The Analects of Confucius

by Burton Watson

  Confucius said, In our district the honest people are different from that. A father covers up for his son; a son covers up for his father. There’s honesty in that, too.

  19 Fan Chi asked about humaneness. The Master said, In private life, be courteous; in handling affairs, respectful; in dealings with others, loyal. Even if you go among the Yi or Di tribes,7 these rules can never be put aside.

  20 Zigong asked, How should one conduct himself in order to be called a man of station?

  The Master said, Be mindful of anything shameful in your actions. When sent on a mission to other regions in the four directions, do nothing to disgrace your ruler’s commands. Then you can be called a man of station.

  And may I ask about a person on the next level?

  The Master said, Among the members of his clan, he is praised for his filial conduct. In his village or community, he is praised for his brotherliness.

  And may I ask about the next level?

  The Master said, Their words are certain to be trustworthy; their actions, certain to be decisive. But petty men just plodding along can reach this level.

  And how would you rate those who handle government affairs these days?

  The Master said, Ah—peck and bushel people! Not even worth sizing up!

  21 The Master said, If you can’t get someone to work with whose actions follow the mean, then you must choose between the assertive and the cautious. The assertive will forge ahead decisively. The cautious can be trusted to have things that they will not do.

  22 The Master said, Southerners have a saying: If a person lacks constancy, he cannot become a shaman or a doctor. Well put, is it not? Someone not constant in virtue is likely to suffer disgrace.8

  And the Master said, No need to consult a diviner to know that much!

  23 The Master said, The gentleman acts in harmony with others but does not ape them. The petty man apes others but is not in harmony with them.

  24 Zigong asked, If everyone in the village liked him, how would that do?

  The Master said, Not good enough.

  If everyone in the village hated him, how would that do?

  The Master said, Not good enough. Better if the good people in the village liked him, and the not-good people hated him

  25 The Master said, The gentleman is easy to serve but hard to please. Try to please him with what does not accord with the Way, and he will not be pleased. But when he employs others, he thinks of their particular capabilities.

  The petty man is hard to serve but easy to please. Try pleasing him with what does not accord with the Way, and he will be pleased. But when he employs others, he expects them to be able to do anything.

  26 The Master said, The gentleman is self-possessed but not arrogant. The petty man is arrogant but not self-possessed.

  27 The Master said, The firm, the bold, the simple, the slow in speech are near to humaneness.

  28 Zilu asked, How should one conduct himself in order to be called a man of station?

  The Master said, Earnest, exacting, but also harmonious—that would qualify you to be called a man of station. With friends, earnest, exacting. With elder and younger brothers, harmonious.

  29 The Master said, Let a good man instruct them for seven years, and the common people will be capable of military service.

  30 The Master said, To fail to instruct the common people in warfare—you could call that throwing them away.

  1 On the rectification of names, see 12:11.

  2 The three hundred–odd poems of the Book of Odes. They were often quoted in diplomatic gatherings, and if an official did not recognize a quotation or interpret it correctly, he could bring shame on himself and his government.

  3 Lu was founded by Dan, the duke of Zhou; Wei by Kangshu, his younger brother. Both were brothers of King Wu, the founder of the Zhou dynasty. Commentators disagree about whether Confucius is referring to the friendly relations that continued to exist between the two states or to the way in which both had deteriorated in recent times.

  4 The same play on “correct” (zheng) and “government” (zheng) as in 12:17.

  5 Commentators disagree about whether the court was that of the ruler of Lu or of the Ji family.

  6 The Chinese states of this time were eager to increase their population by attracting immigrants from other states.

  7 See 3:5.

  8 This sentence is identical to the Book of Changes, hexagram 32, heng, line 3.

  Book Fourteen

  1 Xian (Yuan Si) asked what is shameful. The Master said, When a state follows the Way, one receives an official stipend. But when a state is without the Way, to receive an official stipend is shameful.

  2 [Yuan Si said,] If one is free of high-handedness, bragging, enmity, and craving, can this be termed humaneness? The Master said, It may be termed difficult. But as for humaneness—I don’t know about that.

