Jin Si Lu (近思錄) · Volume 4

凡觀書不可以相類泥其義不爾則字字相梗當觀其文勢上下之意如充實之謂美與詩之美不同【充實之美在己詩之稱美在人如此之類豈可泥為一義】

Cheng Yi said: "In reading any book, one must not cling to the meaning of a word because it resembles another; otherwise every word will be obstructed. One should look at the sense of the sentence above and below. For example, 'what is full and solid is called beautiful' differs from the 'beautiful' of the Poetry. [The beauty of being full and solid lies in oneself, while the beauty praised in the Poetry lies in others. How could such cases be clung to as a single meaning?]"

問瑩中甞愛文中子或問學易子曰終日干幹可也此語最盡文王所以聖亦只是個不已【陳忠肅公瓘字瑩中子曰者文中子答或人之問謂乾乾不息此語最為盡易之道】先生曰凡説經義如只管節節推上去可知是盡夫終日干幹未盡得易據此一句只做得九三使若謂乾乾是不已不已又是道漸漸推去自然是盡只是理不如此【學經者要當週遍精宻各窮其防歸而後能通經苟但借其一語謂足以盡一經之防豈治經之道葢好髙求約之病】

Someone asked: Ying Zhong once admired Wenzhongzi. When someone asked about studying the Changes, he said: 'Being vigilant all day long will do.' This saying says it all. The reason King Wen was a sage was also just that he never stopped. [Lord Chen Zhongsu, whose name was Guan and whose style was Yingzhong. 'The Master said' means Wenzhongzi's answer to the person's question, saying that this saying about being ceaselessly vigilant best exhausts the Way of the Changes.] The Master said: "In explaining the meaning of the classics, if one just keeps pushing step by step upward, of course it seems complete. But 'vigilant all day long' has not exhausted the Changes; on the basis of this one line it only serves the third line of Qian. If one says that vigilance is not stopping, and that not stopping is the Way, pushing on bit by bit naturally seems to exhaust it, but the principle is not so. [One who studies a classic must be thorough and precise, investigating each part to its point, and only then can he penetrate the classic. If one only borrows a single phrase and claims it is enough to exhaust the purport of a whole classic, how could that be the way to study a classic? This is the fault of loving the lofty and seeking brevity.]"

子在川上曰逝者如斯夫言道之體如此這裡須是自見得【朱子曰天地之化往者過來者續無一息之停乃道體之本然也然其可指而易見者莫如川流故於此發以示人學者時時省察而無毫髪之間防也】張繹曰此便是無窮先生曰固是道無窮然怎生一個無窮便道了得他【朱子曰固是無窮須見所以無窮始得】

Cheng Yi said: "'The Master, standing by a river, said: What passes is like this, is it not?' This says that the substance of the Way is thus, and here one must see it for oneself. [Zhu Xi said: In the transformations of Heaven and Earth, what goes passes and what comes follows, without a moment's rest; this is the original condition of the substance of the Way. Yet what can be pointed to and is easiest to see is nothing clearer than the flowing river, so he brought it out here to show people, wanting (the original has a rare character here that was lost in transcription) learners to examine themselves at every moment without the slightest interruption (the original reads "jian fang", where "fang" should be a corruption of "duan").]" Zhang Yi said: "This is the limitless." The Master said: "The Way is indeed limitless, but how can a single word 'limitless' finish it? [Zhu Xi said: Of course it is limitless, but one must see why it is limitless.]"

今人不防讀書如誦詩三百授之以政不達使於四方不能專對雖多亦奚以為須是未讀詩時不達於政不能專對既讀詩後便達於政能專對四方始是讀詩【説見論語○朱子曰專獨也詩本人情該物理可以驗風俗之盛衰見政治之得失其言溫厚和平長於風諭故誦之者必達於政而能專對也】人而不為周南召南其猶正牆面須是未讀詩時如面牆到讀了後便不面牆方是有驗【同上○朱子曰為猶學也周南召南所言皆修身齊家之事正牆而言即其至近之地而一物無所見一歩不可行也】大抵讀書只此便是法如讀論語舊時未讀是這個人及讀了後來又只是這個人便是不曽讀也【讀書之法但反諸已驗其實得致其實用變化氣質必有日新之功】

Cheng Yi said: "People today do not know how to read (the original reads "bu fang", where "fang" should be a corruption of "hui"). Take 'One who can recite the three hundred poems, but when given a governmental post cannot carry it out, and when sent on a mission to the four quarters cannot answer on his own, however many he has learned, what use are they?' One must be, before reading the Poetry, unable to carry out government and unable to answer on his own, and after reading the Poetry able to carry out government and answer on his own in the four quarters; only then is it reading the Poetry. [Discussed in the Analects. Zhu Xi said: "On his own" means alone. The Poetry is rooted in human feeling and covers the principles of things; through it one can test the rise and fall of customs and see the successes and failures of government, and its words are gentle, generous and harmonious, excellent at indirect remonstrance, so one who recites it will certainly be able to carry out government and to answer on his own.] 'A person who has not studied the Zhounan and Shaonan is like one standing with his face against a wall': one must be like facing a wall before reading the Poetry, and after reading it no longer face a wall, and only then is there proof. [Same as above. Zhu Xi said: "Study" is like learn. What the Zhounan and Shaonan speak of is all about cultivating the self and regulating the family. "Standing with his face to a wall" means that right at the nearest place one sees nothing and cannot take a single step.] Generally, this is the method for reading books. If one reads the Analects and, having read it, is the same person as before, then one has not read it at all. [The method of reading is only to turn back to oneself, test what one has truly gained, bring it to real use, and transform one's temperament; there must be the effect of daily renewal.]"

凡看文字如七年一世百年之事皆當思其如何作為乃有益【論語子曰善人教民七年亦可以即戎矣又曰如有王者必世而後仁又曰善人為邦百年可以勝殘去殺矣觀聖賢治效遲速淺深之殊要必究其規模之略施為之方乃於己有益此致知之法也】凡解經不同無害但緊要處不可不同爾【外書○緊要謂綱領也】焞初到問為學之方先生曰公要知為學須是讀書書不必多看要知其約多看而不知其約書肆耳【此言徒貪多而不知其要則是蓄書之肆而已】頤縁少時讀書貪多如今多忘了須是將聖人言語玩味入心記著然後力去行之自有所得【又言徒貪多而無玩習之功則所學者非我有也玩味而不忘而又力行其所知則所得為實得○以上總論讀書之法以下乃分論讀書之法】

Cheng Yi said: "In reading any text, for matters such as seven years, one generation or a hundred years, one should imagine how it would be carried out; only then is it beneficial. [The Analects: Confucius said 'If a good man teaches the people for seven years, they may be sent to war'; and 'If a true king arose, it would take a generation for humaneness to prevail'; and 'If good men governed a state for a hundred years, they could overcome cruelty and do away with killing.' In seeing the differences in how fast and how deep the sages' and worthies' governing effects came, one must study their general scale and the methods they applied, and only then does it benefit oneself. This is the method of extending knowledge.] There is no harm in differing interpretations of the classics, but on the crucial points they must not differ. [From the Waishu (Outer Writings). Crucial points means the main outline.]" When Yin Dun first arrived, he asked about the method of learning. The Master said: "You should know that learning requires reading books. One need not read many books, but one must know their essentials. Reading widely without knowing the essentials is merely a bookshop. [This says that if one is only greedy for quantity and does not know the essentials, one is merely a shop that stores books.] Because in my youth I was greedy for reading much, I have now forgotten most of it. One must take the sages' words, savor them into the heart and remember them, and then work hard to put them into practice; then one will naturally gain something. [This also says that if one is only greedy for quantity and lacks the work of savoring and practicing, what one has studied is not one's own. If one savors without forgetting and also works hard to practice what one knows, then what one gains is truly gained. Everything above is a general discussion of the method of reading; what follows discusses methods of reading separately.]"

初學入徳之門無如大學其他莫如語孟【遺書下同○朱子曰大學規模雖大然首尾該備而綱領可尋節目分明而工夫有序無非切於學者之日用又曰不先乎大學無以提挈綱領而盡語孟之精微不參之語孟無以融防貫通而極中庸之歸趣】

Cheng Yi said: "For the beginning learner entering the gate of virtue, nothing is better than the Great Learning; after it, nothing is better than the Analects and the Mencius. [From the Yishu; the same applies below. Zhu Xi said: Although the scale of the Great Learning is large, it is complete from beginning to end, its main threads can be found, its items are clear and its work is orderly, and none of it fails to bear on the learner's daily life. He also said: Without starting from the Great Learning, one has no way to grasp the main threads and exhaust the subtleties of the Analects and the Mencius; without consulting the Analects and the Mencius, one has no way to melt them together (the original reads "rong fang", where "fang" should be a corruption of "hui") into penetrating comprehension and reach the destination of the Doctrine of the Mean.]"

學者先須讀語孟窮得語孟自有要約處以此觀他經甚省力語孟如丈尺權衡相似以此去量度事物自然見得長短輕重【語孟之書尤切於學者身心日用之常得其要領則易於推明他經而可以權度事物矣】

Cheng Yi said: "Learners should first read the Analects and the Mencius. Having exhausted the Analects and the Mencius, one naturally finds the essentials, and reading the other classics in light of them takes little effort. The Analects and the Mencius are like a ruler, a measure and a balance: using them to gauge things, one naturally sees length and weight. [The books of the Analects and the Mencius bear especially on the learner's body, heart and ordinary daily life. Having grasped their essentials, one finds it easy to elucidate the other classics, and can use them to measure and weigh things.]"

讀論語者但將諸弟子問處便作已問將聖人答處便作今日耳聞自然有得若能於論孟中深求玩味將來涵養成甚生氣質【甚生猶非常也】

Cheng Yi said: "In reading the Analects, simply take the questions the disciples ask as your own questions, and take the sage's answers as if you heard them with your own ears today, and you will naturally gain something. If one can seek deeply and savor the Analects and the Mencius, one will in time cultivate an extraordinary temperament. ['Shensheng' is like extraordinary.]"

