Shen Jian (申鑑) · Volume 2

備博士【博士秦官掌通古今武帝建元初置五經博士黃龍初稍増員十二人後漢百官志博士祭酒一人博士十四人掌易四施孟梁丘京氏尚書三歐陽大小夏侯氏詩三魯齊韓氏禮二大小戴氏春秋二公羊嚴顔氏掌教弟子國有疑事掌承問對】廣太學【辟雍也】而祀孔子焉禮也仲尼作經本一而已古今文不同而皆自謂真本經【各謂真傳】古今先師義一而已異家別説不同而皆自謂古今【此處有誤】仲尼邈而靡質【大聖已逝經無所質】昔先師歿而無間【老師已防義無所間】將誰使折之者秦之滅學也書藏於屋壁義絶於朝野【孔安國書序秦始皇滅先代典籍焚書坑儒天下學士逃難解散我先人用藏其家書於屋壁】逮至漢興收摭散滯固已無全學矣【藝文志漢興大收篇籍廣開獻書之路迄孝武世書缺簡脫禮壞樂崩】文有磨滅言有楚夏出有先後【如文帝時伏生口誦尚書以授晁錯僅得二十九篇至魯恭王壞孔子宅得所藏科斗文字定其可知者増多伏生二十五篇此出有先後之類也】或學者先意有所借定【無所徵據臆見損益】後進相放彌以滋蔓故一源十流天水違行而訟者紛如也【易訟曰天與水違行此以天上水下相違而行喻學者所傳背戾互相爭是也】執不俱是比而論之必有可參者焉【此一首所謂備博士也】

Providing Erudites in full [Erudite was an office of Qin, in charge of mastering past and present. In the early Jianyuan era Emperor Wu established Erudites of the Five Classics, and in the early Huanglong era the number gradually rose to twelve. Treatise on the Hundred Officials of the Later Han: one Chief Erudite and fourteen Erudites, in charge of the Changes in four schools, Shi, Meng, Liangqiu, and Jing; the Documents in three schools, Ouyang and the Greater and Lesser Xiahou; the Songs in three schools, Lu, Qi, and Han; the Rites in two schools, the Elder and Younger Dai; and the Spring and Autumn in two schools, Yan of the Gongyang and Yan of the Gu; they taught disciples and, when the state had doubtful matters, took charge of answering questions], enlarging the Imperial Academy [that is, the Biyong], and sacrificing to Confucius is ritual. The classics of Zhongni were originally one, but the old and new texts differ and each claims to be the true classic [each says it is the true transmission]. The meanings of the former teachers, old and new, were originally one, but the different schools differ and each claims to be old and new [there is an error here]. Zhongni is far away and there is no one to ask for correction [the great sage has passed away and the classics have no place to be corrected]; the former teachers of the past have died and there is no one to ask [the teachers have (the received text has a rare character here, lost in transcription) and there is nowhere to ask the meaning]; whom shall we have to judge between them? When Qin destroyed learning, the books were hidden in the walls of houses and meaning was cut off from court and country [the preface to the Documents by Kong Anguo: the First Emperor of Qin destroyed the canons of earlier ages, burned books and buried scholars, the world’s scholars fled and scattered, and my ancestor then hid the family books in the walls of his house]. By the time the Han arose, scattered and lost texts were gathered, and there was already no complete learning to be had [Treatise on Literature: when the Han arose, it greatly gathered texts and widely opened the way for presenting books, but by the time of Emperor Xiaowu the books were missing and the slips fallen away, and ritual was ruined and music in collapse]. Writing had wear and erasure, speech had Chu and Xia differences, and appearance came earlier and later [for example, in Emperor Wen’s time, Fu Sheng recited the Documents from memory and transmitted it to Chao Cuo, and only twenty-nine chapters could be had; when King Gong of Lu tore down Confucius’s house, the tadpole-script texts that were stored there were obtained, and when those that could be understood were determined, there were twenty-five more than Fu Sheng’s. This is one kind of “appearing earlier and later”], or scholars first had their own ideas and made certain amendments by borrowing [with no evidence, they added and removed on the basis of their own views], and later students imitated one another and spread them further, so that one source has ten streams, heaven and water move in opposition, and those who dispute are numerous [the Song hexagram of the Book of Changes says “heaven and water go in opposite directions.” Here the heaven above and water below going opposite ways is used as a figure for the way scholars’ transmissions run counter to one another and each insists it is right]. If one holds fast to one view, not all can be right; but comparing and discussing them, there must be things that can be consulted [this paragraph is what is called providing Erudites].

或曰至德要道約爾典籍甚富如而博之以求約也語有之曰有鳥將來張羅待之得鳥者一目也今為一目之羅無時得鳥矣【鳥喻道羅喻典籍】道雖要也非博無以通矣【孟子曰博學而詳説之將以反説約也】博其方約其説【此一首所謂至徳要道也】赦令權也【謂凶荒流離盜賊垢汙之後不得已而行者】或曰有制乎曰權無制制其義不制其事巽以行權【易繫辭文】義制也權者反經無事也問其象曰無妄之災大過兇其象矣不得已而行之禁其屢也【初平元年春正月山東州郡起兵以討董卓辛亥大赦天下二年春正月辛丑大赦天下三年春正月丁丑大赦天下五月丁酉大赦天下卓誅部將李傕等六月陷長安己未大赦天下四年春丁卯大赦天下興平元年春正月辛酉大赦天下二年春正月癸丑大赦天下建安元年春正月癸酉郊祀上帝於安邑大赦天下丁丑郊祀上帝大赦天下初平至此凡七年而大赦者十可謂數甚故悅以此規之】曰絶之乎曰權曰宜弗之絶也【既曰權宜著非常典此一首所謂禁數赦令也】尚主之制非古也釐降二女陶唐之典【堯典曰釐降二女於媯汭嬪於虞】歸妹元吉帝乙之訓【易泰九五曰帝乙歸妹以祉元吉】王姬歸齊宗周之禮【詩序曰雖則王姬亦下嫁於諸侯】以隂乘陽違天以婦凌夫違人違天不祥違人不義【悅之叔父荀爽於延熹九年對防陳便宜以漢承秦法設尚主之儀以妻制夫以卑臨尊違乾坤之道失陽唱之義宜改尚主之制今悅復以為言殆其家門素所商講者乎此一首所謂正尚主之制也】

Someone said: the supreme virtue and essential way is concise, yet the classics are abundant; how can one seek concision through breadth? As the common saying goes: when a bird is about to come, one spreads a net and waits, but what catches the bird is only one mesh of the net; now if one makes a net of a single mesh, one will never catch the bird [the bird is a figure for the Way, the net a figure for the classics]. Though the Way is simple and essential, without breadth there is no way to reach it [Mencius said: “Learn broadly and explain in detail, so as to return to explaining concisely.”]. Broaden its methods and make its statement concise [this paragraph is what is called the supreme virtue and essential way]. Amnesty decrees are expedients [meaning that they are carried out only when unavoidable, after famine and displacement, or after thieves and defilement]. Someone said: Is there a fixed system? Answer: expedients have no fixed system. What is regulated is righteousness, not the affair. Use “the gentle wind” to carry out expedients [words from the Appended Commentary of the Book of Changes]; righteousness is regulation. An expedient is contrary to the regular course and yet without trouble. Asked for its image: the calamity of the Wuwang hexagram and the misfortune of the Daguo hexagram are its images. It is to be carried out only when unavoidable, and one should forbid its being done again and again [in the first month of spring of the first year of Chuping, when the commanderies of Shandong raised troops against Dong Zhuo, a general amnesty was declared on the xinhai day; in the first month of spring in the second year, a general amnesty on the xinchou day; in the first month of spring in the third year, a general amnesty on the dingchou day, and another on the dingyou day of the fifth month; after Dong Zhuo was put to death, his lieutenants Li Jue and others took Chang’an in the sixth month, and a general amnesty was declared on the jiwei day; in the spring of the fourth year, a general amnesty on the dingmao day; in the first month of spring of the first year of Xingping, on the xinyou day; in the first month of spring of the second year, on the guichou day; in the first month of spring of the first year of Jian’an, on the guiyou day he sacrificed to the Lord on High at the suburb of Anyi and declared a general amnesty, and on the dingchou day sacrificed again to the Lord on High and again declared a general amnesty. From Chuping to this time, in seven years there were ten general amnesties, which may be called extremely frequent, and so Xun Yue used it to remonstrate]. Question: cut it off? Answer: it is an expedient. He said: it is better not to cut it off [since it is called an expedient, it is not a regular canon. This paragraph is what is called forbidding frequent amnesty decrees]. The system of marrying a princess is not ancient law. Sending down two daughters was the canon of Tao Tang [the Canon of Yao says: “He sent down his two daughters to the bend of the Gui River, to be consorts to Yu.”]. “Marrying the younger sister brings great good fortune” was the teaching of Emperor Yi [the fifth line of nine in the Tai hexagram of the Book of Changes says: “Emperor Yi married his younger sister; this brings blessing and supreme good fortune.”]. A royal princess’s marriage to Qi was the rite of the Zhou royal house [the Preface to the Songs says: “Even though she is a royal princess, she marries down to a feudal lord.”]. For yin to ride on yang goes against Heaven, and for a wife to bully a husband goes against humankind. To go against Heaven is inauspicious, and to go against humankind is unrighteous [Xun Yue’s uncle Xun Shuang, in the ninth year of Yanxi, presented suggestions to (the received text has a rare character here, lost in transcription) arguing that the Han inherited Qin law and established the ceremony of marrying princesses, so that the wife controls the husband and the lowly looks down on the honored, going against the way of Qian and Kun and losing the principle that yang leads, and so the system of marrying princesses should be changed. Now Xun Yue says the same again, probably because it was often discussed in their family. This paragraph is what is called correcting the system of marrying princesses].

古者天子諸侯有事必告於廟朝有二史左史記言右史記動【按漢書作事字玉藻曰卒食端而居動則左史書之言則右史書之】動為春秋【春秋記事】言為尚書【尚書記言】君舉必記臧否【按漢書作善惡】成敗無不存焉下及士庶等各有異【按漢書作苟有茂異】鹹在載籍或欲顯而不得或欲隱而名章【紀以至公】得失一朝而榮辱千載善人勸焉淫人懼焉故先王重之以嗣賞罰以輔法教宜於令者官以其日各書其盡則集之於尚書【按漢書作宜於令者備置史官掌其典文紀其行事毎於嵗盡舉之尚書則此上下必有脫誤】若史官使掌典其事不書詭常為善惡則書言行足以為法式則書立功事則書兵戎動眾則書四夷朝獻則書皇后貴人太子拜立則書【光武置貴人為三夫人】公主大臣拜免則書福淫禍亂則書祥瑞災異則書先帝故事有起居注【漢時有禁中起居故明徳馬皇后自撰顯宗起居注】日用動靜之節必書焉宜復其式內史掌之以紀內事【此一首所謂復內外註記者也】

In ancient times when the Son of Heaven and the feudal lords had matters, they would always report them at the temple. The court had two historians: the Historian of the Left recorded words and the Historian of the Right recorded actions [note: the History of the Han has the word “affairs” here. The Yuzao says: after eating, he changes to dark ceremonial robes and sits; when he acts, the Historian of the Left writes it down, and when he speaks, the Historian of the Right writes it down]. Actions became the Spring and Autumn Annals [the Annals record events], and words became the Book of Documents [the Documents record speech]. Every movement of the ruler must be recorded, and good and bad [note: the History of the Han has “good and evil”], success and failure are all preserved. Down to scholars and commoners, each had differing ranks [note: the History of the Han has “if there is outstanding distinction”], all in the records. Some want to be made known and cannot be, and some want to hide and their names instead are made plain [the records come out of utmost impartiality]. Gain and loss lie in a single court, while honor and disgrace last a thousand years; good people are encouraged and licentious people feel fear. So the former kings valued this, using it to continue rewards and punishments and to assist law and teaching. What suits the present time: officials each write by day, and at the end of the year they gather it and send it to the Imperial Secretariat [note: the History of the Han reads “what suits the present: fully appoint historians, in charge of their canonical writings, recording their conduct and affairs, and each year’s end present them to the Imperial Secretariat,” so the context here must have omissions and errors]. If historians were to be put in charge of such affairs: they would not record what is strange and out of the ordinary, but would record whether the act is good or evil; they would record words and deeds fit to serve as models; they would record the establishing of merit; they would record military campaigns and mobilizations; they would record the courts and tributes of the four barbarian peoples; they would record at once the appointment of empresses, honored ladies, and crown princes [Guangwu established honored ladies as the three consorts]; they would record the appointment and dismissal of princesses and great ministers; they would record fortune, license, calamity, and disorder; they would record auspicious omens and calamities. The former emperor’s precedents included the Diaries of Daily Activity [in Han times there was a diary of life within the palace, so the Empress Ming de herself compiled the diary of Emperor Xianzong]; the regulation of daily movement and stillness must be written down. One should restore that form, with the Inner Recorder in charge of recording matters within the palace [this paragraph is what is called restoring the inner and outer records].

或問卜筮曰徳斯益否斯損曰何謂也吉而濟兇而救之謂益吉而恃兇而怠之謂損【吉凶謂兆數之所值言修徳則足以協吉而消兇否則反是】

Someone asked about divination by tortoise and yarrow. Answer: with virtue there is increase, without virtue there is decrease. Question: what does that mean? To be fortunate and be able to carry it through, to meet misfortune and be able to rescue and help, is called increase; to be fortunate and rely on it, to meet misfortune and become lazy, is called decrease [good and ill fortune refer to what the omens and numbers indicate. This says that cultivating virtue is enough to help bring about good fortune and dispel misfortune, and otherwise the opposite].

或問曰時群忌曰此天地之數也非吉凶所生也東方主生死者不鮮西方主殺生者不寡南方火也居之不燋北方水也蹈之不沈【漢時俗有方忌如西益宅謂之不祥必有死亡商家門不宜南向徵家門不宜北向之類是也】故甲子昩爽殷滅周興【武成曰甲子昩爽受率其旅若林防於牧野罔有敵於我師前徒倒戈攻於後以北血流漂杵一戎衣天下大定所謂殷以甲子滅周以甲子興也言支幹不足忌矣】咸陽之地秦亡漢隆【秦都關中二世而亡漢遷長安歴年四百言相地家不足信矣】

Someone asked about the many taboos of the customs of the time. Answer: these are the numbers of heaven and earth and are not what gives rise to good and ill fortune. The east governs birth, yet those who die there are not few; the west governs killing, yet those born there are not scarce; the south is fire, yet those who live there are not scorched; the north is water, yet those who tread on it do not sink [in Han times customs had directional taboos, such as saying that extending a house on the west side is inauspicious and will surely cause death, that a merchant’s gate should not face south, and that a campaigner’s gate should not face north]. So on the day of jiazi at dawn, the Yin fell and the Zhou rose [the “Wu Cheng” chapter says: at dawn on the jiazi day, Zhou led his army like a forest, (the received text has a rare character here, lost in transcription) at Muye, and none could resist my army; the front ranks turned their halberds against the rear, blood flowed until it floated pestles, and with a single suit of armor the world was greatly settled. This is what is called Yin perishing on jiazi and Zhou rising on jiazi. It says that the sexagenary days are not worth fearing]. The land of Xianyang, where Qin perished and Han flourished [Qin made its capital in Guanzhong and perished after two reigns, while the Han moved to Chang’an and lasted four hundred years. This says that the geomancers who divine sites cannot be trusted].

