,,the ,,sayings ,,of ,,confucius    ,a  
,,new ,,translation ,,of ,,the ,,greater
    ,,part ,,of ,,the ,,confucian       
,,analects      ,,with ,,introduction   
,,and ,,notes        ,,lionel ,,giles1  
,m4,a4 7,oxon47      ,,assistant ,,in   
,,the ,,department ,,of ,,oriental      
,,books    ,,and ,,manuscripts ,,of     
,,the ,,british ,,museum        ,,the   
,,wisdom ,,of ,,the ,,east ,,series     
,edited by    ,l4 ,,cranmer-,,byng      
,dr4 ,s4 ,a4 ,,kapadia4            ,,new
 ,,york    ,e4 ,p4 ,,dutton ,,and       
,,company    #aiaj          ,,contents  
,,introduction  ,,list ,,of ,,the       
,,principal ,,disciples  ,,government   
,,and ,,public ,,affairs  ,,individual  
,,virtue  ,,confucius' ,,estimate ,,of  
,,others  ,,confucius ,,on ,,himself    
,,miscellaneous ,,sayings  ,,personalia 
,,confucius ,,as ,,seen ,,by ,,others   
,,sayings ,,of ,,the ,,disciples        
,,editorial ,,note      ,the object of  
the ,editors of this series is a very   
definite one4  ,they desire above all   

things that1 in their humble way1 these 
books  shall be the ambassadors of      
goodwill and understanding between ,east
  and ,west--the old world of ,thought  
and the new of ,action4 ,in this        
endeavour1 and in their own sphere1 they
 are but followers of the  highest      
example in the land4 ,they are confident
 that a deeper knowledge  of the great  
ideals and lofty philosophy of ,oriental
 thought may help  to a revival of that 
true spirit of ,charity which neither   
despises nor  fears the nations of      
another creed and colour4 ,finally1 in  
thanking  press and public for the very 
cordial reception given to the ,wisdom  
of  the ,east ,series1 they wish to     
state that no pains have been spared to 
secure the best specialists for the     
treatment of the various subjects  at   
hand4    ,l4 ,,cranmer-,,byng4  ,s4 ,a4 
,,kapadia4    ,,northbrook ,,society1   
#ahe1 ,,piccadilly1 ,w4                 
,,introduction      ,confucius is one of
 the few supremely great figures in the 

world's  history4 ,a man's greatness    
must always be measured1 in the first   
place1 by the consensus of opinion in   
his own country2 the judgment of        
foreigners can only be allowed to have a
 secondary value4 ,especially  is this  
true when the critics are not only      
foreigners1 but belong to a  totally    
different order of civilisation from the
 men whose greatness  they would        
appraise4 ,for even if they can keep    
their minds free from  purely national  
bias of the unreasoning sort1 they will 
naturally look  for such attributes as  
are highly prized among themselves1 and 
feel  disappointed if these are not much
 in evidence4 ,they will be apt to see  
certain defects too plainly1 whereas    
they may easily overlook or fail  to    
appreciate to the full those very       
qualities on which the title to         
greatness is mainly based4 ,these errors
 and prejudices will1 doubtless1  tend  
to disappear as more intimate knowledge 
is gained and the  essential unity of   

human nature shows itself beneath the   
accidents of  custom and environment4   
,but the process will always be slow4   
,the name  of ,confucius may be deemed  
sufficiently familiar in the ,west to   
render  unnecessary any revision of the 
popular verdict which has already been  
passed on him4 ,but are his judges      
equally familiar with the teaching      
which his name represents8 ,the name of 
,shakespeare was well enough  known to  
,frenchmen in the time of ,voltaire4    
,yet how many generations  had to pass  
ere they began to recognise his true    
greatness8 ,the  parallel between       
dramatist and social reformer may seem  
strained1 but  it is not drawn at       
random4 ,in both cases1 wide differences
 of language  and the inadequacy of     
translations to bridge the gap1 lie at  
the root  of the trouble4    ,no great  
man has suffered more than ,confucius   
from the stupidity1 the  misstatements  
and the misrepresentations1 from the    
lack of sympathy  and generosity1 and1  

in some points1 from the pure ignorance 
of his  critics4 ,early travellers      
arriving from the ,west1 amongst a      
people  utterly alien to themselves in  
almost every detail--language1  dress1  
habits1 modes of thought1 ethical ideals
 and general view of  life--would have  
done well to walk very warily and1 in   
the ,confucian  phrase1 to reserve their
 judgment on what they saw and heard    
around  them4 ,but patience and         
discrimination were the very last       
virtues  which these inquisitive        
newcomers had a mind to practise2 and1  
unluckily1 the extraordinary fame of the
 national sage marked him out  as one of
 the earliest victims to their thirst   
for the marvellous4  ,on the strength of
 ,chinese evidence1 readily forthcoming 
and eagerly  swallowed1 the most        
exaggerated accounts of this new        
luminary were  poured into the ears of  
,europe1 and it may well be imagined    
that these  enthusiastic reports        
suffered no diminution in the telling4  

,confucius  was the prince of           
philosophers1 the wisest and most       
consummate of  sages1 the loftiest      
moralist1 the most subtle and           
penetrating intellect  that the world   
had ever seen4 ,he was a statesman1 a   
bard1 an historian  and an antiquary    
rolled into one4 ,his sagacity put the  
most illustrious  of ancient and modern 
philosophers to shame4 ,he was the      
greatest and  noblest representative of 
the greatest1 happiest1 and most highly 
civilised people on the face of the     
earth4 ,such extravagant eulogy  could  
only pave the way for disillusionment4  
,when1 after the lapse of  a hundred    
years or so1 foreigners had painfully   
acquired sufficient  knowledge of the   
language to enable them to begin        
translating1 after  a fashion1 parts of 
the ,classics said to have been composed
 by this  glorious sage1 or at least    
containing the choicest pearls of his   
wisdom still extant1 it is not          
altogether surprising that the results  

did not come up to the general          
expectation4 ,reactionist in1 and it    
soon became the fashion to decry the    
once much-lauded philosopher4  ,his     
sayings1 which had been extolled as the 
very epitome of wisdom1  were now voted 
jejune and commonplace4 ,his teaching   
was found to be  shallow1 disjointed1   
unsatisfying4 ,he was blamed for his    
materialistic  bias1 for his rigid      
formalism1 for his poverty of ideas1 for
 his lack  of spiritual elevation4      
,comparisons1 much in his disfavour1    
were  drawn between him and the founders
 of other world-systems of religion  and
 ethics4 ,all this before the           
circumstances of his career had been    
studied1 before the surface of          
contemporary ,chinese history had been  
so  much as scratched1 before the host  
of native commentators and critics  had 
been consulted1 or their existence even 
become known2 above all1  before the    
very book which contained his authentic 
sayings had been  translated with       

anything approaching to exactness or    
understanding1 or  with a faint         
realisation of its numerous difficulties
 and pit-falls4    ,such was still the  
deplorable state of things when ,legge  
set to work  on his translation of the  
,confucian ,canon1 which when completed 
many  years later1 with its exhaustive  
prolegomena1 notes and appendices1      
formed a truly wonderful monument of    
research and erudition4 ,with  its      
publication1 ,chinese scholarship was   
carried at once to a higher  plane1 and 
foreign study of ,confucian doctrine    
began in earnest4  ,the heavy           
accumulations of ignorance and error    
were in large part  removed1 and the    
figure of the great ,teacher began at   
last to emerge  from the obliterating   
sands of time4 ,his sayings were no     
longer read  as interesting but         
desultory fragments of conversation1 but
 studied  in relation to the events of  
his life4 ,from various ,chinese        
sources1  the chief of which were the   

,analects themselves and ,ss-ma         
,ch#8ien's  biography1 ,legge managed to
 compile a good and coherent account of 
the sage's life1 work and wanderings1   
which was an enormous advance  on       
anything that had been done before1 and 
is not likely1 even in the  future1 to  
undergo any considerable addition or    
amendment4 ,there are  many minor points
 which may be disputed1 and many long   
blanks which  may never be filled up1   
but taken as a whole1 the chronology and
 the  leading events of the life of     
,confucius must now be considered as    
finally settled4    ,if ,legge is on    
firm ground where hard facts are        
concerned1 it is far  otherwise when he 
comes to draw inferences from these     
facts1 to sum up  the salient principles
 of ,confucian ethics1 and to pass      
judgment on the  character of ,confucius
 himself4 ,his pronouncements on these  
points1  too hastily accepted as final1 
need to be carefully re-examined and1   
as ,i shall hope to show1 largely       

modified if not totally reversed4 ,his  
opinion1 of course1 was based chiefly on
 his own interpretation of the  more    
important sayings in the ,analects1 in  
translating which he had  the oral help 
of native scholars1 besides the benefit 
of voluminous  standard commentaries4   
,thus equipped for his task1 it cannot  
but appear  strange that he1 admittedly 
a great sinologue1 should have gone so  
far astray as to miss the very core and 
essence of the doctrines to  the        
elucidation of which he devoted most of 
his life4 ,the explanation  may lie in  
the fact that he was a ,christian       
missionary in the first  place1 and only
 secondly a scientific student2 he had  
come to teach  and convert the heathen1 
not to be taught or converted by them4  
,this  preconceived idea acted as a drag
 on the free use of his understanding1  
and prevented him from entering         
whole-heartedly into his subject4 ,we   
are told that the ,master himself had no
 foregone conclusions1 but  ,legge's    

whole attitude to ,confucianism bespoke 
one comprehensive and  fatal foregone   
conclusion--the conviction that it must 
at every point  prove inferior to       
,christianity4 ,a certain inelasticity  
of mind showed  itself also in the way  
in which he approached the work of      
translation4  ,he was too apt to look   
upon a ,chinese word as something rigid 
and  unchanging in its content1 which   
might be uniformly rendered by a  single
 ,english equivalent4 ,delicate shades  
of meaning he too often  ruthlessly     
ignored4 ,now there is a certain number 
of ,chinese terms  which mirror ,chinese
 ideas1 but have really no absolute     
equivalent  in ,english at all1 and must
 therefore be translated with the aid of
  circumlocution1 and in such a way as  
to suit the context and the  general    
spirit of the passage4 ,it is in such   
terms1 unfortunately1  that the very    
essence and inner significance of the   
,confucian teaching  are contained4     
,obviously1 if proper equivalents are   

not given1 the  whole sense of the      
passages in which they occur will be    
lost or  violently distorted4 ,worse    
still1 the judgments laboriously built  
up  on such rotten foundations will be  
hopelessly vitiated4 ,here1 indeed1  we 
have an object-lesson of the importance1
 clearly recognised by  ,confucius      
himself1 of defining terms and making   
words harmonise  with things4           
,indispensable as such a process is for 
any investigation  in which language    
plays a part1 it is doubly so when words
 have to be  transplanted1 as it were1  
from their native soil to one differing 
from  it in almost every conceivable    
quality4 ,such an operation can only be 
successful if carried out with the      
utmost delicacy and care1 and no  amount
 of erudition can supply the want of    
that instinctive feeling  for the right 
word which is the translator's choicest 
gift4 ,the scope  of the present work   
forbids my entering into details1 but   
some broad  examples of failure in this 

respect will be noted later on4    ,of  
the life of ,confucius only the barest  
sketch can be given here1  but stress   
may be laid on one or two points which  
it is important to  bear in mind4       
,confucius was born at a time when the  
feudal system1  established several     
centuries earlier by the founder of the 
,chou  dynasty1 was showing unmistakable
 signs of disruption and decay4 ,it  is 
almost certain that ,china had been     
feudally governed from the very         
earliest times1 but ,wu ,wang placed the
 whole system on a seemingly  firmer    
basis than ever4 ,he divided his realm  
into a large number of  vassal states1  
which he bestowed upon his own kith and 
kin who had  helped him to the throne4  
,thus the ,empire really came to        
resemble the  huge united family which  
,chinese political theorists declare it 
to be1  and for a short time all seems  
to have worked smoothly4 ,but as the    
bonds of kinship grew looser1 the       
central government gradually lost  all  

effective control over its unruly       
children1 and the various states  were  
soon embroiled in perpetual feuds and   
struggles among themselves1  besides    
being usually at loggerheads with the   
parent dynasty4 ,the state  of things   
that ensued may be likened 7though on a 
far larger scale7 to  several ,wars of  
the ,roses going on at the same time1 or
 better still1  to the turbulence of the
 later days of the ,holy ,roman ,empire1
 when the  fealty of its members had    
become merely nominal4 ,matters were    
further  complicated in many of the     
states by the upgrowth of large and     
powerful  families which often attempted
 either by insidious methods or by open 
violence to wrest the supreme authority 
into their own hands4 ,thus in  ,lu1 the
 comparatively small state to which     
,confucius belonged1 there  were three  
such families1 the ,chi1 the ,mng1 and  
the ,shu2 the heads of  these clans1 of 
whom we hear a good deal in the         
,analects1 had already1  by the time of 

,confucius1 reduced their lawful prince 
7or duke1 as  he is generally called7 to
 a condition of virtual dependency4 ,on 
the  other hand1 they themselves were   
sometimes threatened by the lawless     
behaviour of their own officers1 such as
 the ambitious chariot-driver1  ,yang   
,huo1#a who thought nothing of seizing  
towns or even the person  of his own    
chief1 in order to hold him to ransom4  
,thus1 though the  period of the        
,warring ,states is not usually reckoned
 as beginning  until after the death of 
,confucius1 the date is a purely        
arbitrary one1  inasmuch as his whole   
life long disturbances were rife and    
military  operations well-nigh incessant
 throughout the length and breadth of   
,china4 ,in the midst of the prevailing 
disorder1 ,confucius comported  himself 
with an admirable mixture of dignity1   
tact and outspoken  courage4 ,wisely    
opposing the dangerous tendency to      
decentralisation1  and upholding the    
supreme authority of the ,emperor as    

against his too  powerful vassals1 he   
heartily disapproved of the illegal     
usurpations  of the dukes1 the great    
families and the soldiers of fortune    
that  preyed one upon the other1 and did
 not shrink on occasion from  expressing
 his disgust in unequivocal terms4 ,but 
knowing the futility  of protests       
unbacked by force1 he kept himself aloof
 for the most  part1 and devoted himself
 to a long course of study and teaching1
  gathering1 it is said1 as many as     
three thousand disciples around him4    
,this is a palpable exaggeration1 but   
there can be no doubt that he had       
become a marked man and gained great    
fame as a moralist and teacher  many    
years before he actually took office4   
,in #eja ,b4,c41 at the age of  fifty1  
he at last made his entry on the        
political stage by accepting  the       
governorship of a small town in ,lu4    
,here he is said to have been  eminently
 successful in the work of reform1 and  
he rapidly rose to be  the most trusted 

adviser of ,duke ,ting1 who on one      
occasion at least  owed his life to the 
courage and address of his minister4    
,but it was  not long ere the weak and  
fickle character of the ruler1 carefully
  manipulated by rivals to ,confucius1  
brought about a catastrophe4 ,the       
neighbouring state of ,ch#8i1 jealous of
 the new prosperity of ,lu under  the   
rgime of the sage1 cunningly sent as a  
gift to the prince a  band of beautiful 
women1 trained in song and dance1 and a 
number of  magnificent horses1 in order 
to distract his mind from the serious   
cares of state4 ,the plotters had       
evidently taken the measure of their    
victim1 for the artifice succeeded1 and 
,confucius felt compelled to  resign4   
,then began the weary years of wandering
 from state to state1 in  which we      
cannot follow him here1 except to note a
 sagacious prophecy  uttered by a       
friendly official on the frontier of    
,wei4 ,coming out from  an interview    
with ,confucius1 he comforted the       

woebegone disciples by  telling them    
that their ,master's divine mission was 
now only just  beginning4#b ,it may1    
indeed1 be that the ensuing period of   
homeless  exile1 hardships and danger1  
did more to spread the fame of the great
  reformer than either the few brilliant
 years of office or those spent  as a   
teacher in the comparative seclusion of 
,lu4 ,for one thing1 it  could not but  
inspire and fortify his followers to    
observe that the  lofty principles which
 a sudden accession to power had failed 
to  corrupt1 were equally capable of    
standing the test of adversity4 ,his    
serene and courageous bearing in many a 
strange and perilous situation  proved  
that the conception of a higher type of 
man was for him no  empty ideal1 but the
 worthy object of practical endeavour4  
,it is sad1  however1 to reflect that   
the best years of his life had passed   
before  the call came which resulted in 
his return4 ,had it not been so long    
delayed1 he would doubtless have thrown 

himself once more into the  arena of    
public affairs1 and begun rebuilding the
 fabric of good  government which had   
been so rudely shattered thirteen years 
before4  ,his patience would have been  
equal to the task2 but he was now an old
  man1 worn out by years of travel1     
privation and anxiety1 at a time of     
life when the physical frame begins to  
demand a certain measure of  quiet and  
repose4 ,hence1 though he may be said to
 have returned to his  native state with
 flying colours1 he took no further     
active part in its  administration1 but 
devoted the rest of his life to literary
 labours  which have added materially to
 his fame4 ,such were the collecting    
and editing of certain old national     
ballads known to us as the ,odes1  and  
the penning of the ,spring and ,autumn  
,annals of ,lu1 which may be  regarded  
as the first real record of authentic   
facts1 as opposed to the  mere string of
 speeches and eulogies which we find in 
the miscalled  ,book of ,history4    ,to

 this closing period1 too1 are to be    
referred most of the sayings  given in  
the present volume4 ,these1 together    
with the invaluable  biography by ,ss-ma
 ,ch'ien1 which is largely built upon   
them1 form the  only really reliable    
source of information about ,confucius  
and his  doctrines4 ,the ,chinese title 
,lun ,y may be rendered ,conversations  
or ,discussions1 but neither is a very  
apt description of the work1  which     
contains very little discussion in the  
ordinary sense4 ,it  consists in fact   
almost wholly of detached obiter dicta1 
or replies  to questions put by various 
disciples on subjects chiefly moral or  
personal4 ,these sayings were once      
supposed to have been collected and     
committed to writing by the immediate   
disciples of ,confucius1 but ,legge  has
 shown sufficient reason to believe that
 they were transmitted  orally at first1
 and did not take the form in which we  
have them  until at least two           
generations after the ,master's death4  

,nor must it  be imagined that they     
represent the ipsissima verba of        
,confucius4  ,no man could have made    
offhand remarks in such a crisp1 concise
 and  epigrammatic style4 ,a            
translation1 in which brevity has again 
and again  to be sacrificed to          
smoothness and lucidity1 hardly allows  
the ,european  reader to form any idea  
of the glittering compactness of these  
sayings  in the original4 ,so far from  
having been uttered impromptu1 they     
appear to have been repeatedly ground   
and polished1 and shorn of every        
redundancy1 until they shone like       
diamonds fresh from the hands of the    
cutter4 ,at the same time1 as expressing
 the essence of what the ,master        
thought and the substance of what he    
said1 it is with good reason that  they 
are to be found inscribed on hundreds of
 thousands of scrolls  and tablets in   
every corner of the ,empire4 ,these     
gems1 however1 are  unsorted4 ,as in    
most ,chinese philosophical works1 there

 is very little  attempt at orderly     
arrangement2 even such a rough          
classification as  will be found in this
 volume is absent4 ,this is not         
necessarily to be  regarded as a defect3
 jewels jumbled in a heap often have a  
charm which  they lack when strung      
symmetrically into a necklace4 ,the only
 danger  is that unwary readers1 looking
 in vain for a beginning1 a middle  and 
an end1 may jump to the conclusion that 
,confucius himself was  merely a master 
of casual apophthegms2 they may very    
easily miss the  connecting principles  
which serve to bind the ,confucian      
teachings into  one rounded system4     
,even the disciples seem to have been in
 danger of  overlooking the whole in    
their admiration of the parts4 ,it      
needed the  penetration of ,tsng ,tz to 
tell them that the ,master's ,way was1  
after  all1 simple in its diversity1 and
 might be summed up in two words3 duty  
to oneself and charity to one's         
neighbour4 ,unhappily1 owing to the     

misinterpretation of these important    
words1 the beautiful simplicity of  the 
,confucian doctrine has long passed     
unrecognised4    ,for what has been1 and
 is perhaps even now1 the prevailing    
conception  of ,confucius in the ,west8 
,does not the name conjure up in most   
minds  the figure of a highly starched  
philosopher1 dry1 formal1 pedantic1     
almost inhuman in the unimpeachable     
correctness of his personal  conduct1   
rigid and precise in his notions of     
ceremonial1 admirable  no doubt in his  
sentiments1 but always more a man of    
words than of  deeds8 ,he has been      
constantly accused of laying undue      
weight on things  external1 of          
undervaluing natural impulses of the    
heart4 ,propriety1  says ,legge1 was a  
great stumbling-block in the way of     
,confucius4 ,his  morality was the      
result of the balancings of his         
intellect1 fettered by  the decisions of
 men of old1 and not the gushings of a  
loving heart1  responsive to the        

promptings of ,heaven1 and in sympathy  
with erring and  feeble humanity4 ,it is
 high time that an effective protest was
 made  against such an amazing piece of 
misrepresentation4 ,with bitter truth   
we may retort that propriety--that is1  
the ,chinese word li which  has been    
cruelly saddled with this absurd        
rendering--has indeed been  a           
stumbling-block1 but a stumbling-block  
not so much to ,confucius as  to ,dr4   
,legge himself4 ,the whole tenor of the 
,master's teaching cries  aloud against 
such wilful and outrageous distortion4  
,any one who reads  the sayings         
carefully will soon discover that this  
accusation is not  only libellous but   
grotesque in its remoteness from the    
truth4 ,if there  is one thing more than
 another which distinguishes ,confucius 
from the  men of his day1 it is the     
supreme importance which he attached to 
jn1 the feeling in the heart1 as the    
source of all right conduct1  the stress
 which he laid on the internal as       

opposed to the external1  and even on   
motives rather than outward acts1 except
 in so far as  these might be taken as  
an index to character4 ,over and over   
again  he gave proof of the highest and 
noblest moral courage in ignoring  the  
narrow rules of conventional morality   
and etiquette when these  conflicted    
with good feeling and common sense1 and 
setting up in their  stead the grand    
rule of conscience which1 by asserting  
the right of  each individual to judge  
such matters for himself1 pushed liberty
 to  a point which was quite beyond the 
comprehension of his age4 ,so far  from 
being fettered by the decisions of men  
of old1 it was his hand  that valiantly 
essayed to strike the fetters of bigotry
 and prejudice  from the necks of his   
countrymen4 ,but whilst declining to be 
bound by  the ideas and the standards of
 others1 he was not blind to the danger 
of liberty degenerating into license4   
,the new fetters1 therefore1  that he   
forged for mankind were those of an iron

 self-discipline and  self-control1     
unaccompanied1 however1 by anything in  
the shape of  bodily mortification1 a   
practice which he knew to be at once    
more showy  and less troublesome than   
the discipline of the mind4    ,another 
charge not infrequently heard is one of 
a certain repellent  coldness of        
temperament and stiffness of demeanour4 
,the warrant for  such a statement is   
not so readily forthcoming1 unless      
indeed it is  to be found in the stiff  
and repellent style which characterises 
some  translations of his sayings4 ,in  
the ,analects we are told the exact     
opposite of this4 ,the ,master1 we read 
there1 was uniformly cheerful  in       
demeanour1 and he evidently unbent to   
quite an unusual extent with  his       
disciples1 considering the respect and  
deference universally shown  to age and 
learning in ,china4 ,is it at all       
conceivable that a man of  cold and     
unlovable temper should have attracted  
round him hundreds  of disciples1 with  

many of whom he was on terms of most    
intimate  intercourse1 meeting them not 
only in the lecture-room1 as modern     
professors meet their classes1 but      
living with them1 eating1 drinking1     
sleeping and conversing with them1 until
 all their idiosyncrasies1  good or bad1
 were better known to him than to their 
own parents8 ,is it  explicable1 except 
on the ground of deep personal          
affection1 that he  should have been    
followed into exile by a faithful band  
of disciples1  not one of whom is known 
ever to have deserted or turned against 
him8  ,is coldness to be predicated of  
the man who in his old age1 for once    
losing something of his habitual        
self-control1 wept passionately for  the
 death of his dearly loved disciple ,yen
 ,hui1 and would not be  comforted8     
,but it has been reserved for the latest
 ,english translator of the  ,analects1 
the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,jennings1 to level some 
of the worst charges  at his head4 ,to  
begin with1 he approvingly quotes1 as   

