Bao Pu Zi Wai Pian (抱朴子外篇) · Volume 3

夫君猶器也，臣猶物也，器小物大，不能相受矣。髫孺背千金而逐蛺蝶，越人棄八珍而甘蛙黽，即患不賞好，又病不識惡矣。夫不用，則雖珍而不貴矣；莫與，則傷之者必至。昔衛靈聽聖言而數驚，秦孝聞高談而睡寐，而欲緝隆平之化，收良能之勳，猶卻行以逐馳，適楚而道燕也。

The lord is like a vessel and the minister like a thing: when the vessel is small and the thing big, they cannot hold one another. A child turns his back on a thousand gold to chase a butterfly; the men of Yue cast aside the eight delicacies yet find frogs sweet: they suffer alike from not recognizing the good and are sick from not knowing the bad. If he is not employed, however rare he is not prized; if no one gives him place, those who injure him are sure to come. Of old Duke Ling of Wei heard the sage's words and was repeatedly startled, and Duke Xiao of Qin heard lofty discourse and fell asleep; to wish then to gather together the teaching of high peace and reap the merit of the good and able is like walking backward to catch a gallop, or taking the road through Yan to reach Chu.

抱朴子曰：南溟引朝宗以成不測之深，玄圃崇本石以致極天之峻。大夏凌霄，賴群橑之積；輪曲轅直，無可闕之物。故元凱之佐登，而格天之化洽；折沖之才周，則逐鹿之奸寢。舜禹所以有天下而不與，衛靈所以雖驕恣而不危也。

Baopuzi said: The southern deep, by drawing in what pays it court, achieved its unfathomable depth; the Hanging Gardens, by piling high trees and stones, attained their sky-touching steepness. A great hall soars beyond the clouds resting on the heaping of many rafters; wheel curved and shaft straight, nothing may be lacking. So when the Yuan and Kai were raised in aid, the teaching that reaches heaven was concordant; when the talent that breaks the charge was made complete, the treachery that chased the deer was stilled. This is why Shun and Yu could possess all under heaven as though they had not taken part, and why Duke Ling, though arrogant and willful, was not endangered.

眾力並，則萬鈞不足舉也；群智用，則庶績不足康也。故繁足者死而不弊，多士者亂而不亡。然劍戟不長於縫緝，錐鑽不可以擊斷，牛馬不能吠守，雞犬不任駕乘。役其所長，則事無廢功；避其所短，則世無棄材矣。

When many strengths combine, ten thousand jun is not too heavy to lift; when many wisdoms are employed, all manner of tasks find peace. So the creature with many feet is not undone by death, and the state with many officers is not destroyed by disorder. Yet sword and halberd are not good for sewing, awl and drill cannot serve to cut through, ox and horse cannot bark and keep watch, and cock and dog are not equal to being driven. Employ it at what it is good at and no work loses its merit; avoid what it is bad at and no talent in the world is thrown away.

抱朴子曰：舍輕艘而涉無涯者，不見其必濟也；無良輔而羨隆平者，未聞其有成也。鴻鸞之凌虛者，六翮之力也；淵虯之天飛者，雲霧之偕也。故招賢用者，人主之要務也；立功立事者，髦俊之所思也。若乃樂治定而忽智士者，何異欲致遠途而棄騏騄哉！

Baopuzi said: To leave the light boat and cross the boundless water on foot—one does not see him make the crossing. To envy high peace without good helpers—one does not hear of his achieving it. The swan and the phoenix mount the empty sky by the strength of their six plumes; the dragon of the deep flies to heaven in the company of clouds and mists. So summoning the worthy and putting them to use is the ruler's chief task; establishing merit and doing great work is what the talented long for. As for the man who delights in settled order yet overlooks the wise, what is the difference between him and one who wants to reach the far road yet casts aside the thoroughbred!

夫拔丘園之否滯，舉遺漏之幽人，職盡其才，祿稱其功者，君所以待賢者也；勤夙夜之在公，竭心力於百揆，進善退惡，知無不為者，臣所以報知己也。世有隱逸之民，而無獨立之主者，士可以喜遁而無憂，君不可以無臣而致治。是以傅說呂尚不汲汲於聞達者，道德備則輕王公也。而殷高周文乃夢想乎得賢者，建洪勳必須良佐也。

To draw out the man lingering in hill and garden, to raise up the recluse left aside, to let office use his talent to the full and stipend match his merit—this is how the ruler treats the worthy. To labor for the public weal from dawn to dusk, to spend heart and strength on the hundred offices, to advance the good and retire the bad, doing all that one knows—this is how the minister repays the one who knows him. The world may have reclusive folk, but it has no independent ruler: a gentleman may delight in flight and retirement without care, but a ruler cannot reach order without ministers. So Fu Yue and Lü Shang did not fret after fame and advancement, because when the Way and its power are complete, kings and dukes count for little; yet Gaozong of Yin and King Wen of Zhou dreamed of finding the worthy, because to establish a great work one must have good helpers.

患於生乎深宮之中，長乎婦人之手，不識稼穡之艱難，不知憂懼之何理，承家繼體，蔽乎崇替。所急在乎侈靡，至務在乎遊晏，般於畋獵，湎於酣樂，聞淫聲則驚聽，見豔色則改視。役聰用明，止此二事。鑑澄人物，不以經神，唯識玩弄可以悅心志，不知奇士可以安社稷。犀象珠玉，無足而至自萬里之外；定傾之器，能行而淪乎四境之內。二豎之疾既據而募良醫，棟橈之禍已集而思謀夫，何乎火起乃穿井，覺飢而占田哉！夫庸隸猶不可以不拊循而卒盡其力，安可以無素而暴得其用哉

The disease lies in being born deep within the palace and reared in women's hands, not knowing the hardship of sowing and reaping, not knowing what care and fear are—heir to the house and successor to the true line, hoodwinked by talk of rise and fall. What is urgent to him is extravagance; the most pressing business is feasting and roaming; he lingers at the hunt and wallows in drunken pleasure; hearing wanton sounds he pricks his ears, seeing dazzling beauty he shifts his gaze. His cleverness is employed and comes to rest on these two things alone. To appraise and clarify men and things does not pass through his spirit; he knows only that playthings can gladden the heart, and does not know that rare men can steady the altars of the state. Rhinoceros and ivory, pearl and jade, though footless come from ten thousand li away; the capacities that could steady the overturning, though they have feet, sink submerged within the four borders. To recruit a good physician only when the two sprites already hold the vitals, to think of the counsellors only when the ridge-beam's ruin is already gathered—what difference from digging a well when the fire has started, or inspecting the field when hunger is felt! Even a mean servant cannot be drained of strength at once without first being tended—how much less can one obtain a man's service at a stroke with no prior store of care!

或曰：“尾大於身者，不可掉；臣賢於君者，不可任。故口不容而強吞之者必哽，才非匹而安仗之者見輕。”

Someone said: "When the tail is bigger than the body it cannot be wagged; when the minister is worthier than the lord he cannot be employed. So he who forces down what his mouth cannot hold is sure to choke, and he who rests at ease on talent no match for his own is held in contempt."

抱朴子曰：“詭哉，言乎！昔者荊子總角而攝相事，實賴二十五老，臻乎惠康。子賤起家而治大邦，實由勝己者多，而招其弘益。齊桓殺兄而立，鳥獸其行，被髮彝酒，婦閭三百，委政仲父，遂為霸宗；夷吾既終，禍亂亟起。魯用季子二十餘年，內無秕政，外無侵削；人之亡沒，殄瘁響集。豈非才所不逮，其功如彼；自任其事，其禍如此乎！”

Baopuzi said: "What deceitful talk this is! In days past the young lord of Jing managed the ministry while still a youth with bound hair, and truly it was by relying on twenty-five elders that he reached grace and peace. Zijian, just risen from his family, governed a great state—truly because those better than himself were many, and he reaped a great benefit. Duke Huan of Qi slew his brother and set himself up, behaved like a bird or beast, let his hair hang loose, wallowed in ale, kept women in three hundred lanes—and entrusted the government to Zhongfu, whereupon he became the head of the hegemons; the moment Guan Zhong died, calamity and disorder arose at once. Lu employed Jizi for more than twenty years: within, there was no chaff in the government; without, no encroachment or loss. The moment that man died, wasting distress gathered like an echo. Was it not that when talent fell short of the task, the merit turned out thus; and when they took the tasks on themselves, calamity turned out thus!"

