Chapter 32: Yao's Questions

堯問於舜曰："我欲致天下，為之奈何？"對曰："執一無失，行微無怠，忠信無倦，而天下自來。執一如天地，行微如日月，忠誠盛於內，賁於外，形於四海，天下其在一隅邪！夫有何足致也！"

Yao asked Shun: "I wish to bring all under Heaven to me — how should I do it?" Shun replied: "Hold fast to singleness of purpose without fault; carry it out even in the subtle and hidden without slackening; be loyal and true without ever wearying — and all under Heaven will come of itself. Hold fast to singleness like Heaven and Earth; practice in the subtle like the sun and moon; with loyalty brimming within and refinement showing without, manifest throughout the four seas — will not all under Heaven already be gathered as within a single corner? Why would it need to be fetched?"

魏武侯謀事而當，群臣莫能逮，退朝而有喜色。吳起進曰："亦嘗有以楚莊王之語，聞於左右者乎？"武侯曰："楚莊王之語何如？"吳起對曰："楚莊王謀事而當，群臣莫能逮，退朝有憂色。申公巫臣進問曰：'王朝而有憂色，何也？'莊王曰：'不穀謀事而當，群臣莫能逮，是以憂也。其在中蘬之言也，曰："諸侯自為得師者王，得友者霸，得疑者存，自為謀而莫己若者亡。"今以不穀之不肖，而群臣莫能逮，吾國幾於亡乎！是以憂也。'楚莊王以憂，而君以喜。"武侯逡巡再拜曰："天使夫子振寡人之過也。"

Whenever Marquis Wu of Wei had laid his plans well and none of his ministers could match him, he would withdraw from court with a look of delight. Wu Qi stepped forward and said: "Has anyone ever told you the words of King Zhuang of Chu?" Marquis Wu said: "What were King Zhuang's words?" Wu Qi replied: "When King Zhuang of Chu had laid his plans well and none of his ministers could match him, he withdrew from court with a look of care. Wuchen, the Duke of Shen, came forward and asked: 'Your Majesty has a look of care at court — why?' King Zhuang said: 'I, unworthy as I am, laid my plans well and none of my ministers could match me — that is why I am grieved. In the words of Zhonghui it is said: "A lord who obtains teachers for himself becomes king; one who obtains friends becomes hegemon; one who obtains men who question him survives; one who plans everything himself with none as good as he — perishes." Now, with my own unworthiness, if none of the ministers can match me, my state must be near ruin — that is why I am grieved.' What grieved King Zhuang of Chu, you take delight in." Marquis Wu hesitated, bowed twice, and said: "Heaven has sent you, Master, to rescue me from my error."

伯禽將歸於魯，周公謂伯禽之傅曰："汝將行，盍志而子美德乎？"對曰："其為人寬，好自用以慎。此三者，其美德也。"周公曰："嗚呼！以人惡為美德乎？君子好以道德，故其民歸道。彼其寬也，出無辨矣，女又美之！彼其好自用也，是所以窶小也。君子力如牛，不與牛爭力；走如馬，不與馬爭走；知如士，不與士爭知。彼爭者均者之氣也，女又美之！彼其慎也，是其所以淺也。聞之曰：'無越踰不見士。'見士問曰：'無乃不察乎？'不聞即物少至，少至則淺。彼淺者，賤人之道也，女又美之！吾語女：我、文王之為子，武王之為弟，成王之為叔父，吾於天下不賤矣；然而吾所執贄而見者十人，還贄而相見者三十人，貌執之士者百有餘人，欲言而請畢事者千有餘人，於是吾僅得三士焉，以正吾身，以定天下。吾所以得三士者，亡於十人與三十人中，乃在百人與千人之中。故上士吾薄為之貌，下士吾厚為之貌，人人皆以我為越踰好士，然故士至；士至而後見物，見物然後知其是非之所在。戒之哉！女以魯國驕人，幾矣！夫仰祿之士猶可驕也，正身之士不可驕也。彼正身之士，舍貴而為賤，舍富而為貧，舍佚而為勞，顏色黎黑而不失其所，是以天下之紀不息，文章不廢也。"