凡看語孟且須熟玩味將聖人之言語切己不可只作一塲話説人只看得此二書切己終身盡多也【終身盡多謂一生受用不盡】

Cheng Yi said: "In reading the Analects and the Mencius, one must savor them thoroughly and bring the sages' words to bear on oneself, and not treat them as mere talk. If a person can find only these two books relevant to himself, it will be more than enough for a lifetime. [More than enough for a lifetime means one benefits from them one's whole life without exhausting them.]"

論語有讀了後全無事者有讀了後其中得一兩向喜者有讀了後知好之者有讀了後不知手之舞之足之蹈之者【全無事者全無所得○朱子曰有得一二句喜者這一二句喜處便是入頭處從此著實理防去將久自解倐然悟時聖賢格言自是句句好】

Cheng Yi said: "With the Analects, there are those who after reading it are quite unaffected; there are those who after reading it find one or two lines that please them; there are those who after reading it know to love it; and there are those who after reading it do not know that their hands dance and their feet stamp. [Quite unaffected means gaining nothing at all. Zhu Xi said: Those who are pleased with one or two lines, those one or two places of pleasure are the way in; from there one should apply oneself in earnest, and in time one will naturally be suddenly awakened. The sages' and worthies' maxims are of course good in every line.]"

學者當以論語孟子為本論語孟子既治則六經可不治而明矣【不治而明言易明也】讀書者當觀聖人所以作經之意與聖人所以用心與聖人所以至聖人而吾之所以未至者所以未得者【未至以所行言未得以所知言】句句而求之晝誦而味之中夜而思之平其心易其氣闕其疑則聖人之意見矣【句句而求則察之宻晝味夜思則思之熟然平心易氣而不失於鑿有疑則闕而不強其通如是則聖人之意可得而見矣】

Cheng Yi said: "Learners should take the Analects and the Mencius as their root. Once the Analects and the Mencius are mastered, the Six Classics can be understood without being studied. [Understood without being studied means they are easily understood.] One who reads should look at why the sages made the classics, why the sages applied their minds as they did, how the sages came to be sages, and why I have not yet reached it and why I have not yet gained it. [Not yet reached refers to practice, and not yet gained refers to knowledge.] Seek it sentence by sentence, recite and savor it in the daytime, think about it at midnight, level the mind, ease the breath, and leave doubts in suspense, and then the sage's idea will be seen. [Seeking sentence by sentence means examining closely; savoring by day and thinking by night means thinking ripely. Yet leveling the mind and easing the breath avoids the fault of forcing interpretations, and leaving doubts in suspense without forcing them through means that in this way the sage's idea can be got and seen.]"

讀論語孟子而不知道所謂雖多亦奚以為【語孟極聖賢之淵源為斯道之統防體用兼明精麤畢備讀之而不通於道則章句訓詁而已雖博而何益】

Cheng Yi said: "To read the Analects and the Mencius without knowing the Way is what is meant by 'however many one recites, what use are they?' [The Analects and the Mencius are the fountainhead of the sages and worthies and the thread that ties this Way together (the received text has a corrupted character here, which should read 'thread'). They make clear both substance and function, and contain both the refined and the coarse. If one reads them without grasping the Way, one has only phrases and glosses, and what good is wide learning then?]"

論語孟子只剩讀著便自意足學者須是玩味若以語言解著意便不足某始作此二書文字既而思之又似剩只有些先儒錯防處卻待與整理過【外書下同】

Cheng Yi said: "The Analects and the Mencius are such that simply reading them brings contentment of itself. Students must savor them; if one tries to explain them in words, the meaning falls short. At first I wrote commentaries on these two books, but then I thought them superfluous. Only where earlier scholars misunderstood (the received text has a corrupted character here, which should read 'misunderstood') did I leave something to be set right. [From the Outer Writings; the same below.]"

問且將語孟緊要處看如何伊川曰固是好然若有得終不浹洽葢吾道非如釋氏一見了便從空寂去【朱子曰此是程子答呂晉伯問後來晉伯終身坐此病説得孤單入禪學去學者讀書須逐一去理防便通貫浹洽】與於詩者吟詠性情涵暢道徳之中而歆動之有吾與防也之氣象【詩大扺出於人情之真感化之自然者學者於詩吟哦諷詠其性情涵養條暢於道徳自然有感動興起之意此即曽防浴沂詠歸之氣象】又云興於詩是興起人善意汪洋浩大皆是此意【遺書○詩人之詞寛平忠厚故有興起人汪洋浩大之意】謝顯道雲明道先生善言詩他又渾不曽章解句釋但優遊玩味吟哦上下便使人有得處瞻彼日月悠悠我思道之雲逺曷雲能來思之切矣終曰百爾君子不知徳行不忮不求何用不臧歸於正也【朱子曰讀詩之法只是熟讀涵泳自然和氣從胷中流出其妙處不可得而言不待安排立説只平讀著意自足】又云伯淳常談詩並不下一字訓詁有時只轉卻一兩字防掇地念過便教人省悟又曰古人所以貴親炙之也【外書下同○防掇猶沾綴拈掇也意如上章親炙親近而燻炙之也】

Someone asked: "What if one simply took the essential passages of the Analects and the Mencius and read those?" Yichuan said: "That is fine, but even if one gains something, it will never be thoroughly permeating. For our Way is not like the Buddhists', who take one glimpse and go off into empty stillness. [Zhu Xi said: this was Master Cheng's reply to Lu Jinbo's question. Jinbo suffered from this very fault for the rest of his life; his teaching was lonely and one-sided, and he drifted into Chan. A student reading must grasp each point one by one (the received text has a corrupted character here), and then everything will connect and permeate.] One who is 'stirred by the Odes' chants and intones his nature and feelings, is steeped and at ease in moral virtue and moved by it, and has the bearing of 'I am with Dian' (the received text has a corrupted character here, which should read 'Dian'). [The Odes for the most part come from the truth of human feeling and from natural moral influence. When a student chants and recites the Odes, his nature and feelings are nourished and made fluent in virtue, and he naturally feels moved and aroused. This is the bearing of Zeng Dian, bathing in the Yi River and returning home singing.]" He also said: "Being stirred by the Odes means being stirred to good intentions, vast and boundless, all of one spirit. [From the Surviving Writings. The poets' words are broad, gentle, and sincere, and so they stir people toward such vastness.]" Xie Xiandao said: "Master Mingdao was good at speaking of the Odes. He never explained them chapter by chapter or line by line, but simply lingered over them, savoring and chanting them up and down, and people gained something from it. 'I look at the sun and moon, and long, long is my thought. The Way is far away; how can it come?' is intense longing. It ends: 'All you gentlemen, you do not know virtue. If you neither envy nor covet, what could be wrong?' which returns to what is right. [Zhu Xi said: the method of reading the Odes is only to read them until familiar and let them soak in, and a harmonious spirit flows naturally from the chest, with a subtlety that cannot be put into words. There is no need to arrange or construct a theory; read them plainly and the meaning is sufficient of itself.]" He also said: "Boshun often discussed the Odes without giving a single word of gloss. Sometimes he merely shifted a word or two as he picked up and recited them, and that made people understand." He also said: "This is why the ancients prized personal instruction. [From the Outer Writings; the same below. The phrase for 'picking up and recited' means something like touching and linking, as in the previous passage. Personal instruction means being close to a teacher and warmed by him.]"

明道先生曰學者不可以不看詩看詩便使人長一格價【觀詩則使人興起感發便自然有進】

Master Mingdao said: "Students must not fail to read the Odes. Reading the Odes raises a person a whole grade. [Reading the Odes stirs and awakens people, so they naturally advance.]"

不以文害辭文文字之文舉一字則是文成句是辭詩為解一字不行卻遷就他説如有周不顯自是作文當如此【詳見孟子○詩大雅文王篇曰有周不顯言周家豈不顯乎葢言其顯也苟直謂之不顯則是以文害辭】

Cheng Hao said: "Do not let the wording harm the sentence. 'Wording' means the individual characters; when one character is raised it is wording, and when characters form a line it is a sentence. In the Odes, if one cannot make sense of a single character, one bends the meaning to fit. Take 'the Zhou are not illustrious': this is simply how the line is composed. [See the Mencius for details. In 'King Wen' of the Greater Odes, 'the Zhou are not illustrious' means 'how could the house of Zhou not be illustrious?', that is, it is illustrious. If one took 'not illustrious' at face value, the wording would harm the sentence.]"

看書須要見二帝三王之道如二典即求堯所以治民舜所以事君【遺書下同】

Cheng Yi said: "In reading books one must see the Way of the Two Emperors and Three Kings. For example, in the two Canons, one should look for how Yao governed his people and how Shun served his ruler. [From the Surviving Writings; the same below.]"

中庸之書是孔門傳授成於子思孟子其書雖是雜記更不分精麤一袞説了今人語道多説髙便遺卻卑説本便遺卻末【中庸子思所述而傳之孟子者也其言天命之性則推之於脩道之教言中和則極之於天地位萬物育言政而本之於達徳逹道言治天下國家則合之於誠小大並舉費隠兼該葢是道之大體用相涵本末一貫元不相雜説本而遺其末則亦陷於空虛而未達天下之大本矣】

Cheng Yi said: "The Doctrine of the Mean was transmitted in Confucius's school and was completed by Zisi and Mencius. Although the book is a miscellany, it does not separate the refined from the coarse but says it all together. People today, when they speak of the Way, mostly speak of the high and discard the low, speak of the root and discard the branches. [The Doctrine of the Mean was set down by Zisi and handed to Mencius. When it speaks of the nature given by Heaven, it extends this to the teaching of cultivating the Way; when it speaks of centrality and harmony, it carries them to the point where Heaven and Earth find their places and all things are nurtured; when it speaks of government, it roots it in the universal virtues and the universal Way; when it speaks of ruling the world, it unites everything in sincerity. It raises the great and the small together and embraces both the manifest and the hidden. For the great substance and function of the Way contain one another, and root and branch run through as one, without being mixed. To speak only of the root and neglect the branches is to fall into emptiness and fail to reach the great root of the world.]"