“漢高決策於玄幃，定勝乎千里，則不如良平；治兵多而益善，所向無敵，則不如信布；兼而用之，帝業克成。故疾步累趨，未若托乘乎逸足；尋飛逐走，未若假伎乎鷹犬。夫勁弩難彀，而可以摧堅逮遠；大舟難乘，而可以致重濟深；猛將難御，而可以折沖拓境；高賢難臨，而可以攸敘彝倫。

(Baopuzi continued:) "The High Ancestor of Han, in deciding plans within the tent and settling victory a thousand li away, was no match for Zhang Liang and Chen Ping; in commanding troops, the more the better, invincible wherever he went, he was no match for Han Xin and Ying Bu; it was by employing them together that the imperial work could be achieved. So running with quick steps again and again is not as good as entrusting oneself to a fleet-footed mount; seeking what flies and chasing what runs is not as good as borrowing the skill of hawk and hound. A strong crossbow is hard to draw, yet it can smash the solid and reach the far; a great ship is hard to ride, yet it can deliver heavy loads and cross the deep; a fierce general is hard to control, yet he can break the charge and open the frontiers; a lofty worthy is hard to look down upon, yet he can put the constant relations in order."

“昔魯哀庸主也，而仲尼上聖，不敢不盡其節；齊景下才也，而晏嬰大賢，不敢不竭其誠。豈有人臣當與其君校智力之多少，計局量之優劣，必須堯舜乃為之役哉！何事非君何使非民恥令其君不及唐虞，此亦達者之用心也。”

(Baopuzi continued:) "In days past Duke Ai of Lu was a mediocre lord and Confucius the highest sage, yet he dared not fail to render his full measure; Duke Jing of Qi was a lesser talent and Yan Ying a great worthy, yet he dared not fail to spend his whole sincerity. How could a subject be one who weighs his own lord's stock of wit and strength against his own, reckons the worth of their measures, and will serve only a Yao or a Shun! What matter is not the lord's? What service is not the people's? To be ashamed that one's own lord falls short of Tang and Yu—this too is the heart of the understanding man."

抱朴子曰：由余在戎，而秦穆惟憂。楚殺得臣，而晉文乃喜。樂毅出而燕壞，種蠡入而越霸。破國亡家，失士者也。豈徒有之者重，無之者輕而已哉！柳惠之墓，猶挫元寇之銳，況於坐之於朝廷乎幹木之隱，猶退踐境之攻，況於置之於端右乎郅都之象，使勁虜振懾。孔明之屍，猶令大國寢鋒。以此禦侮，則地必不侵矣；以此率師，則主必不辱矣。

Baopuzi said: When You Yu was among the Rong, Duke Mu of Qin knew only worry. When Chu slew Dechen, Duke Wen of Jin at last rejoiced. When Yue Yi left, Yan fell to ruin; when Wen Zhong and Fan Li came, Yue became hegemon. To have one's state broken and house lost is the lot of those who lose their men. How is it merely that with him one is weighty and without him light! The grave of Liuxia Hui alone blunted the edge of the great invaders—how much more setting such a man upon the court! The retirement of Duan Ganmu alone drove back the assault that trampled the borders—how much more placing him at the right hand of the mat! The painted likeness of Zhi Du struck dread into the mighty foe. The very corpse of Kongming made a great state sheathe its blade. Use such men to withstand invasion and insult, and the land is sure not to be invaded; use them to command the host, and the lord is sure not to be disgraced.

是以明主旅束帛於窮巷，揚滯羽於瘁林，飛翹車於河梁，闢四門而不倦，不吝金璧，不遠千里，不憚屈己，不恥卑辭，而以致賢為首務，得士為重寶。舉之者受上賞，蔽之者為竊位。

So the enlightened ruler sends bundles of silk down the poorest lanes, raises the lagging feathers out of the withered grove, sends the high-shouldered carriage speeding to the river bridge, throws open the four gates without wearying, does not grudge gold and jade, does not count a thousand li far, does not fear to abase himself, is not ashamed of humble words—and makes bringing in the worthy the first task and gaining good men the greatest treasure. He who recommends is given the highest rewards; he who obstructs is a usurper of his seat.

故公旦執贄於白屋，秦邵拜昌於張生。鄒子涉境，而燕君擁彗；莊周未食，而趙惠竦立。晉平接亥唐，腳痺而坐不敢正；齊任之造稷丘，雖頻繁而不辭其勞。楚王受笞於保申，□簡去甲於公廬，彼雖降高抑滿，以貴下賤，終亦並目以遠其明，假耳以廣其聰。龍騰虎踞，宜其然也。

So Dan, Duke of Zhou, presented gifts to the men of thatched hovels, and King Zhao of Qin bowed and begged Master Zhang for excellent words. When Zou Yan stepped within the borders, the lord of Yan took up the broom himself; before Zhuang Zhou had even eaten, King Hui of Zhao stood at rigid attention. When Duke Ping of Jin received Haitang, his legs grew numb yet he dared not sit straight; the lord of Qi went to Jiqiu and, however often, did not refuse the toil. The King of Chu received the lash from Bao Shen; Duke Jian (the base text lacks this character) put off his armor at Gonglu's word. Though they lowered the high and pressed down the full, bringing the honored down to the mean, in the end it was all to join their eyes to others' that their sight might reach farther, and borrow others' ears that their hearing might reach wider. Dragon rearing, tiger crouching—it was ever meant to be so.

抱朴子曰：莫不貴仁，而無能純仁以致治也；莫不賤刑，而無能廢刑以整民也。或云：“明後御世，風向草偃。道洽化醇，安所用刑”餘乃論之曰：“夫德教者，黼黻之祭服也；刑罰者，捍刃之甲冑也。若德教治狡暴，猶以黼黻御剡鋒也；以刑罰施平世，是以甲升廟堂也。故仁者養物之器，刑者懲非之具，我欲利之，而彼欲害之，加仁無悛，非刑不止。刑為仁佐，於是可知也。

Baopuzi said: There is none who does not prize benevolence, yet none who can reach order by benevolence pure and unmixed; there is none who does not despise punishment, yet none who can set the hundred surnames right by abolishing it. Someone said: "When the enlightened lord drives all under heaven, the grass bends wherever the wind blows. When the Way accords and the teaching is rich, what need is there for punishment?" I thereupon argued: "Moral teaching is the embroidered sacrificial robe; punishment is the armor against the blade. To govern the crafty and violent with moral teaching is like fending off a blade with embroidered robes; to apply punishment in a time of peace is like mounting the ancestral hall in armor. So benevolence is the vessel that nourishes things and punishment the implement that chastises faults: I wish him well, he means me harm; add benevolence and he does not change—without punishment there is no stopping him. That punishment is the helper of benevolence may be known from this.

譬存玄胎息，呼吸吐納，含景內視，熊經鳥伸者，長生之術也。然艱而且遲，為者鮮成，能得之者，萬而一焉。病篤痛甚，身困命危，則不得不攻之以針石，治之以毒烈。若廢和鵲之方，而慕松喬之道，則死者眾矣。仁之為政，非為不美也。然黎庶巧偽，趨利忘義。若不齊之以威，糾之以刑，遠羨羲農之風，則亂不可振，其禍深大。以殺止殺，豈樂之哉！

(Baopuzi continued:) For example, preserving the dark essence and embryo breathing, exhaling and inhaling, holding the sunlight and looking inward, hanging like a bear, stretching like a bird—this is the method of long life. Yet it is hard and slow; of those who practice it few succeed, and those who obtain it are one in ten thousand. When sickness is grave and pain severe, the body spent and life in peril, one cannot help but attack and treat it with needle and stone and cure it with violent drugs. To abandon the formulas of Yi He and Bian Que while admiring the way of Redpine and Wang Qiao—the deaths would be many. Benevolence as government is not unlovely. Yet the common folk are crafty and false, run after profit and forget rightness. If they are not leveled by awe and not corrected by punishment, then gazing afar after the winds of Fuxi and Shennong, disorder cannot be lifted and ruin runs deep and great. To use killing to stop killing—where is the joy in that!

