Zhong Shuo (中說) · Volume 4

劉炫問易子曰聖人於易沒身而已況吾儕乎【聖人終身立易中劉但熟易之文而不知易在身也】炫曰吾談之於朝無我敵者【但談易文自謂無敵】子不答退謂門人曰黙而成之不言而信存乎徳行【此所謂易在身】魏徵曰聖人有憂乎子曰天下皆憂吾獨得不憂乎問疑子曰天下皆疑吾獨得不疑乎徵退子謂董常曰樂天知命吾何憂窮理盡性吾何疑【憂疑出乎情爾情者性之慾也聖人性不憂而人以為憂者以天下之情為憂也聖人性無疑而人以為疑者以天下之情為疑也故聖人應物以跡復性以心義終下文】常曰非告徵也子亦二言乎【前雲有憂疑後雲無憂疑是二言】子曰徵所問者跡也【舉天下物情之動而聖人應之曰跡】吾告汝者心也【以一性之本合乎天命曰心】心跡之判久矣【判分也自周公已來心跡分故曰久矣夫堯禪舜舜禪禹以心言之則一也其所以禪之者跡也湯伐桀武王伐紂以堯舜之心言之亦一也其所以伐之者跡也周公仲尼之心與堯舜湯武同也而跡不應乎天下蓋時異耳使周孔居禪之時則舜禹也居伐之時則湯武也文中子不得其時兩存心跡聖矣哉】吾獨得不二言乎【言周公仲尼於易已二言矣】常曰心跡固殊乎【疑二言為二道】子曰自汝觀之則殊也【自爾猶言自彼也以彼觀我則心跡固殊】而適造者不知其殊也【適造謂我適至於道乗時而用則安知心與跡果殊哉】各雲當而已矣【當謂惟義所在不必執乎心執乎跡時行則行時止則止各當而已】則夫二未違一也【言則二道則一也若先天而天弗違後天而奉天時先後則二而其不違時一也】李播聞而嘆曰大哉乎一也【李播亦門人未見傳】天下皆歸焉而不覺也【聖人之道常存於天下然文中子出非其時故天下生民不覺也孟子稱伊尹曰天之生民使先知覺後知使先覺覺後覺】程元問叔恬曰續書之有志有詔何謂也叔恬以告文中子子曰志以成道言以宣志【道出乎志也雖未詔天下而其言已宣故曰志】詔其見王者之志乎【詔行天下則志可見矣】其恤人也周其致用也悉一言而天下應一令而不可易【恤人故皆應悉用故不改】非仁智博達則天明命其孰能詔天下乎【言詔如是之大】叔恬曰敢問防何謂也【續書有防】子曰其言也典其致也博憫而不私【憫世病不私諱過】勞而不倦【勞心問賢不倦聴】其惟策乎【若漢武帝策董仲舒】子曰續書之有命邃矣【天爵人爵皆為命也邃者言非止君命抑亦天命之耳】其有君臣經略當其地乎【命其地必有經畧】其有成敗於其間天下懸之不得已而臨之乎【言命之所歸不得已而當之】進退消息不失其幾乎【經略如此】道甚大物不廢髙逝獨往中權契化自作天命乎【天下懸於已故曰自作天命】文中子曰事者【續書有事】其取諸仁義而有謀乎雖天子必有師【事由師謀而成】然亦何常師之有唯道所存以天下之身受天下之訓【言不惟師也天下之人有善皆可從】得天下之道成天下之務民不知其由也其惟明主乎【民間之事君皆行焉民亦不知其君得善之由】文中子曰廣仁益智莫善於問【續書有問】乗事演道莫善於對【續書有對】非明君孰能廣問非達臣孰能専對乎其因宜取類無不經乎【經營】洋洋乎晁董公孫之對【晁厝對策雲三王臣主俱賢合謀相輔莫不本於人情也董仲舒對策曰春秋王道之端傳之於正正次王王次春春者天之所為也正者王之所為也公孫對策雲致利除害兼愛無私謂之仁明是非立可否謂之義治之大用也此三對皆洋洋然得王道大綱】文中子曰有美不揚天下何觀君子之於君贊其美而匡其失也【續書有賛】所以進善不暇天下有不安哉【言無不安】文中子曰議其盡天下之心乎【續書有議】昔黃帝有合宮之聴堯有衢室之問舜有總章之訪皆議之謂也【合宮總章皆明堂異名也衢室當衢為室以採民言也管子曰堯問衢室聴於民也】大哉乎並天下之謀兼天下之智而理得矣我何為哉恭已南面而已【言黃帝堯舜得天下謀議為理】子曰人心惟危道心惟微言道之難進也故君子思過而預防之所以有誡也【續書有誡】切而不指【切至指訐】勤而不怨曲而不諂直而有禮其惟誡乎【勤拳委曲以禮誡之】子曰改過不恡無咎者善補過也古之明王詎能無過從諫而已矣【續書有諫】故忠臣之事君也盡忠補過君失於上則臣補於下臣諫於下則君從於上此王道所以不跌也【不差跌】取泰於否易昏以明非諫孰能臻乎【言遂事亦可諫】文中子曰晉而下何其紛紛多主也【紛不一姓】吾視惠懐傷之【惠帝政由賈后為趙王倫所篡懐帝防塵於平陽為劉聰所害】舍三國將安取志乎【三國各有平天下之志此又明續書有志】三國何其孜孜多虞乎【雖有志而無制】吾視桓靈傷之【漢桓帝諱志梁冀執政權傾天下靈帝諱宏黃巾賊起董卓作亂】舍兩漢將安取制乎【七制之主可以垂法此又明續書有制也】子謂太和之政近雅矣【太和後魏孝文帝年號也都洛陽文物始備故曰近雅】一明中國之有法【中國久無定主孝文立二十餘年造明堂祀圓丘置職制定律令舉兵百萬伐江南其後宣武孝明皆能修太和之政是中國之法也】惜也不得行穆公之道【穆公虯子之祖自江南來奔太和八年始仕焉虯薦王肅及□朗未幾孝文崩虯亦卒惜其道未及行也】程元曰三教何如【儒老釋】子曰政惡多門久矣【教不一則政多門】曰廢之何如子曰非爾所及也【聖賢出則異端自去非遽能廢也】真君建徳之事適足推波助瀾縱風止燎爾【真君後魏太武年號也時崇道教毀佛法建徳後周武帝年號也毀釋老二教隋公輔政時更興之是暫廢而愈盛若波瀾風燎爾】子讀洪範讜議【安康獻公撰皇極讜議】曰三教於是乎可一矣【洪範五皇極者義貴中道爾致中和天地位焉萬物育焉人者天地萬物中和之物也教雖三而人則一矣】程元魏徵進曰何謂也子曰使民不倦【易曰通其變使民不倦】賈瓊習書至郅惲之事問於子曰敢問事命志制之別【郅惲王莽時上書曰漢祚久長神器有命不可虛受上天垂戒欲悟陛下宜即臣位莽怒脅惲令稱病惲罵曰所言皆天命也非狂人造焉莽終不敢害事者謂行事之跡也命者謂事應天命者也志者謂志蘊於心也制者謂志行於禮義者也】子曰制命吾著其道焉志事吾著其節焉【道兼天下節守一身】賈瓊以告叔恬叔恬曰書其無遺乎書曰惟精惟一允執厥中其道之謂乎詩曰採葑採菲無以下體其節之謂乎子聞之曰凝其知書矣子曰事之於命也猶志之有制乎非仁義發中不能濟也【事與志發乎中命與制形於外】子曰達制命之道其知王公之所為乎其得變化之心乎【已形於外則心可知矣】達志事之道其知君臣之所難乎其得仁義之幾乎【發於中則幾可得矣】子曰處貧賤而不懾可以富貴矣【無隕穫必不驕矜】僮僕稱其恩可以從政矣【恩及賤況良民乎】交遊稱其信可以立功矣【推而廣於天下】子曰愛名尚利小人哉未見仁者而好名利者也【譏時】賈瓊問君子之道子曰反是不思亦已焉哉【詩氓篇卒章也言必反覆思其所行之道苟不思則已矣】子見縗絰而哭不輟者遂吊之問喪期曰五載矣子然曰先王之制不可越也【喪不可過必俯而就之縗七回反絰徒結反】楚公問用師之道子曰行之以仁義【必也至仁伐不仁大義誅不義】曰若之何決勝【言仁義何能勝兵】子曰莫如仁義過此敗之招也【責其知勝人以力不知勝人以道】子見耕者必勞之【慰勞】見王人必俛之【俛俯僂避之】鄉里不騎【不騎馬】雞初鳴則盥嗽具服【內則事父母禮盥古緩及】銅川夫人有病子不交睫者三月人問者送迎之必泣以拜【喜懼並】子曰史傳興而經道廢矣【若史記先黃老後六經是廢也】記注興而史道誣矣【若裴松之注三國志反毀陳夀是誣也】是故惡夫異端者【述之而反異之】薛收曰何為命也子曰稽之於天合之於人謂其有定於此而應於彼【天時人事稽合曰命此人事也彼天時也知人而不知天與知天而不知人皆非知命也故君子修性以合天理所以定命矣易雲窮理盡性以至於命】吉凶曲折無所逃乎【事有不虞之舉是時與之吉也事有求全之毀是時與之兇也蓋事與時並非人力獨能致之故委曲折旋無以逃其吉凶矣】非君子孰能知而畏之乎【知天命畏天命惟君子】非聖人孰能至之哉【儘性以至命惟聖人】薛收曰古人作元命其能至乎【元命苞易書也】子曰至矣【易者性命之書也知易則至命】賈瓊曰書無制而有命何也【魏而下續書無制而有命】子曰天下其無主而有臣乎【漢制以亡獨臣尚能稟命爾】曰兩漢有制志何也子曰制其盡美於防人乎【漢七主本以憂民而作制】志其慙徳於備物乎【漢末徳不備尚有志而已】薛收曰帝制其出王道乎【問漢製出三王之道否乎】子曰不能出也後之帝者非昔之帝也【昔之帝者以道若三王是也後之帝者以名若秦始兼帝而稱是也】其雜百王之道而取帝名乎其心正其跡譎【防人之心則正雜霸之跡則譎】其乗秦之不得已而稱之乎【天下已熟秦稱皇帝之名故漢因之不得已而亦稱帝也】政則苟簡【董仲舒曰秦為苟簡之文】豈若唐虞三代之純懿乎【二帝三王名實稱】是以富人則可典禮則未【漢富民之術可稱長世之禮未備】薛收曰純懿遂亡乎【疑二帝三王之道不可復】子曰人能道焉知來者之不如昔也【後來聖人生則道矣安知其無純懿之時耶】子謂李靖智勝仁程元仁勝智【五行之秀有偏故五常之性有勝若木性多水性少則仁勝智推此為然】子謂董常幾於道可使變理【五常具則庶幾乎聖道通變之謂道故曰變理】賈瓊問何以息謗子曰無辯【勿與小人辯明】曰何以止怨曰無爭【勿與小人爭理】子謂諸葛王猛功近而徳逺矣【一時霸其國為功雖近然謀及身後為徳蓋逺】子在蒲【蒲古中都之地隋為河中郡】聞遼東之敗【大業八年九軍並陷】謂薛收曰城復於隍矣【易泰卦上六城復於隍勿用師其命亂也】賦兎爰之卒章【王國詩也桓王失信諸侯背叛卒章雲我生之後逢此百兇】歸而善六經之本曰以俟能者【俟百姓與能者行之】子曰好動者多難【煬帝如此】小不忍致大災【隋文如此】子曰易聖人之動也於是乎用以乗時矣【易變易也功業見乎變吉凶生乎動變動者聖人適時之用也無變則功不可大故因二以濟無動則吉不先見故惟幾成務存時効動易可知焉】故夫卦者智之鄉也動之序也【爻在卦如人居鄉逐位而動是其次序】薛生曰智可獨行乎【言卦為智郷則謂智可獨行】子曰仁以守之【智不以仁則易失之賊】不能仁則智息矣安所行乎哉【不能仁雖智無用】子曰元亨利貞運行不匱者智之功也【元仁也亨禮也利義也貞信也運之以智五常成功】子曰佞以承上殘以御下誘之以義不動也【凡佞人殘人不可以義誘】董常死子哭之終日不絶門人曰何悲之深也曰吾悲夫天之不相道也【董常弱冠而死門人亞聖者也死後無人助行周孔之道】之子歿吾亦將逝矣【天喪斯文我必不乆生】明王雖興無以定禮樂矣【後唐太宗議禮樂房魏自言不備】子讃易至序卦曰大哉時之相生也達者可與幾矣【序卦輪衍六十四卦也時行時止生生不窮達則至之故曰幾也】至雜卦曰旁行而不流守者可與存義矣【雜卦止說一卦也守則終之故曰義矣】子曰名實相生利用相成是非相明去就相安也【名由實生實由名顯此謂相生利在有用用則成利此謂相成是未果是有非然後明此謂相明去不安則就就不安則去此謂相安已上皆因賛易而言也】賈瓊問太平可致乎子曰五常之典三王之誥兩漢之制粲然可見矣【古道備在方冊行之可致顔子曰舜何人也餘何人也有為者亦若是】文中子曰王澤竭而諸侯仗義矣【續書所以明此變也】帝制衰而天下言利矣【續書所以救此失也】文中子曰強國戰兵【惟恃力爾】霸國戰智【不戰而屈人之兵在智】王國戰義【禁民為非不獨任智】帝國戰徳【仁者無敵於天下徳可知矣】皇國戰無為【神武而不殺安見其有為】天子而戰兵則王霸之道不抗矣【戰不以智與義則道不能舉】又焉取帝名乎【道不抗雖名存何取】故帝制沒而名實散矣【此言名實散則元經必為行其法也】子曰多言徳之賊也【有徳則不言】多事生之讎也【保生者少事】薛方士【未見傳】曰逢惡斥之遇邪正之何如子曰其有不得其死乎【貴其太剛也若暴虎慿河子路終死】必也言之無罪聞之以誡【言逢惡遇邪當譎諫喻之孔子曰諫有五吾從其諷】或問韋孝寛【韋叔裕字孝寛後周武帝臣也】子曰幹矣【北齊攻雍州孝寛守之不下齊桓歸憤而崩此幹事而已】問楊愔【楊愔字遵彥北齊文宣帝之臣也愔於斟反】子曰輔矣【愔以朝章國令為務不幹小事而已故可稱輔相之器】宇文化及問天道人事如何【化及隋右將軍述之子也煬帝幸江都化及弒逆】子曰順隂陽仁義如斯而已【立天之道曰隂與陽立人之道曰仁與義天人相與則一故君陽臣隂陽為仁隂為義此人事所以一天道也化及有無君之心故云守仁義以戒之爾】賈瓊為吏以事楚公【隋三公府皆自署吏未君命故云事楚公】將行子餞之瓊曰願聞事人之道子曰逺而無介【恭而逺之無傷介】就而無諂【洩就其身不苟言貌】泛乎利而諷之無鬭其防【泛泛因所利而諷之勿辯防自取禍】瓊曰終身誦之子曰終身行之可也【不惟事人也處世盡宜然】子曰元經其正名乎【正帝名】皇始之帝徵天以授之也【皇始後魏道武帝號也始有中原建天子旌旗得正綂此天授之也】晉宋之王近於正體【東晉至劉宋中國無真主則江南以為正體故曰近】於是乎未忘中國【晉宋皆舉兵中原有復一之志】穆公之志也【晉陽穆公作政大論言帝王之道元經所以帝元魏而斥齊梁蓋其志也】齊梁陳之徳【僭徳】斥之於四夷也以明中國之有代太和之力也【後魏孝文太和元年宋蒼梧王元徽五年也時江南衰替中國始尊】子曰改元立號非古也【後文帝始改中元后元年號】其於彼心自作之乎【彼漢以心自改之可也非古也】或問志意修驕富貴道義重輕王侯如何【此苟卿子言也下句雲內省而外物輕矣】子曰彼有以自守也【處士橫議非天下公言自守此說而已凡聖人之道無所驕無所輕】薛生曰殤之後帝制絶矣元經何以不興乎【和帝在位十載竇憲不軌殤帝二嵗鄧後臨朝且此時漢制已絶何為於此不續元經以振王法乎】子曰君子之於帝制並心一氣以待也【以待其復興也】傾耳以聴拭目而視【待之極也】故假之以歲時【自殤和綿綿至桓靈假嵗時而終不復興】桓靈之際帝制遂亡矣【曹操舉兵吳蜀繼作孝獻禪魏漢制乃絶】文明之際魏制其未成乎【魏文帝明帝未能平吳蜀一制天下】太康之始書同文車同軌【晉武太康元年平吳天下同一】君子曰帝制可作矣而不克振【太康三年劉毅比帝為桓靈蓋帝制尋大壞矣】故永熈之後君子息心焉曰謂之何哉【太康十一年武帝崩楊駿矯詔輔政改元永熈賈后殺駿天下大亂】元經於是不得已而作也【上無王法故君子作賞罰以戒亂臣賊子豈好辨哉誠不得已也】文中子曰春秋作而典誥絶矣【孟子曰王者之跡熄然後詩亡詩亡然後春秋作】元經興而帝制亡矣【元經作於續書續詩之後】文中子曰諸侯不貢詩【古者列國歌頌皆貢於王若魯季孫行父請命於周是也】天子不採風【古有采詩之官】樂官不達雅【古為詩樂為歌以合雅道】國史不明變【國史明乎得失之跡】嗚呼斯則久矣【自仲尼歿詩有空文而其實廢矣】詩可以不續乎【漢而下風化不傳於詩故君子不可不續】

