Robber Zhi

Robber Zhi

Kong Qiu and Liu Xiaji were friends. Liu Xiaji's younger brother was named Dao Zhi. Dao Zhi commanded a following of nine thousand men, ranged across the world in all directions, and invaded and oppressed the feudal lords. He broke into dwellings and bored through doors, drove off people's oxen and horses, and seized their wives and daughters. In his greed he forgot his kin; he had no regard for his parents and brothers, and he did not sacrifice to his ancestors. In the towns he passed through, large states manned their walls and small states retreated to their strongholds. The myriad people suffered bitterly from him.

Kong Qiu said to Liu Xiaji: "A father must be able to instruct his son, and an elder brother must be able to teach his younger brother. If a father cannot instruct his son and an elder brother cannot teach his younger brother, then there is no value in the closeness between father and son or between brothers. Now, sir, you are a man of talent of the age, yet your younger brother is Dao Zhi, a plague upon the whole world, and you are unable to teach him. I, Qiu, am ashamed on your behalf, sir. I beg leave to go and persuade him on your behalf."

Liu Xiaji said: "You say, 'A father must be able to instruct his son, and an elder brother must be able to teach his younger brother.' But if a son will not heed his father's instruction and a younger brother will not accept his elder brother's teaching, then even with your eloquence, sir, what can be done about it? Moreover, Dao Zhi is the kind of man whose heart surges like a spring, whose thoughts race like a gale. His strength is enough to resist any enemy, his eloquence enough to dress up his wrongs. If you go along with his wishes, he is pleased; if you go against them, he is enraged. He easily insults others with words. You must not go."

Kong Qiu would not listen. With Yan Hui driving the carriage and Zigong attending on the right, he went to see Dao Zhi.

Dao Zhi had encamped his followers on the southern flank of Mount Tai and was slicing human livers for his meal. Kong Qiu alighted from his carriage and approached. Seeing the gatekeeper, he said: "I am Kong Qiu of Lu. I have heard of the noble virtue of the General and respectfully pay my respects, bowing twice before the gatekeeper." The gatekeeper went in to announce him. When Dao Zhi heard, he flew into a great rage. His eyes blazed like bright stars, and his hair bristled up through his cap. "This must be that cunning hypocrite of Lu, Kong Qiu, is it not? Go and tell him this for me: 'You invent words and fabricate speech, recklessly citing Wen and Wu. You wear a cap made of branches and wood, and you gird yourself with the ribs of a dead ox. With your many twisted and erroneous sayings, you eat without tilling and wear clothes without weaving. You wag your lips and drum up your tongue, creating right and wrong at will, to confuse the lords of the world. You cause the scholars of the world to turn from their true foundation and recklessly practice filial piety and brotherly duty, merely to seek the luck of being enfeoffed with marquisates and enriched. Your crimes are great and your guilt is extreme. Hurry back at home! If you do not, I will add your liver to my midday meal!'"

Kong Qiu again asked to be announced, saying: "I, Qiu, have the good fortune to be close to Ji, and I wish to have the honor of gazing upon your presence beneath your curtain." The gatekeeper again went in to announce him. Dao Zhi said: "Bring him forward!" Kong Qiu hastened in, withdrew from his mat, retreated a few steps, and bowed twice to Dao Zhi. Dao Zhi was in a towering rage. He stretched out both feet, rested his hand on his sword, and glared at him, his voice like that of a nursing tigress. "Qiu, come forward! If what you say accords with my wishes, you shall live. If it goes against my heart, you shall die!"

Kong Qiu said: "I, Qiu, have heard that in the world there are three kinds of virtue. To be born tall and handsome, beautiful beyond compare, so that old and young, noble and base alike all take delight in you—this is the highest virtue. To have knowledge that comprehends Heaven and Earth and the ability to discern all things—this is the middle virtue. To be brave and resolute, to gather followers and lead troops—this is the lowest virtue. Any man who possesses even one of these virtues is fit to face south and be called a lord. Now the General combines all three: your body is eight feet and two inches tall, your face and eyes have a radiant glow, your lips are as vivid as cinnabar, your teeth are even as rows of cowries, and your voice matches the pitch of the Yellow Bell—and yet you are called Dao Zhi. I, Qiu, am privately ashamed on your behalf, sir, that this is not worthy of you. If the General is willing to listen to me, I beg leave to go south as your envoy to Wu and Yue, north to Qi and Lu, east to Song and Wei, and west to Jin and Chu, and to have them build for the General a great city of several hundred li, establish a town with tens of thousands of households, honor the General as a feudal lord, make a new beginning with the whole world, disband the troops and rest the soldiers, gather in your brothers, and together sacrifice to your ancestors. This is the conduct of a sage and a man of talent, and it is the wish of the world."