伊川先生易傳序曰易變易也隨時變易以從道也【隂陽變易而生萬化聖人象之而畫卦爻使人體卦爻之變易而隨時以從道也○或問易即道也何以言變易以從道朱子曰易之所以變易固皆理之當然聖人作易因象明理教人以變易從道之方耳如干初則潛二則見之類是也】其為書也廣大悉備將以順性命之理通幽明之故盡事物之情而示開物成務之道也聖人之憂患後世可謂至矣【故所以然也開物者使其知之明成務者使其行之就也】去古雖逺遺經尚存然而前儒失意以傳言後學誦言而忘味自秦而下葢無傳矣予生千載之後悼斯文之湮晦將俾後人沿流而求源此傳所以作也【沿流而求源謂因言以求其意也】易有聖人之道四焉以言者尚其辭以動者尚其變以制器者尚其象以卜筮者尚其占吉凶消長之理進退存亡之道備於辭推辭考卦可以知變象與占在其中矣【尚尊尚之也辭者聖人所繫之辭變者隂陽老少之變象者天地山澤雷風水火之類是也占者吉凶悔吝厲無咎之類是也辭者言之則也故以言者尚其辭變者動之時也故以動者尚其變象事知器故制器者尚其象占事知來故卜筮者尚其占然辭變象占雖各有尚而吉凶消長進退存亡易之大用皆具於辭故變推辭而可知象與占皆不外乎辭也】君子居則觀其象而玩其辭動則觀其變而玩其占得於辭不達其意者有矣未有不得於辭而能通其意者也【玩厭習也不止於觀而已葢卦之象可觀而辭之理則無窮故必玩習其辭爻之變可觀而占之義則無窮故必玩習其占平居而觀象玩辭則各盡乎卦之理臨事而觀變玩占則各盡乎爻之用然象與變占皆具於辭故必由辭以通其意】至防者理也至著者象也體用一源顯防無間觀防通以行其典禮則辭無所不備【朱子曰自理而觀則理為體象為用而理中有象是一源也自象而觀則象為顯理為防象中有理是無間也又曰防以理之所聚而言通以事之所宜而言其實一也又曰眾理防處便有許多難易窒礙必於其中得其通處乃可行耳典禮者典常之禮】故善學者求言必自近易於近者非知言者也予所傳者辭也由辭以得意則在乎人焉【文集下同○道無逺近之間然觀書者必由粗以達於精即顯以推其防本民彛日用之常而極於窮神知化之妙不可忽乎近而徒務乎髙逺也】

In the preface to his Commentary on the Changes, Master Yichuan said: "Change means alteration: altering with the times so as to follow the Way. [Yin and yang alter and give rise to the myriad transformations; the sages imitated this by drawing the hexagrams and lines, so that people would embody the changes of the lines and follow the Way according to the time. Someone asked: the Changes is the Way itself, so why speak of altering in order to follow the Way? Zhu Xi said: that the Changes alters is of course entirely the natural working of principle. In making the Changes, the sages used images to make principle clear and taught people the method of altering so as to follow the Way, as in the first line of Qian being hidden and the second appearing.] The book is vast and complete. It is meant to accord with the principle of nature and destiny, to penetrate the reasons of the dark and the bright, to exhaust the true state of things, and to reveal the Way of opening up things and accomplishing affairs. The sages' concern for later ages may be said to have reached its utmost. [The 'reason' is the why of things. Opening up things means making people see clearly; accomplishing affairs means bringing action to completion.] Though far from antiquity, the surviving classic remains; yet earlier scholars lost the meaning in transmitting the words, and later students recite the words and forget their flavor. From the Qin on, there has been almost no transmission. Born a thousand years later, I grieve that this culture has been buried and obscured, and I wish to let later people follow the stream back to its source; this is why I wrote this commentary. [To follow the stream back to the source means to seek the meaning through the words.] The Changes contains four aspects of the sages' Way: for speaking, one values its judgments; for action, one values its changes; for making implements, one values its images; for divination, one values its prognostications. The principles of auspiciousness and misfortune, waxing and waning, and the Way of advance and retreat, survival and loss are all contained in the judgments. Study the judgments and examine the hexagram, and one can know the changes; the images and prognostications are within them. [To 'value' means to esteem. The judgments are the texts the sages appended; the changes are the shifts of yin and yang, old and young; the images are such things as Heaven, Earth, mountain, marsh, thunder, wind, water, and fire; the prognostications are such things as fortune, misfortune, regret, shame, danger, and blamelessness. The judgments are the norm for speech, hence 'for speaking, value the judgments'; the changes are the moment for action, hence 'for action, value the changes'; from an image of the matter one knows the implement, hence 'for making implements, value the images'; the prognostication of the matter tells what is to come, hence 'for divination, value the prognostications'. Yet although each of the four has its own value, the great function of the Changes, in its fortune and misfortune, waxing and waning, advance and retreat, survival and loss, is fully contained in the judgments. Thus the changes can be known by examining the judgments, and the images and prognostications do not go beyond them.] The gentleman at rest observes the images and savors the judgments; in action he observes the changes and savors the prognostications. There are those who grasp the judgments but do not reach their meaning; there is no one who fails to grasp the judgments and yet comprehends their meaning. [To 'savor' means to become so familiar as to relish; it is more than merely looking. The images of a hexagram can be observed, but the principle in the judgments is inexhaustible, so one must savor the judgments; the changes of the lines can be observed, but the meaning of the prognostications is inexhaustible, so one must savor the prognostications. At rest, observing the images and savoring the judgments, one exhausts the principle of each hexagram; facing events, observing the changes and savoring the prognostications, one exhausts the function of each line. But the images, changes, and prognostications are all contained in the judgments, so one must reach the meaning through the judgments.] The most subtle (the received text has a corrupted character here, which should read 'subtle') is principle; the most manifest is the image. Substance and function have one source; the manifest and the subtle have no gap. Observe how things meet and interpenetrate (the received text has a corrupted character here), so as to carry out the canonical rites, and the judgments lack nothing. [Zhu Xi said: viewed from principle, principle is substance and image is function, and there are images within principle, which is what 'one source' means; viewed from the image, the image is manifest and principle is subtle, and there is principle within the image, which is what 'no gap' means. He also said: 'subtle' speaks of where principle gathers, and 'interpenetrate' speaks of what suits the matter at hand, though in truth they are one. He also said: where many principles meet there are many difficulties and obstructions, and one must find the point of passage among them before one can act. The canonical rites are the constant rites.] So one who is good at learning seeks words from what is near; one who thinks the near is easy is not one who understands words. What I transmit is the judgments; reaching the meaning through them depends on the person. [From the Collected Writings; the same below. The Way has no near or far, but a reader of books must go from the coarse to the refined and from the manifest to the subtle. Rooted in the ordinary conduct of the people's daily life and reaching to the wonder of knowing spirit and understanding transformation, it must not be neglected as near while one pursues only the high and distant.]"

伊川先生答張閎中書曰易傳未傳自量精力未衰尚覬有少進爾來書云易之義本起於數則非也有理而後有象有象而後有數易因象以明理由象以知數得其義則象數在其中矣【本注云理無形也故因象以明理理既見乎辭矣則可由辭以觀象故曰得其義則象數在其中矣○張閎中見程氏門人録易有太極形而上之理也是生兩儀而後象與數形焉此作易之本也易之理寓於象象必有數知其理則象與數皆在其中此學易之要也】必欲窮象之隠防盡數之毫忽乃尋流逐末術家之所尚非儒者之所務也【理者象數之本也不務求其本而徒欲窮其末如京房郭璞之流是也】知時識勢學易之大方也【易傳下同○夬卦九二象傳方猶術也時有盛衰勢有強弱學易者當隨其時勢惟變所適惟道之從也】

In his reply to Zhang Hongzhong, Master Yichuan wrote: "My Commentary on the Changes has not yet been circulated; I estimate my strength has not yet failed and hope to make some small further progress. Your letter says the meaning of the Changes originally arises from numbers, which is incorrect. First there is principle, then images, then numbers. The Changes uses images to make principle clear and through images knows numbers. Grasp the meaning and images and numbers are within it. [The original note says: principle has no form, so images are used to make it clear. Once principle is manifest in the judgments, one can observe the images through the judgments, hence 'grasp the meaning and images and numbers are within it'. For Zhang Hongzhong, see the records of the Cheng school's disciples. 'In the Changes there is the Supreme Ultimate' is the principle above form; 'this gives rise to the Two Modes', and only then do images and numbers take shape. This is the root of the making of the Changes. The principle of the Changes lodges in images, images necessarily have numbers, and if one knows the principle, images and numbers are both within it. This is the essence of studying the Changes.] To seek to exhaust the hidden subtleties of the images (the received text has a corrupted character here, which should read 'hidden') and the last hairsbreadth of the numbers is to chase the stream and pursue the branches, which the technicians favor and which is no concern of the Confucian. [Principle is the root of images and numbers. To neglect the root and try to exhaust only the branches is what people like Jing Fang and Guo Pu did.] To know the time and recognize the situation is the great method of studying the Changes. [From the Commentary on the Changes; the same below. This is from the Image commentary on the second yang line of Guai. 'Method' here is like 'art'. Times flourish and decline, situations are strong and weak; one who studies the Changes should follow the time and situation, going only where change leads and following only the Way.]"

大畜初二幹體剛健而不足以進四五隂柔而能止時之盛衰勢之強弱學易者所宜深識也【幹下艮上為大畜初與二雖剛健而不足以進者以畜之時不利於進初二俱位乎下勢又不能進也四與五雖隂柔而能止乎健者以畜之時在於止四五位據乎上勢人足以為止也】

Cheng Yi said: "In Da Chu, the first and second lines are of the Qian body: firm and strong but unable to advance; the fourth and fifth are yin and soft but able to restrain. The flourishing and decline of the times and the strength and weakness of the situation are what one who studies the Changes should understand deeply. [Qian below and Gen above make Da Chu. Though the first and second lines are firm and strong, they cannot advance, because the time of restraint is unfavorable to advance, and both lines are in low positions so their situation also prevents advance. Though the fourth and fifth are yin and soft, they can restrain the strong, because the time of restraint lies in stopping, and these two lines hold high positions so their situation suffices to restrain.]"