Liu Xuan asked about the Changes. The Master said: "Sages deal with the Changes until the end of their lives, to say nothing of people like us. [The sage stands within the Changes all his life. Liu Xuan knew only the words of the Changes and did not know the Changes in his own person.]" Xuan said: "When I discuss the Changes at court, no one can match me. [He spoke only of the text of the Changes and thought himself unrivaled.]" The Master did not answer. After Xuan withdrew, he said to his disciples: "Complete it in silence, be trusted without speaking: it lies in virtuous conduct. [This is what is meant by the Changes being in one's person.]" Wei Zheng said: "Does the sage have worries?" The Master said: "All the world worries; how could I alone be free of worry?" "Does he have doubts?" The Master said: "All the world doubts; how could I alone be free of doubt?" After Zheng withdrew, the Master said to Dong Chang: "Delighting in Heaven and knowing destiny, what is there for me to worry about? Exhausting principle and fulfilling nature, what is there for me to doubt? [Worry and doubt arise only from feeling. Feeling is the desire of nature. The sage's nature has no worry, yet people think he worries, taking the feelings of the world as his worry; the sage's nature has no doubt, yet people think he doubts, taking the feelings of the world as his doubt. Hence the sage responds to things by means of traces, and returns to his nature by means of the heart. The meaning is completed in the passage below.]" Chang said: "Is what you told Zheng not two sets of words from you, Master? [The first said there is worry and doubt, the later said there is none; these are two sets of words.]" The Master said: "What Zheng asked about was the trace [that is, the movements of the feelings of all things in the world, and the sage's response to them, are called the trace]; what I told you is the heart [that is, uniting the root of the single nature with Heaven's mandate is called the heart]. The separation of heart and trace has been long. [Pan means to separate. Since the Duke of Zhou the heart and the trace have been separated, so it is said to be long. Yao yielding to Shun and Shun yielding to Yu are, as regards the heart, one, so what was yielded was the trace. Tang attacking Jie and King Wu attacking Zhou are, as regards the heart of Yao and Shun, also one, so what was attacked was the trace. The hearts of the Duke of Zhou and Zhongni are the same as those of Yao, Shun, Tang and Wu, but their traces did not answer to the world, probably because the times differed. Had Zhou and Confucius lived in a time of yielding they would have been Shun and Yu, and in a time of attacking, Tang and Wu. Wenzhongzi did not find his time and kept both heart and trace; a sage indeed.] Can I alone avoid speaking in two sets of words? [This means that the Duke of Zhou and Zhongni had already spoken in two sets of words on the Changes.]" Chang said: "Are heart and trace really different?" [He suspected that the two sets of words were two Ways.] The Master said: "From your standpoint they are different. ["From you" is like "from them": seen from their side, heart and trace are indeed different.] But one who has just reached the Way does not know that they differ. [To have just arrived means that I have just reached the Way and ride the time and use it; how would I know that heart and trace are really different?] Each simply fits its occasion. [To fit is to be wherever righteousness lies, without clinging to heart or to trace. When the time is to move, move; when the time is to stop, stop; each simply fits.] So the two do not violate the one. [In words there are two, in the Way there is one. Like acting before Heaven and Heaven not opposing, or acting after Heaven and honoring Heaven's seasons: before and after are two, but not opposing the season is one.]" Li Bo heard this and sighed: "Great is that One! The whole world turns toward it without noticing. [Li Bo was also a disciple; his biography is not seen. The Way of the sage always exists in the world, but Wenzhongzi appeared at the wrong time, so the people of the world did not notice. Mencius praised Yi Yin, saying: 'Heaven gave birth to the people so that the earlier to know would awaken the later to know, and the earlier to awaken would awaken the later to awaken.']" Cheng Yuan asked Shu Tian: "In the sequel to the Book of Documents there are the Aims and the Edicts; what do they mean?" Shu Tian took the question to Wenzhongzi. The Master said: "Aims are used to complete the Way, and words are used to proclaim the aim. [The Way issues from the aim. Though it has not yet been proclaimed to the world, its words are already declared, hence it is called an aim.] The Edicts probably let one see the aim of a king. [When an edict is carried out in the world the aim can be seen.] He cares for people thoroughly and employs resources completely; with a single word the world responds, and one decree cannot be altered. [Because he cares for people all respond; because he uses all resources it is not altered.] Who but one who is humane, wise and broadly penetrating, who models himself on Heaven and makes its mandate clear, could issue edicts to the world? [This means edicts are so great.]" Shu Tian said: "May I ask what the Policy Questions mean? [In the sequel to the Documents there are the Policy Questions (the base text has a wrong character).]" The Master said: "Their words are elegant and their use is broad; they grieve for the world without partiality [they grieve over the world's ills and do not hide its faults], and toil without wearying [they toil in heart to ask the worthy and do not tire of listening]; probably only the Policy Questions are like this. [As when Emperor Wu of Han put policy questions to Dong Zhongshu.]" The Master said: "In the sequel to the Documents the Mandates are profound. [Both the Heavenly rank and the human rank are mandates. 