“八卦之作，窮理盡性，明罰用獄，著於《噬嗑》；系以徽纆，存乎《習坎》。然用刑其來尚矣。逮於軒轅，聖德尤高，而躬親征伐，至於百戰，殭屍涿鹿，流血阪泉，猶不能使時無叛逆，載戢干戈。亦安能使百姓皆良，民不犯罪而不治者，未之有也。唐虞之盛，象天用刑，竄殛放流，天下乃服。漢文玄默，比隆成康，猶斷四百，鞭死者多。夫匠石不捨繩墨，故無不直之木。明主不廢戮罰，故無陵遲之政也。

(Baopuzi continued:) "When the eight trigrams were made, they plumbed the principle and exhausted the nature: clarifying punishments and putting lawsuits to use is written in Shihe; binding with ropes of two and three strands is kept in Xikan. From this it may be seen that the use of punishment has been long-standing. Down to Xuanyuan, whose sagely virtue was highest of all, he still campaigned in person through a hundred battles, the corpses laid stiff at Zhuolu, the blood flowing at Banquan—and even he could not make his age free of rebels and put away shield and dagger-axe. How much less could anyone make the hundred surnames all good and leave men ungoverned when they commit no crime—there is no such thing. In the height of Tang and Yu, taking Heaven for model they applied punishment—banishing, slaying, casting out, exiling—and only then did all under heaven submit. Emperor Wen of Han in his dark silence reached a height rivaling Cheng and Kang, yet in a single year he judged four hundred cases and many were beaten to death. Carpenter Shi does not lay aside the inked line, and so no timber is not straight; the enlightened lord does not abolish execution and punishment, and so no government sinks into slackness.

“蓋天地之道，不能純仁，故青陽闡陶育之和，素秋厲肅殺之威，融風扇則枯瘁攄藻，白露凝則繁英凋零。是以品物阜焉，歲功成焉。溫而無寒，則蠕動不蟄，根植冬榮。寬而無嚴，則奸宄並作，利器長守。故明賞以存正，必罰以閒邪。勸沮之器，莫此之要。觀民設教，濟其寬猛，使懦不可狎，剛不傷恩。五刑之罪，至於三千，是繩不可曲也；司寇行刑，君為不舉，是法不可廢也。繩曲，則奸回萌矣；法廢，則禍亂滋矣。

(Baopuzi continued:) "The way of heaven and earth cannot be benevolence alone: thus the green spring unfolds the harmony that nurtures and the pale autumn sternly wields the majesty that withers. When the warm wind stirs, even the withered spread their patterns; when the white dew congeals, the richest bloom falls. So the kinds of things grow rich and the year's work is accomplished. Were there only warmth and no cold, the wriggling would not go into hiding and the rooted would flower through winter. Were there only leniency and no severity, treachery and crime would rise together, and sharp weapons would stay long in private hands. So make rewards clear to preserve the upright, and make punishment certain to bar the crooked: for urging and checking, no instrument is more essential. Watch the people and set teaching accordingly, aiding the lenient and the stern, so that the mild may not be trifled with and the hard does not hurt kindness. The crimes under the five punishments ran to three thousand—this is the line that must not bend. When the minister of justice carried out a punishment, the ruler for that day raised no music—this is the law that must not be abolished. Once the line bends, villainy sprouts; once the law lapses, calamity grows.

“亡國非無令也，患於令煩而不行；敗軍非無禁也，患於禁設而不止。故眾慝彌蔓，而下黷其上。夫賞貴當功而不必重，罰貴得得罪而不必酷也。鞭樸廢於家，則僮僕怠惰；征伐息於國，則群下不虔。愛待敬而不敗，故制禮以崇之；德須威而久立，故作刑以肅之。班倕不委規矩，故方圓不戾於物；明君不釋法度，故機詐不肆其巧。唐虞其仁如天，而不原四罪；姬公友於兄弟，而不赦二叔。仲尼之誅正卯，漢武之殺外甥，垂淚惜法，蓋不獲已也。

(Baopuzi continued:) "A state that falls is not without statutes—the fault is that the statutes are fussy and not carried out; an army that is beaten is not without prohibitions—the fault is that the prohibitions are set up and do not stop anything. So the many evils spread and those below insult those above. Rewards are prized when they match merit, not when they are heavy; penalties are prized when they hit their mark, not when they are cruel. If a household lets the whip and rod lapse, the servants grow lazy; if a state ceases its punitive campaigns, the underlings lose their reverence. Love awaits reverence not to be spoiled, so the rites were made to exalt it; virtue must have awe behind it to stand long, so punishments were made to order it. Ban and Chui do not cast aside compass and square, and so round and square never miss the thing; the enlightened lord does not let the law slacken, and so craft and deceit cannot run loose with their wiles. Tang and Yu were benevolent as heaven, yet they did not pardon the four criminals; the Duke of Zhou loved his brothers, yet he did not spare the two uncles of Guan and Cai. Confucius executed Shaozheng Mao; Emperor Wu of Han killed his own nephew. Shedding tears while cherishing the law—presumably they had no choice.

，。故誅一以振萬，損少以成多，方之櫛發，則所利者眾；比於割疽，則所全者大。是以灸刺慘痛而不可止者，以痊病也；刑法兇醜而不可罷者，以救弊也。六軍如林，未必皆勇。排鋒陷火，人情所憚。然恬顏以勸之，則投命者鮮；斷斬以威之，則莫不奮擊。故役歡笑者，不及叱吒之速；用誘悅者，未若刑戮之齊。

So to execute one and rouse ten thousand, to cut down the few to preserve the many—compare it to combing the hair, and those who profit are many; compare it to lancing a boil, and what is preserved is great. So the moxa burn and the needle's pain must not be stopped, because they are meant to cure the sickness; and punishment, ugly and grim, must not be abolished, because it is meant to rescue from ruin. The six hosts stand like a forest, yet not all are brave. Parting the blades and plunging into fire is what human feeling dreads. Yet urge them with a gentle face and few will throw in their lives; establish awe with the threat of hewing and none fails to strike. So driving men with smiles cannot match the swiftness of the shouted command, and pleasing them with inducements cannot match the leveling of the blade.

是以安於感深谷而嚴其法，衛子疾棄灰而峻其闢。夫以其所畏，禁其所玩，峻而不犯，全民之術也。明治病之術者，杜未生之疾；達治亂之要者，遏將來之患。若乃以輕刑禁重罪，以薄法衛厚利，陳之滋章，而犯者彌多，有似穿阱以當路，非仁人之用懷也。

So Dong Anyu, moved by the deep ravine, made the law sterner, and Wei Yang, hating the ash cast on the road, made the penalties harsher. To take what they fear and forbid what they trifle with—sternness without offenses is the method of preserving the people. He who understands the method of curing sickness cuts off disease before it comes; he who grasps the main point of order and disorder checks calamity before it forms. As for using light penalties to forbid heavy crimes and thin laws to guard fat profits—the more clearly they are set forth the more men offend, like digging pitfalls across the highway: it is not the heart of a humane man.