Zhao Ti was furious. He said, "Come forward, Qiu! Those who can be persuaded by profit and corrected by words are nothing but foolish commoners. Now I am tall and handsome, and people who see me find me pleasing—this is the legacy of my parents. Even if you do not praise me, do I not know it myself? Moreover, I have heard: 'Those who like to praise others to their faces also like to slander them behind their backs.' Now you tell me of great cities and large populations—this is trying to persuade me by profit, and to keep me like a commoner. How can this endure? The greatest city is none other than the world itself. Yao and Shun had the world, yet their descendants did not have enough land to stick an awl into. Tang and Wu became emperors, but their lines later perished. Was this not because the profit was too great? And I have heard that in ancient times, there were many beasts and few people, so the people all lived in trees to avoid harm. They gathered acorns and chestnuts by day and roosted in the trees at night, so they were called 'the people of Youchao Shi.' In ancient times, the people did not know clothing; in summer they piled up firewood, and in winter they warmed themselves by it, so they were called 'the people of Zhisheng Shi.' In the era of Shennong, they lay down contentedly and rose unhurriedly. The people knew their mothers but not their fathers. They lived together with deer and elk. They farmed for food and wove for clothing, with no hearts inclined to harm one another. This was the height of supreme virtue. But Huangdi could not maintain virtue, and fought with Chiyou on the plain of Zhuolu, where blood flowed for a hundred li. Yao and Shun arose and established ministers. Tang banished his lord; Wu killed Zhou. From this time on, the strong oppressed the weak, and the many tyrannized the few. Since Tang and Wu, they have all been troublemakers. Now you cultivate the ways of Wen and Wu, hold the rhetoric of the world, and use it to teach later generations. You wear tailored robes and a narrow sash, with pretentious speech and false conduct, to confuse the lords of the world and seek wealth and honor. No thief is greater than you. Why does the world not call you Robber Qiu, instead of calling me Robber Ti? With sweet words you persuaded Zilu to follow you. You made Zilu remove his tall cap and unbuckle his long sword, and receive instruction from you. The world all said, 'Kong Qiu can stop the violent and forbid the wrong.' But in the end, when Zilu tried to kill the lord of Wei and failed, and his body was minced above the East Gate of Wei, this showed that your teaching did not succeed. Do you consider yourself a man of talent and a sage? Then you were twice expelled from Lu, had your traces erased in Wei, was stranded in Qi, and besieged in Chen and Cai—your person could not be accommodated under heaven. Your teaching minced Zilu. This calamity—above, it could not serve the self; below, it could not serve others. How can your way be worthy of esteem? None in the world is more highly esteemed than Huangdi. Yet even Huangdi could not preserve his virtue intact, but fought on the plain of Zhuolu, where blood flowed for a hundred li. Yao was not kind; Shun was not filial; Yu was crippled; Tang banished his lord; Wu attacked Zhou; King Wen was imprisoned in Youli. These six men are the most highly esteemed in the world, but examine them closely: all were confused by profit and forced themselves to go against their true nature, and their conduct was truly shameful! The so-called worthy scholars of the world are Boyi and Shuqi. Boyi and Shuqi renounced the lord of Guzhu and starved to death on Mount Shouyang, their bones and flesh left unburied. Baozhao adorned his conduct and condemned the world, and embraced a tree and died. Shendudi remonceived and was not heard, and threw himself into the river carrying a stone, to be eaten by fish and turtles. Jiezitui was utterly loyal—he cut flesh from his own thigh to feed Duke Wen. But Duke Wen later turned his back on him. Zitui left in anger, and was burned to death embracing a tree. Weisheng made an appointment with a woman under a bridge. The woman did not come, and when the water rose he would not leave, and died embracing a pillar. These four men are no different from a dismembered dog, a floating pig, or a beggar with a gourd ladle—all clung to reputation and took death lightly, without caring for their roots and preserving their lifespan. The so-called loyal ministers of the world are none other than Prince Bigan and Wu Zixu. Zixu was thrown into the river; Bigan had his heart cut out. These two men are called loyal ministers by the world, yet in the end they became the laughingstock of the world. Looking at them from above, down to Zixu and Bigan, none are worthy of esteem. The reason you tried to persuade me: if you told me about matters of ghosts, I would not know; if you told me about human matters, it is nothing beyond this—all things I have heard and know. Now I will tell you the true nature of human beings: the eyes desire to see colors, the ears desire to hear sounds, the mouth desires to taste flavors, and the will and qi desire to be fulfilled. The longest life is a hundred years; the middle, eighty; the shortest, sixty. Subtract the days of illness, death, mourning, and worry, and the days when one opens one's mouth and laughs are no more than four or five days in a month. Heaven and earth are without limit, but human death has its time. We hold this temporary thing and entrust it to the limitless—suddenly it is no different from a swift steed passing through a crack. Those who cannot delight their will and intentions and nurture their lifespan are all not one with the Way. Everything you have said is what I cast away. Be gone! Hurry back and say no more! Your way is frantic and grasping, a matter of cunning, hypocrisy, and false conduct—it cannot preserve the true. Why is it even worth discussing?"

