners? The
reader will judge whether he uttered or did any-
thing very remarkable-beyond his collecting and
editing the ancient traditionary lore of the country.
Those who have read Carlyle's Heroes and Hero-
worship will have had one point impressed upon
them—that it is not men of extraordinary genius,
not men of any conspicuous brightness of intellect,
that have moulded the character, the mode of
thought, and the very destiny of millions of their
fellow-men ; but men who have been burdened
with a sense that the world was not what it should
be, men who have had one great ideal before them,
men of energy and determination and sincerity,
with a character all their own, but above all of
practical common sense, understanding their time,
their nation, and proving their good-will by their
deeds. Of Mahomet, Carlyle says, we will not
praise his moral precepts as always of the super-
finest sort; yet it can be said that there is always
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4
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1
18
The Confucian Analects.
a tendency to good in them; that they are the
true dictates of a heart aiming towards what is
just and true.' The same might be said of Con-
fucius, who, however, committed none of Mahomet's
excesses nor shared in his eccentricities, nor ever
became a man of war. There was in him no un-
controllable energy, no mighty passion; in his
character everything was well-measured and
orderly. His life, a short sketch of which is
given below, spun itself out pathetically enough,
but had nothing of tragedy in it. The qualities
just mentioned are those that made him great.
And it was the circumstances of his times that
forced him into public notice. Corruption and
disorder were everywhere in the empire, swelling
like the waters of a flood (XVIII. 6). He was
a man who had studied thoroughly the history
of his country. The golden age of the beginnings
of the Chow dynasty was his dream (see VII. 5),
and Wăn and Wu and the Duke of Chow his heroes
and typical rulers These were celebrated in the
Annals and in the Odes which he edited. For an
account of these great men, and their times I must
refer the reader to the Shi-King and my Intro-
duction to it, or, better, to Dr. Legge's Chinese
Classics, vol. iii. part ii. His mind was con-
tinually going back to founders of dynasties, men
•
Introduction.
of exemplary virtue; and it would almost seem
as if he were contemplating another such change
in his time. The reforms made by Wăn and
Wu were not lasting. In the long run-and the
dynasty had lasted now six hundred years—the
new line of kings did not prove to be possessed
of more energy than its predecessors, though it
did actually hold out, in spite of its corruptions,
for three long centuries more. The sovereigns
parted too much with their power (XVI. 2). The
system was feudal. There were thirteen prin-
cipalities or dukedoms, and a great number of
smaller territories with their chiefs and heads
of clans. An effective control over all these was
at first maintained by the king, but in the course
of time princes and chiefs became puffed up with
a sense of power, as in the case of the dukes of
Lu and the head of the Ki clan so frequently
mentioned in this book. Some of them usurped
imperial state, fought among themselves, created
lesser lords to have some one to yield them fealty;
and these again now and then became too strong
for their masters and overpowered them in turn.
The result was anarchy and confusion-words
familiar in Confucian literature. Worthy and
wise ministers forsook their posts and fled into
retirement, the people were groaning in misery
B 2.
19
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20
The Confucian Analects.
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and oppression, and education was neglected and
'proprieties' gone.
This was the condition of the country when
Confucius first saw the light. As he grew up in
years, everything around him impressed his mind
more and more and seemed to demand complete
renovation. The times produced the man.
A brief account of his life may here be given.
Confucius was born in the year 551 B.C. His
father was governor of a small district within the
present province of Shan-tung, a military officer,
it is said, of great valour, and with the strength
almost of a Samson. Confucius was the son of his
old age, and the father did not live to know his
fame; he died within three years of his boy's birth.
The name 'Confucius' is of course not Chinese
it is only the Latinized form of his true name, which
was K'ung, with the addition of Fu-tsz, which
means ' Master,' and was given him in manhood ¹.
We have no trustworthy account of how he was
¹ Other names by which he is known are K'iu, anď
Chung-ni. These names occur in the Analects, but I have
invariably kept to the name Confucius, for clearness' sake.
The writer of the old history called the Shi-ki calls him
a yé-tsz, a child of the wilds or fields, something equivalent
to our 'born behind a hedge'-an illegitimate child;—
a statement which sorely exercises the minds of Chinese;
but it is scarcely probable.
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Introduction.
educated. The subject is touched upon twice or
thrice in the Analects (see II. 4; IX. 6; XIX. 22),
but these references do not help us much. Like
all Chinese he married young; at nineteen he was
a husband, and at twenty a father. He had at
least one son and one daughter. About this time,
his education enabled him to take office, some
minor administrative work; but it did not satisfy
him, and in his eager thirst for learning he gave up
his post after two years, and combined study with
teaching. He made such progress in this that his
fame spread, and men of even high position came
to consult him. At twenty-four, however, his
mother died, and according to national custom
he retired for the three years' mourning. But,
although cut off from public life, those three years
were fruitful in results. He not only mourned for
his mother, but for his fatherland; and his brain
was busy with thoughts how to remedy the state
of government and society. He studied history in
order to become a statesman as well as philosopher.
His aim being the moral and material welfare of
the people, history and other studies were to assist
him in this object.
We do not know much of the next few years.
At the age of thirty he says he was firmly estab-
lished' in what he had learnt, which now included
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21
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22
The Confucian Analects.
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music and 'The Proprieties'; and then disciples
flocked to him. Some of these were sons of men
of rank, and by their means he rose more and more
to notice, and in the end to higher official life.
He was successively a town-magistrate, Assistant
Superintendent of Public Works, and Minister of
Crime and Chief Judge of his own country of Lu.
In the last-named capacity he became the idol of
the people': it was said that his very appointment
was equivalent to putting an end to crime; there
were no cases to try! It is known, however, that
he did order one execution at least; but he was
against inflicting capital punishment on those whom
the State had omitted to instruct (see XX. 2); that
he called cruel tyranny. On litigation in the courts,
his sentiments will be found recorded in XII. 1 3: In
hearing causes I am not different from others: the
great point is to prevent litigation.'
But jealousy at his reforms in Lu, on the part of
neighbouring feudal lords, led to schemes for his
removal. They did not like the contrast. And
the artifice narrated in XVIII. 4, the sending of
a present to the Court of Lu of eighty girls--song-
stresses and danseuses—and the ready acceptance
of these by his prince, which put an end to public
business for some days, so disgusted Confucius that
he at once left the scene.
He went about from
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Introduction.
23
1
State to State for several years, accompanied by
a few followers; sometimes received with welcome
by princes or by old disciples now advanced to
office, and lodging awhile with them; sometimes
jeered at as 'a stray dog' or a 'rooster,' ' gaining
a living by his glib tongue.' He met everywhere,
sooner or later, with disappointment and sorrow ¹,
At last, in his sixty-ninth year, he returned to Lu,
and was allowed at Court in the rear of the
ministers'—a stand-by to be consulted on emer-
gency, but no longer in any real official capacity.
He spent the remaining five years of his life in
literary pursuits. His end is graphically described
in the Li Ki, or Book of Rites, translated by
Dr. Legge :-
Early one morning he got up, and with his
hands behind his back, dragging his staff, he moved
about by his door, crooning over—
C
"The great mountain must crumble;
The strong beam must break ;
And the wise man wither away like a plant.”
1 His disciples were his chief comfort. Even Tsz-lu,
whose name figures largely in this book-a very Peter
for daring, rashness and impetuosity, and who was ready
to go with him anywhere, even to the sea on a raft,—was
a favourite. He received many sharp rebuffs, but the
Master had strong kindly feelings towards him, and it is
said he wept sore at his death.
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The Confucian Analects.
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'After a little, he entered the house, and sat
down opposite the door. Tsz-kung had heard his
words, and said to himself, "If the great mountain
crumble, to what shall I look up? If the strong
beam break, on what shall I lean? If the wise
man wither like a plant, whom shall I imitate?
The Master, I fear, is going to be ill." He then
hastened into the house. The Master said, "Tsze,
what makes you so late? According to the
statutes of Hiá, the body was dressed and coffined
at the top of the steps on the east, so that it was
where the deceased used to go up (as master of the
house). The people of Yin performed the same
ceremony between the two pillars, so that the steps
for the host were on one side of the corpse, and
those for the guest on the other. The rule of Chow
is to perform it at the top of the western steps,
treating the deceased as if he were a guest. I am
a man (descended from the house) of Yin, and last
night I dreamt that I was sitting with the offerings
to the dead by my side between the two pillars.
Intelligent kings do not arise; and what one under
Heaven is able to take me as his Master? I appre-
hend I am about to die." With this he took to
his bed, was ill for seven days, and died¹.'
1
¹ Legge's Chinese Classics, vol. i. Prolegomena, pp. 87, 88;
E
Introduction.
25
I cannot refrain from quoting also Dr. I egge's
fine comment on his death. • His end was not un-
impressive, but it was melancholy. He sank behind
a cloud. Disappointed hopes made his soul bitter.
The great ones of the empire had not received his
teachings. No wife nor child was by to do the
kindly offices of affection for him. Nor were the
expectations of another life present with him as
he passed through the dark valley. He uttered no
prayer, and he betrayed no apprehensions. Deep-
treasured in his own heart may have been the
thought that he had endeavoured to serve his
generation by the will of God, but he gave no sign.'
His death was in the year 478 B. C., in his seventy-
third year.
After the above sketch of the Sage's life and
times, a resumé of the chief subjects discussed in
the book will be useful to the reader who is not
acquainted with Chinese lore. I should like to
have given it on the lines of Faber's Lehrbegriff
already referred to. That work, or the English
translation of it by P. G. von Moellendorff (Trübner
& Co.), should be consulted as a full and methodical
statement of what the Sage both taught and did
Sacred Books of the East, vol. xxvii. pp. 138, 139. The above
is from both translations, which vary a little.
21.280 s
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26
The Confucian Analects.
7
·
not teach; but it is written for readers acquainted
with the Chinese language, and it also comprises
sayings of the Master gathered from other sources
than this book-from the Great Learning and the
Doctrine of the Mean. I shall limit my resumé to
what is contained in the Analects.
It will be noticed, then, that no teaching of
Confucius rises to subjects higher than those which
have to do with this temporal life. And next, that
man, and man only, of all things in the world-
man in his relation to his fellow-men, and to
orderly life and good government-is of interest to
him and dealt with by him. His ideal is a happy,
well ordered State. And to this end he is prac-
tical, and has one main study (IV. 15; XV. 2) to
which he 'strings all others.' This was the heart
or nature of inan, the rectification of it, and the
harmonious regulation of all the relations and duties
of life which are its outgoings. As the Great
Learning, though not composed by himself, really
contains this one main study, it is best, I think, to
give it here in extenso: stript of its commentary it
is only a little short essay.
(
The norm of the Great Learning consists in
illustrating the illustrious virtue¹, consists in loving
امانه
1 This, Professor von Gabelentz thinks, is that 'redemptive

Introduction.
27
the people, consists in persistence in the highest
good.
'If persistence be learned, then one possesses
consistency; if one is consistent, then one can rest;
if resting, then one can have a tranquil mind; if
tranquil, then one can be deliberative; if delibera-
tive, then one can be successful.
Things have their root and their offshoots;
doings their ends and beginnings. To know the
order of precedence of things is to be near the
norm.
(
'Men of antiquity, desiring to illustrate the illus-
trious virtue, put first their government in good
order. In their desire to do this, they first regu-
lated their domestic affairs. Desiring this again,
they first cultivated their own personal character.
Desiring this too, they first purified their heart;
and in the desire to purify their heart they first
looked to the sincerity of their intentions. And
desiring this last, they first extended their know-
ledge to the utmost.
'Their way so to extend knowledge consisted in
examining things. When things had been examined,
knowledge was perfected; knowledge being per-
virtue' which in a sovereign 'would raise the whole pliable
nation out of the depths of degeneracy.'
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28 The Confucian Analects.
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A.
fected, there was sincerity in intention; upon this
again the heart was made pure; upon this next
the personal character was cultivated and formed;
upon this their families became rightly ordered;
and upon this foundation States were properly
governed. And with proper government in the
States the whole empire was at peace.
'From the Son of Heaven down to the common
people, this is a root matter for every individual
-to cultivate personal character. That the root
should be in disorder, and the branches in perfect
state, is a self-contradiction. That the thing which
is valued as an essential should be treated as
trivial, or that a thing which is regarded as trivial
should become the principal aim, has never yet
happened.'
Strange to say, there is exceedingly little in the
Analects to be gathered as to what Confucius
thought of the nature of man. Man's goodness by
birth is assumed, but not distinctly taught. See,
however, note on VI. 17. There is a famous dictum
in XVII. 2: By nature men approximate towards,
by practice they become divergent from, each
other.' Some men are represented as having con-
nate knowledge, or are 'born to know,' others have
to painfully acquire it; and only the extremely
wise and extremely dull are invariable in their
F
The four
Introduction.
nature. A disciple says (V. 12) that the Master's
discourses on human nature and the way of Heaven
were not permitted to be heard by all; and pro-
bably that is why they have left such scanty records
of them. Much more is said in the Doctrine of the
Mean, where Man as the product of Heaven and
Earth is joined with them as a trinity; and gene-
rally the ideal nature, rather than what it actually
is, is dealt with.
29
I will now arrange under various heads subjects
to which he here attaches great importance, and
end with what may be considered defects in his
teaching.
Virtue. There is a general term for this, mean-
ing moral excellence of any kind. And there are
five chief divisions of it, viz. (1) knowledge, or wis-
dom, (2) humaneness, (3) righteousness, (4) propriety,
(5) sincerity, or trustworthiness.
Of Knowledge, when asked once what he meant
by it, he answered, Knowledge of men'; and this
seems to be borne out in nearly all else he says of
it. It ought to be followed up by the choice of
what is good. To know is not as good as to love.'
'Mere knowledge is useless.' All intellectual attain-
ments should be controlled by the next virtue of
Humaneness. This includes everything which
is morally excellent, and excludes all that refers to
(
30
The Confucian Analects.
the individual. It includes his famous life-rule of
Reciprocity (XV. 23) or Forbearance. Many times
he is questioned about it, and he gives various
answers, but is probably nearest the mark when he
says that as knowledge is to know men, so this
virtue is to love men' (XII. 22). The word will
not always bear translating in the same way, and
I have given it the different meanings of philan-
thropy, humanity, good-will, good-nature, fellow-
feeling, &c., and sometimes, in a round-about way,
the feeling or duty proper between man and
inan.
Righteousness. A sense of what is right and
just, oftenest found in connexion with contem-
plation of getting gain. But it includes also a
sense of honour, and the duties of and relations
between ruler and officials. 'Bravery leads to
wrong deeds without it.' To know what is right,
and not to do it, is moral cowardice.'
Propriety. Much stress is laid upon this. It
has to do with an elaborate ceremonial in vogue,
with the preservation of right relations between
different grades of men, with ritual in worship,
correct demeanour in society, decency, polite man-
ners, &c. Yet without humanity' it is nothing;
though highly to be prized, it is only after all'an
outward ornament.' It is often mentioned in con-
C
1
Introduction.
31
nexion with music: from the proprieties the
character is given stability, and from music the
finish is received.' Music as well as propriety had
its severe rules, but had also a softening influence
and carried harmony' into life.
Faithfulness. Frequently combined with loyalty
or leal-heartedness. The word is here often trans-
lated confidence, trustworthiness, sincerity. It is
an essential between friends, between ruler and
subjects, and in all departments of social life; and
without it men can no more get on than a carriage
without the appliances for yoking (II. 22).
With these five virtues are interwoven five other
properties, viz. reverence, earnestness, kindness,
bravery, and perseverance; but on these we need
1
not dwell.
'
A common expression throughout the book is
that of the 'Superior man'; in Chinese, #,
kiun tsz. It is the Sage's ideal or model man, but
sometimes we find other and lighter shades of
meaning, and one feels a difficulty in translating
always by the same word; in fact, it will not bear
it. It means generally the man who either is
raised already above the common run of men by
his attainments, or one who is striving to raise
himself by practising what is good.
Filial piety is also an important factor in the
-J
Brid
1.
P
32
The Confucian Analects.
•
:
book. It is the fundamental virtue of home life,
and as such leads to good government; and the same
duties extend to it (see II. 22). Filial piety and
friendly subordination among brothers are a root of
that right feeling which is owing generally from
man to man' (I. 2). Filial piety consists in not
being disobedient, in serving the parents, when
alive, according to propriety, when dead in burying
them according to propriety, and in sacrificing to
them according to propriety' (II. 5). It is a virtue
which has been profoundly rooted in every Chinese
conscience; and one which more than any other
has been observed. It is owing to the honouring
of parents chiefly, I believe, that the people have
'lived so long in the land.'
It has been light-heartedly said that the Chinese
empire has hung together so long because it had
not strength enough to fall to pieces; but we shall
be nearer the truth, I think, if we ascribe its
stability to the peaceable disposition, the intelli-
gence, the industry of the people-spite of the
corruptions caused by its leading men,-to the firm-
ness of their family bonds, the loyal obedience of
the people, and the practice of all the other virtues
enumerated above as inculcated by their great Sage.
On the subject of War, so interesting at the
present moment, he seldom spoke. He was angry
(
4.
Introduction.
33
once at being consulted on military matters, and
left the Court (XV. 1). But in the case of necessary
war, he has excellent advice to give. See last two
paragraphs of Book XIII.
Of his defects there is not much that can fairly
be said. Dr. Legge, than whom no man in Europe,
probably, has such a right to judge, says that after
long study of his character and opinions, he is
unable to regard him as a great man. 'He threw
no new light on any of the questions which have
a world-wide interest. He gave no impulse to
religion. He had no sympathy with progress. His
influence has been wonderful, but it will henceforth
wane.'
Confucius, however, did not pretend to any of
these things. It is in what he did pretend to do,
that we should rather seek for faults in him. In
his reserve about great and important matters,
while professing to teach men, he is perhaps most
to blame, and in his holding back what was best
in the religion of the ancients. Sacrifices to ances-
tors he recognized, but chilled the faith from which
they originated. There is a certain selfishness in
his teaching, which had the effect of making those
who came under his influence soon feel themselves
great and self-satisfied; and to this may be traced,
perhaps, the almost contemptuous arrogance which
с
•
The
-
*
•
F
34
The Confucian Analects.
the Chinese display towards foreigners and to any
better teaching than they have received. If he
believed in Heaven, he could not pray to It; when
seriously ill he makes light of prayer (VII. 34): his
prayer was his life! Man must look to himself,
how he can get on with what he has once for all
received from Heaven, and with what is at his
disposal in the world, especially among men.' He
had nothing to say against polygamy. He allowed
superstition in some cases, though not believing in
it-as good old customs. He was not always
strictly careful about the truth being told (XVII.
20; VI. 13); and the Chinese follow him there.
With all that is said about filial piety, there are no
parental duties: the father is an autocrat, and may
now for certain offences put his child to death.
Sisters are not even mentioned. As regards con-
cubinage, he has said nothing by way of objection,
-perhaps because he was himself the son of
a concubine.
We must not, however, judge him from a
Christian standpoint; but, if at all, by the light
of his times. It has required a revelation from
Heaven to teach men the truth about themselves,
and to give them proper motives for life; and
I
1 Faber.
Introduction.
35
without a living faith in a God of truth and a true
Son of Heaven the best and wisest men will err,
and even with it do err.
GRASMERE, January, 1895.
W. J.
NOTE ON THE TRANSLATION.
IN the Chinese text a disciple is referred to
sometimes by his surname, sometimes by his
cognomen, and oftenest by his style, or designation
given to him as a disciple and known by the prefix
Tsz. For instance, the person named in the trans-
lation Tsz-lu is spoken of in the original by the
alternate names Ki-Lu, Chung Yu, and sometimes
simply Yu.
This is all very confusing; and I have therefore
generally fixed upon one better-known name, and
kept to it. Sometimes when a personal pronoun
would do, I have omitted the name altogether;
I fear the book bristles too much with even those
that are left.
Again, in the Chinese text, in perhaps three-
fourths of the number of paragraphs, a sentence
is introduced by the formula, The Master said'
(F), which in English after a while becomes
wearisome. Monotony is nothing to Asiatics.
I have thought it best to resort to little tricks of
}
1
-
C 2
36
The Confucian Analects.
7'
i
inversion, oratio obliqua, or, when a number of
sayings of the Master follow immediately upon
each other, of combining them under one head, as
'Other sayings of the Master,' and 'Obiter dicta of
the Master' where the sayings have no connexion
with each other.
I must not omit to acknowledge my indebtedness
to Dr. Legge's thesaurus of information, The Chinese
Classics. I dare, however, very often to differ from
him; and it will be seen that I have independently
waded through a mass of standard Chinese com-
mentary, and sometimes dared to differ from what
I found there.
There are little awkwardnesses of expression
which I should have been glad of longer leisure to
correct, and as to which I must ask the indulgence
of critics.
W. J.
NOTE ON THE CHINESE CHARACTERS FOR THE
FIVE VIRTUES.
It is interesting to trace the origin and rudi-
mentary ideas of these. It will give the ordinary
reader also a little insight into the structure of
characters.
1. Knowledge or Wisdom,, chi. This character
is a compound of, shi, an arrow, and ☐, k'au,
1
***
Introduction.
37
a mouth. There is no apparent connexion; yet
here it is,-ability to speak to the point, to hit the
mark! See an instance in XI. 13.
2. Humaneness, E, jin. Composed of ▲, jin,
a man, and —, 'rh, two, plurality. The connexion
here is obvious. As man cannot live without his
fellow-men, he must stand by them, and they by
him.
3. Right, or righteousness,, i. The most
interesting of all. The character is made up of two:
¥, yang, a sheep, and, wo, I, my, mine. Here
we are taken back to the earliest period when the
Chinese lived a nomadic life and fed their flocks
on the Asiatic plains. The idea of righteousness
then seems to have been that every one should
attend to his own sheep and not steal any of his
neighbours'. We are reminded of Abram and Lot.
4. Propriety, ſ, li. Composed of á, shi, to
show, manifest, admonish; a radical character also
joined with all words relating to worship; and
,li, a vessel used for sacrificial offerings. Correct
ritual in worship seems to have been the initial
idea, afterwards extended to decorum in all things.
5. Faithfulness, 1, sin. From Ʌ, jin, a man,
and, yen, a word. A man standing by, or to,
his word!
WAEL
*.
38
The Confucian Analects.
:
J
漁​の​高
​PRONUNCIATION OF PROPER NAMES, &c.
j, as in French.
ng, commencing a word, like the same letters terminating
one.
a, as in father, except when short, as ă.
ai or ei, as in aisle or eider.
au, as in German, or like ow in cow.
é, as in fête.
i (not followed by a consonant), as ee in see.
u (followed by a consonant), as in bull.
iu, as ew in new.
úi, as ooi in cooing.
h at the end of a name makes the preceding vowel short.
in the middle of a word denotes an aspirate (h), as
Kung Khung.
-
N.B.-The references (in the Notes) to the Shi-King are to
my own Version and arrangement of it, published in this
Series.
•
:.
****
THE CONFUCIAN ANALECTS.
BOOK I.
Chiefly on learning-its pleasures, inducements, and aims,-
Filial, fraternal, and other duties-- Miscellaneous sayings.
1. To learn ¹,' said the Master, and then to
practise opportunely what one has learnt-does
not this bring with it a sense of satisfaction?
1
'To have associates (in study) coming to one
from distant parts-does not this also mean
pleasure in store?
'And are not those who, while not comprehend-
ing (all that is said), still remain not unpleased (to
hear), men of the superior order?'
2. A saying of the Scholar Yu²:-
'It is rarely the case that those who act the
1 The word, learning,' Prof. Legge well remarks,
'rightly occupies the forefront in the studies of a nation
of which its educational system has so long been the dis-
tinction and glory.' This opening paragraph looks as if it
were part of an address of welcome to his pupils.
2 A disciple, now himself become a master. He and
Tsăng (parag. 4) are the only ones distinguished by this
title of 'Scholar.' 'Philosopher' I think too grand a word.
YES
40
The Confucian Analects.
#
T
17.
part of true men in regard to their duty to parents
and elder brothers are at the same time willing to
turn currishly upon their superiors: it has never yet
been the case that such as desire not to commit that
offence have been men willing to promote anarchy
or disorder.
'Men of superior mind busy themselves first in
getting at the root of things; and when they have
succeeded in this the right course is open to them.
Well, are not filial piety and friendly subordina-
tion among brothers a root of that right feeling
which is owing generally from man to man¹?'
3. The Master observed, Rarely do we meet with
the right feeling due from one man to another
where there is fine speech and studied mien.'
C
4. The Scholar Tsăng once said of himself: 'On
three points I examine myself daily, viz. whether,
in looking after other people's interests, I have not
1 ‹ That right feeling which is owing generally from man to
man'; in these words I give the fullest meaning I can of
the term, jin, which will frequently occur in this book.
We have no exact English equivalent for it. It is the virtue
of humanitas, the right feeling of man to his kind. The
composition of the character ('man' and 'two') in-
dicates this to some extent. It is not always possible to
render the term by the same words. Sometimes philan-
thropy (in its deepest sense), sometimes social good feeling,
will express its meaning.
T:

Book I.
41
been acting whole-heartedly; whether, in my inter-
course with friends, I have not been true; and
whether, after teaching, I have not myself been
practising what I have taught.'
5. The Master once observed that to rule well
one of the larger States¹ meant strict attention to
its affairs and conscientiousness on the part of the
ruler; careful husbanding of its resources, with at
the same time a tender care for the interests of all
classes; and the employing of the masses in the
public service at suitable seasons.