  3 The Master said, A man of station who longs for the comforts of home does not deserve to be called a man of station.

  4 The Master said, When a state follows the Way, be stern in speech, stern in action. When a state is without the Way, be stern in action but conciliatory in speech.

  5 The Master said, Those who have virtue invariably have something to say, but those who have something to say do not invariably have virtue. Those who are humane are invariably courageous, but those who are courageous are not invariably humane.

  6 Nangong Kuo questioned Confucius, saying, Yi was a skilled archer and Ao could push a boat over dry land, but neither was able to die a natural death. Yu and Ji, however, though they worked the fields in person, gained possession of the empire. The Master made no reply.

  After Nangong Kuo had left, the Master said, A gentleman should be like this! An upholder of virtue should be like this!1

  7 The Master said, A gentleman but not humane—there are some like that, are there not? But there’s never been a petty man who was humane.

  8 The Master said, If you love people, can you fail to reward them? If you are loyal to them, can you fail to admonish them?

  9 The Master said, When government proclamations were being drawn up, Pi Chen made the first draft; Shi Shu examined it; Ziyu, the official in charge of envoys, polished it; and Zichan of Dongli added the finishing touches.2

  10 Someone asked about Zichan. The Master said, A generous man.

  The person asked about Zixi. The Master said, That man! That man!

  The person asked about Guan Zhong.3 The Master said, He was the one who stripped the leader of the Bo family of Pian, a village of three hundred households, so that he had to eat meager fare, though until his death he never spoke a resentful word.

  11 The Master said, To be poor but not resentful is difficult. To be rich and not arrogant is easy.

  12 The Master said, Meng Gongchuo would have been excellent as chief retainer to the powerful Zhao or Wei family. But he could not have served as a high official even in the little states of Deng and Xue.

  13 Zilu asked about the complete person. The Master said, Zang Wuzhong’s understanding, Meng Gongchuo’s freedom from desire, the valor of Zhuangzi of Pian, the arts of Ran Qiu—embellish them through rites and music, and you have what may be termed the complete person.

  And he said, But the complete person of our times need not necessarily be like this. If when he spies gain, he remembers what is right; when he spies danger, is ready to risk his life; when faced with old promises, does not forget his past words; then he can be termed a complete person.

  14 The Master questioned Gongming Jia about Gongshu Wenzi, saying, Is it true that your master never spoke, never laughed, and never accepted things?

  Gongming Jia replied, Whoever told you that was exaggerating. My master spoke only when it was time to do so—thus others did not object to his speaking. He laughed only when he was happy—so others did not object to his laughter. He accepted things only when it was right to do so—thus others did not object to his accepting.

  The Master said, Is that
so? Could that really be so?

  15 The Master said, Zang Wuzhong holed up in Fang and asked the ruler of Lu to appoint [his brother] Wei as heir to succeed him. Although they say he did not press the ruler to do so, I do not believe that.4

  16 The Master said, Duke Wen of Jin used devious methods, not upright ones. Duke Huan of Qi used upright methods, not devious ones.5

  17 Zilu said, When Duke Huan put to death his brother, the ducal son Jiu, Shao Hu died with him but Guan Zhong did not.6 That was hardly humane of Guan Zhong, was it?

  The Master said, Duke Huan nine times called the other feudal rulers together in assembly and did so without employing his war chariots. Guan Zhong’s influence made this possible. But as for his humaneness, as for his humaneness—

  18 Zigong said, Guan Zhong was not a humane man, was he? When Duke Huan put to death the ducal son Jiu, he not only could not bring himself to die with Jiu but went on to become prime minister to Duke Huan.

  The Master said, With Guan Zhong as his prime minister, Duke Huan was able to become leader of the feudal lords and impose order on the empire. Even to this day, our people benefit from what he did. Without Guan Zhong, we would be wearing our hair unbound and folding our robes to the left.7 Would you expect of him the kind of “fidelity” of ordinary men or women who strangle themselves, end up in a roadside ditch, with no one even aware of it?