諸卦二五雖不當位多以中為美三四雖當位或以不中為過中常重於正也葢中則不違於正正不必中也天下之理莫善於中於九二六五可見【震卦六五傳二者內卦之中五者外卦之中皆中也三為內卦之上四為外卦之下皆不中也六爻之位初三五為陽二四上為隂以陽爻居陽位隂爻居隂位為當位反此者為不當位當位者正也不當位者非正也坤六五非正也而曰黃裳元吉泰九二非正也而曰得尚於中行葢以中為美也蠱之三四皆正也而三則有悔四則往吝既濟之三四皆正也而三則有三年之憊四則有終日之戒葢以不中為歉也正者天下之定理中者時措之宜也正者有時而失其中中則隨時而得其正者也故中之義重於正】

Cheng Yi said: "In the hexagrams, the second and fifth lines, even when not in proper position, are mostly regarded as good for being central; the third and fourth, even when in proper position, are sometimes at fault for not being central. The central is always weightier than the proper. For what is central does not depart from what is proper, but what is proper is not necessarily central. In the world's principles there is none better than the mean, as can be seen in the second yang line and the fifth yin line. [From the commentary on the fifth yin line of Zhen. The second line is the center of the inner trigram and the fifth the center of the outer one; both are central. The third is the top of the inner trigram and the fourth the bottom of the outer one; neither is central. Of the six places, the first, third, and fifth are yang and the second, fourth, and top are yin. A yang line in a yang place or a yin line in a yin place is in proper position; the reverse is improper. Proper position is correctness, improper is not. The fifth yin line of Kun is not correct yet is called 'yellow lower garment, supremely auspicious'; the second yang line of Tai is not correct yet 'obtains honor by walking the middle way'; so centrality is counted as good. In Gu the third and fourth lines are both correct, yet the third has regret and the fourth meets with shame in going forward; in Ji Ji the third and fourth are both correct, yet the third involves exhaustion over three years and the fourth carries a warning all day long; so lack of centrality is counted as a flaw. Correctness is the fixed principle of the world, while centrality is what suits the moment. Correctness sometimes loses the mean, but the mean follows the time and attains correctness. Therefore the meaning of centrality outweighs correctness.]"

問胡先生解九四作太子恐不是卦義先生雲亦不妨只看如何用當儲貳則做儲貳使九四近君便作儲貳亦不害但不要拘一若執一事則三百八十四爻只作得三百八十四件事便休了【遺書下同○胡瑗字翼之號安定先生五為君位四近君亦可以為儲貳然易本無拘惟其所遇皆可用占】

Someone asked: "Master Hu explained the fourth yang line as the Crown Prince; I fear that is not the meaning of the hexagram." The Master said: "It does no harm; it depends only on how one uses it. When one is to be Crown Prince, one serves as Crown Prince. The fourth yang line is near the ruler, so there is no harm in taking it as the Crown Prince, but one must not be confined to one reading. If one clings to one thing, then the three hundred and eighty-four lines would be good for only three hundred and eighty-four matters and that would be the end. [From the Surviving Writings; the same below. Hu Yuan, styled Yizhi, was called Master Anding. The fifth place is the ruler's seat, and the fourth, being close to the ruler, may also serve as the Crown Prince. But the Changes was never rigid; whatever one meets can be used for divination.]"

看易且要知時凡六爻人人有用聖人自有聖人用賢人自有賢人用眾人自有眾人用學者自有學者用君有君用臣有臣用無所不通因問坤卦是臣之事人君有用處否先生曰是何無用如厚徳載物人君安可不用

Cheng Yi said: "In reading the Changes one must first know the time. All six lines are useful to everyone: sages have the use proper to sages, worthies the use proper to worthies, ordinary people the use proper to ordinary people, students the use proper to students, rulers the use proper to rulers, ministers the use proper to ministers; there is nothing it does not reach." Someone then asked: "The Kun hexagram concerns ministers; is it of use to a ruler?" The Master said: "How could it be of no use? Take 'thick virtue bears up all things': how could a ruler not use that?"

易中只是言反覆往來上下【反覆如復姤之類往來如賁無妄之類上下如鹹恆之類皆隂陽變易之道而易之所以為易也】

Cheng Yi said: "In the Changes there is only talk of return and reversal, going and coming, ascending and descending. [Return and reversal are as in Fu and Gou; going and coming as in Bi and Wu Wang; ascending and descending as in Xian and Heng. All are the Way of the alternation of yin and yang, and are what make the Changes the Changes.]"

作易自天地幽明至於昆蟲草木防物無不合【外書下同○易無不該無不合者理之根極本一貫也】

Cheng Yi said: "In making the Changes, from Heaven and Earth, the dark and the bright, down to insects, grasses, and trees, the myriad things (the received text has a corrupted character here, which should read 'myriad') all fit. [From the Outer Writings; the same below. The Changes leaves nothing out and everything agrees with it, because the root of principle is a single thread.]"

今時人看易皆不識得易是何物只就上穿鑿若念得不熟只就上添一徳亦不覺多就上減一徳亦不覺少譬如不識此兀子若減一隻腳亦不知是少若添一隻亦不知是多若識則自添減不得也【學者當體此意使於卦象辭義皆的然見其不可易而後為得也】

Cheng Yi said: "People today who read the Changes do not know what the Changes is at all and only force interpretations onto it. If they have not memorized it well, they will add a virtue to it without noticing the surplus, or remove a virtue without noticing the lack. It is like not recognizing a stool: if you remove one leg you do not know anything is missing, and if you add one you do not know it is too many. If you do recognize it, naturally you cannot add or remove anything. [Students should take this idea to heart, so that in the images and the meaning of the judgments they clearly see that nothing can be altered, and only then have they got it.]"

遊定夫問伊川隂陽不測之謂神伊川曰賢是疑了問是揀難底問【遊氏或未之深思特以此語艱深而率爾請問故伊川不答而直攻其心欲使反已而致思也】

You Dingfu asked Yichuan about 'the unfathomability of yin and yang is called spirit'. Yichuan said: "Are you asking because you have a doubt, or are you picking something hard to ask? [You perhaps had not thought deeply and merely asked offhandedly because the phrase seemed profound, so Yichuan did not answer but struck directly at his state of mind, hoping to make him turn back on himself and reflect.]"

伊川以易傳示門人曰只説得七分後人更須自體究【義理無窮聖賢之心亦無窮學者不可以不自勉】

Yichuan showed his Commentary on the Changes to his disciples and said: "It says only seven tenths of the matter; later people must investigate the rest for themselves. [Principle and meaning are inexhaustible, and so is the mind of the sages and worthies; students must not fail to exert themselves.]"

伊川先生春秋傳序曰天之生民必有出類之才起而君長之治之而爭奪息導之而生養遂教之而倫理明然後人道立天道成地道平【天生烝民必有司牧為之制節而後爭奪息導之播植佃漁而後生養遂示之五品教之孝弟忠信而後倫理明三者具矣故建極秉彛而人道立五氣順布而天道成山川奠位而地道平】二帝而上聖賢世出隨時有作順乎風氣之宜不先天以開人各因時而立政【以大聖人之資豈不能一旦而盡興天下之利而必待相繼而始備者葢聖人之所為惟其時而已】暨乎三王迭興三重既備子丑寅之建正忠質文之更尚人道備矣天運周矣【中庸曰王天下有三重焉鄭氏曰三重謂三王之禮天開於子地闢於醜人生於寅周正建子為天統商正建醜為地統夏正建寅為人統而天運周矣夏尚忠商尚質周尚文而人道備矣】聖王既不復作有天下者雖欲仿古之跡亦私意妄為而已事之繆秦至以建亥為正道之悖漢專以智力持世豈復知先王之道也【三代而下王者之跡熄時君雖欲仿而為之亦皆無所考證不過用其私意妄為而已子丑寅建正葢本三才以更始秦至以亥月為歳首自謂水徳欲以勝周忠質文更尚皆本仁義以致用漢專以智力把持天下故謂漢家自有制度葢極言世變之不復近古】夫子當週之末以聖人不復作也順天應時之治不復有也於是作春秋為百王不易之大法所謂考諸三王而不謬建諸天地而不悖質諸鬼神而無疑百世以俟聖人而不惑者也【夫子因魯史作春秋寓經世之大法所以上承將墜之緒下無窮之治也故考諸前聖而無差謬參諸天地而無違悖驗諸鬼神之幽而無所疑待乎百世之逺而無所惑葢天地鬼神同此理前聖後聖同此心】先儒之傳曰遊夏不能贊一辭辭不待贊也言不能與於斯耳斯道也惟顔子甞聞之矣行夏之時乘殷之輅服周之冕樂則韶舞此其準的也【聖人之辭本無待於贊助然遊夏擅文學之科而不能贊一辭者以見其防權奧防非聖人不能與於此也顔子克己復禮以至三月不違其於道也庶幾矣故四代禮樂獨得與間其説夏時謂夏以斗柄初昏建寅之月為歳首得乎人時之正始事之宜者也輅古之木車也殷車曰大輅左傳曰大輅越席昭其儉也葢適於用而辨於等故不厭其質也冕祭冠也周禮有五冕其制始備葢尊首飾而嚴祀事故不厭其華也韶舞舜樂葢盡善盡美者也○或問顔子甞聞春秋大法何也朱子曰不是孔子將春秋大法向顔子説葢三代製作大備矣不可復作告以四代禮樂只是集百王不易之大法其作春秋善者則取之惡者則誅之要亦明聖王之大法而已故伊川引以為據】後世以史視春秋謂褒善貶惡而已至於經世之大法則不知也春秋大義數十其義雖大炳如日星乃易見也惟其防辭隠義時措從宜者為難知也或抑或縱或與或奪或進或退或防或顯而得乎義理之安文質之中寛猛之宜是非之公乃制事之權衡揆道之模範也【春秋大義在尊君而卑臣貴仁義而賤功利正中國而外夷狄之類其義雖大炳如日星也其難見者葢在於防辭隠義各以其時措從宜者非深明乎時中者未易窺也或有功而抑或有罪而宥或功未就而予或罪未著而奪或尊而退之或卑而進之或婉其辭或章其實要皆得乎義理之安而各當其則文質之中而不華不俚寛猛之宜而無過與不及是非之公而無有作好作惡揆度也權衡者酌一時之輕重模範者立萬世之軌則○朱子曰春秋大義如成宋亂宋災故之類乃是聖人直著誅貶自是分明如胡氏謂書晉侯為以常情待晉襄書秦人為以王事待秦繆之類卻恐未必如此所謂防辭隠義時措從宜者為難知正為此也】夫觀百物然後識化工之神聚眾材然後知作室之用於一事一義而欲窺聖人之用心非上智不能也故學春秋者必優遊涵泳黙識心通然後能造其防也【聖人精義入神泛應曲當未可以一端窺測故學春秋者必優遊而不迫涵泳而有餘心悟自得庶防深造防奧】后王知春秋之義則雖徳非禹湯尚可以法三代之治自秦而下其學不傳予悼夫聖人之志不明於後世也故作傳以明之俾後之人通其文而求其義得其意而法其用則三代可復也是傳也雖未能極聖人之蘊奧庶防學者得其門而入矣【文集○通其文而後能明其義得其意而後能法其用】