6. 'Let young people,' said he, 'show filial piety
at home, respectfulness towards their elders when
away from home; let them be circumspect, be
truthful; their love going out freely towards all,
cultivating goodwill to men. And if, in such
a walk, there be time or energy left for other
things, let them employ it in the acquisition of
literary or artistic accomplishments.'
7. (The disciple) Tsz-hiá said, 'The appreciation
of worth in men of worth, thus diverting the mind
from lascivious desires,-ministering to parents
while one is the most capable of so doing,-serving
¹ Lit., a State of 1000 chariots, i. e. capable of turning
out that number in war-time.
A
*
42
The Confucian Analects.
:
1
".
one's ruler when one is able to devote himself
entirely to that object,-being sincere in one's
language in intercourse with friends: this I cer-
tainly must call (evidence of) learning, though
others may say there has been "no learning."
8. Sayings of the Master:-
(1) 'If the great man be not grave, he will not
be revered, neither can his learning be
solid.
(2) 'Give prominent place to loyalty and sin-
cerity.
(3) 'Have no associates (in study) who are not
(advanced) somewhat like yourself.
(4) 'When you have erred, be not afraid to
correct yourself.'
M
9. A saying of the Scholar Tsăng:-
'The virtue of the people is renewed and en-
riched when attention is (seen to be) paid to the
departed, and the remembrance of distant ancestors
kept and cherished.'
10. Tsz-k'in put this query to (his fellow dis-
ciple) Tsz-kung: said he, 'When our Master comes
to this or that State, he learns without fail how it
is being governed. Does he investigate matters?
or are the facts given him?'
Tsz-kung answered, 'Our Master is a man of
!
f..
Book I
43
pleasant manners, and of probity, courteous, mode-
rate, and unassuming: it is by his being such that
he arrives at the facts. Is not his way of arriving
at things different from that of others?'
11. A saying of the Master:-
'He who, after three years' observation of the
will of his father when alive, or of his past conduct
if dead, does not deviate from that father's ways, is
entitled to be called "a dutiful son.""
12. Sayings of the Scholar Yu:-
For the practice of the Rules of Propriety¹,
one excellent way is to be natural. This natural-
ness became a great grace in the practice of kings
of former times; let every one, small or great,
follow their example.
'It is not, however, always practicable; and it
is not so in the case of a person who does things
naturally, knowing that he should act so, and yet
who neglects to regulate his acts according to the
Rules.
C
13. When truth and right are hand in hand,
¹ An important part of a Chinaman's education still.
The text-book, The Li Ki (see Sacred Books of the East,
Clarendon Press, vols. xxvii and xxviii), contains rules for
behaviour and propriety for the whole life, from the cradle
to the grave.
TRENERE KA
+
*
44
The Confucian Analects.
a statement will bear repetition. When respectful-
ness and propriety go hand in hand, disgrace and
shame are kept afar off. Remove all occasion for
alienating those to whom you are bound by close
ties, and you have them still to resort to.'
14. A saying of the Master :-
The man of greater mind who, when he is
eating, craves not to eat to the full; who has
a home, but craves not for comforts in it; who is
active and earnest in his work and careful in his
words; who makes towards men of high principle,
and so maintains his own rectitude;-that man
may be styled a devoted student.
15. Tsz-kung asked, 'What say you, sir, of the
poor who do not cringe and fawn; and what of the
rich who are without pride and haughtiness?'
'They are passable,' the Master replied; 'yet they
are scarcely in the same category as the poor who
are happy, and the rich who love propriety.'
'In the Book of the Odes,' Tsz-kung went on to
say, ' we read of one
'Polished, as by the knife and file,
The graving-tool, the smoothing-stone ¹."
((
Does that coincide with your remark?'
1 See Shi-King, I. v. 1.
素
​zvi
...
$1

し
​Book II.
45
'Ah! such as you,' replied the Master, ' may well
commence a discussion on the Odes. If one tell
you how a thing goes, you know what ought to
come¹.'
16. 'It does not greatly concern me,' said the
Master, that men do not know me; my great
concern is, my not knowing them.'
BOOK II.
Good government—Filial piety—The superior man—
Miscellaneous sayings.
Sayings of the Master :—
1. 'Let a ruler base his government upon virtuous
principles, and he will be like the pole-star, which
remains steadfast in its place, while all the host of
stars turn towards it.
2. The Book of Odes contains three hundred
pieces, but one expression in it may be taken as
covering the purport of all, viz. "Unswerving
mindfulness 2."
•
1 I. e. when a subject is started, you are ready with an
apt quotation.
2 Shi-King, IV. iv. 1. See my Introduction to that book,
where this saying is referred to as irrelevant and a
straining of language.
7
46
The Confucian Analects.
ان کے
3.
To govern (simply) by statute, and to reduce
all to order by means of pains and penalties, is to
render the people evasive, and devoid of any sense
of shame.
'To govern upon principles of virtue, and to
reduce them to order by the Rules of Propriety,
would not only create in them the sense of shame,
but would moreover reach them in all their errors.
4. 'When I attained the age of fifteen, I became
bent upon study.
'At thirty, I was a confirmed student.
'At forty, nought could move me from my course.
'At fifty, I comprehended the will and decrees of
Heaven.
'At sixty, my ears were attuned (to them).
'At seventy, I could follow my heart's desires,
without overstepping the lines of rectitude'.
5. To a question of Măng-i², as to what filial
piety consisted in, the Master replied, 'In not being
perverse.' Afterwards, when Fan Ch'i was driving
him, the Master informed him of this question and
answer, and Fan Ch'i asked, 'What was your
meaning?' The Master replied, 'I meant that the
1 'Lines of rectitude'; lit., the square-a carpenter's
square; here used metaphorically.
2 One of the ministers of the State of Lu, and head of
one of its Three Families.' See on III. 2.
Book II.
47
Rules of Propriety should always be adhered to in
regard to those who brought us into the world: in
ministering to them while living, in burying them
when dead, and afterwards in the offering to them
of sacrificial gifts.'
6. To a query of Măng Wu¹ respecting filial
piety, the Master replied, 'Parents ought to bear
but one trouble,-that of their own sickness.'
7. To a like question put by Tsz-yu, his reply
was this: The filial piety of the present day
(simply) means the being able to support one's
parents,—which extends even to the case of dogs
and horses, all of which may have something to give
in the way of support. If there be no reverential
feeling in the matter, what is there to distinguish
between the cases?'
8. To a like question of Tsz-hiá, he replied:-
'The manner is the difficulty. If, in the case of
work to be done, the younger folks (simply) take
upon themselves the toil of it; or if, in the matter
of meat and drink, they (simply) set these before
their elders, is this to be taken as filial piety?'
9. Once the Master remarked, 'I have conversed
1 Son of the Măng-i just mentioned.
4
I
26
.
1
..
}
-

48
The Confucian Analects.
1
with Hwúi¹ the whole day long, and he has contro-
verted nothing that I have said, as if he were
without wits. But when his back was turned, and
I looked attentively at his conduct apart from me,
I found it satisfactory in all its issues. No, indeed!
Hwúi is not without his wits.'
Other observations of the Master:-
10. 'If you observe what things people (usually)
take in hand, watch their motives, and note par-
ticularly what it is that gives them satisfaction,
shall they be able to conceal from you what they
are? Conceal themselves, indeed!
II. 'Be versed in ancient lore, and familiarize
yourself with the modern; then may you become
teachers.
12. 'The great man is not a (mere) receptacle2."
13. In reply to Tsz-kung respecting the great
man:
'What he first says, as a result of his experience,
he afterwards follows up.
L
14. 'The great man is catholic-minded, and not
one-sided. The common man is the reverse.
¹ Hwúi was one of the Sage's greatest favourites. See
more about his praise in VI. 2, 5, 9.
2 Lit., vessel, or tool. Utensil (Legge).
i
-
1
:
Book II.
49
15. ‘Learning with thought is a snare; thought
without learning is a danger.
16. "Where the mind is set much upon heterodox
principles,—there truly and indeed is harm.'
17. To (the disciple) Tsz-lu the Master said,
Shall I give you a lesson about knowledge?
When you know a thing, maintain that you know
it; and when you do not, acknowledge your igno-
rance. This is (characteristic of) knowledge.'
"
18. Tsz-chang was studying with an eye to
official income. The Master addressed him thus:-
Of the many things you hear, hold aloof from
those that are doubtful, and speak guardedly with
reference to the rest; your mistakes will then be
few. Also, of the many courses you see adopted,
hold aloof from those that are risky, and carefully
follow the others; you will then seldom have
occasion for regret. Thus, being seldom mistaken
in your utterances, and having few occasions for
regret in the line you take, you are on the high
road to your preferment.'
19. To a question put to him by duke Ngai¹ as
to what should be done in order to render the
people submissive to authority, Confucius replied,
1 Of Lu (Confucius's native State).
D
•
**
C
↓
50
The Confucian Analects.
!
'Promote the straightforward, and reject those
whose courses are crooked, and the thing will be
effected. Promote the crooked and reject the
straightforward, and the effect will be the reverse.'
20. When Ki K'ang¹ asked of him how the
people could be induced to show respect, loyalty,
and willingness to be led, the Master answered,
'Let there be grave dignity in him who has the
oversight of them, and they will show him respect;
let him be (seen to be) good to his own parents, and
kindly in disposition, and they will be loyal to
him; let him promote those who have ability, and
see to the instruction of those who have it not, and
they will be willing to be led.'
A
21. Some one, speaking to Confucius, inquired,
'Why, sir, are you not an administrator of govern-
ment ?' The Master rejoined, 'What says the
Book of the Annals, with reference to filial duty ?--
"Make it a point to be dutiful to your parents and
amicable with your brethren; the same duties
extend to an administrator." If these, then, also
make an administrator, how am I to take (your
words about) being an administrator 2 ? '
1 Head of one of the 'Three Families' of Lu. See on III. 2.
2 The answer is evasive, as often; but evidently intended
to make the man think, and adapted to his line of thought.
ན་
Book II.
51
22. On one occasion the Master remarked, 'I know
not what men are good for, on whose word no
reliance can be placed. How should your carriages,
large or little, get along without your whipple-trees
or swing-trees?'
23. Tsz-chang asked if it were possible to fore-
cast (the state of the country) ten generations
hence. The Master replied in this manner: The
Yin dynasty adopted the rules and manners of the
Hiá line of kings, and it is possible to tell whether
it retrograded or advanced. The Chow line has
followed the Yin, adopting its ways, and whether
there has been deterioration or improvement may
also be determined. Some other line may take up
in turn those of Chow; and supposing even this
process to go on for a hundred generations, the
result may be known.'
24. Other sayings of the Master :-
'It is but flattery to make sacrificial offerings
to departed spirits not belonging to one's own
family.
A
'It is (moral) cowardice to leave undone what
one perceives to be right to do.'
!
D 2
52
The Confucian Analects.
·
"
:
.
BOOK III.
Chiefly on the abuse of the proprieties in ceremonial and music.
1. Alluding to the head of the Ki family¹, and the
eight lines of posturers 2 before their ancestral hall,
Confucius remarked, 'If the Ki can allow himself
to go to this extent, to what extent will he not
allow himself to go?'
'
2. The Three Families 3 were in the habit, during
the Removal (of the sacred vessels after sacrifice)*,
of using the hymn commencing
'Harmoniously the Princes.
Draw near with reverent tread,
Assisting in his worship
Heaven's Son, the great and dread".'
1 The Chief of the Ki clan was virtually the duke of Lu,
under whom Confucius for a time held office.
2 These posturers were mutes who took part in the ritual
of the ancestral temple, waving plumes, flags, &c. Each
line or rank of these contained eight men. Only in the
sovereign's household should there have been eight lines
of them; a ducal family like the Ki should have had but
six lines; a great official had four, and one of lower
grade two. These were the gradations marking the status
of families, and Confucius's sense of propriety was offended
at the Ki's usurping in this way the appearance of royalty.
³ Three great Families related to each other, in whose
hands the government of the State of Lu then was, and of
which the Ki was the chief.
↑ The technical term 'Removal' means 'all this.
• See the Shi-King, IV. ii. 7. Here was another offence
LA
Book III.
53
'How,' exclaimed the Master, 'can such words be
appropriated in the ancestral hall of the Three
Families?'
•
3. Where a man,' said he again, has not the
proper feelings due from one man to another, how
will he stand as regards the Rules of Propriety?
And in such a case, what shall we say of his sense of
harmony?'
4. On a question being put to him by Lin Fang
(a disciple) as to what was the radical idea upon
which the Rules of Propriety were based, the
Master exclaimed, 'Ah! that is a large question.
As to some rules, where there is (likelihood of)
extravagance, they would rather demand economy;
in those which relate to mourning, and where there
is (likelihood of) being easily satisfied, what is
wanted is real sorrow ¹.'
5. (Speaking of the disorder of the times) he
remarked that while the barbarians on the North
and East had their Chieftains, we here in this great
country had nothing to compare with them in that
respect:—we had lost these distinctions !
against propriety: this hymn was for use only in the temple
of the sovereign.
1 My commentary says the meaning of the Sage's reply
is, 'Let us first have reality, and then refinement in the
methods of expressing it.'
7
54.
The Confucian Analects.
S
1
6. Alluding to the matter of the Chief of the Ki
family worshipping on T'ai-shan ¹, the Master said
to Yen-yu², 'Cannot you save him from this?'
He replied, 'It is beyond my power.' 'Alas, alas!'
exclaimed the Master, are we to say that the
spirits of T'ai-shan have not as much discernment
as Lin Fang 3?'
(
7. Of the superior man,' the Master observed,
'In him there is no contentiousness. Say even
that he does certainly contend with others, as in
archery competitions; yet mark, in that case, how
courteously he will bow and go up for the forfeit-
cup, and come down again and give it to his
competitor. In his very contests he is still the
superior man.'
1 One of the five sacred mountains, worshipped upon only
by the sovereign.
2 A disciple of Confucius, in the service of the Ki.
3 Lin Fang had inquired (parag. 4) about the raison
d'être of the Rules of Propriety: neither the duke of Lu,
nor the spirits of the sacred mountain which accepted his
sacrifice, seemed to care for propriety.
* See Shi-King, II. vii. 6.
'Hit yonder centre white who can,
The cup may order for his man.'
The defeated competitor was given this to drink. This is
common in games among the Chinese still. In the Book
of Rites we read that the liquor was properly for nourishing
the aged or sick, and the archer sought to win that he
might decline what was suitable only for feeble persons!
*
•
Book III.
55
8. Tsz-hiá once inquired what inference might
be drawn from the lines-
'Dimples playing in witching smile,
Beautiful eyes, so dark, so bright!
O and her face may be thought the while
Coloured by art, red rose on white'!'
<
Colouring,' replied the Master, 'requires a pure
and clear background.' Then,' said the other,
'rules of ceremony require to have a background!
'Ah!' exclaimed the Master, 'you are the man to
catch the drift of my thought. Such as you may
well introduce a discussion on the Odes.'
6
9. Said the Master, 'As regards the ceremonial
adopted and enforced by the Hiá dynasty, I am
able to describe it, although (their own descendants
in the State of) Ki 2 can adduce no adequate testi-
mony in favour of its use there. So, too, I am
able to describe the ceremonial of the Yin dynasty,
although no more can the Sung³ people show suffi-
cient reason for its continuance amongst themselves.
And why cannot they do so? Because they have
1 The first two lines only are found in the Shi-King
(I. v. 3); the song quoted is said really to have been one
of the many not admitted by Confucius into his collection.
2 A small Eastern State in which this ancient ceremonial
was still kept up.
3 Another State a little westward of Ki, and south of the
Yellow River.
i
I
56
The Confucian Analects.
1
i.
not documents enough, nor men learned enough.
If only they had such, I could refer them to them
in support of their usages.'
1
10. 'When I am present at the great quinquennial
sacrifice to the manes of the royal ancestors ¹,' the
Master said, 'from the pouring-out of the oblation
onwards, I have no heart to look on.'
II. Some one asked what was the purport of this
great sacrifice, and the Master replied, 'I cannot
tell. The position in the empire of him who could
tell you is as evident as when you look at this'-
pointing to the palm of his hand 2.
12. When he offered sacrifices to his ancestors,
he used to act as if they were present before him.
In offering to (other) spirits it was the same.
He would say, 'If I do not myself take part in
my offerings, it is all the same as if I did not offer
them.'
³
13. Wang-sun Kiá¹ asked him once, What says
6
1 Viz. at the Court of Lu. The complaint is again of the
duke's usurping regal functions: it was proper only for
the king to offer this great sacrifice.
2 An ambiguous and evasive answer. As much as to say,
"The king should best know his own affairs.'
3 He speaks in the first person, but his words seem to be
directed against the irregularities of others.
* A great official in the State of Wei. The occasion
seems to have been a visit of Confucius to that State, which
4
Book III.
57
the proverb, "Petter to court favour in the kitchen
than in the drawing-room "?' The Master replied,
Nay (better say), He who has sinned against
Heaven has none (other) to whom prayer may be
addressed.'
6
(
14. Of the Chow dynasty the Master remarked,
It looks back upon two other dynasties¹; and
what a rich possession it has in its records of those
times! I follow Chow!
15. On his (first) entry into the grand temple, he
inquired about every matter connected with its
usages. Some one thereupon remarked, 'Who says
that the son of the man of Tsou 2 understands about
ceremonial? On entering the grand temple he
inquired about everything.' This remark coming
to the Master's ears, he said, ' What I did is (part
of the) ceremonial !'
16. ‘In archery,' he said, 'the great point to be
observed is not (simply the perforation of) the
Kiá suspected was with a view to seeking office; and the
latter's allusion to the proverb was intended, it is thought,
to insinuate that it would be better to present his petition
to him than to head-quarters. The Sage could not but
rebuke him.
1 I. e. the Hiá and Yin. The Hiá, B. C. 2205 to 1766; the ·
Yin, 1766 to 1122. The Chow lasted from B.C. 1122 to 255.
2 Tsou was Confucius's birthplace; his father was governor
of the town.
*
-*
2
58
The Confucian Analects.
leather 1; for men have not all the same strength.
That was the fashion in the olden days.'
17. Once, seeing that his disciple Tsz-kung was
desirous that the ceremonial observance of offering
a sheep at the new moon might be dispensed with,
the Master said, 'Ah! you grudge the loss of the
sheep; I grudge the loss of the ceremony 2'
C
18. To serve one's ruler (nowadays),' he re-
marked, 'fully complying with the Rules of Pro-
priety, is regarded by others as toadyism!'
3
19. When duke Ting ³ questioned him as to how
a prince should deal with his ministers, and how
they in turn should serve their prince, Confucius
said in reply, 'In dealing with his ministers a prince
1 Not strength, but sure aim, is what is now wanted.
2 A delicate hint, directed not only at the disciple, but at
the neglect of the dukes of Lu. The king at the end of
each year issued a calendar to the feudal princes, to be
kept in their ancestral temples; and it was the duty of
the latter at each new moon to make a formal announce-
ment of the day and request sanction for their duties
during the month. But at this time the dukes of Lu,
while continuing the offering of the sheep, neglected the
rites connected with it.
3 Of Lu. It was this ruler who took Confucius under his
wing. He promoted him from a town magistracy to the
office of Minister of Works, and afterwards to that of
Minister of Justice; and it was while he occupied these
posts that he became the idol of the people and his name
a household word.
".
Book III.
should observe the proprieties; in serving his prince
a minister should observe the duty of loyalty.'
59
20. Referring to the First of the Odes¹, he re-
marked that it was mirthful without being lewd,
and sad also without being painful.
21. Duke Ngai asked (the disciple) Tsai Wo
respecting the places for sacrificing to the Earth.
The latter replied, 'The Family of the Great Yu,
of the Hiá dynasty, chose (a place of) pine trees;
the Yin founders chose cypresses; and the Chow
founders chestnut trees (solemn and majestic) 2, to
inspire, 'tis said, the people with feelings of awe.'
The Master on hearing of this exclaimed, 'Never
an allusion to things that have been enacted in the
past! Never a remonstrance against what is now
going on! He has gone away without a word of
censure ³.'
3
22. The Master once said of Kwan Chung 4, ' A
small-minded man indeed!'
¹ Shi-King, I. i. 1.
2
, used for a chestnut tree, is also used for the word
'dread.' Cf. 'How dreadful is this place!' Gen. xxviii. 17.
3 Confucius blames his disciple for losing an opportunity
of answering a fool according to his folly.
• A renowned statesman who flourished about 200 years
before Confucius's time. A philosophical work on law and
government, said to have been written by him, is still extant.
He was regarded as a sage by the people, but he lacked.
in Confucius's eyes, the one thing needful-propriety.
60
The Confucian Analects.
1
}
'Was he miserly?' some one asked.
'Miserly indeed!' said he ; 'not that : he married
three times, and he was not a man who restricted
his official business to too few hands;-how could
he be miserly?'
'He knew the Rules of Propriety, I suppose?'
'Judge. Seeing that the feudal lords planted
a screen at their gates, he too would have one at
his! Seeing that when any two of the feudal lords
met in friendly conclave they had an earthenware
stand on which to place their inverted cups after
drinking, he must have the same! If he knew
the Rules of Propriety, who is there that does not
know them?'
1
23. In a discourse to the Chief Preceptor of Music
at the Court of Lu ¹, the Master said, 'Music is an
intelligible thing. When you begin a performance,
let all the various instruments produce as it were
one sound, (inharmonious); then, as you go on,
bring out the harmony fully, distinctly, and with
uninterrupted flow, unto the end.'
24. The warden of the border-town of I requested
an interview (with Confucius), and said, 'When
great men have come here, I have never yet failed
1 The science of music, as well as propriety rules, was
then almost disregarded at Lu. Hence this very elementary
music-lesson.
*
Book III.
to obtain a sight of them.' The followers introduced
him; and, on leaving, he said to them, 'Sirs, why
grieve at his loss of office? The empire has for
long been without good government; and Heaven
is about to use your master as its edict-announcer'.'
61
25. Comparing the music of (the emperor) Shun
with the music of (king) Wu, the Master said,
'That of Shun is beautiful throughout, and also
good throughout. That of Wu is all of it beautiful,
but scarcely all of it good 2.'
26. 'High station,' said the Master, 'occupied
by men who have no large and generous heart;
ceremonial performed with no reverence; duties of
mourning engaging the attention, where there is
absence of sorrow;-how should I look on, where
this is the state of things?'
¹ Or bell-man! Lit., as a wooden-tongued bell,.
By the use of this kind of bell, edicts relating to orderly
government were proclaimed, as distinguished from the
, or metal-tongued bell, used in proclaiming military
金​鐸​,
edicts.
2 Shun, B. C. 2300, a pattern of regal virtue; Wu, B. C. 1150,
a pattern warrior-king. Hence the difference in musical
sentiment in their time.
*
1
•20
3
•
•
..
int
*
.
:
↓
I
*****
62
.
The Confucian Analects.
BOOK IV.
The social virtue, E-The superior and inferior man—More
about filial duty- Maxims.
Sayings of the Master:-
1. 'It is social good feeling that gives charm to
a neighbourhood. And where is the wisdom of
those who choose an abode where it does not
abide ?
(
2. Those who are without it cannot abide long,
either in straitened or in happy circumstances.
Those who possess it find contentment in it. Those
who are wise go after it as men go after gain.
3. 'Only they in whom it exists can have (right)
likings and dislikings for others.
4. 'Where the will is set upon it, there will be no
room for malpractices.
but
5. Riches and honour are what men desire;
if they arrive at them by improper ways, they
should not continue to hold them. Poverty and
low estate are what men dislike; but if they arrive
at such a condition by improper ways, they should
not refuse it.
Book IV.
63
"If the "superior man" make nought of social
good feeling, how shall he fully bear that name?
'Not even whilst he eats his meal will the
"superior man" forget what he owes to his fellow-
men. Even in (hurried) leave-takings, even in
moments of frantic confusion, he keeps true to this
virtue.
-
6. 'I have not yet seen a lover of philanthropy,
nor a hater of misanthropy,-such, that the former
did not take occasion to magnify that virtue (in
himself), and that the latter, in his positive practice
of philanthropy, did not (at times) allow in his
presence something savouring of misanthropy.
'(Say you), is there any one who is able for one
whole day to apply the energy of his mind to this
virtue? Well, I have not seen any one whose
energy was not equal to it. It may be there are
such, but I have never met with them.
7. 'The faults of individuals are peculiar to their
particular class and surroundings; and it is by
observing their faults that one comes to understand
(the condition of their) good feelings towards their
fellows.
8. 'One may hear the right way in the morning,
and at evening die ¹.
1
¹ A vague utterance. All depends on the meaning of
-