“善為政者，必先端此以率彼，治親以整疏，不曲法以行意，必有罪而無赦。若石石昔之割愛以滅親，晉文之忍情以斬頡。故仁者，為政之脂粉；刑者，御世之轡策；脂粉非體中之至急，而轡策須臾不可無也。肅恭少怠，則慢惰已至；威嚴暫馳，則群邪生心。當怒不怒，奸臣為虎；當殺不殺，大賊乃發。水久壞河，山起咫尺。尋木千丈，始於毫末；鑽燧之火，勺水可滅；鵠卵未孚，指掌可縻。及其乘沖飈而燎鉅野，奮六羽以凌朝霞，則雖智勇不能制也。

(Baopuzi continued:) "He who is good at government is sure first to set this right to lead that, to govern the near to order the far; he does not bend the law to serve private ends, and where there is guilt he never pardons. Thus Shi Que cut away the dearest bonds to destroy his own kin (the base text gives corrupt characters, which should be Shi Que), and Duke Wen of Jin steeled his feelings to behead Dian Jie. So benevolence is the face-powder of government, while punishment is the bridle and whip that drive the world: powder is not the most pressing thing upon the person, but bridle and whip cannot be dropped for a moment. Let reverence slacken a little and laziness and insolence arrive; let awe relax a while and the whole host of wickedness conceives a heart. To withhold anger where anger is due makes tigers of treacherous ministers; to withhold killing where killing is due lets the great robbers arise. Water long amassed breaks the riverbank; a mountain is piled up from a foot. A towering tree begins from a hair's tip; the fire from the drill can be quenched with a ladle of water; the swan's egg not yet hatched can be crushed between finger and palm. Wait until it rides the whirlwind to burn the great wilds, or spreads its six plumes to mount the morning clouds, and even wisdom and valor cannot master it."

故明君治難於其易，去惡於其微，不伐善以長亂，不操柯而猶豫焉。然則刑之為物，國之神器，君所自執，不可假人，猶長劍不可倒捉，巨魚不可脫淵也。乃崇替之所由，安危之源本也。田常之奪齊，六卿之分晉，趙高之弒秦，王莽之篡漢，履霜逮冰，由來漸矣。或永嘆於海濱，或拊心乎望夷，禍延宗祧，作戒將來者，由乎慕虛名於住古，忘實禍於當己也。”

So the enlightened ruler governs the hard while it is easy, removes the evil while it is slight; he does not boast of kindness and so feed disorder, nor grasp the axe's helve and hesitate. Thus punishment, as a thing, is the spirit-vessel of the state: the lord holds it himself and may not lend it to another, just as a long sword cannot be gripped by the blade and a great fish cannot leave the deep pool. This is the path by which rise and ruin come, the very source of safety and danger. Tian Chang stole Qi; the six ministers carved up Jin; Zhao Gao slew his sovereign of Qin; Wang Mang usurped Han. Tread upon the frost and the ice is reached—it came on gradually. One lord sighed his last sigh by the seashore; another wrung his heart at the Wangyi Palace; calamity reached to the ancestral temples and left a warning for ages to come—because men of old coveted the empty name while on their own persons forgetting the real ruin."

或人曰：“刑辟之興，蓋存叔世。立人之道，唯仁與義。我清靜而民自正，我無慾而民自樸，烹鮮之戒，不欲其煩。寬以愛人則得眾，悅以使人則下附。故孟子以體仁為安，揚子云謂申韓為屠宰。夫繁策急轡，非造父之御；嚴刑峻罰，非三五之道。故有虞手不指揮，口不煩言，恭己南面，而治化雍熙矣。宓生政以率俗，彈琴詠詩，身不下堂，而漁者宵肅矣。

Someone said: "Punishments arose, presumably, in a degenerate age. In establishing men, the way is benevolence and rightness alone. I am still and the people right themselves; I am without desire and the people return to simplicity of themselves; the warning against stirring the fish too much is precisely the wish to avoid fuss. Be generous in loving men and you win the multitude; set them to work with gladness and those below cleave to you. So Mencius took the embodiment of benevolence as his resting place, while Yang Xiong called Shen and Han butchers. Many whips and tight bits are not Zaofu's driving; stern punishments and harsh penalties are not the way of the Three Augusts and Five Thearchs. So Shun of Youyu, his hand never pointing, his mouth untroubled by words, faced south in reverent ease, and government and teaching were harmonious and bright. Fu Zijian governed the common folk with administration: playing the lute and chanting the Odes, his body never descending the hall, and even the night fishermen stood in awe."

必能厚惠薄斂，救乏擢滯，舉賢任才，勸穡省用，招攜以禮，懷遠以德，陶之以成均，治之以庠序。化上而興善者，必若靡草之逐驚風；洗心而革面者，必若清波之滌輕塵。朝有德讓之群后，野無犯禮之軌躅。圜土可以虛蕪，楚革可以永格，何必賞罰可以為國乎！”

(The other continued:) "One need only give generously in kindness and gather thinly in taxes, relieve the destitute and raise the neglected, promote the worthy and employ the able, encourage sowing and reaping and economize on expenditure, win over the disaffected with the rites, soothe the distant with virtue, smelt and mold by the great academy, and order all by the village schools. Then those above who are transformed and rise to goodness are sure to be like fine grass racing the startled wind; those who wash the heart and change their countenance are sure to be like clear ripples washing light dust. The assembled lords at court will be yielding in virtue, and in the fields there will be no wheel-ruts that trespass against the rites. The prisons may stand empty and overgrown, the rods and blades be laid away forever—why must there be rewards and punishments before the state can be ordered!"

抱朴子答曰：“《易》稱“明罰敕法”，《書》有“哀矜折獄”。爵人於朝，刑人於市，有自來矣，豈從叔世！多仁則法不立，威寡則下侵上。夫法不立，則庶事汩矣；下侵上，則逆節明矣。至醇既澆於三代，大樸又散於秦漢，道衰於疇昔，俗薄乎當今，而欲結繩以整奸欺，不言以化狡猾，委轡策而乘奔馬於險途，舍柁櫓而泛虛舟以凌波，盤旋以逐走盜，揖讓以救災火，斬晁錯以卻七國，舞干戈以平赤眉，未見其可也！

Baopuzi answered: "The Book of Changes speaks of 'making punishments clear and rectifying the laws'; the Book of Documents has 'deciding cases with pity and care'. Conferring rank at court and inflicting punishment in the marketplace has its grounds since antiquity—how could it have begun only in a degenerate age! With too much benevolence the law cannot stand; with too little awe those below encroach on those above. If the law cannot stand, the many affairs fall into disorder; if those below encroach on those above, rebellion and disloyalty come to light. Utmost purity was already diluted in the Three Dynasties, great simplicity scattered again under Qin and Han; the Way declined in former days, customs are thin in the present—and you would order the crafty and cheating with knotted cords, teach the cunning without words, cast aside rein and whip yet ride a galloping horse on a dangerous road, abandon rudder and sweep yet send an empty ship to mount the billows, wheel about in ceremony to chase a fleeing robber, bow and yield to put out a raging fire, execute Chao Cuo to make the seven states retire, and dance shield and axe to pacify the Red Eyebrows! I do not see that these could do."

“蓋三皇步而五常驟，霸王以來，載馳載騖。當其弊也，吏欺民巧，寇盜公行，髡鉗不足以懲無恥，族誅不能以禁覬覦。重目以廣視，累耳以遠聽，抗燭以理滯事，焦心以息奸源，而猶市朝有呼嗟之音，邊鄙有不聞之枉。

(Baopuzi continued:) "The Three Augusts moved at a slow pace and the Five Thearchs at a gallop; since the hegemon-kings, it has been running and quick-marching at once. In times of ruin and decay, officers deceive and the people are crafty, robbers and brigands run openly, shaving and collaring cannot chastise the shameless, and the slaughter of families cannot forbid coveting. Eyes are doubled to see farther, ears are multiplied to hear deeper, candles are raised to clear the backlog of affairs, hearts are seared to choke the springs of treachery—and still there is the sound of sighing in court and market, and wrongs on the frontiers that go unheard."

