Confucius, The Analects (c. 500 BCE)
Jen (Humaneness)
XII.22: Fan-ch'ih asked about jen. The Master
said, "It is to love all men." He asked about knowledge. "It is to know
all men." Fan ch'ih did not immediately understand these answers. The
Master said, "Employ the upright and put aside all the crooked; in this
way, the crooked can be made to be upright."
VII.29: The Master said, "Is humaneness a thing
remote? I wish to be humane, and behold! humaneness is at hand."
VI.28: Tzu-kung said, "Suppose I put the case of a
man who extensively confers benefits on the people, and is able to
assist everyone, what would you say about him? Might he be called
perfectly humane?" The Master said, "Why speak only of humaneness in
connection with him? Must he not have the qualities of a sage? . . .
Now the man of perfect humaneness, wishing to be established himself,
seeks also to establish others; wishing to be enlarged himself, he
seeks also to enlarge others. To be able to judge of others by what is
nearby in ourselves, that is what we might call the art of humaneness."
XV.23: Tzu-kung asked, saying, "Is there one world
which may serve as a rule of practice for all one's life?" The Master
said, "Is not reciprocity such a word? What you do not want done to
yourself, do not do to others."
XIV.36: Someone said, "What do you say concerning
the principle that injury should be recompensed with kindness?" The
Master said, "With what then will you recompense kindness? Recompense
injury with justice, and recompense kindness with kindness."
VII.15: The Master said, "With coarse rice to eat,
with water to drink, and my bended arm for a pillow; I still have joy
in the midst of these things. Riches and honors acquired by inhumanity
are to me as a floating cloud."
IV.25: The Master said, "Virtue is not left to stand alone. He who practices it will have neighbors."
XV.8: The Master said, "The determined scholar and
the man of virtue will not seek to live at the expense of humanity.
They will even sacrifice their lives to preserve their humanity."
VII.6: The Master said, "Let the will be set on the
path of duty. Let every attainment in what is good be firmly grasped.
Let perfect virtue be accorded with. Let relaxation and enjoyment be
found in the polite arts."
The Superior Man (chün-tzu)
XX.3: The Master said, "Without recognizing the
ordinances of Heaven, it is impossible to be a superior man (chün
tzu)."
XV.17: The Master said, "The superior man in
everything considers righteousness to be essential. He performs it
according to the rules of propriety (li ). He brings it forth in
humility. He completes it with sincerity. This is indeed a superior
man."
XV.31: The Master said, "The object of the superior
man is truth, not food. . . . The superior man is anxious lest he
should not get truth; he is not anxious lest poverty should come upon
him."
IV.16: The Master said, "The mind of the superior
man is conversant with virtue; the mind of the base man is conversant
with gain."
IV.5: The Master said, "Riches and honors are what
men desire. If they cannot be obtained in the proper way, they should
not be held. Poverty and baseness are what men dislike. If they cannot
be avoided in the proper way, they should not be avoided. . . . The
superior man does not, even for the space of a single meal, act
contrary to virtue. In moments of haste, he cleaves to it. In seasons
of danger, he cleaves to it."
XV.20: The Master said, "What the superior man seeks, is in himself. What the mean man seeks, is in others."
XII.4: Ssu-ma Niu asked about the superior man. The
Master said, "The superior man has neither anxiety nor fear." "Being
without anxiety or fear!" said Ssu-ma, "does this constitute what we
call the superior man?" The Master said, "When internal examination
discovers nothing wrong, what is there to be anxious about, what is
there to fear?"
XIV.24: The Master said, "The progress of the
superior man is upwards; the progress of the mean man is downwards."
XVI.8: Confucius said, "There are three things of
which the superior man stand in awe. He stands in awe of the ordinances
of Heaven. He stands in awe of great men. He stands in awe of the words
of the sages. The mean man does not know the ordinances of Heaven, and
consequently does not stand in awe of them. He is disrespectful to
great men. He makes sport of the words of the sages."
XIV.29: The Master said, "The superior man is modest in his speech, but exceeds in his actions."
XV.18: The Master said, "The superior man is
distressed by his want of ability. He is not distressed by men not
knowing of him."