'Profound' means it is not only the ruler's command but also Heaven's mandate.] They probably involve ruler and minister managing the proper territory. [The mandate to a territory certainly involves planning.] They probably have success and failure between them, with the world hanging over them, and one takes up the task only when there is no alternative. [This means where the mandate lands, one shoulders it only when unavoidable.] In advancing and retreating, waxing and waning, they do not lose the subtle moment. [This is the planning.] The Way is great and things are not discarded; he goes high and alone, holds the balance in the center and accords with transformation, and makes Heaven's mandate himself. [The world hangs on himself, so it is said he makes the mandate himself.]" Wenzhongzi said: "Affairs [the sequel to the Documents has the Affairs] probably take from humaneness and righteousness and have planning. Though the Son of Heaven must have a teacher, what constant teacher is there? It is only where the Way is found. With one's own person one receives the instruction of the world [this means not only a teacher: from anyone in the world who has goodness one can follow], gains the Way of the world, and completes the tasks of the world, and the people do not know the reason; probably only an enlightened ruler can do this. [What the people carried out in their affairs the ruler had all carried out, and the people did not know how their ruler obtained the good.]" Wenzhongzi said: "To broaden humaneness and increase wisdom, nothing is better than asking [the sequel to the Documents has the Inquiries]; to ride affairs and expound the Way, nothing is better than answering [the sequel to the Documents has the Replies]. Who but an enlightened ruler can ask broadly? Who but a penetrating minister can answer alone? They probably take types according to what is fitting, and nothing is left unmanaged. [Management.] How vast are the replies of Chao, Dong and Gongsun! [Chao Cuo (the base text has a wrong character) said in his reply: 'The ministers and ruler of the Three Kings were both worthy, planning together and helping one another, and none did not rest on human feeling.' Dong Zhongshu said in his reply: 'The Spring and Autumn Annals is the beginning of the kingly Way, passed on in correctness; correctness follows the king, the king follows spring. Spring is what Heaven does, and correctness is what the king does.' Gongsun Hong (a character lost in transcription of the base text, namely Hong) said in his reply: 'To bring benefit and remove harm, to love all without partiality, is called humaneness; to make clear right and wrong and to establish what may and may not be done is called righteousness; these are the great uses of government.' These three replies all vastly grasp the great outline of the kingly Way.]" Wenzhongzi said: "If there is a fine quality and it is not made known, what will the world see? A gentleman toward his ruler praises his excellence and corrects his faults. [The sequel to the Documents has the Praises.] So there is no leisure in advancing the good; is there anything in the world that would not be at peace? [This means nothing would be unsettled.]" Wenzhongzi said: "Deliberation probably exhausts the heart of the world. [The sequel to the Documents has the Deliberations.] Formerly the Yellow Emperor had the hearings in the Hall of Union, Yao had the inquiries at the Hall at the Crossroads, and Shun had the consultations at the Hall of Display; all are what is called deliberation. [The Hall of Union and the Hall of Display are different names for the Bright Hall. The Hall at the Crossroads was a chamber built at a crossroads to gather the words of the people. The Guanzi says: 'Yao inquired at the Hall at the Crossroads and listened to the people.'] Great indeed! They joined the plans of the world and combined the wisdom of the world, and the order was obtained. What did they do? They simply sat reverently facing south. [This means the Yellow Emperor, Yao and Shun obtained the world's plans and deliberations and so ordered it.]" The Master said: "'The human heart is perilous, the heart of the Way is subtle': this says the Way is hard to advance. So the gentleman thinks of faults and guards against them, hence there are the Admonitions. [The sequel to the Documents has the Admonitions; here 'guard' is the guard of an embankment.] They are urgent without pointing out, diligent without resentment, indirect without flattery, upright with propriety; probably only the Admonitions are so. [Earnest and subtle, admonishing by propriety.]" The Master said: "'To mend a fault without reluctance, and be without blame' is to be good at repairing mistakes. How could the enlightened kings of old have been without faults? They simply followed remonstrance. [The sequel to the Documents has the Remonstrances.] So a loyal minister serving his ruler exhausts his loyalty and repairs his faults. When the ruler errs above, the minister repairs below; when the minister remonstrates below, the ruler follows above; this is why the kingly Way does not stumble. [Does not err.] To take Tai out of Pi and turn darkness into brightness, who but remonstrance could achieve it? [This means even what has already been done can be remonstrated against.]" Wenzhongzi said: "How confused and full of many rulers were the Jin and after! [Confusion means that it was not one surname.] I look at Emperors Hui and Huai and grieve. [Emperor Hui's government came from Empress Jia and he was usurped by Prince Lun of Zhao; Emperor Huai fled into the dust at Pingyang (the base text has a wrong character) and was killed by Liu Cong.] Leaving aside the Three Kingdoms, where would one take the aim? [Each of the Three Kingdoms had the aim to pacify the world. This again indicates that the sequel to the Documents has the Aims.] How earnest and full of worries the Three Kingdoms were! [Though they had aims, they had no systems.] I look at Emperors Huan and Ling and grieve. [Emperor Huan of Han, whose personal name was Zhi, had Liang Ji in power, whose authority overturned the world; Emperor Ling, whose personal name was Hong, saw the Yellow Turban bandits arise and Dong Zhuo cause chaos.] Leaving aside the two Hans, where would one take the system? [The seven rulers of systems can pass down a model. This again indicates that the sequel to the Documents has the Systems.]" The Master said that the government of Taihe came close to being elegant. [Taihe was the reign title of Emperor Xiaowen of the Later Wei, who had his capital at Luoyang, where cultural institutions began to be