作威作福者，或發乎瞻視之下；兇家害國者，或構乎蕭牆之內。而欲以太昊之道，治偷薄之俗；以畫一之歌，救鼎湧之亂，非識因革之隨時，明損益之變通也。所謂刻舟以摸遺劍，叄天而射五步，摜犀兕之甲，以涉不測之淵；扲卻寒之裘，以御鬱隆之暑，踵之解除，頤之搔背，其為憒憒，莫此之劇矣！

(Baopuzi continued:) Those who wield the rod and hand out favor sometimes issue them from beneath their own gaze; those who ruin houses and harm states sometimes form within the screen wall. To wish then to take the way of Taihao to govern a pilfering and shallow age, or the song of the single rule to rescue a cauldron-seething disorder—this is to fail to know that continuance and change must answer the times, and to fail to grasp that taking away and adding must answer circumstances. This is what is called notching the boat to find the lost sword, shooting at heaven from five paces off, wearing rhinoceros-hide armor to wade an unfathomable deep on foot, carrying winter furs to fend off the sweltering heat, and scratching the back with the chin to relieve another's itch—there is no confusion greater than this!

“但當先令而後誅，得情而勿喜，使伯氏無怨於失邑，虞芮知恥而無訟耳。若強暴掩容，操繩而不憚，誘於含垢，莫蔓而不除，恃藏疾之大言，忘膏肓之近急，何異焦喉之渴切身，而遙指滄海於萬里之外，滔天之水已及，而方造舟於長洲之林，安得免夸父之禍，脫淪水之害哉！

(Baopuzi continued:) "One need only issue orders first and then execute, and, having got the truth of the matter, not rejoice—so that the Bo clan bears no grudge for a lost fief, and the men of Yu and Rui know shame and have no lawsuits. But when violence and outrage cover the face of things, and holding the inked line they feel no fear; when they are lured by 'swallowing the filth' and let the creeping weeds grow; when they rest on the grand talk of 'hiding the sickness' and forget that the disease is at the vital parts—what difference is there from feeling the parching thirst already at one's throat yet pointing far off to the gray sea ten thousand li away, or waiting until the sky-flooding waters have arrived before going to the Long Isle groves to build a ship? How could one escape Kuafu's doom or flee the harm of drowning!"

世人薄申韓之實事，嘉老莊之誕談。然而為政莫能錯刑，殺人者原其死，傷人者赦其罪，所謂土木半瓦胾，無救朝飢者也。道家之言，高則高矣，用之則弊，遼落迂闊，譬猶干將不可以縫線，巨象不可使鼠，金舟不能凌陽侯之波，玉馬不任騁千里之跡也。

(Baopuzi continued:) The men of the world look down on the solid work of Shen and Han and praise the wild and diffuse talk of Lao and Zhuang. Yet in government there is none who can put punishment aside: to pardon the death of the murderer, to remit the guilt of the maimer—this is what is called clay figures and meat on a shard of tile, which cannot rescue the morning's hunger. The Daoists' sayings are lofty indeed, but used, they prove faulty—remote, lost, and impractical, like Ganjiang that cannot sew a seam, or a great elephant that cannot catch a rat, or a metal ship that cannot mount the Lord of the Waves, or a jade horse not equal to the tracks of a thousand li.

若行其言，則當燔桎梏，墮囹圄，罷有司，滅刑書，鑄干戈，平城池，散府庫，毀符節，撤關梁，掊衡量。膠離朱之目，塞子野之耳。泛然不繫，反乎天牧；不訓不營，相忘江湖。朝廷闃而若無人，民則至死不往來。可得而論，難得而行也。

(Baopuzi continued:) If one were to act on their words, one would have to burn the fetters, pull down the prisons, dismiss the officers, destroy the books of punishment, melt down the shield and dagger-axe, fill in the walls, scatter the treasuries, break the tallies, remove the passes and bridges, and smash the scales and measures—glue the eyes of Lizhu shut and stop the ears of Ziye; drift free without ties and return to heaven's pasturage; neither instruct nor govern, and let all forget one another on the rivers and lakes; the court silent as though empty, and the people never visiting one another unto death. It can serve for talk; it can hardly serve for practice.

“俗儒徒聞周以仁興，秦以嚴亡，而未覺周所以得之不純仁，而秦所以失之不獨嚴也。

(Baopuzi continued:) "The vulgar Confucians have heard only that Zhou rose by benevolence and that Qin perished by severity, and have not perceived that Zhou's gaining of all under heaven was not pure benevolence, nor Qin's loss of it merely severity.

昔周用肉刑，刖足劓鼻。盟津之令，後至者斬，畢力賞罰，誓有孥戮。考其所為，未盡仁也。及其叔世，罔法玩文，人主苛虐，號令不出宇宙，禮樂征伐，不復由己。群下力競，還為長蛇。伐本塞源，毀冠裂冕。或沈之於漢，或流之一彘。失柄之敗，由於不嚴也。

(Baopuzi continued:) In ancient times Zhou used mutilating punishments, lopping off feet and cutting off noses. The command at Meng Ford was that whoever arrived late would be beheaded; the force of reward and punishment was spent to the full, and the oath-speeches contained the slaughter of wives and children. Examine what they did, and benevolence was not used to the utmost. Come to the degenerate age, when they played with net and writ, and rulers were harsh and cruel: the commands did not issue beyond the realm, and rites, music, and punitive campaigns no longer came from the throne. The underlings struggled by force and grew instead into great serpents. They hacked the root and dammed the source, tore the caps and ripped the crowns; some sank a king in the Han waters, some drove a king into exile at Zhi. The ruin of losing the handle came from a lack of severity.

秦之初興，官人得才。衛鞅由余之徒，式法於內；白起王翦之倫，攻取於外。兼弱攻昧，取威定霸，吞噬四鄰，咀嚼群雄，拓地攘戎，龍變龍視，實賴明賞必罰，以基帝業。降及杪季，驕於得意，窮奢極泰。加之以威虐，築城萬里，離宮千餘，鍾鼓女樂，不徒而具。驪山之役，太半之賦，閭左之戍，坑儒之酷，北擊獫狁，南征百越，暴兵百萬，動數十年。天下有生離之哀，家戶懷怨曠之嘆。白骨成山，虛祭布野。徐福出而重號口兆之讎，趙高入而屯豺狼之黨。天下欲反，十室九空。其所以亡，豈由嚴刑此為秦以嚴得之，非以嚴失之也。

(Baopuzi continued:) When Qin was newly rising, it put officers to use and got the able. The likes of Wei Yang and You Yu set the law within; the likes of Bai Qi and Wang Jian took by assault without. Annexing the weak and attacking the benighted, winning majesty and fixing hegemony, swallowing the four neighbors and chewing up the rival heroes, opening lands and driving off the Rong—it changed like a dragon and glared like a dragon. In truth it was relying on rewards and punishments unfailingly carried out that the foundations of the imperial work were laid. Come to the last age, pride grew with success, luxury and excess reached their limit. Add to that majesty and cruelty: a wall ten thousand li long, detached palaces more than a thousand, bells, drums, and women musicians furnished without having to move. The conscription at Mount Li, the tax of more than half, the levy of the left of the lane, the cruelty of the buried scholars; attacking the Xianyun in the north and campaigning against the Hundred Yue in the south, with a million in arms exposed for tens of years at a stretch. All under heaven grieved at parting of the living; every household sighed with resentful solitude. White bones stood in mountains and empty offerings carpeted the fields. Once Xu Fu went out, the enemy of wailing grew; once Zhao Gao entered, the pack of jackals and wolves swelled. All under heaven wished to rebel—nine houses in ten stood empty. That by which it perished—how could it be on account of harsh punishment? This is what Qin won by severity, not what it lost by severity.

“且刑由刃也，巧人以自成，拙者以自傷，為治國有道而助之以刑者，能令慝偽不作，兇邪改志。若綱絕網紊，得罪於天，用刑失理，其危必速。亦猶水火者所以活人，亦所以殺人，存乎能用之與不能用。

(Baopuzi continued:) "Moreover, punishment is like a blade: the skillful use it to perfect themselves, the clumsy use it to injure themselves. He who governs the state with the Way and aids it with punishment can keep hidden falseness from arising and turn the purposes of the violent and wicked. But if the cord is broken and the net tangled, if he offends against heaven and uses punishment beyond reason, danger is sure to come quickly. So too are water and fire what nourish men and what kill men—it lies in being able to use them or not.