或問五三之位周應也【五三五星三辰辰星熒惑太白嵗星填星日月鬥也志所謂周師初發嵗在鶉火日在析木月在天駟辰在斗柄星在天黿是也春秋元命苞曰殷紂之時五星聚於房房者蒼神之精周據而興】龍虎【虎當作尾】之防晉祥也【晉獻公問於卜偃曰攻虢何月也曰童謡有之曰丙之晨龍尾伏辰均服振振取虢之旂鶉之賁賁天防焞焞火中成軍虢公其奔火中而旦其九月十月之交乎韋氏解曰丙丙子晨蚤朝也龍尾尾星也伏隱也辰日月之交防也魯僖五年東周十二月夏十月丙子朔之朝日在尾月在天防也伏辰辰在龍尾隱而未見也鶉鶉火鳥星也賁賁鶉火星貌也天防尾上一星名曰天防一名傳說焞焞近日月之貌也火鶉火也中晨中也成軍軍有成功也傳曰冬十二月丙子朔晉滅虢虢公醜奔京師】曰官府設陳富貴者值之布衣寓焉不符其爵也獄犴若居有罪者觸之貞良入焉不受其罰也【布衣無位者貞良無罪者言布衣而寓官府則爵不符貞良而入獄犴則罰不受以喻周應晉祥惟武王獻公能當之也】或曰然則日月可廢歟曰否曰元辰先王所用也【辰謂日月所防自枵至星紀是也周禮馮相氏掌十有二嵗十有二月十有二辰】人承天地故動靜焉順順其隂陽順其日辰順其度數內有順實外有順文文實順理也休徴之符自然應也故盜泉朝歌孔墨不由【屍子曰孔子過於盜泉渴矣而不飲惡其名也劉向曰邑號朝歌墨子回車】惡其名者順其心也苟無其實徼福於忌斯成難也

Someone asked whether the positions of the five stars and three luminaries were the verification for Zhou [“five and three” refers to the five planets and three luminaries: Mercury, Mars, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, the sun, the moon, and the Dipper. The record says that when the Zhou army first set out, Jupiter was in Chunhuo, the sun in Xi Mu, the moon in Tian Si, the chen in the handle of the Dipper, and a star in Tian Yuan. The Spring and Autumn Apocrypha, “Yuan Ming Bao,” says: at the time of Zhou of Yin the five planets gathered in the Fang lodge; the Fang is the essence of the azure spirit, and Zhou took possession of it and arose], and the dragon and tiger [“tiger” should read “tail”] (the received text has a rare character here, lost in transcription) were the auspicious sign for Jin [Duke Xian of Jin asked Bu Yan: in which month should we attack Guo? He said: there is a children’s rhyme: “On the morning of bing, the dragon’s tail is hidden in the chen; the uniforms are all alike and imposing, and we shall take Guo’s banners. The quail is bright, the Heavenly Ce is glowing; when fire is at the meridian the army is formed, and the Duke of Guo will flee.” Fire at the meridian at dawn would be about the turn of the ninth and tenth months. Wei Zhao explains: bing is the bingzi day, chen here is the early morning; the dragon’s tail is the Wei star; hidden is concealed; chen is the meeting of sun and moon (the received text has a rare character here, lost in transcription). In the fifth year of Duke Xi of Lu, the twelfth month by the Eastern Zhou calendar, the tenth month by the Xia calendar, on the morning of the bingzi first day, the sun was in Wei and the moon in Tian Ce (the received text has “Tian Fang,” where “Fang” should be “Ce”), and “hidden in the chen” means the chen was in the dragon’s tail and hidden from sight. The quail is the Chunhuo bird star, “bright” is the look of the Chunhuo star, Tian Ce (the received text has “Tian Fang,” where “Fang” should be “Ce”) is a star above Wei called Tian Ce (the received text has “Tian Fang,” where “Fang” should be “Ce”), also called Fu Yue, “glowing” is the look of being near the sun and moon, fire is Chunhuo, meridian means at the meridian of dawn, and “the army is formed” means the army has success. The Commentary: in the twelfth month, on the bingzi first day, Jin destroyed Guo, and Chou, Duke of Guo, fled to the capital]. Answer: an official’s residence is for the rich and noble to encounter; if a commoner lodges in it, it does not match his rank. A prison is a residence that those with guilt meet; if the upright and good enter it, they do not receive that punishment [a commoner is one without rank, and the upright and good are those without guilt. This says that if a commoner lodges in an official’s residence, the rank does not match, and if the upright and good enter a prison, the punishment is not received; it is used as a figure for the fact that the Zhou verification and the Jin auspicious sign could be borne only by King Wu and Duke Xian]. Someone said: then can the sun and moon be discarded? Answer: no. He said: the chen were used by the former kings [chen refers to where the sun and moon (the received text has a rare character here, lost in transcription), from Xuanxiao to Xingji. The Rites of Zhou, the Fengxiang officer, is in charge of the twelve years, twelve months, and twelve chen]. Humans receive heaven and earth, and so their movement and stillness should be compliant: comply with their yin and yang, comply with their days and chen, comply with their degrees and numbers. If there is a compliant substance within and a compliant ornament without, with substance and ornament both in order, auspicious signs naturally come. So Robber Spring and Zhaoge were places Confucius and Mozi would not pass [the Shizi says: Confucius passed Robber Spring and would not drink even when thirsty, hating its name. Liu Xiang says: the town was named Zhaoge, and Mozi turned his carriage around]. Disliking the name is following the heart. If there is no substance and one seeks blessing in taboos, this is difficult.

或曰祈請者誠以接神自然應也【祈請求禱也如祈年祈子孫請雨請福之類周禮太祝掌六祈以同神】故精以底之犠牲玉帛以昭祈請吉朔以通之禮雲禮雲玉帛云乎哉請雲祈雲酒膳云乎哉非其禮則或愆非其請則不應

Someone said: prayer connects with the spirits by sincerity and so naturally gets a response [prayer means petitioning, such as praying for a good year, for descendants, for rain, or for blessings. The Rites of Zhou, the Grand Invocator, is in charge of the six kinds of prayer to bring ghosts, spirits, and deities together]. So one reaches it with refined purity, makes the prayer plain with sacrificial animals, jade, and silk, and connects it with auspicious days and the first of the month. “Ritual, ritual, does it mean only jade and silk?” “Prayer, prayer, does it mean only wine and food?” Without that kind of ritual there may be errors, and without that kind of prayer there will be no response.

或問祈請可否曰氣物應感則可性命自然則否【應感如土龍致雨之類】

Someone asked whether prayer is permissible. Answer: where it is a matter of qi and things responding to one another, it is permissible; where it is a matter of nature and fate being so of themselves, it is not [responding means such things as making earthen dragons to seek rain].

或問避疾厄有諸曰夫疾厄何為者也非身則神身不可避【身寓宇宙避將焉之】神不可逃【神寓形骸逃將焉之】可避非身可逃非神也持身隨天萬里不逸譬諸孺子掩目巨夫之掖而曰逃可乎

Someone asked: Is there such a thing as avoiding illness and calamity? Answer: what are illness and calamity? They are either the body or the spirit. The body cannot be avoided [the body is lodged in the universe; where could one avoid to?] and the spirit cannot be escaped [the spirit is lodged in the frame of the body; where could it flee to?]. What can be avoided is not the body, and what can be escaped is not the spirit. If you carry your body and follow Heaven, you cannot escape even in ten thousand li. It is like a child covering his eyes and hiding under the arm of a big man, saying he has escaped; can that be so?

或問人形有相曰蓋有之焉夫神氣形容之相包也自然矣貳之於行參之於時相成也亦參相敗也【行謂修徳為邪時謂亨期厄防所以應人骨體之善惡者】其數眾矣其變多矣亦有上中下品云爾或問神僊之術曰誕哉末之也已矣【言名生實死誕妄不足信也】聖人弗學【揚雄曰聖人不師僊】非惡生也終始運也【終死始生易繫辭曰原始反終故知死生之説揚雄曰有生者必有死有始者必有終自然之道也】短長數也【短長謂年之夭壽】運數非人力之為也曰亦有僊人乎曰僬僥桂莽產乎異俗【海外南經僬僥國在三首國東外傳云僬僥民長三尺短之至也詩含神霧曰從中州以東西四十萬裡得僬僥國人長一尺五寸也大荒南經冇小人名曰僬僥之國史記仲尼曰僬僥氏三尺短之至也】就有仙人亦殊類矣

Someone asked whether a person’s physical form has signs to be read. Answer: probably it does. Spirit and qi and bodily appearance enclose one another, which is natural. Then conduct is the second item and the fortune of the times is the third, which complete one another and also ruin one another [conduct refers to cultivating virtue or doing wrong, and the times to the periods of prosperity or hardship (the received text has a rare character here, lost in transcription), and so they correspond to the good or bad in a person’s bones and body]. The numbers are many and the changes are many, and there are only upper, middle, and lower grades. Someone asked about the arts of immortals. Answer: absurd, there is no such thing [this says that in name it is life and in substance it is death, so the absurd and false is not worth trusting]. The sage does not study it [Yang Xiong said: “The sage does not take immortals as teachers.”]. It is not that he hates life; beginning and end are simply a revolution [the end is death and the beginning is life. The Appended Commentary of the Book of Changes says: “Tracing the beginning and returning to the end, therefore we know the explanation of death and life.” Yang Xiong said: “What has life must have death, and what has a beginning must have an end; this is the Way of nature.”]. Short and long are a matter of number [short and long refer to short and long life spans]. Revolutions and numbers are not something human power can make. Question: are there also immortals? Answer: the Jiaoyao and the Guimang are produced in strange lands [the Classic of Mountains and Seas, “Beyond the Seas, South”: the Land of the Jiaoyao is east of the Land of Three Heads. The unofficial tradition says the Jiaoyao people are three feet tall, the extreme of shortness. The Shi Han Shenwu says: going forty myriad li east and west from the Central Province one reaches the Jiaoyao people, a foot and a half tall. The “Great Wilderness, South” has a small people called the Land of the Jiaoyao. The Records of the Historian has Zhongni saying that the Jiaoyao clan is three feet, the extreme of shortness]; even if there are immortals, they are a different kind.

或問有數百嵗人乎曰力稱烏獲【烏獲秦武王力士】捷言羌亥【羌亥疑豎亥之誤】勇期賁育【孟賁齊人能生防牛角夏育衛人】聖雲仲尼壽稱彭祖【以四者況壽言壽中俊傑有彭祖也列仙傳彭祖者殷大夫姓籛名鏗帝顓頊之孫陸終氏之中子歴夏至殷末八百餘嵗常食桂芝善導引行氣】物有俊傑不可誣也

Someone asked: Are there people who live several hundred years? Answer: for strength people say Wu Huo [Wu Huo was a strongman of King Wu of Qin], for agility they say Qiang Hai [Qiang Hai is probably an error for Shu Hai], for courage and force they hope for Meng Ben and Xia Yu [Meng Ben was a man of Qi who could (the received text has a rare character here, lost in transcription) the horns of an ox; Xia Yu was a man of Wei], for sageliness they say Confucius, and for long life they say Pengzu [these four are used to compare lifespans, meaning that among the outstanding in longevity there is Pengzu. Biographies of Immortals: Pengzu was a grandee of Yin, with the surname Jian and the personal name Keng, a grandson of Emperor Zhuanxu and the middle son of Lu Zhong, who lived through the Xia to the end of Yin for more than eight hundred years, constantly ate cassia and fungus, and was good at guiding and moving qi]. Things have their outstanding examples and cannot be falsely denied.

或問凡壽者必有道非習之功曰夫惟壽則惟能用道惟能用道則性壽矣苟非其性也脩不至也學必至聖可以儘性壽必用道所以盡命

Someone asked: all who live long surely have a way, and it is not the credit of practice. Answer: it is precisely because one is long-lived that one can use the way, and because one can use the way, one’s nature is long-lived. If one does not have that nature, cultivation cannot reach it. Learning must reach sagehood before it can fulfill one’s nature, and long life must use the way before it can fulfill one’s fate.