XV.21: The Master said, "The superior man is
dignified, but does not wrangle. He is sociable, but not partisan."
XVII.24: Tzu-kung asked, "Has the superior man his
hatreds also?" The Master said, "He has his hatreds. He hates those who
proclaim the evil of others. He hates the man who, being in a low
station, slanders his superiors. He hates those who have valor merely,
and are unobservant of propriety (li ). He hates those who are forward
and determined, and, at the same time, of contracted understanding."
XVI.10: Confucius said, "The superior man has nine
things which are subjects with him of thoughtful consideration. In
regard to the use of his eyes, he is anxious to see clearly. In regard
to the use of his ears, he is anxious to hear distinctly. In regard to
his countenance, he is anxious that it should be benign. In regard to
his speech, he is anxious that it should be sincere. In regard to his
doing of business, he is anxious that it should be reverently careful.
In regard to what he doubts about, he is anxious to question others.
When he is angry, he thinks of the difficulties his anger may involve
him in. When he sees gain to be got, he thinks of righteousness."
XIX.9: Tzu-hsia3 said, "The superior man undergoes
three changes. Looked at from a distance, he appears stern; when
approached, he is mild; when he is heard to speak, his language is firm
and decided."
XV.36: The superior man is correctly firm, and not merely firm.
Li (Rites )
III.3: The Master said, "If a man be without the
virtues proper to humanity,5 what has he to do with the rites of
propriety?6 If a man be without the virtues of humanity, what has he to
do with music?"
VIII.2: The Master said, "Respectfulness, without
the rules of propriety,7 becomes laborious bustle; carefulness, without
the rules of propriety, becomes timidity; boldness, without the rules
of propriety, becomes insubordination; straightforwardness, without the
rules of propriety, becomes rudeness."
III.4: Lin Fang asked what was the first thing to be
attended to in ceremonies. The Master said, "A great question, indeed!
In festive ceremonies, it is better to be sparing than extravagant. In
the ceremonies of mourning, it is better that there be deep sorrow than
a minute attention to the observances."
III.26: The Master said, "High station filled
without indulgent generosity; ceremonies performed without reverence;
mourning conducted without sorrowÑwherewith should I contemplate
such ways?"
XI.1: The Master said, "The men of former times, in
the matters of ceremonies and music,8 were rustics, it is said, while
the men of these latter times, in ceremonies and music, are
accomplished gentlemen. If I have occasion to use those things, I
follow the men of former times."
III.17: Tzu Kung wished to do away with the offering
of a sheep connected with the inauguration of the first day of each
month. The Master said, "Tzu Kung, you love the sheep; I love the
ceremony."
Yüeh (Music)
III.23: The Master instructing the Grand music
master of Lu said, "How to play music may be known. At the commencement
of the piece, all the parts should sound together. As it proceeds, they
should be in harmony, severally distinct and flowing without a break,
and thus on to the conclusion."
IX.14: The Master said, "I returned from Wei to Lu,
and then the music was reformed, and the pieces in the Imperial songs
and Praise songs found all their proper place."
Learning and Teaching
IX.4: There were four things from which the Master
was entirely free. He had no foregone conclusions, no arbitrary
predeterminations, no obstinacy, and no egotism.
XVII.2: The Master said, "By nature, men are nearly alike; by practice, they get to be wide apart."
XVI.9: Confucius said, "Those who are born with the
possession of knowledge are the highest class of men. Those who learn,
and so readily get possession of knowledge, are the next. Those who are
dull and stupid, and yet compass the learning are another class next to
these. As to those who are dull and stupid and yet do not learn--they
are the lowest of the people."
VII.8: The Master said, "I do not open up the truth
to one who is not eager to get knowledge, nor help out any one who is
not anxious to explain himself. When I have presented one corner of a
subject to any one, and he cannot from it learn the other three, I do
not repeat my lesson."
IV.9: The Master said, "A scholar, whose mind is set
on truth, and who is ashamed of bad clothes and bad food, is not fit to
be discoursed with."
VIII.12: The Master said, "It is not easy to find a
man who has learned for three years without coming to be good."