When Boqin was about to return to Lu, the Duke of Zhou said to Boqin's tutor: "You are about to leave; why not give me an account of your pupil's good qualities?" The tutor replied: "In his person he is broad-minded, likes to rely on his own judgment, and is prudent. These three are his good qualities." The Duke of Zhou said: "Ah! Do you call men's faults good qualities? The gentleman delights in employing the Way and virtue, and so his people turn toward the Way. As for his breadth — once it is let out it has no boundaries, and you praise it! As for his liking to rely on his own judgment — that is what makes him cramped and narrow. The gentleman has the strength of an ox yet does not vie in strength with an ox; he runs like a horse yet does not vie in running with a horse; he is wise as an officer yet does not vie in wisdom with officers. Such vying is the temper of equals — and you praise it! As for his prudence — that is what makes him shallow. I have heard: 'Do not, on account of rank, fail to see the officers.' When you see an officer, ask: 'Am I perhaps failing to examine something?' If one does not inquire broadly, few things will come to one, and when few things come, one is shallow. Shallowness is the way of base men — and you praise it! Let me tell you: I am the son of King Wen, the younger brother of King Wu, and the uncle of King Cheng — my place under Heaven is not low; yet of those to whom I have given audience gifts there are ten, of those I have repaid with gifts and met there are thirty, of the officers I have received with full ritual there are over a hundred, and of those who wished to speak and whom I asked to finish their business there are over a thousand — and in this way I obtained only three officers, to correct my person and to settle all under Heaven. The three officers I obtained were not among the ten or the thirty, but among the hundred and the thousand. Thus to the higher officers I give scant ceremony, and to the lower officers I give generous ceremony; everyone thinks me too eager in my love of officers, and so the officers come; the officers come and then I see things; I see things and then I know where right and wrong lie. Be on your guard! If, on the strength of the state of Lu, you are arrogant toward men, that is dangerous! Officers who look to emolument may still be treated with arrogance, but officers who rectify themselves must not be treated with arrogance. Those officers who rectify themselves abandon rank to take up low estate, abandon wealth to take up poverty, abandon ease to take up toil, their faces dark and weathered yet never losing what they hold to — and thus the guiding threads of the world do not cease, and the patterns of culture are not cast aside."

語曰：繒丘之封人，見楚相孫叔敖曰："吾聞之也：處官久者士妒之，祿厚者民怨之，位尊者君恨之。為相國有此三者，而不得罪於楚之士民何也？"孫叔敖曰："吾三相楚而心愈卑，每益祿而施愈博，位滋尊而禮愈恭，是以不得罪於楚之士民也。"

The proverb says: the border warden of Zengqiu, meeting Sunshu Ao, the chancellor of Chu, said to him: "I have heard that the officers envy one who has held office long, the people resent one whose emolument is great, and the lord is jealous of one whose place is honored. As chancellor you have all three of these, yet you have not offended the officers and people of Chu — why?" Sunshu Ao said: "Three times I have been chancellor of Chu, and each time my heart grew humbler; each increase of emolument made my giving broader; each rise in rank made my courtesy more reverent — that is why I have not offended the officers and people of Chu."

子貢問於孔子曰："賜為人下而未知也。"孔子曰："為人下者乎？其猶土也。深抇之而得甘泉焉，樹之而五穀蕃焉，草木殖焉，禽獸育焉；生則立焉，死則入焉；多其功，而不"息"德。為人下者其猶土也。"

Zigong asked Confucius: "I wish to be a subordinate of men, but I do not know how." Confucius said: "To be a subordinate of men? Then be like the earth. Dig it deeply and you come to sweet springs; plant it and the five grains flourish; grasses and trees multiply on it and birds and beasts breed on it; in life men stand upon it, in death they enter into it; its merits are many, yet it never claims the virtue as its own. (In the base text the character xi 息 is suspected to be an interpolation.) To be a subordinate of men is to be like the earth."