complete, so it is said to be close to elegant.] "It alone made clear that China has laws. [China had long lacked a settled ruler. Xiaowen, after more than twenty years on the throne, built the Bright Hall, sacrificed at the round mound, set up offices, fixed statutes, and raised a million troops to attack south of the Yangzi. Later Xuanwu and Xiaoming were able to cultivate the government of Taihe; these were China's laws.] A pity that the Way of Duke Mu could not be carried out! [Qiu, Duke Mu, was the Master's ancestor, who came from south of the Yangzi and only began to serve in the eighth year of Taihe. Qiu recommended Wang Su and Guan Lang (a character is damaged in the base text); soon Xiaowen died and Qiu died too, and it is a pity that his Way was not carried out.]" Cheng Yuan said: "What of the Three Teachings? [Confucianism, Daoism and Buddhism.]" The Master said: "It has long been disliked that government has many gates. [When teaching is not of one face, government has many gates.]" He asked: "What if they were abolished?" The Master said: "That is not something you can achieve. [When sages and worthies arise, heterodoxy goes away of itself; it cannot be abolished suddenly.] The affairs of Zhenjun and Jiande were just enough to fan the waves, spread the wind and stop the fire. [Zhenjun was a reign title of Emperor Taiwu of the Later Wei, when Daoism was honored and Buddhism destroyed. Jiande was a reign title of Emperor Wu of the Later Zhou, who destroyed both Buddhism and Daoism. When the Duke of Sui took over the government they rose again, so the temporary abolition only made them flourish more, like waves, wind and fire.]" The Master read the Deliberations on the Great Plan [the Duke Xian of Ankang wrote the Deliberations on the Supreme Ultimate] and said: "Now the Three Teachings can be made one. [In the Great Plan, the fifth is the supreme ultimate; its meaning values only the middle way. When centrality and harmony are attained, Heaven and Earth are in their places and the myriad things are nourished. Humans are the things of the center and harmony among Heaven, Earth and the myriad things. Though the teachings are three, the people are one.]" Cheng Yuan and Wei Zheng came in and said: "What does that mean?" The Master said: "To keep the people from weariness. [The Changes says: 'Penetrate its changes, so that the people are not wearied.']" Jia Qiong studied the Documents, and when he reached the affair of Zhi Yun, he asked the Master: "May I ask the differences among Affairs, Mandates, Aims and Systems? [In the time of Wang Mang, Zhi Yun submitted a memorial saying: 'The Han fortunes are long, the divine vessel has a mandate and cannot be received in emptiness; Heaven sends a warning wishing Your Majesty to awaken, and you should take the place of a subject.' Mang was angry and forced Yun to claim illness. Yun scolded him: 'What I said was all Heaven's mandate, not made up by a madman.' Mang never dared to harm him in the end. Affairs refers to the traces of action; Mandates refers to affairs answering Heaven's mandate; Aims refers to aims stored in the heart; Systems refers to aims carried out in ritual and righteousness.]" The Master said: "Of Systems and Mandates, I make their Way plain; of Aims and Affairs, I make their integrity plain. [The Way embraces the world; integrity guards one's person.]" Jia Qiong took this and told Shu Tian. Shu Tian said: "Probably the Documents leave nothing out! The Documents say 'be refined and be one, truly hold to the center,' which is the meaning of that Way, is it not? The Odes say 'gathering mustard and radish, do not discard the lower part,' which is the meaning of that integrity, is it not?" The Master heard it and said: "Ning knows the Documents." The Master said: "Affairs relate to Mandates as Aims relate to Systems, do they not? Unless humaneness and righteousness issue from within, they cannot be completed. [Affairs and Aims issue within; Mandates and Systems take form without.]" The Master said: "One who understands the Way of Systems and Mandates probably knows what kings and dukes do; he probably gains the heart of transformation. [Once something has taken form outside, the heart can be known.] One who understands the Way of Aims and Affairs probably knows the difficulties of rulers and ministers; he probably gains the subtle moment of humaneness and righteousness. [What issues within, its subtle moment can be gained.]" The Master said: "One who dwells in poverty and lowliness without trembling may attain wealth and honor [with no loss of heart, he surely will not be arrogant]; one whose servants praise his kindness may take part in government [kindness reaches the lowly, how much more the good people]; one whom his friends praise for trustworthiness may establish achievements [extended to the whole world]." The Master said: "Loving fame and prizing profit: petty people! I have never seen a humane person who loved fame and profit. [A rebuke of the times.]" Jia Qiong asked about the Way of the gentleman. The Master said: "'If one returns to it and does not think, then enough.' [The last verse of the Odes, 'Mang'. It means one must repeatedly think over the Way one practices; if one does not think, let it be.]" The Master saw a man in mourning clothes who wailed without stopping and so offered condolences to him. He asked about the mourning period and was told: "Five years." The Master wept and said: "The system of the former kings cannot be exceeded. [Mourning cannot be overdone; one must stoop and conform to it. Pronunciation notes: 'cui' with the reading qihui, 'die' with the reading tujie.]" The Duke of Chu asked about the Way of using troops. The Master said: "Carry it out with humaneness and righteousness. [It must be the utmost humane attacking the inhumane, and great righteousness punishing the unrighteous.]" He asked: "How does one win decisively? [This means how can humaneness and righteousness surpass troops?]" The Master said: "Nothing is better than humaneness and righteousness. Going