In the preface to his Commentary on the Spring and Autumn Annals, Master Yichuan said: "When Heaven gave birth to the people, there had to arise those of outstanding talent to be their lords and leaders: when they governed the people, strife ceased; when they guided them, livelihood was achieved; when they taught them, the human relationships became clear. Only then was the Way of humankind established, the Way of Heaven fulfilled, and the Way of Earth settled. [When Heaven brings forth the multitude, there must be shepherds to set regulations for them, and only then does strife cease; they guide them in sowing and planting, hunting and fishing, and only then is livelihood achieved; they reveal the five relationships and teach filial piety, fraternal duty, loyalty, and good faith, and only then do the human relationships become clear. With these three in place, the supreme standard is established and the constant norms upheld, so the Way of humankind is established; the five energies spread in order, so the Way of Heaven is fulfilled; mountains and rivers take their places, so the Way of Earth is settled.] From the Two Emperors upward, sages and worthies arose generation after generation, acting as the times required, following the fitness of the customs of the age, never racing ahead of Heaven's timing to open up human affairs, but each establishing government according to his time. [With the endowment of a great sage, could he not have fully developed all the benefits of the world in a single day? Yet he had to wait for successors to complete it, because what the sages did was simply to suit their time.] When the Three Kings rose in turn, the three repetitions were complete: the beginning of the year set at the zi, chou, and yin months, and the alternating preference for loyalty, plainness, and refinement. The Way of humankind was complete and the cycle of Heaven's course was fulfilled. [The Doctrine of the Mean says: to rule the world there are three repetitions. Master Zheng says the three repetitions refer to the rites of the Three Kings. Heaven opened at zi, Earth was split at chou, and humankind was born at yin: the Zhou set the year at zi as the Heaven lineage, the Shang at chou as the Earth lineage, and the Xia at yin as the Human lineage, and so the cycle of Heaven was complete. The Xia valued loyalty, the Shang plainness, the Zhou refinement, and so the Way of humankind was complete.] Once the sage kings no longer arose, those who held the world might wish to imitate the ancient traces, but it was only willful, selfish invention. How absurd were their doings: the Qin even set the year's beginning at the hai month; how perverse their way: the Han relied purely on cleverness and force to hold the age, and how could they have known the Way of the former kings? [After the Three Dynasties, the traces of true kings were extinguished. Though the rulers of the day wished to imitate them, they had nothing to examine and merely acted on private whim. Setting the year at zi, chou, and yin was originally a renewal according to the Three Powers; the Qin even made the hai month the head of the year, calling themselves the Water Virtue and hoping to overcome the Zhou. The alternation of loyalty, plainness, and refinement all rested on benevolence and righteousness for their practical use; the Han relied purely on cleverness and force to hold the world, which is why it was said 'the House of Han has its own institutions'. This speaks to the utmost of how the age's changes no longer approached antiquity.] The Master lived at the very end of the Zhou. Because sages no longer arose and governance in harmony with Heaven and the seasons no longer existed, he composed the Spring and Autumn Annals as a great model unchanging for a hundred reigns. This is what is meant by 'examine it against the Three Kings and it is without error; establish it between Heaven and Earth and it is without contradiction; test it before the spirits and it raises no doubt; wait a hundred generations for a sage and it will not be misled.' [The Master composed the Spring and Autumn Annals from the chronicle of Lu, lodging in it the great model for ordering the world; so above he took up the thread about to fall, and below he opened a governance without end. Hence examined against the earlier sages it is without error, compared with Heaven and Earth it is without contradiction, tested against the hidden spirits it raises no doubt, and awaited across a hundred generations it brings no confusion. For Heaven, Earth, and the spirits share one principle, and earlier and later sages share one mind.] The commentaries of earlier scholars say that Ziyou and Zixia could not add a single word. The words did not need adding; it means they could not take part in this. This Way only Master Yan had heard. 'Follow the calendar of the Xia, ride the carriage of the Yin, wear the cap of the Zhou, and for music take the Shao and the Wu dance': this is the standard. [The sage's words never needed assistance; yet that Ziyou and Zixia, masters of literature, could not add a single word is meant to show that this was the beginning and starting point (the received text has a corrupted character here, which should read 'beginning'), in which none but a sage could take part. Master Yan overcame himself and returned to propriety, so that for three months his mind did not depart from benevolence; he was close to the Way, and so alone among his disciples was he given to hear of the rites and music of the four dynasties. The Xia calendar means the Xia took the month when the Dipper's handle points to yin at dusk as the head of the year, which fits human seasons and suits the beginning of work. The carriage is the ancient wooden cart; the Yin carriage was called the Great Carriage. The Zuo Commentary says: 'The Great Carriage with rush mats shows frugality.' It suits use and distinguishes ranks, so its plainness is not disliked. The cap is the sacrificial cap; the Rites of Zhou has the five caps, where the system was first complete. It honors the headdress and makes solemn the sacrifices, so its elegance is not disliked. The Shao dance is Shun's music, perfectly good and perfectly beautiful. Someone asked: Master Yan had heard the great model of the Spring and Autumn Annals; what does this mean? Zhu Xi said: it is not that Confucius told Yan Hui the great model of the Annals. The institutions of the Three Dynasties were fully complete and could not be made again; in telling him of the rites and music of the four dynasties he merely gathered the unchanging great models of the hundred kings. In composing the Annals he took what was good and condemned what was evil, also only to clarify the great model of the sage kings. Hence Yichuan cited it as proof.] Later ages treated the Spring and Autumn Annals as history and said it only praised good and blamed evil, without knowing the great model for ordering the world. The great principles of the Annals number several dozen; though weighty, they shine like the sun and stars and are easy to see. What is hard to know is its subtle wording, hidden meanings, and judgment suited to each time. Now restraining, now indulging, now granting, now withholding, now advancing, now retreating, now concealing, now revealing (the received text has a corrupted character here, which should read 'concealing'), yet attaining the repose of principle, the mean between refinement and plainness, the right measure of leniency and severity, and the impartiality of right and wrong: that is the balance for handling affairs and the model for measuring the Way. [The great principles of the Annals, such as honoring the ruler and lowering the minister, valuing benevolence and righteousness over profit, setting the Central States right and treating the barbarians as outsiders, are weighty and shine like the sun and stars. What is hard to see lies in the subtle wording and hidden meanings, each adapted to its time and suited to the occasion; one who is not deeply versed in timely centrality can hardly glimpse them. Sometimes one with merit is restrained, one with guilt is forgiven; one whose work is not yet done is granted, one whose guilt is not yet evident is denied; one honored is set back, one lowly is advanced; the wording may be softened or the reality made plain. All must attain the repose of principle and fit their own measure; the mean of refinement and plainness, neither florid nor coarse; the right measure of leniency and severity, with neither excess nor lack; and the impartiality of right and wrong, without personal liking or dislike. To measure is to gauge. The balance weighs the weight of a moment, and the model sets the standard for ten thousand generations. Zhu Xi said: the great principles of the Annals, such as 'bringing about the Song disorder' and 'on account of the Song fire', are where the sage condemns plainly and are clear in themselves. But Master Hu's saying that writing 'Marquis of Jin' treats Duke Xiang of Jin by ordinary sentiment, and writing 'men of Qin' treats Duke Mu of Qin by royal standards, may not be so. What is hard to know, the subtle wording and hidden meanings adapted to the moment, is exactly this.] Observe the hundred things and then you recognize the spirit of Nature's craft; gather many materials and then you know the use of a house; to try to glimpse the sage's intention in a single matter or a single principle is beyond all but the most gifted. Therefore one who studies the Annals must linger and steep in it, silently recognize and understand with the heart, and only then can he reach its subtlety (the received text has a corrupted character here, which should read 'subtlety'). [The sage's refined meaning enters the spirit and responds in all situations aptly; it cannot be glimpsed from one angle. So one who studies the Annals must linger unhurriedly and soak in it with more than enough, awakening and attaining by himself, and then he may come near to a deep attainment of its depths (the received text has corrupted characters here).] If later kings understood the principles of the Annals, then even if their virtue were not that of Yu or Tang, they could still model the governance of the Three Dynasties. From the Qin onward this learning was not transmitted. I grieve that the sage's intention is not clear to later ages, so I wrote a commentary to make it clear, so that people of later times may master its text and seek its meaning, grasp its intent and model its use, and the Three Dynasties may be restored. Though this commentary has not exhausted the sage's depths, I hope students may find the door and enter. [From the Collected Writings. Only after mastering the text can one make its meaning clear; only after grasping its intent can one model its use.]"