“夫症瘕不除，而不修越人之術者，難圖老彭之壽也。奸黨實繁，而不嚴彈違之制者，未見其長世之福也。但當簡於張之徒，任以法理世；選趙陳之屬，季以案劾。明主留神於上，忠良盡誠於下，見不善則若鷹鸇之搏鳥雀，睹亂萌則若草雉田之芟蕪穢。慶賞不謬加，而誅戮不失罪，則太平之軌不足迪。令而不犯，可庶幾廢刑致治，未敢謂然也。”

(Baopuzi continued:) "He who does not remove a settled mass in the belly, yet does not study the medicine of the man of Yue, can hardly hope for the span of old Peng. He whose treacherous factions are truly many, yet does not stiffen the rules for impeaching faults—his lasting fortune is nowhere to be seen. One need only select men like Zhang Tang and entrust the pattern of law and the affairs of the world to them; choose men like Zhao Yu and Chen and hand the examinations and impeachments over to them. The enlightened ruler keeps watch above; the loyal and good spend their sincerity below; seeing what is not good they strike it like the hawk strikes sparrows; seeing the sprout of disorder they clear it like the farmer clears weeds. Rewards are not given amiss and executions do not punish the wrong man—then the track of great peace needs no new opening. To issue commands and have no one trespass them—that may nearly be hoped for; to abolish punishment and thereby reach order—of that I dare not speak."

或曰：“然則刑罰果所以助教興善，式曷軌忒也。若夫古之肉刑，亦可復與”

Someone said: "Then punishments are indeed for aiding teaching and fostering good—what pattern shall be taken to correct faults? As for the mutilating punishments of antiquity, could they be restored too?"

抱朴子曰：“曷為而不可哉！昔周用肉刑，積祀七百。漢氏廢之，年代不如。至於改以鞭笞，大多死者。外有輕刑之名，內有殺人之實也。及於犯罪，上不足以至死，則其下唯有徒謫鞭杖，或遇赦令，則身無損；且髡其更生之發，撾其方愈之創，殊不足以懲次死之罪。今除肉刑，則死罪之下無復中刑在其間，而次死罪不得不止於徒謫鞭杖，是輕重不得適也。又犯罪者希而時有耳，至於殺之則恨重，而鞭之則恨輕，犯此者為多。今不用肉刑，是次死之罪，常不見治也。

Baopuzi said: "Why could they not! In ancient times Zhou used mutilating punishments, and sacrifices piled up for seven hundred years. The house of Han abolished them, and its years did not compare. Moreover, when they were changed to flogging, most of those beaten died: outwardly the name of a light penalty, inwardly the reality of killing. And when a man commits a crime not grave enough for death, below death there is only penal servitude, exile, and the lash—or he meets an amnesty and his body suffers no damage at all. Besides, shaving hair that will grow again and flogging a wound newly healed truly cannot chastise crimes next to death. Now that mutilating punishments are removed, below capital crimes there is no middle penalty between, and crimes next to death cannot but stop at servitude, exile, and the lash—this is weight and lightness missing their due. And crimes are few, arising only now and then; yet as for killing him it is judged too heavy, and lashing him too light, and those who commit this class are many. Now, without the mutilating punishments, crimes next to death commonly go ungoverned.

“今若自非謀反大逆，惡於君親，及軍臨敵犯軍法者，及手殺人者，以肉刑代其死，則亦足以懲示兇人。而刑者猶任坐役，能有所為，又不絕其生類之道，而終身殘毀，百姓見之，莫不寒心，亦足使未犯者肅栗，以彰示將來，乃過於殺人。殺人，非不重也。然辜之三日，行埋棄之，不知者眾，不見者多也。若夫肉刑者之為摽戒也多。

(Baopuzi continued:) "Now, for those whose crimes fall short of plotting revolt or great treason, of doing evil against lord or parent, of breaching military law before the enemy, and those who kill a man with their own hand, to substitute mutilating punishment for their death would suffice to warn the vicious in public. The punished man can still sit and be put to service and be of use, nor is the road of begetting children cut off for him—yet he is maimed for life, and the people who see him, none but grow cold with dread. It also serves to make those not yet offending shudder, and to display to ages to come—truly it surpasses killing. Killing is not un-weighty; yet the corpse is displayed three days, then borne off and buried—those who do not know are many, those who cannot see are many. As a warning and a sign, the mutilating punishments reach far more."

昔魏世數議此事，諸碩儒達學，洽通殷理者，鹹謂宜復肉刑，而意異者駁之，皆不合也。魏武帝亦以為然。直以二陲未賓，遠人不能統至理者，卒聞中國刖人肢體，割人耳鼻，便當望風謂為酷虐，故且權停，以須四方之並耳。通人揚子云亦以為肉刑宜復也。但廢之來久矣，坐而論道者，未以為急耳。”

(Baopuzi continued:) In days past the court of Wei debated this matter repeatedly, and all the great scholars and accomplished men versed in deep principle said the mutilating punishments should be restored, while the dissenters who refuted it were all off the mark. Emperor Wu of Wei also thought so. Only because the two frontiers were not yet submissive and men of far parts could not grasp the perfect principle—hearing suddenly that the central states cut men's limbs and severed men's ears and noses, they would look at the wind and cry cruelty—it was for the time laid aside, to await the uniting of the four quarters. The understanding man Yang Xiong likewise held the mutilating punishments should be restored. Only, they have been abolished too long, and those who sit discussing the Way do not yet count it a pressing matter."

抱朴子曰：華霍所以能崇極天之峻者，由乎其下之厚也；唐虞所以能臻巍巍之功者，實賴股肱之良也。雖有孫陽之手，而無騏驥之足，則不得致千里矣。雖有稽古之才，而無宣力之佐，則莫緣凝庶績矣。人君雖明並日月，神鑑未兆，然萬機不可以獨統，曲碎不可以親總，必假目以遐覽，借耳以廣聽，誠須有司，是康是贊。

Baopuzi said: That Mount Hua and Mount Huo could rise to a steepness touching the sky is because what lies beneath them is deep; that Tang and Yu could reach their towering merit was truly by relying on the goodness of their limbs and thews. Even with the hand of Sun Yang, without the feet of the thoroughbred one cannot cover a thousand li; even with talent that examines antiquity, without helpers who spread the strength there is no way to fix the many tasks. Though the ruler's discernment rival the sun and moon and his spirit mirror what has not yet shown its first sign, yet the myriad affairs cannot be governed alone nor the petty be grasped in person: he must borrow eyes to see far and ears to hear wide—there must truly be officers, to bring peace and to give aid.

故聖君莫不根心招賢，以舉才為首務，施玉帛於丘園，馳翹車於巖藪，勞於求人，逸於用能，上自槐棘，降逮皂隸，論道經國，莫不任職。恭己無為，而治平刑措；而化洽無外，萬邦咸寧。設官分職，其猶構室，一物不堪，則崩橈之由也。然夫貢舉之士，格以四科，三事九列，是之自出，必簡標穎拔萃之俊，而漢之末葉，桓靈之世，柄去帝室，政在奸臣，網漏防潰，風頹教沮，抑清德而揚諂媚，退履道而進多財。力競成俗，苟得無恥，或輸自售之寶，或賣要人之書，或父兄貴顯，望門而辟命；或低頭屈膝，積習而見收。

So there is no sage ruler who does not summon the worthy from the heart, make the raising of talent the first task, send jade and silk to hill and garden, and speed the high-shouldered carriage toward crag and marsh; laboring in the search for men, resting at ease in the use of the able—from the thorn-bench grandees above to the runners below, all have their charge in ordering the state. In reverent ease and doing nothing, rule is level and punishments laid away; the teaching accords even beyond the borders and the myriad states are at peace. To set up offices and apportion charges is like building a house: if one thing cannot bear its share, that is the cause of collapse. Yet the men sent up and recommended were measured by the four categories; the three affairs and nine ranks all issued from this, and eminent, outstanding talent was sure to be chosen. But in the last leaf of Han, the age of Huan and Ling, power left the imperial house and government lay with treacherous ministers: the net leaked, the dikes broke, the wind fell and teaching collapsed; the pure and virtuous were pressed down and the flattering raised; the walkers in the Way were expelled and the owners of much wealth advanced. Contention by force became the custom; scrambling for gain they knew no shame: some presented treasure for sale, some trafficked letters of powerful men; some whose fathers and brothers were honored were summoned by a glance at the gate; some bent the head and knelt, and by long habit were taken in.