beyond them invites defeat. [He is rebuked for knowing only how to defeat others by force and not how to defeat them by the Way.]" When the Master saw a plowman he would always console him [console], and when he saw the king's men he would always bow [bow means to stoop and step aside]. In his village he did not ride a horse [did not ride a horse]. At the first cockcrow he washed his hands and mouth and put on full dress [the rite of serving parents in the Domestic Rules; pronunciation note: 'guan' reads gu-huan]. When the lady of Tongchuan was ill, the Master did not close his eyes for three months. When people came to ask after her, he saw them off and welcomed them, and always wept and bowed [joy and fear were both present]. The Master said: "When the historical biographies arose, the Way of the classics was abandoned. [As in the Records of the Grand Historian, which put Huang-Lao first and the Six Classics later, this is abandonment.] When records and commentaries arose, the Way of history was falsified. [As Pei Songzhi's commentary on the Records of the Three Kingdoms in fact damaged Chen Shou, this is falsification.] So I hate that heterodoxy. [Its record in fact differs from it.]" Xue Shou said: "What is mandate?" The Master said: "It is examined in Heaven and matched in human affairs; one says it is fixed here and answered there. [To examine and match Heaven's seasons and human affairs is called mandate. Here is human affairs, there is Heaven's season. To know people but not Heaven, or to know Heaven but not people, is not to know the mandate. So the gentleman cultivates his nature to match Heaven's principle, and so fixes the mandate. The Changes says: 'Exhaust principle and fulfill nature to reach the mandate.'] Good and ill fortune twist and turn, and nothing escapes. [When praise comes unexpectedly in affairs, that is the time giving him good fortune; when blame comes from seeking perfection, that is the time giving him ill fortune. Probably affairs and times are not brought about by human strength alone, so in their twists and turns there is no escaping their good or ill fortune.] Who but a gentleman can know it and fear it? [Knowing Heaven's mandate and fearing Heaven's mandate belong only to the gentleman.] Who but a sage can reach it? [To fulfill nature in order to reach the mandate belongs only to the sage.]" Xue Shou said: "The ancients wrote the Yuan Ming; probably it reached it? [The Yuan Ming Bao is a book of the same kind as the Changes.]" The Master said: "It reached it. [The Changes is a book of nature and mandate; to know the Changes is to reach the mandate.]" Jia Qiong said: "The sequel to the Documents has Mandates but no Systems; why? [The continuations of the Documents from the Wei onward have mandates but no systems.]" The Master said: "Probably the world had no ruler but had ministers. [The Han systems were already lost, and only ministers could still receive mandates.]" He asked: "The two Hans had Systems and Aims; why?" The Master said: "The Systems probably exhausted their excellence in caring for people (the base text has a wrong character). [The seven rulers of the Han made their systems out of concern for the people.] The Aims probably felt shame in virtue's providing for things. [In the late Han virtue was not complete, and there were only aims.]" Xue Shou said: "Did the imperial systems come from the kingly Way? [He asked whether the Han systems came from the Way of the Three Kings.]" The Master said: "They could not. The later emperors were not the earlier emperors. [The earlier emperors ruled by the Way, like the Three Kings; the later emperors by name, like the First Emperor of Qin, who combined and took the title.] They probably mixed the Ways of the hundred kings and took the imperial name. Their hearts were correct, but their traces were deceptive. [The heart of caring for the people (the base text has a wrong character) was correct; the traces of mixing in hegemony were deceptive.] They probably rode on Qin's decay and took the title because there was no alternative. [The world was already used to the title of emperor from Qin, so Han followed it and also took the title, with no alternative.] Their government was careless and simple [Dong Zhongshu said Qin's documents were careless and simple], not like the pure excellence of Tang, Yu and the Three Dynasties. [The Two Emperors and Three Kings were fit in name and reality.] So they were adequate in enriching the people but not in ritual. [The Han methods of enriching the people can be praised, but the rites for a long-lasting age were incomplete.]" Xue Shou said: "Is pure excellence then lost? [He suspected that the Way of the Two Emperors and Three Kings could not return.]" The Master said: "People can broaden the Way; how can one know that those to come will not equal those of old? [When a later sage is born the Way is broadened; how would one know there will be no time of pure excellence?]" The Master said that Li Jing's wisdom exceeded his humaneness and Cheng Yuan's humaneness exceeded his wisdom. [The excellence of the Five Phases is uneven, so the nature of the five constants has its excesses. For example, with much wood and little water, humaneness exceeds wisdom, and so on.] The Master said that Dong Chang was close to the Way and could be made to harmonize principle. [When the five constants are complete one comes near the sage's Way. To penetrate change is called the Way, hence it is said to harmonize.] Jia Qiong asked: "How does one stop slander?" The Master said: "Do not argue. [Do not argue things out with petty people.]" "How does one stop resentment?" He said: "Do not contend. [Do not contend about principle with petty people.]" The Master said of Zhuge and Wang Meng: "Their achievements were near, but their virtue was far. [They were hegemons of their state for a time and their achievement was near, but planning for after their own lives was far-reaching virtue.]" The Master was at Pu [Pu is the ancient place of Zhongdu, which was Hezhong commandery under the