64
The Confucian Analects.
...
•
י
:
}
9.
'The scholar who is intent upon learning the
right way, and who is yet ashamed of poor attire
and poor food, is not worthy of being discoursed
with.
10. The masterly man's attitude to the world is
not exclusively this or that: whatsoever is right,
to that he will be a party.
II. 'The masterly man has an eye to virtue, the
common man, to earthly things; the former has an
eye to penalties (for error),—the latter, to favour.
12. 'Where there is habitual going after gain,
there is much ill-will.
13. 'When there is ability (in a ruler) to govern
a country by adhering to the Rules of Propriety,
and by kindly condescension, what is wanted more?
Where the ability to govern thus is wanting, what
has such a ruler to do with the Rules of Propriety?
'
14. One should not be greatly concerned at not
being in office; but rather about the requirements
in oneself for such a standing. Neither should one
be so much concerned at being unknown; but
rather with seeking to become worthy of being
known.'
'may.' Literally the sentence is, 'At morn hearing the
right way (Tao), at eve dying,-possible.'
1
J
"
Book IV.
65
15. Addressing his disciple Tsăng Sin, the Master
said, 'Tsăng Sin, the principles which I inculcate
have one main idea upon which they all hang.'
'Ay, surely,' he replied.
When the Master was gone out the other disciples
asked what was the purport of this remark. Tsǎng's
answer was, 'The principles of our Master's teaching
are these-whole-heartedness and kindly forbear-
ance; these and nothing more.'
*
Other observations of the Master
16. 'Men of loftier mind manifest themselves in
their equitable dealings; small-minded men in their
going after gain.
6
17. When you meet with men of worth, think
how you may attain to their level; when you see
others of an opposite character, look within, and
examine yourself.
18. 'A son, in ministering to his parents, may (on
occasion) offer gentle remonstrances; when he sees
that their will is not to heed such, he should never-
theless still continue to show them reverent respect,
never obstinacy; and if he have to suffer, let him
do so without murmuring.
19. 'Whilst the parents are still living, he should
not wander far; or, if a wanderer, he should at
least have some fixed address.
E
+
66
The Confucian Analects.
+4
.
•je
-
--
.
1
20. 'If for three years he do not veer from the
principles of his father, he may be called a dutiful
son ¹.
21. 'A son should not ignore the years of his
parents. On the one hand, they may be a matter
for rejoicing (that they have been so many), and on
the other, for apprehension (that so few remain).
22. 'People in olden times were loth to speak out,
fearing the disgrace of not being themselves as
good as their words.
23. 'Those who keep within restraints are seldom
losers.
24. 'To be slow to speak, but prompt to act, is
the desire of the "superior man.”
25. 'Virtue dwells not alone: she must have
neighbours.'
An observation of Tsz-yu :—
26. ‘Officiousness, in the service of princes, leads
to disgrace; among friends, to estrangement.'
1 See his illustration of this, XIX. 18 (note). Three years
was the period of mourning for a parent.
Book V.
į,
67
BOOK V.
Opinions respecting certain of his disciples and others--Ap-
proach of a disciple to the 'golden rule'-Miscellaneous.
1. The Master pronounced Kung-ye Chang (a
disciple) to be a marriageable person; for although
lying bound in criminal fetters he had committed
no crime. And he gave him his own daughter to
wife.
Of Nan Yung (a disciple) he observed, that in
a State where the government was well conducted
he would not be passed over in its appointments,
and in one where the government was ill conducted
he would evade punishment and disgrace. And
he caused his elder brother's daughter to be given
in marriage to him.
2. Of Tsz-tsien (a disciple) he remarked, ‘A supe-
rior man indeed is the like of him! (But) had there
been none of superior quality in Lu, how should
this man have attained to this (excellence)?'
3. Tsz-kung asked, 'What of me, then?' 'You,'
replied the Master,-'You are a receptacle.' 'Of
what sort?' said he. 'One for high and sacred
use ¹,' was the answer.
1
>
1
¹ A free rendering of, u lin, the name of a
•
.
一天
​4
-
E 2
68
The Confucian Analects.
·
**
4. Some one having observed of Yen Yung that
he was good-natured towards others, but that he
lacked the gift of ready speech, the Master said,
'What need of that gift? To stand up before men
and pour forth a stream of glib words is generally
to make yourself obnoxious to them. I know not
about his good-naturedness; but at any rate what
need of that gift? '
5. When the Master proposed that Tsi-tiau K'ai
should enter the government service, the latter
replied, 'I can scarcely credit it.'-The Master was
gratified.
C
6. Good principles are making no progress,' once
exclaimed the Master. If I were to take a raft,
and drift about on the sea, would Tsz-lu, I wonder,
be my follower there?' That disciple was delighted
at hearing the suggestion; whereupon the Master
continued, ' He surpasses me in his love of deeds of
daring. But he does not in the least grasp the pith
(of my remark).'
7. In reply to a question put to him by Mang
Wu respecting Tsz-lu,-as to whether he might be
grain-holder, made of coral or ornamented with gems, and
used at the royal sacrifices. Compare this answer of the
Master with II. 12; it is complimentary, but does not
allow this disciple to consider himself yet perfect.
+
•
6
(
..
69
Book V.
called good-natured towards others, the Master
said, 'I cannot tell'; but, on the question being
put again, he answered, Well, in an important
State¹ he might be entrusted with the management
of the (military) levies; but I cannot answer for
his good nature.'
'What say you then of Yen Yu?'
'As for Yen,' he replied, 'in a city of a thousand
families, or in a secondary fief", he might be charged
with the governorship; but I cannot answer for his
good-naturedness.'
L
Take Tsz-hwa, then; what of him?'
'Tsz-hwa,' said he, 'with a cincture girt upon him,
standing (as attendant) at Court, might be charged
with the addressing of visitors and guests; but as
to his good-naturedness I cannot answer.'
***
8. Addressing Tsz-kung, the Master said, Which
of the two is ahead of the other-yourself or Hwúi?'
How shall I dare,' he replied, 'even to look at
Hwúi? Only let him hear one particular, and from
that he knows ten; whereas I, if I hear one, may
from it know two.'
¹ Lit. 'a State of 1000 (war) chariots.'
2 Lit. 'a House of 100 (war) chariots.'
(
'You are not a match for him, I grant you,' said
،
the Master. You are not his match.'
·
70
The Confucian Analects.
1.
2
9. Tsai Yu (a disciple) used to sleep in the day-
time. Said the Master, 'One may hardly carve
rotten wood, or use a trowel to the wall of a manure-
yard! In his case, what is the use of reprimand?'
'My attitude towards a man in my first dealings
with him,' he added, 'was to listen to his professions
and to trust to his conduct. My attitude now is to
listen to his professions, and to watch his conduct.
My experience with Tsai Yu has led to this change.'
IO. 'I have never seen,' said the Master, 'a man
of inflexible firmness. Some one thereupon men-
tioned Shin Chang (a disciple). 'Ch'ang,' said he,
'is wanton; where do you get at his inflexibleness?'
11. Tsz-kung made the remark: That which
I do not wish others to put upon me, I also wish
not to put upon others ¹.' 'Nay,' said the Master,
you have not got so far as that.'
12. The same disciple once remarked, 'There
may be access so as to hear the Master's literary
1 Here is an approach, on the negative side, to the golden
rule. See also Book XII. 2, for a similar approach to it
made by Confucius himself; also XV. 23. In view of the
frequent quotation of these passages I have deemed it
important to be exact about the verbs. Here the word
, ka, is used, meaning to add to, as a burden; in the other
passages it is, shi, to spread out, to display, to set before.
I
(
,
!
Book V.
71
discourses, but when he is treating of human nature
and the way of Heaven, there may not be such
access ¹.'
1
13. Tsz-lu, after once hearing him upon some
subject, and feeling himself as yet incompetent to
carry into practice what he had heard, used to be
apprehensive only lest he should hear the subject
revived.
2
14. Tsz-kung asked how it was that Kung Wăn ²
had come to be so styled 'Wăn' (the Talented).
The Master's answer was, 'Because, though a man
of an active nature, he was yet fond of study, and
he was not ashamed to stoop to put questions to his
inferiors.'
3
15. Respecting Tsz-ch'an ³, the Master said that
he had four of the essential qualities of the 'superior
man':-in his own private walk he was humble-
minded; in serving his superiors he was deferential;
in his looking after the material welfare of the
¹ Certain deeper subjects were only for those who had
ears to hear."
2 A former high official of the State of Wei. His name
had been Kung Yu; the posthumous title of Wăn (the
talented or accomplished) had been conferred on him; but
there was evidently room for doubt as to whether his whole
character deserved it.
3 A great statesman of Confucius's time.
1
..:
I
72
The Confucian Analects.
L
people he was generously kind; and in his exaction
of public service from the latter he was just.
16. Speaking of Yen Ping¹, he said, 'He was one
who was happy in his mode of attaching men to
him. However long the intercourse, he was always
deferential to them.'
17. Referring to Tsang Wăn 2, he asked, What
is to be said of this man's discernment ?—this man
with his tortoise-house, with the pillar-heads and
posts bedizened with scenes of hill and mere ³ !'
3
(
18. Tsz-chang put a question relative to the chief
Minister (of Tsu), Tsz-wăn. He said, 'Three times
he became chief Minister, and on none of these
occasions did he betray any sign of exultation.
Three times his ministry came to an end, and he
showed no sign of chagrin. He used without fail
to inform the new Minister as to the old mode of
administration. What say you of him?'
That he was a loyal man,' said the Master.
'But was he a man of fellow-feeling?' said the
disciple.
،
¹ Another great officer of the same period.
2 A great officer of Lu, given to superstition.
3
⁹ Properly water-grass: and altogether more strictly, 'His
pillar-heads representing hills, and the king-posts of the
roof water-grass.'
#
Book V.
73
'Of that I am not sure,' he answered; 'how am
I to get at that?'
+
(The disciple went
went on to say):-' After the
assassination of the prince of Ts'i by the officer
Ts'ui, the latter's fellow-official Ch'in Wăn, who
had half a score teams of horses, gave up all, and
turned his back upon him. On coming to another
State, he observed, "There are here characters some-
what like that of our minister Ts'ui," and he turned
his back upon them. Proceeding to a certain other
State, he had occasion to make the same remark,
and left. What say you of him?'
'That he was a pure-minded man,' answered the
Master.
'But was he a man of fellow-feeling?' urged the
disciple.
'Of that I am not sure,' he replied; 'how am I to
get at that?'
(
19. Ki Wăn¹ was one who thought three times
over a thing before he acted. The Master hearing
this of him, observed, Twice would have been
enough.'
20. Of Ning Wu 2, the Master said that when
matters went well in the State he used to have his
1 An officer of Lu.
2 An officer of Wei, a century before the Sage's time.
Y
yay
++
4
L
74
The Confucian Analects.
"
1.
wits about him: but when they went wrong, he lost
them. His intelligence might be equalled, but not
his witlessness!
21. Once, when the Master lived in the State of
Ch'in, he exclaimed, 'Let me get home again! Let
me get home! My school-children¹ are wild and
impetuous! Though they are somewhat accom-
plished, and perfect in one sense in their attain-
ments, yet they know not how to make nice
discriminations.'
22. Of Pěh-I and Shuh Ts'i2 he said, 'By the
1 A familiar way of speaking of his disciples in their
hearing.
2 A celebrated pair of brothers-princes-who lived in
the latter part of the twelfth century B. C. As we shall
meet with their names two or three times. more, some
account of them may be given here. Their father was
feudal prince of a small State during the reign of the last
king of the Yin dynasty, and he desired to make the
younger of them his successor. But nothing would induce
the younger brother to supplant the elder, and he fled the
country on his father's death. The elder in turn declined
the heirship, and also retired, leaving the throne to a third
brother. They emerged from their retreat in their old
age, to find a change in the dynasty, and refusing allegiance
to the House of Chow they retired again to a mountain
district, lived as they could on wild fruits, and finally died
of starvation. Their faithfulness to each other and their
steadfast adherence to what they considered a duty is
praised both by Confucius and Mencius.
A
ř
Book V.
75
fact of their not remembering old grievances, they
gradually did away with resentment.'
<
23. Of Wei-shang Kau¹ he said, 'Who calls him
straightforward? A person once begged some
vinegar of him, and he begged it from a neighbour,
and then presented him with it!'
24. 'Fine speech,' said he, and studied mien,
and superfluous show of deference,-of such things
Tso-k'iu Ming2 was ashamed. I too am ashamed
of such things. Also of hiding resentment felt
towards an opponent and treating him as a friend
--of this kind of thing he was ashamed, and so
too am I.'
25. Attended once by the two disciples Yen
Yuen 3 and Tsz-lu, he said, 'Come now, why not
tell me, each of you, what in your hearts you are
really after?'
'I should like,' said Tsz-lu,' for myself and my
friends and associates, carriages and horses, and to
be clad in light furs! nor would I mind much if
they should become the worse for wear ¹.'
4
¹ A man of Lu, well known for his straightforwardness
and honesty.
2 Some celebrity of older times.
3 Alias Hwúi.
This may seem childish, but it is evidently a circum-
locution for 'I would like, for my friends and self, some
ན
:
76
The Confucian Analects.
2
،
And I should like,' said Yen Yuen, to live
without boasting of my abilities, and without
display of meritorious deeds.'
Tsz-lu then said, 'I should like, sir, to hear what
your heart is set upon.'
C
The Master replied, 'It is this:-in regard to old
people, to give them quiet and comfort; in regard
to friends and associates, to be faithful to them; in
regard to the young, to treat them with fostering
affection and kindness.'
C
1
26. On one occasion the Master exclaimed, Ah,
'tis hopeless ¹! I have not yet seen the man who
can see his errors, so as inwardly to accuse him-
self.'
-
27. In a small cluster of houses 2 there may well
be,' said he, 'some whose integrity and sincerity
may compare with mine; but I yield to none in
point of love of learning.'
high official grade, and would use my dignity, if necessary,
with economy. Cf. Shi-King, I. ii. 7; I. xiii. 1 (notes).
1 Or, 'all is over!'
2 Lit. in a group of ten families.
Book VI.
}
77
BOOK VI.
More characteristics of disciples - Obiter dicta'-Wisdom-
Philanthropy.
1. Of (Yen) Yung (a disciple) the Master said,
'Yung might indeed do for a prince ¹!'
1
On being asked by this Yen Yung 2 his opinion
of a certain individual³, the Master replied, 'He is
passable. Impetuous, (though).'
'But,' argued the disciple, if a man habituate
himself to a reverent regard for duty-even while
in his way of doing things he is impetuous—in the
oversight of the people committed to his charge, is
he not passable? If, on the other hand, he habituate
himself to impetuosity of mind, and show it also in
his way of doing things, is he not then over-
impetuous?'
'You are right,' said the Master.
1. Lit. 'for a south-facer. It was then and is still the
custom for persons of royal rank to sit facing the south.
Yen Yung was one of the most approved of the Sage's
disciples.
2 Chung Kung, in the original; but this was only the
posthumous title of the Yen Yung just mentioned; and
I think it better to avoid confusion in these names. The
same remark applies to parag. 4.
3 Tsz-sang Peh-tsz, in the original; evidently some official;
but as nothing is known of him, the name, uncouth enough
to English ears, is surely better omitted.
+
3
78
The Confucian Analects.
•
→
1
•
2. When the duke Ngai inquired which of the
disciples were devoted to learning, Confucius an-
swered him, 'There was one Yen Hwúi who loved
it, a man whose angry feelings towards any par-
ticular person he did not suffer to visit upon
another; a man who would never fall into the
same error twice. Unfortunately his allotted time
was short, and he died, and now his like is not to
be found; I have never heard of one (so) devoted
to learning.'
،
3. While Tsz-hwa (a disciple) was away on a
mission to Ts'i, the disciple Yen Yu on behalf of
his mother applied for some grain. Give her three
pecks,' said the Master. He applied for more.
'Give her eight, then.' Yen gave her fifty times
that amount.--The Master said, 'When Tsz-hwa¹
went on that journey to Ts'i, he had well-fed steeds
yoked to his carriage, and was arrayed in light
furs. I have learnt that the "superior man" should
help those whose needs are urgent, not help the
rich to be more rich.'
When Yuen Sz became prefect under him, he
gave him nine hundred measures of grain, but the
1
¹ Ch'ih, in original; but only another name for the same
man.
T
ར
Book VI.
79
prefect declined to accept them ¹. You must not,'
May they not be of use to the
said the Master.
villages and hamlets around you?'
THERE ARE NEEDE
4. Speaking of Yen Yung (again), the Master
said, 'If the offspring of a speckled ox be red in
colour, and horned, even though men may not wish
to take it (for sacrifice), would (the spirits of) the
hills and streams reject it ??'
2
(
5. Adverting to Hwúi again, he said, For three
months there would not be in his breast one thought
recalcitrant against his feeling of goodwill towards
his fellow-men. The others may attain to this for
a day or for a month, but there they end.'
6. When asked by Ki K'ang³ whether Tsz-lu
was fit to serve the government, the Master replied,
¹ At this time Confucius was Criminal Judge in his
native State of Lu. Yuen Sz had been a disciple. The
commentators add that this was the officer's proper salary,
and that he did wrong to refuse it.
2 Yen Yung had a bad father, and men were inclined
to avoid him on that account. Hence this remark made
on his behalf. Oxen acceptable for sacrifice were required
to be red and horned.
3 Ki K'ang was head of one of the Three Families' of
Lu. He inquires respecting the qualifications of these
disciples for office. The questions are put separately about
each, and are formally answered separately by the Master,
as if by way of certificate.
6
M
↓
...
•
•
..
·
1
}
80
The Confucian Analects.
'Tsz-lu is a man of decision: what should pre-
vent him from serving the government?'
Asked the same question respecting Tsz-(kung)
and Yen Yu he answered similarly, pronouncing
Tsz-kung to be a man of perspicacity, and Yen Yu
to be one versed in the polite arts.
7. When the head of the Ki family sent for Min
Tsz-k'ien to make him governor of (the town of)
Pi, that disciple said, 'Politely decline for me. If
the offer is renewed, then indeed I shall feel myself
obliged to go and live on the (further) bank of the
Wăn
8. Peh-niu 2 had fallen ill, and the Master was
inquiring after him. Taking hold of his hand (held
out) from the window, he said, 'It is taking him
off! Alas, his appointed time has come! Such
a man, and to have such an illness!'
C
9. Of Hwúi (again): A right worthy man indeed
was he! With his simple wooden dish of rice, and
his one gourd-basin of drink, away in his poor
back lane, in a condition too grievous for others to
¹ Min Tsz-k'ien was one of the Sage's favourite disciples,
and he, no more than his master, could brook the manners of
the Ki family. On the further bank of the Wăn he would
be out of the territory, and free from further solicitation.
2 Another favourite disciple. He was suffering, it is.
thought, from leprosy.
3
Book VI.
81
have endured, he never allowed his cheery spirits
to droop. Ay, a right worthy soul was he!'
10. 'It is not,' Yen Yu once apologized, 'that
I do not take pleasure in your doctrines; it is that
I am not strong enough.' The Master rejoined, ‘It
is when those who are not strong enough have
made some moderate amount of progress that they
fail and give up; but you are now drawing your
own line for yourself.'
11. Addressing Tsz-hiá, the Master said, 'Let
your scholarship be that of gentlemen, and not like
that of common men ¹.'
1
12. When Tsz-yu became governor of Wu-shing,
the Master said to him, 'Do you find (good) men
about you?' The reply was, 'There is Tan-t'ai
Mieh-ming², who when walking eschews bye-paths,
and who, unless there be some public function, never
approaches my private residence."
3
13. 'Mang Chi-fan ³,' said the Master, 'is no
sounder of his own praises. During a stampede
¹ I. e. seeking self-improvement for its own sake and for
duty's sake, not from motives of material benefit.
2 This description of him would hardly have been re-
corded if it did not contain more than appears on the sur-
face. The quondam disciple pursues open and plain courses,
and knows also how to mind his own business.
3 An officer of Lu.
F
2.
1
It
A
The Confucian Analects.
82
,
+
F
By
.
1.
he was in the rear, and as they were about to
enter the city gate he whipped up his horses, and
said, "'Twas not my daring made me lag behind.
My horses would not go.'
"""
Obiter dicta of the Master :-
C
14. Whoever has not the glib utterance of the
priest To, as well as the handsomeness of (prince)
Cháu of Sung, will find it hard to keep out of
harm's way in the present age.
15. Who can go out but by (that) door? Why
walks no one by these guiding principles ¹?
16. 'Where plain naturalness is more in evidence
than polish, we have-the man from the country.
Where polish is more in evidence than naturalness,
we have the (town) scribe. It is when naturalness
and polish are equally evident that we have the
ideal man.
Magdalen
17. The life of a man is-his rectitude. Life
without it—such may you have the good fortune
to avoid 2!
¹ Evidently spoken in some room where he customarily
gave instruction, and from which there was no other exit
but by the door.
2 I would ask the attention of critics to this rendering of
a rather knotty saying: 人​之​生​也​,直​,同​之
​4t, m. 'Life' is here explained in the
生​也​,幸而​免
​83
Book VI.
1
18. 'They who know it¹ are not as those who
love it, nor they who love it as those who rejoice
in it [i. e. have the fruition of their love for it].
19. To the average man, and those above the
average, it is possible to discourse on higher sub-
jects; to those from the average downwards, it is
not possible.'
20. Fan Ch'i put a query about wisdom. The
Master replied, 'To labour for the promoting of
righteous conduct among the people of the land;
to be serious in regard to spiritual beings, and
to hold aloof from them;-this may be called
wisdom.'
2
To a further query, about philanthropy, he replied,
Commentaries as the rational principle underlying life'
(生理​本​).
[Since the above was written, a Chinese friend has sent
me the following free rendering: 'Man is born upright.
If he can exist without uprightness his existence is fortu-
nate;' and he adds in a note that 'when Confucius says
this, he refers to the goodness of God in allowing such
people (without uprightness) to exist in the world, and in
giving them a larger space for repentance.' My friend
does not translate the last character, to avoid, or escape.]
¹ The 'it' must, I think, refer to some subject under dis-
cussion at the time.
2 I. e. probably, not to be too familiar, to show reverence
from a distance.
*
-
A
7
..
1
A
*
G
F 2
84
The Confucian Analects.
2
Si
ני
'Those who possess that virtue find difficulty with
it at first, success later ¹.'
19
21. ‘Men of practical knowledge,' he said, ‘find
their gratification among the rivers (of the lowland),
men of sympathetic social feeling find theirs among
the hills. The former are active and bustling, the
latter calm and quiet. The former take their (day
of) pleasure, the latter look to length of days.'
22. Alluding to the States of Ts'i and Lu, he
observed, that Ts'i, by one change, might attain to
the condition of Lu; and that Lu, by one change,
might attain to good government 2.
23. An exclamation of the Master [satirizing the
times, when old terms relating to government were
still used while bereft of their old meaning]:-
'A quart, and not a quart³! quart, indeed! quart,
indeed!'
¹ An unsatisfactory answer, and evasive; unless it be
that it was in reply to a particular question about its exercise.
But he was slow to speak on this subject: see IX. 1.
2 The 'one change' would be, in each case, a reform in
the direction of the 'Proprieties.' Tsi was even worse
than Lu.
3 The word means really an angular cup, or perhaps a
horn-cup, at that time made without the angles, or not of
horn. The meaning will come home to English readers in
the above translation. Times are changed even with our-
selves as regards such things, and
such things are
signs of
the times.
.
1.
4
85
Book VI.
24. Tsai Wo (a disciple) put a query. Said he,
'Suppose a philanthropic person were told, "There's
a fellow-creature down in the well!" Would he go
down after him?"
'Why should he really do so?' answered the
Master. 'The good man [or, a superior man] might
be induced to go, but not to go down. He may be
misled, but not befooled ¹."
25. 'The superior man,' said he, 'with his wide
study of books, and hedging himself round by the
Rules of Propriety, is not surely, after all that,
capable of overstepping his bounds.'
26. Once when the Master had had an interview
with Nan-tsz 2, which had scandalized his disciple
Tsz-lu, he uttered the solemn adjuration, ‘If I have
done aught amiss, may Heaven reject me! may
Heaven reject me!'
27. 'How far-reaching,' said he, 'is the moral
excellence that flows from the "Constant Mean 3!"
1 Of course men are liable to practical jokes. The
question here is how far impulses will carry different men.
The philanthropic person who is a 'superior man' will not
be caught napping.
2 The duchess of Wei, who had been guilty of criminal
intercourse with her brother, the prince Cháu (of para-
graph 14).
3 The doctrine afterwards known by that name, and
which gave its title to a Confucian treatise.
•
86
The Confucian Analects.
C
·
It has for a long time been rare among the
people.'
28. Tsz-kung said, 'Suppose the case of one who
confers benefits far and wide upon the people, and
who can, in so doing, make his bounty universally
felt,—how would you speak of him? Might he be
called philanthropic?'
The Master exclaimed, 'What a work for philan-
thropy! He would require indeed to be a sage!
He would put into shade even Yau and Shun!-
Well, a philanthropic person, desiring for himself
a firm footing, is led on to give one to others;
desiring for himself an enlightened perception of
things, he is led on to help others to be similarly
enlightened.—If one could take an illustration
coming closer home to us (than yours), that might
be made the starting-point for speaking about
philanthropy ¹.'
19
?
1 I cannot conceive how Dr. Legge has been able to trans-
late this last sentence thus: To be able to judge (of others)
by what is nigh (in ourselves),—this may he called the art of
virtue. Had he forgotten his Shi-King (III. iii. 2, last
stanza)?近​取​譬 ​here is the same as 取​譬​不遠
​there="Take an illustration not far-fetched.'
༈
Book VII.
87
BOOK VII.
Chiefly characteristics of Confucius himself—What he thought of
himself—And what others thought — An incident during a
time of sickness.
Said the Master:
I. 'I, as a transmitter¹ and not an originator,
and as one who believes in and loves the ancients,
venture to compare myself with our old P'ang2.
2. 'What find you indeed in me?—a quiet
brooder and memorizer; a student never satiated
with learning; an unwearied monitor of others!
3. 'The things which weigh heavily upon my
mind are these-failure to improve in the virtues,
failure in discussion of what is learnt, inability to
walk according to knowledge received as to what
is right and just, inability also to reform what has
been amiss.'
4. In his hours of recreation and refreshment the
Master's manner was easy and unconstrained, affable
and winning.
¹ In reference to his editing the six Classics of his time.
2 It is uncertain who this was. The 'our' is said to in-
dicate endearment or familiarity: he was some worthy
known to himself and his disciples, of very great age.
7
88
The Confucian Analects.
ཎྞ'' !
}
5. Once he exclaimed, 'Alas! I must be getting
very feeble: 'tis long since I have had a repetition
of the dreams in which I used to see the Duke of
Chow 1,
C
6. Concentrate the mind,' said he, 'upon the
Good Way.
'Maintain firm hold upon Virtue.
'Rely upon Philanthropy.
• Find recreation in the Arts 2.'
7. 'I have never withheld instruction from any,
even from those who have come for it with the
smallest offering' [lit. with their packets of dried
meat].
8. 'No subject do I broach (however) to those
who have no eager desire (to learn); no encouraging
hint do I give to those who show no anxiety to
speak out their ideas; nor have I anything more
to say to those who, after I have made clear one
corner of the subject, cannot from that give me the
other three.'
¹ This was one of his 'beloved ancients,' famous for what
he did in helping to found the dynasty of Chow, a man of
great political wisdom, a scholar also and poet. It was the
'dream' of Confucius's life to restore the country to the
condition in which the duke of Chow left it.
2 These were six in number, viz. Ceremonial, Music, Archery,
Horsemanship, Language, and Calculation.
ܚ ܝܕܕ ܝܕ
?
ja
Book VII.
89
9. If the Master was taking a meal, and there
were any in mourning beside him, he would not
eat to the full.
On one day on which he had wept, on that day
he would not sing.
10. Addressing his favourite disciple¹, he said,
To you only and myself it has been given to do
this, to go when called to serve, and to go back
into quiet retirement when released from office.'
Tsz-lu (hearing the remark) said, ‘But if, sir, you
had the handling of the army of one of the greater
States 2, whom would you have associated with
you in that 3 case?'
The Master answered :-
'Not the one "who'll rouse the tiger,"
Not the one "who'll wade the Ho¹
4
not the man who can die with no regret. He must
be one who should watch over affairs with appre-
hensive caution, a man fond of strategy, and of
perfect skill and effectiveness in it.'
1 Yen Yuen is the name given, alias Hwúi, always spoken
of in terms of highest praise.
2 Lit. three forces.
Each force consisted of 12,500 men,
and three of such forces were the equipment of a greater
State.
3 Tsz-lu, the ardent, here shows his jealousy, and is again
rebuked. See V. 6.
Quotation from Shi-King, II. v. 1, last stanza.
90
The Confucian Analects.
4.
+1
.
.
E
.
II. As to wealth, he remarked, 'If wealth were
an object that I could go in quest of, I should do so
even if I had to take a whip and do grooms' work.
But seeing that it is not, I go after those objects
for which I have a liking.'
12. Among matters over which he exercised great
caution were (times of) fasting, war, and sickness.
13. When he was in the State of Ts'i, and had
heard the (ancient) Shau music, he lost all percep-
tion of the taste of his meat. I had no idea,' said
he, 'that music could have been brought to this
pitch.'
14. (In the course of conversation) Yen Yu said,
'Does the Master take the part of the prince of
Wei¹?' 'Ah yes!' said Tsz-kung, 'I will go and
ask him that.'
2
On going in to him, that disciple began, 'What
sort of men were Pěh-I and Shuh Ts'i²?' 'Worthies
of the olden time,' the Master replied. 'Had they
any feelings of resentment?' was the next question.
Their aim and object,' he answered, 'was that of
The prince of Wei was resisting his father's claim to
the dukedom. The father had had to flee the country, and
the son had thereupon succeeded to the title. Now the
father had come back. The question is, Should the son
resist the father?
2 See note on V. 22.
3
Book VII.
91
doing the duty which every man owes to his
fellows, and they succeeded in doing it;-what
room further for feelings of resentment?'—The
questioner on coming out said, 'The Master does
not take his part.'
15. 'With a meal of coarse rice,' said the Master,
and with water to drink, and my bent arm for
my pillow,—even thus I can find happiness. Riches
and honours without righteousness are to me as
fleeting clouds.'
16. 'Give me several years more to live,' said he,
' and after fifty years' study of the Book of Changes¹
I might come to be free from serious error.'
17. The Master's regular 2 subjects of discourse
were the Books of the Odes and History, and the
up-keeping of the Rules of Propriety. On all of
these he regularly discoursed.
18. The duke of Shih questioned Tsz-lu about
Confucius, and the latter did not answer.
(Hearing of this), the Master said, ' Why did you
not say,
"He is a man with a mind so intent on his
1 The Yih-King.
2 I submit this rendering of to Chinese scholars who
are divided between the commentators' and E. Kang
Hi's Dictionary gives both meanings for the passage, but
will not decide.
+
92
The Confucian Analects.
=
1.
Įj
pursuits that he forgets his food, and finds such
pleasure in them that he forgets his troubles, and
does not know that old age is coming upon him?"
19. As I came not into life with any knowledge
of it,' he said, 'and as my likings are for what is
old, I busy myself in seeking knowledge there.'
999
1
20. Strange occurrences, exploits of strength,
deeds of lawlessness, references to spiritual beings ¹,
-such-like matters the Master avoided in con-
versation.
،
21. Let there,' he said, 'be three men walking
together: from that number I should be sure to
find my instructors; for what is good in them
I should choose out and follow, and what is not
good I should modify.'
22. On one occasion he exclaimed, ' Heaven begat
Virtue in me; what can man 2 do unto me?'
23. To his disciples he once said, 'Do you look
upon me, my sons, as keeping anything secret from
1 Yet once he is represented as saying this of them:
'How abundantly do spiritual beings display their influence!
We look for them, but do not see them; we hearken to
them, but do not hear them; all nature is full of them, and
nothing can be without them'; and so on.-Doctrine of the
Mean, chapter xvi.
2 Lit. Hwan Túi.
Hwan Túi was an officer of Sung,
who once set upon him as he was teaching under a tree.
1
י.
Book VII.
93
you? I hide nothing from you. I do nothing that
is not manifest to your eyes, my disciples. That is
so with me.'
24. Four things there were which he kept in
view in his teaching, scholarliness, conduct of life,
honesty, faithfulness.
25. 'It is not given to me,' he said, 'to meet with
a sage; let me but behold a man of superior mind,
and that will suffice. Neither is given to me to
meet with a good man; let me but see a man of
constancy, and it will suffice.-It is difficult for
persons to have constancy, when they pretend to
have that which they are destitute of, to be full
when they are empty, to do things on a grand scale
when their means are contracted!'
26. When the Master fished with hook and line,
he did not also use a net. When out with his bow,
he would never shoot at game in cover.
27. 'Some there may be,' said he, 'who do things
in ignorance of what they do. I am not of these.
There is an alternative way of knowing things, viz.
-to sift out the good from the many things one
hears, and follow it; and to keep in memory the
many things one sees.'
28. (Pupils from) Hu-hiang were difficult to
+
=
A
.
:
94
The Confucian Analects.
י -
of
speak with. One youth came to interview the
Master, and the disciples were in doubt (whether
he ought to have been seen). 'Why so much ado,'
said the Master, 'at my merely permitting his
approach, and not rather at my allowing him to
draw back? If a man have cleansed himself in
order to come and see me, I receive him as such;
but I do not undertake for what he will do when
he goes away.'
29. 'Is the philanthropic spirit far to seek,
indeed?' the Master exclaimed; 'I wish for it, and
it is with me!'
30. The Minister of Crime in the State of Ch'in
asked Confucius whether duke Ch'au (of Lu) was
acquainted with the Proprieties; and he answered,
'Yes, he knows them.'
When Confucius had withdrawn, the minister
bowed to Wu-ma K'i (a disciple), and motioned to
him to come forward. He said, 'I have heard that
superior men show no partiality; are they, too,
then, partial? That prince took for his wife a lady
of the Wu family, having the same surname as
himself¹, and had her named "Lady Tsz of Wu, the
1
The surname, Ki. It was not then, and is not
now, allowable in China for persons of the same surname to
inter-marry, no matter how distantly related. And these
=*
Book VII.
95
elder." If he knows the Proprieties, then who does
not?'
The disciple reported this to the Master, who
thereupon remarked, ' Well for me! If I err in any
way, others are sure to know of it.'
31. When the Master was in company with any
one who sang, and who sang well, he must needs
have the song over again, and after that would join
in it.
،
32. Although in letters,' he said, 'I may have
none to compare with me, yet in my personification
of the "superior man" I have not as yet been
successful.'
(
33. "A Sage and a Philanthropist?" How
should I have the ambition?' said he. All that
I can well be called is this,-An insatiable student,
an unwearied teacher ;-this, and no more.'
'Exactly what we, your disciples, cannot by any
learning manage to be,' said Kung-si Hwa.
34. Once when the Master was seriously ill,
Tsz-lu requested to be allowed to say prayers for
him. Are such available?' asked the Master.
(
surnames were few in comparison with those of Western
countries.
7
4
96
The Confucian Analects.
7
'Yes,' said he; 'and the Manual of Prayers¹ says,
"Pray to the spirits above and to those here
below."
'My praying has been going on a long while,'
said the Master.
35. 'Lavish living,' he said, 'renders men dis-
orderly; miserliness makes them hard. Better,
however, the hard than the disorderly.'
36. Again, 'The man of superior mind is placidly
composed; the small-minded man is in a constant
state of perturbation.'
37. The Master was gentle, yet could be severe;
had an over-awing presence, yet was not violent;
was deferential, yet easy.
BOOK VIII.
Miscellaneous-Sayings of Tsăng-Sentences of the Master—
Characters of ancient worthies.
1. Speaking of T'ai-pih2 the Master said that he
might be pronounced a man of the highest moral
¹ It is not precisely known what this collection of Prayers
was. They seem to have been more of the nature of eulogies
for the departed, and this disciple, forward as ever, seems to
have anticipated his master's death. Noteworthy is the
Sage's answer, meaning, 'My life has been a prayer.' It
was true, and yet it savours a little of self-satisfaction.
2 Hereby hangs a historical tale. Tai-pih lived during
-
Book VIII.
97
excellence; for he allowed the empire to pass by
him onwards to a third heir; while the people (in
their ignorance of his motives) were unable to
admire him for so doing.
2. Without the Proprieties,' said the Master,
'we have these results: for deferential demeanour,
a worried one; for calm attentiveness, awkward
bashfulness; for manly conduct, disorderliness;
for straightforwardness, perversity.
'When men of rank show genuine care for those
nearest to them in blood, the people rise to the duty
of neighbourliness and sociability. And when old
friendships among them are not allowed to fall off,
there will be a cessation of underhand practices
among the people.'
3. The Scholar Tsang was once unwell, and
calling his pupils to him he said to them,
the decline of the Yin dynasty. He was eldest son and
heir of the ruler of the feudal State of Chow. He had two
brothers, upon the younger of whom (the youngest of the
three) his father wished the succession to devolve. In order
not to stand in the way of that wish, he induced his second
brother to go away with him from the country, thus leaving
the youngest free. The youngest was named Ki, and he
became the father of the renowned Wăn-wong (King Wăn),
who was the first virtual ruler of the new dynasty of Chow.
Hence the 'empire' really passed out of Tai-pih's grasp
over two brothers to his nephew. See Shi-King, III. i. 7,
stanza 3.
Ꮐ
v!
98
The Confucian Analects.
•
'Disclose to view my feet and my hands. What
says the Ode?—
"Act as from a sense of danger,
With precaution and with care,
As a yawning gulf o'erlooking,
As on ice that scarce will bear."
At all times, my children, I know how to keep
myself free from (bodily) harm¹.'
4. Again, during an illness of his, Mang King,
an official, went to ask after him. The Scholar
had some conversation with him, in the course of
which he said-
"Doleful the cries of a dying bird,
Good the last words of a dying man."
'There are three points which a man of rank in the
management of his duties should set store upon:-
A lively manner and deportment, banishing both
severity and laxity; a frank and open expression
of countenance, allied closely with sincerity; and
a tone in his utterances utterly free from any
approach to vulgarity and impropriety. As to
¹ A lesson on filial duty, best understood by a Chinaman.
Our parents gave us our bodies, and they should therefore be
carefully guarded from harm. 'See mine,' says Tsăng, ‘in
my old age.' The lines he quotes are from the Shi-King,
II. v. I.
扉​唸
​Book VIII.
99
1
matters of bowls and dishes ¹, leave such things to
those who are charged with the care of them.'
2
5. Another saying of the Scholar Tsăng:-'I
once had a friend who, though he possessed ability,
would go questioning men of none, and, though
surrounded by numbers, would go with his ques-
tions to isolated individuals; who also, whatever
he might have, appeared as if he were without it,
and, with all his substantial acquirements, made as
though his mind were a mere blank; and when
insulted would not retaliate;-this was ever his
way.'
6. Again he said :-The man that is capable of
being entrusted with the charge of a minor on the
throne, and given authority over a large territory,
and who during the important term of his superin-
tendence cannot be forced out of his position,-is
not such a "superior man"? That he is indeed.'
¹ In the original the names of sacrificial vessels are men-
tioned, but the lesson is simply, Leave minor matters to
those you entrust with them. A Chinese cook some years
ago gave this lesson to a Governor of Hong-Kong. The
Governor was apt to pay surprise visits to the offices of the
various departments, and pry into details of work done.
One day he went down into his own kitchen to lecture his
chief cook. Said the cook, 'Sir, you number one governor,
I number one cook: you mindee your pidgin (business),
I mindee mine.' ('Number one'-first-class.)
2
Supposed to be Hwúi.
:
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*:
G 2
100 The Confucian Analects.
J
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7. Again:-'The learned official must not be
without breadth and power of endurance: the
burden is heavy, and the way is long.
'Suppose that he take his duty to his fellow-men
as his peculiar burden, is that not indeed a heavy
one? And since only with death it is done with,
is not the way long?'
Sentences of the Master:
8. From the Book of Odes (we receive) impulses,
from the Book of the Rules, stability,
from the Book on Music, refinement¹.
9. The people may be put into the way they
should go, though they may not be put into the
way of understanding it.
10. The man who likes bravery, and yet groans
under poverty, has mischief 2 in him. So, too, has
the misanthrope, groaning at any severity shown
towards him.
11. 'Even if a person were adorned with the gifts
of the duke of Chow, yet if he were proud and
avaricious, all the rest of his qualities would not
indeed be worth looking at.
1 Comparison of three of the Classics: the Shi-King, the
Li Ki, and the Yoh. The last is lost.
2 Lit. disorder.
Book VIII.
12. 'Not easily found is the man who, after three
years' study, has failed to come upon some fruit (of
his toil).
IOI
13. The really faithful lover of learning holds
fast to the Good Way till death.
'He will not go into a State in which a downfall
is imminent, nor take up his abode in one where
disorder reigns. When the empire is well ordered
he will show himself; when not, he will hide him-
self away. Under a good government it will be
a disgrace to him if he remain in poverty and low
estate; under a bad one it would be equally
disgraceful to him to hold riches and honours.
14. If not occupying the office, devise not the
policy.
15. 'When the professor Chi began his duties,
how grand the finale of the First of the Odes used
to be! How it rang in one's ears!
16. 'I cannot understand persons who are enthu-
siastic and yet not straightforward; nor those who
are ignorant and yet not attentive; nor again
those folks who are simple-minded and yet untrue.
17. 'Learn, as if never overtaking your object,
and yet as if apprehensive of losing it.
102
The Confucian Analects.
*
18. 'How sublime was the handling of the empire
by Shun and Yu¹!-it was as nothing to them!
19. 'How great was Yau as a prince! Was he
not sublime! Say that Heaven only is great,
then was Yau alone after its pattern! How pro-
found was he! The people could not find a name
for him. How sublime in his achievements! How
brilliant in his scholarly productions!'
20. Shun had for his ministers five men, by
whom he ordered the empire.
King Wu (in his day) stated that he had ten
men as assistants for the promotion of order.
(With reference to these facts) Confucius ob-
served, 'Ability is hard to find. Is it not so
indeed? During the (three years') interregnum
between Yau and Shun there was more of it than
in the interval before this present dynasty appeared.
There were (at this latter period) one woman, and
nine men only.
When two-thirds of the empire were held (by
King Wăn), he served with that portion the House
1 These two and Yau (next paragraph) were emperors of
the legendary period :-
Yau, B.C. 2356—2258;
Shun, B. C. 2255—2205;
Yu (the Great), founder of the Hia dynasty, B C.
2205 - 2197.
t
Book IX.
103
of Yin. (We speak of) the virtue of the House of
Chow; we may say indeed that it reached the
pinnacle of excellence.'
21. 'As to Yu,' added the Master, 'I can find no
flaw in him. Living on meagre food and drink;
yet providing to the utmost in his filial (offerings)
to the spirits (of the dead)! Dressing in coarse
garments; yet most elegant when vested in his
sacrificial apron and coronet! Dwelling in a poor
palace; yet exhausting his energies over those
boundary-ditches and watercourses¹! I can find
no flaw in Yu.'
BOOK IX.
More sayings respecting himself-His favourite disciple's opinion
of him and of his doctrines-Another incident during a
serious illness—' Debetur puero reverentia '— Miscellaneous.
1. Topics on which the Master rarely spoke were
-Advantage, and Destiny, and Duty 2 of man to
man.
2. A man of the village of Tah-hiang exclaimed
of him, 'A great man is Confucius !-a man of
¹ It was these labours for the proper irrigation of the soil
and the controlling of inundations that gave him his greatest
celebrity.
2 At any rate a good deal is here recorded.
1
"
104 The Confucian Analects.
extensive learning, and yet in nothing has he quite
made himself a name !'
The Master heard of this, and mentioning it to
his disciples, he said, 'What then shall I take in
hand? Shall I become a carriage-driver, or an
archer? Let me be a driver!'
6
3. The (sacrificial) cap,' he once said, 'should,
according to the Rules, be of linen; but in these
days it is of pure silk. However, as it is eco-
nomical, I do as all do.
The Rule says, "Make your bow when at the
lower end of the hall"; but nowadays the bowing is
done at the upper part. This is great freedom;
and I, though I go in opposition to the crowd, bow
when at the lower end.'
4. The Master barred four (words); he would
have no shall's, no 'must's, no 'certainly's, no 'I's¹.
5. Once, in the town of K'wang, fearing (that
his life was going to be taken), the Master ex-
claimed, 'King Wăn is dead and gone; but is not
1 I believe I am alone in this method of interpretation;
but think I am right. The teaching is against arbitrariness,
obstinacy, and self-assertion. The last expression is literally
'no I's. There is nothing in the Chinese language equiva-
lent to our inverted commas. See also next paragraph.
Book IX.
105
"wăn 1" with you here? If Heaven be about to
allow this "wan" to perish, then they who survive
its decease will get no benefit from it. But so long
as Heaven does not allow it to perish, what can the
men of K'wang do to me?'
در
many
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6. A high State official, after questioning Tsz-
kung, said, 'Your Master is a sage, then? How
and what varied abilities must be his!'
The disciple replied, ' Certainly Heaven is allow-
ing him full opportunities of becoming a sage,
in
addition to the fact that his abilities are many and
varied.'
When the Master heard of this he remarked,
'Does that high official know me? In my early
years my position in life was low, and hence my
ability in many ways, though exercised in trifling
matters. In the gentleman is there indeed such
variety (of ability)? No.'
(From this, the disciple) Lau used to say,' 'Twas
a saying of the Master: "At a time when I was not
1 'Wăn' was the honorary appellation of the great sage
and ruler, whose praise is in the Shi-King as one of the
founders of the Chow dynasty, and the term represented
civic talent and virtues, as distinct from Wu, the martial
talent-the latter being the honorary title of his son and
successor. 'Wăn' also often stands for literature, polite
accomplishments, literae humaniores. Here Confucius simply
means, ‘If you kill me, you kill a sage,' &c.
.
•
106 The Confucian Analects.
I
}
called upon to use them, I acquired my proficiency
in the polite arts."
7. ' Am I, indeed,' said the Master, 'possessed of
knowledge? I know nothing. Let a vulgar fellow
come to me with a question,-a man with an
emptyish head,—I may thrash out with him the
matter from end, and exhaust myself in doing it!'
"
1
8. Ah!' exclaimed he once, the phoenix does.
not come! and no symbols issue from the river ¹!
May I not as well give up?'
9. Whenever the Master met with a person in
mourning, or with one in full-dress cap and kirtle,
or with a blind person, although they might be
young persons, he would make a point of rising on
their appearance, or, if crossing their path, would
do so with quickened step 2!
1 These birds, in Chinese fable and poetry, were supposed
to appear as the harbingers of good, when virtuous men
were numerous, and when the empire was about to become
prosperous. See Shi-King, III. iii. 8.
<
The symbols from the river' have reference also to an
ancient fable, in which a dragon-horse emerged from the
water with symbolic outlines on his back, -- lines which first
suggested to the Emperor Fuh hi the eight mystic diagrams,
afterwards the subject of the obscure Classic - the Yih King,
or Book of Changes. No such omens of good, no such
revelations from the spirit-world, now! Confucius does not
necessarily show that he believed in such fables.
2 This, in each case, to show his respect or sympathy.
Book IX.
107
10. Once Yen Yuen¹ exclaimed with a sigh, (with
reference to the Master's doctrines), 'If I look up
to them, they are ever the higher; if I try to
penetrate them, they are ever the harder; if
I gaze at them as if before my eyes, lo, they are
behind me!—Gradually and gently the Master with
skill lures men on. By literary lore he gave me
breadth; by the Rules of Propriety he narrowed
me down. When I desire a respite, I find it
impossible; and after I have exhausted my powers,
there seems to be something standing straight up
in front of me, and though I have the mind to
make towards it I make no advance at all.'
C
II. Once when the Master was seriously ill,
Tsz-lu induced the other disciples to feign they
were high officials acting in his service.-During
a respite from his malady the Master exclaimed,
'Ah! how long has Tsz-lu's conduct been false?
Whom should I delude, if I were to pretend to
have officials under me, having none? Should
I deceive Heaven? Besides, were I to die, I would
rather die in the hands of yourselves, my disciples,
The 'mourning' should be, more strictly, half-mourning, or,
mourning attire long worn. The 'cap and kirtle' should
also be cap, robe, and skirt, denoting a person of honourable
position.
1
¹ Hwúi.
*
#!
1
108
The Confucian Analects.
than in the hands of officials. And though I should
fail to have a grand funeral over me, I should
hardly be left on my death on the public highway,
should I?'
12. Tsz-kung once said to him, 'Here is a fine
gem. Would you guard it carefully in a casket
and store it away, or seek a good price for it and
sell it?' Sell it, indeed,' said the Master, that
would I; but I should wait for the bidder ¹.'
1
•
13. The Master protested he would 'go and live
among the nine wild tribes 2.
A rude life,' said some one;' how could you
put up with it?'
'What rudeness would there be,' he replied, 'if
a "superior man" was living in their midst?'
14. Once he remarked, 'After I came back from
Wei to Lu the music was put right, and each of the
Festal Odes and Hymns was given its appropriate
place and use
3'
¹ By the 'fine gem' is said to have been meant the
Master's own high qualification for official employment,
which he seemed to set too little store upon. He sees the
point in the question, and answers, 'I will wait till I am
asked.'
2 By way of expressing his regret that his influence was
so little among civilized folk.
3 See, for the confusion it was in before, III. 2 and 23.
!
:
Book IX.
109
15. 'Ah! which one of these following,' he asked
on one occasion, are to be found (exemplified) in
me¹,-(proper) service rendered to superiors when
abroad; duty to father and elder brother when at
home; duty that shrinks from no exertion when
dear ones die; and keeping free from the confusing
effects of wine?'
16. Standing once on the bank of a mountain-
stream, he said (musingly), 'Like this are those
that pass away-no cessation, day or night?!
Other sayings:-
17. 'I have not yet met with the man who loves
Virtue as he loves Beauty.
18. Take an illustration from the making of
a hill. A simple basketful is wanting to complete
it, and the work stops. So I stop short.
'Take an illustration from the levelling of the
The Festal Odes and Hymns are the contents of the Shi-
King, minus the Ballads, &c., of the first part.
1 Chinese commentators think the question, as in VII. 2,
too self-depreciatory and make it mean, 'What is there in
me besides these ?'
2 I give the ordinary meaning of the words; some native
commentators make them allude to changes in mundane
matters, or things of time, or of the 'times; and others
take them as a hint to the disciples about unremitting
study.
*
IIO
The Confucian Analects.
I
ground. Suppose again just one basketful (is left),
when the work has so progressed. There I desist¹ !
·
19. Ah! it was Hwúi, was it not? who, when
I had given him his lesson, was the unflagging
one!
20. 'Alas for Hwúi! I saw him (ever) making
progress. I never saw him stopping short.
21. 'Blade, but no bloom,—or else bloom, but no
produce;―ay, that is the way with some!
22. 'Reverent regard is due to youth 2. How
know we what difference there may be in them in
the future from what they are now? Yet when
they have reached the age of forty or fifty, and are
still unknown in the world, then indeed they are
no more worthy of such regard.
23. Can
any do otherwise than assent to words
said to them by way of correction? Only let them
reform by such advice, and it will then be reckoned
valuable. Can any be other than pleased with
words of gentle suasion? Only let them comply
with them fully, and such also will be accounted
C
1 Admonition to his students to persevere with their
learning to its completion.
2 Almost exactly the maxima debetur puero reverentia of
Juvenal.
1
יו
Book IX.
valuable. With those who are pleased without so
complying, and those who assent but do not reform
I can do nothing at all.
24. (1) 'Give prominent place to loyalty and sin-
cerity.
(2) 'Have no associates (in study) who are
not (advanced) somewhat like yourself.
(3) 'When you have erred, be not afraid to
correct yourself.
III
1
25. 'It may be possible to seize and carry off the
chief commander of a large army ¹, but not possible
so to rob one poor fellow of his will.
26. 'One who stands,-clad in hempen robe, the
worse for wear,-among others clad in furs of fox
and badger, and yet unabashed ;-'tis Tsz-lu, that,
is it not?'
Tsz-lu used always to be humming over the
lines-
'From envy and enmity free,
What deed doth he other than good ²?'
2
How should such a rule of life,' asked the Master,
'be sufficient to make any one good?'
27. 'When the year grows chilly, we know the
pine and cypress are the last to fade ³.
1 Lit. three forces - each of 12,500 men.
2 Shi-King, I. iii. 8.
3 Good men are like the evergreens.
,"
112
The Confucian Analects.
5
28. 'The wise escape doubt; the good-hearted,
trouble; the bold, apprehension.
29. Some may study side by side, and yet be
asunder when they come to the logic of things.
Some may go on together in this latter course, but
be wide apart in the standards they reach in it.
Some, again, may together reach the same standard,
and yet be diverse in weight (of character).'
C
:
30. The blossom is out on the cherry tree,
With a flutter on every spray.
Dost think that my thoughts go not out to thee?
Ah, why art thou far away¹!'
(Commenting on these lines) the Master said
There can hardly have been much "thought going
out." What does distance signify?'
BOOK X.
Confucius in private and official life- Description of his habits,
dress, diet, and general deportment in various circum-
stances.
1. In his own village, Confucius presented a some-
what plain and simple appearance, and looked
unlike a man who possessed ability of speech.
¹ From a spring-song-one of the pieces expurgated by
Confucius from the collection out of which he compiled the
Shi-King. The point of his little comment is not very clear.
J
Book X.
113
But in the ancestral temple, and at Court, he
spoke with the fluency and accuracy of a debater,
but ever guardedly.
2. At Court, conversing with the lower order
of great officials, he spoke somewhat firmly and
directly; with those of the higher order his tone
was somewhat more affable.
When the prince was present he was constrain-
edly reverent in his movements, and showed
a proper degree of grave dignity in demeanour.
3. Whenever the prince summoned him to act
as usher to the Court, his look would change some-
what, and he would make as though he were
turning round to do obeisance.
He would salute those among whom he took up
his position¹, using the right hand or the left, and
holding the skirts of his robe in proper position
before and behind. He would make his approaches
with quick step, and with elbows evenly bent
outwards.
When the visitor withdrew, he would not fail
¹ At the reception of a prince from another State there
were many officials acting on behalf of host and guest,
through whom ceremonial questions and answers were
passed. Confucius was evidently at times required to act
as one of these.
H
A
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114
The Confucian Analects.
..
.:
.
!
to report the execution of his commands, with the
words, The visitor no longer looks back.'
(
4. When he entered the palace gate, it was with
the body somewhat bent forward, almost as though
he could not be admitted.-When he stood still,
this would never happen in the middle of the
gateway; nor when moving about would he ever
tread on the threshold ¹.-When passing the throne,
his look would change somewhat, he would turn
aside and make a sort of obeisance, and the words
he spoke seemed as though he were deficient in
utterance.
1
་་
On going up the steps to the audience chamber,
he would gather up with both hands the ends of
his robe, and walk with his body bent somewhat
forward, holding back his breath like one in whom
respiration has ceased.-On coming out, after
descending one step his countenance would relax.
and assume an appearance of satisfaction. Arrived
at the bottom, he would go forward with quick
step, his elbows evenly bent outwards, back to his
position, constrainedly reverent in every move-
ment.
1 This, and the centre of the gateway, were positions to
be occupied only by the prince.
Book X.
115
1
5. When holding the sceptre in his hand, his
body would be somewhat bent forward, as if he
were not equal to carrying it; wielding it now
higher, as in a salutation 2, now lower, as in the
presentation of a gift; his look would also be
changed and appear awestruck; and his gait would
seem retarded, as if he were obeying some (restrain-
ing hand behind).
3
When he presented the gifts of ceremony ³, he
would assume a placid expression of countenance.
At the private interview he would be cordial
and affable.
6. The good man would use no purple or violet
colours for the facings of his dress *.
Nor would he have red or orange colour for his
undress 5.
For the hot season he wore a singlet, of either
¹ Here, the sceptre of the feudal prince. Confucius, when
in office, would carry it with him on occasion of embassages
to neighbouring princes.
2 A Chinaman saluting clasps his own hands, holding them
forward. In presenting a gift the hands are lower.
9 At the neighbouring prince's Court.
4 Because, it is said, such colours were adopted in fasting
and mourning.
5 Because they did not belong to the five correct colours
(viz. green, yellow, carnation, white and black), and were
affected more by females.
+
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1
1
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H 2
116
The Confucian Analects.
4
J
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coarse or fine texture, but would also feel bound
to have an outer garment covering it.
For his black robe he had lamb's wool; for his
white one, fawn's fur; and for his yellow one, fox
fur 1.
His furred undress robe was longer, but the right
sleeve was shortened.
He would needs have his sleeping-dress one and
a half times his own length.
For ordinary home wear he used thick substan-
tial fox or badger furs.
When he left off mourning, he would wear all
his girdle trinkets.
His kirtle in front, when it was not needed for
full cover 2, he must needs have cut down.
He would never wear his (black) lamb's-wool, or
a dark-coloured cap, when he went on visits of
condolence to mourners 3.
On the first day of the new moon, he must have
on his Court dress and to Court.
7. When observing his fasts, he made a point of
having bright, shiny garments, made of linen.
¹ The first was appropriate for wear at the Court of his
own State; the second when at a neighbouring Court as
envoy; the last in the ancestral temple.
2 As at Court.
3 Since white was, as it is still, the mourning colour.
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Book X.
117
He must also at such times vary his food, and
move his seat to another part of his dwelling-
room.
8. As to his food, he never tired of rice so long
as it was clean and pure, nor of hashed meats when
finely minced.
Rice spoiled by damp, and sour, he would not
touch, nor tainted fish, nor bad meat, nor aught
of a bad colour or smell, nor aught overdone in
cooking, nor aught out of season.
Neither would he eat anything that was not
properly cut, or that lacked its proper seasonings.
Although there might be an abundance of meat
before him, he would not allow a preponderance of
it to rob the rice of its beneficial effect in nutrition.
Only in the matter of wine did he set himself no
limit, yet he never drank so much as to confuse
himself.
Tradesmen's wines, and dried meats from the
market, he would not touch.
Ginger he would never have removed from the
table during a meal.
He was not a great eater.
Meat from the sacrifices at the prince's temple he
would never put aside till the following day. The
meat of (his own) offerings he would never give
数
​7
-
--
增
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118
The Confucian Analects.
i
out¹ after three days' keeping, for after that time
none were to eat it.
At his meals he would not enter into discussions;
and when reposing (afterwards) he would not utter
a word.
Even should his meal consist only of coarse rice
and vegetable broth or melons, he would make an
offering 2, and never fail to do so religiously.
9. He would never sit on a mat that was not
straight ³.
10. After a feast among his villagers, he would
wait before going away until the old men had
left.
4
When the village people were exorcising the
pests 5, he would put on his Court robes and stand
on the steps of his hall (to receive them).
1 To kinsmen and friends.
2 The origin of meals being sacrificial, this the good man
would do, somewhat as we say grace before meals.
Loving order in all things, his sense of order was dis-
turbed in little matters as well as great.
4 Lit. those who carried a staff. Sexagenarians only were
then, as in China now, supposed to use walking-sticks.
5 A new-year ceremony of expelling evil spirits and pesti-
lential influences, consisting of a house to house visitation.
Though silly and a little rowdy, the Sage would not disturb
an old custom, but would seem to have encouraged it.
During the recent plague in Hong Kong the Chinese re-
it
Book X.
119
1
II. When he was sending a message of inquiry
to a person in another State, he would bow twice ¹
on seeing the messenger off.
Ki Kang once sent him a present of some
medicine. He bowed, and received it; but re-
marked, 'Until I am quite sure of its properties
I must not venture to taste it.'
12. Once when the stabling was destroyed by
fire, he withdrew from the Court, and asked, 'Is
any person injured?' without inquiring as to
the horses.
13. Whenever the prince sent him a present of
food, he was particular to set his mat in proper
order, and would be the first one to taste it. If
the prince's present was one of raw meat, he must
needs have it cooked, and make an oblation of it.
If the gift were a live animal, he would be sure to
keep it and care for it.
When he was in waiting, and at a meal with the
prince, the prince would make the offering 2, and
he (the Master) was the pregustator.
quested permission for a special performance of this kind.
It now consists mainly in processions, firing off crackers,
&c.
¹ The bowings being really intended for the person to
whom the message was sent.
2 The act of 'grace,' before eating.