,legge's final  opinion on ,confucius1  
words occurring in the earliest edition 
of the  ,chinese ,classics to the effect
 that he is unable to regard him as a   
great man1 quite heedless of the fact   
that the following stands in  the       
edition of #ahic 7two years before his  
own translation appeared73  ,but ,i must
 now leave the sage4 ,i hope ,i have not
 done him injustice2  the more ,i have  
studied his character and opinions1 the 
more highly  have ,i come to regard him4
 ,he was a very great man1 and his      
influence  has been on the whole a great
 benefit to the ,chinese1 while his     
teachings suggest important lessons to  
ourselves who profess to belong  to the 
school of ,christ4 ,this summing-up1    
though certainly unexpected  in view of 
much that has gone before1 does partly  
atone for the unjust  strictures which  
,dr4 ,legge felt it necessary to pass on
 ,confucius  at an earlier period1      
though it may require many years        
entirely  to obliterate their effect4   

,what ,i wish to emphasise at present1  
however1 is the unfairness of quoting an
 early and presumably crude  and        
ill-considered opinion in preference to 
the latest and maturest  judgment of an 
authority who at no time can be said to 
err ,on the side  of over-partiality for
 his subject4    ,but this is not all4  
,for after pointing out1 truly enough1  
that  ,confucius cannot well be blamed  
for giving no impulse to religion1      
inasmuch as he never pretended to make  
this his aim1 ,mr4 ,jennings goes  on to
 pick some holes on his own account1 and
 incontinently falls  into exactly the  
same error that he had previously       
rebuked in ,dr4  ,legge4 ,in his reserve
 about great and important matters1     
while  professing to teach men1 he is   
perhaps most to blame1 and in his       
holding back what was best in the       
religion of the ancients4 ,what these   
great and important matters were1 is not
 made very clear1 but if1 as  seems     
probable1 the phrase is simply another  

way of referring to the  religion of the
 ancients1 it can only be repeated that 
religion was  a subject which he        
disliked to discuss and certainly did   
not profess  to teach1 as is plainly    
indicated in the ,analects4 ,and the    
reason why  he refrained from descanting
 on such matters was that1 knowing      
nothing  of them himself1 he felt that  
he would have been guilty of hypocrisy  
and fraud had he made a show of         
instructing others therein4 ,would that 
a like candour distinguished some of our
 own professed teachers of  religion6   
,the last accusation against ,confucius 
is the most reckless of all4  ,there is1
 according to ,mr4 ,jennings1 a certain 
selfishness in  his teaching1 which had 
the effect of making those who came     
under his  influence soon feel          
themselves great and self-satisfied4 ,as
 only the  feeblest of evidence is      
produced to support this wild statement1
 it  will not be necessary to consider  
it at any length1 though we may ask  in 

passing whether ,yen ,hui1 the disciple 
who profited most from his  ,master's   
teaching and best exemplified it1 is    
depicted as exhibiting  this alleged    
self-satisfaction in a peculiarly       
noticeable degree4 ,for  an answer to   
this question the reader may be referred
 to ,tsng ,tz's  remarks on p4 #abh4    
,the truth is1 though missionaries and  
other zealots have long attempted  to   
obscure the fact1 that the moral        
teaching of ,confucius is absolutely    
the purest and least open to the charge 
of selfishness of any in  the world4    
,its principles are neither utilitarian 
on the one hand  nor religious on the   
other1 that is to say1 it is not based  
on the  expectation of profit or        
happiness to be gained either in this   
world or  in the next 7though ,confucius
 doubtless believed that well-being     
would  as a general rule accompany      
virtuous conduct74 ,virtue for virtue's 
sake is the maxim which1 if not         
enunciated by him in so many words1  was

 evidently the corner-stone of his      
ethics and the mainspring of  his own   
career4 ,not that he would have quite   
understood the modern  formula1 or that 
the idea of virtue being practised for  
anything but  its own sake would ever   
have occurred to his mind4 ,virtue      
resting on  anything but its own basis  
would not have seemed to him virtue in  
the  true sense at all1 but simply      
another name for prudence1 foresight1   
or cunning4 ,yet material advantage1    
disguised as much as you will1  but     
still material advantage in one form or 
another1 is what impels  most men to    
espouse any particular form of religion4
 ,hence it is  nothing less than a      
standing miracle that ,confucianism1    
which makes  no promise of blessings to 
be enjoyed in this life or the next1    
should  have succeeded without the      
adjunct of other supernatural elements  
than  that of ancestor-worship4 ,even   
this was accepted by ,confucius as a    
harmless prevailing custom rather than  

enjoined by him as an essential  part of
 his doctrine4 ,unlike ,christianity and
 ,mahometanism1 the ,way  preached by   
the ,chinese sage knows neither the     
sanction of punishment  nor the stimulus
 of reward in an after-life4 ,even      
,buddhism holds out  the hope of        
,nirvana to the pure of heart1 and      
preaches the long torment  of successive
 rebirths to those who fall short of    
perfect goodness4  ,no great religion is
 devoid of elevated precepts1 or has    
ever failed  to mould numbers of        
beautiful characters to attest the      
presence of  something good and great   
within it4 ,but in every case the       
element  of supernaturalism1 which is of
 course inseparable from a religion     
properly so called1 introduces a new    
motive for men's actions and makes  it  
no longer possible for virtue to be     
followed purely for its own  sake1      
without thought of a hereafter4 ,thus1  
if we assent to ,comte's  famous law of 
the ,three ,states1 ,confucianism really

 represents a more  advanced stage of   
civilisation than biblical              
,christianity4 ,indeed1 as  ,mr4 ,carey 
,hall has recently pointed out in an    
article on the subject1  ,confucius may 
be regarded as the true fore-runner     
runner of ,comte in  his positivist mode
 of thought4    ,his whole system is    
based on nothing more nor less than the 
knowledge  of human nature4 ,the        
instincts of man are social and         
therefore  fundamentally good1 while    
egoism is at bottom an artificial       
product and  evil4 ,hence the insistence
 on altruism which we find in the       
sayings  of ,confucius1 the injunction  
to act socially1 to live for others in  
living for oneself4 ,the most important 
word in the ,confucian vocabulary  is   
jn1 which in the following extracts is  
translated virtue only  for want of a   
better term4 ,our ,english word virtue  
has so many  different shades of meaning
 and is withal so vague1 that in using  
it1  the idea of altruism is often      

hardly present to our mind4 ,but in jn  
the implication of social good emerges  
much more distinctly4 ,its  connotation 
has no doubt extended gradually until it
 seems often to be  rather a compendium 
of all goodness than any one virtue in  
particular4  ,but this development only 
means that the word is following in the 
track  of the thing itself4 ,for let a  
man be but thoroughly imbued with the   
altruistic spirit1 and he may be termed 
good without qualification1  since all  
other virtues tend to flow from         
unselfishness4    ,the ,confucian theory
 of man's social obligations rests first
 and  foremost on the fact that he forms
 part of a great social machine--an     
aggregation of units1 each of which is  
called a family4 ,the family1 in        
,chinese eyes1 is a microcosm of the    
,empire1 or rather1 since the family  is
 chronologically prior to the ,state1 it
 is the pattern on which the  greater   
organism has moulded itself4 ,the feudal
 system under which  ,confucius lived   

naturally accentuated the likeness4 ,the
 ,emperor had1  in theory at least1     
paternal authority over his feudal      
princes1 who  in turn1 standing to one  
another in the relation of elder and    
younger  brothers1 were regarded as the 
fathers of their respective peoples4    
,now1 the way to ensure that a machine  
as a whole may run smoothly and  well1  
is to see that each part shall fulfil   
its own function in proper              
subordination to the rest4 ,how is this 
result achieved in the family8          
,obviously through the controlling will 
of the father1 who has supreme          
authority over all the other members4   
,but this authority is not by any  means
 the mere brute force of a tyrant4 ,it  
is based firstly on the  natural order  
of things1 whereby the father is clearly
 intended to be  the protector of his   
children2 and secondly1 as a consequence
 of this1  on the love and respect which
 will normally spring up in the minds of
  the children for their protector4     

,such is the genesis of filial piety1   
which plays so large a part in ,chinese 
ethics4 ,it is quite untrue1  however1  
to say with ,mr4 ,jennings1 that no     
corresponding parental  duties are      
recognised by ,confucius1 as the        
following anecdote may  serve to show4  
,during the sage's short period of      
office as ,minister  of ,crime1 a father
 came to him bringing some serious      
charge against  his son4 ,confucius kept
 them both in prison for three months1  
without  making any difference in favour
 of the father1 and then let them go4   
,the ,minister ,chi ,huan remonstrated  
with him for this1 and reminded him  of 
his saying1 that filial duty was the    
first thing to be insisted on4  ,what   
hinders you now from putting this       
unfilial son to death as an  example to 
all the people8 ,confucius' reply was1  
that the father had  never taught his   
son to be filial1 and that therefore the
 guilt really  rested with him4    ,for 
the harmonious working of a family1     

then1 we need respect for  authority on 
one side1 and self-sacrifice on the     
other4 ,the father's  object must be    
entirely altruistic--the good of his    
family4 ,then  only will he be doing his
 duty as a father1 just as a son is not 
doing his duty unless he shows honour   
and obedience to his parents4  ,the     
all-important element which makes       
possible the working of the  family     
machine1 the lubricating oil that eases 
the bearings1 is not  merely filial     
piety without any corresponding feeling 
on the part  of the parent1 but rather a
 certain subtle principle of harmony and
  self-control permeating every member  
of the family group1 which  restrains   
egoistic propensities and promotes the  
common good4 ,this is  the ,chinese term
 li1 which in this sense of a quality of
 the soul  is hardly translatable by any
 single word or combination of words1   
but is certainly not to be rendered by  
any such atrocious phrase as  the rules 
of propriety4#c ,now ,confucius saw that

 the same general  principles which     
govern the family are applicable also to
 that greatest  of families1 the ,state4
 ,here we have the ,emperor1 in whose   
hands the  supreme authority must lie1  
exercising functions exactly analogous  
to  those of the father of a family4    
,but if his is the supreme authority1   
his must also be the supreme            
responsibility4 ,veneration and respect 
are his due1 but only because he        
identifies himself with the good of  the
 people4 ,in public affairs1 just as in 
the home1 there must be  that same      
principle of harmony to regulate the    
relations of governor  and governed1    
otherwise the machine will not work4    
,there must be li  here as well1 but as 
it is not possible for the sovereign to 
maintain  with his subjects the personal
 intimacy which unites a father and  his
 sons1 it is necessary to fall back upon
 symbols1 and to give  outward and      
visible expression to the inward        
sentiments of loyalty and  respect which

 should animate the breast of each      
member of the nation4  ,these symbols   
are the rites and ceremonies of which   
,confucius was  considered such a       
past-master4 ,he saw indeed their full  
importance  as symbols1 but he also knew
 that1 divorced from the inward feeling1
  they were meaningless and without     
value4 ,in this way it is easy to see   
how the word li1 as a human attribute1  
acquired its various shades  of meaning1
 from the harmony in the soul which     
prompts action in  accordance with true 
natural instincts1 down to ordinary     
politeness and  good manners--also an   
indispensable lubricant in the lesser   
dealings of  life between man and man4  
,it was in the family again that        
,confucius found a natural force at work
  which he thought might be utilised as 
an immense incentive to virtue4  ,this  
was the universal human proneness to    
imitation4 ,knowing that  personal      
example is the most effective way in    
which a father can teach  his sons what 

is right1 he unhesitatingly attributed  
the same powerful  influence to the     
personal conduct of the sovereign1 and  
went so far as  to declare that if the  
ruler was personally upright1 his       
subjects would  do their duty unbidden2 
if he was not upright1 they would not   
obey1  whatever his bidding4 ,the virtue
 of the prince1 he said1 is like  unto  
wind2 that of the people1 like unto     
grass4 ,for it is the nature of  grass  
to bend when the wind blows upon it4 ,it
 must be admitted that  ,confucius has  
in this particular somewhat overshot the
 mark and formed  too sanguine an       
estimate of the force of example4 ,it   
would be unfair1  however1 to base our  
argument on the analogy of modern       
democratic  states1 where the           
controlling power is split up into      
several branches1  and the              
conspicuousness of the monarch is much  
diminished4 ,not that  even the         
constitutional sovereign of to-day may  
not wield a very  decided influence in  

morals4 ,but this influence was much    
greater while  the king retained full   
despotic power1 and greatest of all in  
feudal  times1 when the successive      
gradations of rank and the nice         
arrangement  of a hierarchy of          
officials1 each accountable to the one  
above him1  were specially designed to  
convey and filter it among all classes  
of  the community4 ,had ,confucius been 
able to find a prince who would have    
acted consistently on ,confucian        
principles1 the results might have been 
almost as grand as he anticipated4 ,the 
experiment was tried1 we must  remember1
 on a small scale1 when ,confucius      
himself became governor of  a town in   
the ,state of ,lu4 ,and although one    
must be chary of accepting  all the     
extravagant tales which gathered round  
his brief official  career1 it seems    
indisputable that this political theory1
 unlike many  others1 proved reasonably 
successful in actual practice4    ,of   
course the weak point is that every king

 cannot be a ,confucius1  and unless    
some practical method can be devised of 
electing rulers  on the ground of merit 
alone1 it is impossible to ensure that  
their  conduct shall serve as a pattern 
to their people4 ,rotten wood cannot  be
 carved1 the ,master himself once       
remarked1 and he found bitter           
confirmation of his saying in ,duke     
,ting of ,lu4 ,nothing could ever have  
been made out of such utterly weak and  
worthless material4 ,and he  afterwards 
spent thirteen years of his life in the 
fruitless search  for a sovereign who   
would correspond even faintly to his    
ideal4 ,such  unswerving devotion to the
 abstract cause of right and justice and
  good government cannot but puzzle     
those who have been taught to regard    
,confucius as the very type and         
embodiment of materialistic wisdom and  
practical utilitarianism4 ,but in truth1
 strange though it may sound1  he was a 
great idealist who gained his hold on   
his countrymen by  virtue rather of his 

noble imaginings and lofty aspirations  
than of  any immediate results or       
tangible achievements4 ,by the men of   
his own  day he was more often than not 
considered a charlatan and an impostor4 
,it is remarkable that even the two     
,taoist recluses and the eccentric      
,chieh ,y 7p4 #abb7 should have         
condemned him as a visionary and a      
crank4 ,similar was the impression he   
made on the gate-keeper who  asked a    
disciple if his ,master was the man who 
was always trying to  do what he knew to
 be impossible4 ,this playful sarcasm is
 really the  best commentary on his     
career1 and one that pays him           
unintentionally  the greatest honour4   
,though often disheartened by the long  
and bitter  struggle against adverse    
circumstance and the powers of evil1 he 
never  gave over in disgust4 ,therein   
lay his greatness4 ,wer immer strebend  
sich bemht1 ,den knnen wir erlsen1 sing 
the angels in ,faust1 and  no man ever  
toiled for the good of his              

fellow-creatures with greater           
perseverance or with less apparent      
prospect of success4 ,in this1 the      
truest sense1 he could say that his     
whole life had been a prayer 7p4  #hg74 
,he succeeded in that he seemed to fail4
 ,he never achieved the  ,utopian object
 of reforming all mankind by means of a 
wise and good  sovereign4 ,on the       
contrary1 after his death confusion grew
 worse  confounded1 and the din of arms 
rose to a pitch from which it did not   
subside until after the momentous       
revolution which swept away the  ,chou  
dynasty and established a new order of  
things in ,china4 ,in a  radically      
individualistic and liberty-loving      
country like ,china1 the  feudal system 
was bound sooner or later to perish1    
even as it perished  in a later day     
among ourselves4 ,but throughout the    
anarchy of that  terrible period1 the   
light kindled by ,confucius burned      
steadily and  prepared men's minds for  
better things4 ,his ideal of government 

was  not forgotten1 his sayings were    
treasured like gold in the minds of  the
 people4 ,above all1 his own example    
shone like a glorious beacon1  darting  
its rays through the night of misery and
 oppression and  civil strife which in  
his lifetime he had striven so earnestly
 to  remove4 ,and so it came about that 
his belief in the political value of    
personal goodness was in some sort      
justified after all2 for the great  and 
inspiriting pattern which he sought in  
vain among the princes of  his time was 
to be afforded in the end by no other   
than himself--the  throneless king1 who 
is for ever enshrined in the hearts of  
his  countrymen4 ,it is absurd1 then1 to
 speak of his life as a failure4        
,measured by results--the almost        
incalculably great and far-reaching     
consequences which followed tardily but 
irresistibly after he was  gone--his    
life was one of the most successful ever
 lived by man4 ,three  others1 and only 
three1 are comparable to it in          

world-wide influence3  ,gautama's       
self-sacrificing sojourn among men1 the 
stormy career of  the ,arab ,prophet1   
and the sinless years which found their 
close on  ,golgotha4        #a ,see p4  
#aba4    #b ,see p4 #aah4    #c ,see    
note on p4 #fj4          ,,list ,,of    
,,the ,,principal ,,disciples      ,the 
proper names occurring in the ,analects 
present some difficulty to  the         
,european reader1 as one and the same   
person is often referred to  in several 
different ways--by his surname and      
personal name1 by his  style1 or by a   
combination of the two1 while among     
intimates the  personal name only is    
employed4 ,mr4 ,ku has on this account  
eliminated  almost all proper names from
 his translation1 using a periphrasis   
instead4 ,but by this method one misses 
much of the characterisation  which is  
such an attractive feature of the       
,analects4 ,i have judged  it better to 
give the names of the principal         
disciples exactly as  they appear in the

 ,chinese1 and to provide a table of    
their various  appellations for easy    
reference4 ,an asterisk denotes the name
 most  frequently used4       ,surname  
and           ,style4        ,mixed     
,appellation4    ,personal ,name4       
,yen ,hui            ,tz ,yan           
,yen ,yan499      ,min ,sun             
,tz ,ch#8ien       ,min ,tz-ch#8ien199  
7,min ,tz7      ,jan ,kng           ,po 
,niu99          ,jan ,po-niu4      ,jan 
,yung           ,chung ,kung99      ,jan
 ,ch#8iu          ,tz ,yu           ,jan
 ,yu499      ,chung ,yu           ,tz   
,lu99                         ,chi ,lu  
,tsai ,y            ,tz ,wo             
,tsai ,wo499      ,tuan-mu ,tz#8        
,tz ,kung99      ,yen ,yen              
,tz ,y99          ,yen ,yu4      ,pu    
,shang           ,tz ,hsia99            
,chuan-sun ,shih     ,tz ,chang99       
,tsng ,shn        ,tz ,y      7,tsng    
,tz997      ,fan ,hs            ,tz     
,ch#8ih        ,fan ,ch#8ih499          
,ss-ma ,kng        ,tz ,niu             

