Book 2: Governance

Book 2: Governance

Commentary

2.1

The Master said, "He who governs by virtue is like the North Star, which remains in its place while all the other stars revolve around it."

2.2

The Master said, "The three hundred poems may be summed up in a single phrase: 'No depraved thoughts.'"

2.3

The Master said, "If you guide the people by regulations and keep order by punishments, they will evade them but have no sense of shame. If you guide them by virtue and keep order by ritual, they will have a sense of shame and will also submit."

2.4

The Master said, "At fifteen, I set my mind on learning. At thirty, I stood firm. At forty, I was free from doubts. At fifty, I understood the will of Heaven. At sixty, my ear was attuned. At seventy, I could follow what my heart desired without overstepping the bounds."

2.5

Meng Yi Zi asked about filial piety. The Master said, "Do not go against it." Fan Chi was driving the carriage, and the Master said to him, "Meng Sun asked me about filial piety, and I answered him, 'Do not go against it.'" Fan Chi said, "What does that mean?" The Master said, "While they are alive, serve them according to ritual. When they die, bury them according to ritual and sacrifice to them according to ritual."

2.6

Meng Wu Bo asked about filial piety. The Master said, "Let your parents have no cause for anxiety other than your illness."

2.7

Zi You asked about filial piety. The Master said, "Nowadays, filial piety is taken to mean merely providing for one's parents. But even dogs and horses are provided for. If there is no reverence, what is the difference?"

2.8

Zi Xia asked about filial piety. The Master said, "The difficulty is in the countenance. When there are tasks, the young shoulder the labor; when there is wine and food, the elders are served—but can this alone be considered filial piety?"

2.9

The Master said, "I could speak with Hui all day long, and he would not object, seeming dull. But when I observed his private conduct, he was able to manifest what he had learned. Hui is not dull."

2.10

The Master said, "Observe what a man does, examine his motives, and see where he finds his ease. How can a man hide himself? How can a man hide himself?"

2.11

The Master said, "If a man reviews what he already knows and from that gains new understanding, he is fit to be a teacher."

2.12

The Master said, "The gentleman is not a utensil."

2.13

Zi Gong asked about the gentleman. The Master said, "First put your words into practice, and then let your words follow."

2.14

The Master said, "The gentleman is inclusive and not partisan; the petty man is partisan and not inclusive."

2.15

The Master said, "Learning without thinking leads to confusion; thinking without learning leads to peril."

2.16

The Master said, "To attack heterodox teachings—this is harmful indeed."

2.17

The Master said, "You, shall I teach you what it means to know? To know what you know and to know what you do not know—this is true knowledge."

2.18

Zi Zhang was learning how to obtain an official salary. The Master said, "Listen widely and set aside what is doubtful; speak cautiously about the rest, and you will have few grounds for blame. Observe widely and set aside what is risky; act cautiously about the rest, and you will have few causes for regret. With few grounds for blame in speech and few causes for regret in action, an official salary is to be found therein."

2.19

Duke Ai asked, "What should be done to make the people submit?" Kong Zi replied, "Promote the upright and place them over the crooked, and the people will submit. Promote the crooked and place them over the upright, and the people will not submit."

2.20

Ji Kang Zi asked, "How can I make the people reverent, loyal, and zealous?" The Master said, "If you are solemn in presiding over them, they will be reverent. If you are filial and compassionate, they will be loyal. If you promote the capable and teach the incompetent, they will be zealous."

2.21

Someone said to Kong Zi, "Why are you not in government?" The Master said, "The *Book of Documents* says: 'Be filial, be filial; be fraternal to your brothers.' This applied to government as well. This also is to be in government. Why must one hold office to be in government?"

2.22

The Master said, "A man without trustworthiness—I do not know what to make of him. A large cart without a crossbar yoke, a small cart without a shaft yoke—how can they be made to go?"

2.23

Zi Zhang asked whether the ways of ten generations hence could be known. The Master said, "The Yin followed the rites of the Xia, and what was added or diminished is known. The Zhou followed the rites of the Yin, and what was added or diminished is known. Should there be those who come after the Zhou, even a hundred generations hence can be known."

2.24

The Master said, "To sacrifice to a spirit not one's own is flattery. To see what is right and not to do it is cowardice."