或曰人有自變化而僊者信乎曰未之前聞也然則異也【異謂怪異】非僊也男化為女者有矣死人復生者有矣【獻帝興平七年越雋男子化為女子四年武陵女子死十四日復活續漢志曰女子李娥年六十餘死瘞於城中有行人聞冢中有聲告家人出之此二事悅在興平中所親聞見者】夫豈人之性哉氣數不存焉或問曰有養性乎曰養性秉中和守之以生而已愛親愛德愛力愛神之謂嗇【老子治人事天莫如嗇夫惟嗇是以早復是謂深根固柢長生久視之道】否則不宣過則不澹故君子節宣其氣勿使有所壅閉滯底昏亂百度則生疾【宣散也壅外壅閉內閉底亦滯也謂血氣集滯也百度百事之節左傳曰於是乎節宣其氣勿使有所壅閉湫底以露其體茲心不爽而昏亂百度今無乃壹之則生疾矣】故喜怒哀樂思慮必得其中所以養神也寒暄虛盈消息必得其中所以養體也善治氣者猶禹之治水也若夫導引蓄氣歴藏內視【內經異法方宜論曰中央者其治宜導引按蹻導引謂揺筋骨動支節也】過則失中可以治疾皆非養性之聖術也夫屈者以乎申也蓄者以乎虛也內者以乎外也【屈謂導引蓄謂蓄氣內謂內視以申有屈以虛有蓄以外有內】氣宜宣而遏之體宜調而矯之神宜平而抑之必有失和者矣夫善養性者無常術得其和而已矣【宣其氣調其體平其神則得其和矣】隣臍二寸謂之關【黃庭外景經曰上有黃庭下關元后有幽闗前命門呼吸廬間入丹田解雲闗元在臍下三寸元陽之命在其前懸精如鏡明照一身不休是道】關者所以關藏呼吸之氣以稟授四體也【氣出為呼氣入為吸】故氣長者以關息氣短者其息稍升其脈稍促其神稍越至於以肩息而氣舒【莊子曰真人之息也以踵眾人之息以喉】其神稍專至於以關息而氣衍矣故道者常致氣於關是謂要術凡陽氣生養【陽氣者天氣生氣也生氣通天論曰陽氣者若天與日失其所則捫壽而不彰又曰陽氣者一日而主外平旦人氣生日中而陽氣隆日西而陽氣已虗氣門乃閉】隂氣消殺和喜之徒其氣陽也故養性者崇其陽而絀其隂陽極則亢隂極則凝亢則有悔凝則有兇夫物不能為春故候天春而生人則不然存吾春而已矣【存吾春謂順養其生氣也】藥者療也【療治也】所以治疾也無疾則勿藥可也肉不勝食氣況於藥乎【論語肉雖多不使勝食氣】寒斯熱熱則致滯隂藥之用也唯適其宜則不為害若已氣平也則必有傷唯針火亦如之【針謂九針火謂灸柄也】故養性者不多服也唯在乎節之而已矣

Someone said: There are people who transform themselves and become immortals; is that credible? Answer: I have not heard of it before. That is a strange thing [“strange” refers to the anomalous] and not an immortal. There have been men who changed into women, and there have been dead people who came back to life [in the Xingping era of Emperor Xian, a man of Yuexi turned into a woman; in the fourth year, a woman of Wuling died and came back to life after fourteen days. The Supplementary Han Treatise says that a woman named Li E died at over sixty and was buried in the city, and a passerby heard a sound in the tomb and told her family to dig her out. These two events Xun Yue himself heard in the Xingping era]; are these human nature? The numbers of qi do not reside there. Someone asked: Is there such a thing as nurturing one’s nature? Answer: nurturing one’s nature is only holding to the middle and the harmonious and keeping to it in order to live. To cherish one’s kin, to cherish virtue, to cherish strength, to cherish the spirit is called thrift [Laozi: in governing people and serving Heaven nothing is better than thrift. Because of thrift, one recovers early; this is called deep roots and firm foundation, the way of long life and long vision]. Otherwise, it does not flow freely, and if it goes too far it is not sufficient. So the superior person moderates and releases his qi so that nothing is blocked, shut in, or stagnant, and nothing disorders the hundred measures, or he will fall ill [“release” is to disperse. “Blocked” is external obstruction, “shut in” is internal closure, and “stagnant” is also being held back, meaning blood and qi collect and stagnate. The hundred measures are the regulation of the hundred affairs. The Zuo Commentary says: so he moderated and released his qi, so as not to let it be blocked, shut in, or stagnant and so reveal the body, for the heart is thus not at ease and the hundred measures are disordered. Now if it is concentrated in one place only, one will fall ill]. So joy, anger, sorrow, delight, and anxiety must get the middle, so as to nourish the spirit; cold and warmth, emptiness and fullness, waning and waxing must get the middle, so as to nourish the body. One who is good at regulating qi is like Yu regulating the waters. As for guiding and drawing, storing qi, and the inner inspection of the organs [the Inner Classic, “On the Suitable Methods of Different Regions,” says: the central region is suited to guiding and massage. Guiding refers to shaking the sinews and bones and moving the joints], when overdone they lose the middle; they can treat illness, but none of them is the sage’s art of nurturing nature. Bending is for the sake of extending, storing is for the sake of emptying, and inward is for the sake of outward [bending refers to guiding, storing refers to storing qi, inward refers to inner inspection: because there is bending there is extending, because there is storing there is emptying, because there is inward there is outward]. If qi should be released but is held back, the body should be harmonized but is forced, the spirit should be calm but is suppressed, there will surely be a loss of harmony. One who is good at nurturing nature has no fixed technique and simply attains its harmony [releasing his qi, harmonizing his body, and calming his spirit is attaining harmony]. Two inches beside the navel is called the “gate” [the Outer Scene of the Yellow Court Classic says: above is the Yellow Court, below the Guanyuan; behind is the Dark Gate, in front the Gate of Life; breath enters the Dantian through the hut between. The explanation: Guanyuan is three inches below the navel, the life of primal yang is in front of it, suspending essence like a mirror that illuminates the whole body, and not resting is the Way]. The gate is what shuts and stores the breath of respiration to supply the four limbs [qi going out is exhaling, qi coming in is inhaling]. So one with long breath breathes through the gate; one with short breath breathes slightly higher, with the pulse a little hurried and the spirit a little scattered; one who breathes with the shoulders only then feels his qi relaxed [the Zhuangzi says: the true person breathes with the heels, the multitude breathe with the throat], and the spirit is slightly more focused; one who breathes through the gate has qi that is broad and spacious. So those with the Way constantly send qi down to the gate, and this is called the essential technique. Generally, yang qi governs birth and nurturing [yang qi is the qi of heaven and the qi of life. The “Discourse on Life Qi Communicating with Heaven” says: yang qi is like heaven and the sun, and if it loses its place, life span is not manifest. It also says: yang qi governs the outside in one day; at dawn human qi is born, at midday yang qi is at its height, in the afternoon yang qi is already empty, and the gate of qi is just closing], and yin qi governs waning and killing. People who are harmonious and joyful have yang qi. So those who nurture their nature honor yang and demote yin. Yang at its extreme becomes overbearing, and yin at its extreme congeals. Overbearing brings regret, and congealing brings misfortune. Things cannot make spring themselves, and so wait for Heaven’s spring to be born; people are not so, and by preserving their own spring it is enough [“preserving my spring” means following and tending one’s own life qi]. Medicine is for treatment [“treat” means to cure] and is used to cure illness. Without illness there is no need to take medicine. Even meat should not be allowed to overcome the qi of food, much less medicine [the Analects: “Though there be much meat, he does not let it overcome the qi of the food.”]. When cold, one makes hot; when hot, it leads to stagnation; this is the use of yin medicine. Only when it suits what is fitting does it do no harm; if the qi is already level and one still uses it, there will surely be injury. Needles and fire are likewise [needles refers to the nine needles, fire refers to moxibustion]. So those who nurture their nature do not take much medicine, but simply moderate.

或問仁者壽何謂也【論語知者樂仁者壽】曰仁者內不傷性外不傷物上不違天下不違人處正居中形神以和故咎徵不至【咎徴惡行之騐】而休嘉集之壽之術也曰顔冉何【顔回子淵年三十二蚤死冉耕伯牛有惡疾而卒揚雄曰回牛之行徳矣曷壽之不益也亦同此意】曰命也麥不終夏花不濟春如和氣何【言麥雖不逾夏而秀花雖不越春而榮其如和氣之保合何】雖雲其短長亦在其中矣【言顔冉嵗齡雖短而天和不害無殘賊致夭之行故曰長亦在其中矣則知君子不以壽夭為慮而當務脩徳為要也】

Someone asked: the benevolent have long life; what does that mean [the Analects: “The wise delight, the benevolent live long.”]? Answer: the benevolent do not harm their nature within, do not harm things without, do not go against Heaven above, and do not go against people below; they dwell in the correct and stay in the middle, body and spirit are in harmony because of it, and so signs of fault do not come [signs of fault are the verifications of evil deeds] and blessings and goodness gather; this is the method of long life. Question: what of Yan Hui and Ran Geng [Yan Hui, courtesy name Ziyuan, died young at thirty-two; Ran Geng, courtesy name Boniu, died of a malignant disease. Yang Xiong said: “Hui and Niu were virtuous in conduct, so why was their long life not increased?” This is the same meaning]? Answer: it was fate. Wheat cannot get through summer, and flowers cannot get through spring; what about the harmonious qi [this says that though wheat does not pass beyond summer to flower, and flowers do not pass beyond spring to bloom, what about the preservation and union of harmonious qi]? Though it is called short, long is also contained in it [this says that though Yan and Ran were short in years, the harmony of Heaven within them was not harmed, and there was no cruel conduct that led to early death, so it is said that long is also within it. From this we know that the superior person does not worry about long or short life but makes cultivating virtue his essential task].

或問黃白之儔【抱朴子曰神仙經黃白之方二十五卷千有餘首黃者金也白者銀也古人秘重其道不欲指斥故隱之云爾按秦李少君言丹砂可化為黃金卒無驗病死漢宣時劉更生言黃金可成上令典尚方鑄作事費甚多方不驗毋怪乎世人疑為虛誕也】曰傅毅論之當也【傅毅字武仲肅宗時與班固賈逵共典校書考其傳無論黃白之説意亡矣】燔埴為瓦則可【埴黏土也】爍瓦為銅則不可以自然騐於不然詭哉歒犬羊之肉以造馬牛不幾矣不其然歟【丹砂為金河車作銀非同類矣】

Someone asked about the arts of making gold and silver and the like [the Baopuzi says: the immortal classics have twenty-five fascicles of recipes for yellow and white, with over a thousand pieces. Yellow is gold and white is silver. The ancients kept this Way secret and valued it, and did not wish to name it directly, so they hid it under the name “yellow and white.” Note: in Qin times Li Shaojun said that cinnabar could be turned into yellow gold, but in the end it had no verification and he died of illness; in the time of Emperor Xuan of Han, Liu Gengsheng said that yellow gold could be made, and the emperor ordered him to supervise the casting at the imperial workshop, at great expense, but the method had no verification. No wonder the world suspects it of being empty and absurd]. Answer: Fu Yi’s discussion was apt [Fu Yi, courtesy name Wuzhong, collated books together with Ban Gu and Jia Kui in the time of Emperor Suzong. Examining his biography, there is no statement on yellow and white, so it is probably lost]. Firing clay into tile is possible [“zhi” is clay], but melting tile into copper is not. To use what is natural to test what is not natural is deceit. To want to make horses and oxen from the flesh of dogs and sheep is nearly impossible; is that not so [cinnabar becoming gold and the river cart making silver are not of the same kind]?

世稱緯書仲尼之作也【世之説者謂孔子既敘六經以明天人之道知後世不能稽同其意故別立緯及防以遺來世光武之世篤信斯術學者風靡是以桓譚張衡輩常發其虛偽矣】臣悅叔父故司空爽辨之蓋發其偽也【爽字慈明董卓輔政徴之爽欲遁命吏持之急不得去因復就拜平原相行至宛陵復追為光祿勳視事三日進拜司空爽見董卓忍暴滋甚必危社稷其所辟舉皆取才略之士將共圖之亦與司徒王允及卓長史何顒等為內謀防病薨常著禮易傳詩傳尚書正經春秋條例公羊問辨防等篇按爽父淑有子八人儉緄靖燾汪爽肅專而悅則儉之子故爽於悅為叔父所謂辨防即其發偽之書也】有起於中興之前終張之徒之作乎【起於哀平】或曰雜曰以已雜仲尼乎以仲尼雜已乎若彼者以仲尼雜已而已然則可謂八十一首非仲尼之作矣【緯書有河圖九篇洛書六篇雲自黃帝至周文王所受本文又別有三十篇雲自初起至於孔子九聖之所増演以廣其意又有七經緯三十六篇並雲孔子所作並前合為八十一篇】或曰燔諸曰仲尼之作則否有取焉則可曷其燔【有取如劉彥和所謂羲農軒皡之源山瀆鐘律之要白魚赤鳥之符黃金紫玉之瑞事豐辭富無益經典而有助文章之類是也】在上者不受虗言不聴浮術不採華名不興偽事言必有用術必有典名必有實事必有功【有用謂不虗有典謂不浮有實謂不華有功謂不偽在上者如是則緯鉤防之説無所肆其矯誕矣】

People say the apocryphal texts were made by Confucius [common opinion holds that since Confucius had already set out the Six Classics to make clear the Way of Heaven and humankind, but knew that later ages could not examine and bring together his meaning, he established the apocrypha and (the received text has a rare character here, lost in transcription) separately to leave to later ages. In Emperor Guangwu’s time this art was deeply believed and scholars were swept up by it, so Huan Tan, Zhang Heng, and others often exposed its falseness]. Your servant Xun Yue’s uncle, the late Minister of Works Xun Shuang, argued about them, and in effect it was to expose their falseness [Xun Shuang, courtesy name Ciming. When Dong Zhuo took control of the government and summoned him, Shuang wished to flee for his life, but the officials pressed him hard and he could not get away, so he was again appointed Chancellor of Pingyuan, and on reaching Wanling was again appointed Minister of the Household, and three days after taking office he was promoted to Minister of Works. Shuang saw that Dong Zhuo was increasingly cruel and was sure to endanger the state, and all those he recommended were men of talent and strategy, to plot against him together; he also made secret plans inside with the Minister of the Masses Wang Yun and Zhuo’s chief clerk He Yong and others, and (the received text has a rare character here, lost in transcription) died of illness. He often wrote chapters such as the Commentary on the Rites and the Changes, the Commentary on the Songs, the Correct Classic of the Documents, the Regulations of the Spring and Autumn, Questions on the Gongyang, and the Discussion of (the received text has a rare character here, lost in transcription). Note: Shuang’s father Xun Shu had eight sons: Jian, Gun, Jing, Tao, Wang, Shuang, Su, and Zhuan, and Xun Yue was the son of Xun Jian, so Shuang was Yue’s uncle. What is called the discussion of (the received text has a rare character here, lost in transcription) is the book in which he exposed falseness]. Some arose before the Restoration, and are the works of the Zhongzhang group [arising in the Ai and Ping era]. Someone said they are a mixture. Question: is it mixing oneself into Confucius, or mixing Confucius into oneself? People like them only mix Confucius into themselves. Then one may say that all eighty-one pieces are not Confucius’s work [the apocrypha include the nine pieces of the River Diagram and six of the Luo Writing, said to be the original texts received from the Yellow Emperor down to King Wen of Zhou; there are another thirty pieces, said to have been expanded by the nine sages from the very beginning to Confucius to extend their meaning; and there are thirty-six pieces of the apocrypha of the seven classics, all said to be made by Confucius, together with the above totaling eighty-one]. Someone said: burn them? Answer: to say they are Confucius’s work is wrong; if they have something worth taking, then they can be used, so why burn them [there is something worth taking, such as what Liu Xie called the origins of Fu Xi, Shennong, Xuanyuan, and Shaohao, the essentials of mountains, rivers, bells, and pitch-pipes, the omens of the white fish and red crow, the auspicious signs of yellow gold and purple jade, matters rich and words abundant, of no benefit to the classics yet helpful to literature]? Those above should not accept empty words, listen to floating arts, adopt flowery names, or start false affairs. Words must be useful, arts must have canonical basis, names must have substance, and affairs must have achievement [being useful means not empty, having canonical basis means not floating, having substance means not flowery, and having achievement means not false. If those above are like this, then the claims of the apocrypha and weather-reading texts and the like (the received text has a rare character here, lost in transcription) have nowhere to apply their absurdities].