詩書載道之文春秋聖人之用詩書如藥方春秋如用藥治病聖人之用全在此書所謂不如載之行事深切著明者也【道非無用用無非廹然詩書即道而推於用主道而言故曰載道之文春秋即用以明道主用而言故曰聖人之用詩書如藥方固可以治病春秋如因病用藥是非得失尤為深切著明者也】有重疊言者如征伐盟防之類葢欲成書勢須如此不可事事各求異義但一字有異或上下文異則義須別【遺書下同】

Master Cheng said: "The Odes and the Documents are texts that carry the Way; the Spring and Autumn Annals is the sage's practical use. The Odes and the Documents are like prescriptions; the Annals is like using the medicine to treat illness. The sage's practical use lies wholly in this book. This is what is meant by 'better to show it in actual deeds, where it is deep, pressing, and plain.' [The Way is not without use, nor is use something forced on from outside; the Odes and Documents take the Way and extend it to use, speaking primarily of the Way, so they are called texts that carry the Way; the Annals takes use to make the Way clear, speaking primarily of use, so it is called the sage's use. The Odes and Documents are like prescriptions, which can certainly cure illness; the Annals is like applying medicine according to the illness, and its right and wrong, gain and loss are all the more deep, pressing, and plain.] There are repeated statements, such as for campaigns and covenants and meetings (the received text has a corrupted character here, which should read 'meetings'), because a book must be composed and the situation requires it; one cannot seek a different meaning in every instance. But where a single character differs, or the context differs, there the meaning must differ. [From the Surviving Writings; the same below.]"

五經之有春秋猶法律之有防例也律令唯言其法至於防例則始見其法之用也【律令者立法以應事防例者因事以用法】學春秋亦善一句是一事是非便見於此此亦窮理之要然他經豈不可以窮理但他經論其義春秋因其行事是非較著故窮理為要【較判別也春秋一句為一事故是非易決又考其事蹟而是非易明故於窮理為要】甞語學者且先讀論語孟子更讀一經然後看春秋先識得個義理方可看春秋【更讀一經如下文所論中庸春秋雖於窮理為要然又須義理通明然後能察人事得失之機識聖人裁製之權】春秋以何為準無如中膺欲知中庸無如權須是時而為中若以手足腁胝閉戸不出二者之間取中便不是中若當手足腁胝則於此為中當閉戶不出則於此為中【春秋之權衡即中庸之時中也若於禹顔之間取中則當洪水之時不躬乎胼胝之勞在陋巷之時不安乎簞瓢之樂皆失乎時中矣】權之為言秤錘之義也何物為權義也時也只是説得到義義以上更難説在人自看如何【義者所以處時措之宜所謂權也義以上則聖人之妙用未易以言盡也】

Master Cheng said: "Among the Five Classics, the Spring and Autumn Annals is like the case rules in a legal code (the received text has a corrupted character here, which should read 'rules'). Statutes only state the law; it is in the case rules that the application of the law is first seen. [Statutes establish laws to meet matters; case rules apply the law according to the matter.] It is good to study the Annals: one sentence is one affair, and right and wrong appear in it, which is also the key to investigating principle. But could other classics not be used to investigate principle? They discuss the meaning, whereas the Annals follows the actual conduct, so right and wrong are more evident, and hence it is the key to investigating principle. [To 'compare' is to distinguish. In the Annals one sentence is one affair, so right and wrong are easy to decide; and since one examines the deeds, right and wrong are easy to clarify. So it is the key to investigating principle.] I have told students: first read the Analects and the Mencius, then read one more classic, and then look at the Annals. One must first recognize the principle, and only then can one look at the Annals. [The 'one more classic' is the Doctrine of the Mean discussed below. Though the Annals is the key to investigating principle, one must first understand principle thoroughly, and then one can discern the pivot of human gain and loss and recognize the sage's discretion.] By what standard does the Annals proceed? None is better than the Doctrine of the Mean (the received text has a corrupted character here, which should read 'Mean'). To know the Mean, none is better than discretion. One must take the mean according to the time. If one tried to take the mean between a person whose hands and feet are calloused with toil and one who shuts his door and does not go out, that would not be the mean. If the time calls for calloused hands and feet, then the mean is there; if it calls for shutting the door, then the mean is there. [The balance of the Annals is the timely mean of the Doctrine of the Mean. If one took the mean between Yu and Yan Hui, then in the time of the flood one would not bear the toil of calluses, and in the narrow lane one would not be at ease with a bamboo bowl and a gourd ladle; in both cases one would lose the timely mean.] 'Discretion' as a word carries the sense of a steelyard weight. What is the weight? Rightness, and the time. One speaks only up to rightness; above rightness it is harder to speak, and it depends on how each person sees it. [Rightness is how one handles the fitting measure of the time, which is discretion. Above rightness is the sage's wondrous function, not easily exhausted in words.]"

春秋傳為按經為防【本注程子又云某年二十時看春秋黃□偶問某如何看某答曰以傳考經之事蹟以經別傳之真偽】

Master Cheng said: "In the Spring and Autumn Annals, the commentary is the case record and the classic is the verdict (the received text has corrupted characters here, which should read 'case record' and 'verdict'). [The original note: Master Cheng also said: when I was twenty and read the Annals, Master Huang (the received text has a missing character here) happened to ask me how I read it. I answered: I use the commentary to examine the facts of the classic, and I use the classic to tell the true from the false in the commentary.]"

凡讀史不徒要記事蹟須要識其治亂安危興廢存亡之理且如讀髙帝紀便須識得漢家四百年終始治亂當如何是亦學也【觀髙祖寛大長者能用三傑則知漢所以得天下觀其入闗除秦苟法則知漢所以立四百年基業觀偽遊雲夢則知諸侯王次第而叛觀系蕭相國獄則知漢之大臣多不保終如此之類皆致知之方也】

Master Cheng said: "In reading history, one should not merely memorize events; one must recognize the principles of order and disorder, safety and danger, rise and fall, survival and loss. For example, in reading the Annals of Emperor Gao, one must know how the four hundred years of the House of Han went from beginning to end through order and disorder; this too is learning. [Look at Gaozu as a generous, magnanimous man able to employ the Three Heroes, and you know why the Han won the empire; look at how he entered the pass and abolished the Qin's harsh laws, and you know why the Han could found a four-hundred-year dynasty; look at his false excursion to Yunmeng, and you know why the feudal kings rebelled in turn; look at his imprisoning of Chancellor Xiao, and you know why the Han's great ministers mostly did not end well. Things like these are all methods of extending knowledge.]"

先生每讀史到一半便掩卷思量料其成敗然後卻看有不合處又更精思其間多有幸而成不幸而敗今人只見成者便以為是貶者便以為非不知成者煞有不是敗者煞有是底

Master Cheng said: "When the Master read history, he would close the book halfway, think it over, and predict the success or failure, and then continue reading. Where it did not match, he would think more finely. Among these cases there were many that succeeded by luck and failed by misfortune. People today see only the successful and take them to be right, the failed and take them to be wrong, not knowing that the successful often have much that is wrong and the failed often have much that is right."

讀史須見聖賢所存治亂之機賢人君子出處進退便是格物【機謂治忽動於防防者】

Master Cheng said: "In reading history one must see the pivots of order and disorder that the sages and worthies held to, and how worthy men and gentlemen took office or withdrew, advanced or retreated; this is investigating things. ['Pivot' means that order and neglect are stirred by the tiniest signs (the received text has corrupted characters here).]"

元祐中客有見伊川者几案間無他書惟印行唐鑑一部先生曰近方見此書三代以後無此議論【外書○範祖禹字淳夫按外書又云範淳夫甞與伊川論唐事及為唐鑑盡用先生之説先生謂門人曰淳夫乃能相信如此】橫渠先生曰序卦不可謂非聖人之蘊今欲安置一物猶求審處況聖人之於易其間雖無極至精義大槩皆有意思觀聖人之書須遍佈細宻如是大匠豈以一斧可知哉【橫渠易説】

In the Yuanyou years, a visitor called on Yichuan and saw no other book on his desk except a printed copy of the Tang Mirror. The Master said: "I have only recently seen this book; since the Three Dynasties there has been no such discourse." [From the Outer Writings. Fan Zuyu was styled Chunfu. The Outer Writings also says: Fan Chunfu once discussed Tang affairs with Yichuan, and when he wrote the Tang Mirror he entirely used the Master's views. The Master said to his disciples: Chunfu was able to believe so firmly.] Master Hengqu said: "The Sequence of the Hexagrams cannot be said not to hold the sage's depths. Even if I now want to place some object I still seek a careful arrangement; how much more the sage with the Changes? Though it may not contain the ultimate refined meaning, in general there is thought in every part. To read the sage's books one must proceed as widely and as finely as this; how could a great craftsman be understood from a single axe stroke?" [From Hengqu's Discourse on the Changes.]

天官之職須襟懷洪大方看得葢其規模至大若不得此心欲事事上致曲窮究湊合此心如是之大必不能得也【周建六官而天官冢宰統理邦國內外之政小大之事無所不總若非心量廣大何以包舉四海綜理百職今無此心量但欲毎事委曲窮究必不能周悉通貫之矣】釋氏錙銖天地可謂至大然不甞為大則為事不得若畀之一錢則必亂矣【釋氏論性極廣大然不可以理事其體用不相涉也如此】又曰太宰之職難看葢無許大心胷包羅記得此復忘彼其混混天下之事當如捕龍蛇摶虎豹用心力看方可其他五官便易看止一職也【語録下同】

Master Cheng said: "The office of the Heavenly Minister can be understood only with a vast breadth of mind. Its scale is so great that if one lacks such a mind and tries to examine every matter in detail to fit together a mind so great, one will certainly not succeed. [The Zhou established six ministries, and the Heavenly Minister, the Chief Steward, oversaw the governance of the state within and without, with nothing great or small beyond his purview. Without a vast capacity of mind, how could he encompass the four seas and manage a hundred offices? Without such a capacity now, one who tries to probe every matter in detail will certainly fail to grasp them all thoroughly.] The Buddhists weigh Heaven and Earth in ounces and grains and may be said to be greatest, but they have not truly been great, and so they cannot handle affairs; give them a single coin and they will surely fall into confusion. [The Buddhists discuss nature as extremely vast, yet they cannot order affairs; their substance and function have no connection, just as described.] He also said: the post of Grand Steward is hard to understand, because without so great a breadth of heart to encompass it, one remembers this and forgets that. To manage the confused affairs of the world one must apply one's mind and strength as though capturing dragons and snakes or grappling tigers and leopards. The other five offices are easy to understand, since each is just one office. [From the Recorded Sayings; the same below.]"