,ss-ma ,niu499      ,kung-hsi ,ch#8ih   
,tz ,hua          ,kung-hsi ,hua499     
,yu ,jo             ,tz ,jo      7,yu   
,tz997          ,,government ,,and      
,,public ,,affairs      ,the ,master    
said3 ,in ruling a country of a thousand
 chariots there  should be scrupulous   
attention to business1 honesty1 economy1
 charity1  and employment of the people 
at the proper season4    ,a virtuous    
ruler is like the ,pole-star1 which     
keeps its place1 while  all the other   
stars do homage to it4    ,people       
despotically governed and kept in order 
by punishments may avoid  infraction of 
the law1 but they will lose their moral 
sense4 ,people  virtuously governed and 
kept in order by the inner law of       
self-control  will retain their moral   
sense1 and moreover become good4        
,duke ,ai#a asked1 saying3 ,what must ,i
 do that my people may be               
contented8--,confucius replied3 ,promote
 the upright and dismiss all            
evil-doers1 and the people will be      

contented4 ,promote the  evil-doers and 
dismiss the upright1 and the people will
 be discontented4    ,chi ,k#8ang ,tzu#b
 asked by what means he might cause his 
people to be  respectful and loyal1 and 
encourage them in the path of virtue4   
,the  ,master replied3 ,conduct yourself
 towards them with dignity1 and you     
will earn their respect2 be a good son  
and a kind prince1 and you will  find   
them loyal2 promote the deserving and   
instruct those who fall  short1 and they
 will be encouraged to follow the path  
of virtue4    ,some one1 addressing     
,confucius1 said3 ,why1 ,sir1 do you    
take no part in  the government8--,the  
,master replied3 ,what does the ,book of
 ,history say  about filial piety8--,do 
your duty as a son and as a brother1 and
 these  qualities will make themselves  
felt in the government4 ,this1 then1    
really amounts to taking part in the    
government4 ,holding office need  not be
 considered essential4    ,the people   
can be made to follow a certain path1   

but they cannot be  made to know the    
reason why4    ,tzu ,kung asked for a   
definition of good government4 ,the     
,master replied3  ,it consists in       
providing enough food to eat1 in keeping
 enough  soldiers to guard the ,state1  
and in winning the confidence of the    
people4--,and if one of these three     
things had to be sacrificed1 which      
should go first8--,the ,master replied3 
,sacrifice the soldiers4--,and if  of   
the two remaining things one had to be  
sacrificed1 which should  it be8--,the  
,master said3 ,let it be the food4 ,from
 the beginning1 men  have always had to 
die4 ,but without the confidence of the 
people no  government can stand at all4 
,ching1 ,duke of the ,ch#8i ,state1     
questioned ,confucius on the art of     
government4 ,confucius replied3 ,let the
 sovereign do his duty as a  sovereign1 
the subject his duty as a subject1 the  
father his duty as a  father1 and the   
son his duty as a son4--,a good answer6 
said the ,duke2  for unless sovereign   

and subject1 father and son do their    
respective  duties1 however much grain  
there may be in the land1 ,i could      
obtain  none to eat4    ,tzu ,chang put 
a question about the art of governing4  
,the ,master said3  ,devote yourself    
patiently to the theory1 and            
conscientiously to the  practice1 of    
government4    ,chi ,k#8ang ,tz asked   
,confucius for advice on the subject of 
government4  ,confucius replied3 ,to    
govern is to keep straight4#c ,if you1  
,sir1 lead  the people straight1 which  
of your subjects will venture to fall   
out of  line8    ,chi ,k#8ang ,tz1 being
 vexed by robbers1 asked ,confucius for 
his advice4  ,confucius replied1 saying3
 ,if you1 sir1 can check your own       
cupidity1  there will be no stealing1   
even though rewards should be offered   
for  theft4    ,chi ,k#8ang ,tz         
questioned ,confucius on a point of     
government1 saying3  ,ought not ,i to   
cut off the lawless in order to         
establish law and order8  ,what do you  

think8--,confucius replied3 ,sir1 what  
need is there of the  death penalty in  
your system of government8 ,if you      
showed a sincere  desire to be good1    
your people would likewise be good4 ,the
 virtue of  the prince is like unto     
wind2 that of the people1 like unto     
grass4 ,for  it is the nature of grass  
to bend when the wind blows upon it4    
,tz ,lu asked for a hint on the art of  
governing4 ,the ,master replied3  ,take 
the lead and set the example of diligent
 toil4--,asked for a  further hint1 he  
said3 ,be patient and untiring4         
,chung ,kung1 being ,prime ,minister to 
the head of the ,chi clan1 asked for    
advice on governing4 ,the ,master said3 
,make a point of employing your         
subordinates1 overlook trifling         
mistakes1 raise to office worthy and    
able men4--,but1 said ,chung ,kung1 how 
am ,i to discover these worthy men  and 
single them out for promotion8--,promote
 those that you know1 was  the reply4   
,as for those that you do not know1 will

 not their claims be  brought before you
 by others8    ,tz ,lu said3 ,the       
,prince of ,wei is waiting1 ,sir1 for   
you to take up  the reins of government4
 ,pray what is the first reform you     
would  introduce8--,the ,master replied3
 ,i would begin by defining terms and   
making them exact4#d--,oh1 indeed6      
exclaimed ,tzu ,lu4 ,but how can  you   
possibly put tilings straight by such a 
circuitous route8--,the  ,master said3  
,how unmannerly you are1 ,yu6 ,in       
matters which he does not  understand1  
the wise man will always reserve his    
judgment4 ,if terms are  not correctly  
defined1 words will not harmonise with  
things4 ,if words  do not harmonise with
 things1 public business will remain    
undone4 ,if  public business remains    
undone1 order and harmony will not      
flourish4  ,if order and harmony do not 
flourish1 law and justice will not      
attain  their ends4 ,if law and justice 
do not attain their ends1 the people    
will be unable to move hand or foot4    

,the wise man1 therefore1 frames  his   
definitions to regulate his speech1 and 
his speech to regulate his  actions4 ,he
 is never reckless in his choice of     
words4    ,fan ,ch#8ih asked to be      
taught the art of husbandry4 ,the       
,master said3  ,any farmer can teach you
 that better than ,i can4 ,he then asked
 to be  taught gardening4 ,the ,master  
said3 ,any gardener will teach you that 
better than ,i can4 ,fan ,ch#8ih having 
gone out1 the ,master said3 ,what a     
small-minded man is ,fan ,hs6 ,if the   
ruler is addicted to modesty and        
self-control1 his people will not permit
 themselves to be irreverent4  ,if the  
ruler loves justice and duty1 his people
 will not venture to be  unruly4 ,if the
 ruler loves sincerity and good faith1  
the people will  not be slow to respond4
 ,such being his qualities1 the people  
will flock  to him from all quarters1   
with their babes strapped to their      
backs4  ,what need for him to know the  
art of husbandry8#e    ,the ,master     

said3 ,if the ruler is personally       
upright1 his subjects will  do their    
duty unbidden2 if he is not personally  
upright1 they will not  obey1 whatever  
his bidding4    ,when the ,master went  
to ,wei1 ,jan ,yu drove his carriage4   
,the ,master  said3 ,what an abundant   
population6--,jan ,yu said3 ,now that   
the people  are so abundant1 what is the
 next thing to be done8--,enrich them1  
said  ,confucius4--,and having enriched 
them1 what then8--,teach them1 was the  
reply4    ,the ,master said3 ,if a      
country had none but good rulers for a  
hundred  years1 crime might be stamped  
out and the death-penalty abolished4    
,how  true this saying is6    ,if a     
kingly sovereign were to appear1 by the 
end of one generation  natural goodness 
would prevail4    ,if a man can reform  
his own heart1 what should hinder him   
from taking  part in government8 ,but if
 he cannot reform his own heart1 what   
has he  to do with reforming others8    
,duke ,ting#f asked if there was a      

single sentence by which a country      
might be made to flourish4 ,confucius   
answered3 ,no single sentence can  be   
expected to have such a virtue as this4 
,but there is the common  saying3 ,to be
 a good king is difficult2 to be a good 
minister is not  easy4 ,he who realises 
the difficulty of being a good king--has
 he not  almost succeeded in making his 
country prosper by a single sentence8   
--,is there a single sentence1 continued
 the ,duke1 by which a country  can be  
ruined8--,confucius answered3 ,no such  
power can reside in any  single         
sentence4 ,but there is a saying3 ,i    
have no joy in kingly rule1  ,i rejoice 
only because none can oppose my will4   
,now if the king's will  is good1 and   
none opposes it1 all may be well2 but if
 it is not good1  and yet none opposes  
it1 has he not almost succeeded in      
ruining his  country be a single        
sentence8    ,the ,duke of ,sh#g asked  
about the conditions of good government4
 ,the  ,master said3 ,government is good

 when it makes happy those who live     
under it and attracts those who live far
 away4    ,tz ,hsia1 when governor of   
,ch-fu1#h asked for advice on           
government4  ,the ,master said3 ,do not 
try to do things in a hurry4 ,do not be 
intent  on small gains4 ,what is done   
quickly is not done thoroughly2 and if  
small gains are considered1 great things
 remain unaccomplished4    ,tz ,lu asked
 about the service due to a prince4 ,the
 ,master said3 ,use no  deceit1 but if  
you oppose him1 oppose him openly4      
,the ,master said3 ,if the ruler        
cherishes the principle of self-control1
  the people will be docile to his      
commands4#i    ,shun#aj was one who did 
nothing1 yet governed well4 ,for what1  
in  effect1 did he do8 ,religiously     
self-observant1 he sat gravely on his   
throne1 and that is all4#aa    ,in      
serving your prince1 make the actual    
service your first care1 and  only put  
the emolument second4    ,the head of   
the ,chi clan was on the point of       

attacking the small  principality of    
,chuan-y4 ,jan ,yu and ,chi ,lu came to 
see ,confucius1  and said3 ,our lord is 
going to have trouble with              
,chuan-y4--,confucius  said3 ,is it not 
you1 ,ch#8iu1 who are to blame in this8 
,the ancient  kings long ago made       
,chuan-y the centre of the worship of   
the ,eastern  ,mng mountain1 and        
moreover it is situated within the      
territory of  ,lu4 ,its ruler has       
independent priestly functions4#ab ,what
 right have  you to attack it8--,jan ,yu
 replied3 ,it is the will of our master2
  we1 his ministers1 have neither of us 
any wish to act thus4--,ch#8iu1  said   
,confucius1 ,chou ,jn#ac had a saying3  
,if you are capable of  displaying      
energy1 hold office2 if not1 resign4 ,of
 what use is that  minister likely to   
be1 who does not sustain his master in  
the presence  of danger1 or support him 
when about to fall8 ,besides1 what you  
say  is wrong4 ,if a tiger or a wild    
buffalo escapes from its cage1 if a     

tortoise-shell or jade ornament is      
smashed in its casket1 whose fault  is  
it1 pray8--,jan ,yu replied3 ,but       
,chuan-y is strongly fortified1 and     
close to our own town of ,pi4 ,if we do 
not take it now1 it will cause  trouble 
to our descendants in a later           
generation4--,confucius rejoined3       
,ch#8iu1 an honest man hates your       
hypocrite who will not openly avow his  
greed1 but tries instead to excuse it4  
,i have heard that the ruler of  a state
 or of a clan is troubled not by the    
smallness of its numbers  but by the    
absence of even-handed justice2 not by  
poverty but by the  presence of         
discontent2 for where there is justice  
there will be no  poverty2 where there  
is harmony there will be no lack in     
numbers2  where there is content there  
will be no revolution4 ,this being the  
case then1 if outlying communities      
resist your authority1 cultivate  the   
arts of refinement and goodness in order
 to attract them2 and  when you have    

attracted them1 make them happy and     
contented4 ,now you  two1 ,yu and       
,ch#8iu1 are aiding and abetting your   
master2 here is an  outlying community  
which resists your authority1 and you   
are unable  to attract it4 ,partition   
and collapse are imminent in your own   
,state1  and you are unable to preserve 
it intact4 ,and yet you are planning    
military aggression within the borders  
of your country6 ,verily ,i fear  that  
,chi-sun's #adtroubles will come1 not   
from ,chuan-y1 but from the  interior of
 his own palace4    ,when the ,master   
came to ,wu-ch#8ng1 he heard the sound  
of singing and  stringed instruments4   
,he was pleased1 but said with a smile3 
,is it  necessary to take a pole-axe to 
kill a fowl8--,tz ,yu replied3 ,some    
time ago1 ,sir1 ,i heard you say that   
the study of true principles made  the  
ruler beneficent and men of the lower   
class easy to govern4--,my  children1   
said the ,master1 ,yen is right4 ,what  
,i said was only in  jest4#ae    ,tz    

,chang asked ,confucius1 saying3 ,what  
are the essentials of good              
government8--,the ,master said3 ,esteem 
the five excellent1 and banish the  four
 evil things2 then you will become fit  
to govern4--,tz ,chang asked3  ,what are
 the five excellent things8--,the       
,master replied3 ,the wise and  good    
ruler is benevolent without expending   
treasure2 he lays burdens  on the people
 without causing them to grumble2 he has
 desires without  being covetous2 he is 
serene without being proud2 he is       
awe-inspiring  without being            
ferocious4--,he is benevolent without   
expending treasure3  what does that     
mean8--,the ,master replied3 ,he simply 
follows the course  which naturally     
brings benefit to the people4#af ,is he 
not thus  benevolent without expending  
treasure8 ,in imposing burdens1 he      
chooses  the right time and the right   
means1 and nobody can grumble4 ,his     
desire  is for goodness1 and he achieves
 it2 how should he be covetous8 ,the    

wise and good ruler never allows himself
 to be negligent1 whether he is  dealing
 with many men or with few1 with small  
matters or with great4  ,is this not    
serenity without pride8 ,he has his cap 
and robe properly  adjusted1 and throws 
a noble dignity into his looks1 so that 
his  gravity inspires onlookers with    
respect4 ,is he not thus awe-inspiring  
without being ferocious8--,tz ,chang    
then asked3 ,what are the four evil     
things8--,the ,master said3             
,cruelty3--leaving the people in their  
native  ignorance1 yet punishing their  
wrong-doing with death4 ,oppression3--  
requiring the immediate completion of   
tasks imposed without previous  warning4
 ,ruthlessness3--giving vague orders1   
and then insisting on  punctual         
fulfilment4 ,peddling                   
husbandry3--stinginess in conferring the
  proper rewards on deserving men4#ag   
#a ,ai was the honorary epithet of the  
,duke of ,lu who was reigning  during   
the last years of ,confucius' life4     

#b ,chi ,k#8ang ,tzu succeeded to the   
headship of the great ,chi family in    
#dia1 when ,chi ,huan died1 by whom he  
was advised to recall ,confucius  from  
his long wanderings4 ,the sage1 however1
 did not return until eight  years      
later4    #c ,the point of the original 
lies partly in the fact that the        
,chinese  words for govern and straight 
are similar in form and identical in    
sound4    #d ,the hidden meaning of this
 saying is made clear by the context  to
 be found in ,ss-ma ,ch#8ien's biography
 of ,confucius4 ,the ,prince of  ,wei at
 this time was the young man mentioned  
on p4 #abh as holding the  throne       
against his own father4 ,by so doing he 
had in some sort inverted  the          
relationship which should have subsisted
 between them1 and each was  in a false 
position1 the father being deprived of  
his proper parental  dignity1 and the   
son no longer doing his duty as a son   
7see p4 #da74  ,confucius then is       
administering a veiled rebuke to the    

young ruler1 for  in saying that the    
first reform necessary is the correct   
definition  of names1 he implies in     
effect that the terms father and son1   
among others1 should be made to resume  
their proper significance4 ,an          
alternative rendering of chng ming as   
rectification of the written  character1
 though backed by the great authority of
 ,m4 ,chavannes1 can  only be described 
as feeble and far-fetched1 and has been 
ably confuted  by ,herr ,franke in the  
,t'oung ,pao for ,july1 #aijf4    #e    
,confucius is of course merely insisting
 on the principle of  division of       
labour1 and not by any means            
depreciating the value of  husbandry or 
other useful arts4 ,it is not the       
ruler's business to make  himself       
proficient in these1 because the task of
 governing and setting  an example to   
the governed will claim all his         
attention4 ,compare  ,plato's           
disapproval of 1 and ,confucius' remarks
 on his  own skill in various arts 7p4  

#hh74    #f ,the weak ruler of the ,lu  
,state 7#eaj-did ,b4,c471 who lost the  
services of ,confucius by his           
infatuation in accepting the insidious  
gift of eighty beautiful singing-girls  
from the ,ch#8i ,state4 ,see            
,introduction1 p4 #af4    #g ,sh was a  
district of the ,ch#8u ,state1 which    
,confucius visited in  #dhh ,b4,c4 ,the 
following anecdote1 told by ,t#8an      
,kung1 is a striking  illustration of   
the above saying4 ,travelling with his  
disciples1  the ,master came across a   
woman weeping and wailing beside a      
grave1  and inquired the cause of her   
grief4 ,alas6 she replied4 ,my          
father-in-law was killed here by a      
tiger2 after that1 my husband2 and  now 
my son has perished by the same         
death4--,but why1 then1 do you  not go  
elsewhere8--,the government here is not 
harsh1 answered the  woman4--,there6    
cried the ,master1 turning to his       
disciples1 remember  that4 ,bad         
government is worse than a tiger4    #h 

,a small city in ,lu4    #i ,legge      
translates3 ,when rulers love to observe
 the rules of  propriety 7671 the people
 respond readily to the calls on them   
for  service4 ,all the other translators
 seem likewise to have missed the       
point1 which is elsewhere insisted on by
 ,confucius--that no man is fit  to     
govern others who cannot govern himself4
 ,on the meaning of li1 see             
,introduction1 pp4 #cj seqq41 and note  
on p4 #fj4    #aj ,a legendary ,emperor4
    #aa ,this saying might have come    
straight from the mouth of a ,taoist    
philosopher4 ,nor is it the only place  
where ,confucius seems to advocate      
quietism4 ,cf4 p4 #ajh4    #ab          
,literally1 a minister of the altars to 
the spirits of the land  and grain2 i4e4
 a direct vassal of the ,emperor1 and   
responsible only  to him4    #ac ,an    
ancient historiographer1 of whom very   
little is known4    #ad ,the head of the
 ,chi clan mentioned above4    #ae      
,wu#8,chng means ,martial city1 so      

called from its impregnable  position4  
,tz ,yu1 when appointed governor1 had   
succeeded in weaning the  people from   
their warlike propensities1 and in      
introducing the milder  arts of peace4  
,this is what made the ,master glad1    
though he could not  help being amused  
at the application of the loftiest      
principles to such  a tiny community4   
,about ancient ,chinese music we know   
unfortunately  next to nothing1 but it  
seems to have played as important a part
 under  the ,chou dynasty as in ,plato's
 ideal ,state4    #af ,that is to say1  
the ruler will always keep the welfare  
of his  people in view1 but without     
indulging in indiscriminate largess4    
,the  ever-increasing doles of money and
 corn with which the ,roman ,emperors   
were obliged to buy the favour of the   
populace would thus have fallen  under  
the condemnation of ,confucius4    #ag  
,the four evil things really turn out to
 be reducible to two1  namely 7#a7      
,cruelty--covering the first three2 and 

7#b7 ,meanness4          ,,individual   
,,virtue      ,the ,master said3 ,is he 
not a princely man#a--;he who is never  
vexed  that others know him not8        
,true virtue#b rarely goes with artful  
speech and insinuating looks4    ,at    
home1 a young man should show the       
qualities of a son2 abroad1 those  of a 
younger brother4 ,he should be          
circumspect but truthful4 ,he should    
have charity in his heart for all men1  
but associate only with the  virtuous4  
,after thus regulating his conduct1 his 
surplus energy should  be devoted to    
literary culture4    ,in the matter of  
food and lodging1 the nobler type of man
 does not seek  mere repletion and      
comfort4 ,he is earnest in his affairs  
and cautious  in his speech1 and        
frequents virtuous company for his own  
improvement4  ,he may be called one     
truly bent on the study of virtue4#c    
,mng ,i ,tz#d asked for a definition of 
filial piety4 ,the ,master said3  ,it   
consists in there being no falling      

off4#e--;,fan ,ch#8ih was driving  the  
,master's carriage some time after1 when
 the latter told him1  saying3 ,mng ,i  
,tz asked me about filial piety1 and ,i 
answered that it  consisted in there    
being no falling off4--,fan ,ch'ih said3
 ,what did you  mean8--,the ,master     
replied3 ,that parents should be served 
in the proper  spirit while living1     
buried with the proper rites after      
death1 and  worshipped thereafter with  
the proper sacrifices4    ,mng ,wu ,po#f
 asked for a definition of filial piety4
 ,the ,master said3  ,there is filial   
piety when parents are spared all       
anxiety about their  children except    
when they happen to fall sick4#g    ,tz 
,yu put a question on the subject of    
filial piety4 ,the ,master said3  ,the  
filial piety of to-day reduces itself to
 the mere question of  maintenance4 ,yet
 this is something in which even our    
dogs and horses  have a share4#h        
,without the feeling of reverence1 what 
is there to  distinguish the two cases8 