或問曰君子曷敦乎學【敦勉也】曰生而知之者寡矣學而知之者寡矣悠悠之民洩洩之士明明之治汶汶之亂皆學廢興之由敦之不亦宜乎【詩板曰天之方蹶無然洩洩大明曰明明在下】君子有三鑑世人鏡鑑【烝庶但知鏡鑑而已】前惟順人惟賢鏡惟明【此君子之三鑑】夏商之衰不鑑於禹湯也【桀紂不以前鑑】周秦之弊不鑑於民下也【幽厲政亥不以人鑑】側弁垢顔不鑑於明鏡也【此則不以鏡鑑側傾也弁者冠之大名詩賔之初筵曰側弁之俄】故君子惟鑑之務【務於前鑑人鑑】若夫側景之鏡亡鑑矣【但知鏡鑑是為無鑑】

Someone asked: Why does the superior person strive at learning [“dun” means to strive]? Answer: few are born knowing it, and few know it by learning. The drifting people, the idle scholars, the bright government, the dim disorder, all come from the decline and revival of learning; is striving not fitting [the “Ban” ode of the Songs says: “When Heaven is about to overthrow, do not be so idle.” The “Da Ming” says: “Brightly it is below.”]? The superior person has three mirrors, while ordinary people have only the bronze mirror [the multitude know only the bronze mirror]. In former ages he takes only what is compliant, in people he takes only the worthy, and in the mirror he takes only the clear [these are the superior person’s three mirrors]. The decline of the Xia and Shang did not take warning from Yu and Tang [Jie and Zhou did not use the earlier mirror]; the ruin of the Zhou and Qin did not take warning from the people below [Kings You and Li and the Qin ruler did not use the human mirror]; a crooked cap and a dirty face do not take warning from a clear mirror [this is not using the bronze mirror. “Ce” means tilted. “Bian” is the general name of a cap. The “Bin Zhi Chu Yan” ode of the Songs says “the tilted cap leans over”]. So the superior person devotes himself only to taking warning [devoting himself to the earlier mirror and the human mirror]. As for the mirror of a mere side profile, there is no mirroring at all [to know only the bronze mirror is to have no mirror].

或問致治之要君乎曰兩立哉【天無獨運君無獨理】非天地不生物非君臣不成治首之者天地也統之者君臣也哉先王之道致訓焉故亡斯湏之間而違道矣昔有上致聖由教戒因輔弼欽順四隣故檢柙之臣不虗於側【檢柙猶法度也言法度之臣常充左右也】禮度之典不曠於目先哲之言不輟於身非義之道不宣於心是邪僻之氣末由入也【缺一字】有間【缺一字】必有入之者矣是故僻志萌則僻事作【生於其心害於其政】僻事作則正塞正塞則公正亦末由入也矣不任不愛謂之公惟公是從謂之明齊桓公中材也末能成功業由有異焉者矣妾媵盈宮非無愛幸也群臣盈朝非無親近也然外則管仲射已【雍林人殺無知髙國先隂召小白於莒魯聞無知死亦發兵送公子糾而使管仲別將兵遮莒道射中小白帶鉤小白佯死先入齊髙傒立之是為桓公】衞姬色妾【桓公好內多內寵如夫人者六人長衞姬少衞姬鄭姬葛嬴潘密姬宋華子也】非愛也任之也【言桓公非親暱管仲欲其擔寄國事也】然後知非賢不可任非智不可從也夫此之舉矣哉膏肓純白【心下為膏肓鬲也】二豎不生茲謂心寧省闥清淨嬖孽不生茲謂政平夫膏肓近心而處阨針之不逺【逺當作達】藥之不中攻之不可二豎藏焉是謂篤患【晉侯疾病求醫於秦秦伯使醫緩為之未至公夢疾為二豎子曰彼良醫也懼傷我焉逃之其一曰居肓之上膏之下若我何醫至曰疾不可為也在肓之上膏之下攻之不可達之不及藥不至焉不可為也】故治身治國者唯是之畏【身畏二豎國畏嬖孽】

Someone asked: Does the key to bringing about good government lie in the ruler? The answer: Both sides must be established. [Heaven does not move alone, and the ruler does not govern alone.] Without heaven and earth nothing is born, and without ruler and ministers there is no good government. At the beginning are heaven and earth, and at the head are ruler and ministers. The Way of the former kings taught and instructed here, so they did not depart from the Way even for a moment. In the past, those above who reached sagehood did so through admonition and by relying on assistants, and by respectfully accommodating their four neighbors, so ministers of the law were not empty at their sides. ["Check and restrain" is like the law. It means that ministers of the law always filled the ruler's surroundings.] The canons of ritual and measure were not empty before their eyes, the words of the former sages did not cease in their persons, and the way of non-righteousness was not proclaimed in their hearts, so no crooked breath had any way to enter. [One character missing] Where there is a gap [one character missing] there is surely something that gets in. So when a crooked intention sprouts, crooked affairs arise [born in the heart, harming the government], and when crooked affairs arise, what is right is blocked, and when what is right is blocked, impartiality too has no way to enter. Not appointing and not favoring is called impartiality, and following only impartiality is called clear-sightedness. Duke Huan of Qi was a man of middling talent, yet in the end he could complete great achievements, because he had something exceptional. His harem was full of concubines, but it was not that he lacked favorites; his court was full of ministers, but it was not that he lacked intimates. Yet outside, Guan Zhong had shot him [the men of Yonglin killed Wuzhi; the Gao and Guo families first secretly summoned Xiaobai from Ju; Lu, hearing that Wuzhi was dead, also sent troops to escort Prince Jiu, and had Guan Zhong lead separate troops to block the road from Ju, and he shot Xiaobai in the belt hook. Xiaobai feigned death and entered Qi first, and Gao Xi established him; this is Duke Huan], and Ji of Wei was a concubine of beauty [Duke Huan was fond of the inner chambers and had many favorites, six like wives: Elder Ji of Wei, Younger Ji of Wei, Ji of Zheng, Ge Ying, Ji of Mi, and Song Huazi]. It was not love, but appointment [meaning that Duke Huan was not intimate with Guan Zhong, but wanted him to bear the affairs of state]. Only afterward did he know that one must not be appointed unless worthy and must not be heeded unless wise. This was a grand course of action! When the vital membranes are pure and white [the area below the heart is the gao, and the huang is the diaphragm], and the two boys are not born there, this is called a calm heart; when the palace gates are clear and still, and favorites and calamity are not born, this is called an even government. The gao and huang are near the heart and in a perilous narrow place, where a needle cannot reach (the text has a wrong character where "reach" is meant), medicine does not hit, and attack does not work; the two boys hide there, and this is called a deep affliction. [The Marquis of Jin was gravely ill and sought a physician from Qin, and the Earl of Qin sent Physician Huan. Before he arrived, the marquis dreamed the illness turned into two boys, who said: "He is a good physician and we fear he will harm us; where shall we flee?" One said: "Let us live above the huang and below the gao, and what can he do to us?" When the physician arrived he said: "The illness cannot be treated; it is above the huang and below the gao; attack does not work, reach does not get there, medicine does not arrive; it cannot be treated."] So those who govern their bodies and states fear only this. [For the body they fear the two boys, for the state they fear favorites and calamity.]

或曰愛民如子仁之至乎曰未也曰愛民如身仁之至乎曰未也湯禱桑林【湯時大旱七年太史占之曰當以人禱湯曰吾所為請雨者民也若以人禱吾請自當遂齋戒剪髪斷爪素車白馬身嬰白茅以身為犧禱於桑林之野】邾遷於繹【邾文公卜遷於繹史曰利於民而不利於君邾子曰苟利於民孤之利也天生民而樹之君以利之也民既利矣孤必與焉左右曰命可長也君何弗為邾子曰命在養民死之短長時也民苟利矣遷也吉莫如之遂遷於繹五月邾文公卒】景祠於旱【齊大旱景公卜之祟在髙山廣水欲祠靈山河伯以禱晏子曰祠之無益君誠避宮殿暴露與靈山河伯共憂其幸而雨乎於是景公出野暴露三日天果大雨民盡得種樹】可謂愛民矣【如子與子等耳如身與身等耳如三君者輕身重民然後為至】曰何重民而輕身也曰人主承天命以養民者也民存則社稷存民亡則社稷亡故重民者所以重社稷而承天命也【社者五土之神稷者於五土之中特指原隰之只古者立國天子諸侯大夫皆立社而國防則屋之不受天陽也故公羊傳云亡國之社掩其上柴其下孟子曰民為貴社稷次之君為輕言三君者之重民為欽奉天命以保社稷也】或問曰孟軻稱人皆可以為堯舜其信矣曰人非下愚【下愚則不移】則皆可以為堯舜矣寫堯舜之貌同堯舜之姓則否服堯之制行堯之道則可矣行之於前則古之堯舜也行之於後則今之堯舜也或曰人皆可以為桀紂乎曰行桀紂之事是桀紂也【本孟子語曹交意】堯舜桀紂之事常並存於世唯人所用而已楊朱哭岐路所通逼者然也【淮南子説林訓曰楊子見逵路而哭之為其可以南可以北髙誘曰閔其別與化也】夫岐路惡足悲哉中反焉若夫縣度之厄素舉足而已矣【西域傳烏秘國西有縣度縣度者石山也谿谷不通以繩索相引而度去喻為桀紂】損益之符微而顯也趙獲二城臨饋而憂陶朱既富室妾悲號【范蠡既雪會稽之恥乃乗扁舟浮於江湖變名易姓適齊為鴟夷子皮之陶為朱公乃治產積居與時逐三致千金而再散分與貧友昆弟後年衰老聴子孫脩業而息之遂至鉅萬故言富者稱陶朱】此知益為損之為益者也屈伸之數隱而昭也有仍之困復夏之萌也【帝相之後有仍國君女也寒浞殺羿滅夏氏時少康方在相後懷姙乃奔歸有仍之國而生少康長為仍牧正夏有舊臣靡自有鬲氏收二國之燼舉兵滅浞而立少康】鼎雉之異興殷之符也【武丁祭成湯有飛雉升鼎耳而雊祖已訓諸王武丁內反諸已以思王道三年蠻夷編髪重譯來朝者六國方無道武丁伐而三年克之殷道復興】邵宮之難隆周之應也【邵宮召公之室也厲王出犇於彘太子靜匿召公之家國人聞而圍之召公乃以其子代太子太子竟得脫長於召公家二相乃共立之是為宣王】會稽之棲霸越之基也【夫差二年吳王悉精兵以伐越敗之夫椒越王勾踐乃以餘兵五千人保棲於會稽使大夫種因吳太宰嚭而行成請委國為臣妾至十四年勾踐伐吳虜太子友二十一年越王滅吳夫差自剄死】子之之亂強燕之徵也【燕王噲讓國於其相子之而國大亂齊因伐之遂大勝燕噲死子之亡二年而燕人共立太子平是為燕昭王】此知伸為屈之為伸者也

Someone said: Is loving the people like one's own child the utmost of benevolence? The answer: Not yet. Question: Is loving the people like oneself the utmost of benevolence? The answer: Not yet. Tang prayed in the Mulberry Grove [In Tang's time there was a great drought for seven years, and the grand historian said by divination that a person should be used in prayer. Tang said: "What I ask for rain is for the people; if a person is to be used in prayer, let it be me." So he fasted, cut his hair and nails, rode a plain cart with white horses, clad himself in white thatch, and made himself the sacrifice, praying in the wilds of the Mulberry Grove.] Zhu moved to Yi [Duke Wen of Zhu divined about moving to Yi, and the scribe said it was beneficial to the people but not to the ruler. The lord of Zhu said: "If it benefits the people, it is my benefit. Heaven gave birth to the people and set up a ruler in order to benefit the people; once the people are benefited, I will surely be within it." Those around him said his life could be prolonged, and why would he not do it? The lord of Zhu said: "Fate lies in nurturing the people; the length or shortness of death is a matter of time; if the people benefit, moving is auspicious, and nothing is better than that." So he moved to Yi. In the fifth month Duke Wen of Zhu died.] Duke Jing of Qi performed a sacrifice for drought [Qi had a great drought, and Duke Jing divined and was told the curse lay with the high mountains and wide waters, and wished to sacrifice to the spirit mountains and the River Earl to pray. Master Yan said: "Sacrificing is of no use. If Your Lordship sincerely left the palace and stood exposed in the wilds, sharing the worry with the spirit mountains and the River Earl, perhaps it will rain." So Duke Jing went out into the wilds and was exposed for three days, and heaven indeed sent a great rain, and the people were able to plant]; these can be called loving the people. ["Like a child" only equals a child, and "like oneself" only equals oneself. Like these three rulers, who treated their own persons lightly and the people as weighty, only then is it the utmost.] Question: Why treat the people as weighty and oneself as light? The answer: The ruler receives the mandate of heaven to nurture the people. If the people survive, the altars of the state survive; if the people perish, the altars perish. So valuing the people is a way of valuing the altars of the state and receiving the mandate of heaven. [The she is the spirit of the five soils, and the ji is the spirit specifically of the plains and wetlands among the five soils. In ancient times when a state was established, the Son of Heaven, the feudal lords and the grand masters all set up a she; (the base text has a rare character here, lost in transcription) and so the roof is covered to keep it from the heavenly yang. So the Gongyang Commentary says that the she of a ruined state is covered above and fenced with brushwood below. Mencius said the people are most important, the altars of the state second, and the ruler lightest. This says that these three rulers' valuing of the people was a reverent obedience to the mandate of heaven in order to protect the altars.] Someone asked: Mencius said that everyone can become a Yao or Shun; is this credible? The answer: Unless a person is among the lowest of fools [the lowest of fools cannot be changed], everyone can become a Yao or Shun. To paint Yao's or Shun's face and use their surnames will not do; to wear Yao's regulations and practice Yao's Way will do. One who walks ahead is the Yao or Shun of ancient times, and one who walks behind is the Yao or Shun of the present. Someone said: Can everyone become a Jie or Zhou? The answer: One who does what Jie and Zhou did is a Jie or Zhou. [Based on the idea of Mencius's answer to Cao Jiao.] The deeds of Yao and Shun and of Jie and Zhou have always existed together in the world, and it depends only on which one a person uses. Yang Zhu wept at the fork in the road, because what it opened onto and pressed on him was like this. [The Huainanzi, Shuolin chapter, says that Master Yang saw a thoroughfare and wept because it could lead south or north. Gao You says: he pitied its branching and change.] How is a fork in the road worth grieving over? One can turn back midway. As for the hanging crossing's dangerous passes, it is only a matter of lifting one's foot. [In the Account of the Western Regions: west of the state of Wucha there is the Hanging Crossing. The Hanging Crossing is a stone mountain whose gorges cannot be passed, and people cross by pulling each other along with ropes. This is a metaphor for acting as Jie and Zhou did.] The responses of loss and gain are subtle yet clear. Zhao got two cities and was worried when faced with the gift; Tao Zhu was already rich, and the maids and concubines in his household wailed. [After Fan Li had washed away the shame of Kuaiji, he boarded a small boat and floated on the rivers and lakes, changed his name and surname, went to Qi as Chiyi Zipi, and to Tao as Lord Zhu; he managed property and stored goods, moved with the times, three times amassed a thousand in gold and then gave it away again to poor friends and brothers. Later in old age he let his sons and grandsons carry on his enterprise and increase it, and so it came to ten thousand times ten thousand, so those who are rich are said to be a Tao Zhu.] These are people who know that gain is loss and loss is gain. The reckoning of bending and stretching is hidden yet bright. The distress at Reng was the seed of the restoration of Xia. [The queen of Emperor Xiang was the daughter of the lord of Reng. When Han Zhuo killed Yi and destroyed the house of Xia, Shaokang was still in his mother's womb; she fled back to Reng and gave birth to Shaokang, who grew up to be the herdsman-chief of Reng. Xia had an old minister, Mi, who gathered the remnants of the two states from the You Ge clan, raised troops, destroyed Zhuo and set Shaokang on the throne.] The strange pheasant on the tripod was the sign of the rise of Yin. [When Wuding sacrificed to Cheng Tang, a flying pheasant rose onto the ear of the tripod and crowed. Zu Ji admonished the king, and Wuding looked inward and sought the Way of kings in himself, and in three years six states of the barbarians came to court with braided hair and relays of interpreters; the Guifang were lawless, and Wuding attacked them and conquered them in three years, and the Way of Yin was restored.] The disaster at the Duke of Shao's palace was the response to Zhou's flourishing. [The Shao palace was the Duke of Shao's residence. When King Li fled to Zhi, the crown prince Jing hid in the Duke of Shao's house, and the people of the state heard of it and surrounded it. The Duke of Shao substituted his own son for the crown prince, and the crown prince escaped and grew up in the Duke of Shao's house. The two chief ministers jointly established him, and this was King Xuan.] The refuge at Kuaiji was the foundation of Yue's hegemony. [In the second year of Fuchai, the King of Wu sent out all his elite troops to attack Yue and defeated it at Fujiao. King Goujian of Yue held Kuaiji with his remaining five thousand soldiers, and sent the grand master Zhong through Wu's grand steward Pi to ask for peace, asking to entrust the state to be vassals. In the fourteenth year Goujian attacked Wu and captured Crown Prince You, and in the twenty-first year the King of Yue destroyed Wu, and Fuchai cut his throat and died.] The disorder of Zizhi was the sign of Yan's becoming strong. [King Kuai of Yan yielded the state to his minister Zizhi and the state fell into great disorder; Qi took the opportunity to attack it and won a great victory over Yan, Kuai died and Zizhi perished. In the second year the people of Yan jointly established Crown Prince Ping, who was King Zhao of Yan.] These are people who know that stretching is bending and bending is stretching.