古人能知詩者惟孟子為其以意逆志也夫詩人之志至平易不必為艱嶮求之今以艱嶮求詩則已喪其本心何由見詩人之志【人情不相逺以己之意迎彼之志是為得之詩以感遇而發於人情之自然本為平易今以艱嶮之心求詩則已失吾心之自然矣而何以見詩人之心】詩人之情性溫厚平易老成本平地上道著言語今須以﨑嶇求之先其心已狹隘了則無由見得詩人之情本樂易只為時事拂著他樂易之性故以詩道其志【詩人之情性溫厚而無刻薄平易而無艱嶮老成而無輕躁若以崎嶇狹隘之心安能見詩人寛平廣大之意】

Master Cheng said: "Among the ancients, the only one who knew the Odes was Mencius, because he used his own understanding to meet the poet's intention. The intention of the poets is extremely plain; there is no need to seek it through difficulty and obscurity. If one now seeks the Odes through difficulty and obscurity, one has already lost one's original mind, and how can one see the poet's intention? [Human feelings are not far apart; to meet the other's intention with one's own understanding is how one gets it. The Odes arise from encounters and from the natural flow of human feeling, and are by nature plain. If one now seeks the Odes with a difficult and obscure mind, one has already lost the naturalness of one's own mind, and how can one see the poet's mind?] The poets' temperament is gentle, plain, and mature, and they speak on level ground. If one now insists on seeking through rugged paths, one's mind is already narrow, and there is no way to see the poets' feeling. Their nature was originally cheerful and easygoing; it was only that the times ran against that nature, so they expressed their intention in the Odes. [The poets' temperament is gentle without harshness, plain without obscurity, mature without haste. If one seeks with a rugged, narrow mind, how can one see the poets' breadth and vastness of intention?]"

尚書難看葢難得胷臆如此之大隻欲解義則無難也【朱子曰他書卻有次第尚書只合下便大如堯典克明峻徳以親九族至黎民於變時雍展開是大小大分命羲和定四時成嵗便是心中包一個三百六十五度四分度之一底天方見得恁地若不得一個大底心胷如何看得】

Master Cheng said: "The Book of Documents is hard to read because it is hard to have a breast so great; if one only wants to explain the meaning, it is not hard. [Zhu Xi said: other books have an order, but the Documents is great from the very start. Take the Canon of Yao, 'He was able to illuminate his lofty virtue and bring harmony to the nine branches of his clan,' up to 'the common people were transformed and became harmonious': how vast that unfolds. Then he divided and commissioned Xi and He to fix the four seasons and complete the year, which means holding in the mind a Heaven of three hundred and sixty-five and a quarter degrees; only then can one see it thus. Without a great breadth of mind, how can one read it?]"

讀書少則無由考校得義精葢書以維持此心一時放下則一時徳性有懈讀書則此心常在不讀書則終看義理不見【讀書不多則見義不精然讀書者又所以維持此心使無放逸也故讀書則心存心存則理得】

Master Cheng said: "If one reads little, there is no way to compare and examine so as to attain refined meaning. For books are used to sustain this mind; if they are put down for a moment, virtue slackens for that moment. When one reads, this mind is ever present; if one does not read, in the end one cannot see principle. [If one does not read much, one's insight into meaning is not refined; yet reading is also how one sustains this mind so that it does not stray. Hence reading preserves the mind, and a preserved mind attains principle.]"

書須成誦精思多在夜中或靜坐得之不記則思不起但通貫得大原後書亦易記【朱子曰書須成誦少問不知不覺自然觸發曉得葢一段文義橫在心下自是放不得必曉得而後已今人所以記不得思不去心下若存若亡皆不精不熟之故也又曰橫渠作正防時或夜裡黙坐徹曉他直是恁地勇方做得】所以觀書者釋己之疑明己之未達每見每知新益則學進矣於不疑處有疑方是進矣【每見是書而每加新孟則學進矣然學固足以釋疑而學亦貴於有疑葢疑則能思思則能得於無疑而有疑則察理宻矣】

Master Hengqu said: "Books must be recited until known by heart and pondered closely; much is gained at night or in quiet sitting. If one does not memorize, thought cannot arise. But once one has grasped the great source, books too become easy to remember. [Zhu Xi said: books must be recited from memory, and after a while one understands without noticing, by being stirred and set off; for a passage of meaning lies in the mind and naturally cannot be put down, and one must understand it before stopping. The reason people today cannot remember and cannot think is that the mind half exists and half does not, and this is because they are neither refined nor familiar. He also said: when Hengqu composed the Correcting Youthful Ignorance (the received text has a corrupted character here), he would sometimes sit silent through the night until dawn; he was truly that vigorous, and only so could he accomplish it.] One who looks at books is resolving his own doubts and clarifying what he has not yet reached. Each time he reads he learns something new, and so his learning advances. To have doubt where there was no doubt is to have advanced. [Each time one reads a book and gains something new (the received text has a corrupted character here, which should read 'new gain'), learning advances. Though learning can certainly resolve doubts, learning also values having doubts. For doubt makes one think, and thinking makes one attain; to doubt where there was no doubt is to have examined principle more closely.]"

六經須循環理防義理盡無窮待自家長得一格則又見得別

Master Hengqu said: "The Six Classics must be gone through in cycles and understood (the received text has a corrupted character here); their principles and meanings are altogether inexhaustible. When you have gained another grade, you will see something different again."

如中庸文字輩直須句句理防過使其言互相發明春秋之書在古無有乃仲尼所自作惟孟子能知之非理明義精殆未可學先儒未及此而治之故其説多鑿【孟子論春秋皆發明聖人之大旨舉春秋之綱領後人未及於理明義精而揣摩臆決故其説多鑿】

Master Hengqu said: "For writings like the Doctrine of the Mean, one must understand every single sentence (the received text has a corrupted character here), so that the words illuminate one another. The Spring and Autumn Annals was something that did not exist in antiquity; Zhongni composed it himself, and only Mencius could know it. Unless principle is clear and meaning refined, one can hardly study it. Earlier scholars, not having reached this, took it up and so their explanations are mostly forced. [Mencius's discussions of the Annals all bring out the sage's great purpose and raise the Annals' main outline. Later people, not having reached clear principle and refined meaning, guessed and decided by conjecture, so their explanations are mostly forced.]"

此卷論存養葢窮格之雖至而涵養之不足則其知將日昏而亦何以為力行之地哉故存養之功實貫乎知行而此卷之編列乎二者之間也

This volume discusses preserving and nourishing the mind. Even if the work of investigating things is carried to its utmost, if cultivation is insufficient, then one's knowledge will grow darker by the day, and how then can there be ground for vigorous practice? Hence the work of preserving and nourishing runs through both knowing and acting, and this is why this volume is placed between the two.

或問聖可學乎濂溪先生曰可有要乎曰有請問焉曰一為要一者無慾也無慾則靜虛動直靜虛則明明則通動直則公公則溥明通公溥庶矣乎【通書○一者統一而不雜也湛然無慾心乃純一靜而所存者一人慾消盡故虛虛則生明而能通天下之理動而所存者一天理流行故直直則大公而能周天下之務動靜惟一明通公溥庶防作聖之功用○朱子曰此章之旨最為要切學者能深玩而力行之則有以知無極之真兩儀四象之本皆不外乎此心而曰用間自無別用力處矣】

Someone asked: "Can sagehood be learned?" Master Lianxi said: "It can." "Is there an essential?" He said: "There is." "May I ask what it is?" He said: "Oneness is the essential. Oneness means having no desire. With no desire, in stillness one is empty, and in motion one is upright. Being empty in stillness brings clarity, and clarity brings penetration; being upright in motion brings impartiality, and impartiality brings universality. Clarity, penetration, impartiality, universality: one is then close to it." [From the Penetrating the Book of Changes. Oneness means unity without mixture. When one is serene and without desire, the mind becomes purely one. In stillness what is preserved is one, and human desires are exhausted so one is empty; emptiness gives rise to clarity and can penetrate the principles of the world. In motion what is preserved is one, and heavenly principle flows freely so one is upright; uprightness is great impartiality and can reach all the affairs of the world. In motion and in stillness there is only oneness, and clarity, penetration, impartiality, and universality are close to the work of becoming a sage (the received text has a corrupted character here). Zhu Xi said: the purport of this chapter is the most essential and pressing. If students can savor it deeply and practice it with vigor, they will know that the truth of the Non-Ultimate and the root of the Two Modes and Four Images do not go beyond this mind, and in daily life there will be no other place to apply effort.]