,tz ,hsia also asked about filial piety4
 ,the ,master said3 ,it can hardly  be  
gauged from mere outward acts4#i ,when  
there is work to be done1  to relieve   
one's elders of the toil2 or when there 
is wine and food1  to cause them to     
partake thereof--is this to be reckoned 
filial  piety8#aj    ,tz ,kung inquired 
about the higher type of man4 ,the      
,master replied3 ,the  higher type of   
man is one who acts before he speaks1   
and professes only  what he practises4  
,the ,master said3 ,the higher type of  
man is catholic in his sympathy  and    
free from party bias2 the lower type of 
man is biassed and  un-sympathetic4     
,a man without charity in his           
heart--what has he to do with           
ceremonies8  ,a man without charity in  
his heart--what has he to do with       
music8#aa    ,lin ,fang inquired as to  
the prime essential in ceremonial       
observances4  ,the ,master said3 ,ah1   
that is a great question indeed6 ,in all
 rites1  simplicity is better than      

extravagance2 in mourning for the dead1 
heartfelt sorrow is better than         
punctiliousness4    ,the ,master said3  
,the true gentleman is never            
contentious4 ,if a spirit  of rivalry is
 anywhere unavoidable1 it is at a       
shooting-match4 ,yet  even here he      
courteously salutes his opponents before
 taking up  his position1 and again     
when1 having lost1 he retires to drink  
the  forfeit-cup4 ,so that even when    
competing he remains a true gentleman4  
,it is the spirit of charity which makes
 a locality good to dwell in4 ,he  who  
selects a neighbourhood without regard  
to this quality cannot be  considered   
wise4    ,only he who has the spirit of 
goodness within him is really able      
either  to love or to hate4    ,the     
princely man never for a single instant 
quits the path of virtue2  in times of  
storm and stress he remains in it as    
fast as ever4    ,the nobler sort of man
 in his progress through the world has  
neither  narrow predilections nor       

obstinate antipathies4 ,what he follows 
is the  line of duty4    ,the nobler    
sort of man is proficient in the        
knowledge of his duty2 the  inferior man
 is proficient only in money-making4    
,in serving his father and mother1 a son
 may use gentle remonstrance2  if he    
sees that they pay no heed1 he should   
not desist1 but merely  increase in     
deference2 if his pains are thrown away1
 he must show no  resentment4    ,while 
one's parents are alive1 one should not 
travel to a distance2 if  one must      
travel1 it should be in a fixed         
direction4#ab    ,the age of one's      
parents should always be kept in        
mind--on the one  hand1 as a subject for
 rejoicing2 on the other1 as a cause for
 alarm4    ,the wise man will be slow to
 speak but quick to act4    ,tz ,chang  
asked1 saying3 ,the ,prime ,minister ,tz
 ,wn#ac held office  three times1 but   
showed no joy2 he lost it three times1  
but testified  no concern4 ,when he     
ceased to be ,prime ,minister1 he was   

careful to  explain the political       
situation to his successor4 ,what is    
your opinion  of him8--    ,the ,master 
said3 ,he was loyal and                 
conscientious4#ad--;,had he not the     
highest degree of moral virtue8--,that  
,i do not know2 how can one judge  of   
his moral virtue8--,tz ,chang continued3
 ,when ,ts#8ui ,tz#ae slew  the ,prince 
of ,ch#8i1 ,ch#8n ,wn ,tz1 though the   
possessor of ten teams  of war-horses1  
forsook his wealth and turned his back  
on the country4  ,having come to another
 state1 he said3 ,here they are as bad  
as our own  minister ,ts#8ui ,tz1 and   
departed4 ,and he repeated this         
proceeding each  time that he came to a 
new state4#af ,what is your opinion of  
him8--,the  ,master said3 ,he was pure  
and incorruptible4--,had he not the     
highest  degree of virtue8--,i cannot   
say2 how is one to judge8    ,the       
,master said3 ,when the solid outweighs 
the ornamental1 we have  boorishness2   
when the ornamental outweighs the solid1

 we have  superficial smartness4 ,only  
from a proper blending of the two will  
the  higher type of man emerge4 ,all men
 are born good4 ,he who loses his       
goodness and yet lives is lucky to      
escape4    ,better than one who knows   
what is right is one who is fond of what
 is  right2 and better than one who is  
fond of what is right is one who        
delights in what is right4    ,fan      
,ch#8ih asked in what wisdom consisted4 
,the ,master said3 ,make  righteousness 
in human affairs your aim1 treat all    
supernatural beings  with respect1 but  
keep aloof from them--then you may be   
called wise4  ,asked about moral virtue1
 he replied3 ,the virtuous man thinks of
  the difficult thing#ag first1 and     
makes material advantage only a         
secondary consideration4 ,this may be   
said to constitute moral virtue4    ,the
 ,master said3 ,the man of knowledge    
finds pleasure in the sea1  the man of  
virtue finds pleasure in the            
mountains4#ah ,for the man  of knowledge

 is restless and the man of virtue is   
calm4 ,the man of  knowledge is happy1  
and the man of virtue is long-lived4    
,the higher type of man1 having gathered
 wide objective knowledge from  the     
branches of polite learning1 will       
regulate the whole by the inner  rule of
 conduct1#ai and will thus avoid        
overstepping the limit4    ,that virtue 
is perfect which adheres to a constant  
mean4 ,it has long  been rare amongst   
men4    ,tz ,kung asked3 ,what would you
 say of the man who conferred benefits  
far and wide on the people and was able 
to be the salvation of all8  ,would you 
pronounce him a man of moral            
virtue8--,of moral virtue8 said  the    
,master4 ,nay1 rather1 of divine        
virtue4#bj ,even ,yao and ,shun were    
still striving to attain this height4   
,the man of moral virtue1 wishing to    
stand firm himself1 will lend  firmness 
unto others2 wishing himself to be      
illuminated1 he will  illuminate others4
 ,to be able to do to others as we would

 be done  by#ba--this is the true domain
 of moral virtue4    ,it has not been my
 lot to see a divine man2 could ,i see a
 princely  man1 that would satisfy me4  
,it has not been my lot to see a        
thoroughly  virtuous man2 could ,i see a
 man possessing honesty of soul1 that   
would  satisfy me4 ,is it possible there
 should be honesty of soul in one who   
pretends to have what he has not2 who1  
when empty1 pretends to be  overflowing2
 who1 when in want1 pretends to be in   
affluence8    ,the higher type of man is
 calm and serene2 the inferior man is   
constantly agitated and worried4        
,with sincerity and truth unite a desire
 for self-culture4 ,lay down  your life 
rather than quit the path of virtue4    
,enter not the state  which is tottering
 to its fall4 ,abide not in the state   
where sedition  is rampant4 ,when law   
obtains in the ,empire1 let yourself be 
seen2 when  lawlessness reigns1 retire  
into obscurity4 ,in a state governed on 
right  principles1 poverty and low      

station are things to be ashamed of2 in 
an  ill-governed state1 riches and rank 
are things to be ashamed of4    ,the man
 of wisdom does not vacillate2 the man  
of natural goodness does  not fret2 the 
man of valour does not fear4    ,yen    
,yan inquired as to the meaning of true 
goodness4 ,the ,master said3  ,the      
subdual of self1 and reversion to the   
natural laws governing  conduct--this is
 true goodness4 ,if a man can for the   
space of one day  subdue his selfishness
 and revert to natural laws1 the whole  
world will  call him good4 ,true        
goodness springs from a man's own heart4
 ,how can it  depend on other men8--,yen
 ,yan said3 ,kindly tell me the         
practical rule  to be deduced from      
this4--,the ,master replied3 ,do not use
 your eyes1  your ears1 your power of   
speech or your faculty of movement      
without  obeying the inner law of       
self-control4#bb--,yen ,yan said3       
,though ,i am  not quick in thought or  
act1 ,i will make it my business to     

carry out  this precept4    ,chung ,kung
 inquired as to the meaning of true     
goodness4 ,the ,master  said3 ,when out 
of doors1 behave as though you were     
entertaining a  distinguished guest2 in 
ruling the people1 behave as though you 
were  officiating at a solemn sacrifice2
 what you would not wish done to        
yourself1 do not unto others4#bc ,then  
in public as in private life  you will  
excite no ill-will4 ,chung ,kung said3  
,though ,i am not quick in  thought or  
act1 ,i will make it my business to     
carry out this precept4    ,ss-ma ,niu  
inquired as to the meaning of true      
goodness4 ,the ,master  said3 ,the truly
 good man is slow of                    
speech4#bd--,slowness of speech6  ,is   
this what goodness consists in8--,the   
,master said3 ,does not the  difficulty 
of deciding what it is right to do      
necessarily imply  slowness to speak8   
,ss-ma ,niu asked for a definition of   
the princely man4 ,the ,master said3    
,the princely man is one who knows      

neither grief nor fear4--,absence of    
grief and fear6 ,is this the mark of a  
princely man8--,the ,master said3  ,if  
on searching his heart he finds no      
guilt1 why should he grieve8 of  what   
should he be afraid8    ,tz ,chang asked
 how to attain exalted virtue4 444 ,the 
,master said3 ,make  conscientiousness  
and truth your guiding principles1 and  
thus pass on  to the cultivation of duty
 to your neighbour4 ,this is exalted    
virtue4    ,the ,master said3 ,the      
nobler sort of man emphasises the good  
qualities  in others1 and does not      
accentuate the bad4 ,the inferior sort  
does the  reverse4    ,tz ,chang asked3 
,what must a man do in order to be      
considered  distinguished8--,the ,master
 said3 ,what do you mean by the term    
distinguished8--,tz ,chang replied3 ,i  
mean one whose fame fills both  his own 
private circle and the ,state at        
large4--,the ,master said3 ,that  is    
notoriety1 not distinction4 ,the man of 
true distinction is simple1  honest1 and

 a lover of justice and duty4 ,he weighs
 men's words1 and  observes the         
expression of their faces4#be ,he is    
anxious to put  himself below others4   
,such a one is truly distinguished in   
his private  and his public life4 ,as to
 the man who is merely much talked      
about1 he  puts on an appearance of     
charity and benevolence1 but his actions
 belie  it4 ,he is self-satisfied and   
has no misgivings4 ,neither in private  
nor  in public life does he achieve more
 than notoriety4    ,tz ,kung asked a   
question about friendship4 ,the ,master 
said3 ,be  conscientious in speaking to 
your friend1 but tactful in your efforts
  to guide him aright4 ,if these fail1  
stop4 ,do not court a personal  rebuff4 
,the ,duke of ,sh addressed ,confucius1 
saying3 ,we have an upright man  in our 
country4 ,his father stole a sheep1 and 
the son bore witness  against him4--,in 
our country1 ,confucius replied1        
uprightness is  something different from
 this4 ,a father hides the guilt of his 

son1 and  a son hides the guilt of his  
father4 ,it is in such conduct that true
  uprightness is to be found4    ,fan   
,ch#8ih asked a question about moral    
virtue4 ,the ,master said3 ,in  private 
life1 show self-respect2 in the         
management of affairs1 be  attentive and
 thorough2 in your dealings with others1
 be honest and  conscientious4 ,never   
abandon these principles1 even among    
savages4    ,the ,master said3 ,the     
nobler sort of man is accommodating but 
not  obsequious2 the inferior sort is   
obsequious but not accommodating4       
,the nobler sort of man is easy to serve
 yet difficult to please4 ,who  seeks to
 please him in wrongful ways will not   
succeed4 ,in exacting  service from     
others1 he takes account of aptitudes   
and limitations4  ,the baser sort of man
 is difficult to serve yet easy to      
please4 ,who  seeks to please him in any
 wrongful way will assuredly succeed4   
,and he  requires absolute perfection in
 those from whom he exacts service4     

,the nobler sort of man is dignified but
 not proud2 the inferior man is  proud  
but not dignified4    ,hsien said3 ,to  
refrain from self-glorification1 to     
subdue feelings of  resentment1 to      
control selfish desire--may this be held
 to constitute  perfect virtue8--,the   
,master said3 ,these things may         
certainly be  considered hard to        
achieve1 but ,i am not so sure that they
 constitute  perfect virtue4#bf    ,the 
,master said3 ,a man of inward virtue#bg
 will have virtuous words  on his lips1 
but a man of virtuous words is not      
always a virtuous man4  ,the man of     
perfect goodness#bg;b is sure to possess
 courage1 but the  courageous man is not
 necessarily good4    ,can true love be 
anything but exacting8 ,how can our     
sense of duty allow  us to abstain from 
admonition8    ,the nobler sort of man  
tends upwards2 the baser sort tends     
downwards4    ,the princely type of man 
is modest in his speech1 but liberal in 
his  performance4    ,the princely man  

has three great virtues1 which ,i cannot
 claim for  myself4 ,he is truly        
benevolent1 and is free from care2 he is
 truly  wise1 and is free from          
delusions2 he is truly brave1 and is    
free from  fear4--,nay1 replied ,tz     
,kung1 these virtues are our ,master's  
own4#bg    ,the ,master said3 ,is not he
 a sage who neither anticipates deceit  
nor  suspects bad faith in others1 yet  
is prompt to detect them when they      
appear8    ,some one asked3 ,how do you 
regard the principle of returning good  
for  evil8--,the ,master said3 ,what1   
then1 is to be the return for good8     
,rather should you return justice for   
injustice1 and good for good4#bh    ,tz 
,lu asked about the conduct of the      
princely man4#bi ,the ,master  said3 ,he
 cultivates himself so as to gain in    
self-respect4--,does he  rest content   
with that8--,he cultivates himself1 was 
the reply1 so as to  give happiness to  
others4--,and is he content with        
that8--,he cultivates  himself so as to 

confer peace and prosperity on the whole
 people4    ,by self-cultivation to     
confer peace and prosperity on the whole
  people6--was not this the object which
 ,yao and ,shun still laboured to       
attain8    ,tz ,kung asked for advice on
 the practice of moral virtue4 ,the     
,master  replied3 ,if an artisan wants  
to do his work well1 he must begin by   
sharpening his tools4 ,even so1 among   
the great men of your country1 you      
should serve the wise and good1 and make
 friends of men who have this  moral    
virtue4    ,the ,master said3 ,the      
higher type of man makes a sense of duty
 the  groundwork of his character1      
blends with it in action a sense of     
harmonious proportion1 manifests it in a
 spirit of unselfishness1 and  perfects 
it by the addition of sincerity and     
truth4 ,then indeed is he a  noble      
character4    ,the higher type of man   
seeks all that he wants in himself2 the 
inferior  man seeks all that he wants   
from others4    ,the higher type of man 

is firm but not quarrelsome2 sociable1  
but not  clannish4    ,the wise man does
 not esteem a person more highly because
 of what he  says1 neither does he      
undervalue what is said because of the  
person who  says it4    ,tz ,kung asked1
 saying3 ,is there any one maxim which  
ought to be acted  upon throughout one's
 whole life8--,the ,master replied3     
,surely the maxim  of charity#cj is     
such3--,do not unto others what you     
would not they  should do unto you4     
,the nobler sort of man pays special    
attention to nine points4 ,he is        
anxious to see clearly1 to hear         
distinctly1 to be kindly in his looks1  
respectful in his demeanour1            
conscientious in his speech1 earnest in 
his affairs2 when in doubt1 he is       
careful to inquire2 when in anger1 he   
thinks of the consequences2 when offered
 an opportunity for gain1 he  thinks    
only of his duty4    ,tz ,chang asked   
,confucius a question about moral       
virtue4 ,confucius  replied3 ,moral     

virtue simply consists in being able1   
anywhere and  everywhere1 to exercise   
five particular qualities4 ,asked what  
these  were1 he said3 ,self-respect1    
magnanimity1 sincerity1 earnestness and 
benevolence4 ,show self-respect1 and    
others will respect you2#ca  be         
magnanimous1 and you will win all       
hearts2 be sincere1 and men  will trust 
you2 be earnest1 and you will achieve   
great things2 be  benevolent1 and you   
will be fit to impose your will on      
others4    ,tz ,lu asked3 ,docs not the 
princely man#cb value courage8--,the    
,master  said3 ,he puts righteousness   
first4 ,the man of high station#cc who  
has  courage without righteousness is a 
menace to the ,state2 the common man    
who has courage without righteousness is
 nothing more than a brigand4    ,tzu   
,kung asked3 ,has the nobler sort of man
 any hatreds8--,the ,master  replied3   
,he has4 ,he hates those who publish the
 faults of others2 he  hates men of low 
condition who vilify those above them2  

he hates those  whose courage is        
unaccompanied by self-restraint2 he     
hates those who  are audacious but      
narrow-minded4 ,and you1 ,tz#81 he      
added1 have you  also your hatreds8--,i 
hate1 replied the disciple1 those who   
think  that wisdom consists in prying   
and meddling2 courage1 in showing no    
compliance2 and honesty1 in denouncing  
other men4        #a ,this is the       
much-discussed chn tz1 an expression of 
which the  stereotyped ,english         
equivalent is the superior man4 ,but in 
this there  is1 unhappily1 a tinge of   
blended superciliousness and irony      
absolutely  foreign to the native       
phrase1 which in my opinion makes it    
unsuitable4  ,princely man is as nearly 
as possible the literal translation1 and
  sometimes1 as we shall see1 it        
actually means prince4 ,but in the      
majority of cases the connotation of    
rank or authority is certainly  not     
explicit1 and as a general rendering ,i 
have preferred the higher  type of man1 

the nobler sort of man1 or sometimes    
more simply1 the  good man4 ,perhaps the
 nearest approximation in any ,european 
language  is to be found in the ,greek  
1 because that implies high  mental and 
moral qualities combined with all the   
outward bearing of a  gentleman4        
,compare also ,aristotle's  1 who is    
however rather  more abstract and ideal4
    #b ,jn1 the term here translated    
virtue1 is perhaps the most  important  
single word in the ,analects1 and the   
real corner-stone  of ,confucian ethics4
 ,its primary meaning1 in accordance    
with the  etymology1 is humanity in the 
larger sense1 i4e4 natural goodness  of 
heart as shown in intercourse with one's
 fellow-men4 ,hence it  is sometimes    
best translated loving-kindness or      
charity in the  biblical sense1 though  
in many cases a more convenient1 if     
vaguer1  rendering is virtue1 moral     
virtue1 or even1 as in ,legge1 perfect  
virtue4    #c ,literally1 he may be     
called a lover of learning4 ,but        

learning  in the mouth of ,confucius is 
generally to be understood as study of  
the rules of right conduct with a view  
to their practical application4  ,the   
object of all learning was to enable a  
man to develop the natural  goodness    
within him1 so as to lead a life of     
virtuous culture4 ,it was  not pursued  
solely for its own sake1 nor had it     
become1 as with us1  divorced from all  
ethical significance4    #d ,the chief  
of the house of ,mng1 one of the three  
great families of  ,lu1 and 7according  
to ,ss-ma ,ch#8ien7 a disciple of       
,confucius4    #e ,the reply is         
enigmatical1 but it is clear from what  
follows that  this1 and not1 as ,legge  
translates1 disobedience1 is the true   
meaning4    #f ,the eldest son of ,mng  
,i ,tz4    #g ,it is astonishing that   
,chu ,hsi should have tried to improve  
on  the old commentators here1 and      
almost equally astonishing that ,legge  
should have followed him1 with this     
result3 ,the ,master said1 ,parents  are

 anxious lest their children should be  
sick 7and therefore children  should    
take care of their persons76    #h ,here
 again it is almost incredible that     
,legge should have adopted  such a      
ridiculous interpretation as the        
following--without the  authority1 this 
time1 of ,chu ,hsi3 ,the filial piety of
 nowadays means  the support of one's   
parents4 ,but dogs and horses likewise  
are able  to do something in the way of 
support4 ,the image conjured up by this 
sentence is grotesque1 to say the least4
    #i ,literally1 colour difficult4    
,this famous sentence1 a                
stumbling-block to native and foreigner 
alike1 surely marks the extreme  limit  
to which conciseness can be carried in  
,chinese4 ,the difficulty  is with the  
countenance is the lame translation     
offered by ,legge1  and later scholars  
have mostly followed in his footsteps1  
even ,mr4 ,ku  ,hung-ming failing badly 
for once4 ,where all have gone astray is
 in  taking the difficulty to exist in  

the mind of the would-be filial  son1   
instead of being that felt by the       
onlooker who wishes to gauge  the       
genuineness of the quality in others4   
,only a few months ago1 a new  and      
ingenious interpretation was suggested  
by my father1 ,professor  ,h4 ,a4       
,giles1 namely3 ,to define it is        
difficult2 but after much  consideration
 ,i am led to prefer the rendering in   
the text1 inasmuch as  the word s is    
quite commonly used to denote the       
external as opposed  to the internal1   
form as opposed to essence4    #aj ,the 
answer of course is--,no2 outward acts  
do not constitute filial  piety1 unless 
prompted by a genuine duteous feeling in
 the heart4    #aa ,a notable utterance1
 which may be commended to those who    
have been  taught to regard ,confucius  
as a man of ceremonies and outward show4
    #ab ,in order that the parents may  
know where their son is4    #ac ,of the 
,ch#8u ,state4    #ad ,the root idea of 
this word chung is loyalty to oneself1  

devotion to principle1 or1 as ,mr4 ,ku  
,hung-ming well translates it1          
conscientiousness4 ,loyalty or fidelity 
to the sovereign is only an  extended   
sense4 ,here the two ideas appear to be 
blended1 but in a  famous passage to be 
noted further on 7p4 #aah7 much trouble 
has  resulted from ignoring the first   
and fundamental meaning4    #ae ,a high 
officer in ,ch#8i1 the state adjoining  
,lu4    #af ,the fact that ,ch#8n ,wn   
,tz could not reconcile it with his     
conscience to settle in any of the      
states which he visited throws a  lurid 
light on the disorder prevailing in the 
,empire at this period  7#edg ,b4,c474  
,murder and usurpation were evidently   
the rule rather than  the exception4    
#ag ,that is to say1 the virtuous act1  
which he will perform for its  own sake1
 regardless of consequences4    #ah     
,each finds pleasure in that part of    
,nature which resembles himself4    #ai 
,as may be inferred from its            
composition1 the character li           

originally had sole reference to        
religious rites1 whence however  it came
 to be applied to every sort of         
ceremonial1 including the  ordinary     
rules of politeness1 the etiquette of   
society1 the conduct  befitting all     
stations of life1 and moreover to the   
state of mind  of which such conduct is 
the outcome4 ,this state of mind is one 
of  equably adjusted harmony and        
self-restraint1 and it is in this sense 
of an inward principle of proportion and
 self-control that the word  is         
frequently used in the ,analects4 ,why  
such a vile phrase as the  rules of     
propriety was ever coined to express    
this subtle conception1  and retained in
 every context1 however inappropriate1  
must remain  an insoluble mystery4 ,is  
it surprising that one of the greatest  
of world-teachers should still be       
waiting to come into his full  heritage1
 when his sayings are made to suggest   
nothing so much as the  headmistress of 
a young ladies' seminary8    #bj ,it is 

interesting to observe that ,confucius  
allows a grade of  heroic and almost    
divine virtue even above that which     
constitutes  complete goodness for all  
practical purposes1 just as ,aristotle  
places  his    above the 4    #ba ,it is
 only fair to mention that the above is 
not an exact  translation of the words  
in the ,chinese text1 though ,i believe 
their  import to be what ,i have set    
down4 ,the point is too technical and   
abstruse to be discussed here4    #bb   
,see note on p4 #fj4 ,this is the solemn
 nonsense dished up by ,legge3  ,look   
not at what is contrary to propriety2   
listen not to what is  contrary to      
propriety2 speak not what is contrary to
 propriety2 make no  movement which is  
contrary to propriety4    #bc ,confucius
 here1 as in general1 suits his reply to
 the questioner4  ,in answering ,yen    
,yan1 the model disciple1 he had gone to
 the very  root of the matter1 making it
 clear that the essence of true goodness
  has little or nothing to do with      

externals4 ,to ,chung ,kung1 who was    
less advanced and doubtless somewhat    
lacking in grace or dignity  of         
demeanour1 he gives more superficial    
advice1 but winds up by  enunciating the
 ,golden ,rule1 which is the best       
practical manner of  manifesting inward 
goodness of heart4    #bd ,there seems  
to be a play on this word which cannot  
be brought out  in translation4    #be  
,this probably means that he will not   
rely on words alone in  judging of      
character4    #bf ,being too purely     
negative4    #bg ,it is almost          
impossible1 here and in other passages1 
to make any  real distinction of meaning
 between te1 the manifestation of       
eternal  principles in the soul of man1 
and jn1 natural goodness of heart1      
though the former1 being more universal 
and abstract1 may be said to  include   
the latter1 which generally implies a   
certain relation to one's  fellow-men4  
#bh ,the principle of returning good for
 evil1 which is here apparently         

represented as a well-known ethical     
doctrine1 was first enunciated1 so  far 
as we know1 by ,lao ,tz4 ,confucius     
rejects this vain idealism1 and         
advocates the much sounder and more     
practical basis for society given  in   
the text4    #bi ,here chn tz seems     
almost to denote an actual prince1 not  
merely  a man with princely qualities4  
#cj ,legge translates shu reciprocity1  
apparently for no other  reason than to 
explain the maxim that follows4 ,but it 
really stands  for something higher than
 the strictly utilitarian principle of  
do ut  des4 ,both here and in another   
famous passage 7see p4 #aah7 it is      
almost  equivalent to jn1 goodness of   
heart1 only with the idea of altruism   
more explicitly brought out4 ,it        
connotes sympathetic consideration for  
others1 and hence the best rendering    
would seem to be loving-kindness  or    
charity4 ,the concluding maxim is really
 nothing more nor less than  the ,golden
 ,rule of ,christ1 though less familiar 

to us in its negative  form4    #cb ,the
 ,chinese have a proverb3 ,a man must   
insult himself before  others will4     
#cc ,a good example of the fluctuating  
content of the term chn tz1  which in   
the disciple's question implies morality
 without reference to  rank1 and in the 
,master's reply rank and authority      
without definite  moral qualities4      
,,confucius' ,,estimate ,,of ,,others   
,the ,master said3 ,i may talk all day  
to ,hui without his putting in  a word  
of criticism or dissent--just as though 
he were deficient  in understanding4    
,but after he has left me1 ,i find1 on  
examining  his private conduct1 that he 
knows for all that how to exemplify my  
teaching4 ,no6 ,hui is not deficient in 
understanding4    ,tz ,kung asked1      
saying3 ,what1 ,sir1 is your opinion of 
me8--,i would  liken you1 ,tz#81 replied
 the ,master1 to a vessel limited in its
  function4--,what sort of vessel8 asked
 ,tz ,kung4--,a richly ornamented       
sacrificial vessel1 was the reply4#a    