人主之患常立於二難之間在上而國家不治難也治國家則必勤身苦思矯情以從道難也有難之難闇主取之無難之難明主居之大臣之患常立於二罪之間在職而不盡忠直之道罪也盡忠直之道焉則必矯上拂下罪也有罪之罪【謂不盡忠直之道】邪臣由之無罪之罪【謂盡道而矯上拂下】忠臣置之人臣之義不曰吾君能矣不我湏也言無補也而不盡忠不曰吾君不能矣不我識也言無益也而不盡忠【孟子曰吾君不能謂之賊】必竭其誠明其道盡其義斯已而已矣【以道事君】不已則奉身以退【不可則止】臣道也故君臣有異無乖有怨無憾有屈無辱人臣有三罪一曰導非二曰阿失三曰屍寵以非引上謂之導從上之非謂之阿見非不言謂之屍導臣誅阿臣刑尸臣絀【絀與黜同貶下也】進忠有三術一曰防【防與導反】二曰救【救與阿反】三曰戒【戒與屍反】先其未然謂之防發而止之謂之救行而責之謂之戒防為上救次之戒為下下不鉗口上不塞耳則可有聞矣有鉗之鉗猶可解也無鉗之鉗難矣哉有塞之塞猶可除也無塞之塞其甚矣夫【無鉗之鉗無塞之塞獻帝之時如此】

The trouble of a ruler often stands between two difficulties: to be above and not govern the state well is difficult, but to govern the state surely requires toiling in body and thinking hard, and bending one's feelings to follow the Way is also difficult. The difficulty of having a difficulty is what the dim ruler takes; the difficulty of having no difficulty is where the clear-sighted ruler dwells. The trouble of a great minister often stands between two faults: to hold office and not fulfill the Way of loyalty and uprightness is a fault, but to fulfill the Way of loyalty and uprightness surely means correcting the ruler and opposing those below, which is also a fault. The fault of having a fault [meaning not fulfilling the Way of loyalty and uprightness] is where the crooked ministers go; the fault of having no fault [meaning fulfilling the Way but correcting the ruler and opposing those below] is where the loyal minister places himself. The duty of a minister is not to say, "My lord is already able and does not need me, and my words will add nothing," and thereby not be loyal; nor to say, "My lord is not able and does not know me, and my words will do no good," and thereby not be loyal. [Mencius said: "One who says 'my lord is not able' is a thief."] He must exhaust his sincerity, make the principle clear, and fulfill his duty, and that is enough. [Serving the ruler by the Way.] If it cannot be done, he withdraws with his own person. [If it cannot be done, he stops.] This is the minister's Way. So ruler and minister may differ without being estranged, may have grievances without resentment, and may be wronged without disgrace. A minister has three faults: first, leading into wrong; second, flattering error; third, occupying a post on favor alone. To lure the ruler into error is called leading; to follow the ruler's error is called flattering; to see error and not speak is called occupying a post. A leading minister deserves execution, a flattering minister deserves punishment, and a minister who only occupies a post deserves demotion. [Chu is the same as chu, to demote.] There are three arts for presenting loyalty: first, prevention [prevention is the opposite of leading]; second, rescue [rescue is the opposite of flattering]; third, warning [warning is the opposite of occupying a post]. To act before it happens is called prevention; to stop it once it begins is called rescue; to reproach after it has been done is called warning. Prevention is best, rescue next, and warning lowest. If those below do not clamp their mouths and those above do not stop their ears, then things can be heard. A clamp that is a clamp can still be undone, but a clamp that is no clamp is hard! A stopping that is a stopping can still be removed, but a stopping that is no stopping is all the worse! [The clamp that is no clamp and the stopping that is no stopping were just like this in the time of Emperor Xian.]

或曰在上有屈乎曰在上者以義申以義屈【義當申則申義當屈則屈】髙祖雖能申威於秦項而屈於商山四公【四公東園公綺裡季夏黃公角里先生也髙祖欲易太子太臣多爭未能得堅決呂后以留侯計雲四公皆上所不能致者遂使人奉太子書迎至及宴置酒太子侍四人者從太子上怪問四人前對各言其姓名上乃驚曰吾求公避逃我今公何自從吾兒逰乎四人曰陛下輕士善罵臣等義不辱故恐而亡匿今聞太子仁孝恭敬愛士天下莫不延頸願為太子死者故臣等來上曰煩公幸卒調防太子四人趨去上目送之召戚夫人指視曰我欲易之彼四人為之輔羽翼已成難動矣竟不易太子所謂屈於商山四公】光武能申於莾而屈於強項令【陳留董宣為雒陽令湖陽公主蒼頭白日殺人宣於夏門亭格殺之主訴帝帝召宣欲棰殺之宣曰陛下聖徳中興而縱奴殺人將何以治天下乎臣不須棰請得自殺即以頭擊楹流血被面帝令小黃門持之使宣叩頭謝主宣不從彊使頓之宣兩手據地終不肯俯因敕強項令出賜錢三十萬所謂屈於強項令】明帝能申令於天下而屈於鍾離尚書【尚書鍾離意也顯宗即位徴為尚書時交阯太守張恢坐贓徵還伏法以資物簿入大司農詔班賜群臣意得珠璣悉以委地而不拜賜帝怪而問其故對曰臣聞孔子忍渴於盜泉之水曽參回車於勝母之閭惡其名也此臧穢之寶誠不敢拜帝嗟嘆曰清乎尚書之言乃更以庫錢三十萬賜意轉為尚書僕射車駕數幸廣成苑意以為從禽廢政常當車陳諫般樂逰田之事天子即時還宮所謂屈於鍾離尚書】若秦二世之申欲而非笑唐虞【二世曰吾聞之韓子曰堯舜採椽不刮茅茨不翦飯土塯啜土形雖監門之養不觳於此禹鑿龍門通大夏決河亭水放之海身自持築臿脛毋毛臣虜之勞不烈於此矣凡所為貴有天下者得肆意極欲主重明法下不敢為非以制御海內矣夫虞夏之主貴為天子親處窮苦之實以徇百姓尚何於法此所謂非笑唐虞也】若定陶傅太后之申意而怨於鄭【傅太后元帝倢伃也生定陶恭王元帝崩隨王歸國稱定陶太后成帝無繼嗣太后賂趙昭儀隂為恭王子求漢嗣又以從弟晏子為王妃明年徴定陶王為太子是為哀帝帝即位累尊太后為皇太太后太后父同產弟子孟子喜中叔子晏防君子商同母弟鄭煇子業俱封侯太后既尊後尤驕與成帝母王太后語至謂之嫗防馮太后以祝詛罪令自殺哀帝崩王莽秉政奏貶傅太后號為定陶恭王母復奏發傅太后冡以木棺代去珠玉衣歸定陶葬恭王冡次孔鄉侯晏將家屬徙合浦宗族皆歸故郡趙皇后亦廢為庶人】是謂不屈不然則趙氏不亡而秦無愆尤故人主以義申以義屈也喜如春陽怒如秋霜威如雷霆之震恵若雨露之降【威怒言申喜惠言屈】沛然孰能御也

Someone asked: Does one in the highest position ever yield? The answer: One in the highest position stretches by righteousness and yields by righteousness. [When righteousness calls for stretching, he stretches; when it calls for yielding, he yields.] Though Gaozu could extend his might against Qin and Xiang, he yielded to the Four Gentlemen of Mount Shang. [The four gentlemen were Dongyuan Gong, Qili Ji, Xia Huang Gong and Luli Xiansheng. Gaozu wished to replace the crown prince, and many ministers argued but could not be firm. Empress Lü used the plan of the Marquis of Liu, saying the four gentlemen were people the emperor could not summon, and sent someone with the crown prince's letter to welcome them. When the banquet was set, the prince stood in attendance, and the four followed the prince. The emperor was surprised and asked them, and the four came forward and each gave his name. The emperor said in alarm: "I sought you and you fled from me; why do you now follow my son and travel with him?" The four said: "Your Majesty looks down on scholars and is fond of abuse, and out of righteousness we would not accept insult, so we hid; now we hear that the crown prince is benevolent, filial, respectful and fond of scholars, and none in the world does not crane his neck and wish to die for the crown prince, so we have come." The emperor said: "I trouble you to take good care of the crown prince." The four hurried away, and the emperor watched them go, summoned Lady Qi and pointed, saying: "I wanted to replace him, but these four assist him; his wings are complete and he is hard to move." In the end he did not replace the crown prince. This is what is meant by yielding to the Four Gentlemen of Mount Shang.] Guangwu could extend his might against Wang Mang, but yielded to the Stiff-Necked Magistrate. [Dong Xuan of Chenliu was magistrate of Luoyang. A servant of the Princess of Huyang killed a man in broad daylight, and Xuan struck him dead at the Xiamen Pavilion. The princess told the emperor, and the emperor summoned Xuan and wanted to have him beaten to death. Xuan said: "Your Majesty's sage virtue has restored the dynasty, yet you allow servants to kill; how will you govern the realm? There is no need to beat your servant; please let me kill myself." He struck his head against a pillar, and blood covered his face. The emperor ordered a young eunuch to hold him down and make him kowtow to the princess in apology, but Xuan would not comply; they forced him to bow, and he braced both hands on the ground and in the end would not bend. So the emperor ordered the Stiff-Necked Magistrate to go out, and gave him three hundred thousand cash. This is what is meant by yielding to the Stiff-Necked Magistrate.] Emperor Ming could issue orders to the world, yet yielded to the Secretary Zhongli. [The Secretary Zhongli Yi. When Emperor Xianzong came to the throne he summoned him to be a secretary. At the time the governor of Jiaozhi, Zhang Hui, had been summoned back and executed for corruption, and his goods were registered into the Ministry of Agriculture, and the emperor decreed they be distributed to the ministers. Yi, on receiving pearls and jewels, threw them to the ground and did not thank for the gift. The emperor was surprised and asked the reason, and he said: "I have heard that Confucius endured thirst at Robber Spring, and Zengzi turned his carriage back at the village gate of Victory over Mother, both hating the name. These treasures of filth I dare not accept." The emperor sighed and said: "How pure are the secretary's words." So he gave him three hundred thousand from the treasury instead, and transferred him to be Vice Director of the Secretariat. When the emperor's carriage several times visited the Guangcheng Park, Yi thought hunting neglected government, and often blocked the carriage to admonish against pleasure and hunting, and the Son of Heaven at once returned to the palace. This is what is meant by yielding to the Secretary Zhongli.] Like the Second Emperor of Qin, who gave rein to his desires and mocked and laughed at Tang and Yu. [The Second Emperor said: "I have heard Han Zi say that Yao and Shun used unplaned oak beams and uncut thatch, ate from earthen bowls and drank from earthen cups, and even a gatekeeper's provisions were no poorer; Yu cut through Longmen and opened the Daxia, drained the river into the sea, and himself took the pounder and spade, and his shins had no hair, and the toil of a captive slave was no more severe. The reason for valuing possession of the world is to be able to indulge all one's wishes and exhaust desire, with the ruler placing weight on clear laws so that those below dare not do wrong, in order to control all within the seas. The rulers of Yu and Xia were exalted as Sons of Heaven yet personally lived in hardship to follow the people; how then could laws be established?" This is what is meant by mocking and laughing at Tang and Yu.] Like Grand Empress Dowager Fu of Dingtao, who extended her own will and resented the Zheng family. [Empress Dowager Fu was a concubine of Emperor Yuan and bore King Gong of Dingtao. When Emperor Yuan died she followed the king back to his state and was called Empress Dowager of Dingtao. Emperor Cheng had no heir, and the dowager bribed Zhao Zhaoyi to secretly seek the Han succession for King Gong's son, and made the daughter of her cousin Yan his consort. The next year the King of Dingtao was summoned to be crown prince, and this was Emperor Ai. When the emperor took the throne he successively honored the dowager as Grand Empress Dowager. The dowager's brother's son Meng Zixi, Zhong Shu's son Yan, (the base text has a rare character here, lost in transcription) Jun's son Shang, and her younger brother by the same mother Zheng Yun's son Ye were all made marquises. After the dowager was honored she became especially arrogant, and in speaking with Emperor Cheng's mother, Empress Dowager Wang, she even called her old woman. Empress Dowager Feng was ordered to kill herself on a charge of cursing. When Emperor Ai died and Wang Mang took charge of government, he memorialized to demote the Fu dowager's title to Mother of King Gong of Dingtao, and also memorialized to dig up the Fu dowager's tomb, replace it with a wooden coffin, remove the pearl and jade garments, and rebury her beside the tomb of King Gong of Dingtao. The Marquis of Kongxiang, Yan, took his family and was moved to Hepu, the whole clan returned to their old commandery, and Empress Zhao was also deposed to a commoner.] This is what is called not yielding. Otherwise the house of Zhao would not have perished and Qin would have had no fault. So the ruler stretches by righteousness and yields by righteousness. Joy like spring sun, anger like autumn frost, awe like thunder, kindness like falling rain and dew [awe and anger speak of stretching, joy and kindness speak of yielding]; who can resist it when it pours forth.