120 The Confucian Analects.
$
!
When unwell, and the prince came to see him,
he would arrange his position so that his head
inclined towards the east, would put over him his
Court robes, and draw his girdle across them.
When summoned by order of the prince, he
would start off without waiting for his horses to
be put to.
14. On his entry into the Grand Temple, he in-
quired about everything connected with its usages.
15. If a friend died, and there were no near
relatives to take him to, he would say, 'Let him
be buried from my house.'
For a friend's gift--unless it consisted of meat
that had been offered in sacrifice-he would not
bow, even if it were a carriage and horses.
16. In repose he did not lie like one dead. In
his home life he was not formal in his manner.
Whenever he met with a person in mourning,
even though it were a familiar acquaintance, he
would be certain to change (his manner); and
when he met with any one in full-dress cap, or
with any blind person, he would also unfailingly
put on a different look, even though he were him-
self in undress at the time.
In saluting any person wearing mourning he
would bow forwards towards the front bar of his

:
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Book X.
carriage; in the same manner he would also salute
the bearer of a census-register.
121
When a sumptuous banquet was spread before
him, a different expression would be sure to appear
in his features, and he would rise up from his seat¹.
At a sudden thunder-clap, or when the wind
grew furious, his look would also invariably be
changed.
17. On getting into his car, he would never fail
(first) to stand up erect, holding on by the strap.
When in the car, he would never look about, nor
speak hastily, nor bring one hand to the other.
18. 'Let one but make a movement in his face,
And (the bird) will rise and seek (some safer) place.'
Apropos of this, he said, 'Here is a hen-pheasant
from Shan Liang-and in season! and in season!'
After Tsz-lu had got it prepared, he smelt it thrice,
and then rose up from his seat ².
1 In acknowledgement of the generous hospitality.
2 This whole paragraph is obscure, and the Chinese com-
mentators differ in their explanations of it. I take the
opening sentences as a quotation from some poem, in which
evidently facial expression (which plays so large a part in
the preceding paragraphs) is dwelt upon. 'Shan Liang' is
literally a mountain-bridge; but may it not be the name of
some district or place? The Master's rising up from his
seat must be taken, again, as expressive of his pleasure at
having met with a luxury.

122
The Confucian Analects.
J.
.:
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BOOK XI.
Comparative worth of certain disciples-Death of the favourite
one - Four of them tell their wishes.
C
1. The first to make progress in The Proprieties
and in Music,' said the Master, 'are plain country-
men; after them, the men of higher standing¹. If
I had to employ any of them, I should stand by the
former.'
(
2. Of those,' said he, 'who were about me when
I was in the Ch'in and Ts'ai States, not one now is
left to approach my door.'
2 Note. The men of virtuous life were Yen Yuen
(Hwúi), Min Tsz-k'ien, Yen Pih-niu, and Chung-kung
(Yen Yung); the speakers and debaters were Tsai
Wo and Tsz-kung; the (capable) government ser-
vants were Yen Yu and Tsz-lu; the literary students,
Tsz-yu and Tsz-hiá.
3. As for Hwúi,' said the Master, 'he is not one
1
Quite a different meaning is brought out by the native
commentators, the chief of whom are followed by Prof.
Legge; but I think they do violence to the plain text. They
represent the whole paragraph as a quotation of a common
saying about the men of former and later times.
2 Said to be an addition by the compilers.