,some one remarked that ,yung had       
goodness of heart but no cleverness of  
speech4--,the ,master said3 ,of what use
 is cleverness of speech8 ,those  who   
are always ready to assail others with  
their tongue are sure to  make          
themselves disliked4 ,as to ,yung's     
goodness of heart ,i have no  certain   
knowledge2 but how would he benefit by  
having cleverness of  speech8    ,the   
,master said3 ,my teaching makes no     
head-way4 ,how and if ,i were to  board 
a raft and float away over the sea8 ,my 
friend ,yu would come with  me1 ,i feel 
sure4--,tz ,lu1 hearing this1 was glad4 
,the ,master continued3  ,yu surpasses  
me in his love of daring1 but he lacks  
discretion and  judgment4    ,mng ,wu   
,po asked whether ,tz ,lu had true moral
 virtue4 ,the ,master  replied3 ,i do   
not know4--- ,asked a second time1 the  
,master said3  ,yu might be trusted to  
organise the military levies of a large 
and  powerful ,state1 but whether he is 
possessed of true virtue ,i cannot      

say4--,and what is your opinion with    
regard to ,ch#8iu8--,the ,master said3  
,ch#8iu might be entrusted with the     
government of a district numbering a    
thousand households or a hundred        
war-chariots1 but whether he has true   
virtue ,i cannot say4--,and ,ch#8ih1    
what of him8--,the ,master said3 ,ch#8ih
  might be employed to stand in his     
official dress at a royal levee and     
converse with the visitors and guests2  
whether he has true virtue ,i  cannot   
say4#b    ,the ,master addressing ,tz   
,kung said3 ,which of the two is the    
better  man1 you or ,hui8--,tz ,kung    
replied3 ,how can ,i venture to compare 
myself  with ,hui8 ,hui hears one point 
and promptly masters the whole4 ,i hear 
one point and am only able to feel my   
way to a second4--,the ,master  agreed3 
,no1 you are not equal to ,hui2 neither 
of us two#c is equal to  ,hui4    ,tsai 
,y used to sleep during the day4 ,the   
,master said3 ,rotten wood  cannot be   
carved1 walls made of dirt and mud      

cannot be plastered3  --what is the good
 of reprimanding ,y8 ,at first1 he      
continued1 my way  of dealing with      
others was to listen to their words and 
to take their  actions upon trust4 ,now1
 my way is to listen to what they say   
and then  to watch what they do4 ,this  
change in me is owing to ,y4    ,the    
,master said3 ,i have never yet met a   
really strong character4--,some  one    
suggested ,shn ,ch#8ng4--,the ,master   
said3 ,ch#8ng is a slave to his         
passions4 ,how can he possess strength  
of character8    ,tz ,kung said3 ,i am  
anxious to avoid doing to others that   
which ,i  would not have them do to me4 
,the ,master said3 ,tz#81 you have not  
got  as far as that4    ,the ,master    
said of ,tz ,ch#8an#d that he had four  
of the qualities of  the princely       
man3--in his personal demeanour he was  
grave1 in serving  those above him he   
was attentive1 in his care for the      
people he was  kind1 in his ordering of 
the people he was just4    ,the ,master 

said3 ,yen ,p'ing#e knows the art of    
associating with his  friends3 however  
old the acquaintance may be1 he always  
treats them  with the same respect4     
,ning ,wu ,tz's#f behaviour was wise so 
long as his country was well  governed2 
when revolution came1 his behaviour was 
stupid4 ,his wisdom  may be equalled by 
others1 but his stupidity is beyond all 
imitation4    ,po ,i and ,shu ,ch#8i#g  
never remembered old injuries1 and      
therefore  their enemies were few4      
,who will say that ,wei-sheng ,kao#h was
 an upright man8 ,when asked by         
somebody for some vinegar1 he went and  
begged it of a neighbour1 and  gave this
 to the man who had asked him4    ,for  
the space of three months together      
,hui#i would not deviate in  spirit from
 the path of perfect virtue4 ,my other  
disciples may attain  this height once  
in a day or in a month1 but that is all4
    ,po ,niu#aj lying sick unto death1  
the ,master went to visit him4 ,he      
clasped his hand through the window and 

said3 ,he is dying4 ,such is  fate4     
,alas6 that such a man should have such 
an illness1 that such a  man should have
 such an illness6    ,the ,master said3 
,hui was indeed a philosopher6 ,other   
men living as he  did1 in a miserable   
alley1 with a single dish of food and a 
single bowl  of drink1 could not have   
endured the distress4 ,but ,hui was     
invariably  cheerful4 ,he was a         
philosopher indeed6    ,jan ,ch#8iu     
said3 ,it is not that ,i have no joy in 
my ,master's teaching1  it is my        
strength that fails me4--,the ,master   
replied3 ,those whose  strength fails   
them fall fainting by the way4 ,what you
 do is to set up  bounds which you will 
not attempt to pass4    ,the ,master    
said3 ,mng ,chih-fan is no braggart4    
,once after a defeat1  when he was      
bringing up the rear1 he whipped his    
horse as he was about  to enter the city
 gate1 and cried3 ,it is not courage    
that makes me  last1 it is my horse that
 won't gallop fast enough4#aa    ,the   

,master addressing ,yen ,yan said3 ,it  
is only you and ,i who would be  content
 to accept public employment when it was
 offered to us1 and to  retire into     
obscurity when we were dismissed4--,tz  
,lu then said3 ,if  you1 ,sir1 had the  
conduct of three legions1 whom would you
 associate  with yourself in the        
command8--,i would not1 replied the     
,master1 choose  a man who would attack 
a tiger unarmed1 cross a river without a
 boat1  or sacrifice his life without a 
moment's regret4 ,rather should it be   
one who would not embark on an          
enterprise without anxiety1 and who was 
accustomed to lay his plans well before 
putting them into execution4#ab    ,the 
,master said3 ,t#8ai ,po may be said to 
have reached the summit of  virtue4     
,having resolutely renounced the        
,imperial throne1 he put it out  of the 
people's power to glorify his act of    
renunciation6#ac    ,in the ,emperor    
,y#ad ,i find no loophole for censure4  
,his own food  and drink were plain1 but

 his offerings to the ancestral spirits 
showed extreme piety4 ,his own garments 
were poor1 but his robes and  cap of    
state were extremely fine4 ,his own     
dwelling was humble1 but  he spent all  
his strength on the construction of     
public canals and  water-courses4 ,i    
find no loophole for censure in ,y4     
,after the word had gone forth1 ,hui was
 never backward in his deeds4    ,the   
,master speaking of ,yen ,yan said3 ,ah1
 what a loss6 ,i used to see  him ever  
progressing and never coming to a       
standstill4    ,the ,master said3 ,yu1  
,i fancy1 is a man who would stand up1  
dressed in  shabby garments quilted with
 hemp1 among people attired in furs of  
fox  and badger1 and not be ashamed4    
,hating none and courting none1 how  can
 he be other than good8#ae--;,as ,tz ,lu
 kept constantly humming  over this     
line1 the ,master said3 ,this rule of   
conduct is not enough by  itself to     
constitute goodness4    ,the ,master    
said3 ,none of those who accompanied me 

on the journey to the  states of ,ch#8n 
and ,ts#8ai come to learn from me       
now4#af ,distinguished  for their       
virtuous conduct were ,yen ,yan1 ,min   
,tz-ch#8ien1 ,jan ,po-niu  and ,chung   
,kung2 for their skill in speaking1     
,tsai ,wo and ,tz ,kung2 for  their     
administrative powers1 ,jan ,yu and ,chi
 ,lu2 for their literary  attainments1  
,tz ,yu and ,tz ,hsia4    ,hui does not 
help me#ag--;he takes such delight in   
everything ,i say4    ,what noble       
piety#ah is that of ,min ,tz-ch#8ien6   
,other men speak of him  in exactly the 
same terms as his own parents and his   
own brethren4    ,when ,yen ,yan died1  
the ,master wept with passionate grief1 
so  that those who were with him said3  
,master1 your sorrow is too             
passionate4--,is it too passionate8 he  
replied4 ,whose death should be a  cause
 for violent grief1 if not this man's8  
,on one occasion there were standing in 
attendance on the ,master ,min  ,tz1    
looking gentle and mild2 ,tz ,lu1       

looking upright and soldierly2  ,jan ,yu
 and ,tz ,kung1 looking frank and       
affable4 ,the ,master was pleased4  ,a  
man like ,yu1 he remarked1 will not come
 by a natural death4#ai    ,the ,master 
said3 ,why is ,yu playing his martial   
music at my door8--,the  disciples began
 to lose their respect for ,tz ,lu1     
whereupon the ,master  said3 ,yu has    
ascended the steps of the temple1 though
 he has not yet  reached the inner      
sanctuary4    ,tz ,kung asked which was 
the man of greater worth1 ,shih or      
,shang4 ,the  ,master replied3 ,shih    
exceeds and ,shang falls short4--,then  
,shih is the  better of the two8--,the  
,master said3 ,to exceed is as bad as to
 fall  short4    ,the head of the ,chi  
clan was already richer than ,chou      
,kung1 yet ,ch#8iu  kept levying taxes  
for him and adding to his wealth4--,he  
is no disciple  of mine1 said the       
,master4 ,my children1 you may beat the 
drum and attack  him4#bj    ,the ,master
 said3 ,hui reaches the verge of        

perfection1 yet he is often  in great   
want4 ,tz#8 does not resign himself to  
the will of ,heaven1  yet his worldly   
goods continue to increase4 ,his        
judgments1 however1  frequently hit the 
mark4    ,tz ,lu asked if he should at  
once put the precepts which he heard    
into  practice4--,the ,master said3     
,there are your father and elder        
brothers  to consult first2 why should  
you be so impatient to act on what you  
hear8--,jan ,yu asked the same question1
 and the ,master said3 ,yes1 act  at    
once according to the instruction that  
is given to you4--,kung-hsi  ,hua then  
said3 ,when ,yu asked if he should put  
the precepts which he  heard into       
practice1 you replied1 ,sir1 that he had
 his father and elder  brothers to      
consult first4 ,when ,ch#8iu asked the  
same question1 you  said3    ,act at    
once according to the instruction that  
is given to you4 ,now ,i  am puzzled1   
and beg for an explanation4--,the       
,master replied3 ,ch#8iu is  apt to hang

 back1 therefore ,i press him on4 ,yu   
has eagerness enough for  two1 therefore
 ,i hold him back4    ,chi ,tz-jan#ba   
asked if ,chung ,yu and ,jan ,ch#8iu    
could be termed great  ministers4 ,the  
,master said3 ,i thought you had        
something extraordinary  to ask about1  
and now it turns out to be a question   
about ,yu and  ,ch#8iu4 ,what men call a
 great minister is one who serves his   
prince  according to the principles of  
truth and virtue1 and when that is      
impossible1 resigns4 ,yu and ,ch#8iu1   
however1 can only be termed ordinary    
officials4--,which is as much as to say 
that they will always obediently  follow
 their master's will8--,the ,master     
replied3 ,they would not follow  him so 
far as to commit parricide or regicide4 
,the ,master said3 ,yu is the man to    
settle a long litigation in a few       
words4    ,tz ,kung was fond of weighing
 other men's merits and defects4 ,the   
,master said3 ,surely ,tz#8u must be a  
very great sage6 ,personally1 ,i have   

no time for this4            #a ,it is  
said elsewhere in the ,analects 7see p4 
#id7 that the higher  type of man is    
unlike a vessel designed for some       
special use1 which  means that his moral
 capacity is not narrow and limited4 ,tz
 ,kung1  then1 it seems1 had not fully  
grasped the higher principles of        
morality1 was wanting in breadth of mind
 and the larger outlook on  life4 ,his  
aptitudes1 however1 were excellent so   
far as they went1 and  the ,master      
compliments him hero on his proficiency 
in things relating  to religious        
ceremonial4    #b ,confucius probably   
wished to impress upon his questioner   
that  true moral virtue 7fen7 was deeply
 implanted in the soul1 and not to  be  
gauged offhand from the presence or     
absence of certain superficial  signs4  
#c ,it is passing strange that the      
clumsy ,i grant you for wu y ju  7,i and
 you7 should have found favour with     
translators4 ,wade even goes  one       
better1 by translating3 ,i award you    

this praise1 ,hui does not  equal you 6 
#d ,prime ,minister of the ,chng ,state 
in the sixth century ,b4,c4 ,when he    
had ruled for three years1 so great was 
the change effected that doors  were not
 locked at night1 and lost articles were
 not picked up on the  highway4         
,confucius wept when he heard of his    
death4    #e ,minister in the           
neighbouring state of ,ch#8i4    #f ,a  
minister of the ,wei ,state in the      
seventh century ,b4,c4 ,in the          
revolution referred to the prince was   
driven from his throne1 but  afterwards 
reinstated through the stupidity1 that  
is to say1 the  unwavering loyalty and  
devotion of ,ning4    #g ,these were    
brothers1 celebrated for their protest  
against the  overthrow of the ,yin      
dynasty4 ,rather than live under the    
rule of the  new sovereign1 the great   
and virtuous ,wu ,wang1 they wandered   
away  into the mountains to perish of   
cold and hunger4 ,this fidelity to the  
cause of ,chou ,hsin1 one of the        

bloodiest and most infamous tyrants in  
history1 seems a shade more quixotic    
than the conduct of those who  espoused 
for so long the fallen fortunes of the  
house of ,stuart4    #h ,this was a     
young man who1 if legend may be trusted1
 died more  heroically than he lived4   
,he agreed to meet a girl under a       
bridge1 but1  woman-like1 she failed to 
keep her appointment4 ,though the water 
was  rising rapidly1 her lover waited   
on1 unwilling to quit his post1 and     
finally clung to a pillar until he was  
drowned4    #i ,this is the man whom    
,confucius1 according to ,wade 7see p4  
#gc71  ranked below ,tz ,kung6    #aj   
,po ,niu is said to have been suffering 
from leprosy1 and therefore  he would   
not allow visitors to enter his room4   
#aa ,few will see anything harmful in   
this anecdote as told by  ,confucius4   
,yet it is actually made to figure in   
the general charge  of insincerity and  
untruthfulness brought against him by   
,legge4 ,the  action was gallant1 he    

says1 but the apology for it was weak   
and  unnecessary4 ,and yet ,confucius   
saw nothing in the whole but matter for 
praise4 ,in the first place1 ,legge     
entirely ignores the possibility  that  
,mng ,chih-fan was really speaking the  
truth4 ,but even if it were  otherwise1 
,confucius' only comment is that he was 
no braggart4 ,surely  it is an          
overstrained morality that could be     
offended by this4    #ab ,compare       
,moltke's motto3 ,erst wgen1 dann wagen4
 ,tz ,lu was noted  for his reckless    
bravery4 ,evidently jealous of the      
praise bestowed  on ,yen ,yan1 he makes 
a delightfully artless attempt to secure
 some  recognition for himself1 but only
 draws down a reproof4 ,the ,master's   
relations with this vain1 impulsive1    
good-hearted disciple often remind  one 
of those subsisting between ,dr4        
,johnson and ,goldsmith4    #ac ,t#8ai  
,po was the direct heir to his father's 
throne1 but knowing  that the latter    
wished to be succeeded by his youngest  

son 7the father  of the future ,wn      
,wang1 the virtual founder of the ,chou 
dynasty71 he  went into voluntary exile 
among the barbarous tribes of the south1
 but  kept the motives of his conduct to
 himself1 and thus obtained no credit   
for his self-sacrifice4    #ad ,the     
,great ,y1 who in the reign of the      
,emperor ,yao laboured  incessantly for 
eight years to control the disastrous   
inundations of  the ,yellow ,river1     
himself became ,emperor after the death 
of ,yao's  successor ,shun1 and founded 
the ,hsia dynasty 7#bbje-agff ,b4,c474  
#ae ,a quotation from the ,book of      
,poetry1 a collection of some #cjj      
ancient ballads said to have been       
selected and arranged by ,confucius     
himself1 and hence raised to the dignity
 of a classic4    #af ,this must have   
been said by ,confucius after his return
 from exile1  when many of his followers
 were dead or in other parts of the     
,empire4  ,ch'en and ,ts'ai are         
particularly mentioned because it was on

 the road  between these two small      
states that he met with the most        
perilous  adventure of his life1 being  
surrounded by hostile troops and cut off
  from all supplies for the space of    
seven days 7see p4 #aae74 ,it is not    
quite clear whether the next sentence   
should not be taken as a note  added by 
the compiler1 giving the names of those 
who were with the  ,master on this      
journey4    #ag ,by criticism or        
questioning4 ,cf4 p4 #ga4    #ah ,on    
hsiao1 occurring in another treatise1   
,mr4 ,ku ,hung-ming has the  following  
note3 ,the word in the text does not    
mean merely a filial  son1 but has the  
meaning of the ,latin 'pius'--pious in  
its full sense1  reverential to ,god1   
dutiful to parents1 good1 faithful and  
orderly in  all the relations of life4  
#ai ,this prediction was verified4 ,when
 ,confucius returned to ,lu from  ,wei1 
he left ,tz ,lu and ,tz ,kao engaged    
there in official service4  ,troubles   
arose4 ,news came to ,lu1 ,b4,c4 #dgi1  

that a revolution was in  progress in   
,wei1 and when ,confucius heard it1 he  
said1 ',ch#8ai will come  here1 but ,yu 
will die1' ,so it turned out4 ,when ,tz 
,kao saw that matters  were desperate he
 made his escape1 but ,tz ,lu would not 
forsake the  chief who had treated him  
well4 ,he threw himself into the mle and
 was  slain4--,legge1 ,life of          
,confucius4    #bj ,this was the        
disciple by whoso agency ,confucius was 
finally  restored to ,lu4 ,but          
,confucius was the last man to let      
private  considerations stand in the way
 when public interests were involved    
and a crying evil had to be redressed4  
,beating the drum has no  reference1 as 
,legge thinks1 to the practice of       
executing criminals in  the             
market-place4 ,it was simply the        
recognised signal in warfare for        
advancing to the attack1 gongs being    
used to sound the retreat4    #ba ,a    
member of the ambitious family which was
 scheming to get the  whole power of the

 dukedom into its own hands4 ,the two   
disciples here  mentioned had recently  
been enlisted in its service1 and ,chi  
,tz-jan is  anxious to find out how far 
they can be relied upon in case of need4
  ,confucius sees through his nefarious 
designs4          ,,confucius ,,on      
,,himself    ,the ,master3 ,i will not  
be grieved that other men do not know   
me3 ,i will  be grieved that ,i do not  
know other men4    ,at fifteen1 my mind 
was bent on learning4 ,at thirty1 ,i    
stood firm4 ,at  forty1 ,i was free from
 delusions4 ,at fifty1 ,i understood the
 laws of  ,providence4 ,at sixty1 my    
ears were attentive to the truth4 ,at   
seventy1  ,i could follow the promptings
 of my heart without overstepping the   
mean4    ,tz ,kung was for doing away   
with the customary sacrifice of a sheep 
on  the first day of the month4 ,the    
,master said3 ,ah1 ,tz#81 you grudge the
  loss of a sheep1 but ,i grudge the    
loss of a ceremony4    ,the ,master     
said3 ,in any hamlet of a dozen houses  

you will surely find  men as honest and 
conscientious as myself1 though they may
 not be so  devoted to ethical study4   
,the ,master having gone to visit ,nan  
,tz1#a ,tz ,lu was displeased4          
,thereupon ,confucius swore a solemn    
oath1 saying3 ,in whatsoever ,i have    
sinned1 may ,i be abominable in the     
sight of ,god6    ,the ,master said3 ,my
 function is to indicate rather than to 
originate4  ,regarding antiquity as ,i  
do with trust and affection1 ,i would   
venture  to compare myself with our     
ancient patriarch ,p#8ng ,tsu4#b    ,the
 unpretentious hiving of wisdom1 patient
 self-cultivation1 and  untiring        
instruction of others--to which of these
 can ,i make any claim8    ,the failure 
to cultivate virtue1 the failure to     
examine and analyse  what ,i have       
learnt1 the inability to move towards   
righteousness after  being shown the    
way1 the inability to correct my        
faults--these are the  causes of my     
grief4    ,alas6 what a falling-off is  

here6 ,long is it since ,i dreamt of    
,chou  ,kung4#c    ,there is no one1    
from the man who brings me dried meat as
 payment  upwards1 to whom ,i have      
refused my instruction4    ,i do not    
expound my teaching to any who are not  
eager to learn2 ,i do  not help out any 
one who is not anxious to explain       
himself2 if1 after  being shown one     
corner of a subject1 a man cannot go on 
to discover the  other three1 ,i do not 
repeat the lesson4    ,if the pursuit of
 riches were a commendable pursuit1 ,i  
would join in  it1 even if ,i had to    
become a chariot-driver for the purpose4
 ,but  seeing that it is not a          
commendable pursuit1 ,i engage in those 
which  are more to my taste4#d    ,the  
,duke of ,sh questioned ,tz ,lu about   
,confucius4 ,tz ,lu made no  reply4 ,the
 ,master said to him afterwards3 ,why   
did you not say3 ,he  is a man whose    
zeal for self-improvement is such that  
he forgets to  eat2 whose happiness in  
this pursuit is so great that he forgets

 his  troubles and does not perceive old
 age stealing upon him8    ,the ,master 
said3 ,in me1 knowledge is not innate4  
,i am but one who loves  antiquity1 and 
is earnest in the study of it4    ,if ,i
 am walking with two other men1 each of 
them will serve as my  teacher4 ,i will 
pick out the good points of the one and 
imitate them1  and the bad points of the
 other and correct them in myself4      
,my disciples1 do you think that ,i have
 any secrets8 ,i have no secrets  from  
you4 ,it is my way to do nothing without
 communicating it to you1  my disciples4
    ,there are men1 ,i daresay1 who act 
rightly without knowing the reason  why1
 but ,i am not one of them4 ,having     
heard much1 ,i sift out the good  and   
practise it2 having seen much1 ,i retain
 it in my memory4 ,this is  the second  
order of wisdom4#e    ,in literary      
accomplishments ,i am perhaps equal to  
other men2 but ,i have  not yet         
succeeded in exhibiting the conduct of  
the princely man in my  own person4     