夫銓衡不平，則輕重錯謬；鬥斛不正，則少多混亂；繩墨不陳，則曲直不分，準格傾側，則滓雜實繁。以之治人，則虐暴而豺貪，受取聚斂，以補買官之費；立之朝廷，則亂劇於棼絲。引用駑庸，以為黨援，而望風向草偃，庶事之康，何異懸瓦礫而責夜光，弦不調而索清音哉！何可不澄濁飛沉，沙汰臧否，嚴試對之法，峻貪夫之防哉！殄瘁攸階，可勿畏乎

When the scales of selection are unlevel, light and heavy go wrong; when peck and bushel are not true, much and little fall into chaos; when the inked line is not laid out, crooked and straight cannot be told apart; when the standard tips over, the dregs and the mixed grow many indeed. Set such men over the people and they are cruel and greedy as jackals, taking and amassing to make good the price paid for office; stand them in the court and disorder out-tangles tangled silk. To call up the nag and the dull as one's partisans, yet hope the grass will bend wherever the wind blows and the many affairs will be at peace—what difference is there from hanging up tiles and shards and demanding the night-shining pearl, or leaving the strings untuned and asking for clear notes! How can one not clarify the muddy, raise the sunken, sift the good from the bad, stiffen the rules of examination by policy-response, and strengthen the guard against the greedy! The steps by which ruin approaches—are they not to be feared?

古者諸侯貢士，適者謂之有功，有功者增班進爵；貢士不適者謂之有過，有過者黜位削地。猶復不能令詩人謐大車素餐之刺，山林無伐檀罝兔之賢。況舉之無非才之罪，受之無負乘之患。衡量一失其格，多少安可復損乎夫孤立之翹秀，藏器以待賈；瑣碌之輕薄，人事以邀速。夫唯待價，故頓淪於窮瘁矣；夫唯邀速，故佻竅而騰躍矣。

In ancient times when the lords sent up men, if the choice suited it was called merit, and merit brought a rise in order of precedence and rank; if the choice did not suit it was called fault, and fault brought demotion of place and loss of land. Even this could not stop the poets' satire of the great carriage and the idle meal, nor put the sandalwood-cutters and rabbit-netters of the hills and woods in office. How much more when recommending carries no penalty for failing to hit the mark, and accepting carries no calamity of riding above one's station! Once the measure loses its rule, how can its tally ever be reduced again? The lone and eminent hide their talent and wait for a buyer; the petty, shallow men borrow the ways of the world to invite a quick leap. Precisely because they waited for the price, they were battered down and sank in poverty; precisely because they invited the quick leap, the frivolous and clever soared away (the base text reads a character probably miswritten for 'clever').

蓋鳥鴟屯飛，則鴛鳳幽集；豺狼當路，則麒麟遐遁。舉善而教，則不仁者遠矣；奸偽榮顯，則英傑潛逝。高概恥與闒茸為伍，清節羞入饕餮之貫。舉任並謬，則群賢括囊；群賢括囊，則兇邪相引；兇邪相引，則小人道長；小人道長，則檮杌比肩。頌聲所以不作，怨嗟所以嗷嗷也。

Presumably, when owls fly in flocks, simurgh and phoenix gather in stillness; when jackals and wolves block the road, the unicorn flees afar. When the good are raised and taught, the unkind go far off; when the crafty and false are made glorious, the brave and outstanding hide and depart. The high-minded disdain the company of the mean and petty; the pure in conduct are ashamed to enter the ranks of gluttons. When recommendation and appointment go wholly wrong, the whole body of the worthy tie their sacks and do not show; when the whole body of the worthy tie their sacks, the wicked and perverse draw one another in; when the wicked and perverse draw one another in, the way of the small man stretches; when the way of the small man stretches, the monsters stand shoulder to shoulder. This is why songs of praise do not arise and cries of complaint clamor on.

高幹長材，恃能勝己，屈伸默語，聽天任命，窮通得失，委之自然，亦焉得不墮多黨者之後，而居有力者之下乎逸倫之士，非禮不動，山峙淵渟，知之者希，馳逐之徒，蔽而毀之，故思賢之君，終不知奇才之所在，懷道之人，願效力而莫從。雖抱稷卨之器，資邈世之量，遂沈滯詣死，不得登敘也。而有黨有力者，紛然鱗萃，人乏官曠，致者又美，亦安得不拾掇而用之乎

The tall trunk and long timber rely on talent better than others'; bending and stretching, silent or speaking, they heed heaven and trust their lot; failure and success, loss and gain, they commit to nature—then how could they not fall behind the men of many parties and dwell beneath the men of force? The man beyond compare does not move except by the rites; he stands like a mountain and settles like a deep pool; few know him, while the racing, chasing sort cover him over and slander him. So the lord who longs for the worthy never knows where the rare talent is, and the man who bears the Way is willing to serve yet has no road. Though he embrace the capacity of Ji and Xie and hold a measure that transcends the age, he sinks and stagnates until death, never ascending to appointment. While the men of party and force swarm thick as fish-scales, and when posts stand empty and offices lack men, those who come are praised up—then how could they not be picked up and employed?

靈獻之世，閹官用事，群奸秉權，危害忠良。臺閣失選用於上，州郡輕貢舉於下。夫選用失於上，則牧守非其人矣；貢舉輕於下，則秀孝不得賢矣。故時人語曰：“舉秀才，不知書；察孝廉，父別居。寒素清白濁如泥，高第良將怯如雞。”又云：“古人慾達勤誦經，今世圖官免治生。”蓋疾之甚也。

In the age of Emperors Ling and Xian, the eunuchs wielded power and the whole pack of traitors held the handle, injuring the loyal and good. The secretariat above lost the choice and appointment; the provinces and commanderies below made light of sending up men. Choice and appointment lost above—the governors and administrators ceased to be the right men; recommendation made light below—the Cultivated Talents and Filial-and-Incorrupts could not get the worthy. So the saying of the men of that time went: "Recommended Cultivated Talents who do not know their books; examined Filial-and-Incorrupts whose fathers live apart. The poor, plain, pure, and white are muddy as mire; the high-graded fine generals are timid as hens." And again: "Men of old who wished to rise toiled at the classics; the men of today who seek office leave off husbanding their living." Presumably the hatred ran deep.

於時懸爵而賣之，猶列肆也；爭津者買之，猶市人也。有直者無分而徑進，空拳者望途而收跡。其貨多者其官貴，其財少者其職卑。故東園積賣官之錢，崔烈有銅臭之嗤。上為下效，君行臣甚。故阿佞幸，獨談親容。桑梓議主，中正吏部，併為魁儈，各責其估。清貧之士，何理有望哉！是既然矣。又邪正不同，譬猶冰炭；惡直之人，憎於非黨。刀尺顛到者，則恐人之議己也；達不由道者，則患言論之不美也。乃共構合虛誣，中傷清德，瑕累橫生，莫敢救拔。

At that time ranks were hung up for sale like goods in a shop, and men fought to cross the ford and buy them like market folk. He who had the price, though he had no name, walked straight in; he who had empty fists looked at the road and stayed his feet. He whose goods were many got an honored office; he whose wealth was scant got a mean post. So the money for sold offices was heaped in the Eastern Garden, and Cui Lie met the scoff of 'the stink of copper'. When those above do it, those below copy it; the lord practices it and the ministers go further. So flattery and favor became the one study of the intimate place-holders. The lords of the homeland's counsels—the Rectifiers and the Board of Selection—all acted as brokers, each exacting his price. The poor and pure gentleman—what hope could he have! And this was not all: wicked and upright were as unlike as ice and coals; those who hated the upright loathed all not of their party. Those whose own measure was upside down feared that men would discuss them; those risen to eminence by no true way were troubled that the talk was unkind. So together they wove empty slanders to wound the pure and virtuous; flaws and imputations sprang up on every side, and none dared rescue or raise.