&
Book XI.
123
to help me on: there is nothing I say but he is not
well satisfied with ¹.'
1
4. 'What a dutiful son was Min Tsz-k'ien!' he
exclaimed. 'No one finds occasion to differ from
what his parents and brothers have said of him.'
5. Nan Yung used to repeat three times over
(the lines in the Odes about) the white sceptre 2.
Confucius caused his own elder brother's daughter
to be given in marriage to him.
6. When Ki K'ang inquired which of the dis-
ciples were fond of learning, Confucius answered
him, 'There was one Yen Hwúi who was fond of
it; but unfortunately his allotted time was short,
and he died; and now his like is not to be found.'
7. When Yen Yuen died, (his father) Yen Lu
begged for the Master's carriage in order to get
a shell for his coffin. Ability or no ability,' said
the Master, 'every father still speaks of "my son."
When (my own son) Li died, and the coffin for him
had no shell to it, (I know) I did not go on foot to
get him one; but that was because I was (though
،
¹ He did not raise questions, see II. 9; and in that way
did not lead him on into deeper discussions.
2 Shi-King, III. iii. 2—
'Flaws may be in thy white sceptre,
Yet they may be ground away;
Flaws in things that thou hast uttered-
All intangible are they!'
124 The Confucian Analects.
}
*
1
retired) in the wake of the ministers, and could
not therefore well do so.'
8. On the death of Yen Yuen the Master ex-
claimed, 'Ah me! Heaven is ruining me, Heaven
is ruining me!'
9. On the same occasion, his wailing for that
disciple becoming excessive, those who were about
him said, 'Sir, this is too much!'-'Too much?'
said he; if I am not to do so for him, then-for
whom else?'
10. The disciples then wished for the deceased
a grand funeral. The Master could not on his part
consent to this 2. They nevertheless gave him one.
-Upon this he remarked, 'He used to look upon
me as if I were his father. I could never, however,
look on him as a son. 'Twas not my mistake, but
yours, my children.'
11. Tsz-lu propounded a question about minis-
tering to the spirits (of the departed). The Master
replied, 'Where there is scarcely the ability to
minister to (living) men, how shall there be ability
to minister to the spirits?'-On his venturing to
¹ He was still about the Court when required for consul-
tation; and was obliged to act as a high officer should. Yen
Lu was not in such a position.
2 Because the family was very poor, and the grand funeral
would involve them in expense.
Book XI.
125
put a question concerning death, he answered,
'Where there is scarcely any knowledge about life,
how shall there be any about death ¹?'
1
.
12. The disciple Min was by his side, looking
affable and bland; Tsz-lu also, looking careless
and intrepid; and Yen Yu and Tsz-kung, firm and
precise. The Master was cheery.-' One like Tsz-lu
there,' (said he), ' does not come to a natural end 2.'
13. Some persons in Lu were taking measures
in regard to the Long Treasury House.-Min Tsz-
k'ien observed, 'How if it were (repaired) on the
old lines?—The Master upon this remarked, 'This
fellow is not a talker, but when he does speak he is
bound to hit the mark!'
3
14. 'There is Yu's harpsichord,' exclaimed the
Master—' what is it doing at my door?' On seeing,
however, some disrespect shown to him by the other
disciples, he added, 'Yu has got as far as the top of
the hall; only he has not yet entered the house."
15. Tsz-kung asked whether was the worthier
of the two-Tsz-chang or Tsz-hiá. The former,'
¹ The answers may only have reference to the questioner.
2 Nor did he. He was killed during a rising in Wei.
3 Tsz-lu. A rebuke of his style of music seems to be
intended. Yet the Master shows that he has made some
progress, and will not have him contemned.
126 The Confucian Analects.
answered the Master, 'goes beyond the mark; the
latter falls short of it.'
'So then Tsz-chang is the better of the two, is
he?' said he.
C
To go too far,' he replied, 'is about the same as
to fall short.'
16. The Chief of the Ki family was a wealthier
man than the duke of Chow¹ had been, and yet
Yen Yu gathered and hoarded for him, increasing
his wealth more and more.
'He is no follower of mine,' said the Master. 'It
would serve him right, my children, to sound the
drum 2, and set upon him.'
17. [Characteristics of four disciples]:
Tsz-káu was simple-minded; Tsang-sin, a dullard ;
Tsz-chang, full of airs; Tsz-lu, rough.
،
18. As to Hwúi,' said the Master, he comes
near to (perfection), while frequently in great want.
-Tsz-kung does not submit to the appointments
(of Heaven); and yet his goods are increased;—he
is often successful in his calculations.'
19. Tsz-chang wanted to know some marks of
the (naturally) Good Man ³.
1 The example and 'dream' of Confucius. See on VII. 5.
2 Drums were sounded in the market-place to collect the
people to witness the punishment of criminals.
3 This term was a technical one in the vocabulary of the
•
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Book XI.
127
'He does not walk in others' footprints,' said the
Master; 'yet he does not get (beyond the hall) into
the house ¹.'
20. Once the Master said, ' Because we allow that
a man's words have something genuine in them,
are they (necessarily) those of a superior man? or
words carrying (only) an outward semblance and
show of gravity?'
21. Tsz-lu put a question about the practice of
precepts one has heard. The Master's reply was,
'In a case where there is a father or elder brother
still left with you, how should you practise all you
hear?'
'When, however, the same question was put to
him by Yen Yu, his reply was, 'Yes; do so."
Kung-si Hwa animadverted upon this to the
Master. 'Tsz-lu asked you, sir,' said he, 'about
the practice of what one has learnt, and you said,
"There may be a father or elder brother still alive”;
but when Yen Yu asked the same question, you
answered, “Yes, do so." I am at a loss to under-
stand you, and venture to ask what you meant.'
Sage and his disciples, meaning, as the commentators say,
a man constitutionally good, or having genius, without
having studied.
1 ¹ I.e. He is not a copyist, and yet he never gets far for-
ward. See, as to 'the house,' parag. 14.
.
•
-
128 The Confucian Analects.
.:
**
?
Face.
The Master replied, 'Yen Yu backs out of his
duties; therefore I push him on. Tsz-lu has for-
wardness enough for them both; therefore I hold
him back.'
22. On the occasion of that time of fear in
K'wang¹, Yen Yuen having fallen behind, the
Master said to him (afterwards), 'I took it for
granted you were a dead man.' 'How should
I dare to die,' said he,' while you, sir, still lived?'
23. On Ki Tsz-jen" putting to him a question
anent Tsz-lu and Yen Yu, as to whether they might
be called 'great ministers,' the Master answered,
'I had expected your question, sir, to be about
something extraordinary, and lo! it is only about
these two. Those whom we call "great ministers"
are such as serve their prince conscientiously, and
who, when they cannot do so, retire. At present,
as regards the two you ask about, they may be
called “qualified ministers.'
'Well, are they then,' he asked, 'such as will
follow their leader?'
ر در
،
They would not follow him who should slay his
father and his prince!' was the reply.
1 See IX. 5.
2 Younger brother of the Chief of the Ki family. He had
employed these two disciples in his service, hoping ultimately
to get possession of the dukedom.
1
j
Book XI.
24. Through the intervention of Tsz-lu, Tsz-káu
was being appointed governor of Pi¹.
'You are spoiling a (good) man's son,' said the
Master.
129
Tsz-lu rejoined, 'But he will have the people
and their superiors (to gain experience from), and
there will be the altars2; what need to read books?
He can become a student afterwards 3.'
'Here is the reason for my hatred of glib-tongued
people,' said the Master.
25. On one occasion Tsz-lu, Tsăng Sih, Yen Yu,
and Kung-si Hwa were sitting near him. *
He said to them, 'Though I may be a day older
¹ See on VI. 7. Tsz-káu was only half-educated, simple-
minded (see parag. 17), and quite unfit for such an office.
2 The Earth altar and Grain-god altar. He would have
opportunities of worship.
3 A good story is given by Dr. Legge in a chapter on the
disciples, corroborating what is here said about Tsz-lu. ‘At
their first interview, the Master asked him what he was fond
of, and he replied, "My long sword." Confucius said, “If to
your present ability there were added the results of learning,
you would be a very superior man." "Of what advantage
would learning be to me?" asked Tsz-lu. "There is a bam-
boo...
... which is straight itself without being bent. If you
cut it down and use it, you can send it through a rhinoceros'
hide;--what is the use of learning?" "Yes," said the
Master, "but if you feather it and point it with steel, will
it not penetrate more deeply?" Tsz-lu bowed twice, and
said, "I will reverently receive your instructions."
(6
I
130
The Confucian Analects.
__
܃ ܃
than you, do not (for the moment) regard me as
such. While you are living this unoccupied life
you are saying, "We do not become known." Now
suppose some one got to know you, what then?'
Tsz-lu-first to speak-at once answered, Give
me a State of large size and armament¹, hemmed
in and hampered by other larger States, the popu-
lation augmented by armies and regiments, causing
a dearth in it of food of all kinds; give me charge
of that State, and in three years' time I should
make a brave country of it, and let it know its
place.'
<
The Master smiled at him.-'Yen,' said he, 'how
would it be with you?'
'Give me,' said Yen, a territory of sixty or
seventy li2 square, or of fifty or sixty square; put
me in charge of that, and in three years I should
make the people sufficiently prosperous. As regards
their knowledge of ceremonial or music, I should
wait for superior men (to teach them that).'
'And with you, Kung-si, how would it be?'
This disciple's reply was, 'I have nothing to say
about my capabilities for such matters; my wish is
to learn. I should like to be a junior assistant, in
1 Lit. a State with 1000 war-chariots.
2 A li is about one-third of a mile. Either would be
a small State.
Book XI.
131
dark robe and cap, at the services of the ancestral
temple, and at the Grand Receptions of the Princes
by the Sovereign.'
'And with you, Tsăng Sih?'
This disciple was strumming on his harpsichord,
but now the twanging ceased, he turned from the
instrument, rose to his feet, and answered thus:
Something different from the choice of these three.'
'What harm?' said the Master; 'I want each one
of you to tell me what his heart is set upon.'
'Well, then,' said he, 'give me in the latter part
of spring-dressed in full spring-tide attire-in
company with five or six young fellows of twenty¹,
or six or seven lads under that age, to do the ablu-
tions in the I stream, enjoy a breeze in the rain-
dance², and finish up with songs on the road
home.'
The Master drew in his breath, sighed, and
exclaimed, ‘Ah, I take with you!'
The three other disciples having gone out, leav-
ing Tsǎng Sih behind, the latter said, 'What think
you
of the answers of those three? Well, each
1 Lit. capped ones. At twenty they underwent the cere-
mony of capping, and were considered men.
2 I. e. before the altars, where offerings were placed with
prayer for rain. A religious dance.
26
I 2
132
The Confucian Analects.
"
:
*
*
told me what was uppermost in his mind,' said the
Master; simply that.'
"
'Why did you smile at Tsz-lu, sir?'
'I smiled at him because to have the charge of
a State requires due regard to the Rules of Propriety,
and his words betrayed a lack of modesty.'
'But Yen, then - he had a State in view, had he
not?'
'I should like to be shown a territory such as he
described which does not amount to a State.'
'But had not Kung-si also a State in view?'
1
'What are ancestral temples and Grand Recep-
tions, but for the feudal lords (to take part in) ¹?
If Kung-si were to become an unimportant assis-
tant at these functions, who could become an
important one? ›
BOOK XII.
The Master's answers when consulted about fellow-feeling, the
superior man, enlightenment, government, litigations-
Virtue, vice, and illusions — Philanthropy-Friendships.
I. Yen Yuen was asking about man's proper
regard for his fellow-man. The Master said to
1 The princes were themselves the attendants of the
sovereign in the ancestral temple. See the Shi-King, IV. i.
I and 4; IV. ii. 7 and 8.
"
..
***
--
Book XII.
133
him, 'Self-control, and a habit of falling back
upon propriety, (virtually) effect it. Let these
conditions be fulfilled for one day, and every one
round¹ will betake himself to the duty. Is it to
begin in oneself, or think you, indeed! it is to
begin in others?'
'I wanted you to be good enough,' said Yen
Yuen, 'to give me a brief synopsis of it.'
Then said the Master, Without propriety use
not your eyes; without it use not your ears, nor
your tongue, nor a limb of your body.'
'I may be lacking in diligence,' said Yen Yuen,
'but with your favour I will endeavour to carry
out this advice.'
C
2. Chung-kung asked about man's proper re-
gard for his fellows.
To him the Master replied thus:- When you
go forth from your door, be as if you were meeting
some guest of importance. When you are making
use of the common people (for State purposes), be
as if you were taking part in a great religious
function. Do not set before others what you do
not desire yourself. Let there be no resentful
feelings against you when you are away in the
country, and none when at home.'
1T, the empire, the world, here tout le monde.
天下​,
►
C
134
The Confucian Analects.
JA
1
'I may lack diligence,' said Chung-kung, 'but
with your favour I will endeavour to carry out
this advice.'
3. Sz-ma Niu¹ asked the like question. The
answer he received was this:- The words of the
man who has a proper regard for his fellows are
uttered with difficulty.'
"His words-uttered with difficulty"?' he
echoed (in surprise). 'Is that what is meant by
proper regard for one's fellow-creatures?'
'Where there is difficulty in doing,' the Master
replied, will there not be some difficulty in
utterance?'
'
4. The same disciple put a question about the
´superior man.'—'Superior men,' he replied, 'are
free from trouble and apprehension.'
"Free from trouble and apprehension !"' said he.
'Does that make them "superior men"?'
The Master added, Where there is found, upon
introspection, to be no chronic disease, how shall
there be any trouble? how shall there be any
apprehension?'
5. The same disciple, being in trouble, remarked,
C
¹ Another disciple. Each seems to have been answered
according to his ability or character.
SALON 20
Book XII.
135
'I am alone in having no brother, while all else
have theirs-younger or elder.'
Tsz-hiá said to him, I have heard this 1:
"Death and life have destined times; wealth and
honours rest with Heaven. Let the superior man
keep watch over himself without ceasing, showing
deference to others, with propriety of manners,—
and all within the four seas 2 will be his brethren.
How should he be distressed for lack of brothers!"
"""
6. Tsz-chang asked what (sort of man) might
be termed 'enlightened.'
(
The Master replied, That man, with whom
drenching slander and cutting calumny gain no
currency, may well be called enlightened. Ay,
he with whom such things make no way may well
be called enlightened in the extreme 3.
7. Tsz-kung put a question relative to govern-
ment. In reply the Master mentioned (three
essentials):—sufficient food, sufficient armament,
and the people's confidence.
'But,' said the disciple, if you cannot really
1 From Confucius, it is generally thought.
2 The supposed boundaries of the earth; but evidently, as
in the Shi-King, IV. v. 3, a meiosis for the empire.
3 This is no proper answer, but it had doubtless reference
to some circumstances unmentioned.
136
The Confucian Analects.
i
i
have all three, and one has to be given up, which
would you give up first?'
'The armament,' he replied.
'And if you are obliged to give up one of the
remaining two, which would it be?'
'The food,' said he.
of all men from of old.
nothing can stand.'
'Death has been the portion
Without the people's trust
8. Kih Tsz-shing¹ once said, 'Give me the in-
born qualities of a gentleman, and I want no
more. How are such to come from book-learn-
ing?'
Tsz-kung exclaimed, 'Ah! sir, I regret to hear
such words from you. A gentleman!-But "a team
of four can ne'er o'ertake the tongue!" Literary
accomplishments are much the same as inborn
qualities, and inborn qualities as literary accom-
plishments. A tiger's or leopard's skin without
the hair might be a dog's or sheep's when so made
bare.'
9. Duke Ngai was consulting Yu Joh 2. Said he,
'It is a year of dearth, and there is an insufficiency
for Ways and Means,-what am I to do?'
¹ A great officer of the State of Wei.
* A former disciple of Confucius now a minister of Lu.
!
;
I
1
!
pa dan med, attends me qera, ja
ར
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Book XII.
137
Why not apply the Tithing Statute¹?' said the
minister.
'But two tithings would not be enough for my
purposes,' said the duke; what would be the good
of applying the Statute?'
C
몃
​The minister replied, 'So long as the people
have enough (left for themselves), who of them
will allow their prince to be without enough?
But-when the people have not enough, who will
allow their prince all that he wants?'
10. Tsz-chang was asking how the standard of
virtue was to be raised, and how to discern what
was illusory or misleading. The Master's answer
was, 'Give a foremost place to honesty and faithful-
ness, and tread the path of righteousness, and you
will raise the standard of virtue. As to discerning
what is illusory, here is an example of an illusion:-
Whom you love you wish to live; whom you hate
you wish to die. To have wished the same person
to live and also to be dead, there is an illusion.
for you.'
11. Duke King of Ts'i consulted Confucius about
government. His answer was, 'Let a prince be
a prince, and ministers be ministers; let fathers
be fathers, and sons be sons.'
1 On the Royal Tenths, see Shi-King, II. vi. 7.
***
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138
The Confucian Analects.
f:
..
A
'Good!' exclaimed the duke; 'truly if a prince
fail to be a prince, and ministers to be ministers,
and if fathers be not fathers, and sons not sons,
then, even though I may have my allowance of
grain¹, should I ever be able to relish it?'
12. The man to decide a cause 2 with half a
word,' exclaimed the Master, 'is Tsz-lu!'
Tsz-lu never let a night pass between promise
and performance 3.
C
C
13. In hearing causes, I am like other men,'
The great point is-to prevent
C
said the Master.
litigation.'
14. Tsz-chang having raised some question about
government, the Master said to him, 'In the settle-
ment of its (principles) be unwearied; in its ad-
ministration—see to that loyally.'
(
(
15. The man of wide research,' said he, who
also restrains himself by the Rules of Propriety, is
not likely to transgress.'
16. Again, 'The noble-minded man makes the
most of others' good qualities, not the worst of
¹ I.e. revenue, or personal allowance from the State.
2 Tsz-lu was now a magistrate.
³ Dr. Legge's rendering of is perhaps happier :
'Never slept over a promise.'

you
Book XII.
139
their bad ones. Men of small mind do the reverse
of this.'
17. Ki K'ang was consulting him about the
direction of public affairs. Confucius answered
him, ‘A director should be (himself) correct¹. If
you, sir, as a leader show correctness, who will dare
not to be correct?'
18. Ki K'ang, being much troubled on account
of robbers abroad, consulted Confucius on the
matter. He received this reply: 'If you, sir,
were not covetous, neither would they steal, even
were you to bribe them to do so ².'
2,
19. Ki K'ang, when consulting Confucius about
the government, said, 'Suppose I were to put to
death the disorderly for the better encouragement
of the orderly;-what say you to that?'
'Sir,' replied Confucius, 'in the administration
of government why resort to capital punishment?
Covet what is good, and the people will be good.
The virtue of the noble-minded man is as the wind,
E, ching che ching. There is evidently a play
on the words. Ching, to direct or govern, is pronounced
exactly like ching, correct.
2 This man had usurped the headship of the Ki family,
and had carried off the child who was the rightful heir.
1
S
·
*
4-
+
•LUNE
4..
140
The Confucian Analects.
and that of inferior men as grass; the grass must
bend, when the wind blows upon it.'
20. Tsz-chang asked how (otherwise) he would
describe the learned official who might be termed
influential.
(
What, I wonder, do you mean by one who is
influential?' said the Master.
I mean,' replied the disciple, 'one who is sure
to have a reputation throughout the country, as
well as at home.'
'That,' said the Master, is reputation, not in-
fluence. The influential man, then, if he be one
who is genuinely straightforward and loves what
is just and right, a discriminator of men's words,
and an observer of their looks, and in honour care-
ful to prefer others to himself,—will certainly have
influence, both throughout the country and at
home.-The man of (mere) reputation, on the
other hand, who speciously affects philanthropy,
though in his way of procedure he acts contrary to
it, while yet quite evidently engrossed with that
virtue,―will certainly have reputation, both in
the country and at home.'
21. Fan Ch'i, strolling with him over the ground
below the place of the rain-dance, said to him,
'I venture to ask how to raise the standard of
*
Book XII.
141
virtue, how to reform dissolute habits, and how to
discern what is illusory?'
'Ah! a good question indeed!' he exclaimed.
'Well, is not putting duty first, and success second,
a way of raising the standard of virtue? And is
not attacking the evil in oneself, and not the evil
which is in others, a way of reforming dissolute
habits? And as to illusions, is not one morning's
fit of anger, causing a man to forget himself, and
even involving in the consequences those who are
near and dear to him,-is not that an illusion?'
1
22. The same disciple asked him what was meant
by 'a right regard for one's fellow-creatures ¹.' He
replied, 'It is love to man.'
Asked by him again what was meant by wisdom,
he replied, 'It is knowledge of man.'
Fan Ch'i did not quite grasp his meaning.
The Master went on to say, 'Lift up the straight,
set aside the crooked, so can you make the crooked
straight 2.
Fan Ch'i left him, and meeting with Tsz-hiá he
said, 'I had an interview just now with the Master,
and I asked him what wisdom was. In his answer
he said, "Lift up the straight, set aside the crooked,
1
. Here the Master is quite explicit in his reply.
2 See II. 19.
Į
*
142
The Confucian Analects.
}
5
S
and so can you make the crooked straight." What
was his meaning?'
'Ah! words rich in meaning, those,' said the
other. 'When Shun was emperor, and was select-
ing his men from among the multitude, he "lifted
up" Káu-yáu; and men devoid of right feelings
towards their kind went far away. And when
Tang was emperor, and chose out his men from
the crowd, he "lifted up" I-yin,-with the same
result 1.
23. Tsz-kung was consulting him about a friend.
'Speak to him frankly, and respectfully,' said the
Master, and gently lead him on. If you do not
succeed, then stop; do not submit yourself to
indignity.'
24. The learned Tsăng observed, 'In the society
of books the "superior man" collects his friends;
in the society of his friends he is furthering good-
will among men.'
1 The former was made Minister of Crime and Controller
of the frontier tribes, and it is chiefly to him that the glories
of Shun's reign are attributed. The latter was Tang's prime
minister, and he is spoken of as the destroyer of the Hiá
dynasty and founder of the Shang (or Yin).
ba
.......
Book XIII.
BOOK XIII
More answers on the art of governing-How to deal with dense
populations-Different estimates of 'straightforwardness' —
The social virtue again--Qualifications for office-Con-
sistency - The superior man-How to prepare the people to
defend their country.
143
Lead
1. Tsz-lu was asking about government.
the way in it,' said the Master, and work hard
at it.'
•
(
Requested to say more, he added, And do not
tire of it.'
2. Chung-kung, on being made first minister to
the Chief of the Ki family, consulted the Master
about government, and to him he said, 'Let the
heads of offices be heads. Excuse small faults.
Promote men of sagacity and talent.'
'But,' he asked, ' how am I to know the sagacious
and talented, before promoting them?'
'Promote those whom you do know,' said the
Master. As to those of whom you are uncertain,
will others omit to notice them?'
3. Tsz-lu said to the Master, 'As the prince of
Wei, sir, has been waiting for you to act for him
144
The Confucian Analects.
}
in his government, what is it your intention to
take in hand first?'
'One thing of necessity,' he answered,—' the
rectification of terms'.'
'That!' exclaimed Tsz-lu. 'How far away you
are, sir! Why such rectification?'
C
'What a rustic you are, Tsz-lu!' rejoined the
Master. A gentleman would be a little reserved
and reticent in matters which he does not under-
stand. If terms be incorrect, language will be in-
congruous; and if language be incongruous, deeds
will be imperfect.-So, again, when deeds are im-
perfect, propriety and harmony cannot prevail, and
when this is the case laws relating to crime will
fail in their aim; and if these last so fail, the
people will not know where to set hand or foot.—
Hence, a man of superior mind, certain first of his
terms, is fitted to speak; and being certain of what
he says can proceed upon it. In the language of
such a person there is nothing heedlessly irregular,
and that is the sum of the matter.'
4. Fan Ch'i requested that he might learn some-
thing of husbandry. (For that)' said the Master,
'I am not equal to an old husbandman.' Might
he then learn something of gardening? he asked.
1 See XII. II: 'Let a prince be a prince,' &c.
6
Book XIII.
145
I am not equal to an old gardener¹,' was the
reply.
'A man of little mind, that!' said the Master,
when Fan Ch'i had gone out. 'Let a man who is
set over the people love propriety, and they will
not presume to be disrespectful. Let him be a
lover of righteousness, and they will not presume
to be aught but submissive. Let him love faithful-
ness and truth, and they will not presume not to
lend him their hearty assistance. Ah, if all this
only were so, the people from all sides would come
to such a one, carrying their children on their
backs. What need to turn his hand to husbandry?'
5. ‘Though a man,' said he, 'could hum through
the Odes-the three hundred-yet should show
himself unskilled when given some administrative
work to do for his country; though he might know
much (of that other lore), yet if, when sent on
a mission to any quarter, he could answer no
question personally and unaided, what after all is
he good for?'
6. 'Let (a leader),' said he, show rectitude in
his own personal character, and even without
directions from him things will go well. If he be
¹ A commentator (Yen Ts'an) gives the proverb, 'About
ploughing ask the labourer, about weaving ask the maid.'
K
146 The Confucian Analects.
*
1
1
not personally upright, his directions will not be
complied with.'
7. Once he made the remark, 'The governments
of Lu and of Wei are in brotherhood ¹."
C
8. Of King, a son of the duke of Wei, he observed
that he managed his household matters well. On
his coming into possession, he thought, "What
a strange conglomeration!"— Coming to possess
a little more, it was, "Strange, such a result!"
And when he became wealthy, "Strange, such
elegance 2!",
9. The Master was on a journey to Wei, and
Yen Yu was driving him. What multitudes of
people!' he exclaimed. Yen Yu asked him, 'Seeing
they are so numerous, what more would you do
for them?'
'Enrich them,' replied the Master ³.
1 The States had been held at the beginning of the
dynasty by two brothers, and they had now fared much in
the same way for centuries.
2 His excellent management is to be seen in his gradual
prosperity, but his indifference about wealth is noted at the
various stages of it.
› We find Mencius inculcating the same ideas. How true
they are! The first thing is to raise the material welfare of
a people; they will then, says Mencius, 'have a fixed heart;'
and it will be easier to raise their morals. 'Wealth,' says
?
Book XIII.
147
'And after enriching them, what more would
you do for them?'
C Instruct them.'
10. 'Were any one (of our princes) to employ me,'
he said, 'after a twelvemonth I might have made
some tolerable progress; but give me three years,
and my work should be done.'
11. Again, 'How true is that saying, "Let good
men have the management of a country for a
century, and they would be adequate to cope with
evildoers, and thus do away with capital punish-
ments."
"
1
12. Again, 'Suppose (the ruler) to possess true
kingly qualities, then surely after one generation ¹
there would be good-will among men.'
13. Again, 'Let a ruler but see to his own recti-
tude, and what trouble will he then have in the
work before him? If he be unable to rectify him-
self, how is he to rectify others?'
14. Once when Yen Yu was leaving the Court,
Mr. Danson (Wealth of Households, Clarendon Press), 'is not
virtue; but it tends to make virtue easy. . . . To use it well
is to elevate in the scale of being all over whom we have
influence. We must needs think of "the Good Samari-
•
•
tan" as of one who had pence to spare.'
1 The Chinese reckon a generation (H) at 30 years.
!
2
K 2
148
The Confucian Analects.
...
C
*
'
<
the Master accosted him. Why so late?' he asked.
Busy with legislation,' Yen replied. The details ¹
of it,' suggested the Master; 'had it been legislation,
I should have been there to hear it, even though
I am not in office.'
15. Duke Ting asked if there were one sentence
which (if acted upon) might have the effect of
making a country prosperous.
Confucius answered, 'A sentence could hardly
be supposed to do so much as that. But there is
a proverb people use which says, "To play the
prince is hard, to play the minister not easy."
Assuming that it is understood that "to play the
prince is hard," would it not be probable that
with that one sentence the country should be made
to prosper?'
'Is there, then,' he asked, 'one sentence which
(if acted upon) would have the effect of ruining
a country?'
Confucius again replied, ' A sentence could hardly
be supposed to do so much as that. But there is
1 Yen Yu was in the service of the ambitious Chief of the
Ki family, about whose usurpations of royal prerogatives.
see on Book III. 1, 2, 6. The Master thought that business
there should be executive rather than legislative. The
commentators, however, suppose he meant the family
affairs.
کا
→ " :
Book XIII.
149
a proverb men have which says, "Not gladly would
I play the prince, unless my words were ne'er
withstood." Assuming that the (words) were good,
and that none withstood them, would not that
also be good? But assuming that they were not
good, and yet none withstood them, would it not
be probable that with that one saying he would
work his country's ruin?'
16. When the duke of Shěh consulted him about
government, he replied, 'Where the near are grati-
fied, the far will follow.'
17. When Tsz-hiá became governor of Kü-fu, and
consulted him about government, he answered, 'Do
not wish for speedy results. Do not look at trivial
advantages. If you wish for speedy results, they
will not be far-reaching; and if you regard trivial
advantages you will not successfully deal with
important affairs.'
18. The duke of Shěh in a conversation with
Confucius said, 'There are some straightforward
persons in my neighbourhood. If a father have
stolen a sheep, the son will give evidence against
him.'
'Straightforward people in my neighbourhood
are different from those,' said Confucius. 'The
150
The Confucian Analects.
i
father will hold a thing secret on his son's behalf,
and the son does the same for his father. They
are on their way to becoming straightforward ¹.'
19. Fan Ch'i was asking him about duty to
one's fellow-men. Be courteous,' he replied, 'in
your private sphere; be serious in any duty you
take in hand to do; be leal-hearted in your inter-
course with others. Even though you were to go
amongst the wild tribes, it would not be right for
you to neglect these duties.'
20. In answer to Tsz-kung, who asked how he
would characterize one who could fitly be called
"learned official"?' the Master said, 'He may be so
called who in his private life is affected with a
sense of his own unworthiness, and who, when
sent on a mission to any quarter of the empire,
would not disgrace his prince's commands.'
C
May I presume,' said his questioner, 'to ask
what sort you would put next to such?'
'Him who is spoken of by his kinsmen as a
dutiful son, and whom the folks of his neighbour-
hood call "good brother."
د
¹ Or, Straightforwardness lies in their way (±‡).
(在​其中​).
We have the same expression in II. 18, last sentence, with
reference to seeking preferment. Also in XIX. 6.
Book XIII.
151
'May I still venture to ask whom you would
place next in order?'
C
Such as are sure to be true to their word, and
effective in their work-who are given to hammer-
ing, as it were, upon one note ¹—of inferior calibre
indeed, but fit enough, I think, to be ranked next.'
1
'How would you describe those who are at
present in the government service?'
'Ugh! mere peck and panier 2 men !-not worth
taking into the reckoning.'
3
21. Once he remarked, ' If I cannot get via media
men to impart (instruction) to, then I must of
course take the impetuous and undisciplined ³!
The impetuous ones will (at least) go forward and
lay hold on things; and the undisciplined have
(at least) something in them which needs to be
brought out '
22. 'The Southerners,' said he, 'have the proverb,
1
經​俓​然​,
RIB, kang kang jen, an expression borrowed from
the monotonous beating of the musical stone. See XIV. 42.
2 The reference may be to their being mere measures of
capacity. See on V. 3 and II. 2. Or, it may be, with more
likelihood, mere food-getters; or, as Dr. Williams explains
the phrase in his Dictionary, 'rustics, who only know about
eating!'
* Or, the wild and the playful-in the first sense applied
to dogs.
* Lit. which they do not do.
1
152
The Confucian Analects.
}
1
CC
'The man who sticks not to rule will never make
a charm-worker or a medical man ¹.”
" Good!-
"Whoever is intermittent in his practice of
virtue will live to be ashamed of it 2." Without
prognostication,' he added, that will indeed be
،
so.'
23. 'The nobler-minded man,' he remarked, 'will
be agreeable even when he disagrees; the small-
minded man will agree and be disagreeable.'
24. Tsz-kung was consulting him, and asked,
'What say you of a person who was liked by all
in his village?'
'That will scarcely do,' he answered.
'What, then, if they all disliked him?'
That, too,' said he, 'is scarcely enough. Better
if he were liked by the good folk in the village,
and disliked by the bad.'
"
25. The superior man,' he once observed, 'is
easy to serve, but difficult to please. Try to please
him by the adoption of wrong principles, and you
will fail. Also, when such a one employs others,
1 There would be little difference between these profes-
sions then, and they are not much unlike now.
2 This sentence is from the Book of Changes—the,
hang, diagram; XXX. 6.
1
i
Book XIII.
he uses them according to their capacity.-The
inferior man is, on the other hand, difficult to
serve, but easy to please. Try to please him by
the adoption of wrong principles, and you will
succeed. And when he employs others he requires
them to be fully prepared (for everything).'
153
26. Again, 'The superior man can be high with-
out being haughty. The inferior man can be
haughty if not high.'
27. 'The firm, the unflinching, the plain and
simple, the slow to speak,' said he once, ‘are
approximating towards their duty to their fellow-
men.'
28. Tsz-lu asked how he would characterize one
who might fitly be called an educated gentleman.
The Master replied, 'He who can properly be so
called will have in him a seriousness of purpose,
a habit of controlling himself, and an agreeableness
of manner: among his friends and associates the
seriousness and the self-control, and among his
brethren the agreeableness of manner 1.
29. Let good and able men discipline2 the
¹ Poor Tsz-lu was wanting in all these qualifications, and
the reply was, as usual, limited to what he had yet to learn.
2 In both cases more is meant than merely military in-
1
..
154
The Confucian Analects.
H
people for seven years,' said the Master, and after
that they may do to go to war.'
1
30. But said he, 'To lead an undisciplined ¹
people to war-that I call throwing them away.'
BOOK XIV.
Good and bad government-Superior men and humaneness
Miscellaneous sayings-Estimate of historical characters—
Murder of a duke - The superior man-Returning good for
evil-Worthies retiring from the world—A king's mourn-
ing-A renegade disciple-A precocious youth.
2
1. Yuen Sz² asked what might (be considered
to) bring shame on one.
Pay,' said the Master; 'pay-(ever looking to
that), whether the country be well or badly
governed.'
(
C
2. When imperiousness, boastfulness, resent-
ments, and covetousness cease to prevail (among
the people), may it be considered that mutual good-
will has been effected?'-To this question the
Master replied, 'A hard thing (overcome) it may be
struction and discipline: it is general instruction. But
how must the Chinese regard the sayings, after recent
experience!
1 See note 2, p. 153.
2 A former disciple, now in office—see VI. 3.
་
Book XIV.
155
considered. But as to the mutual good-will-I can-
not tell.'
3. 'Learned officials,' said he, 'who hanker after
a home life, are not worthy of being esteemed as
such.'
4. Again, 'In a country under good government,
speak boldly, act boldly. When the land is ill-
governed, though you act boldly, let your words
be moderate.'
5. Again, 'Men of virtue will needs be men of
words [i. e. will speak out], but men of words are
not necessarily men of virtue. They who care for
their fellow-men will needs be bold, but the bold
may not necessarily be such as care for their fellow-
men.'
6. Nan-kung Kwoh, who was consulting Con-
fucius, observed respecting I, the skilful archer,
and Ngau, who could propel a boat on dry land',
that neither of them died a natural death; while
Yu and Tsih 2, who with their own hands had
laboured at husbandry, came to wield imperial
sway.
¹ Both belonged to the ancient legendary period.
2 On Yu, see VIII. 21. On Tsih, see Shi-King, III. ii. 1, for
a full account.
..
•
156 The Confucian Analects.
i
The Master gave him no reply ¹. But when the
speaker had gone out he exclaimed, 'A superior
man, that! A man who values virtue, that!'
،
7. There have been noble-minded men,' said he,
'who yet were wanting in philanthropy; but never
has there been a small-minded man who had
philanthropy in him.'
8. He asked, 'Can any one refuse to toil for
those he loves? Can any one to exhort, who is
true-hearted?'
9. Speaking of the preparation of Government
Notifications (in his day) he said, 'P'i would draw
up a rough sketch of what was to be said; the Shi-
shuh 2 then looked it carefully through and put it
into proper shape; Tsz-yu next, who was master
of the ceremonial of State intercourse, improved
and adorned its phrases; and Tsz-ch'an of Tung-li
added his scholarly embellishments thereto.'
10. To some one who asked his opinion of the
last-named ³, he said, 'He was a kind-hearted
¹ From modesty, it is thought, because the allusion to Yu
and Tsih was taken as referring to Confucius himself, and
the allusion to those who died violent deaths as referring to
the men in power above him.
2 The third son and heir (?).
³ Prime minister of the State of Ch'ing. It is said that
1:
}
Book XIV.
157
.
man.'-Asked what he thought of Tsz-si¹, he ex-
claimed, 'Alas for him! alas for him!'--Asked
again about Kwan Chung 2, his answer was, ' As to
him, he once seized the town of P'in with its three
hundred families from the Chief of the Pih clan,
who, afterwards reduced to living upon coarse rice,
with all his teeth gone, never uttered a word of
complaint.'
11. 'It is no light thing,' said he, 'to endure
poverty uncomplainingly; and no difficult thing
to bear wealth without becoming arrogant.'
12. Respecting Mang Kung-ch'oh 3, he said that,
while he was fitted for something better than the
post of chief officer in the Chau or Wei families, he
was not competent to act as minister in (small
States like those of) Tang or Sieh.
Confucius wept on hearing of his death. See more about
his opinion of him, V. 15.
man,
¹ Prime minister of the State of Tsu,--a double-minded
He had used his influence against Confucius.
2 See on III. 22. His prince had allowed him to take the
town as a reward for his services, and as a punishment to
the other officer. Confucius sees more to commend in the
sufferer.
3 Chief of the Măng clan, a person for whom Confucius
had a great regard; but he would not let that regard prevent
him from estimating his abilities fairly. The Chau and Wei
families, and one other, shared between them the govern-
ment of the State of Tsin, so the work was slight.
A
158 The Confucian Analects.
:
Li
13. Tsz-lu asked how he would describe a perfect
man. He replied, 'Let a man have the sagacity
of Tsang Wu-chung¹, the freedom from covetous-
ness of Kung-ch'oh 2, the boldness of Chwang 3 of
Pîn, and the attainments in polite arts of Yen Yu¹;
and gift him further with the graces taught by the
Books of Rites and Music-then he may be con-
sidered a perfect man.-But,' said he, 'what need
of such in these days? The man that may be
regarded as perfect (now) is the one who, seeing
some advantage to himself, is mindful of righteous-
ness; who, seeing danger, risks his life; and who,
if bound by some covenant of long standing, never
forgets its conditions as life goes on.'
14. Respecting Kung-shuh Wăn 5, the Master
inquired of Kung-ming Kiá, saying, 'Is it true
that your master never speaks, never laughs, never
takes (aught from others)?'
'Those who told you that of him,' said he, 'have
¹ An officer of Lu, not long dead, who had acquired the
reputation of a sage.
2 The person named in full in last paragraph.
3 An official who seems to have been an intrepid tiger-
hunter.
4 A disciple.
5 A great statesman in Wei.
• ‘A man of Wei' is all the commentaries say of him.
1