,to divine wisdom and perfect virtue ,i 
can lay no claim4 ,all that can  be said
 of me is that ,i never falter in the   
course which ,i pursue  and am          
unwearying in my instruction of         
others--this and nothing                
more4--,kung-hsi ,hua said3 ,but those  
are just the qualities that we1  your   
disciples1 are unable to acquire4       
,the ,master being grievously sick1 ,tz 
,lu proposed the offering up of  a      
prayer4--,is there a precedent for this8
 asked the ,master4--,tz ,lu  replied3  
,there is4 ,in the ,eulogies#f it is    
written3 ,we pray unto you1  ,o spirits 
of ,heaven and ,earth4--,the ,master    
said3 ,my prayers began long  ago4#g    
,the ,master was passing through a      
by-street when a man of the district    
shouted3 ,great is ,confucius the       
philosopher6 ,yet for all his wide      
learning1 he has nothing which can bring
 him fame4--,on hearing this1  the      
,master turned to his disciples and     
said3 ,what shall ,i take up8  ,shall ,i

 take up charioteering or shall ,i take 
up archery8 ,i will take  up            
charioteering6    ,the ,master said3    
,the ancient rites prescribe linen as   
the material for  a ceremonial cap1 but 
nowadays silk is used as being more     
economical4  ,in this matter ,i fall in 
with the general custom4 ,according to  
the  ancient rites1 the ,prince is to be
 saluted from below the dais1 but       
nowadays the salutation takes place     
above4 ,this is presumptuous1 and       
therefore1 though infringing thereby the
 general custom1 ,i adopt the  humbler  
position4#h    ,a high officer asked ,tz
 ,kung1 saying3 ,surely your ,master is 
a divine  ,prophet8 ,what a variety of  
accomplishments he seems to             
possess6--,tz  ,kung replied3 ,truly he 
must be a ,prophet1 so richly has he    
been endowed  by ,god4 ,and he has also 
perfected himself in various arts4--,the
 ,master1  being told of this1 said3    
,does ,his ,excellency really know me   
now for  what ,i am8 ,being of low      

condition as a boy1 ,i did become       
skilled in  various arts--but these are 
base accomplishments after all4 ,if     
asked  whether the higher type of man   
has many such accomplishments1 ,i should
  say1 ,not many4#i    ,the ,master     
said3 ,am ,i possessed of true          
knowledge8 ,not so4 ,but if an  ignorant
 fellow from the lower class comes to me
 with a question1 ,i  will discuss the  
subject from end to end1 and set it     
fully before him4    ,tz ,kung said to  
,confucius3 ,if you had a lovely jewel1 
would you hide  it away in a casket1 or 
would you try to sell it for a good     
price8--  ,the ,master replied3 ,oh1    
certainly ,i would sell it1 but ,i would
 wait  until a price was offered4#aj    
,the ,master said3 ,out of doors1 to    
tender faithful service to prince and   
ministers2 at home1 to be duteous       
towards father and elder brothers2  to  
observe the rites of mourning with the  
utmost care2 to avoid being  overcome   
with wine3--which of these virtues have 

,i8    ,in matters pertaining to        
ceremonies and music1 the ancients were 
more  or less uncivilised in comparison 
with the refinement of a later age4     
,nevertheless1 in practice ,i take the  
earlier period as my guide4#aa    ,as an
 arbiter in litigation ,i am no better  
than other men4 ,but surely  the grand  
object to achieve is that there shall be
 no litigation at  all4#ab    ,wei-sheng
 ,mou1#ac addressing ,confucius1 said3  
,ch#8iu1 why is it you  keep hopping    
about thus from place to place8 ,is it  
not in order to  show off your fine     
rhetoric8--,confucius replied3 ,i do not
 allow myself  to indulge in fine       
rhetoric2 no1 it is because ,i consider 
obstinacy a  fault4#ad    ,the ,master  
said3 ,there are none who know me for   
what ,i am4--,tz ,kung  said3 ,how is   
it1 ,sir1 that none know you8--,the     
,master replied3 ,i make  no complaint  
against ,heaven1 neither do ,i blame my 
fellow-men4 ,in the  study of virtue ,i 
begin at the bottom and tend upwards4#ae

 ,surely  ,heaven knows me for what ,i  
am4    ,tz#81 do you look upon me as a  
man who has studied and retained a  mass
 of various knowledge8--,i do1 he       
replied4 ,am ,i wrong8--,you are  wrong1
 said the ,master4 ,all my knowledge is 
strung on one connecting  thread4#af    
,i used to spend whole days without food
 and whole nights without sleep1  in    
order to meditate4    ,but ,i made no   
progress4 ,study1 ,i found1 was better4 
,pi ,hsi#ag sent an invitation to       
,confucius1 and the ,master wished to   
go4 ,tz ,lu1 however1 said3 ,once upon a
 time1 ,sir1 ,i heard you say  that the 
nobler sort of man would not enter into 
intimacy with one  who laid himself out 
to do wrong4 ,now ,pi ,hsi has raised   
the standard  of rebellion in           
,chung-mou4 ,how can you think of going 
thither8--,true1  replied the ,master4  
,those were my words4 ,but is there not 
a saying3  ,the hard may be rubbed      
without losing its substance2 the white 
may be  steeped without losing its      

purity8 ,am ,i then a bitter gourd--fit 
only  to be hung up and not eaten8      
#a ,the wife of the ,duke of ,wei1      
notorious for her intrigues1 and even   
accused of incest4 ,needless to say1    
,chinese commentators are at great      
pains to explain away this incident in  
the life of the sage4    #b ,a grandson 
of the legendary ,emperor ,chuan ,hs4   
,he is said to have  been over #hjj     
years old when he disappeared into the  
west in the  eleventh century ,b4,c4    
,the last words in the text are taken by
 some to  mean our patriarchs ,lao ,tz  
and ,p#8ng ,tsu--,lao ,tz being the     
founder  of ,taoism1 who is also1 by the
 way1 alleged to have disappeared at an 
advanced age into the west4    #c ,one  
of the most revered names in ,chinese   
history4 ,the younger  brother of ,wu   
,wang1 he helped materially by his wise 
counsels to  establish the dynasty of   
,chou4 ,he drew up a legal code1        
purified the  morals of the people1 and 
devoted himself wholly to the welfare of

  the ,state4 ,confucius in the         
reforming zeal of his younger days had  
an ardent desire to see the principles  
and institutions of ,chou ,kung  brought
 into general practice4    #d ,legge and
 others 7including even ,mr4 ,ku        
,hung-ming7 make the sense  out to be3  
,if there were any prospect of my being 
successful in the  search for riches1 ,i
 would not hesitate to pursue them by   
any means  in my power4 ,thus           
translated1 the ,master's saying is     
grotesquely at  variance with the whole 
trend of his conduct and the essential  
spirit  of his teaching4 ,curiously     
enough1 too1 there is nothing in the    
,chinese  itself1 so far as ,i can see1 
to justify such a startling             
interpretation4    #e ,that is to say1  
the wisest men are those who act        
intuitively1  without having to find    
their way by any conscious mental       
process4  ,confucius disclaims any such 
intuitive perception of right and wrong 
in his own case1 and confesses that he  

is obliged to rely largely on  objective
 experience1 as acted upon by the       
critical and receptive  powers of his   
mind4 ,the saying has a distinctly      
,taoist flavour4    #f ,it is not known 
exactly what these were--a collection of
 prayers1 a  book of rituals for the    
dead1 or panegyrics on the departed4    
#g ,confucius speaks of prayer in the   
sense made familiar to us by            
,coleridge's line3 ,he prayeth best who 
loveth best4 ,in this higher  sense his 
whole life had been one long prayer1 and
 he refuses any  mediation between      
himself and ,god4 ,could antagonism to  
the ritualistic  spirit be carried much 
farther than this8    #h ,this saying   
well illustrates the ,master's attitude 
in regard to  ceremonies4 ,he was no    
stickler for mere outward conformity to 
rule1 so  long as the inner meaning of  
the ceremony was not affected4 ,now the 
salutation of the ,prince was simply    
intended to be a way of expressing      
heart-felt loyalty and respect1 and it  

was only because the new  position      
seemed less respectful that ,confucius  
opposed the change4    #i ,see note on  
p4 #dd4    #aj ,question and answer are 
of course parabolical4 ,the enthusiastic
  young disciple thinks that his        
,master1 in taking no steps to obtain   
official employment1 is guilty of hiding
 his jewel in a casket1 or1  as we      
should say1 his light under a bushel4   
,confucius1 however1 had  a great sense 
of the responsibility of office1 and was
 loth to thrust  himself forward        
uninvited4 ,his chance came at last     
after fifteen years  of waiting1 when   
,duke ,ting appointed him governor of   
the town of  ,chung-tu4    #aa ,another 
proof1 if one were needed1 that         
,confucius' instincts were  all for     
simplicity and not elaboration in       
ceremonies4    #ab ,said by ,confucius  
when he was ,minister of ,justice in    
,lu4    #ac ,evidently an older man1    
from his use of the personal name1 not  
to  speak of his disrespectful tone4    

#ad ,confucius1 like other great men1   
was not exempt from the usual  fate of  
seeing his actions derided and his      
motives misunderstood4 ,here  we have a 
gibe thrown at his wandering from state 
to state1 for the  purpose1 it is       
insinuated1 of making a living by his   
wits4 ,the answer  is1 that to have     
remained in ,lu or any other state where
 he was plainly  not wanted1 would have 
been merely stupid persistency4    #ae  
,this accounts for men taking no notice 
of him4 ,most so-called  sages start    
with grandiose ideals and high-flown    
utterances1 in order  to attract        
attention4    #af ,this is rightly      
considered to be one of the moat        
important of the  ,master s sayings1    
because it gives the clue to his whole  
philosophy and  view of life4 ,the      
connecting thread1 as we learn from     
another passage  7see p4 #aah71 is      
simply the moral life1 which consists in
 being true  to oneself and good to     
one's neighbour4 ,confucius wished to   

impress  upon his disciple that he was  
no mere amasser of knowledge nor lover  
of learning for learning's sake4 ,the   
one thing necessary1 in his eyes1  was  
to be able to lead1 in the highest sense
 of the word1 a moral life1  and this   
was the real object of all learning1 the
 end and aim of all  knowledge4         
,throughout the ,analects1 as we have   
already seen1 the usual  word for       
learning always means or implies the    
study of virtue1 the  striving after    
self-improvement4 ,like ,socrates1      
,confucius was purely  a moral          
philosopher1 and would certainly have   
rejected the sharp  distinction we draw 
nowadays between mental and moral       
science4    #ag ,a rebellious official  
in the ,chin ,state4 ,on more than one  
occasion  in his career1 ,confucius made
 it plain that he declined to be bound  
by narrow convention or hampered by the 
fear of what people might say  of him4  
,to keep clear of bad associates was no 
doubt an excellent  principle1 but      

,confucius may have seen some           
justification for ,pi ,hsi's  course of 
action1 and in any case he was no longer
 of an age to be  easily corrupted by   
evil communications4 ,knowing that rules
 were never  meant to be so rigid as to 
admit of no exceptions1 he felt it his  
primary duty to go where he could do    
good4 ,cf4 the visit to ,nan ,tz 7p4    
#hc71 the mere idea of which would have 
horrified an ordinary teacher of        
morality4          ,,miscellaneous      
,,sayings    ,the ,master said3 ,to     
learn1 and to practise on occasion what 
one has  learnt--is this not true       
pleasure8 ,the coming of a friend from a
  far-off land--is this not true joy8   
,make conscientiousness and sincerity   
your grand object4 ,have no friends  not
 equal to yourself4 ,if you have done   
wrong1 be not ashamed to make  amends4  
,observe the bent of a man's will when  
his father is alive1 and his  actions   
after his father is dead4 ,if during the
 three years of mourning  he does not   

swerve from his father's principles1 he 
may be pronounced a  truly filial son4  
,the ,odes#a are three hundred in       
number1 but their purport may be  summed
 up in a word3--,have no depraved       
thoughts4    ,observe a man's actions2  
scrutinise his motives2 take note of the
  things that give him pleasure4 ,how   
then can he hide from you what he       
really is8    ,acquire new knowledge    
whilst thinking over the old1 and you   
may become  a teacher of others4    ,the
 higher type of man is not like a vessel
 which is designed for some  ,special   
use4#b    ,study without thought is     
vain2 thought without study is perilous4
    ,absorption in the study of the     
supernatural is most harmful4    ,yu1   
shall ,i tell you what true knowledge   
is8 ,when you know1 to know  that you   
know1 and when you do not know1 to know 
that you do not  know--that is true     
knowledge4    ,tz ,chang was studying   
with a view to official preferment4 ,the
 ,master  said to him3 ,among the       

various things you hear said1 reserve   
your  judgment on those which seem      
doubtful1 and give cautious utterance   
to the rest3 then you will seldom fall  
into error4 ,among the various  things  
you see done1 set aside those which seem
 dangerous1 and  cautiously put the     
others into practice3 then you will     
seldom have  occasion for repentance4   
,if you seldom err in your speech1 and  
seldom  have to repent of your actions1 
official preferment will come of itself4
    ,the ,master said3 ,i do not see how
 a man without sincerity can be good    
for anything4 ,how can a cart or        
carriage be made to go without yoke or  
cross-bar8    ,to sacrifice to a spirit 
with which you have nothing to do1 is   
mere  servility4    ,to shirk your duty 
when you see it before you1 shows want  
of moral  courage4    ,some one inquired
 as to the meaning of the ,great        
,sacrifice4 ,the ,master  said3 ,i do   
not know4 ,he who knew its meaning would
 find it as easy to  govern the ,empire 

as to look upon this 7pointing to his   
palm74#c    ,wang-sun ,chia#d asked1    
saying3 ,what means the adage1 ,better  
be civil  to the kitchen-god than to the
 god of the inner sanctum8--,the ,master
  replied3 ,the adage is false4 ,he who 
sins against ,heaven can rely on the    
intercession of none4    ,the ,master   
said3 ,he who serves his prince with all
 the proper ceremony  will be accounted 
by men a flatterer4    ,it is bootless  
to discuss accomplished facts1 to       
protest against things  past remedy1 to 
find fault with things bygone4    ,how  
am ,i to regard one who has rank without
 liberality1 who performs  ceremonies   
without reverence1 who approaches the   
rites of mourning  without sorrow8      
,men's faults are characteristic4#e ,it 
is by observing a man's faults  that one
 may come to know his virtues4          
,having heard the ,true ,way in the     
morning what matters it if one should   
come to die at night8    ,the scholar   
who is bent on studying the principles  

of virtue1 yet is  ashamed of bad       
clothes and coarse food1 is not yet fit 
to receive  instruction4    ,instead of 
being concerned that you have no office1
 be concerned to  think how you may fit 
yourself for office4 ,instead of being  
concerned  that you are not known1 seek 
to be worthy of being known4    ,when   
you see a good man1 think of emulating  
him2 when you see a bad  man1 examine   
your own heart4    ,the ancients        
hesitated to give their thoughts        
utterance3 they were  afraid that their 
actions might not be equal to their     
words4    ,few are those who err on the 
side of self-restraint4#f    ,virtue    
cannot live in solitude3 neighbours are 
sure to grow up around  it4#g    ,chi   
,wn ,tz#h used to reflect thrice before 
he acted4 ,when told of  this1 the      
,master said3 ,twice would do4    ,the  
,master said3 ,alas6 ,i have never met a
 man who could see his own  faults and  
arraign himself at the bar of his own   
conscience4    ,tz ,hua having been sent

 on a mission to the ,ch#8i ,state1 ,jan
 ,ch#8iu  begged for a gift of grain for
 his mother4 ,the ,master said3 ,give   
her a  peck4--,the disciple asking for  
more1 he said3    ,give her then a      
bushel4--,but ,jan ,ch#8iu eventually   
gave her as much as  five hundredweight 
of grain4 ,then the ,master rebuked him1
 saying3 ,when  ,ch#8ih went to the     
,ch#8i ,state1 he was conveyed by a team
 of sleek horses  and was wearing costly
 fur garments4 ,now ,i have heard that  
the princely  man succours the          
distressed1 but will not add to the     
opulence of the  wealthy4    ,yan ,ss1  
having been made governor of a district1
 was presented with  nine hundred       
measures of grain4#i ,he declined them4 
,the ,master said3  ,do not decline     
them4 ,may they not be distributed among
 the villages and  townships of your    
neighbourhood8    ,the ,master said3    
,who can go out of a house except by the
 door8 ,in life1  why not pass likewise 
through the door of virtue8#aj    ,you  

may speak of higher subjects to those   
who rise above the average  level of    
mankind1 but not to those who fall below
 it4    ,with coarse food to eat1 water 
to drink1 and the bended arm as a       
pillow1 happiness may still exist4      
,wealth and rank unrighteously  obtained
 seem to me as insubstantial as floating
 clouds4    ,the inhabitants of         
,hu-hsiang were unconversable people1   
and when  a young man from those parts  
came to see ,confucius1 the disciples   
hesitated to let him in4 ,but the       
,master said3 ,when a man comes to me1  
,i  accept him at his best1 not at his  
worst4 ,why make so much ado8 ,when a   
man washes his hands before paying a    
visit1 and you receive him in that      
clean state1 you do not thereby stand   
surety for his always having been  clean
 in the past4    ,the ,master said3 ,is 
virtue then so remote8 ,i have only to  
show a desire  for virtue1 and lo6 it is
 here4    ,the ,master said3            
,prodigality begets arrogance1#aa       

parsimony begets  niggardliness4 ,but it
 is better to be niggardly than         
arrogant4    ,without due               
self-restraint1#ab courtesy becomes     
oppressive1 prudence  degenerates into  
timidity1 valour into violence1 and     
candour into  rudeness4    ,love of     
daring and dread of poverty lead to     
sedition4 ,the man without  natural     
virtue1 if pursued by the hatred of     
society1 will become a  desperado4      
,if a man is proud and avaricious1      
though his other qualities may  embrace 
all that was fine in the character of   
,chou ,kung1 they are not  worth taking 
into account4    ,it is not easy to find
 a man who after three years of         
self-cultivation#ac has not reached     
happiness4    ,he who is out of office  
should not meddle in the government4    
,hot-headedness without honesty2        
ignorance without ingenuousness2        
simplicity without sincerity3--such     
characters ,i do not understand4#ad     
,pursue the study of virtue as though   

you could never reach your goal1  and   
were afraid of losing the ground already
 gained4    ,the ,master said3 ,i have  
not met one whose love of virtue was    
equal to  his love of sensual beauty4   
,though in making a mound ,i should stop
 when but one more basketful of  earth  
would complete it1 the fact remains that
 ,i have stopped4 ,on the  other hand1  
if in levelling it to the ground ,i     
advance my work by but  one basketful at
 a time1 the fact remains that ,i am    
advancing4#ae    ,alas6 there are       
sprouting crops which never come into   
ear4 ,there are  others which1 having   
come into ear1 never ripen into grain4  
,we ought to have a wholesome respect   
for our juniors4 ,who knows  but that   
by-and-by they may prove themselves     
equal to the men of  to-day8 ,it is only
 when they reach the age of forty or    
fifty without  distinguishing themselves
 that we need no longer be afraid of    
them4    ,words of just admonition      
cannot fail to command a ready assent4  

,but  practical reformation is the thing
 that really matters4 ,words of kindly  
advice cannot fail to please the        
listener4 ,but subsequent meditation on 
them is the thing that really matters4  
,i can make nothing of the man  who is  
pleased with advice but will not        
meditate on it1 who assents to          
admonition but does not reform4    ,a   
great army may be robbed of its leader1 
but nothing can rob one poor  man of his
 will4    ,it is only when the cold     
season comes that we know the pine and  
cypress  to be evergreens4#af ,let a    
pupil join with you in self-cultivation 
before you let him approach the general 
truths of philosophy1 but let  him      
approach these general truths before he 
is allowed to form his  character for   
good4 ,he should have formed his        
character for good before  he is allowed
 to make exceptions to a general rule4  
,when ,yen ,yan died1 the ,master said3 
,alas6 ,god has forsaken me1 ,god has   
forsaken me6    ,on the death of ,yen   