Kong Qiu bowed twice, hastened out and walked to the door, boarded the carriage, and dropped the reins three times. His eyes were dim and saw nothing; his face was the color of dead ashes. He leaned on the rail and hung his head, unable to breathe. He returned to the East Gate of Lu and happened to encounter Liuxia Ji. Liuxia Ji said, "Lately it has been several days since I have seen you, and your carriage and horses show signs of travel. Could it be that you went to see Ti?" Kong Qiu looked up to the sky and sighed, saying, "Yes." Liuxia Ji said, "Did Ti go against your wishes as before?" Kong Qiu said, "Yes. I was as one who cauterizes himself when he has no illness. I hurried to stroke the tiger's head and braid his whiskers—how narrowly I escaped the tiger's mouth!"

Zi Zhang asked Man Gou De: "Why not cultivate conduct? Without conduct, there is no trust; without trust, there is no employment; without employment, there is no profit. Therefore, when reputation is examined and profit is calculated, righteousness is truly the right thing. If one casts off fame and profit and turns inward to the heart, then the conduct of a scholar cannot be neglected for a single day, can it?" Man Gou De said: "The shameless are rich; the much-trusted are prominent. The greatest fame and profit lie almost in shamelessness and trust. Therefore, when reputation is examined and profit is calculated, trust is truly the right thing. If one casts off fame and profit and turns inward to the heart, then the conduct of a scholar should hold fast to his Heavenly nature!"

Zizhang said: "In ancient times, Jie and Zhou were honored as Sons of Heaven and possessed all under Heaven. But if you say to a herder or a bondservant, 'Your conduct is like that of Jie and Zhou,' he will blush and feel resentment, because even base men despise such behavior. On the other hand, Zhongni and Mo Di were reduced to the status of commoners; but if you say to a chief minister, 'Your conduct is like that of Zhongni and Mo Di,' he will change his countenance and say with self-deprecation that he falls short—because scholars truly honor such conduct. Thus, to hold the position of Son of Heaven does not necessarily mean honor; to be reduced to the status of a commoner does not necessarily mean baseness. The distinction between honor and baseness lies in the goodness or badness of one's conduct."

Man Goude said: "A petty thief is seized and imprisoned; a great thief becomes a prince. Yet it is at the gates of princes that righteous men are to be found. In ancient times, Duke Huan of Qi killed his elder brother and took his sister-in-law to wife, yet Guan Zhong became his minister. Tian Chengzi killed his lord and stole his state, yet Confucius accepted his gift. In theory they condemned such men, yet in practice they submitted to them. Is this not a contradiction between word and deed, a conflict raging within the breast? Is it not perverse? Therefore the book says: 'Who is bad and who is good? The successful are placed at the head; the unsuccessful are placed at the tail.'"

Zizhang said: "If you do not act with proper conduct, then how will you distinguish between close and distant kin, establish the propriety of noble and base, maintain the order of old and young, and differentiate the five relationships and the six positions?" Man Goude said: "Yao killed his eldest son; Shun exiled his mother and younger brother—did they distinguish between close and distant kin? Tang banished Jie; King Wu killed Zhou—did they establish the propriety of noble and base? Wang Ji was passed over as heir; the Duke of Zhou killed his elder brothers—did they maintain the order of old and young? The Confucians use false words; the Mohists preach universal love—do they differentiate the five relationships and the six positions? Moreover, you set your heart on fame; I set my heart on gain. But in reality, neither fame nor gain accords with principle or reflects the Way. I debate with you daily, having set no bounds: 'The petty man sacrifices himself for wealth; the gentleman sacrifices himself for fame. The means by which they alter their nature and change their inborn character differ, but in abandoning what they should do in order to die for what they should not do, they are one and the same.' Therefore I say: Do not be a petty man—return instead to your Heavenly nature. Do not be a gentleman—follow instead the principle of Heaven. Be crooked or straight, according to the ultimate of Heaven. Look around in all four directions, and wax and wane with the times. Be this or that, and hold to the pivot of the circle. Perfect your own intention alone, and linger with the Way. Do not fix your conduct; do not make righteousness your achievement—you will lose what you should do. Do not pursue wealth; do not sacrifice yourself for success—you will abandon your Heavenly nature. Bigan had his heart cut out; Zixu had his eyes gouged out—such is the calamity of loyalty. Zhigong testified against his father; Weisheng drowned himself—such is the affliction of good faith. Baozi stood firm and died; Shenzi could not defend himself—such is the harm of integrity. Confucius did not see his mother; Kuangzi did not see his father—such is the failure of righteousness. These are the tales handed down from the upper ages and repeated in the later generations. Those who would correct their words and make their deeds certain thereby invite disaster and bring affliction upon themselves."