Book XIV.
159
gone too far. My master speaks when there is
occasion to do so, and men are not surfeited with
his speaking. When there is occasion to be merry
too, he will laugh, but men have never overmuch
of his laughing. And whenever it is just and right
to take (things from others), he will take them, but
never so as to allow men to think him burdensome.'
'Is that the case with him?' said the Master.
'Can it be so?'
!
15. Respecting Tsang Wu-chung [see 13], the
Master said, 'When he sought from Lu the appoint-
ment of a successor to him, and for this object
held on to his possession of (the fortified city of)
Fang-if you say he was not then using constraint
towards his prince, I must refuse to believe it.'
16. Duke Wăn of Tsin he characterized as 'art-
ful but not upright; and duke Hwan of Ts'i as
'upright but not artful'.'
17. Tsz-lu remarked, 'When duke Hwan caused
his brother Kiu to be put to death, Sháu Hwuh
committed suicide, but Kwan Chung did not 2.
1 Both lived in the seventh century B. C.
2 Hereby hangs a tale. The two brothers were refugees
during a time of disturbance in their own State, and Kiu,
the younger, was in Lu, accompanied by the two ministers
Sháu Hwuh and Kwan Chung. On the death of their father,
160
The Confucian Analects.
.
1,000.
"..

I should say he was not a man who had much
good-will in him-eh?"
The Master replied, When duke Hwan held
a great gathering of the feudal lords, dispensing
with military equipage, it was owing to Kwan
Chung's energy that such an event was brought
about. Match such good-will as that-match it
if you can.'
•
C
C
18. Tsz-kung then spoke up. But was not
Kwan Chung wanting in good-will? He could
not give up his life when duke Hwan caused his
brother to be put to death. Besides, he became
the duke's counsellor.'
'And in acting as his counsellor put him at the
head of all the feudal lords,' said the Master, 'and
unified and reformed the whole empire; and the
people, even to this day, reap benefit from what he
did. Had it not been for him we should have been
going about with locks unkempt and buttoning
our jackets (like barbarians) on the left.-Would
you suppose that he should show the same sort
Hwan returned first to his home, took possession, and caused
his brother-still in Lu-to be put to death. One of his
attendant ministers (Sháu) died with him by his own hand,
and the other went back and served the surviving brother,
in the end becoming very powerful in his influence over the
whole empire. This was about B. C. 680.
Book XIV.
161
of attachment as exists between a poor yokel and
his one wife-that he would asphyxiate himself in
some sewer, leaving no one the wiser ?'
19. Kung-shuh Wăn's¹ steward, (who became)
the high officer Sien, went up accompanied by
Wăn to the prince's hall of audience ².
When Confucius heard of this he remarked, 'He
may well be esteemed a "Wan 3.""
20. The Master having made some reference to
the lawless ways of duke Ling of Wei, Ki K'ang
said to him, 'If he be like that, how is it he does
not ruin his position?'
Confucius answered, 'The Chung-shuh¹, Yu, is
charged with the entertainment of visitors and
strangers; the priest T'o has charge of the ancestral
temple; and Wang-sun Kiá has the control of the
army and its divisions:--with men such as those,
how should he come to ruin?'
21. He once remarked, 'He who is unblushing
in his words will with difficulty substantiate them.'
1 See on parag. 14.
² I.e. his master recognizing his worth did not think it
beneath his dignity to appear there in his company.
3 See on V. 14 and IX. 5.
• Some near relation of the duke. He was the same
person as the Kung Wăn mentioned in V. 14.
L
162
The Confucian Analects.
San
+f
22. Ch'in Shing had slain duke Kien¹. (Hear-
ing of this), Confucius, after performing his ablu-
tions, went to Court and announced the news to
duke Ngai, saying, 'Ch'in Hăng 2 has slain his
prince. May I request that you proceed against
him?'
'Inform the Chiefs of the Three Families,' said
the duke.
(Soliloquizing upon this), Confucius said, 'Since
he uses me to back his ministers 3, I did not dare
not to announce the matter to him; and now he
says, "Inform the Three Chiefs.'
He went to the Three Chiefs and informed them,
but nothing could be done. (Whereupon again)
he said, 'Since he uses me to back his ministers,
I did not dare not to announce the matter.’
1 Prince of the State of Tsi.
2 Another name for Ch'in Shing
Kien's own officers.
"""
23. Tsz-lu was questioning him as to how he
should serve his prince.- Deceive him not, but
reprove him,' he answered 4.
He was one of duke
³ Confucius had now retired from office, and this incident
occurred only two years before his death.
* This evidently refers to some fatal measure devised by
the prince, which Tsz-lu doubted whether he should openly
combat, or secretly defeat.
4
,
کرنا
Book XIV.
163
24. The minds of superior men,' he observed,
'trend upwards; those of inferior men trend down-
wards.'
25. Again, 'Students of old fixed their eyes upon
themselves: now they learn with their eyes upon
others'
26. Kü Pih-yuh¹ despatched a man with a mes-
sage to Confucius. Confucius gave him a seat, and
among (other) inquiries he asked, 'How is your
master managing?' 'My master,' he replied, ‘has
a great wish to be seldom at fault, and as yet he
cannot manage it.'
What a messenger!' exclaimed he, (admiringly),
when the man went out. 'What a messenger!
27. When not occupying the office,' was a
remark of his, 'devise not the policy.'
28. The Learned Tsång used to say, 'The thoughts
of the superior man do not wander from his own
office 2.'
29. 'Superior men,' said the Master, 'are modest
in their words, profuse in their deeds.'
30. Again,There are three attainments of the
¹ A former disciple, now an officer in Wei.
2 This observation is plainly intended to illustrate the
one next preceding. It is a quotation from the Book of
Changes, LII. 3.
:{
L 2
164 The Confucian Analects.
T
་
ī
•
superior man which are beyond me-the being
sympathetic without anxiety, wise without scepti-
cism, brave without fear.'
'Sir,' said Tsz-kung, 'that is what you say of
yourself.'
31. Whenever Tsz-kung drew comparisons from
others, the Master would say, 'Ah, how wise and
great you must have become! Now I have no
time to do that.'
32. Again, 'My great concern is, not that men
do not know me, but that they cannot¹.'
33. Again, 'If a man refrain from making pre-
parations against his being imposed upon, and from
counting upon others' want of good faith towards
him, while he is foremost to perceive what is
passing—surely that is a wise and good man.'
34. Wi-shang Mau 2 accosted Confucius, saying,
'K'iu, how comes it that you manage to go perch-
ing and roosting in this way? Is it not because
you show yourself so smart a speaker, now?'
1 Or, it may be, but that there is want of ability (in me
to know them).' The phrase (E) is not
quite clear. Comp. I. 16.
2 A man of the town of Wu-Shing in Lu-evidently a
person of importance and age. The 'perching and roosting'
refers to the Sage's visits to the different States; see
Introduction, p. 23.
I
•
}
•
Book XIV.
165
'I should not dare do that,' said Confucius.
'Tis that I am sick of men's immoveableness and
deafness to reason."
.
35. In a well-bred horse,' said he, what one
admires is not its speed, but its good points¹.'
36. Some one asked, 'What say you of (the
remark), “Requite enmity with kindness 2 "?'
'How then,' he answered, 'would you requite
kindness ?-Requite enmity with straightforward-
uess ³, and kindness with kindness.'
3
(
37. Ah! no one knows me!' he once exclaimed.
'Sir,' said Tsz-kung, 'how comes it to pass that
no one knows you?'
'While I murmur not against Heaven,' continued
1 An illustration of what is most admirable in the 'supe-
rior man.'
2 Láu-tsz, the great philosopher and founder of a school
of thought, contemporary with Confucius, had made this
以德報怨
​famous remark, see his Tau Teh King—
translation by Dr. Chalmers (Trübner and Co.), p. 49.-I
translate by enmity,' because that word and ‘resent-
ment' and ‘murmuring' are the common meanings of the
term throughout the book. Note that the same word
occurs, translated 'murmur,' in the very next paragraph.
teh, the ordinary term for virtue, means any moral
excellence or goodness, and here the Chinese commentators
themselves explain it by benignity or kindness.
3 The word here is
what is correct, straight, upright.
=
!
166
The Confucian Analects.
the Master, nor cavil at men; while I stoop to
learn and aspire to penetrate into things that are
high; yet 'tis Heaven alone knows what I am."
38. Liáu, a kinsman of the duke, having laid
a complaint against Tsz-lu before Ki K'ang, an
officer¹ came (to Confucius) to inform him of the
fact, and he added, 'My lord is certainly having
his mind poisoned by his kinsman Liáu, but through
my influence perhaps we may yet manage to see
him exposed 2 in the market-place or the Court.'
C
'If right principles are to have their course, it
is so destined,' said the Master; if they are not
to have their course, it is so destined. What can
Liáu do against Destiny ³?'
3
39. There are worthy men,' said the Master,
'fleeing from the world; some from their district;
some from the sight of men's looks; some from the
language they hear ¹.
C
40. The men who have risen (from their posts
and withdrawn in this manner) are seven in
number.'
1 I omit from the text his name, which was Tsz-fuh
King-pih.
2 As a dead criminal!
3 'Destiny' here might be translated 'Heaven's will,'
though the word is simply decree.'
* All directed against the misrule and manners of the
times.
I
Book XIV.
167
41. Tsz-lu, having lodged overnight in Shih-mun,
was accosted by the gate-keeper in the morning.
'Where from?' he asked. 'From Confucius,' Tsz-
lu responded.'That is the man,' said he, 'who
knows things are not up to the mark, and is
making some ado about them, is it not? '
1
42. When the Master was in Wei, he was once
pounding on the musical stone ¹, when a man 2 with
a basket of straw crossed his threshold, and ex-
claimed, 'Ah, there is a heart (that feels)! Ay,
drub the stone!' After which he added, 'How
vulgar! how he hammers away on one note !—and
no one knows him, and he gives up, and all is
over!
"Be it deep, our skirts we'll raise to the waist,
–Or shallow, then up to the knee ¾”’
C
'What determination!' said the Master. Yet
it was not hard to do 4
¹ A suspended stone in shape like an inverted V.
2 Said in the commentaries to have been one of those
worthies (parag. 39) who had fled from the world.
³ All these disjointed remarks would attract the attention
of Confucius. Some were expressions of his own (XIII. 20;
XIV. 37; V. 26; IX. 8), and the last two lines are from the
Shi-King, I. iii. 9. The man had plainly once been a
disciple.
* Confucius now recognizes the man, and is surprised,
and yet not much so, at what good men in such times
would give up.
168
The Confucian Analects.
1
43. Tsz-chang once said to him, 'In the Book of
the Annals it is stated that while Káu-tsung ¹ was
in the Mourning Shed he spent the three years
without speaking. What is meant by that?'
<
'Why must (you name) Káu-tsung?' said the
Master. It was so with all other ancient (sove-
reigns): when one of them died, the heads of every
department agreed between themselves that they
should give ear for three years to the Prime
Minister.'
44. When their betters love the Rules, then
the folk are easy tools,' was a saying of the
Master 2.
45. Tsz-lu having asked what made a 'superior
man,' he answered, 'Self-culture, with a view to
becoming seriously-minded ³.'
'Nothing more than that?' said he.
'Self-culture with a view to the greater satisfac-
tion of others,' added the Master.
'That, and yet no more?'
'Self-culture with a view to the greater satisfac-
¹ A king of the previous dynasty, known in the lists as
Wu-ting. See Shi-King, IV. v. 3.
2 There are rhymes on the same words in the original,
which look as if intentional.
3 The first reply is personal, as usual.
2
Book XIV.
169
tion of all the clans and classes,' he again added.
'Self-culture for the sake of all-a result that, that
would almost put Yáu and Shun¹ into the shade!'
46. To Yuen Jang², who was sitting waiting
for him in a squatting (disrespectful) posture, the
Master delivered himself as follows:-'The man
who in his youth could show no humility or
subordination, who in his prime misses his oppor-
tunity, and who when old age comes upon him
will not die-that man is a miscreant.' And he
tapped him on the shin with his staff.
a
47. Some one asked about his attendant
youth from the village of Kiueh-whether he was
one who improved. He replied, 'I note that he
seats himself in the places (reserved for his betters),
and that when he is walking he keeps abreast
with his seniors ³. He is not one of those who
care for improvement: he wants to be a man all
at once.'
3
¹ Compare VI. 28.
2 A renegade, who had gone over to Láu-tsz's followers.
3 It is a habit with the Chinese, when a number are out
walking together, for the eldest to go first, the others
tailing off according to their age. Many times I have seen
this and wondered at it, and at the awkwardness in their
conversation, till I knew the reason. It is a custom much
older than the time of Confucius.
170
The Confucian Analects.
2
..
1.
BOOK XV.
Lessons of practical wisdom-The social virtue again—Ancient
precedents for good government—Righteousness an essential
thing-The superior man-Reciprocity the rule of life—
Praise and blame -- Respect for what the majority of the
people like and dislike-Duty and mercenary aims-In-
tellectual attainments to be controlled by 'humanity' —
Miscellaneous sayings Consideration for the blind.
1. Duke Ling of Wei was consulting Confucius
about army arrangements. His answer was, '(Had
you asked me about such things as) temple requi-
sites ¹, I have learnt that business, but I have not
yet studied military matters.' And he followed up
this reply by leaving on the following day.
1
(After this), during his residence in the State of
Ch'in, his followers, owing to a stoppage of food-
supply, became so weak and ill that not one of
them could stand. Tsz-lu, with indignation pic-
tured on his countenance, exclaimed, 'And is a
gentleman to suffer starvation?'
‘A gentleman,' replied the Master, 'will endure
it unmoved, but a common person breaks out into
excesses under it.'
1 Lit. vessels, on which the offerings were placed. He
means that order, in more peaceful pursuits, was his object.
The duke's favourite element was war.
Book XV.
171
2. Addressing Tsz-kung, the Master said, 'You
regard me as one who studies and stores up in his
mind a multiplicity of things-do you not?'—' I
do,' he replied; 'is it not so?'-Not at all. I have
one idea-one cord on which to string all¹.'
3. To Tsz-lu he remarked, 'They who know
Virtue are rare.'
4. (If you would know) one who without effort
ruled well, was not Shun such a one? What
did he indeed do? He bore himself with reverent
dignity and undeviatingly "faced the south 2," and
that was all.'
5. Tsz-chang was consulting him about making
way in life. He answered, 'Be true and honest in
all you say, and seriously earnest in all you do, and
then, even if your country be one inhabited by
barbarians, South or North, you will make your
way. If you do not show yourself thus in word
and deed how should you succeed, even in your
1 Man's heart is one thing, though its outgoings are
many. The original is very terse (Z),
(予​一​以​貫​之​),
and is, verbatim, I unify by stringing them,' the 'stringing'
process being borrowed from the stringing of copper cash,
the coins of which are holed for the purpose. We have the
same expression in IV. 15.
2 The position of a sovereign. See on VI. 1.
172
The Confucian Analects.
•
own district or neighbourhood? When you are
afoot, let these two counsels be two companions
preceding you, yourself viewing them from behind;
when you drive, have them in view (as) on the
yoke of your carriage. Then may you make your
way.'
Tsz-chang wrote them on the two ends of his
cincture.
6. 'Straight was the course of the Annalist Yu,'
said the Master-'ay, straight as an arrow flies;
were the country well governed or ill governed, his
was an arrow-like course.
A man of masterly mind, (too), is Kü Pih-yuh!
When the land is being rightly governed he will
serve; when it is under bad government he is apt.
to recoil, and brood ¹'


7. 'Not to speak to a man,' said he, 'to whom
you ought to speak, is to lose your man; to speak
to one to whom you ought not to speak is to lose
your words. Those who are wise will not lose
their man, nor yet their words.'
8. Again, 'The scholar whose heart is in his
work, and who is philanthropic, seeks not to gain
1 Both Yu and he were officials in Wei-the latter an old
disciple, see on XIV. 26.
Book XV.
173
a livelihood by any means that will do harm to
his philanthropy. There have been men who have
destroyed their own lives in the endeavour to bring
that virtue in them to perfection.'
9. Tsz-kung asked how to become philanthropic.
The Master answered him thus: 'A workman who
wants to do his work well must first sharpen his
tools¹. In whatever land you live, serve under
some wise and good man among those in high
office, and make friends with the more humane of
its men of education.'
10. Yen Yuen consulted him on the management
of a country. He answered:-
'Go by the Hiá Calendar 2.
3
'Have the State carriages like those of the Yin ³
princes.
Wear the Chow cap 4.
1 In view of what immediately follows, Dr. Legge aptly
quotes a parallel from Prov. xxvii. 17: 'Iron sharpeneth
iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.'
2 The year commenced in those old times in our February,
at the earliest signs of Spring; but in Confucius's time it
began two months earlier. This dictum of his caused a
change in the next dynasty after the Chow, and is obeyed
still.
3 The dynasty next before the Chow. The State carriages
then were plain wooden ones; those of the Chow sovereigns
were gilded and decked out with gems.
4 Described in IX. 3.
4
174
The Confucian Analects.
-*
*
کا
!
V
For your music let that of Shun be used for the
posturers ¹.
'Put away the songs of Ch'ing 2, and remove far
from you men of artful speech: the Ch'ing songs
are immodest, and artful talkers are dangerous.'
*
Other sayings of the Master
11. 'They who care not for the morrow will
the sooner have their sorrow.
12. 'Ah, 'tis hopeless! I have not yet met with
the man who loves Virtue as he loves Beauty. ·
4
13. 'Was not Tsang Wăn like one who surrep-
titiously came by the post he held? He knew the
worth of Hwúi of Liu-hiá 5, and could not stand in
his presence.
C
14. Be generous yourself, and exact little from
others; then you banish complaints.
15. ' With one who does not come to me inquiring
"What of this?" and "What of that?" I never can
ask “What of this?" and give him up.
¹ See III. 25 and III. 1.
3 Lit. distant.
16. 'If a number (of students) are all day to-
gether, and in their conversation never approach
the subject of righteousness, but are fond merely of
2 Shi-King, I. vii.
4 See V. 17.
5 A high official in Lu about fifty years before Confucius.
܆܃
:~
1
Book XV.
175
giving currency to smart little sayings, they are
difficult indeed (to manage).
17. When the "superior man" regards righteous-
ness as the thing material, gives operation to it
according to the rules of propriety, lets it issue in
humility, and become complete in sincerity,—there
indeed is your superior man!
18. 'The trouble of the superior man will be his
own want of ability: it will be no trouble to him
that others do not know him.
19. Such a man thinks it hard to end his days
and leave a name to be no longer named.
20. 'The superior man is exacting of himself; the
common man is exacting of others.
21. ‘A superior man has self-respect, and does
not strive; is sociable, yet no party man.
22. 'He does not promote a man because of his
words, nor pass over the words because of the man.'
¹ The word is
composed of
23. Tsz-kung put to him the question, 'Is there
one word upon which the whole life may proceed?'
The Master replied, 'Is not RECIPROCITY¹ such a
H, shu, and this character is seen to be
like, and heart; whence one might
T
n
.
..
176
The Confucian Analects.
土
​word?-what you do not yourself desire, do not
put before others.'
24. 'So far as I have to do with others, whom do
I over-censure? whom do I over-praise? If there
be something in them that looks very praiseworthy,
that something I put to the test.-(I would have)
the men of the present day to walk in the straight
path whereby those of the Three Dynasties have
walked.
25. 'I have arrived as it were at the annalist's
blank page 2.—Once he who had a horse would lend
it to another to mount; now, alas! it is not so.
C
26. Artful speech is the confusion of Virtue. Im-
patience over little things introduces confusion into
great schemes.
expect like-heartedness, or like-mindedness. I render the
word as Dr. Legge has done, but with a little hesitation.
The dictionaries give the meaning as benevolence, forbear-
ance, considerateness, sympathy, to excuse, to bear patiently,
&c. The Chinese Imperial Dictionary gives it the verbal
force of E.
¹ The Hiá, Yin, and Chow; evidently the wise founders
of these are meant.
2 When the annalist was disgusted with current events,
or in uncertainty about them, he would leave a blank to be
filled up afterwards. So Confucius lamented the degeneracy
of his times. The latter sentence in this paragraph is not
quite clear.
Book XV.
177
27. What is disliked by the masses needs inquir-
ing into; so also does that which they have a
preference for.
28. A man may give breadth to his principles: it
is not principles (in themselves) that give breadth to
the man.
29. 'Not to retract after committing an error may
itself be called error.
30. 'If I have passed the whole day without food
and the whole night without sleep, occupied with
my thoughts, it profits me nothing: I were better
engaged in learning.
،
31. The superior man deliberates upon how he
may walk in truth, not upon what he may eat.
The farmer may plough, and be on the way to
want the student learns, and is on his way to
emolument. To live a right life is the concern of
men of nobler minds: poverty gives them none.
32. 'Whatsoever the intellect may attain to, unless
the humanity' within is powerful enough to keep
guard over it, is assuredly lost, even though it be
gained.
Intellectual attainments must be subservient
1 The
to a right regard for others.
M

178
The Confucian Analects.
6
If there be intellectual attainments, and the
humanity within is powerful enough to keep guard
over them, yet, unless (in a ruler) there be dignity
in his rule, the people will fail to show him respect.
'Again, given the intellectual attainments, and
humanity sufficient to keep watch over them, and
also dignity in ruling, yet if his movements be not
in accordance with the Rules of Propriety, he is not
yet fully qualified.
33. The superior man may not be conversant
with petty details, and yet may have important
matters put into his hands. The inferior man may
not be charged with important matters, yet may
be conversant with the petty details.
34. 'Good-fellowship is more to men than fire
and water. I have seen men stepping into fire and
into water, and meeting with death thereby; I have
not yet seen a man die from planting his steps in
the path of good-fellowship.
35. Rely upon good-nature. 'Twill not allow
precedence (even) to a teacher.