Sui], and heard of the defeat at Liaodong [in the eighth year of Daye, nine armies were all lost together]. He said to Xue Shou: "The wall has fallen back into the moat. [The top line of the hexagram Tai in the Changes: 'The wall falls back into the moat; do not use troops; its mandate is chaos.']" He chanted the last verse of the Tu Yuan [a poem of the royal domain, when King Huan lost trust and the lords rebelled; the last verse says: 'In my life after this, I meet these hundred woes']. Returning, he perfected the root of the Six Classics and waited each day for the capable [waiting for the people and the capable to put it into practice]. The Master said: "Those who like to move have many troubles [as Emperor Yang did]; failing to endure a small matter brings great disaster [as Emperor Wen of Sui did]." The Master said: "The Changes is the sage's movement, and is thus used to ride the times. [The Changes is change. Achievement appears in change, and good and ill fortune arise from movement. Change and movement are the sage's use in keeping with the time. Without change, achievement cannot be great, so one relies on duplication to help; without movement, good fortune is not seen first, so one alone completes tasks by the subtle moment. In preserving the time and showing movement, the Changes can be known.] So the hexagram is the home of wisdom and the order of movement. [The lines in a hexagram are like people dwelling in a home, moving place by place; this is its order.]" Master Xue said: "Can wisdom travel alone? [This means that since the hexagram is the home of wisdom, he thought wisdom could travel alone.]" The Master said: "Guard it with humaneness. [Wisdom without humaneness easily falls into cruelty.] If one cannot be humane, wisdom stops; where would it go? [Without humaneness, wisdom is useless.]" The Master said: "Primal, penetrating, beneficial, correct: what moves without exhaustion is the work of wisdom. [Primal is humaneness, penetrating is propriety, beneficial is righteousness, and correct is trustworthiness. By wisdom moving them, the five constants are completed.]" The Master said: "One who serves his superior with flattery and controls his inferiors with cruelty will not move even if lured with righteousness. [One cannot lure flatterers and cruel men with righteousness.]" When Dong Chang died, the Master wept for him all day without stopping. A disciple said: "Why so deeply grieved?" He said: "I grieve that Heaven does not help the Way. [Dong Chang died at the age of twenty, and was next only to the sage among the disciples. After his death there was no one to help carry out the Way of Zhou and Confucius.] This man has died; I too will soon pass away. [Heaven has destroyed this culture; I surely will not remain long among people.] Though an enlightened king arise, there is no way to fix ritual and music. [Later Emperor Taizong of Tang discussed ritual and music, and Fang and Wei themselves said it was incomplete.]" The Master praised the Changes, and when he reached the Sequence of the Hexagrams, he said: "Great is the mutual birth of the times! One who penetrates can be near them. [The Sequence of the Hexagrams rotates and expands through the sixty-four. In moving and stopping according to the time there is no exhaustion of generation. One who penetrates reaches it, hence it is said to be near.]" When he reached the Miscellaneous Hexagrams, he said: "Moving sideways without flowing away: one who keeps can share its righteousness with it. [The Miscellaneous Hexagrams speak of only one hexagram at a time. Keeping completes it, hence it is said righteousness.]" The Master said: "Name and reality give birth to each other, benefit and use complete each other, right and wrong clarify each other, and leaving and approaching settle each other. [Name arises from reality and reality is shown by name: this is mutual birth. Benefit lies in having use, and use completes benefit: this is mutual completion. Right is not yet right until there is wrong, and only then is it clear: this is mutual clarification. If leaving is not settled, one approaches; if approaching is not settled, one leaves: this is mutual settling. All of the above are said on account of praising the Changes.]" Jia Qiong asked: "Can great peace be brought about?" The Master said: "The canons of the five constants, the proclamations of the Three Kings and the systems of the two Hans can be seen in splendor. [The ancient Way is fully in the bamboo slips and boards, and carrying it out can bring it about. Yan Hui said: 'What kind of man was Shun, and what kind am I? One who acts is likewise.']" Wenzhongzi said: "The kingly grace dried up and the lords relied on righteousness [the sequel to the Documents therefore marks this change]; the imperial system declined and the world spoke of profit [the sequel to the Documents therefore rescues this fault]." Wenzhongzi said: "A strong state fights with troops [relying only on force]; a hegemonic state fights with wisdom [defeating the enemy's troops without fighting lies in wisdom]; a kingly state fights with righteousness [forbidding the people to do wrong, not relying only on wisdom]; an imperial state fights with virtue [the humane has no enemy under Heaven; virtue can be known]; a sovereign state fights with non-action [divinely martial without killing; where would action be seen?]