於是曾閔獲商臣之謗，孔墨蒙盜跖之垢。懷正居貞者，填笮乎泥濘之中，而狡猾巧偽者，軒翥乎虹霓之際矣。而凡夫淺識，不辯邪正，謂守道者為陸沈，以履徑者為知變。俗之隨風而動，逐波而流者，安能復身於德行，苦思於學問哉！是莫不棄檢括之勞，而赴用賂之速矣。斯誠有漢之所以傾，來代之所宜深鑑也。

Thus Zeng Shen and Min Ziqian drew slanders like Shangchen's, and Confucius and Mozi bore stains like Robber Zhi's. The keepers of the right and holders of steadfastness were mired in the mud, while the cunning and false soared at the edge of the rainbow. Common men of shallow knowledge, telling not wrong from right, called the keeper of the Way 'sunken on dry land' and the taker of bypaths 'knowing the times'. The common herd, blown by the wind and borne on the waves—how could they set their persons back upon virtue and grind their thoughts over learning! Thus all without exception cast off the labor of self-restraint and ran to the swiftness that bribes buy. This, in truth, is why the house of Han fell, and what later ages should take deeply for a warning.

或曰：“吾子論漢末貢舉之事，誠得其病也。今必欲戒既往之失，避傾車之路，改有代之弦調，防法玩之或變，令濮上《巴人》，反安樂之正音，腠理之疾，無退走之滯患者，豈有方乎士有風姿豐偉，雅望有餘，而懷空抱虛，幹植不足，以貌取之，則不必得賢，徐徐先試，則不可倉卒。將如之何”

Someone said: "Your discussion of the recommendations at the end of Han truly hits the disease. If now one must warn against the faults of the past, avoid the overturned carriage's ruts, retune the strings of the passing age, guard against the tricks of those who play with the law, make the Baren songs of the Pu riverbank return to the right tones of peace and joy, and see to it that a sickness in the interstices leaves no lurking harm in retreat—is there a way? Suppose a gentleman has a fine, imposing air and a name surpassing his worth, yet holds emptiness and embraces hollowness, lacking bone and pith: to choose him by his outer looks need not get a worthy, and to test him slowly cannot be done in haste. What is to be done?"

抱朴子答曰：“知人則哲，上聖所難。今使牧守皆能審良才於未用，保性履之始終，誠未易也。但共遣其私情，竭其聰明，不為利慾動，不為屬託屈。所欲舉者，必澄思以察之，博訪以詳之，修其名而考其行，校同異以備虛飾。令親族稱其孝友，邦閭歸其信義。嘗小仕者，有忠清之效，治事之幹，則寸錦足以知巧，刺鼠足以觀勇也。

Baopuzi answered: "To know men is wisdom, which even the highest sage finds hard. To have governors and administrators now examine good talent before appointing it and secure the whole course of its nature and conduct is truly not easy. Only let them all shut out private feeling, spend their wits to the full, not be moved by profit and desire, and not be bent by petitioners. The man they think to recommend they must examine with clarified thought, make plain with wide inquiry, measure his name and test his conduct, and check what agrees and differs against empty show. Let his kin attest his filial and brotherly ways, and his village attest his good faith. One who has once held a petty office will have proof of loyalty and purity and the stuff of handling affairs: an inch of brocade suffices to know the patterning, and stabbing a rat suffices to see the courage.

“又，秀孝皆宜如舊試經答策，防其罪對之奸，當令必絕其不中者勿署，吏加罰禁錮。其所舉書不中者，刺史太守免官，不中左遷。中者多不中者少，後轉不得過故。若受賕而舉所不當，發覺有驗者除名，禁錮終身，不以赦令原，所舉與舉者同罪。今試用此法，治一二歲之間，秀孝必多不行者，亦足以知天下貢舉不精之久矣。過此，則必多修德而勤學者矣。

(Baopuzi continued:) "Further, the Cultivated Talents and Filial-and-Incorrupts should all, as of old, be tested on the classics and answer the policy questions. To guard against the fraud of the guilty sitting the responses, those who fail must not be given office and their sponsors must be fined and proscribed. If the writing of the man recommended does not pass, the inspector or administrator loses his post; if it does not pass, he is demoted. If those who pass are many and those who fail are few, later promotion must not go beyond the former posts. If one takes bribes and recommends who should not be recommended, on discovery and proof he is struck from the rolls and proscribed for life, not forgiven by amnesty; and the recommended and the recommender share the crime. Apply this rule, and within a year or two of governing, there will surely be many among the Cultivated Talents and Filial-and-Incorrupts who dare not present themselves—which suffices to know that the recommendations under heaven have long been unrefined. Past that point, there are sure to be many who cultivate virtue and study with diligence."

“又，諸居職，其犯公坐者，以法律從事；其以貪濁贓汙為罪，不足死者，刑竟及遇赦，皆宜禁錮終身，輕者二十年。如此，不廉之吏，必將化為夷齊矣。若臨官受取，金錢山積，發覺則自恤得了，免退則旬日複用者，曾史亦將變為盜跖矣。如此，則雖貢士皆中，不辭於官長之不良。”

(Baopuzi continues:) Moreover, those holding office who fall foul of collective liability should be dealt with according to the law; those whose offence is greed, corruption, and embezzlement, though not grave enough for death, should on completing their sentences — or even on meeting an amnesty — all be barred from office for life, the lighter cases for twenty years. If this were done, dishonest officials would surely be transformed into a Boyi or a Shuqi. But if a man can take bribes in office until the money piles up like hills, and on discovery gets himself excused and settled, and within ten days of dismissal is appointed again — then even a Zeng Shen or a Shi Yu would turn into a Robber Zhi. With things like this, even if all the recommended men hit the mark, it will not absolve the governors and chiefs of being unfit.

或曰：“能言不必能行，今試經對策雖過，豈必有政事之才乎”

Someone said: 'Ability to speak does not mean ability to act. Even if a man passes the scripture examination and the policy response today, does he necessarily have talent for governing affairs?'

抱朴子答曰：“古者猶以射擇人，況經術乎如其舍旃，則未見餘法之賢乎此也。夫豐草不秀瘠土，巨魚不生小水，格言不吐庸人之口，高文不墮頑夫之筆。故披《洪範》而知箕子有經世之器，覽九術而見範生懷治國之略，省夷吾之書，而明其有撥亂之幹，視不害之文，而見其精霸王之道也。今孝廉必試經無脫謬，而秀才必對策無失指，則亦不得暗蔽也。良將高第取其膽武，猶複試之以對策，況文士乎假令不能必盡得賢能，要必愈於了不試也。

Baopuzi answered: 'In antiquity men were even chosen by archery — how much more so by classical learning? If we cast this aside, I have yet to see another method that is worthier. Lush grass does not sprout up on barren soil; giant fish are not bred in small waters; maxims do not issue from the mouths of mediocre men; lofty writing does not fall from the brush of a dolt. So, leafing through the Great Plan (Hongfan) one knows that Jizi had the capacity to order the age; viewing the Nine Arts one sees that Fan Li harboured the strategy to govern a state; examining Guan Zhong's book one sees he had the talent to right disorders; looking at Shen Buhai's essays one sees he mastered the way of the hegemon-king. Now if the xiaolian must all sit the scripture examination without a slip, and the xiucai must all answer the policy questions without missing the point, then what they are cannot be dim or hidden. A fine general of top rank is picked for his daring and martiality, yet is still tested further with policy questions — how much more should literati be? Granted we cannot always obtain every worthy and able man, all in all it is surely better than not testing at all.'