36. 'The superior man is inflexibly upright, and
takes not things upon trust.
37. ‘In serving your prince, make your service

7
1
Book XV.
the serious concern, and let salary be a secondary
matter.
38. Where instruction is to be given, there must
be no distinction of persons¹.
C
179
39. 'Where men's methods are not identical, there
can be no planning by one on behalf of another.
C
40. ‘In speaking, perspicuity is all that is needed.'
41. When the (blind) 2 music-master Mien paid
him a visit, on his approaching the steps the Master
called out' Steps,' and on his coming to the mat ³
said Mat.' When all in the room were seated, the
Master told him 'So-and-so is here, so-and-so is
here.'
When the music-master had left, Tsz-chang said
to him, 'Is that the way to speak to the music-
master?' 'Well,' he replied, 'it is certainly the
way to assist him.'
¹ He made none in the case of his own son; see XVI. 13,
and note thereon.
2 The musicians at the Court were blind persons. See
Shi-King, III. i. 8; IV. ii. 5. This incident is recorded
immediately after the last paragraph, evidently not only to
show the Sage's consideration for the blind, but to illustrate
his sparing use of words.
3 For sitting upon,- as we should say 'the chair.'
2-
M 2

180
The Confucian Analects.
BOOK XVI.
Against intestine strife-Supreme ruler should never part with
his authority- Good and bad friendships-Errors to be
avoided by inferiors and superiors-Classification of men
as regards knowledge --Nine things the superior man should
be mindful of -People's opinion of wealth without virtue
and virtue without wealth— Conversation between a disciple
and the son of Confucius.
1. The Chief of the Ki family was about to make
an onslaught upon the Chuen-yu (domain) ¹.
Yen Yu and Tsz-lu 2 in an interview with Con-
fucius told him, 'The Ki is about to have an affair
with Chuen-yu.'
'Yen,' said Confucius, ' does not the fault lie with
you?—The Chief of Chuen-yu in times past was
appointed lord of the East Mung (mountain) ³ ;
besides, he dwells within the confines of (your
own) State, and is an official of the State-worship¹;
-how can you think of making an onslaught upon
him?'
¹ A dependent territory in Lu.
2 Then in the Ki's service.
³ Presiding lord at its sacrifices, therefore a person of
high authority and distinction. See a reference to this
mountain in the Shi-King, IV. iv. 4.
4 A minister of the altars to Earth and the Grain-lord
(How-tsih), and thus a minister of Lu.

**;

Book XVI.
181
'It is the wish of our Chief,' said Yen Yu, not
the wish of either of us ministers.'
Confucius said, 'Yen, there is a sentence of Chau
Jin¹ which runs thus: "Having made manifest their
powers and taken their place (in the official list),
when they find themselves incompetent they resign ;
if they cannot be firm when danger threatens (the
government), nor lend support when it is reeling,
of what use then shall they be as Assistants ?".
Besides, you are wrong in what you said. When
a rhinoceros or tiger breaks out of its cage,-when
a jewel or tortoise-(shell ornament) is damaged in
its casket,-whose fault is it?"
'But,' said Yen Yu, 'so far as Chuen-yu is con-
cerned, it is now fortified, and it is close to Pi; and
if he does not now take it, in another generation it
will certainly be a trouble to his descendants.'
(6
'Yen!' exclaimed Confucius, 'it is a painful thing
to a superior man to have to desist from saying,
My wish is so-and-so," and to be obliged to make
apologies. For my part, I have learnt this,-that
rulers of States and heads of Houses are not greatly
concerned about their small following, but about
the want of equilibrium in it, that they do not
concern themselves about their becoming poor, but
¹ An ancient official annalist.
باب
*
+
1

182
The Confucian Analects.
about the best means of living quietly and con-
tentedly; for where equilibrium is preserved there
will be no poverty, where there is harmony their
following will not be small, and where there is
quiet contentment there will be no decline nor fall.
-Now if that be the case, it follows that if men in
outlying districts are not submissive, then a reform
in education and morals will bring them to; and
when they have been so won, then will you render
them quiet and contented.-At the present time
you two are Assistants of your Chief; the people
in the outlying districts are not submissive, and
cannot be brought round. Your dominion is
divided, prostrate, dispersed, cleft in pieces, and
you as its guardians are powerless.— And plans are
being made for taking up arms against those who
dwell within your own State. I am apprehensive
that the sorrow of the Ki family is not to lie in
Chuen-yu, but in those within their own screen ¹.'
1
C
2. When the empire is well ordered,' said Con-
fucius, it is from the emperor 2 that edicts regarding
ceremonial, music, and expeditions to quell (rebel-
lion) go forth. When it is being ill governed, such
1 I. e. in the consultations between the Chief and them-
selves.
2 Lit. the Son of Heaven.
3
!
I


C
Book XVI.
183
edicts emanate from the feudal lords; and when
the latter is the case, it will be strange if in ten
generations there is not a collapse. If they emanate
(merely) from the high officials, it will be strange if
the collapse do not come in five generations. When
the State-edicts are in the hands of the subsidiary
ministers, it will be strange if in three generations
there is no collapse.
'When the empire is well ordered, government is
not (left) in the hands of high officials.
When the empire is well ordered, the common
people will cease to discuss (public matters).'
3. 'For five generations,' he said, 'the revenue has
departed from the ducal household. Four genera-
tions ago the government fell into the hands of the
high officials. Hence, alas! the straitened means of
the descendants of the three Hwan (families)¹.'
C
4. There are,' said he, 'three kinds of friend-
ships which are profitable, and three which are
detrimental. To make friends with the upright,
with the trustworthy, with the experienced 2, is to
gain benefit; to make friends with the subtly per-
verse, with the artfully pliant, with the subtle in
speech, is detrimental.'
1 Three branches of the family of a former duke Hwan
- of Lu.
2 Lit. those who have heard much, or learnt much.
*

A
184 The Confucian Analects.
¡
5. Again, 'There are three kinds of pleasure
which are profitable, and three which are detri-
mental. To take pleasure in going regularly
through the various branches of Ceremonial and
Music¹, in speaking of others' goodness, in having
many worthy wise friends, is profitable. To take
pleasure in wild bold pleasures, in idling carelessly
about, in the (too) jovial accompaniments of feast-
ing, is detrimental.'
6. Again, Three errors there be, into which they
who wait upon their superior may fall:-(1) to
speak before the opportunity comes to them to
speak, which I call heedless haste; (2) refraining
from speaking when the opportunity has come,
which I call concealment ; and (3) speaking, regard-
less of the mood he is in 2, which I call blindness.'
3
7. Again, 'Three things a superior should guard
against:—(1) against the lusts of the flesh in his
earlier years while the vital powers are not fully
developed and fixed, (2) against the spirit of com-
bativeness when he has come to the age of robust
manhood and when the vital powers are matured
¹ The first as leading to propriety, the second as tending
to general bon accord.
2 Lit. without noticing the expression on his face.
3 Lit. blood and breath. This age is put down by one
commentator as that below 29.

է
:
Book XVI.
185
and strong, and (3) against ambitiousness when old
age has come on and the vital powers have become
weak and decayed.'
C
8. Three things also such a man greatly reveres :
—(1) the ordinances of Heaven, (2) great men, (3)
words of sages.-The inferior man knows not the
ordinances of Heaven and therefore reveres them
not, is unduly familiar in the presence of great men,
and scoffs at the words of sages.'
9. 'They whose knowledge comes by birth are
of all men the first (in understanding); they to
whom it comes by study are next; men of poor
intellectual capacity, who yet study, may be added
as a yet inferior class; and lowest of all are they
who are poor in intellect and never learn.'
10. 'Nine things there are of which the superior
man should be mindful:-to be clear in vision,
quick in hearing, genial in expression, respectful in
demeanour, true in word, serious in duty, inquiring
in doubt, firmly self-controlled in anger, just and
fair when the way to success opens out before him.'
11. ‘(Some have spoken of) "looking upon good-
ness as upon something beyond their reach," and
of "looking upon evil as like plunging one's
hands into scalding liquid ";-I have seen the
men, I bave heard the sayings.
*
5

186 The Confucian Analects.
‘(Some, again, have talked of) "living in seclu-
sion to work out their designs," and of "exercising
themselves in righteous living in order to render
their principles the more effective";-I have heard
the sayings, I have not seen the men.'
12. Duke King of Ts'i had his thousand teams
of four, yet on the day of his death the people had
nothing to say of his goodness. Pěh-i and Shuh-
ts'i¹ starved at the foot of Shau-yang, and the
people make mention of them to this day.
1
'E'en if not wealth thine object be,
2,
'Tis all the same, thouʼrt changed to me ².'
'Is not this à propos in such cases?'
13. Tsz-k'in asked of Pih-yu³, 'Have you heard
anything else peculiar (from your father)?'
'Not yet,' said he. Once, though, he was stand-
ing alone when I was hurrying past him over the
vestibule, and he said, "Are you studying the
Odes?" "Not yet," I replied. "If you do not
learn the Odes," said he, "you will not have the
<
1 See on V. 22.
2 Shi-King, II. iv. 4-concluding lines.
9 The eldest son of Confucius, elsewhere (XI. 7) called Li.
Li means a carp. Yu, in Pih-yu, also means a fish. The
names were given him because at his birth the duke of Lu
sent a present of a carp.
¦
!
!


+
Book XVI.
187
wherewithal for conversing." I turned away and
studied the Odes.-Another day, when he was again
standing alone and I was hurrying past across the
vestibule, he said to me, "Are you learning the
Rules of Propriety?" "Not yet," I replied. "If
you have not studied the Rules, you have nothing
to stand upon ¹," said he. I turned away and
studied the Rules.-These two things I have heard
from him.'
Tsz-k'in turned away, and in great glee ex-
claimed, 'I asked one thing, and have got three.
I have learnt something about the Odes, and about
the Rules, and moreover I have learnt how the
superior man will turn away 2 his own son.'
14. The wife of the ruler of a State is called by
her husband' (My) help-meet.' She speaks of her-
self as '(Your) little handmaiden.' The people of
that State call her 'The prince's help-meet,' but
addressing persons of another State they speak of
her as
'Our little princess". When persons of
¹ No stability: see VIII. 8.
2 The commentator Yin says on this word, 'Confu-
cius's instruction of his son was in no way different from his
treatment of his disciples, hence this expression.'
Kwa siau Kiun; the first character is
almost untranslateable. It is used depreciatingly, and means
寡
​3
i
<

188 The Confucian Analects.
another State name her they say also (Your)
prince's help-meet.'
C
BOOK XVII.
The Master induced to take office - Nature and habit― Two
classes that never change - Banter with disciples
Humaneness-Advantage of studying the Odes-Love for
externals - Ancient and modern failings-' Does Heaven
speak?'-The Master 'not at home'-Reasons for three
years' mourning for parents - Some men hopeless-Valour
without righteousness - Hatreds in superior men — Age at
which the character is fixed.
1. Yang Ho¹ was desirous of having an inter-
view with Confucius, but on the latter's failing to
go and see him, he sent a present of a pig to his
house. Confucius went to return his acknowledge-
ments for it at a time when he was not at home.
They met, however, on the way.
He said to Confucius, Come, I want a word
with you. Can that man be said to have good-
will towards his fellow-men who hugs and hides
his own precious (gifts) and allows his country to
go on in blind error?'
small, almost like the next character, but is used by a
sovereign in speaking of himself.
This paragraph may have been part of the Sage's instruct-
tion on the Proprieties, but there is nothing to show it.
1 Chief minister of the Ki family.
A
ܒܢ
# +
i
I
F
;

·
Book XVII.
189
C
He cannot,' was the reply.
'And can he be said to be wise who, with a liking
for taking part in the public service, is constantly
letting slip his opportunities?'
He cannot,' was the reply again.
'And the days and months are passing; and the
years do not wait for us.'
'True,' said Confucius; I will take office.'
2. It was a remark of the Master that while 'by
nature we approximate towards each other, by
experience we go far asunder ¹
3. Again, ‘Only the supremely wise and the most
deeply ignorant do not alter.'
4. The Master once, on his arrival at Wu-shing,
heard the sound of stringed instruments and sing-
ing. His face beamed with pleasure, and he said
laughingly, 'To kill a cock-why use an ox-
knife 2?'
Tsz-yu (the governor) replied. 'In former days,
sir, I heard you say, "Let the superior man learn
¹ These are among the very first words in the first lesson-
book of all Chinese children.
2 The town, over which a former disciple, Tsz-yu, was
governor (see VI. 12), was only a small one, and the remark
was suggestive of great measures having been taken to make
it so peaceable. The remark was evidently made to the
governor himself.
1.

190
The Confucian Analects.
right principles, and he will be loving to other
men; let the ordinary person learn right principles,
and he will be easily managed."'
The Master (turning to his disciples) said, 'Sirs,
what he says is right: what I said just now was
only in play.'
5. Having received an invitation from Kung-
shan Fuh-jau, who was in revolt against the govern-
ment and was holding to (his district of) Pi¹, the
Master showed an inclination to go.
Tsz-lu was averse to this, and said, 'You can
never go, that is certain; how should you feel you
must go to that person?'
'Well,' said the Master, he who has invited me
must surely not have done so without a sufficient
reason! And if it should happen that my services
were enlisted, I might create for him (another) East
Chow-don't you think so??'
2
6. Tsz-chang asked Confucius about the virtue
of philanthropy. His answer was, 'It is the being
able to put in practice five qualities, in any place
under the sun.'
1 The incident seems naturally to follow the last: the town
of Wu-shing was in this district of Pi.
2 As King Wăn did at the founding of the dynasty, How-
ever, he did not go, and his conversation with Tsz-lu, as in
the former paragraph, seems to have been mere banter.


I
1
Book XVII.
191
'May I ask, please, what these are?' said the
disciple.
They are,' he said, 'dignity, indulgence, faith-
fulness, earnestness, kindness. If you show dignity
you will not be mocked; if you are indulgent you
will win the multitude; if faithful, men will place
their trust in you; if earnest, you will do some-
thing meritorious; and if kind, you will be enabled
to avail yourself amply of men's services.'
7. Pih Hih¹ sent the Master an invitation, and
he showed an inclination to go.
Tsz-lu (seeing this) said to him, 'In former
days, sir, I have heard you say, "A superior man
will not enter the society of one who does not that
which is good in matters concerning himself"; and
this man is in revolt, with Chung-mau in his posses-
sion; if you go to him, how will the case stand?
'Yes,' said the Master, 'those are indeed my
words; but is it not said, "What is hard may be
rubbed without being made thin," and " White
may be stained without being made black"?—
I am surely not a gourd! How am I to be strung
up (like that kind of thing),—and live without
means " ?'
2
¹ Governor of a place in the Tsin State.
2 Lit. 'and not eat'; but, as Dr. Legge says, the words
*
2
- 2