  19 Zhuan had been a retainer to Gongshu Wenzi, but later he became a high official, taking a place beside Wenzi in the service of the ruler. When the Master heard of this, he said, Gongshu Wenzi deserves the posthumous name Cultured (Wen).8

  20 Speaking of Duke Ling of Wei, the Master said that he lacked the Way.

  Ji Kangzi said, If so, why doesn’t he meet with failure?

  Confucius said, He has Zhongshu Yu (Gongshu Wenzi) to receive foreign envoys, Invocator Tuo to supervise the ancestral temples, and Wangsun Jia to handle military affairs. Given such conditions, how could he fail?

  21 The Master said, He who speaks irresponsibly will find it hard to put his words into action.

  22 Chen Chengzi assassinated Duke Jian of Qi. Confucius bathed, washed his hair, proceeded to court, and reported to Duke Ai, saying, Chen Heng (Chen Chengzi) has assassinated his ruler. I request that he be punished.

  The duke said, Report that to the three leaders of the Ji family.

  Later Confucius said, I follow the high officials—I would not dare to leave such an event unreported. The ruler said, Report that to the three leaders of the Ji family.

  When he went and reported to the three leaders, they declined to act. Confucius said, I follow the high officials—I would not dare to leave such an event unreported.9

  23 Zilu asked how to serve the ruler. The Master said, Never deceive him; oppose him openly.

  24 The Master said, The gentleman is an expert in important matters; the petty man, an expert in trivial ones.

  25 The Master said, Formerly people studied to improve themselves; now they do so to impress others.

  26 Qu Boyu sent a messenger to Confucius. Confucius seated him at his side and questioned him, saying, What does your master do?

  The messenger replied, My master endeavors to lessen his faults, though he is not yet entirely successful.

  After the messenger left, the Master said, What a messenger, what a messenger!10

  27 The Master said, If one does not hold the position, one does not dictate the policies that go with it.11

  28 Master Zeng said, The gentleman’s thoughts do not extend beyond the position that he holds.

  29 The Master said, The gentleman is ashamed to let his words outstrip his actions.

  30 The Master said, The Way of the gentleman has three characteristics that are still beyond me. The humane are never anxious; the wise, never perplexed; the brave, never afraid.12

  Zigong said, Master, that is your own Way.

  31 Zigong was voicing his opinion of others. The Master said, How wise Si (Zigong) is! I’m afraid I don’t have time for that sort of thing.

  32 The Master said, Don’t worry about others’ not understanding you. Worry about your own lack of ability.

  33 The Master said, Do not be overly wary of deception; do not suspect others of bad faith. But he who is first to perceive the true situation is the wise one!

  34 Weisheng Mu said to Confucius, Qiu, why are you always rushing around? Are you trying to talk yourself into favor?13

  Confucius replied, I would not venture to talk myself into favor. I’m distressed by so much obstinacy.

  35 The Master said, The famous horse Qi was praised not for his strength but for his virtue.14

  36 Someone said, Repay hatred with virtue—how would that do?

  The Master said, Then how would you repay virtue? Repay hatred with uprightness. Repay virtue with virtue.

  37 The Master said, No one understands me—isn’t that so?

  Zigong said, Why do you suppose that no one understands you?

  The Master said, I bear no grudge against Heaven; I do not blame others. I study affairs close at hand and try to become adept in higher matters. Perhaps it is Heaven that understands me!

  38 Gongbo Liao spoke ill of Zilu to the head of the Ji family. Zifu Jingbo reported this, saying, My master[, Ji Sun,] has for some time been led astray by Gongbo Liao. But I still have enough influence to see that Gongbo Liao is executed and his corpse exposed in the marketplace.

  The Master said, If the Way is destined to proceed, that is a matter of fate. And if the Way is destined to fail, that too is fate. How can Gongbo Liao change what is fated?

  39 The Master said, Worthy persons retire from the world. The next best retire from the region. The next best retire because of a look. The next best retire because of a word.