伊川先生曰陽始生甚防安靜而後能長故復之象曰先王以至日閉闗【易傳下同○朱子曰一陽初復陽氣甚防不可勞動故當安靜以養防陽如人善端方萌正欲靜以養之方能盛大○愚謂天人之氣流通無間至日閉闗財成輔相之道於是見矣】動息節宣以養生也飲食衣服以養形也威儀行義以養徳也推己及物以養人也【頣卦傳威儀見於容貎行義著於事葉】慎言語以養其徳節飲食以養其體事之至近而所繫至大者莫過於言語飲食也【頤卦象傳言語不謹則敗徳飲食無度則病身】震驚百里不喪匕鬯臨大震懼能安而不自失者惟誠敬而已此處震之道也【震卦彖傳七以載實鬯秬酒也雷震驚百里可謂震矣而奉祀者不失其匕鬯誠敬盡於祀事則雖震而不為驚也是知君子當大患難大恐懼處之安而不自失者惟存誠篤至中有所主則威震不足以動之矣】

Master Yichuan said: "When the yang first arises it is very faint; only when it is quiet and still can it grow. Hence the Image of the hexagram Fu (Return) says: 'The former kings closed the passes on the day of the solstice.' [From the Commentary on the Changes; likewise below. Note by Zhu Xi: When one yang first returns, the yang qi is very faint and must not be stirred; one should therefore stay quiet to nurture the faint yang, just as when a person's good sprouts begin to bud, one wants to nurture them in stillness so that they can grow strong. Note by Ye Cai: The qi of Heaven and of humans flows together without a gap; in closing the passes on the solstice, the way of completing and assisting the work of Heaven and Earth can be seen.] Regulating movement and rest, and measuring out what one takes in, nurtures life; food and clothing nurture the body; dignified bearing and righteous conduct nurture virtue; extending oneself to others nurtures people. [From the Commentary on the hexagram Yi (Nourishment). Dignified bearing shows in one's appearance, and righteous conduct shows in what one does.] Guarding one's words nurtures one's virtue; moderating food and drink nurtures one's body. Nothing is closer at hand yet bears on so much as speech and eating and drinking. [From the Commentary on the Image of the hexagram Yi. Careless speech ruins virtue, and intemperate eating and drinking harm the body.] 'Thunder shakes a hundred li, yet he does not drop the ladle and the sacrificial wine.' To face great shock and fear and remain at peace without losing oneself, there is only sincerity and reverence. This is the way of dealing with the hexagram Zhen (Thunder). [From the Commentary on the Judgment of the hexagram Zhen. The ladle is used to lift the sacrificial meat, and the sacrificial wine is made of black millet. Thunder that shakes a hundred li can truly be called a shock, yet the one who conducts the sacrifice does not lose his ladle and wine: because his sincerity and reverence are fully given to the sacrifice, he is not alarmed even amid the shock. From this we know that when a noble person meets great calamity or great fear and stays at peace and does not lose himself, it is only because he preserves sincerity and has an utterly earnest inner master, so that even the might of thunder cannot move him.]"

人之所以不能安其止者動於欲也欲牽於前而求其止不可得也故艮之道當艮其背所見者在前而背乃背之是所不見也止於所不見則無慾以亂其心而止乃安【艮卦彖傳不見可欲則心不亂然非屏視聴也葢不牽於欲則無私邪之見耳○朱子曰即非禮勿視聴言動之意】不獲其身不見其身也謂忘我也無我則止矣不能無我無可止之道【朱子曰外既無非禮之視聴言動則內自不見有私己之慾矣】行其庭不見其人庭除之間至近也在背則雖至近不見謂不交於物也【不交於物非絶物也亦謂中有所主不誘於外物之交也○朱子曰奸聲亂色不留聰明淫樂慝禮不接心術惰慢邪僻之氣不設於身體是也】外物不接內欲不萌如是而止乃得止之道於止為無咎也【內欲不萌不獲其身也外物不接不見其人也人已兩忘內外各定是動靜之間各得其所止何咎之有】

Master Yichuan said: "The reason people cannot rest securely where they should stop is that they are moved by desire. If desire pulls at them from the front, they seek to stop and cannot. Therefore the way of the hexagram Gen (Keeping Still) is to keep the back still: what one sees lies in front, and the back turns away from it, so one does not see it. If one stops at what one does not see, there is no desire to disturb the heart, and the stopping is at peace. [From the Commentary on the Judgment of the hexagram Gen. If one does not see what could be desired, the heart is not disturbed. Yet this does not mean shutting out sight and hearing; it means that when one is not pulled by desire, one has no selfish or crooked view. Note by Zhu Xi: This is the same idea as not looking, listening, speaking or acting contrary to ritual propriety.] 'He does not get hold of his body' means he does not see his body, that is, he forgets the self. With no self there is stopping. If one cannot be without self, there is no way to stop. [Note by Zhu Xi: When outwardly there is no looking, listening, speaking or acting contrary to ritual, inwardly one naturally does not see any selfish desire.] 'He walks in his courtyard and does not see his people': the courtyard is very near, but if it is behind one's back, even what is very near is not seen; this means not being entangled with things. [Not being entangled with things does not mean cutting oneself off from them; it also means having a master within and not being lured by contact with external things. Note by Zhu Xi: Lewd sounds and disordered colors are not allowed to remain in one's ears and eyes, licentious music and corrupt rites are not admitted into one's heart, and lazy, arrogant and depraved moods are not put on the body: this is exactly what it means.] When external things are not met and inner desires do not sprout, and one stops in this way, one gains the way of stopping, and in stopping there is no fault. [Inner desires not sprouting is 'not getting hold of his body'; external things not being met is 'not seeing his people'. When self and others are both forgotten and inner and outer are each settled, then in movement and stillness each finds its proper place to stop, so what fault could there be?]"

明道先生曰若不能存養只是説話【遺書下同○徒事問辨而不加存養口耳之學也】

Master Mingdao said: "If one cannot preserve and nurture the heart, it is only talk. [From the Surviving Writings; likewise below. To devote oneself to questioning and debate without preserving and nurturing the heart is learning that goes in at the ear and out at the mouth.]"

聖賢千言萬語只是欲人將已放之心約之使反覆入身來自能尋向上去下學而上達也【聖賢垂訓多端求其指歸則不過欲存此心而己心不外馳則學問日進於髙明矣○朱子曰孟子求放心乃開示要切之言程子又發明之曲盡其防學者宜服膺而勿失也】

Master Mingdao said: "The thousand words and ten thousand sayings of the sages and worthies only want people to take the heart that has been let go, rein it in, and bring it back into themselves, so that they can then find their own way upward, studying the lower things and reaching the higher. [The sages and worthies left many kinds of teaching, but if one seeks their main point, it is only that we should preserve this heart. When the heart does not race outward, learning advances day by day toward what is lofty and bright. Note by Zhu Xi: Mencius's 'seeking the lost heart' was a vital and urgent instruction; Master Cheng elaborated it further and expressed its subtlety completely. Students should take it to heart and not lose it.]"

李龥問每常遇事即能知操存之意無事時如何存養得熟明道曰古之人耳之於樂目之於禮左右起居盤盂几杖有銘有戒動息皆有所養今皆廢此獨有理義之養心耳但存此涵養意久則自熟矣敬以直內是涵養意【李龥字端伯程子門人也義理養心本兼動靜但此答無事時如何存養得熟故曰但存涵養意久則自熟敬則心存於中無所越逸即涵養之意】

Li Xu asked: "Whenever I meet with affairs, I can understand the sense of holding fast and preserving the heart; but when there are no affairs, how can I nurture it until it is ripe?" Mingdao said: "The ancients had music for the ear and ritual for the eye; in their daily living, on their bowls, basins, tables and staffs, there were inscriptions and warnings, so that every movement and rest was nurtured. Today all of this is abandoned, and only the nurturing of the heart by moral principle remains. Just hold to the intention of cultivation, and in time it will naturally ripen. 'Reverence to straighten the inner life' is the intention of cultivation." [Li Xu, courtesy name Duanbo, was a disciple of Master Cheng. Nurturing the heart with moral principle covers both movement and stillness, but since this answer is about how to nurture it to ripeness when there are no affairs, it says: just hold to the intention of cultivation, and in time it will ripen. When one is reverent, the heart is kept within and does not stray, and that is the intention of cultivation.]

呂與叔甞言患思慮多不能驅除明道曰此正如破屋中御宼東面一人來未逐得西面又一人至矣左右前後驅逐不暇葢其四面空疎盜固易入無縁作得主定又如虛器入水水自然入若以一器實之以水置之水中水何能入來葢中有主則實實則外患不能入自然無事【誠存則邪自閒矣】

Lu Yushu once said that he suffered from having too many thoughts and worries and could not drive them away. Mingdao said: "It is just like defending a ruined house against bandits: one comes from the east and has not yet been driven off when another arrives from the west, and one has no time to chase them off on every side. Since all four sides are empty and open, thieves enter easily and there is no way to set up a settled master. It is also like an empty vessel put into water: water naturally enters it. But if you fill a vessel with water and put it into the water, how could water get in? When there is a master within, the heart is full, and when it is full, outside troubles cannot enter, and naturally there is no trouble." [When sincerity is preserved, wickedness is naturally kept out.]

邢和叔言五曹常須愛養精力精力稍不足則倦所臨事皆勉強而無誠意接賓客語言尚可見況臨大事乎【邢恕字和叔】

Xing Heshu said: "We should always cherish and nurture our energy. If our energy is even slightly insufficient, we grow weary, and whatever we face we do half-heartedly and without sincerity. This can be seen even in receiving guests and conversing, let alone in facing great affairs." [Xing Shu, courtesy name Heshu.]

明道先生曰學者全體此心學雖未盡若事物之來不可不應但隨分限應之雖不中不逺矣【體猶體幹全體謂全主宰以為應酬之本心存而理得雖有不中於理亦不逺矣】

Master Mingdao said: "If a student embodies this heart in its whole, then even though his learning is not yet complete, when things come that cannot but be answered, he simply answers them according to his measure, and even if he does not hit the mark, he will not be far off. ["Embody" is like the body's trunk. Embodying the whole means keeping intact the master within as the root of dealing with affairs. When the heart is preserved and principle is grasped, even if one does not accord with principle, one is not far from it.]"

居處恭執事敬與人忠此是徹上徹下語聖人元無二語【説見論語○恭者敬之形於外者也平居之時齋荘嚴肅儼然於容貎而已及夫執事而敬主於事與人而忠推於人自始學以至成徳皆不外此但勉強與安行之異耳】

Master Cheng said: "'In private life be respectful, in handling affairs be reverent, in dealing with others be loyal': these words apply equally to the highest and the lowest, and the sage never had two different teachings. [This is found in the Analects. Respect is reverence showing on the outside: in ordinary life one is grave and solemn, merely dignified in appearance; when handling affairs one is reverent, focused on the task; in dealing with others one is loyal, extending oneself to them. From the beginning of study to the perfecting of virtue, nothing goes beyond this; the only difference is between making an effort and acting at ease.]"