192
The Confucian Analects.
1.
1
fa
8. 'Tsz-lu,' said the Master, you have heard of
the six words with their six obfuscations?'
'No,' said he, 'not so far.'
'Sit down, and I will tell you them. They are
these six virtues, cared for without care for any
study about them :-philanthropy, wisdom, faith-
fulness, straightforwardness, courage, firmness. And
the six obfuscations resulting from not liking to
learn about them are, respectively, these :-fatuity,
mental dissipation, mischievousness, perversity, in-
subordination, impetuosity'.'
9. My children,' said he once, why does no
one of you study the Odes?--They are adapted to
rouse (the mind), to assist observation, to make
people sociable, to arouse (virtuous) indignation.
They speak of duties near and far-the duty of
ministering to a parent, the duty of serving one's
prince; and it is from them that one becomes
conversant with the names of many birds, and
beasts, and plants, and trees.'
may be taken passively: 'How can I be hung up out of the
way of being eaten?' The commentators, however, say
that Confucius had in his mind his own means of subsistence.
I think these words again are all simple banter with Tsz-lu.
1 A translator has to resort to a roundabout rendering of
this paragraph, to avoid uncouthness of expression and
tautology. Poor Tsz-lu comes in again for six hard thrusts.
L.
6.66
T
Book XVII.
193
10. To (his son) Pih-yu he said, 'Study you the
Odes of "Chow and the South," and those of
"Sháu and the South ¹." The man who studies
not these is, I should say, somewhat in the position
of one who stands facing a wall!'
T
11.
Etiquette demands it," "Etiquette demands
it," (so people plead),' said he; 'but do not (these
hankerings after) jewels and silks indeed demand
it? Or it is, “The Study of Music requires it,”
"Music requires it;" but do not (these predi-
lections for) bells and drums require it ²?'
2
12. Again, 'They who assume an outward ap-
pearance of severity, being inwardly weak, may
be likened to low common men; nay, are they
not somewhat like thieves that break through walls
and steal?'
N
13. Again, 'The plebeian (kind of) respect for
piety is the very pest of virtue ³.’
3
1 The titles of the first two books in Part I. of the Shi-
King.
2 The Rules of Ceremonial and Music should be valued for
their chief objects-propriety and harmony; but everything
that was good in its aim was distorted to subserve people's
particular fancies.
3 This seems, like the next two or three paragraphs, to
be directed against the vulgar ways of the men then in
office.
·
194
The Confucian Analects.
A
14. Again, 'Listening on the road, and repeating
in the lane, this is abandonment of virtue ¹.'
6
15. Ah, the low-minded creatures!' he exclaimed.
'How is it possible indeed to serve one's prince in
their company? Before they have got what they
wanted they are all anxiety to get it, and after
they have got it they are all anxiety lest they
should lose it; and while they are thus full of
concern lest they should lose it, there is no length
to which they will not go.'
16. Again, ‘In olden times people had three
(moral) infirmities; which, it may be, are now
unknown. Ambitiousness in those olden days
showed itself in momentary outburst; the am-
bitiousness of to-day runs riot. Austerity in those
days had its sharp angles; in these it is irritable
and perverse. Feebleness of intellect then was
(at least) straightforward; in our day it is never
aught but deceitful.'
17. Again, 'Rarely do we find mutual good
1 See last note. 'In at the ear and out at the mouth,'
say the commentaries; but they make the 'listening' the
hearing of good words or instruction, and the 'repeating'
the forwardness to discuss what has been so learnt, on the
same road, without allowing time to digest it. I think that,
taken in connexion with the preceding paragraph, it is
simply an allusion to country gossip.
J
Book XVII.
195
feeling where there is fine speech and studied
mien.'
1
18. Again, 'To me it is abhorrent that purple ¹
colour should be made to detract from that of
vermilion. Also that the Odes of Ch'ing should
be allowed to introduce discord in connexion with
the music of the Festal Songs and Hymns 2. Also
that sharp-whetted 3 tongues should be permitted
to subvert governments.'
"
19. Once said he, Would that I could dispense
with speech!'
'Sir,' said Tsz-kung, 'if you were never to speak,
what should your pupils have to hand down from
you?'
'Does Heaven ever speak?' said the Master.
'The four seasons come and go, and all creatures
live and grow. Does Heaven indeed speak?'
20. Once Ju Pi5 desired an interview with Con-
fucius, from which the latter excused himself on
the score of ill-health; but while the attendant
¹ A wrong colour, see X. 6.
2 See on IX. 14 and XV. 10.
3 Comp. Psalm lxiv. 3.
There is rhythm and rhyme in the original.
5 A former disciple, who had 'lost his manners.' He was
now, it seems, an official in Lu under duke Ngai.
N 2
196
The Confucian Analects.
...
4.
was passing out through the doorway with the
message he took his lute and sang, in such a way
as to let him hear him.
1
21. Tsai Wo questioned him respecting the three
years' mourning ¹, saying that one full twelve-
month was a long time,-that, if gentlemen were
for three years to cease from observing rules of
propriety, propriety must certainly suffer, and that
if for three years they neglected music, music must
certainly die out,—and that seeing (nature has
taught us) that when the old year's grain is
finished the new has sprung up for us,-seeing
also that all the changes in procuring fire by
friction have been gone through (in the four
seasons), surely a twelve-month might suffice.
2
The Master asked him, 'Would it be a satis-
faction to you—that returning to better food, that
putting on of fine clothes?”
'It would,' said he.
'Then if you can be satisfied in so doing, do so.
But to a gentleman, who is in mourning for
a parent, the choicest food will not be palatable,
nor will the listening to music be pleasant, nor
will comforts of home make him happy in mind.
1 For parents.
2 Different woods were adopted for this purpose at the
various seasons.
•
÷
}
Book XVII.
197
Hence he does not do (as you suggest). But if
you are now happy in your mind, then do so.'
Tsai Wo went out. And the Master went on to
say, 'It is want of human feeling in this man.
After a child has lived three years it then breaks
away from the tender nursing of its parents. And
this three years' mourning is the customary mourn-
ing prevalent all over the empire. Can this man
have enjoyed the three years of loving care from
his parents?'
•
22. 'Ah, it is difficult,' said he, to know what
to make of those who are all day long cramming
themselves with food and are without anything to
apply their minds to! Are there no dice and chess
players? Better, perhaps, join in that pursuit than
do nothing at all!'
23. 'Does a gentleman,' asked Tsz-lu, 'make
much account of bravery?
'Righteousness he counts higher,' said the Master.
'A gentleman who is brave without being just
may become turbulent; while a common person
who is brave and not just may end in becoming
a highwayman.'
24. Tsz-kung asked, 'I suppose a gentleman
will have his aversions as well (as his likings)?'
'Yes,' replied the Master, he will dislike those
:
-
A
198
The Confucian Analects.
C
who talk much about other poeple's ill-deeds ¹.
He will dislike those who, when occupying in-
ferior places, utter defamatory words against their
superiors. He will dislike those who, though they
may be brave, have no regard for propriety. And
he will dislike those hastily-decisive and venture-
some spirits who are nevertheless so hampered (by
limited intellect).
¿
6
'And you, too, Tsz-kung,' he continued, have
your aversions, have you not?'
'I dislike,' said he, 'those plagiarists who wish
to pass for wise persons. I dislike those people
who wish their lack of humility to be taken for
bravery. I dislike also those divulgers of secrets
who think to be accounted straightforward.'
(
C
25. Of all others,' said the Master, 'women-
servants 2 and men-servants are the most difficult
people to have the care of. Approach them in
a familiar manner, and they take liberties ³; keep
them at a distance, and they grumble.'
3
26. Again, When a man meets with odium at
forty, he will do so to the end.'
1 This first sentence, at least, is a home-thrust; compare
XIV. 31.
2 'Young women,' by whom are meant, it is said, the
secondary wives, or concubines, who were quasi servants.
3 Or, become disrespectful.
7
Book XVIII.
199
BOOK XVIII.
Good men, ancient and modern, who withdrew into seclusion
owing to disordered times-Duke of Chow's advice to
his son-A wonderful family.
1. 'In (the reign of the last king of) the Yin
dynasty,' Confucius said, 'there were three men
of philanthropic spirit:-the viscount of Wei, who
withdrew from him; the viscount of Ki, who
became his bondman; and Pi-kan, who reproved
him and suffered death 1.
2. Hwúi of Liu-hiá, who filled the office of
Chief Criminal Judge 2, was thrice dismissed. A
person remarked to him, 'Can you not yet bear
to withdraw?' He replied, 'If I act in a straight-
forward way in serving men, whither (in these
days) should I go, where I should not be thrice
dismissed? Were I to adopt crooked ways in their
1 For the sake of clearness I have here inverted the order
of two sentences which make up the paragraph, otherwise
they are unintelligible, except to one well acquainted with
Chinese history. The last king of the Yin line was a sort
of Nero. See my Introduction to the Shi-King, page 17,
where these three men are referred to as his ministers,
admonishing the tyrant in turn, the last having his heart
torn out for his pains.
2 In Lu; see XV. 13.
:
200 The Confucian Analects.
service, why need I leave the land where my
parents dwell? ’
3. Duke King of Ts'i remarked respecting his
attitude towards Confucius, 'If he is to be treated
like the Chief of the Ki family, I cannot do it.
I should treat him as somewhere between the
Ki and Măng Chiefs.—I am old,' he added, 'and
not competent to avail myself of him.'
Confucius (hearing of this) went away.
4. The Ts'i officials presented (to the Court of
Lu) a number of female musicians. Ki Hwan
accepted them, and for three days no Court was
held.
Confucius went away.
5. Tsieh-yu, the madman¹ of Ts'u, was once
passing Confucius, singing as he went along. He
sang,-
".
Ha the phoenix! Ha the phoenix!2
How is Virtue lying prone!
Vain to chide for what is o'er,
Plan to meet what's yet in store.
Let alone! Let alone!
Risky now to serve a throne.'
Confucius alighted, wishing to enter into con-
¹ He only pretended to be mad, in order to escape being
employed in the public service.
² Reminding him, perhaps, of his own words; see IX. 8.
*
*
•
મ
'
::
Book XVIII.
versation with him; but the man hurried along
and left him, and he was therefore unable to get
a word with him.
201
6. Ch'ang-tsu and Kieh-nih¹ were working to-
gether on some ploughed land. Confucius was
passing by them, and sent Tsz-lu to ask where
the ford was.
Ch'ang-tsü said, 'Who is the person driving the
carriage?'
'Confucius,' answered Tsz-lu.
'He of Lu?' he asked.
'The same,' said Tsz-lu.
'He knows then where the ford is,' said he.
Tsz-lu then put his question to Kieh-nih; and
the latter asked, 'Who are you?'
Tsz-lu gave his name.
'You are a follower of Confucius of Lu, are you
not?'
'You are right,' he answered.
'Ah, as these waters rise and overflow their
bounds,' said he, ''tis so with all throughout the
empire; and who is he that can alter the state
things? And you are a follower of a learned
man who withdraws from his chief; had you not
1 Two worthies who had abandoned public life, owing to
the state of the times.
C
·
202
The Confucian Analects.
?
better be a follower of such as have forsaken the
world?' And he went on with his harrowing,
without stopping.
Tsz-lu went and informed his Master of all this.
He was deeply touched, and said, 'One cannot
herd on equal terms with beasts and birds: if
I am not to live among these human folk, then
with whom else should I live? Only when the
empire is well ordered shall I cease to take part
in the work of reformation.'
7. Tsz-lu was following the Master, but had
dropped behind on the way, when he encountered an
old man with a weed-basket slung on a staff over
his shoulder. Tsz-lu inquired of him, ' Have you
seen my Master, sir?' Said the old man, Who
is your master ?—you who never employ your four
limbs in laborious work; you who do not know
one from another of the five sorts of grain!' And
he stuck his staff in the ground, and began his
weeding ¹.
1
"
Tsz-lu brought his hands together on his breast 2
and stood still.
¹ I.e. without answering the question or waiting for a reply
to his own. This old man was another of those worthies
who had withdrawn from the world in disgust.
His respectful
2 The attitude when making a bow.
demeanour softened the old man.
•
:
A
1
Book XVIII.
203
The old man kept Tsz-lu and lodged him for
the night, killed a fowl and prepared some millet,
entertained him, and brought his two sons out to
see him.
On the morrow Tsz-lu went on his way, and
told all this to the Master, who said, 'He is a
recluse,' and sent Tsz-lu back to see him again.
But by the time he got there he was gone.
Tsz-lu remarked upon this, 'It is not right he
should evade official duties. If he cannot allow any
neglect of the terms on which elders and juniors
should live together¹, how is it that he neglects
to conform to what is proper as between prince and
public servant? He wishes for himself personally
a pure life, yet creates disorder in that more im-
portant relationship. When a gentleman under-
takes public work, he will carry out the duties
proper to it; and he knows beforehand that right
principles may not win their way.'
8. Among those who have retired from public
life have been Pěh-i and Shuh-tsi, Yu-chung,
I-yih, Chu-chang, Hwúi of Liu-hiá, and Sháu-
lien.
'Of these,' said the Master, 'Pěh-i and Shuh-ts'i
¹ Enough had been shown to Tsz-lu, during his stay, of
the good training the two sons had received.
204
The Confucian Analects.
:
,
may be characterized, I should say, as men who
never declined from their high resolve nor soiled
themselves by aught of disgrace.
'Of Hwúi of Liu-hiá and Sháu-lien, if one may
say that they did decline from high resolve, and
that they did bring disgrace upon themselves,
yet their words were consonant with established
principles, and their action consonant with men's
thoughts and wishes; and this is all that may be
said of them.
'Of Yu-chung and I-yih, if it be said that when
they retired into privacy they let loose their
tongues, yet in their aim at personal purity of
life they succeeded, and their defection was also
successful in its influence.
'My own rule is different from any adopted by
these I will take no liberties, I will have no
curtailing of my liberty ¹.'
9. The chief music-master went off to Ts'i. Kan,
(the conductor of the music) at the second repast,
went over to Ts'u. Liáu, (conductor) at the third
¹ I think this is without doubt the meaning of the almost
untranslateable words 無可無不可​‘without
possibilities (or freedom to act)-without impossibilities.
He would do what he thought was right under the cir-
cumstances, and not slavishly follow any one's example.
¡
TARGET
***** at mata
A
F
•
Book XVIII.
205
repast, went over to Ts'ai. And Kiueh, (who con-
ducted) at the fourth, went to Ts'in¹.
Fang-shuh the drummer withdrew into the
neighbourhood of the Ho. Wu the tambourer
went to the Han. And Yang the junior music-
master, and Siang who played on the musical
stone, went to the sea(coast).
10. (Anciently) the duke of Chow, addressing
(his son) the duke of Lu, said, 'A good man in
high place is not indifferent about 2 the members
of his own family, and does not give occasion to
the chief ministers to complain that they are not
employed; nor without great cause will he set
aside old friendships; nor does he seek for full
¹ These are given as examples of men who retired from
Lu, disgusted with the state of things at the Court. Con-
fucius had made reforms in the music-see VIII. 15 and IX.
14- and taught these men what was proper in regard to the
words as well as the music employed; but the disorder and
usurpation of imperial state by the duke was too much for
even the musicians. It was the custom for the feudal lords
to have three meals a day, at which the musicians per-
formed; at the Imperial Court there were four, with
separate conductors at each. The duke of Lu aped the
sovereign in this.
2 So in the commentaries. But the words ()
might, with the more common tone, have the opposite
meaning, does not put forth, or display,' i. e. give pre-
ference to them in promotion to office.
+
#
206 The Confucian Analects.
I
3
葡
​..
equipment (for every kind of service) in any single
man.'
11. There were once eight officials during (this)
Chow dynasty [who were four pairs of twins, all
brothers]¹—the eldest pair Tah and Kwoh, the
next Tuh and Hwuh, the third Yé and Hiá, the
youngest Sui and Kwa.
BOOK XIX.
Teachings and opinions of various chief disciples-
Judgements respecting the Master.
"
1. The learned official,' said Tsz-chang, 'who
when he sees danger ahead will risk his very life,
who when he sees a chance of success is mindful
of what is just and proper, who in his religious
acts is mindful of the duty of reverence, and when
in mourning thinks of his loss 2, is indeed a fit
and proper person for his place."'
2. Again he said, 'If a person hold to virtue
1 So again in the commentaries. As Dr. Legge says, in
loc., 'One mother, bearing twins four times in succession,
and all proving distinguished men, showed the vigour of the
early days of the dynasty in all that was good.'
2 Lit. of grief; i. e. really grieves, and does not per-
functorily perform a mourner's duties.
1
÷
**!
Book XIX.
207
but never advance in it, and if he have faith in
right principles and do not build himself up in
them, how can he be regarded either as having
such, or as being without them?'
3. Tsz-hiá's disciples asked Tsz-chang his views
about intercourse with others. What says your
Master?' he rejoined. He says,' they replied,
"Associate with those who are qualified, and repel
from you such as are not." Tsz-chang then said,
'That is different from what I have learnt. A superior
man esteems the worthy and wise, and bears with
all. He makes much of the good and capable, and
pities the incapable. Am I eminently worthy and
wise?-who is there then among men whom I will
not bear with? Am I not worthy and wise?—
others will be minded to repel me: I have nothing
to do with repelling them.'
"""
C
Sayings of Tsz-hiá:--
4. ‘Even in inferior pursuits¹ there must be
something worthy of contemplation, but if carried
to an extreme there is danger of fanaticism; hence
the superior man does not engage in them.
5. ‘The student who daily recognizes how much
¹ Occupations, say the commentators, such as agriculture,
gardening, doctoring (!), divination, and the like.
208 The Confucian Analects.
If
A
he yet lacks, and as the months pass forgets not
what he has succeeded in learning, may undoubt-
edly be called a lover of learning.
6. 'Wide research and steadfast purpose, eager
questioning and close reflection,-all this tends to
humanize a man ¹.
7. 'As workmen spend their time in their work-
shops for the perfecting of their work, so superior
men apply their minds to study in order to
make themselves thoroughly conversant with their
subjects.
-
8. When an inferior man does a wrong thing,
he is sure to gloss it over.
9. 'The superior man is seen in three different
aspects: :-look at him from a distance, he is im-
posing in appearance; approach him, he is gentle
and warm-hearted; hear him speak, he is acute
and strict.
10. 'Let such a man have the people's confidence,
and he will get much work out of them; so long,
however, as he does not possess their confidence
they will regard him as grinding them down.
'When confidence is reposed in him, he may then
¹ Results in humaner feelings towards others.
:
*
Book XIX.
209
with impunity administer reproof¹; so long as it
is not, he will be regarded as a detractor.
II. 'Where there is no over-stepping of barriers
in the practice of the higher virtues, there may be
freedom to pass in and out in the practice of the
ower ones 2,'
12. Tsz-yu had said, 'The pupils in the school
of Tsz-hiá are good enough at such things as
sprinkling and scrubbing floors, answering calls
and replying to questions from superiors, and
advancing and retiring to and from such; but
these things are only offshoots,-as to the root of
things they are nowhere. What is the use of all
that?'
When this came to the ears of Tsz-hiá, he said,
'Ah! there he is mistaken. What does a master,
in his methods of teaching, consider first in his
precepts? and what does he account next, as that
about which he may be indifferent? It is like
as (in the study of) plants,-classification by dif-
ferentiae. How may a master play fast and loose
in his methods of instruction? Would they not
¹ This is taken as referring to his conduct towards his own
superiors.
2 The disciple is certainly not equal to the Master here.
0
j
210
The Confucian Analects.
Y
3
;"
+4
▸▸
indeed be sages, who could take in at once the first
principles and the final developments of things¹?'
Further observations of Tsz-hiá:-
C
13. In the public service devote what energy
and time remain to study. After study devote what
energy and time remain to the public service.
14. As to the duties of mourning, let them cease
when the grief is past.
15. 'My friend Tsz-chang, although he has the
ability to tackle hard things, has not yet the virtue
of philanthropy.'
16. The Learned Tsang observed, 'How loftily
Tsz-chang bears himself! Difficult indeed along
with him to practise philanthropy 2!'
17. Again he said, 'I have heard this said by
the Master, that "though men may not exert
themselves to the utmost (in other duties), yet
surely in the duty of mourning for their parents
they will do so!"'
18. Again, 'This also I have heard said by the
1 I. e. what student, less than a sage, but requires to be led
gradually on ?
2 Evidently sarcastic. Tsz-chang's virtues were more in
appearance than in reality.
1
Book XIX.
Master: "The filial piety of Măng Chwang in other
respects might be equalled, but as manifested in
his making no changes among his father's minis-
ters, nor in his father's mode of government,—that
aspect of it could not easily be equalled¹.'
211
19. Yang Fu², having been made senior Crim-
inal Judge by the Chief of the Măng clan, con-
sulted with the Learned Tsăng. The latter advised
him as follows:-'For a long time the Chiefs have
failed in their government, and the people have
become unsettled. When you arrive at the facts
of their cases, do not rejoice at your success in
that, but rather be sorry for them, and have pity
upon them.'
20. Tsz-kung once observed, (We speak of)
"the iniquity of Chau 3"; but 'twas not so great
as this. And so it is that the superior man is
1 Some of his father's ministers were unworthy men, and
the government was in need of reform; but during the
period of mourning for his father he would not interfere
with his father's principles. See on this perfection I. 11
IV. 20.
2 A disciple of Tsăng.
3 Chau Sin, the last of the Yin kings. See note on
XVIII. 1.
The 'this' may refer to the bad name of Chau in every
one's mouth, or the name itself which had a bad meaning;
but it may also refer to the wickedness of the times com-
mitted in spite of better knowledge.
0 2
!
-
-t
212 The Confucian Analects.
averse from settling in this sink, into which every-
thing runs that is foul in the empire.'
21. Again he said, 'Faults in a superior man are
like eclipses of the sun or moon: when he is guilty
of a trespass men all see it; and when he is him-
self again, all look up to him.'
22. Kung-sun Ch'au of Wei inquired of Tsz-
kung how Confucius acquired his learning.
Tsz-kung replied, 'The teachings of Wăn and
Wu have not yet fallen to the ground. They exist
in men. Worthy and wise men have the more
important of these stored up in their minds; and
others, who are not such, store up the less important
of them; and as no one is thus without the
teachings of Wăn and Wu, how should our Master
not have learned? And moreover what permanent
preceptor could he have?'
23. Shuh-sun Wu-shuh¹, addressing the high
officials at the Court, remarked that Tsz-kung was
a greater worthy than Confucius.
Tsz-fuh King-pih2 went and informed Tsz-kung
of this remark.
Tsz-kung said, 'Take by way of comparison the
1 A statesman at the Court of Lu.
2 The officer already mentioned in XIV. 38.
::
•
3
Book XIX.
213
walls outside (our) houses. My wall is shoulder-
high, and you may look over it and see what the
house and its contents are worth. My Master's
wall is tens of feet high, and unless you should
effect an entrance by the door, you would fail
to behold the beauty of the ancestral hall and the
rich array of all its officers. And they who effect
an entrance by the door, methinks, are few! Was
it not, however, just like him,—that remark of the
Chief?'
24. Shuh-sun Wu-shuh had been casting a slur
on the character of Confucius.
'No use doing that,' said Tsz-kung; 'he is irre-
proachable. The wisdom and worth of other men
are little hills and mounds of earth, traversible.
He is the sun, or the moon, impossible to reach
and pass. And what harm, I ask, can a man do
to the sun or the moon, by wishing to intercept
himself from either? It all shows that he knows
not how to gauge capacity.'
25. Tsz-k'in, addressing Tsz-kung, said, 'You
depreciate yourself. Confucius is surely not a
greater worthy than yourself.'
Tsz-kung replied, 'In the use of words one
ought never to be incautious; because a gentleman
for one single utterance of his is apt to be con-
:
7
214
The Confucian Analects.
sidered a wise man, and for a single utterance
may be accounted unwise. No more might one
think of attaining to the Master's perfections
than think of going upstairs to Heaven! Were it
ever his fortune to be at the head of the govern-
ment of a country, then that which is spoken of
as "establishing the country" would be establish-
ment indeed; he would be its guide and it would
follow him, he would tranquillize it and it would
render its willing homage ¹, he would give forward
impulses to it to which it would harmoniously
respond. In his life he would be its glory, at his
death there would be great lamentation. How
indeed could such as he be equalled?'
1
BOOK XX.
Extracts from the Book of History respecting the principles
and ways of celebrated emperors and founders of dynasties,
including a prayer to the Supreme Being - Five excellent
ruies for government given by Confucius, and four evils to
be avoided―Three things necessary to be known.
1. (The emperor) Yáu said to Shun, 'Ah, upon
You, upon Your person, lies the Heaven-appointed
order of succession! Faithfully hold to it, without
1 Lit. would come. But, as in the Odes, the word has the
meaning given above.
·
!
Book XX.
215
any deflection; for if within the four seas neces-
sity and want befall the people, Your Own revenue
will for ever come to an end.'
Shun also used (the same language) in handing
down the Appointment to Yu.
2
3
(The emperor Tang in his prayer)', said, 'I, the
child Li, presume to avail me of an ox of dusky
hue, and presume to manifestly announce to Thee,
O God, the most high and Sovereign Potentate,
that to the transgressor ³ I dare not grant forgive-
ness, nor yet keep in abeyance Thy ministers.
Judgement rests in Thine heart, O God.-Should
We Ourself transgress, may the guilt not be
visited everywhere upon all. Should the people
all transgress, be the guilt upon Ourself!'
4
Chow possessed great gifts, by which the able
and good were richly endowed.
'Although,' said King Wu, 'he 5 is surrounded
1 The titular name of the founder of the Yin (or Shang)
dynasty. His private name was Li.
2 For the reason, see Shi-King, Odes of Shang, IV. v. 3. In
the next Ode he himself is called the 'dusky monarch.'
3 Kieh, the last monarch of the expiring dynasty of Hiá.
So literally, though this and the following sentences
refer specially to King Wu, the founder of the line, who
distributed gifts, in the sense of largesses.
5 The tyrant Chau, last king of the Yin dynasty. The
sentences are from Wu's 'Great Declaration' in the Shu-
$
?
51.
動
​?
i
216
The Confucian Analects.
by his near relatives, they are not to be compared
with men of humane spirit. . . . The people are
suffering wrongs, and (the remedy) rests with me,
the one man ¹.'
1
!
After (Wu) had given diligent attention to the
various weights and measures, examined the laws
and regulations, and restored the degraded officials,
good government everywhere ensued.
He caused ruined States to flourish again, re-
instated intercepted heirs, and promoted to office
men who had gone into retirement; and the hearts
of the people throughout the empire drew towards
him.
Among matters of prime consideration with him
were these, food for the people, the duty of
mourning, and sacrificial offerings (to the de-
parted) 2.
He was liberal and large-hearted, and so won
all hearts; true, and so was trusted by the people;
King, or Book of History, and he is here comparing his
resources with Chau's before engaging in the conflict which
was to result in a change of dynasty.
1 The 'one man' often means the emperor, but need not
have that reference here.
2 The Chinese gloss upon this is-'Food for the nourish-
ment of the living, mourning as a parting attention to the
dead, offerings as a recompense for all that we owe them-
for life and education, &c.'
¿
!
Book XX.
energetic, and thus became a man of great achieve-
ments; just in his rule, and all were well content.
217
2. Tsz-chang in a conversation with Confucius
asked, 'What say you is essential for the proper
conduct of government?'
The Master replied, 'Let (the ruler) hold in high
estimation the five excellences, and eschew the
four evils; then may he conduct his government
properly.'
'And what call you the five excellences?' he
asked.
1
'They are,' he said, 'Bounty without extrava-
gance; burdening without exciting discontent;
desire without covetousness; dignity without
haughtiness; show of majesty without fierceness.'
'What mean you,' asked Tsz-chang, ' by bounty
without extravagance?'
'Is it not this,' he replied,-' to make that which
is of benefit to the people still more beneficial?
When he selects for them such labours as it is
possible for them to do, and exacts them, who
will then complain? So when his desire is the
virtue of humaneness, and he attains it, how shall
he then be covetous? And if-whether he have to
¹ I. e. socage, and the like.
218
The ་
Confucian Analects.
i
•
do with few or with many, with small or with
great-he do not venture ever to be careless, is
not this also to have dignity without haughtiness?
And if—when properly vested in robe and cap,
and showing dignity in his every look-his appear-
ance be so imposing that the people look up to
and stand in awe of him, is not this moreover to
show majesty without fierceness?'
What, then, do you call the four evils?' said
Tsz-chang.
The answer here was, 'Omitting to instruct the
people and then inflicting capital punishment on
them, which means cruel tyranny. Omitting to
give them warning and yet looking for perfection in
them,-which means oppression. Being slow and
late in issuing requisitions, and exacting strict
punctuality in the returns,-which means robbery.
And likewise, in intercourse with men, to expend
and to receive in a stingy manner,-which is to
act the part of a (mere) commissioner.'
6
3. None can be a superior man,' said the
Master, 'who does not recognize the decrees (of
Heaven) ¹.
1
1 The learned commentator Ching says here: 'The man
who recognizes not the decrees (of Heaven) sees harm
coming to him and is sure to shrink from it, sees a way of
}
蒸
​Book XX.
219
'None can have stability in him without a know-
ledge of the proprieties ¹.
'None can know a man without knowing his
utterances.'
gain and is sure to be all haste to get it;-how can such be
a superior man ? '
¹ See VIII. 8; and XVI. 13.
L
!
•
.
•

*·
:
"
INDEX.
Ability, iv. 13, 14; ix. 6; xv.
8.
Accomplishments, literary and
other, i. 6; vii. 6.
Admiration for the ancients,
vii. 1, 5: viii. 18-21; xv. 4 ;
XX. I.
Aged, duty to the, v. 25.
Ancestors, remembrance and
worship of, i. 9; iii. 12; xi.
II.
Anarchy, or disorder, i. 2; iii.
5; xviii. 5, 6.
Anger, xii. 21.
Archery, iii. 7, 16.
Avarice, viii. 11.
Aversions, proper, iv. 3; xvii.
24.
Beauty, ix. 17; XV. 12.
Blind, consideration for the,
ix. 9; xv. 41.
Bravery, daring, valour, v. 6;
vii. 10; viii. 10; xiv. 5;
xvii. 23.
Capital punishment, xii. 19;
xiii. 11; XX. 2.
Ceremonial, see Propriety.
Combativeness, xvi. 7.
Confucius, character and de-
scriptions of, i. 10; ii. 4 ; iii.
24; vii. 1-5, 9, 26, 30-34,
37; xi. 2-13; x. passim; xix.
22-25; accepts office, xvii. 1;
retires from office, xviii. 4.
Confucius, daughter of, v. 1.
son of, xvi. 13 ; xi. 7.
Contentiousness, iii. 7.
Courtesy, iii. 7.
Covetousness, xii. 18; xiv. 2;
XX. 2.
Cowardice, ii. 24.
Death, xi. II.
Death of favourite disciple, xi.
7-10.
Dense populations, how to
deal with, xiii. 9.
Destiny, ix. 1 ; xii. 5 ; xiv. 38.
Dignity, ii. 20; xv. 32; xvii.
6; xx. 2.
Distinction of persons, iii. 5;
xv. 38; xvi. 13.
Enlightenment, xii. 6.
Error, vii. 30; xi. 15; XV. 29;
xvi. 6.
correction of, i. 8; v. 26;
xii. 21, 22; XV. 29.
Example, xiii. 1, 4, 6, 13; xiv.
44.
Faithfulness, see Truthfulness.
2
222
Index.
5
Fasting, vii. 12; x. 7.
Filial piety, i. 2, 6, 11; ii. 5,
6, 7, 21, 24; iv. 18-21; viii.
3 (note); xi. 4; xiii. 20; xix.
18.
Flattery, ii. 24; iii. 18.
Food for the people, xii. 7;
xiii. 9.
Food of Confucius, vii. 15; x.
8, 18; forgets to eat, vii. 18.
Forbearance, iv. 15; xv. 23
(note).
Forethought, XV. II.
Friendship, v. 16; x. 15; xii.
23; xv. 9; xvi. 4.
Gain, advantage, iv. 12, 16;
ix. 1; xiv. 13.
Golden Rule, approaches to on
negative side, v. 11; xii. 2;
XV. 23.
Good man, the, xi. 19.
Government, bad, ii. 3; xvi.
1-3; XX. 2.
– good, i. 5; ii. 1, 3, 19, 20;
xii. 7, 9, 11, 14, 17-19; xiii.
I-18; XV. 10; xvi. 2; XX. 2.
Grace before meals, x. 8, 13.
Heaven,, vii. 22; sin
against, iii. 13;
ix. II;
Decrees or Will of, ii. 4; xii.
5; xiv. 38; xvi. 8; xx. 3;
Way of, v. 12; Confucius did
not murmur against, xiv.
37; speaks not, only ope-
rates, xvii. 19.
Heterodoxy, ii. 16.
Honours, iv. 5; xii. 5.
Humaneness, goodwill, &c.,
, i. 2, 3, 6; iii. 3; iv. 1−7;
v. 4, 7, 18; vi. 20, 21, 24,
28; vii. 6, 29; viii. 7; xii.
1-3, 22('love of man'); xiii.
19; xiv. 2, 7, 17, 18; xv. 8,
9, 32, 34, 35; xvii. 6; xx. 1.
Humanizing effect of study,
xix. 6.
Human nature, v. 12; xvii. 2,
3; vi. 17 (?).
Illness, of Confucius, vii. 34;
ix. 11; X. 13.
- of disciples, vi. 8; viii. 3, 4.
Ill-will, enmity, murmuring,
resentment, complaining, iv.
12; V. 22; xiv. 10, 11, 36,
37.
Illusions, xii, 10, 21.
Impatience, xiii. 17; xv. 26.
Inferior man, ii. 14; iv. 11, 16;
xii. 19; xiii. 23, 25, 26; xiv.
7, 24; xv. 33; xvii. 23; xix.
8.
Instruction of the people, xiii.
9, 29, 30.
A
Kindness, v. 15, 25; xiv. 36;
xvii. 6.
Knowledge, ii. 17; vi. 18, 21;
vii. 27; xii. 22; XV. 32; xvi.
9; xx. 3.
Lasciviousness, i. 7; xvi. 7.
Lavish living, vii. 35.
Learning, study, love of, &c.,
i. 1, 7, 14; ii. 11, 15; iv. 9;
v. 27; vi. 2; viii. 13, 17;
xii. 15; xiv. 25.
Life of man, vi. 17.
Life and death, xi. 11; xii. 5.
Litigation, xii. 12, 13.
Love to men, i. 6; xii. 22; xiv.
8; xvii. 4.
Loyalty, leal-heartedness, &c.,
i. 4, 7; iii. 19; iv. 17; xiii.
19.
Madman of Ts'u and Con-
fucius, xviii. 5.
Medical man, xiii. 22.
Medicine, X. II.
Military matters, vii. 10; xii.
7; XV. I.
Minding one's own business,
vi. 12; viii. 4, 14; xiv. 27,
28.
Misanthropy, iv. 6; viii. 10.
:
Index.
Miserliness, vii. 35.
Mourning, iii. 4, 26; ix. 9;
x. 6; xiv. 43; reasons for,
xvii. 21; xix. 14, 17.
Music, and harmony, iii. 3, 23,
25; vii, 13; viii. 8, 15.
Musing by a mountain-stream,
ix. 16.
Naturalness, i. 12; and polish,
vi. 16.
'Not at home,' xvii. 20.
Notoriety, xii. 20.
Odes, see Shi-King.
Official income, ii. 18; xiv. I ;
xv. 31, 37.
Official, the learned, viii. 7;
xii. 20; xiii. 20, 28; xiv. 3;
xix. I.
Penalties, ii. 3; iv. 11; XX. 2.
Perfect man, xiv. 13.
Philanthropy, see Humaneness.
Pleasure, worldly, vi. 21; xvi.
5.
- profitable, xvi. 5.
Popular opinion, xiii. 24; likes
and dislikes to be considered,
XV. 27.
Posturers, iii. 1; XV. 10.
Poverty, vi. 9; viii. 10; xiv.
II; XV. 31.
Prayer, vii. 34; of an em-
peror, xx. I.
Preferment, iv. 14; ix. 12; xii.
22; xvii. I, 15.
Pride, viii. 12; xiii. 26; xiv.
II.
Prince and minister, iii. 19;
xii. II; xiv. 23; xv. 37.
Principles, iv. 15; xv. 28.
Prognostication, ii. 23; xiii.
22.
Propriety,,i. 12, 15; ii. 5;
iii. passim; iv. 13; viii. 8;
xi. 1-3; xiv. 44; XV. 17;
xvi. 13.
– want of, viii. 2.
223
Reciprocity, xv. 23.
Recluses, xiv. 42; xviii. 6–8.
Renegade, a, xiv. 46.
Reputation, xii. 20.
Requiting enmity with kind-
ness, xiv. 36.
Restraints, iv. 23.
Retiring from the world, xiv.
39, 40, 42; xviii. 6, 8.
Reverence, iii. 26; xix. 1
I; for
youth, ix. 22.
Rich and poor, i. 15; iv. 5; vi.
3; xiv. II.
Riches, iv. 5; vii. 15; xii. 5;
without goodness, xvi. 12.
Right, and righteousness,
義
​iv. 10; vii. 15; xv. 16, 17;
xvii. 23; xix. 1; et al.
Right way, É, iv. 8, 9; vii.
6; viii. 13.
Root ideas and principles, i. 2;
iii. 4, 8; iv. 15; xix. 1.
Sacred vessels, iii. 2; iv. 2.
Self-correction, i. 7; xii. 21;
xiii. 13.
Self-examination, i. 4; iv. 17.
Shame, ii. 3; v. 24; xiv. I.
Shi-King, Odes, Poetry, i. 15;
ii. 1; iii. 2, 7, 8, 20; viii. 3,
8; ix. 14; xi. 5; xiii. 5;
XV. 10; xvi. 13; xvii. 9, 10,
18.
Singing, vii. 31.
Slander, xii. 6.
Son of Heaven, iii. 2.
Speech, iv. 22-24; V. 4, 24;
xii. 3; xiv. 4, 5, 21; XV. IO,
26, 40; xvii. 19; xx. 3.
Spiritual beings, vi. 20; vii.
20.
Straight and crooked, the, ii.
19; xii. 22.
Straightforwardness, v. 23,
xii. 20; xiii. 18; xiv. 36.
Superior man, the, i. 1, 2, 8,
14; ii. 12, 13, 14; iii. 7; iv.
11, 16; four qualities of, v.
224
Index.
:
15; xii. 4, 16, 19, 24; xiii.
23, 25, 26; xiv. 7, 24, 29, 30,
45; XV. 17-22, 31, 33, 36;
xvi. 7, 8, 10; xvii. 23, 24;
xix. 7-10; xx. 3; faults of,
xix. 21.
Superstition, v. 17; x. 10.
Terms, misuse of, vi. 23; xiii.
3.
Transmitter, Confucius a, vii.1.
Truthfulness, sincerity, faith-
fulness,, i. 6, 7, 8; ii. 22;
xiii. 19, 20; xiv. 13; xvii. 6.
Unity of ideas in Confucius, iv.
15; XV. 2.
Usurpation of rights, iii. 1, 2,
6; xiii. 14.
Via media, vi. 27; xiii. 21.
Vice, xii. 21; xvi. 7.
Virtue (general), iv. 25; vii.
22; ix. 17; xii. 10, 21; xv.
12; xvii. 13, 14; xix. 2, 1I.
Virtues, the Five, see note on
characters for, page 36.
War, vii. 10, 12; xiii. 29, 30;
intestine, xvi. 1.
Wealth, vii. II; xiv. II.
Will, free, ix. 25.
Wisdom, vi. 18, 20; vii. 27.
See also Knowledge.
Withdrawing from office in
disordered times, xviii. 1, 2,
4, 9.
Wonderful family, a, xviii. 11.
Words, xi. 20; xii. 3; xiv. 5,
21, (and deeds) 28; xv. 7,
16; xx. 3.
C
Worship, other than of an-
cestors, iii. 6,
12, 21;
thoughts of, vi. 20; vii. 20;
xvi. 2.
Youth, respect due to, ix. 22.
a precocious, xiv. 47.
OXFORD: HORACE HART, PRINTER TO THE UNIVERSITY
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