,yan1 the disciples wanted to give him a
 sumptuous  funeral1 but the ,master    
said1 ,better not4#ag ,nevertheless1 the
  disciples did give him a sumptuous    
funeral1 whereupon the ,master said3    
,hui looked upon me as his father1 yet  
,i have not been able to treat him  as  
my son4 ,the fault is not in me1 but in 
you1 my disciples4    ,chi ,lu inquired 
concerning men's duty to spirits4 ,the  
,master replied3  ,before we are able to
 do our duty by the living1 how can we  
do it by  the spirits of the dead8--,chi
 ,lu went on to inquire about death4    
,the  ,master said3 ,before we know what
 life is1 how can we know what death    
is8    ,tz ,chang asked a question about
 clearness of mental vision4 ,the       
,master  said3 ,he whose mind is proof  
against the slow-soaking poison of      
slander  and the sharp stings of        
calumny1 may be called clear-sighted1   
and  far-seeing as well4    ,the ,master
 said3 ,a man may know the three hundred
 odes by heart1 but  if he proves       

himself incapable when given a post in  
the government1 or  cannot make a speech
 unaided when sent on a foreign mission1
 of what  use to him is all his         
learning8    ,tz ,kung asked1 saying3   
,what may be said of a man who is       
beloved by all  his                     
fellow-townsmen8--,the ,master replied3 
,that is not enough to go  upon4--,what 
of one who is hated by all his          
fellow-townsmen8--,the ,master  replied3
 ,neither is that enough to go upon4 ,it
 would be otherwise if1  among his      
fellow-townsmen1 the good loved him and 
the wicked hated him4    ,the ,master   
said3 ,a good man must have trained the 
people for seven  years before they are 
fit to go to war4    ,to take an        
untrained multitude into battle is      
equivalent to throwing  them away4      
,in a well-governed country1 speak      
boldly and act boldly4 ,in a country    
where lawlessness prevails1 let your    
actions be bold but your speech         
tactful4    ,it is harder to be poor    

without murmuring1 than to be rich      
without  arrogance4    ,the men of olden
 times who studied virtue had only their
 own  improvement in view2 those who    
study it now have an eye to the applause
  of others4    ,refusal to instruct one
 who is competent to learn entails the  
waste of  a man4 ,instruction of one who
 is incompetent to learn entails waste  
of  words4 ,the wise man is he who      
wastes neither men nor words4    ,those 
whose care extends not far ahead will   
find their troubles near at  hand4      
,he who requires much from himself and  
little from others will be secure  from 
hatred4    ,if a man is not in the habit
 of asking1 ,what do you make of this8  
what  do you make of that8 ,i can make  
nothing of him4    ,hopeless indeed is  
the case of those who can herd together 
all day long  without once letting their
 conversation reach a higher plane1#ah  
but  are content to bandy smart and     
shallow wit4    ,when a man is generally
 detested1 or when he is generally      

beloved1  closer examination is         
necessary4#ai    ,it is the man that is 
able to develop his virtue1 not virtue  
that  develops the man4#bj    ,the real 
fault is to have faults and not try to  
amend them4    ,where there is          
education1 there is no distinction of   
class4    ,men who differ in their      
principles cannot help each other in    
their  plans4    ,if language is lucid1 
that is enough4    ,there are three     
errors to be avoided in the presence of 
a great man4  ,the first is             
precipitancy--speaking before it is your
 turn to speak2  the second is          
bashfulness--not speaking when your turn
 comes2 and the  third is               
heedlessness--speaking without observing
 the countenance of  the listener4      
,there are three impulses against which 
the nobler sort of man is on his  guard4
 ,in the period of youth1 when the      
heyday in the blood has not yet         
subsided1 he guards against lustfulness2
 in the prime of life1 when  the        

physical frame is vigorous and strong1  
he guards against pugnacity2  in old    
age1 when the vital forces are in their 
decline1 he guards  against the greed of
 gain4#ba    ,the highest class of men  
are they whose knowledge is innate2 next
 to  these are they whose knowledge is  
acquired by study#bb2 after them  come  
those who are dull-witted1 yet strive to
 learn2 while those who  are dull-witted
 and will make no effort to learn are   
the lowest of the  people4    ,when you 
see the good1 act as though you could   
never quite come up  with it2 when you  
are brought face to face with evil1 act 
as though you  were trying the heat of  
boiling water3--,i have heard some such 
saying  as this1 and ,i have seen men   
live up to it4 ,dwell in retirement1  in
 order to work out your aims2 practise  
righteousness1 in order to  apprehend   
the ,truth3--such a saying ,i have      
heard1 but ,i have never  seen a man    
live up to it4#bc    ,men's natures are 
alike2 it is their habits that carry    

them far apart4    ,only two classes of 
men never change3 the wisest of the wise
 and the  dullest of the dull4          
,speaking to ,tz ,lu1 the ,master said3 
,have you ever heard1 ,yu1 of the  six  
shadows which attend six several        
virtues8--,no1 he replied4--,sit  down1 
then1 and ,i will tell you4 ,love of    
goodness without the will  to learn#bd  
casts the shadow called foolishness4    
,love of knowledge  without the will to 
learn casts the shadow called           
instability4 ,love of  truth without the
 will to learn casts the shadow called  
insensibility4  ,love of candour without
 the will to learn casts the shadow     
called  rudeness4 ,love of daring       
without the will to learn casts the     
shadow  called turbulence4 ,love of     
firmness without the will to learn casts
 the  shadow called eccentricity4       
,ceremonies1 forsooth6 ,can ceremonies  
be reduced to a mere matter  of silken  
robes and jade ornaments8 ,music1       
forsooth6 ,can music be  reduced to a   

mere matter of bells and drums8#be ,men 
who are grave  and stern in appearance1 
but inwardly weak and unprincipled--are 
they  not comparable to the lowest class
 of humanity--sneaking thieves that     
break into houses by night8    ,your    
goody-goody people are the thieves of   
virtue4    ,the ,master said3 ,would    
that ,i could do without speaking6--,tz 
,kung  said3 ,if our ,master never      
spoke1 how could we1 his disciples1     
transmit  his doctrines8--,the ,master  
replied3 ,does ,god speak8 ,the four    
seasons  hold on their course1 and all  
things continue to live and grow4 ,yet1 
tell me1 does ,god speak8    ,girls and 
servants are the most difficult people  
to handle4 ,if you  treat them          
familiarly1 they become disrespectful2  
if you keep them at a  distance1 they   
resent it4        #a ,the rather        
inappropriate name given by foreigners  
to the songs or  ballads contained in   
the ,shih ,ching or ,book of ,poetry    
7see note on p4  #gh74 ,confucius is    

said to have selected these three       
hundred odd pieces  from a much larger  
pre-existing mass of material1 but his  
language here  hardly strikes us as that
 likely to be used by a man speaking of 
his  own compilation4    #b ,that is to 
say1 he is not limited in his functions 
like a vessel or  implement1 not born or
 a man of one idea4 ,cf4 note on p4 #ga4
    #c ,every ceremonial rite being     
symbolical of some portion of the       
world's harmony1 and the ,great         
,sacrifice being the head and fount as  
it  were of all the rest1 it follows    
that the man who could penetrate its    
profound symbolism would have the whole 
system of morals and government         
unrolled before his eyes4    #d ,prime  
,minister of the ,wei ,state1 who       
suspected ,confucius of coming  to seek 
office1 and took this means of hinting  
that the real power lay  with himself   
and not with the ,duke4    #e ,after    
some hesitation1 ,i have adopted this   
clever rendering of  ,mr4 ,ku           

,hung-ming1 as being the only one that  
fits well with the next  sentence4    #f
 ,a few other renderings of this        
sentence will illustrate at once the    
elasticity of the ,chinese language1 and
 the difficulty of making it  flow into 
,european moulds4--,,legge3 ,the        
cautious seldom err4 ,,wade3 ,it  seldom
 happens that a man errs through excess 
of moderation4 ,,jennings3  ,those who  
keep within restraints are seldom       
losers4 ,,ku ,,hung-,,ming3 ,he  who    
wants little seldom goes wrong4    #g   
,i4e4 virtue begets virtue4    #h ,a    
member of the great ,chi family1 who    
held office in ,lu4    #i ,the proper   
allowance for an officer in his station4
    #aj ,as being1 in the end1 the moat 
natural and least troublesome route  to 
take4    #aa ,it is impossible to find  
an exact equivalent for this negative   
expression non-yieldingness1            
non-humility4 ,but the dominant  idea is
 one of selfishness1 and therefore such 
renderings as  insubordination 7,legge71

 frowardnes 7,wade71 excess 7,ku        
,hung-ming71 are rather wide off the    
mark4    #ab ,for note on li1 see p4    
#fj4 ,here again it is the inner sense  
of  moral proportion and harmony1 which 
prevents any quality from being  carried
 to excess4 ,not a translator but has   
come to grief over this  word1 though   
,mr4 ,ku is not so far off with         
judgment4 ,that1 however1  makes of it  
an intellectual principle rather than   
what it realty is--a  moral sense4      
#ac ,literally1 learning4 ,see notes on 
pp4 #ec and #ia4    #ad ,the            
commentators seem right in their        
explanation1 that a man's  defects are  
usually redeemed by certain             
corresponding qualities2 when  even     
these are absent1 the case is hopeless4 
#ae ,this is the best ,i can make of a  
vexed passage4 ,legge's  translation is 
poor1 but he is right with regard to the
 lesson  intended--that repeated        
acquisitions individually small will    
ultimately amount to much1 and that the 

learner is never to give over4    #af   
,men are known in time of adversity4    
#ag ,because the family was very poor   
and could ill afford to bear the        
expense4 ,it is not the least of this   
great man's titles to fame that he      
resolutely opposed the tide of popular  
sentiment in this matter1 and  could see
 the iniquity of sacrificing the living 
to the dead1 even when  the funeral of  
his dearly beloved disciple was in      
question4 ,the moral  courage of such an
 attitude in a country like ,china1     
where religion  is largely connected    
with the propitiation of spirits1 can   
hardly be  overestimated4    #ah        
,literally1 reach righteousness4    #ai 
,before subscribing to the popular      
judgment4 ,cf4 saying on p4 #ajc4    #bj
 ,i4e4 mere passivity1 as advocated by  
the ,taoists1 will not do4    #ba ,these
 numerical categories are hardly more   
than a conventional  form into which the
 ,chinese are fond of throwing ethical  
and other  teaching4 ,needless to say1  

they are not to be considered as        
exhaustive4    #bb ,confucius1 as we    
have seen 7p4 #hf71 puts himself in this
 second  class4    #bc ,the difference  
lies in the set purpose of studying     
virtue in a  systematic way1 and not    
merely doing right when occasion offers4
    #bd ,the will to learn is a         
necessarily vague rendering of the      
equally vague original4 ,it means here a
 desire for moral culture1 which  is    
nothing else than the development of    
that inner sense of harmony  and        
proportion 7li7 referred to on p4 #ii4  
,good instincts1 according  to          
,confucius1 are not enough to produce   
virtues1 unless they are  supplemented  
by careful cultivation of this moral    
sense4    #be ,a magnificent array of   
vestments and chalices will no more     
constitute a true ceremony than a number
 of musical instruments alone1  without 
the brain of a composer1 can produce    
music4 ,the whole value  of a ceremony  
is determined by the state of mind of   

the person who  performs it4            
,,personalia      ,in his moments of    
leisure1 the ,master's manner was       
uniformly cheerful  and smiling4    ,if 
the ,master happened to be dining beside
 one who was in mourning for  his       
parents1 he never ate a full meal4 ,he  
never sang on any day in the  course of 
which he had been bewailing a death4    
,the ,master would never talk about     
prodigies1 feats of strength1 crime1  or
 supernatural beings4#a    ,the ,master 
made four things the subject of his     
teaching3 a knowledge of  literature and
 the arts1 conduct1 conscientiousness   
and truthfulness4#b    ,the ,master     
fished with a line but not with a net4  
,when he went out with  bow and arrow1  
he only shot at birds on the wing4      
,if the ,master happened to be with     
singers1 and they sang a piece well1  he
 would get them to repeat it1 when he   
would also join in the song  himself4   
,the ,master was affable1 yet grave2    
stern1 but not fierce2 attentive in  his

 behaviour1 and yet calm4    ,the       
,master seldom spoke of money-making1 of
 the laws of ,providence1 or  of moral  
virtue4#c    ,there were four words of  
which the ,master barred the use3 he    
would have  no shall's1 no must's1 no   
certainly's1 no ,i's4#d    ,whenever the
 ,master saw a person in mourning1 or in
 official robes1 or  one who was blind1 
he would at once rise from his seat1    
even though the  other were his junior2 
or if he passed them in the street1 he  
would  quicken his step4#e    ,once when
 the ,master was lying seriously ill1   
,tz ,lu got the disciples  to act the   
part of ,ministers of ,state4#f ,in an  
interval of his  sickness1 ,confucius   
said3 ,what a long time ,yu has been    
keeping up  this imposture6 ,in         
pretending to have ministers attendant  
on me when  ,i have none1 whom am ,i    
deceiving8 ,am ,i deceiving ,god8 ,but  
apart from  that1 is it not better that 
,i should breathe my last in the arms of
 my  disciples1 than that ,i should die 

in the midst of officials8 ,and after   
all1 though ,i may not be accorded the  
honour of a public funeral1 ,i am  not  
dying out on the high road4    ,the     
,master wished to settle among the nine 
eastern tribes4 ,some one  said3 ,how   
can you8 ,they are savages4--,the       
,master replied3 ,if a higher  type of  
man dwelt in their midst1 how could     
their savage condition last8            
,confucius in his native village was    
simple and unassuming4 ,he gave the     
impression of being no great speaker4   
,in the ancestral temple and at  ,court 
he spoke fluently1 but with a certain   
reserve4    ,at ,court1 he spoke to the 
ministers of lower rank with frankness  
and affability4 ,to those of higher rank
 he spoke quietly1 but with  decision4  
,in the presence of his ,sovereign1 he  
seemed full of awe1 but  at the same    
time grave and collected4    ,when      
employed by the ,prince in the reception
 of distinguished visitors1  his        
expression would change1 and his legs   

seemed to bend under him4  ,standing in 
the presence of the visitors1 he saluted
 them with clasped  hands1 turning about
 from right to left1 and keeping the    
skirt of his  robe properly adjusted1   
back and front4 ,he then hastened       
forward with  arms extended like the    
wings of a bird4 ,when a visitor        
departed1 he  would report in that sense
 to the ,prince1 saying3 ,the visitor is
 not  looking back4#g    ,when he       
entered the gate of the palace1 he      
seemed to bend his body as  though the  
gate were not large enough to let him   
pass4 ,he did not stand  in the middle  
of the doorway1 nor in passing through  
did he set foot  on the threshold4 ,when
 he passed the ,prince's throne1 his    
expression  seemed to change1 his legs  
seemed to bend under him1 and words     
seemed  to fail him4 ,holding up his    
robe with both hands1 he ascended the   
dais1  his body slightly bent1 and      
holding his breath as though he dared   
not  breathe4 ,when he came out from his

 audience and had descended the first   
step1 his countenance lost its anxious  
expression1 and he looked serene  and   
happy4 ,when he reached the bottom of   
the steps1 he hastened away  with his   
arms outstretched like wings2 but when  
he got back to his  place1 he still     
seemed full of awe4    ,he carried the  
,prince's regalia with body slightly    
bent1 as though he  could hardly support
 its weight2 he raised it to the height 
of his  head1 and lowered it again to   
the height of his chest4 ,his           
countenance  indicated nervousness1 and 
he dragged his feet as though something 
held  them to the ground4    ,in        
offering presents as an ambassador1 his 
appearance was sedate4    ,at a private 
audience1 he wore a pleased look4    ,he
 would not eat meat that was clumsily   
cut1 or served without its  proper      
sauce4 ,although there might be an      
abundance of meat1 he never  let it     
exceed in quantity the vegetable food4  
,in wine alone he laid  down for himself

 no particular limit1 but he never      
reached the stage of  intoxication4 ,he 
took ginger at every meal4 ,he did not  
eat much4 ,when  eating1 he did not     
converse2 when in bed1 he did not speak4
 ,even though  he had nothing but coarse
 rice and vegetable soup1 he would      
always  reverently offer some to the    
ancestral spirits4    ,he would not sit 
on a mat#h that was placed awry4    ,on 
one occasion1 ,chi ,k#8ang ,tz having   
sent him some medicine1 he bowed  as he 
received it1 saying3 ,not being familiar
 with this drug1 ,i would  not venture  
to try it4    ,his stables having been  
burnt down1 the ,master on his return   
from the  ,court said3 ,has any one been
 hurt8--,he did not ask about the       
horses4#i    ,if the ,prince sent him a 
present of cooked meat1 he would sit    
down to  taste it on a properly placed  
mat4 ,if the ,prince sent him a present 
of  raw meat1 he would have it cooked   
and offer it in sacrifice4 ,if the      
,prince sent him a live animal1 he would

 keep it alive4    ,when the ,prince    
summoned him to his presence1 he would  
go on foot  without waiting for his     
carriage4    ,if any of his friends died
 who was without a home or relations1 he
  would say3 ,i will see to the funeral4
    ,in bed1 he did not lie like a      
corpse4 ,in his home life1 his manner   
was  not too formal4    ,at the sight of
 a person in mourning1 though it might  
be an intimate  acquaintance1 he would  
always look grave4 ,on meeting an       
official in  uniform1 or a blind man1   
however ragged1 he would always show him
 some  mark of respect4    ,when a rich 
banquet was set before him1 he would    
show his appreciation  in his looks1 and
 rise to return thanks4    ,he would    
change countenance at a thunderclap or a
 sudden squall of wind4    ,when in his 
carriage1 he would not look behind him1 
talk rapidly1 or  point with his        
finger4#aj    ,duke ,ling of ,wei asked 
,confucius about the disposition of     
troops  in warfare4 ,confucius answered3

 ,i know something about the arts of    
peace1#aa but ,i have never studied the 
art of war4 ,and on the morrow  he      
departed4 ,but when he came to the      
,state of ,ch#8n1 he was cut off  from  
supplies1#ab and his followers were so  
enfeebled that they could  hardly stand4
 ,tz ,lu indignantly sought the         
,master's presence1 saying3  ,is it for 
the princely man to feel the pinch of   
privation8--,the ,master  replied3      
,assuredly privation may come his way1  
but it is only the  baser type of man   
who under it grows demoralised and      
reckless4    ,mien1 a blind musician1#ac
 having called on ,confucius1 the       
,master said  to him when he came to a  
flight of steps3 ,here are the steps2   
and  when he came to the mat which was  
spread for him3 ,here is your mat4      
,when all the visitors were seated1 the 
,master told him who they were1  saying3
 ,so-and-so is sitting here1 so-and-so  
is sitting there4 ,after  ,mien had     
gone1 ,tz ,chang asked1 saying3 ,is it  

the proper thing to speak  thus to a    
musician8--,the ,master replied3        
,assuredly it is right to give  this    
help to a blind man4    ,the people of  
,ch#8i sent a band of singing-girls as a
 present to the  ,duke of ,lu1 and ,chi 
,huan ,tz accepted the gift4 ,for three 
days after  that no ,court was held1 and
 ,confucius departed4#ad          #a    
,under these circumstances1 it is easy  
to imagine how edified he  would be by  
the modern daily press1 which subsists  
almost entirely on  these very topics4  
#b ,i am unable to improve on this      
rendering1 which is borrowed from  ,mr4 
,ku ,hung-ming4    #c ,this             
statement--at least as regards moral    
virtue 7jn7-- seems  hopelessly at      
variance with the evidence of the       
,analects4 ,perhaps  no more is meant   
than that he was unwilling to dogmatise 
on such a  delicate subject4 ,on p4 #gb1
 for instance1 he refuses to judge      
whether  certain disciples have true    
moral virtue or not4    #d ,this is ,mr4

 ,jennings's interpretation1 and it     
seems to me the  simplest and best4     
#e ,thus showing1 says a commentator1   
his sympathy with sorrow1 his  respect  
for rank1 his tenderness for the        
afflicted4 ,quickening his pace  was    
also a mark of respect4    #f ,just as  
though ,confucius had his own ,court and
 entourage1 like a  feudal prince4 ,this
 probably happened during his exile in  
some foreign  state1 where the chance of
 his obtaining a public funeral would   
doubtless be proportionate to the       
display made by his followers4    #g    
,the ways of ,china1 it appears1 were   
much the same anciently as  now4 ,a     
guest turns round and bows repeatedly in
 leaving1 and the host  cannot return to
 his place till these salutations are   
ended4--,,legge4    #h ,the ,chinese of 
that date dispensed with chairs1 as the 
,japanese  have done up to the present  
time4    #i ,the point is1 that in his  
solicitude for others ,confucius never  
thought of his own loss1 not that he was

 indifferent to the suffering  of       
animals4    #aj ,some of the minute     
details given above cannot but strike us
 as  rather ridiculous4 ,two points1    
however1 must be borne in mind3 7#a7    
that the customs and ceremonial         
belonging to any one age or country     
will always at first sight appear       
strange and laughable to the men of  any
 other age and country2 7#b7 that       
,confucius himself cannot be held       
responsible for the excessive zeal which
 prompted admiring disciples to  portray
 his personal habits with such          
embarrassing fidelity4 ,how many        
philosophers would come equally well    
through such an ordeal8    #aa          
,literally1 dish and platter business1  
i4e4 things pertaining to  sacrificial  
worship4    #ab ,by order of the ,duke4 
#ac ,blind men and musicians were almost
 convertible terms in ancient  ,china3  
that is to say1 all musicians were      
blind1 and the majority of  blind men   
took to music for a profession4    #ad  

,the famous episode hero briefly related
 was the turning-point of  the sage's   
career4 ,through the weakness of his    
prince and the jealousy  of the rival   
minister ,chi ,huan ,tz1 he was suddenly
 dislodged from  the pinnacle of his    
fame and condemned to thirteen years of 
homeless  wandering4                    
,,confucius ,,as ,,seen ,,by ,,others   
,tz ,ch#8in asked ,tz ,kung1 saying3    
,whenever our ,master comes to  any new 
country1 he is sure to find out all     
about its method of  government4 ,does  
he seek this information himself1 or is 
it voluntarily  proffered8--,tz ,kung   
replied3 ,our ,master gains his         
information because  he is so genial and
 good1 so full of deference1 modesty and
 regard for  others4 ,in seeking        
information1 how differently does he    
behave from  ordinary men6    ,the      
,master having gone up into the ,grand  
,temple1 asked questions about          
everything4 ,some one remarked3 ,who    
says that the son of the citizen  of    