XII.15: The Master said, "By extensively studying
all learning, and keeping himself under the restraint of the rules of
propriety, one may thus likewise not err from what is right."
IX.18: The Master said, "The course of learning may
be compared to what may happen in raising a mound. If there want but
one basket of earth to complete the work, and I stop, the stopping is
my own work. It may be compared to throwing down the earth on the level
ground. Though but one basketful is thrown at a time, the advancing
with it is my own going forward."
XIV.47: A youth of the village of Ch'üeh was
employed by Kung to carry the messages between him and his visitors.
Someone asked about him, saying, "I suppose he has made great
progress." The Master said, "I observe that he is fond of occupying the
seat of a full-grown man; I observe that he walks shoulder to shoulder
with his elders. He is not one who is seeking to make progress in
learning. He wishes quickly to become a man."
XIV.25: The Master said, "In ancient times, men
learned with a view to their own improvement. Nowadays, men learn with
a view to the approbation of others."
XV.29: The Master said, "To have faults and not to
reform them--this, indeed, should be pronounced having faults."
IX.28: The Master said, "The wise are free from
perplexities; the virtuous from anxiety; and the bold from fear."
Government
II.7: Tzu-kung asked about government. The Master
said, "The requisites of government are that there be sufficiency of
food, sufficiency of military equipment, and the confidence of the
people in their ruler." Tzu Kung said, "If it cannot be helped, and one
of these must be dispensed with, which of the three should be foregone
first?" "The military equipment," said the Master. Tzu Kung again
asked, "If it cannot be helped and one of the remaining two must be
dispensed with, which of them should be foregone?" The Master answered,
"Part with the food. From of old, death has been the lot of humanity;
but if the people have no faith in their rulers, there is no standing
for the state."
XII.14: Tzu-chang asked about government. The Master
said, "The art of governing is to keep its affairs before the mind
without weariness, and to practice these affairs with undeviating
consistency."
XII.19: Chi K'ang-tzu asked Confucius about
government, saying, "What do you say to killing unprincipled people for
the sake of principled people?" Confucius replied, "Sir, in carrying on
your government, why should you use killing at all? Let your evinced
desires be for what is good, and the people will be good. The relation
between superiors (chün-tzu) and inferiors is like that between
the wind and the grass. The grass must bend, when the wind blows across
it."
XIII.6: The Master said, "When a prince's personal
conduct is correct, his government is effective without the issuing of
orders. If his personal conduct is not correct, he may issue orders,
but they will not be followed."
VII.10: The Master said to Yen Yuen, "When called to
office, undertake its duties; when not so called, then lie retired . .
. Tzu-lu said, "If you had the conduct of the armies of a great state,
whom would you have to act with you?" The Master said, "I would not
have him to act with me, who will unarmed attack a tiger, or cross a
river without a boat, dying without any regret. My associate must be
the man who proceeds to action full of caution, who is fond of
adjusting his plans, and then carries them into execution."
XIV.23: Tzu-lu asked how a sovereign should be
served. The Master said, "Do not impose on him, and, moreover,
withstand him to his face."
III.18: The Master said, "The full observance of the
rules of propriety9 in serving one's prince is accounted by people to
be flattery."
XI.23: "What is called a great minister,10 is one
who serves his prince according to what is right, and when he finds he
cannot do so, retires."
XIV.1: Hsien asked what was shameful. The Master
said, "When good government prevails in a state, to be thinking only of
one's salary. When bad government prevails, to be thinking, in the same
way, only of one's salary. That is what is shameful."
IX.13: "When a country is well governed, poverty and
mean condition are things to be ashamed of. When a country is poorly
governed, riches and honor are things to be ashamed of."
XIV.20: The Master was speaking about the
unprincipled actions of the duke Ling of Wei, when K'ang Tzu said,
"Since he is of such a character, how is it he does not lose his
throne?" Kung Fu-Tzu said, "Chung-shu Yu has the superintendence of his
guests and strangers; the litanist, T'uo, has the management of his
ancestral temple; and Wang-sun Chia has the direction of the army and
forces: with such officers as these, how should he lose his throne?"