Wuzu asked Zhihe: "In the end, there is no one who does not rise to fame and pursue gain. When a man is rich, people turn to him; when they turn to him, they place themselves below him; when they place themselves below him, they honor him. To be seen as worthy of submission and honor is the way to long life, a peaceful body, and a satisfied mind. Yet you alone have no such desire—is it that your knowledge is insufficient? Or that you know it in your mind but lack the strength to act? Or that you uphold what is right and cannot forget it?"

Zhihe said: "Now this man thinks that those who are born in his time and dwell in his district are all men who transcend the ordinary world and rise above the age. But in truth he has no fixed standard of what is correct. He looks through the ages of past and present, through the distinctions of right and wrong, yet he transforms with the world and moves with his age. He abandons what is most weighty, discards what is most honored, thinking it all to be merely what he does himself. How far he is, then, from the way of long life, a peaceful body, and a satisfied mind! The pain of grief and the comfort of ease—he does not reflect on these in his body. The terror of fear and the joy of delight—he does not reflect on these in his mind. He knows how to act but does not know why he acts. Therefore even to be honored as Son of Heaven and to possess all under Heaven does not keep one free from calamity."

Wuzu said: "Wealth is of advantage to a man in every way. To attain the ultimate in beauty and exhaust the limits of power—this is what even the Perfect Man cannot reach, what even the worthy cannot achieve. He wields the courage and strength of others to establish his own might; he takes the knowledge and schemes of others to make himself keen and perceptive; he relies on the virtue of others to make himself seem worthy and good—and without even possessing a state he is as awe-inspiring as a lord or father. Moreover, sounds and colors, flavors and delights, power and authority—the mind delights in them without needing to learn, and the body is at ease in them without needing a model. To desire or hate, to avoid or pursue—these require no teacher. This is the nature of man. Though the whole world may condemn me, who can renounce them?"

Zhihe said: "The wise man acts on behalf of the people, never transgressing what is proper, and so he is content and does not contend. He acts without purpose, and so he does not seek. When he lacks, he seeks, and though he contends on every side, he does not consider himself greedy. When he has surplus, he declines, and though he casts away all under Heaven, he does not consider himself honest. The reality of honesty and greed is not imposed from without; it reflects an inner measure. Even if his position makes him Son of Heaven, he does not use his honor to make others arrogant; even if he possesses all under Heaven, he does not use his wealth to make sport of others. He calculates the calamity and considers the consequences, recognizing that such things harm his nature, and so he declines and does not accept—not in order to seek fame and praise. When Yao and Shun became emperors and brought harmony, it was not because they were benevolent toward the world, but because they would not let the beautiful harm life. When Shan Juan and Xu You were offered the empire and would not accept, it was not empty rhetoric and false humility—they would not let affairs harm themselves. These men accepted what was advantageous and declined what was harmful, and the whole world called them worthy. This they could indeed do; but they did not do it in order to rise to fame and praise."

Wu Zhi said: "If one must cling to reputation, torment the body and reject sweetness, stinting nourishment merely to sustain life, then this is also a matter of chronic suffering and prolonged hardship without death."

Zhi He said: "Evenness is good fortune; having a surplus is a harm—there is nothing among creatures for which this is not so, and wealth is the most extreme example. Now the wealthy: their ears are beset by the sounds of bells, drums, pipes, and flutes; their mouths are steeped in the flavors of grain-fed meats, sweet wine, and rich liquor—thus stirring their inclinations and causing them to forget their proper pursuits. This may be called confusion. Drowning and sinking into a surfeit of qi, like carrying a heavy load while climbing upward—this may be called suffering. Grieving over wealth to the point of inviting ruin, grasping for power to the point of exhaustion, sinking into indolence when at rest, swelling with fullness when the body is well-nourished—this may be called illness. Striving for riches and chasing after profit, they fill up like a wall before them yet do not know to retreat, and they swell with excess without letting go—this may be called disgrace. Wealth accumulates without being put to any use, yet they cling to it with their whole hearts, their minds full of anxious fretfulness, seeking more and never stopping—this may be called worry. Within, they suspect thieves and robbers; without, they fear the harm of bandits and raiders. Inside, they fortify with watchtowers and walls; outside, they dare not walk alone—this may be called fear. These six are the greatest harms in the world, yet all are forgotten and unexamined. When calamity arrives, even if they sought to exhaust their entire nature and spend all their wealth merely to restore one day of peace, they could not achieve it. Therefore, when one looks for fame, one does not find it; when one seeks profit, one does not obtain it. To twist the body and strain the mind contending for this—is this not deluded?"