,tsou has any knowledge of ceremonial   
observances8 ,he comes to the  ,temple  
and asks about everything he            
sees4--,hearing the remark1 the  ,master
 said3 ,this in itself is a ceremonial  
observance4    ,the prefect of the      
frontier in the town of ,i#a asked to be
 introduced  to ,confucius1 saying3 ,i  
have never failed to obtain an audience 
of any  sage who has visited these      
parts4--,he was thereupon introduced by 
the  ,master's followers1 and on coming 
out he said3 ,my sons1 why grieve at    
your ,master's fall from power8 ,the    
,empire has long been lying in evil     
ways1 but now ,god is going to make     
,confucius his herald to rouse the      
land4#b    ,the ,master said3 ,shn1 a   
single principle runs through all my    
teaching4#c--,tsng ,tz answered1        
,yes4--,when the ,master had gone out1  
the disciples asked1 saying3 ,what      
principle does he mean8--,tsng ,tz      
said3 ,our ,master's teaching simply    
amounts to this3 loyalty to oneself  and

 charity to one's neighbour4#d    ,yen  
,yan heaved a deep sigh and said3 ,the  
more ,i look at our ,master's  teaching1
 the higher it seems4 ,the more ,i test 
it1 the more reliable  it appears4 ,i am
 gazing at it in front of me1 when lo6  
it is suddenly  behind me4 ,our ,master 
knows how to draw men after him by      
regular steps4  ,he broadens our outlook
 by means of polite learning1 and       
restrains our  impulses by means of     
inward self-control4 ,even if ,i wished 
to stop1 ,i  could not do so2 yet after 
,i have exhausted all my efforts in     
pursuit  of the goal1 there still       
remains something inaccessible rising up
  beyond2 and though ,i would fain make 
towards it1 ,i cannot find the way4     
,tz ,lu once passed the night in        
,shih-men1 where the gate-keeper said   
to him3 ,where do you come from8--,tz   
,lu replied3 ,from the school of        
,confucius4--,oh1 is he not the man1    
said the other1 who is trying to do     
what he knows to be impossible8#e       

,ch#8n ,k#8ang asked ,po ,yu1#f saying3 
,have you ever received any secret      
teaching from your father8--,he replied3
 ,no4 ,but once1 when ,i was  passing   
hurriedly through our hall1 ,i met my   
father standing alone1 and  he said3    
,have you studied the ,odes8--,i        
replied1 ,not yet4--,he said3 ,if  you  
do not study the ,odes1 you will have no
 conversation4--,thereupon  ,i withdrew 
and studied the ,odes4 ,another day ,i  
met him again standing  alone as ,i     
hastened through the hall1 and he said3 
,have you studied the  ,book of         
,rites8#g--;,i replied3 ,not yet4--,he  
said3 ,if you do not study  the ,book of
 ,rites1 you will have no stability of  
character4--,i withdrew  and studied the
 ,book of ,rites4 ,these are the two    
pieces of instruction  ,i have          
received4--,ch#8n ,k#8ang went away     
rejoicing and said3 ,i asked  about one 
thing and have learned three--something 
thing about the  ,odes1 something about 
the ,rites1 and also that the higher    

type of man  has no secrets even with   
his own son4    ,yang ,huo wished to    
have an interview with ,confucius1 but  
,confucius  would not go to see him4 ,he
 therefore sent ,confucius a sucking-pig
  as a present4#h ,confucius1 however1  
chose a time when the other was  out1 to
 go and pay his respects4 ,but he       
happened to fall in with him  on the    
road4 ,thereupon ,yang ,huo addressed   
,confucius1 saying3 ,come with  me4 ,i  
have something to say to you4 ,can he be
 called truly benevolent1  who hugs his 
jewel to his bosom and allows his       
country to drift into  confusion8--,he  
cannot1 was the reply4--,can he be      
called truly wise1 who  wishes to engage
 in public affairs1 yet loses several   
opportunities of  doing so8--,he        
cannot4--,well1 rejoined ,yang ,huo1 the
 days and months  are fleeting by1 and  
the years will not wait for us4--,true1 
replied  ,confucius2 ,i will presently  
take office4#i    ,the eccentric ,chieh 
,y#aj of the ,ch#8u ,state passed       

,confucius'  carriage1 singing3 ,o      
phnix6 ,o phnix6 ,how has thy virtue    
fallen6  ,the past need no longer be a  
subject of reproof1 but against the     
future  it is still possible to provide4
 ,desist1 desist6 ,great is the danger  
of those who now engage in              
government4--,confucius alighted1       
wishing to  speak with him1 but ,chieh  
,yu hastened rapidly away1 and he was   
unable  to get speech of him4           
,ch#8ang ,ch and ,chieh ,ni#aa were     
working together in the fields  when    
,confucius passed by and sent ,tz ,lu to
 ascertain from them the  whereabouts of
 the ford4 ,ch#8ang ,ch asked3 ,who is  
that man holding  the reins8--,that is  
,confucius1 replied ,tz ,lu4--,is it    
,confucius of  the ,lu                  
,state8--,yes4--,then surely he is the  
man to know where the  ford is4#ab--,tz 
,lu then questioned ,chieh ,ni4 ,chieh  
,ni said3 ,who are  you1 ,sir8--,i am   
,chung ,yu4--,are you a disciple of     
,confucius of the ,lu  ,state8--,he     

replied3 ,i am4--,the whole ,empire1    
said ,chieh ,ni1 is rushing  head-long  
to destruction1 and who is there that   
will reform it8 ,as for  you1 instead of
 following a man who withdraws from     
prince after prince  in succession1     
would it not be better to follow a man  
who has withdrawn  from the world       
altogether8--,and he went on hoeing     
without a pause4 ,tz  ,lu went back and 
reported these remarks1 whereupon the   
,master looked  surprised and said3 ,we 
cannot join the company of birds and    
beasts4 ,if  ,i am not to associate with
 these men of the ruling class1 with    
whom am  ,i to associate8#ac ,if right  
principles prevailed in the ,empire1    
then  indeed there would be no need for 
me to reform it4    ,shu-sun ,wu-shu1#ad
 speaking to the ministers at ,court1   
said3 ,tz ,kung  is a greater sage than 
,confucius4--,tz-fu ,ching-po#ae        
repeated this  to ,tz ,kung1 who said3  
,let me use the simile of a house       
surrounded by  a wall4 ,my wall rises   

only to the height of a man's shoulders1
 so that  any one can look over and see 
the excellence of the building within4  
,but my ,master's wall is many fathoms  
in height1 so that one who fails  to    
find the gate of entry cannot see the   
beauties of the temple nor  the rich    
apparel of the officiating priests4 ,it 
may be that only a few  will succeed in 
finding the gate4 ,need we1 then1 be    
surprised at ,his  ,excellency's remark8
    ,shu-sun ,wu-shu was disparaging    
,confucius4 ,tz ,kung said3 ,it is no   
good4  ,confucius is proof against      
detraction4 ,the wisdom of other men is 
like  hills and mountain-peaks1 which   
however high can still be scaled4 ,but  
,confucius is like the sun or the moon1 
which can never be reached by  the foot 
of man4 ,a man may want to cut himself  
off from their light1  but what harm    
will that do to the sun or the moon8 ,it
 only shows very  plainly that he has no
 notion of the measurement of capacity4 
#a ,this was on the borders of the ,wei 

,state1 whither ,confucius1 with  a     
small band of disciples1 was retiring1  
heavy of heart1 after his  discomfiture 
in ,lu4    #b ,literally1 is going to   
use him as a bell with a wooden         
clapper--this being the instrument used 
in making announcements or to  call the 
people together4 ,the friendly prefect's
 prophecy was to be  fulfilled more     
wonderfully than ever he could have     
imagined4 ,never1  perhaps1 in the      
history of the human race has one man   
exerted such an  enormous influence for 
good on after generations4    #c        
,legge's rendering1 ,my doctrine is that
 of an all-pervading unity1  is quite   
untenable1 and no other translator has  
followed him here4 ,the  logic of the   
passage obviously requires the meaning  
given above4    #d ,this saying should  
be compared with those on pp4 #ia and   
#fi4 ,it is  generally acclaimed as the 
best epitome of ,confucian teaching1 yet
  it was reserved for ,mr4 ,ku          
,hung-ming1 a ,chinaman1 to give the    

first  correct translation of it in     
,english4 ,the two important words are  
chung and shu1 conscientiousness and    
charity1 for which see  notes on pp4 #eh
 and #fi4 ,legge's version1 ,to be true 
to the principles  of our nature and the
 benevolent exercise of them to others1 
though  ponderous1 would seem to have   
hit the true meaning1 had he not spoilt 
it by a note to the effect that shu is  
duty-doing on the principle of          
reciprocity4 ,it has nothing on earth to
 do with reciprocity1 being  in fact    
that disinterested love of one's        
neighbour which was preached  five      
hundred years later in ,palestine4 ,the 
other precept1 embodied in  the word    
chung1 is exactly ,shakespeare's ,to    
thine own self be true--a  noble moral  
conception for which1 obscured as it has
 been by bungling  translators1         
,confucius has never yet received full  
credit4    #e ,the age in which         
,confucius lived was so given over to   
the forces of  disorder1 militarism and 

intrigue1 and the chances of a moral    
reformer  were regarded as so hopeless1 
that it was a common thing for men of   
principle to retire from public affairs 
altogether1 and either lead  the        
sequestered life of a hermit or take to 
some mean employment for a  living4 ,the
 gate-keeper here is said to have been  
one of this class4  ,confucius1 however1
 was made of sterner stuff1 and it may  
be claimed  that he did ultimately1     
through sheer force of character1       
succeed in  achieving the impossible4   
#f ,the style or familiar name of       
,k#8ung ,li1 the only son of ,confucius4
    #g ,li here is obviously the name of
 a book1 and not the rules  of propriety
 or even the arts1 as ,legge and ,mr4   
,ku ,hung-ming  respectively take it4   
,at the same time1 we must be careful   
not to  identify it with the now        
existing ,li ,chi or ,book of ,rites1   
which did  not take shape until a much  
later period4    #h ,because etiquette  
would require an acknowledgment of the  

gift at  the donor's house4    #i ,this 
episode is probably to be referred to   
the year #ejb ,b4,c41 when  ,yang ,huo1 
the nominal subordinate of ,chi ,huan   
,tzu 7himself of usurping  tendencies1  
see ,introduction1 p4 #ae71 was in open 
rebellion and seemed  likely to become  
master of the whole state of ,lu4 ,he   
was anxious to  enlist the prestige of a
 man like ,confucius on his side1 but   
the latter  steadily refused to         
countenance his schemes4 ,in the        
following year1  ,yang ,huo was ejected 
from the state1 and gratitude impelled  
the ,duke to  offer a governorship to   
,confucius4    #aj ,apparently a        
,taoist1 who pinned his faith to ,lao   
,tz's newly  enunciated doctrine of     
inaction4    #aa ,also ,taoist recluses4
    #ab ,this is said to be a sneer at  
the restlessness which kept  ,confucius 
wandering all over the country1 so that 
no place could be  unfamiliar to him4   
#ac ,the idea is1 ,every man to his own 
trade4 ,why should ,i not then  busy    

myself with government--the subject to  
which ,i have devoted my  life8 ,i do   
not agree with ,legge that the compiler 
of this chapter  could not have been a  
disciple of the sage4 ,confucius        
successfully  refutes the laisser-faire 
argument of the hermit1 who would       
dissuade  him from reform on the strange
 and unsatisfactory ground that the     
world's affairs were in a thoroughly bad
 state4 ,to any one but a ,taoist  it   
would be evident that this was the very 
time for reform4    #ad ,a leading      
member of one of the three great        
families in the ,lu  ,state4    #ae ,a  
high official4          ,,sayings ,,of  
,,the ,,disciples      ,yu ,tz said3 ,it
 is seldom that good sons and brothers  
are given to  insubordinate conduct4    
,that those who dislike insubordinate   
conduct  should be ready to foment      
sedition1 is something absolutely       
unknown4  ,the wise man attends to the  
root2 for if this be properly set1      
virtue  will spring from it4 ,and what  

is the root of all goodness but filial  
piety and fraternal love8    ,tsng ,tz  
said3 ,there are three points on which  
,i daily examine  myself3--,have ,i been
 conscientious in working for others8   
,have ,i been  truthful in my           
intercourse with my friends8 ,have ,i   
practised what ,i  preach8    ,tz ,hsia 
said3 ,the man who can appreciate moral 
worth and disengage  his mind from      
sensual passion2 who can put forth his  
utmost strength  to serve his parents1  
and lay down his life to serve his      
prince2 who  speaks sincerely in his    
intercourse with friends3--such a man1  
though  the world may call him untaught1
 has in my opinion received the best    
and highest education4    ,tz ,kung     
said3 ,what do you say of the poor man  
who refuses to flatter1  and of the rich
 man who is free from pride8--,they are 
well enough1  replied the ,master2 but  
better still is the poor man who is     
cheerful1  and the rich man who         
cherishes the inner principle of harmony

 and  self-control4--,tz ,kung said3    
,one must cut and then carve1 chisel and
  then polish1 as the ,odes have it4    
,does not this passage illustrate  what 
you say8--,the ,master exclaimed3 ,here 
is somebody at last with whom  ,i can   
really discuss the ,odes4 ,refer him to 
any old verse1 and he will  see its     
application4#a    ,tz ,hsia asked1      
saying3 ,what is the meaning of the     
passage3        ,what dimples in her    
witching smile6      ,what lovely eyes1 
clear white and black6      ,simplicity 
sets off her ornaments8    ,the ,master 
replied3 ,you must have a plain         
background before you can lay  on the   
colours4--,rules of ceremony then       
require a background8--,ah6  exclaimed  
the ,master1 ,shang always seizes my    
drift4 ,here at any rate is  some one   
with whom ,i can discuss the ,odes4#b   
,tz ,yu said3 ,too much fault-finding   
with princes entails disgrace2 with     
friends1 it brings estrangement4    ,the
 ,master wanted to employ ,ch'i-tiao    

,k'ai in the business of  government1   
but the latter said3 ,no1 ,i cannot yet 
sufficiently trust  myself4--,the       
,master was pleased with the reply4     
,once when ,yen ,yan and ,chi ,lu were  
standing by1 the ,master said3 ,come1   
tell me1 each of you1 the wish of your  
hearts4--,tz ,lu said3 ,i should  like  
to have carriages and horses and fine   
fur garments1 and share them  with my   
friends2 nor would ,i mind if they were 
worn out in this way4--  ,yen ,yan said3
 ,my wish is to make no parade of       
goodness and no display  of toilsome    
service rendered4#c--,tz ,lu then said3 
,i should like1 ,sir1  to hear your own 
wishes4 ,the ,master said3 ,to comfort  
the aged1 to win  the confidence of my  
friends1 to love and cherish the young4 
,the ,master said3 ,yung might well be  
made a prince4#d ,chung ,kung asked  a  
question about ,tz-sang ,po-tz4 ,the    
,master replied3 ,he is a good  man on  
the whole1 though easy-going4--,chung   
,kung rejoined3 ,is it not  excusable   

for a man who is strict in his own      
habits to be easy-going in  dealing with
 the people under him8 ,but if he       
becomes easy-going in his  own habits as
 well as in his practice abroad1 this is
 surely too much  of a good thing4--,the
 ,master said3 ,yung's words are true4  
,jan ,yu asked3 ,is our ,master for or  
against the ,prince of ,wei8#e--,oh1    
said ,tz ,kung1 ,i will ask him         
that4--,he went in and said3 ,what sort 
of  men were ,po ,i and ,shu            
,ch'i8#f--,they were two ancient        
worthies1 was the  reply4--,did they    
ever repine8 he asked4--,they made      
perfect virtue their  aim1 and they     
attained it4 ,why then should they      
repine8--,tz ,kung went  out again and  
said3 ,our ,master is not for the       
,prince4    ,tsng ,tz said3 ,ability    
asking instruction of incompetence1     
abundance  sitting at the feet of       
insufficiency1 a man of every virtue who
 thought  he had none1 solid in         
character yet making himself out a      

cypher1  trespassed against but never   
retaliating--such was the humble state  
of  mind in which my late friend#g spent
 his life4    ,tsng ,tz said3 ,if a man 
can safely be entrusted with the care of
 a  young orphan prince1 or with the    
government of a large province1 and if  
the approach of a great emergency cannot
 shake his resolution1 is he  not a man 
of the princely type8 ,of the princely  
type he is indeed6    ,the authorities  
of ,lu were proposing to reconstruct the
 ,long ,treasury4  ,min ,tz-ch#8ien     
said3 ,why not restore it1 rather1 in   
the ancient style8  ,why is it necessary
 to renovate it altogether8--,the       
,master said3 ,this  man is no talker1  
but when he does speak1 he speaks to the
 purpose4    ,ss-ma ,niu lamenting said3
 ,all other men have brothers2 ,i alone 
have  none4--,tz ,hsia said to him3 ,i  
have heard it said that life and death  
are divine dispensations1 that wealth   
and rank depend on the will  of ,god4   
,the higher type of man is unfailingly  

attentive to his own  conduct1 and shows
 respect and true courtesy to others4   
,thus all within  the four seas#h are   
his brethren4 ,how then should he grieve
 at having  no brothers8    ,chi        
,tz-ch#8ng#i said3 ,the higher type of  
man is possessed of solid  qualities1   
and that is all4 ,what has he to do with
 the ornamental8--,tz  ,kung replied3 ,i
 am sorry1 ,sir1 to hear you say such a 
thing about the  higher type of man2 for
 a four-horse chariot cannot overtake   
the spoken  word4#aj ,the value of the  
ornament and the value of the substance 
are  closely connected4 ,stripped of    
hair1 the hide of a tiger or a leopard  
is very like the hide of a dog or a     
sheep4    ,duke ,ai asked ,yu ,jo1      
saying3 ,it has been a year of famine4  
,my exchequer  is ,low4 ,what am ,i to  
do8--,yu ,jo replied3 ,why not collect  
tithes8--,why1  said the ,duke1 with a  
tax of two-tenths ,i still have not     
enough4 ,how am  ,i to make one-tenth   
do8--,if the people have plenty1 was the

 reply1 how  can the ,prince alone be in
 want8 ,but if the people are in want1  
how can  the ,prince alone have         
plenty8#aa    ,tsng ,tz said of the     
higher type of man that his culture     
tended to  bring him into communion with
 friends1 and his friendships tended to 
heighten his altruism4    ,the disciples
 of ,tz ,hsia asked ,tz ,chang about the
 principles  which should govern        
friendship4 ,tz ,chang said3 ,what is   
,tz ,hsia's  opinion8--,they replied3   
,tz ,hsia says1 ,associate with those   
who come  up to your standard2 reject   
all those who do not4--,this1 said ,tz  
,chang1 is different from what ,i have  
been taught4 ,the nobler sort of  man   
honours the virtuous and wise1 but he   
admits to his society all  men without  
distinction4 ,he admires the good1 but  
he also pities the  weaker brethren4 ,am
 ,i a man of great wisdom and           
goodness8--then who is  there among my  
fellow-men that ,i will not bear with8  
,or am ,i neither  wise nor good8--then 

other men will reject me4 ,how can one  
justify this  rejection of others8#ab   
,tz ,hsia said3 ,the inferior type of   
man always tries to gloss over his      
faults4    ,tz ,hsia said3 ,the wise man
 will gain the confidence of the people 
before laying burdens upon them2        
otherwise1 they will consider it        
oppression4 ,he will gain the confidence
 of his sovereign before  censuring his 
actions2 otherwise1 the latter will     
consider it mere  libel and abuse4      
,tz ,hsia said3 ,he who does not        
transgress the larger principles of     
virtuous conduct may be excused for     
disregarding the boundary line in       
matters of smaller import4    ,tz ,yu   
said3 ,the followers and disciples of   
,tz ,hsia are trained  well enough in   
sprinkling and sweeping the floor1 in   
responding and  answering questions1 in 
entering and leaving a room4 ,but these 
are mere  accessories4 ,of fundamentals 
they are totally ignorant4 ,how can this
 be  considered enough8--,tz ,hsia1     

hearing of these remarks1 said3 ,ah6    
,yen  ,yu is mistaken4 ,it is not the   
way of the wise teacher to distinguish  
between subjects of first-class         
importance1 which must be taught1 and   
subjects of secondary importance1 which 
may be neglected4 ,he cultivates  minds 
just as he would cultivate plants1 each 
species requiring  separate treatment4  
,it cannot be the wise man's way to     
produce  confusion and error4 ,he only  
is inspired who teaches methodically1   
having a beginning and an end4    ,tz   
,hsia said3 ,let the official who has   
time to spare devote it to  study2 let  
the student who has time to spare devote
 it to public  affairs4    ,tz ,yu said3
 ,the rites of mourning should not      
extend beyond the  expression of        
heartfelt grief4    ,the chief of the   
,mng family having appointed ,yang ,fu  
to be ,criminal  ,judge1 the latter went
 to ,tsng ,tz for advice4 ,tsng ,tz     
said3 ,our  rulers have lost their way1 
and the people have long been scattered 

and  distracted4 ,when you discover the 
facts of a crime1 be not moved with  joy
 but rather with pity and grief4    ,tz 
,kung said3 ,the mistakes of a great and
 good man are like eclipses  of the sun 
and moon3 his failing is seen by all1   
and when he repairs  it1 all look up to 
him with awe4        #a ,tz ,kung1 who  
had passed from poverty to affluence1   
wished to  draw attention to his own    
freedom from the vices characteristic of
  each state1 but his ,master recommends
 the pursuit of virtue in a  more       
positive form4 ,the quotation from the  
,odes merely enforces the  necessity of 
unceasing labour in the matter of       
self-improvement4  ,confucius was always
 delighted with an apt illustration from
 his  favourite book4    #b ,the        
,chinese of the above is as usual       
extremely concise4 ,for several  turns  
of phrase ,i am indebted to ,mr4        
,jennings's translation4    #c          
,literally1 display toil4 ,the meaning  
seems to be that of the  ,tacitean      

phrase exprobrare beneficia4    #d      
,literally1 one who faces south--the    
customary position for  royalty         
enthroned4    #e ,the reigning duke1 who
 had succeeded his grandfather and was  
now  opposing his father's attempts to  
return from exile and secure the        
throne4 ,see p4 #dc4    #f ,see note on 
p4 #gd4    #g ,the disciple ,yen ,hui4  
#h ,believed to constitute the          
boundaries of the habitable earth1 like 
,homer's ,ocean-river4 ,hence the phrase
 is used as a synonym for the  ,chinese 
,empire4    #i ,a minister in the ,wei  
,state4    #aj ,a proverb4    #aa ,a    
rebuke to the ,prince for his greed in a
 time of distress4    #ab ,each         
pedagogue has seized only one side of   
the truth4 ,we need not  reject any of  
our fellow-men1 and yet show            
discrimination in the choice  of our    
associates4 ,see the first saying on p4 
#ec1 where ,confucius1  clearer-headed  
than his disciples1 puts the matter in a
 nutshell4