." When a Son of Heaven fights with troops, the Way of king and hegemon cannot be carried out [when fighting uses neither wisdom nor righteousness, the Way cannot be carried out], so from where does he take the imperial name? [When the Way cannot be carried out, what is there to take though the name remains?] So the imperial system is lost and name and reality scatter. [This means that when name and reality scatter, the Yuan Jing must carry out its method.] The Master said: "Much speech is the thief of virtue [one with virtue does not speak]; much business is the enemy of life [one who preserves life has little business]." Xue Fangshi [biography not seen] said: "If one rebukes evil whenever one meets it and corrects wickedness whenever one encounters it, how is that?" The Master said: "Probably such a man will not die a natural death. [He is rebuked for being too hard, like one who fights a tiger bare-handed or fords a river on foot, as Zilu died in the end.] One must speak without fault and be heard so as to be warned. [This means that on meeting evil and wickedness one should remonstrate indirectly and instruct. Confucius said there are five kinds of remonstrance, and I follow the hinting one.]" Someone asked about Wei Xiaokuan [Wei Shuyu, styled Xiaokuan, was a minister of Emperor Wu of the Later Zhou]. The Master said: "He did the work. [When Northern Qi attacked Yongzhou, Xiaokuan held it and did not fall, and the Qi ruler died of resentment. This is only doing the work.]" He asked about Yang Yin [Yang Yin, styled Zunyan, was a minister of Emperor Wenxuan of Northern Qi; pronunciation note: 'yin' reads yu-zhen]. The Master said: "He assisted. [Yin devoted himself to court regulations and state decrees and did not meddle in petty matters, so he can be called a vessel fit to be chief minister.]" Yuwen Huaji asked about Heaven's Way and human affairs. [Huaji was the son of the Right General Shu of the Sui. When Emperor Yang went to Jiangdu, Huaji murdered him.] The Master said: "Follow yin and yang, humaneness and righteousness; that is all. [To establish Heaven's Way is called yin and yang; to establish the human Way is called humaneness and righteousness. Heaven and humans together are one, so the ruler is yang and the minister yin; yang is humaneness and yin is righteousness. This is why human affairs are the same as Heaven's Way. Huaji had no heart for a ruler, so it is said to warn him by keeping humaneness and righteousness.]" Jia Qiong became an official to serve the Duke of Chu [the three ducal offices of the Sui each appointed their own clerks, without a ruler's command yet, so it is said he served the Duke of Chu], and as he was about to leave, the Master gave him a farewell feast. Qiong said: "I would like to hear the Way of serving others." The Master said: "Be distant without being solitary [be respectful and keep distance, not hurt by solitary aloofness], be close without flattering [be near him in person, without carelessness in word and appearance], touch broadly on the profit and hint to him, and do not contend with his quick eloquence (the base text has a wrong character). [Hint broadly according to what benefits him, and do not bring disaster on yourself by a quick tongue (the base text has a wrong character).]" Qiong said: "I will recite it all my life." The Master said: "Practice it all your life and that is enough. [It applies not only to serving others but to living in the world.]" The Master said: "The Yuan Jing is probably the rectification of names. [Rectifying the imperial name.] The emperor of Huangshi was one whom Heaven sent to bestow it. [Huangshi was a reign title of Emperor Daowu of the Later Wei, who first possessed the central plain, set up the Son of Heaven's banners, and obtained legitimacy; this was Heaven giving it to him.] The kings of Jin and Song came near to the true body. [From Eastern Jin to Liu Song, China had no true ruler, so the south of the Yangzi was taken as the true body, hence it is said to come near.] Thus they had not forgotten China. [Jin and Song both raised troops in the central plain with the aim to restore unity.] This was the aim of Duke Mu. [Duke Mu of Jinyang wrote the Great Essay on Government, which discussed the Way of emperors and kings. That the Yuan Jing treats the Yuan Wei as emperors and rejects Qi and Liang is probably that aim.] The virtue of Qi, Liang and Chen [usurped virtue] was rejected as that of the four barbarians, to show that China had a succession; this was the strength of Taihe. [The first year of Taihe of Emperor Xiaowen of the Later Wei was the fifth year of Yuanhui of King Cangwu of Song; at that time the south of the Yangzi had declined and China began to be honored.]" The Master said: "Changing the reign title and establishing a name was not ancient. [Only later did Emperor Wen of Han change the reign titles of the middle and later years.] It was probably made in his own heart. [Han could change it by its own heart; it was not ancient.]" Someone asked: "When aspirations are cultivated one disdains wealth and honor, and when the Way and righteousness are weighty one slights kings and lords; how is that? [These are words of Xunzi. The next line says that when one looks inward, outside things become light.]" The Master said: "He had something with which to keep himself. [Scholars out of office speak freely, but this is not the public voice of the world; he merely guards himself by this saying. The sage's Way has nothing to disdain and nothing to slight.]" Master Xue said: "After Emperor Shang the imperial system ceased; why did the Yuan Jing not begin there? [Emperor He reigned ten years, with Dou Xian acting lawlessly; Emperor Shang was two years old and Empress Deng ruled. Moreover, at this time the Han system was already cut off; why did it not continue the Yuan Jing here to revive the kingly law?]" The Master said: "A gentleman toward the imperial system waits with one heart and one breath for it. [Waiting for its revival.] He cocks his ear to listen and wipes his eyes to see. [Waiting to the utmost.] So he gave it years and seasons. [From Shang and He through the long span to Huan and Ling, he gave years and seasons and in the end it did not revive.] At the time of Huan and Ling the imperial system was lost. [Cao Cao raised troops, Wu and Shu arose in turn, and when Emperor Xian yielded to Wei the Han system was cut off.] In the time of Wen and Ming the Wei system was probably not yet complete. [Emperors Wen and Ming of Wei could not subdue Wu and Shu and unify the world under one system.] At the start of Taikang, writing was unified and carriage axles made uniform. [In the first year of Taikang Emperor Wu of Jin conquered Wu and the world was