昔虞不用宮之奇而晉幷之，萊不用子馬而齊幷之，紂刳王子比干而武王得之。不親賢用知，故身死國亡也。

In ancient times Yu did not employ Gong Zhiqi and Jin annexed it; Lai did not employ Zima and Qi annexed it; Zhou cut open Prince Bigan and King Wu gained all under Heaven. They did not cherish the worthy and employ the wise — that is why they themselves died and their states perished.

為說者曰："孫卿不及孔子。"是不然。孫卿迫於亂世，遒於嚴刑，上無賢主，下遇暴秦，禮義不行，教化不成，仁者絀約，天下冥冥，行全刺之，諸侯大傾。當是時也，知者不得慮，能者不得治，賢者不得使。故君上蔽而無睹，賢人距而不受。然則孫卿懷將聖之心，蒙佯狂之色，視天下以愚。詩曰："既明且哲，以保其身。"此之謂也。是其所以名聲不白，徒與不眾，光輝不博也。今之學者，得孫卿之遺言餘教，足以為天下法式表儀。所存者神，所過者化，觀其善行，孔子弗過。世不詳察，雲非聖人，奈何！天下不治，孫卿不遇時也。德若堯禹，世少知之；方術不用，為人所疑；其知至明，循道正行，足以為紀綱。嗚呼！賢哉！宜為帝王。天地不知，善桀紂，殺賢良，比干剖心，孔子拘匡，接輿避世，箕子佯狂，田常為亂，闔閭擅強。為惡得福，善者有殃。今為說者，又不察其實，乃信其名。時世不同，譽何由生？不得為政，功安能成？志修德厚，孰謂不賢乎！

The critics say: "Sun Qing does not equal Confucius." This is not so. Sun Qing was pressed by a disordered age, hemmed in by cruel punishments, with no worthy lord above and the violent Qin confronting him below; ritual and righteousness were not practiced, teaching and transformation were not accomplished, the humane were dismissed and straitened, the whole world was in darkness, those complete in virtue were mocked, and the feudal lords overthrew one another in great peril. At such a time the wise could not plan, the able could not govern, and the worthy could not be employed. Thus rulers were hoodwinked and could not see, and worthies were rejected and not received. So Sun Qing, with a heart near to sagehood, put on the manner of feigned madness and showed folly to the world. The "Zhengmin" ode of the Greater Odes in the Book of Songs says: "At once enlightened and wise, thereby he preserved his person." This is what it means. This is why his name was not illustrious, his disciples not numerous, and his brilliance not widespread. Yet scholars today who obtain the words Sun Qing left behind and the remainder of his teaching have enough to make them models and standards for the world. Where he stayed there were spiritual effects; where he passed, men were transformed. Observe his good conduct — even Confucius could not surpass it. The world does not examine this, and proclaims him not a sage — what is to be done! That the world is not well ordered is Sun Qing's failure to meet the right time. With virtue like that of Yao and Yu, few in the world recognize him; his methods were not used and men doubted him; yet his wisdom was supremely bright, he followed the Way and rectified his conduct, fit to be the guiding thread. Alas! Worthy indeed! He deserved to be an emperor. Heaven and Earth were not wise: they treated Jie and Zhou well and slaughtered the worthy and the good; Bigan was cut open to the heart, Confucius was imprisoned in Kuang, Jieyu fled the world, Jizi feigned madness, Tian Chang made rebellion, and Helü wielded arrogant power. The evil obtained fortune and the good found calamity. Now the critics again do not examine the substance but believe the name. The times were not alike — from where should his fame have arisen? Unable to hold power, how could his achievement have been accomplished? His resolve was cultivated and his virtue profound — who shall say he was not worthy!