或問曰難行曰若髙祖聴戍卒不懷居遷萬乘不俟終日【齊人婁敬戍隴西過洛陽脫挽輅衣羊裘因虞將軍見髙祖勸都秦地張良又是其説髙祖即日車駕西都長安】孝文帝不愛千里馬【孝文時有獻千里馬者帝曰鸞旗在前屬車在後吉行日五十里師行日三十里朕乘千里馬獨先安之下詔不受】慎夫人衣不曵地【班固贊文帝身衣弋綈所幸慎夫人衣不曵地】光武手不持珠玉【循吏傳敘曰光武身衣大練色無重防耳不聴鄭衛之音手不持珠玉之玩】可謂難矣【言三君者以規獻帝也】抑情絶欲不如是能成功業者鮮矣人臣若金日磾以子私謾而殺之【日防子二人皆愛為帝弄兒其後壯大不謹自殿下與宮人戲日防適見之惡其亂遂殺弄兒即日防長子也】丙吉之不伐【武帝末吉以故廷尉監徴詔治巫蠱郡邸獄時宣帝生數月以皇曾孫坐衛太子事系吉哀曾孫無辜擇謹厚女徒令保養曾孫置閒燥處望氣者言長安獄中有天子氣上遣使令一切殺之吉閉門拒使者得全曽孫曾孫病吉數敕乳母加致醫藥視遇甚有恩惠以私財物給其衣食自曽孫遭遇吉絶口不道前恩至宮婢則自陳甞有阿保之功辭引使者丙吉知狀上親見問然後知吉有舊恩而終不言上大賢之制詔丞相封吉為博陽侯】蘇武之執節【武留匈奴凡十九嵗始以彊壯出及還須髪盡白拜為典屬國】可謂難矣【言三臣者以諷操也】

Someone asked about hard things to do. The answer: Like Gaozu following the garrison soldier, not clinging to his residence, and moving the seat of ten thousand chariots without waiting for a day to end. [Lou Jing of Qi was garrisoning Longxi and, passing Luoyang, took off his hauling harness and, wearing a sheepskin coat, saw Gaozu through General Yu and urged him to make his capital in the Qin lands. Zhang Liang also approved his words, and Gaozu that very day drove west to make his capital at Chang'an.] Emperor Xiaowen did not love the thousand-li horse [in Xiaowen's time someone offered a thousand-li horse, and the emperor said: "With the phoenix banners ahead and the attendant carriages behind, an auspicious journey is fifty li a day and a military march thirty li; if I rode a thousand-li horse and went ahead alone, where would I go?" He issued an edict not to accept it]; Lady Shen's clothes did not trail on the ground [Ban Gu's praise of Emperor Wen says he wore thick black silk and the Lady Shen he favored wore clothes that did not touch the ground]; Guangwu did not hold pearls and jade in his hand [the Preface to the Biographies of Upright Officials says: Guangwu wore coarse silk, whose color had no extra (the base text has a rare character here, lost in transcription), his ears did not listen to the music of Zheng and Wei, and his hands did not hold pearls and jade as playthings]; these may be called hard. [This says that the three rulers are used to admonish Emperor Xian.] It is rare for one to restrain his feelings and desires to this degree and only then complete great achievements. As for ministers, like Jin Midi who killed his son because he was secretly licentious [both sons of Midi (the base text writes "fang" for Midi's name, which should be Midi) were favored and served as the emperor's playthings. Later when they grew up they were not careful and toyed with palace women below the hall. Midi happened to see it and hated their lewdness, so he killed the plaything, who was Midi's eldest son]; Bing Ji did not boast of his merit [in the last years of Emperor Wu, Ji was summoned as former Commandant's Assistant and ordered to try the witchcraft cases in the commandery prison. At the time Emperor Xuan, a few months old, was held there as the emperor's great-grandson because of the affair of Crown Prince Wei. Ji pitied the great-grandson's innocence, chose a careful and kind female prisoner to nurse him, and placed him in a quiet dry place. A star-gazer said there was an emperor's aura in the prisons of Chang'an, and the emperor sent envoys to have all killed. Ji shut the gate and refused the envoy, and the great-grandson was preserved. When he fell ill, Ji several times ordered the wet nurse to add medicine, treated him with kindness, and supplied food and clothing from his private funds. When the great-grandson came to the throne, Ji never mentioned his earlier favor. Only when a palace maid herself stated that she had had the merit of nursing him, and her testimony drew in the envoy Bing Ji as knowing, did the emperor personally ask him and learn that Ji had an old favor yet never spoke of it; the emperor greatly thought him worthy and issued an edict enfeoffing Ji as Marquis of Boyang]; Su Wu kept his integrity [Wu stayed among the Xiongnu for nineteen years in all; he left in his vigorous prime as an envoy and returned with his hair and beard all white, and was appointed Director of Dependent States]; these may be called hard. [This says that the three ministers are used to remonstrate with Cao Cao.]

或問厲志曰若殷髙宗能葺其徳藥瞑以瘳疾【瞑者令人憤悶之意方言云凡飲藥而毒東齊海岱間或謂之瞑或謂之説命啟乃心沃朕心若藥弗瞑厥疾弗瘳若跣弗視地厥足用傷】衞武箴戒於朝【武公和釐侯子年九十有五猶箴儆於國曰自卿以下至於師長士苟在朝者無謂我老耄而舍必恪恭於朝以交戒我又作賔之初筵抑戒之詩以自警】勾踐懸膽於坐【勾踐反國乃苦身焦思置膽於坐坐臥即仰膽飲食亦嘗膽也曰女忘會稽之恥耶】厲矣哉【言此欲獻帝勵志以再振漢業也】

Someone asked about stirring the will. The answer: Like Gaozong of Yin, who could mend his virtue and treated the dizziness of medicine as healing. ["Dizziness" means being made distressed. The Fangyan: whenever one takes medicine that is poisonous, in the Dong Qi region between the sea and Mount Tai it is called dizziness or giddiness. The Charge to Yue says: "Open your heart and irrigate mine. If the medicine does not make one dizzy, the illness will not be cured; if one goes barefoot and does not look at the ground, his feet will be hurt."] Duke Wu of Wei gave admonitions at court. [Duke Wu was the son of Marquis Xi, and at ninety-five was still giving warnings in the state, saying: "From ministers down to the heads of the divisions and scholars, all who are at court, do not say I am old and give up on me, but be sure to respectfully admonish me in turn at court." He also composed the poems "The Guests at the First Mat" and "Yi" to warn himself.] Goujian hung a gall bladder at his seat. [After Goujian returned to his state he toiled in body and was anxious in mind, put a gall bladder at his seat, and when sitting or lying he looked up at the gall, and when eating and drinking he also tasted the gall, saying: "Have you forgotten the shame of Kuaiji?"] This is stirring the will! [This says that these examples are meant to make Emperor Xian stir his will and restore the Han enterprise.]

寵妻愛妾幸矣其為災也深矣災與幸同乎曰得則慶否則災戚氏不幸不人豕【戚氏戚夫人也髙帝愛幸戚夫人常從之關東呂后年長常留守希見益疏屢欲立戚夫人子如意為太子不果髙帝崩呂后乃令永巷囚戚夫人髠鉗衣赭衣令舂未幾鴆殺趙王遂斷戚夫人手足去眼燻耳飲瘖藥使居鞠域中名曰人彘】趙昭儀不幸不失命【元帝始加昭儀之號位視丞相爵比諸侯王顔師古曰昭顯其儀示隆重也趙昭儀者孝成皇后趙飛燕女弟也後寵衰而絶幸昭儀居昭陽館顓寵十餘年成帝崩民間歸罪昭儀皇太后詔治問皇帝起居發病狀昭儀自殺】栗姬不幸不廢【景帝立齊栗姬男為太子長公主嫖有女欲與太子為妃栗姬妬而景帝諸美人皆因長公主見得貴幸栗姬日怨怒謝長主不許防薄皇后廢長公主日譖栗姬景帝心銜之而未發也王夫人又隂使人趣大臣立栗姬為皇后大行奏事文曰子以母貴母以子貴今太子母號宜為皇后帝怒遂案誅大行而廢太子為臨江王栗姬愈恚不得見以憂死】鉤弋不幸不憂殤【鉤弋夫人姓趙氏昭帝母也進為倢伃居鉤弋宮大有寵元始三年生昭帝號鉤弋子姙身十四月乃生武帝命其所生門曰堯母門後欲立鉤弋子為皇太子以其年穉母少恐女主顓恣亂國家猶豫久之鉤弋夫人從幸甘泉有過見譴以憂死因葬雲陽】非災而何【言戚氏昭儀栗姬鉤弋所謂否則災也按靈帝何貴人甚有寵幸性彊忌光和三年立為皇后時王美人姙娠畏後乃服藥欲除之而胎安不動後生皇子協即獻帝也何皇后酖殺美人至董卓立獻帝乃遷何皇后於永安宮亦酖弒之悅以美人獻帝母也不得顯言故申漢前事以為鑑戒】若慎夫人之知【孝文所幸慎夫人在禁中嘗與皇后同席坐袁盎引卻慎夫人夫人怒上亦怒盎曰臣聞尊卑有序則上下和今既已立後慎夫人乃妾耳豈可同坐陛下獨不見人彘乎上悅乃召語慎夫人夫人賜盎金五十斤】班婕妤之賢【婕妤之號自武帝始位視上卿爵比列侯婕言接幸於上也妤美稱也班婕妤者彪之姑況之女也入後宮始為少使俄而大幸為婕妤居増成舍成帝嘗欲與婕妤同輦載辭止太后以樊姬擬之婕妤每進見上疏依則古禮至趙飛燕譖告許後婕妤祝詛後宮詈及主上皇后坐廢婕妤以善對免因恐久見危乃求共養太后長信宮】明德皇后之德【明德馬皇后伏波將軍援之少女為顯宗貴人時賈氏生肅宗帝命貴人養之撫育過於所生後有司奏立長秋宮皇太后曰馬貴人徳冠後宮即其人也遂立為皇后愈自謙肅能誦易好讀春秋楚辭尤喜周官董仲舒書常衣大練裙不加縁每於侍執之際輒言及政事多所毘補而未嘗以傢俬幹故寵敬日隆始終無衰】邵矣哉【邵髙也言慎夫人班婕妤馬皇后所謂徳則慶也】