  The Master said, There were seven who did so.15

  40 Zilu stopped for the night at Stone Gate. The gatekeeper said, Where are you from? Zilu said, From the household of Confucius.

  The gatekeeper said, The one who knows there’s nothing that can be done but keeps on trying?

  41 When he was in Wei, the Master was once playing the chiming stones.16 A man carrying a basket passed the gate of the house where Confucius was staying. He said, Someone of strong convictions is sounding the stones! After a while he said, Shallow—all this clang-clanging! If no one understands you, you give up, that’s all.

  In deep water, let your robe get wet;

  In shallow, hike it up.17

  The Master said, Quite right—that would be the easy way out.

  42 Zizhang said, The Book of Documents states that Gao Zong was in his mourning hut for three years without speaking.18 What does this mean?

  The Master said, Why only Gao Zong? The men of ancient times all did this. When the ruler passed away, the officials under him for three years took all their instructions from the prime minister.

  43 The Master said, If those in high positions love ritual, the common people will be easy to employ.

  44 Zilu asked about the gentleman. The Master said, He trains himself to be respectful.

  Is that all?

  The Master said, He trains himself in order to give ease to others.

  Is that all?

  The Master said, He trains himself in order to give ease to all men and women. But training himself in order to give ease to all men and women—even the sages Yao and Shun found that hard to do.

  45 Yuan Rang sat waiting for Confucius in a slovenly posture. The Master said, Young but not properly submissive, grown and no one speaks well of you, old and you still don’t die—a real pest!

  He rapped on Yuan’s shins with his cane.19

  46 A young boy of the village of Que was assigned to carry messages. Someone asked Confucius about him, saying, Is he improving himself?

  The Master said, I’ve seen him sit in the seat for adults, seen him walk shoulder to shoulder with his elders. He’s not trying to improve himself—he’s just in a hurry to be treated as a grownup.

  1 Confucius ad
mires Nangong Kuo for recognizing the worth of the sage ruler Yu and the minister Ji.

  2 Confucius wishes to depict good government as operating through written documents drawn up by high-ranking members of the bureaucracy, such as these eminent officials of the state of Zheng in the preceding generation.

  3 Not enough is known about the officials Zixi and Guan Zhong to determine the exact meaning of Confucius’s comments.

  4 Zang Wuzhong, involved in a power struggle within Lu, was forced to flee to a neighboring state in 546 B.C.E. Before he did so, he paused in his domain of Fang and asked the Lu ruler to appoint his brother to succeed him as leader of the Zang family. Although people said he did not pressure the ruler of Lu to do so, Confucius believed otherwise.

  5 Both Duke Wen and Duke Huan were ba (hegemons) who for a time exercised power over the other feudal rulers. Just what Confucius is referring to in his comment is unclear.

  6 Both Shao Hu and Guan Zhong had been supporters of Jiu, but after Jiu’s death Guan Zhong transferred his loyalty to Duke Huan.

  7 Non-Chinese customs; that is, China would have been invaded by foreign tribes and Chinese culture wiped out.

  8 On Gongshu Wenzi’s posthumous name, see 5:15. Confucius applauds Gongshu Wenzi for having allowed his former retainer to become equal to himself as an official in the service of the ruler of Wei.

  9 Duke Jian of Qi was assassinated in 481 B.C.E., when Confucius was seventy-two by Chinese reckoning. Duke Ai, a weak ruler, showed no inclination to launch a military strike against Chen Heng, leader of the powerful Chen (Tian) ministerial family of Qi, nor did the heads of the Ji family. In the years following Confucius’s death, the process of usurpation in Qi continued until 386 B.C.E., when the Tian family overthrew the ruling family and declared itself ruler of Qi.

  10 Some commentators take Confucius’s final remark as an indication of approval, while others see it as sarcasm.

  11 Identical to 8:14.

  12 Almost identical to 9:30.

  13 The fact that Weisheng Mu addresses Confucius by his personal name, Qiu, suggests that he is older than Confucius or disdainful of him. He is referring to the way Confucius travels from state to state in an effort to gain a hearing for his ideas.