The love of wives and concubines is good fortune, but when it turns into disaster it runs deep. Are disaster and fortune the same? The answer: To obtain it is a blessing, otherwise it is a disaster. Lady Qi was unlucky enough to be turned into a human swine [Lady Qi is Consort Qi. Emperor Gao loved and favored Consort Qi and often took her east of the pass. Empress Lü was older and often stayed behind, seeing him rarely and becoming more distant. Several times he wanted to make Consort Qi's son Ruyi the crown prince, but did not succeed. When Emperor Gao died, Empress Lü had Consort Qi imprisoned in the long lane, her head shaved, her neck shackled, and made to pound grain in a red prisoner's robe. Soon she poisoned the King of Zhao, and then cut off Consort Qi's hands and feet, gouged out her eyes, burned her ears, gave her a drug to make her mute, and made her live in the privy, calling her the human swine.]; Zhao Zhaoyi was unlucky enough to lose her life [Emperor Yuan first added the title of Zhaoyi, with a rank equal to a chancellor and a title equal to a feudal king. Yan Shigu said: zhao means to make her bearing conspicuous, showing honor. Zhao Zhaoyi was the younger sister of Empress Xiaocheng, Zhao Feiyan. After the empress's favor faded, only the Zhaoyi was favored, and she lived in the Zhaoyang Hall and held exclusive favor for more than ten years. When Emperor Cheng died, the people blamed the Zhaoyi, and the empress dowager issued an edict to inquire about the emperor's daily life and the circumstances of his illness, and the Zhaoyi killed herself]; Consort Li was unlucky enough to be deposed [Emperor Jing made the son of Consort Li of Qi the crown prince. The Senior Princess Piao had a daughter she wished to marry to the crown prince, but Consort Li was jealous, and all of Emperor Jing's beauties gained access and favor through the princess; Consort Li resented and raged daily, and declined the princess's proposal. When Empress Bo was deposed, the Senior Princess spoke ill of Consort Li every day, and Emperor Jing nursed a grudge in his heart but had not yet acted. Lady Wang again secretly sent men to urge the ministers to establish Consort Li as empress. The Grand Herald memorialized: "A son is honored through his mother and a mother through her son; now the crown prince's mother should have the title of empress." The emperor was angry, and so had the Grand Herald examined and executed, and deposed the crown prince as King of Linjiang. Consort Li grew more resentful, was not permitted an audience, and died of grief]; Lady Gouyi was unlucky enough to die of sorrow [Lady Gouyi was surnamed Zhao, the mother of Emperor Zhao, and was advanced to Jieyu and lived in the Gouyi Palace and was greatly favored. In the third year of the Yuanshi era she bore Emperor Zhao, called Gouyi Zi, after a pregnancy of fourteen months. Emperor Wu named the gate of her residence the Mother of Yao Gate. Later he wished to make Gouyi Zi crown prince but, because he was young and his mother was youthful, feared that a female ruler would run riot and bring chaos to the state, and hesitated for a long time. Lady Gouyi followed him on a visit to Ganquan and was reprimanded for a fault, died of sorrow, and was buried at Yunyang]. What is this if not disaster? [This says that Lady Qi, the Zhaoyi, Consort Li and Lady Gouyi are what is meant by "otherwise it is a disaster." Note: Consort He of Emperor Ling was much favored, and her nature was firm and jealous. In the third year of the Guanghe era she was made empress. At the time Lady Wang the beauty was pregnant and feared the empress, took medicine to rid herself of the child, but the child stayed firm and did not move, and later she bore Prince Xie, who was Emperor Xian. Empress He poisoned the beauty. When Dong Zhuo established Emperor Xian, he moved Empress He to the Yong'an Palace and also poisoned her. Because the beauty was the mother of Emperor Xian and Xun Yue could not say so openly, he recounted earlier Han affairs as a warning.] Like Lady Shen's understanding [Lady Shen, whom Emperor Xiaowen favored, often sat on the same mat as the empress in the palace. Yuan Ang pulled Lady Shen's seat apart; the lady was angry, and the emperor was angry too. Ang said: "I have heard that when high and low are in order, above and below are in harmony. Now that an empress has been established, Lady Shen is a concubine; how can they sit together? Does Your Majesty alone not see the human swine?" The emperor was pleased, and called and told Lady Shen, and the lady gave Ang fifty catties of gold]; Ban Jieyu's worth [The title of Jieyu began with Emperor Wu, with a rank equal to a senior minister and a title equal to a marquis. Jie means receiving the ruler's favor, and yu is an honorific. Ban Jieyu was Ban Biao's aunt and Ban Kuang's daughter; entering the harem she first served as Shaoshi, and soon was greatly favored as Jieyu and lived in the Zengcheng Hall. Emperor Cheng once wished to share a carriage with the Jieyu, but she declined. The empress dowager compared her to Lady Fan. Each time the Jieyu presented a memorial she followed ancient ritual. When Zhao Feiyan falsely accused Empress Xu and the Jieyu of cursing the palace and abusing the sovereign, the empress was deposed, and the Jieyu was spared because she answered well, but fearing long-term danger she asked to leave and serve the empress dowager at the Changxin Palace]; the virtue of Empress Mingde [Empress Ma Mingde was the youngest daughter of General Ma Yuan, the Wave-Subduing General, and was a Consort of Emperor Xianzong. At the time Lady Jia bore Emperor Suzong, and the emperor ordered the Consort to raise him, and she brought him up better than her own. Later the officials memorialized to establish an empress, and the empress dowager said Consort Ma's virtue was the best in the harem, she was the one, and so she was made empress. She grew ever more modest and solemn, could recite the Changes, loved reading the Spring and Autumn and the Songs of Chu, and especially liked the Rites of Zhou and the writings of Dong Zhongshu, and she often wore a coarse silk skirt with no trimming. Each time in attendance she spoke of affairs of government, often with benefit, and never used family matters to interfere, so her favor and respect grew daily and never waned]. These are lofty! [Shao means lofty. This says that Lady Shen, Ban Jieyu and Empress Ma are what is meant by "to obtain it is a blessing."]

為世憂樂者君子之志也【公於四海覆載之度】不為世憂樂者小人之志也【私於一己形骸之見】太平之世事閒而民樂徧焉【君子所樂】使遽者揖讓百拜非禮也【窘急者無敬故不可以成禮】憂者歌鼓瑟非樂也【愁慼者不和故不可以為樂】禮者敬而已矣【揖讓百拜云乎】樂者和而已矣【歌鼔瑟云乎】匹夫匹婦處畎畆之中必禮樂存焉爾【敬和斯須不離】

To worry and rejoice on behalf of the world is the aspiration of a gentleman. [Public to all within the four seas, it is the measure that covers and bears.] Not to worry or rejoice on behalf of the world is the aspiration of a petty person. [Private to himself alone, it is the view of mere flesh and bones.] In a peaceful age, affairs are leisurely and the people are broadly at ease. [This is what the gentleman rejoices in.] To make a person in distress bow a hundred times in courtesy is not ritual. [A person in distress has no reverence, so cannot complete the ritual.] To make a person in grief play strings and drums is not music. [A person in sorrow has no harmony, so cannot make music.] Ritual is nothing but reverence. [How could it be only bowing a hundred times?] Music is nothing but harmony. [How could it be only playing strings and drums?] Even a common man and woman in the fields necessarily have ritual and music. [Reverence and harmony do not leave them for a moment.]

違上順道謂之忠臣【逆君從道所謂違而得道者】違道順上謂之防臣【逆道從君所謂順而失義者】忠所以為上也防所以自為也忠臣安於心防臣安於身故在上者必察乎違順【謂違上違道順上順道】審乎所為【謂為上自為】慎乎所安【謂安心安身】廣川王弗察故殺其臣【廣川惠王孫去初年十四五事師受易師數諫正去去益大逐之內史請以為掾師數令內史禁切王家去使奴殺師父子】楚恭王察之而遲故有遺言【成公十六年楚子救鄭不聴申叔之言及戰呂錡射恭王中目敗於鄢陵至襄公十三年楚子疾告大夫曰不穀不徳少主社稷生十年而防先君未及習師保之教訓而應受多福是以不徳而亡師於鄢以辱社稷為大夫憂其多矣若以大夫之靈獲保首領以歿於地唯是春秋窀穸之事所以從先君於禰廟者請為靈若厲大夫擇焉此所謂遺言也】齊宣王其察之矣故賞諫者【宣王喜文學逰説之士自如鄒衍淳于髠田駢接子慎到環淵之徒七十六人皆命曰列大夫為開第康莊之衢髙門大屋尊寵之不治而議論】或問人君人臣之戒曰莫匪戒也請問其要曰君戒專欲臣戒專利患之甚矣【缺五字】城重譯而獻珍非寶也腹心之人匍匐而獻善寶之至矣故明王慎內守除外冦而重內寶雲從於龍風從於虎【易曰云從龍風從虎正義曰龍吟則景雲出虎嘯則穀風生】鳳儀於韶【書曰簫韶九成鳳凰來儀】麟集於孔【哀公十四年春西狩獲麟說左氏者雲麟生於火而逰於土中央軒轅大角之獸春秋者禮也脩火徳以致其子故麟來而為孔子瑞也陳欽雲麟西方獸孔子立言西方故來劉向尹更始皆以為應孔子而至賈逵服防穎容等皆以為文成致麟而杜氏悉無所取】應也出於此應於彼善則祥祥則福否則則咎故君子應之【言善否感應各從其類】

To go against one's superior and follow the Way is called a loyal minister. [Opposing the ruler and following the Way is what is meant by "opposing yet gaining the Way."] To go against the Way and follow one's superior is called a (the base text has a rare character here, lost in transcription) minister. [Opposing the Way and following the ruler is what is meant by "following yet losing righteousness."] Loyalty is for the ruler, and (the base text has a rare character here, lost in transcription) is for oneself. A loyal minister is at peace in his heart, and a (rare character, lost in transcription) minister is at peace in his body. So those above must examine opposing and following [meaning opposing the ruler, opposing the Way, following the ruler, following the Way], inspect what they act for [meaning for the ruler, for oneself], and be careful where they find peace [meaning peace of heart, peace of body]. The King of Guangchuan did not examine, and so killed his minister. [Qu, a grandson of King Hui of Guangchuan, at first, at fourteen or fifteen, studied the Changes with a teacher, who several times admonished him. When Qu grew up he drove the teacher away, and the Interior Minister asked to employ the teacher as an aide, and the teacher several times had the Interior Minister restrain the royal house. Qu sent a servant to kill the teacher and his father.] King Gong of Chu examined but too late, and so left a final testament. [In the sixteenth year of Duke Cheng, the lord of Chu relieved Zheng without heeding Shen Shu's words, and when battle came Lü Qi shot King Gong in the eye and Chu was defeated at Yanling. In the thirteenth year of Duke Xiang the lord of Chu fell ill and told the grand masters: "I, the Not-Good, am without virtue; I took charge of the altars young, and at ten years old (the base text has a rare character here, lost in transcription) the former lord, and before I had learned the teachings of teacher and guardian I received many blessings, and so, being without virtue, I lost the army at Yanling, disgraced the altars, and became a worry to the grand masters; my faults are many. If by the grace of the grand masters I can keep my head and die on the ground, it is only a matter of the burial rites of spring and autumn, by which I am to follow the former lords to the ancestral temple; I ask that I be called Ling or Li, as the grand masters choose." This is what is meant by a final testament.] King Xuan of Qi was aware, and so rewarded those who remonstrated. [King Xuan loved scholars of literature and persuasion, such as Zou Yan, Chunyu Kun, Tian Pian, Jie Zi, Shen Dao, Huan Yuan and others, seventy-six in all, all named Grand Masters of the Roll, and for them he opened mansions on the thoroughfares, with high gates and great houses to honor and favor them, and they did not manage affairs but discussed them.] Someone asked about the warnings for rulers and ministers. The answer: There is nothing that is not a warning. Please tell me the essentials. The answer: The ruler should guard against indulging his desires, the minister against indulging in profit, for calamity would be too severe. [Five characters missing] Cities and moats offered after being translated through layer upon layer of interpreters are not treasure; a confidant who comes crawling to offer good is the utmost of treasure. So the clear-sighted king takes care to guard within, drive off outside invaders, and value the inner treasure. Clouds follow the dragon and wind follows the tiger [the Zhouyi says: "Clouds follow the dragon, wind follows the tiger." The commentary says: when the dragon sings, bright clouds appear; when the tiger roars, valley winds arise]; the phoenix came to dance at the Shao music [the Book of Documents says: "When the Xiao Shao was played nine times, the phoenix came to dance"]; the unicorn gathered for Confucius [in the spring of the fourteenth year of Duke Ai a unicorn was caught in a western hunt. Those who explain the Zuo Commentary say: the unicorn is born of fire and wanders on earth, and is the beast of the central Xuanyuan and the Great Horn. The Spring and Autumn is ritual, cultivating the virtue of fire to summon its offspring, so the unicorn came as a portent for Confucius. Chen Qin said: the unicorn is a beast of the west, and Confucius set up his words in the west, so it came. Liu Xiang and Yin Gengshi both held that it came in response to Confucius. Jia Kui, Fu (the base text has a rare character here, lost in transcription), and Ying Rong all held that the completion of the text brought the unicorn, but Du Yu took none of these]. Response, it comes from here and answers there. Good brings auspice, auspice brings blessing; otherwise disaster, and disaster brings fault. So the gentleman answers it. [This says that good and not good, response each follows its kind.]

君子食和羮以平其氣聴和聲以平其志納和言以平其政履和行以平其徳夫酸鹹甘苦不同嘉味以濟謂之和羮宮商角徴不同嘉音以章謂之和聲臧否損益不同中正以訓謂之和言趨舍動靜不同雅度以平謂之和行人之言曰唯其言而莫予違也則幾於喪國焉孔子曰君子和而不同【俱論語文】晏子亦云以水濟水誰能食之琴瑟一聲誰能聴之【晏子謂齊侯曰今據不然君所謂可據亦曰可君所謂否據亦曰否若以水濟水誰能食之若琴瑟之專壹誰能聴之同之不可也如是周太史伯告鄭桓公曰聲一無聴物一無文味一無果物一不講】詩云亦有和羮既戒且平奏假無言時靡有爭此之謂也【詩殷頌文亦晏子所引按後漢劉曼山著辨和同之論則當時在位之闇偽阿媚可知矣至獻帝時尤甚故悅以為言】

The gentleman eats harmonized soup to level his breath, listens to harmonized sound to level his will, accepts harmonized words to level his government, and practices harmonized conduct to level his virtue. Sour, salty, sweet and bitter differ, and fine flavor balances them, which is called harmonized soup; gong, shang, jue and zhi differ, and fine sound brings them out, which is called harmonized sound; good and bad, loss and gain differ, and the central and upright instruct them, which is called harmonized words; going and staying, moving and resting differ, and elegant measure balances them, which is called harmonized conduct. A saying of people goes: if there are only his words and no one opposes me, it is close to losing the state. Confucius said: the gentleman is harmonious but not the same. [All are words from the Analects.] Master Yan also said: if one gives water to water, who can eat it? If the zither and se had a single sound, who could listen? [Master Yan said to the Marquis of Qi: "Now Liangqiu Ju is not like this; if you say it is acceptable he too says it is acceptable, if you say no he too says no. If water is given to water, who can eat it; if the zither is only one tone, who can listen; sameness cannot be like this." The Grand Scribe Bo of Zhou told Duke Huan of Zheng: if sound is one, there is nothing to hear; if things are one, there is no pattern; if flavor is one, there is no result; if things are one, there is no care taken.] The Odes say: "There is also a harmonized soup, both seasoned and balanced. In presenting the offering without words, there is then no contention." This is what it says. [Words from the Odes of Shang, which Master Yan also quoted. Note: in the Later Han Liu Liang wrote an essay on distinguishing harmony from sameness, from which one can see how muddled, false and flattering those in office were at the time. By the time of Emperor Xian it was worse, so Xun Yue spoke these words.]

衣裳服者不昩於塵塗愛也【昩汚闇塗泥也衣裳者身之法象固不可不潔】衣裳愛焉而不愛其容止外矣【容止者人之符表尤不可不正】容止愛焉而不愛其言行末矣【言行者人之樞機尤不可不慎】言行愛焉而不愛其明淺矣【明者心之神哲尤不可不瑩】故君子本神為貴神和德平而道通是為保真人之所以立德者三一曰貞二曰達三曰志貞以為質【質實也主也】達以行之志以成之君子哉必不得已也守一於茲貞其主也人之所以立檢者四誠其心正其志實其事定其分心誠則神明應之況於萬民乎【誠格幽明】志正則天地順之況於萬民乎【正通上下】事實則功立【表裡相顧】分定則不淫【思不出位】曰才之實也行可為才不可也曰古之所以謂才也本今之所謂才也末也然則以行之貴也無失其才而才有失先民有言適楚而北轅者曰吾馬良用多御善此三者益侈其去楚亦逺矣【此喻為不善而有才者】遵路而騁應方而動【不至於適楚北轅】君子有行行必至矣【此喻為善而有才者】

Clothes are worn so that one is not soiled by dust and mud, because one loves them. [Mei means soiled and dark, tu means mud. Clothes are the pattern of the body, so naturally must be kept clean.] To love clothes but not love demeanor is to be superficial. [Demeanor is the sign of a person, and even more must be kept upright.] To love demeanor but not love words and conduct is to be at the tip. [Words and conduct are a person's pivot, and even more must be handled carefully.] To love words and conduct but not love clarity is to be shallow. [Clarity is the spirit and wisdom of the heart, and even more must be kept bright.] So the gentleman takes the spirit as the root, and that is what is valuable. When the spirit is harmonious, virtue level and the Way open, this is called keeping the true. The ways a person establishes virtue are three: first, constancy; second, penetration; third, will. Constancy serves as the substance [substance is the real, the master], penetration carries it out, and will accomplishes it; gentlemen! When it cannot be helped, hold to one of them, and constancy is the master. The ways a person establishes discipline are four: make the heart sincere, make the will upright, make the affairs real, and fix one's station. If the heart is sincere, the spirits respond; how much more the myriad people? [Sincerity can reach through the dark and the bright.] If the will is upright, heaven and earth comply; how much more the myriad people? [Uprightness can run through above and below.] If affairs are real, merit is established. [Inside and out look after each other.] If one's station is fixed, one does not overflow. [Thoughts do not go beyond one's place.] Question: What of the substance of talent? Conduct can be right yet talent not? The answer: What the ancients called talent was the root, and what is now called talent is the tip. So to value conduct does not lose talent, but talent has losses. The people of old had a saying: a man heading to Chu with his shafts turned north said, "My horse is good, my expenses ample, my driver skilled"; the more of these three he has, the farther he gets from Chu. [This is a metaphor for those who are not good yet have talent.] Gallop along the road and move according to the direction. [So as not to head north when going to Chu.] What the gentleman does, he surely arrives. [This is a metaphor for those who are good and have talent.]

或問聖人所以為貴者才乎曰合而用之以才為貴【如元愷之類才配乎徳體用兼全故聖人貴才】分而行之以行為貴【若徒有智能技藝而不本於徳末之尚矣】舜禹之才而不為邪甚於【缺一字】矣【此所謂合而用之以才為貴也】舜禹之仁雖亡其才不失為良人哉【此所謂分而行之以行為貴也】或問進諌受諌孰難曰後之進諌難也以受之難故也【後謂後世言臣畏犯顔由君拒諫而然】若受諌不難則進諌斯易矣【主明臣直】或問知人自知孰難曰自知者求諸內而近者也【反觀內省神明莫遁自知易也】知人者求諸外而逺者也知人難哉【密意深心矯言飾行知人難也】若極其數也明有內以識有外以暗【明於自知昩於知人】全有內以隱有外以顯【昩於自知明於知人】然則知人自知人則可以自知未可以知人也急哉【二者較之知人固難而自知為急也】用已者不為異則異矣君子所惡乎異者三好生事也好生竒也好變常也好生事則多端而動眾好生竒則離道而惑俗好變常則輕法而亂度故名不貴苟傳行不貴苟難【言生事生竒變常三者其名苟傳之名其行苟難之行何貴之有】權為茂矣其幾不若經【權不如經】辯為美矣其理不若絀【辯不如絀老子曰大辯若訥】文為顯矣其中不若樸【文不如樸】博為盛矣其正不若約【博不如約】莫不為道【道當作大】知道之體大之至也莫不為妙知神之幾妙之至也莫不為正知【缺一字】之【缺一字】正之至也故君子必存乎三至弗至斯有守無誖焉

Someone asked: Is it talent that makes the sage valuable? The answer: Used together, talent is valued. [As with the Eight Harmonizers and Eight Good Ones, talent matched with virtue, substance and function both complete, so the sage values talent.] Practiced separately, conduct is valued. [If one has only intelligence and skill and does not root them in virtue, the lesser current is not worth honoring.] Shun and Yu's talent did not serve evil, and surpassed even [one character missing]. [This is what is meant by "used together, talent is valued."] Even if Shun's and Yu's benevolence had been without talent, they would still have been good men. [This is what is meant by "practiced separately, conduct is valued."] Someone asked: Which is harder, offering remonstrance or receiving remonstrance? The answer: In later ages, offering remonstrance is hard, because receiving remonstrance is hard. ["Later" means later ages; it says that ministers fear offending the ruler's face because the ruler rejects remonstrance.] If receiving remonstrance were not hard, offering it would be easy. [When the ruler is clear-sighted, ministers are upright.] Someone asked: Which is harder, knowing others or knowing oneself? The answer: Knowing oneself is seeking within and is near. [Looking back and examining inwardly, the spirit has nowhere to hide, so knowing oneself is easy.] Knowing others is seeking outside and is far, so knowing others is hard. [With hidden intentions and deep minds, twisted words and adorned conduct, knowing others is hard.] If pushed to the extreme, some are bright within and dim outside [clear about knowing themselves, dull at knowing others], and some are hidden within and apparent outside [dull at knowing themselves, clear at knowing others]. So knowing others and knowing oneself: a person can know himself, but cannot yet know others. The urgent matter is this. [Comparing the two, knowing others is indeed hard, but knowing oneself is more urgent.] One who uses himself and does not make himself different has made himself different. There are three kinds of difference the gentleman dislikes: fondness for making trouble, fondness for making oddities, and fondness for changing the constant. Fondness for making trouble multiplies the threads and alarms the people; fondness for making oddities leaves the Way and confuses customs; fondness for changing the constant lightly regards the law and disturbs its rules. So a name is not valued for being carelessly passed on, nor conduct for being carelessly hard. [This says that the names of the three, making trouble, making oddities and changing the constant, are carelessly passed-on names and their conduct is carelessly hard conduct; what is valuable in them?] When expedients flourish, their subtlety is not as good as the constant. [Expedience is not as good as the constant.] When argument is fine, its principle is not as good as plainness. [Argument is not as good as plainness. The Laozi says: "Great eloquence seems halting."] When ornament is conspicuous, its center is not as good as simplicity. [Ornament is not as good as simplicity.] When breadth is great, its rightness is not as good as brevity. [Breadth is not as good as brevity.] There is nothing that is not the Way ("Way" should be "great"): to know its substance is the utmost of greatness; there is nothing that is not wonderful: to know the subtlety of the spirit is the utmost of wonder; there is nothing that is not right: to know [one character missing] of [one character missing] is the utmost of rightness. So the gentleman must abide in the three utmosts. Before reaching the three utmosts, he has something to hold and does not go astray.

或問守曰聖典而已矣【聖典謂六經】若夫百家者是謂無守莫不為言要其至矣莫不為徳其奧矣莫不為道聖人其矣【言聖典百家皆言皆徳皆道而唯聖典為至為奧為也】聖人之道其中道乎是為九達【爾雅曰九達之謂逵謂四道交出復有旁通也言聖道無所不達百家則私蹊曲徑而已】

Someone asked about holding fast. The answer: Only the sacred canon, nothing else. [The sacred canon means the Six Classics.] As for the hundred schools, that is having nothing to hold. There is nothing that is not words, the point lies in their utmost; there is nothing that is not virtue, the dark lies in its depth; there is nothing that is not the Way, the sages are the most expansive. [This says that the sacred canon and the hundred schools are all words, all virtue, all the Way, but only the sacred canon is the utmost, the profound and the expansive.] The Way of the sages is the middle way, perhaps; this is called the nine thoroughfares. [The Erya says that the nine thoroughfares are called kui, meaning four roads crossing with side roads. This says that the sage's Way reaches everywhere, while the hundred schools are only private paths and crooked lanes.]

或曰辭達而已矣聖人以文其隩也有五曰曰妙曰包曰要曰文幽深謂之【渾渾若川不可窮測】理微謂之妙【奧發天地幾宣神】數博謂之包【辭兼費隱義徹上下】辭約謂之要【簡而不繁要而不縟】章成謂之文【炳若丹青光如日月】聖人之文成此五者故曰不得已君子樂天知命故不憂【易繫辭文仁故不憂】審物明辨故不惑【知故不惑】定心致公故不懼【勇故不懼】若乃所憂懼則有之憂已不能成天性也懼已惑之憂不能免天命無惑焉

Someone said: Words need only get the meaning across. The sages' use of writing has five depths: it is called dark, wonderful, inclusive, essential, and patterned. Depth is called dark. [Thick and broad like a river, it cannot be fathomed.] Subtle principle is called wonderful. [Its depth can open heaven and earth, its subtlety can proclaim the spirits.] Broad number is called inclusive. [Its words embrace the manifest and the hidden, and its meaning runs through above and below.] Brief diction is called essential. [Concise and not wordy, essential and not ornate.] A completed passage is called patterned. [Bright like cinnabar and azure, shining like the sun and moon.] The sages' writing accomplishes these five, and so they say there was no help for it. The gentleman delights in heaven and knows fate and so does not worry. [Words of the Zhouyi Appendix. Benevolence is why he does not worry.] He examines things and discerns clearly and so is not confused. [Knowledge is why he is not confused.] He steadies his heart and brings about impartiality and so is not afraid. [Courage is why he is not afraid.] As for what he does worry and fear: he worries that he cannot fulfill his nature, and fears being confused. If he worries that he cannot escape fate, then there is no confusion.

或問性命曰生之謂性也形神是也【此本告子之説以氣言性莊子曰性者生之質也】所以立生終生者之謂命也吉凶是也【吉凶貧富貴賤壽夭禍福之類此亦以氣言命】夫生我之制性命存焉爾君子循其性以輔其命休斯承否斯守【休吉否兇】無務焉無怨焉【富貴無務貧賤無怨】好寵者乘天命以驕【好寵者為勢位所溺故乘富貴之命而驕則逾節陵分之事興矣】好惡者違天命以濫【好惡者為飢寒所逼故違貧賤之命而濫則苟且邪僻之行作矣】故驕則奉【奉當作承】之不成【不成承休】濫則守之不終【不終守否】好以取怠惡以取甚務以取福惡【惡當作怨】以成禍【怨則不守不守則濫故曰成禍】斯惑矣

Someone asked about nature and fate. The answer: What is born is called nature, and form and spirit are it. [This is based on Gaozi's view, speaking of nature in terms of qi. The Zhuangzi says: "Nature is the substance of life."] What establishes life and ends life is called fate, and good and ill fortune are it. [Good and ill fortune, poverty and wealth, high and low rank, long and short life, calamity and blessing and the like. This too speaks of fate in terms of qi.] The measure that gave me birth is where nature and fate dwell. The gentleman follows nature to assist fate: if it is good he accepts it, if it is ill he keeps to it. [Xiu is good fortune, pi is ill fortune.] He does not strive for it and does not resent it. [He does not strive after wealth and rank and does not resent poverty and low position.] One who is fond of favor rides on fate and becomes arrogant. [One fond of favor is drowned in power and position, so rides on the fate of wealth and rank and becomes arrogant, and then acts that overstep limits and trample on rank arise.] One who loves and hates goes against fate and becomes dissolute. [One who loves and hates is pressed by hunger and cold, so goes against the fate of poverty and low position and becomes dissolute, and then careless and crooked conduct arises.] So arrogance receives ("receive" should be "accept") and cannot accomplish. [Cannot accept good fortune.] Dissoluteness holds and cannot finish. [Cannot hold to ill fortune.] Fondness is used to gain laziness, hatred is used to gain excess, striving is used to gain blessing, and resentment ("hatred" should be "resentment") is used to bring about calamity. [Resentment does not hold, not holding becomes dissolute, so it is said to bring about calamity.] This is confusion.

或問天命人事曰有三品焉上下不移其中則人事存焉爾命相近也事相逺也則吉凶殊矣【孔子曰性相近也今既曰命命無不善不當雲相近矣】故曰窮理盡性以至於命【易繫辭文】孟子稱性善荀卿稱性惡【荀子有性惡篇大抵言人之性本惡其善者偽也】公孫子曰性無善惡揚雄曰人之性善惡渾【揚子修身篇曰人之性也善惡混修其善則為善人修其惡則為惡人氣也者所適善惡之焉與】劉向曰性情相應性不獨善情不獨惡【向之意以性善者情亦善情惡者性必惡故曰相應】曰問其理曰性善則無四凶【四凶共工驩兠三苗鯀也】性惡則無三仁【孔子曰殷有三仁焉謂微子箕子比干也】人無善惡文王之教一也則無周公管蔡【周公旦管叔鮮蔡叔度皆武王同母兄弟】性善情惡是桀紂無性而堯舜無情也性善惡皆渾是上智懷惠【惠當作惡】而下愚挾善也理也未究矣惟向言為然【韓子三品之説有類於此】

Someone asked about Heaven's decree and human affairs. The answer: there are three grades. The highest wisdom and the lowest folly do not change; it is only in the middle grade that human affairs come into play. Fate is close from one person to the next, but affairs differ greatly, and so fortune and misfortune differ. (Confucius said that natures are close. Since the topic here is fate, and fate is never not good, one should not say "close.") Hence it is said: exhaust principle and fulfill nature, so as to reach fate. (A saying from the Appended Phrases of the Book of Changes.) Mencius held that human nature is good, and Xunzi held that it is bad. (The Xunzi has a chapter "Human Nature Is Bad," which broadly says that human nature is originally bad and that goodness is a product of human effort.) Gongsun Zi held that nature is neither good nor bad, and Yang Xiong held that human nature is a mixture of good and bad. (The chapter "Cultivating the Self" in Master Yang's book says: human nature is a mixture of good and bad; cultivate the good and one becomes a good person, cultivate the bad and one becomes a bad person; qi is the vehicle by which one is drawn toward good or bad.) Liu Xiang held that nature and feelings correspond, that nature is not good alone and feelings are not bad alone. (Liu Xiang's meaning is that when the nature is good the feelings are good, and when the feelings are bad the nature must be bad, hence "correspond.") Asked about the principle in this: if nature were good there would not be the Four Villains (the Four Villains are Gong Gong, Huan Dou, the San Miao and Gun); if nature were bad there would not be the Three Humane Men (Confucius said that Yin had three humane men, meaning the Viscount of Wei, the Viscount of Ji and Bi Gan). If people were neither good nor bad, then under the same teaching of King Wen there would not be the Duke of Zhou on one side and Guan and Cai on the other (Dan the Duke of Zhou, Xian of Guan and Du of Cai were all full brothers of King Wu). If one says nature is good and feelings are bad, then Jie and Zhou had no nature and Yao and Shun had no feelings; if one says nature is a mixture of good and bad, then the highest wisdom hides badness in its bosom (the source text has a wrong character here that should read "badness") and the lowest folly carries goodness within. The principle has not been exhausted; only Liu Xiang's words are right. (Han Yu's doctrine of three grades is of the same kind.)