one.] The gentleman said the imperial system could be made, yet it could not be revived. [In the third year of Taikang Liu Yi compared the emperor to Huan and Ling, probably because the imperial system soon collapsed again.] So after Yongxi the gentleman gave up, saying: What shall we call it? [In the eleventh year of Taikang Emperor Wu died, Yang Jun forged an edict to take over the government, and changed the reign title to Yongxi; Empress Jia killed Jun and the world fell into great disorder.] The Yuan Jing was then made because there was no alternative. [With no kingly law above, the gentleman made rewards and punishments to warn rebellious ministers and thieving sons. How could this be fondness for dispute? It was truly unavoidable.]" Wenzhongzi said: "When the Spring and Autumn Annals was made, the canons and proclamations were cut off [Mencius said that when the traces of the kings were extinguished the Odes were lost, and when the Odes were lost the Spring and Autumn Annals was made]; when the Yuan Jing arose, the imperial system was lost. [The Yuan Jing was made after the sequels to the Documents and the Odes.]" Wenzhongzi said: "The lords do not present poems [anciently the songs of the various states were all presented to the king, as Jisun Xingfu in Lu asked for a command from Zhou], the Son of Heaven does not collect folk airs [anciently there was an official who collected poems], the music officials do not convey the Odes of the court [anciently poems and music were made into songs to match the elegant Way], and the state historians do not make clear the changes [the state historians made clear the traces of gain and loss]. Alas, it has been long! [Since Zhongni died the Odes have had empty text while the substance has been abandoned.] Can the Odes be left without a sequel? [From the Han onward, moral influence was not passed on in poems, so the gentleman cannot but continue them.]"

子曰吾於禮樂正失而已【正禮樂沿革之文而已】如其製作以俟明哲必也崇貴乎【王道盛則可以制禮作樂明哲君子必得公輔崇貴之位乃助成王道也】賈瓊薛收曰道不行如之何子曰父母安之兄弟愛之朋友信之施於有政道亦行矣奚謂不行【亂世道不能濟天下則修身以正家可矣】子謂任薛王劉崔盧之昏非古也何以視譜【古者氏族家譜所以僄門地謹昏姻也任姓出黃帝六代孫大壬薛姓出黃帝六代孫奚仲居薛此二姓同譜王姓出舜之後封於劉至漢有王於齊者號王氏此二姓同譜崔姓帝嚳姜嫄之後居崔邑盧姓亦姜姓之後居盧國此二姓同譜皆古禮不通昏也】文中子曰帝之不帝久矣【百王稱帝者相沿前代號也自秦始皇始故曰不帝久矣】王孝逸曰敢問元經之帝何也【三代稱王故春秋書王以尊天子稟正朔也秦漢稱帝則元經書帝以尊中國而明正統也】子曰絜名索實此不可去【舉後世之名者貴存前帝之實也中國天子不可去此號】其為帝實失而名存矣【實道也名空號爾】或問謝安子曰簡矣【謝安字安石為東晉相處富貴而獨退靜破苻堅而無喜色終優遊東山此簡可見矣】問王導子曰敬矣【王導字茂事晉元明成三帝為相每進爵必拜元帝山陵此恭可見矣】問溫嶠子曰毅人也【嶠字太真與王導平王敦蘇峻之亂皆有功初鎮武昌聞國難泣涕率兵來赴天子留嶠輔政嶠讓王導此果毅可知矣】問桓溫子曰智近謀逺鮮不及矣【溫字子元為晉將軍破李勢平苻健有功為大都督乂北伐不已為慕客垂所敗歸而潛有墓誌此智近謀逺之驗】賈瓊問群居之道子曰同不害正異不傷物【外雖同而內必正內雖異則外無傷此中庸者乎】曰可終身而行乎子曰烏乎而不可也【烏何也】古之有道者內不失真而外不殊俗夫如此故全也【知道可與適道者也不失真可與立者也不殊俗可與權者也三者備何往不全】繁師曰敢問稽古之利子曰執古以御今之有乎【今之有利者皆古有之矣故必稽古】子曰居近識逺處今知古惟學矣乎【孔子曰吾非生而知之好古敏以求之】子曰恭則物服【儼然人望而毘之】慤則有成【先誠其意】平則物化【無私於物物亦公焉】子曰我未見平者也【隋政多私】或曰君子仁而已矣何用禮為子曰不可行也【行仁必以禮節之】或曰禮豈為我輩設哉【阮籍雲】子不答既而謂薛收曰斯人也旁行而不流矣【旁行一隅不知流通之變】安知教意哉有若謂先王之道斯為美也【有若孔子弟子】文中子曰七制之主道斯盛矣【七制注見上】薛收曰何為其然子曰嗚呼惟明王能受訓【續書有訓】收曰無制而有訓何謂也子曰其先帝之制未亡乎大臣之命尚正乎【若孝武之制未亡霍光之命尚正則可以訓前漢諸帝也尤武之制未亡桓榮之命尚正則可以訓後漢諸君也】無制而有訓天下其無大過矣否則蒼生不無大憂焉【若昌邑王不廢東海王不讓則必有兵爭起而生民憂也】薛收曰讃其非古乎【續書有讃】子曰唐虞之際斯為盛大禹皋陶所以順天休命也【益賛於禹又臯陶曰贊贊襄哉】文中子曰議天子所以兼採而博聴也【續書有議】唯至公之主為能擇焉【公朝共議擇善而從】文中子曰誡其至矣乎【續書有誡】古之明王敬慎所未見悚懼所未聞刻於盤盂【盤銘雲徳日新荀子曰君者盤也水者民也盤圓則水圓君者盂也盂方則水方】勒於几杖【杖銘雲扶危定傾皆戒也】居有常念動無過事其誡之功乎【常念日新扶危之誡自無過】薛收曰諫其見忠臣之心乎【續書有諫】其志直其言危【志直若周昌雲口不能言心知不可是也言危若樊噲雲陛下獨不見趙髙之事乎是也】子曰必也直而不迫危而不詆其知命者之所為乎【不迫若賈誼曰今之進言者皆雲天下治臣獨以為未是也知命為知其君可諫則諫進退不違天命也】狡乎逆上吾不與也【狡謂志不直也言不危也非忠順故曰逆】賈瓊曰虐哉漢武未嘗從諫也子曰孝武其生知之乎雖不從未嘗不悅而容之【子言漢武大體生知不由人諫而理也若初即位崇太學立明堂黜百家策賢良雄才大畧此皆天縱也如汲黯之訐方朔之滑稽雖未聴亦能容之矣】故賢人攅於朝直言屬於耳斯有志於道故能知悔而康帝業【賢人若仲舒申公枚臯相如嚴樂輩是也此數子每大臣奏事則皆辨論之是攅於朝屬於耳也晚年下詔覺用兵之悔封丞相舊千秋為富民侯是知悔而帝業康也】可不謂有志之主乎【續書所以有志】子曰姚義之辯李靖之智賈瓊魏徵之正薛收之仁程元王孝逸之文加之以篤固【七子各得一長更能敦篤則固】申之以禮樂可以成人矣【既固矣必能成之禮樂通才然後及也】子謂京房郭璞古之亂常人也【京房字君明習災變之學以卦直日用事本姓李氏而輒自推律改為京氏郭璞字景純好隂陽算術被髪銜刀竟坐誅二子並乖正經亂人倫者也】子曰冠禮廢天下無成人矣昏禮廢天下無家道矣【士冠昏禮二十而冠三十而昏成人正家不可廢也】喪禮廢天下遺其親矣祭禮廢天下忘其祖矣【亦言士喪祭禮也孟子曰未有仁而遺其親也又曰祭必自其祖】嗚呼吾末如之何也已矣【傷時廢此四禮】越公問政子曰恭以儉【楊素驕侈故防之】邳公問政【蘇威封邳國公為僕射】子曰清以平【威以老臣貴位引其子夔預朝政非清白公平也故亦規之】安平公問政【李徳林封安平郡公】子曰無鬭人以名【徳林文學擅名然多自負見毀於時故規之使無鬬名】子謂薛收賈瓊曰春秋元經其衰世之意乎義直而微言曲而中【直微曲中蓋權行取中】越公初見子遇內史薛公曰公見王通乎【楊素問薛道衡】薛公曰鄉人也【並家河東】是其家傳七世矣【家傳儒業】皆有經濟之道而位不逢【不逢明時】越公曰天下豈有七世不逢乎薛公曰君子道消十世不逢有矣【若孔子自弗父何嗣厲公及正考甫佐戴武宣公至孔父嘉立殤公至仲尼凡三百年不遇明時三十年為一世】越公曰奚若其祖公曰王氏有祖父焉有子孫焉雖然久於其道鍾美於是也是人必能敘倫矣【六經續而彜倫敘】子出自蒲闗【自長安出蒲州龍門闗北歸晉】闗吏陸逢止之曰未可以遯我生民也【陸逢賢人隠於關吏】子為之宿翌日而行【子知其賢意在生民故特為宿未忍去】陸逢送子曰行矣江湖鱣鯨非溝瀆所容也【聖道大非群小所知】程元曰敢問風自火出家人何也【易彖詞】子曰明內而齊外【離明巽齊】故家道正而天下正【治國者先齊家】子曰仁義其教之本乎【立人之道曰仁與義是謂教本】先王以是繼道徳而興禮樂者也【韓愈曰仁與義為定名道與徳為虛位然則道徳者本仁而中和之所以為禮樂也】子曰禮其皇極之門乎聖人所以嚮明而節天下也【喻門南向使人出入而節限內外】其得中道乎【解上文皇極義】故能辯上下定民志【上不偪下下不僭上人志自定是中也】或問君子子曰知微知章知柔知剛【易繫辭】曰君子不器何如子曰此之謂不器【即此防章柔剛是不器】文中子曰周齊之際王公大臣不暇及禮矣【北齊髙洋至髙緯二十八年後周自宇文覺至介國公二十五年日尋干戈雖有名臣豈暇及禮哉】獻公曰【安康獻公】天子失禮則諸侯修於國諸侯失禮則大夫修於家【周東遷邦禮喪韓宣子適魯曰周禮在魯矣此諸侯修於國也魯三家專政八佾舞庭孔子自衛反魯乃定禮樂此大夫修於家也】禮樂之作獻公之志也【禮論樂論蓋推獻公之志而作】程元問六經之致【續經】子曰吾續書以存漢晉之實【續書起於漢髙祖止晉武帝】續詩以辯六代之俗【六代詩見上】修元經以斷南北之疑【晉東遷故南朝推運厯者因以齊梁陳為正綂後魏據中原故北朝推運厯者以北齊周隋為正綂於是南北二史夷虜相稱而天下疑矣元經者所以尊中國故中國無主則正綂在晉宋中國有主則正綂歸魏周】讃易道以申先師之防【申明十翼也】正禮樂以旌后王之失【后王有不合周公製作者則論而正之】如斯而已矣程元曰作者之謂聖述者之謂明夫子何處乎【處居中】子曰吾於道屢伸而已【言我亦不作亦不述蓋以微言絶大義乖則我再三伸明之爾】其好而能樂勤而不厭者乎【言我但好學不厭而已】聖與明吾安敢處【不敢當程元所言】子曰有坐而得者有坐而不得者有行而至者有不行而至者【老子曰坐進此道書曰行之惟難坐之行之一也而有得有不得有至有不至此言人性差殊各由所習遂相逺也】子曰見而存【因所見而存諸心】未若不見而存者也【不待見而心常存之猶言不勉而中不言而信也】子曰君子可招而不可誘【可以禮招不可以機誘】可棄而不可慢【棄謂道不同慢謂傷名教】輕譽苟毀好憎尚怒小人哉【四者任情】子曰以勢交者勢傾則絶以利交者利窮則散故君子不與也【不與之交】子謂薛収善接小人逺而不疎近而不狎頽如也【頽如不矜持之貌】子逰汾亭坐鼓琴【君子不去琴瑟】有舟而釣者過曰美哉琴意【釣隠者也聞琴知意】傷而和怨而靜【傷怨和靜乃縵傷弦調也】在山澤而有廊廟之志非太公之都磻溪則仲尼之宅泗濱也【時亂賢人隠於野磻薄官反】子驟而鼓南風釣者曰嘻非今日事也道能利生民功足濟天下其有虞氏之心乎不如舜自鼓也聲存而操變矣【所傳南風聲則存矣而所操者之情則變而不類】子遽舍琴謂門人曰情之變聲也如是乎起將延之釣者搖竿鼓栧而逝門人追之子曰無追也播鼗武入於河擊磬襄入於海固有之也【掌鼗掌磬之官武襄是其名也魯哀公時禮壊樂崩樂人皆去】遂志其事作汾亭操焉【文中子撰此操】子之夏城【絳州有夏城縣】薛收姚義後遇牧豕者問塗焉牧者曰従誰歟薛收曰從王先生也牧者曰有鳥有鳥則飛於天有魚有魚則潛於淵【一本作泉後人避唐諱也】知道者蓋黙黙焉【牧者亦隠士也意謂魚鳥尚得其所知道者何不黙而遁】子聞之謂薛收曰獨善可矣【斥牧者】不有言者誰明道乎【既雲知道即不可獨善其身必當言於天下使明而行焉】子不相形【不可以貌取人】不禱疾【無妄之疾勿藥有喜】不卜非義【不疑何卜】子曰君子不受虛譽不祈妄福不避死義【三者常徳也】文中子曰記人之善而忘其過溫大雅能之【深而宏能容物】處貧賤而不懾魏徴能之【直而遂能強立】聞過而有喜色程元能之【好學】亂世羞富貴竇威能之【好禮儉肅竇田反】慎宻不出董常能之【知時】陳叔達謂子曰吾視夫子之道何其早成也【子謁隋文帝時年二十一是早成】子曰通於道有志焉又焉取乎早成耶【言志學於道非務早成】叔達出遇程元竇威於塗因言之程元曰夫子之成也吾儕慕道乆矣未嘗不充欲焉【所問道必充其欲】逰夫子之門者未有問而不知求而不給者也【凡登門者皆充欲】詩云實獲我心葢天啟之非積學能致也【言早成亦非志學葢天縱生知爾】子聞之曰元汝知乎哉天下未有不學而成者也【必須學】或問長生神仙之道子曰仁義不修孝悌不立奚為長生【苟不仁不孝長生何為】甚矣人之無厭也【秦皇漢武無厭妄求】或問嚴光樊英名隠【光字子陵少與漢光武同學除為諫議不就耕於富春山釣於瀬上樊英字季齊明經善推歩之術順帝徴不出隠於壺山此並不求名而隠故曰名隠】子曰古之避言人也【避譭譽之言而已】問東方朔【朔字曼倩漢武帝時為郎諸郎呼為狂人醉歌曰陸沈於俗避世金馬門】子曰人隠者也【詭跡混俗不自求別於眾人故曰人隠】子曰自太伯虞仲已來天下鮮避地者也【古公長子太伯次虞仲少季厯季厯子昌有聖瑞太伯虞仲知立季厯以及昌於是如荊吳以讓季厯一雲虞仲乃仲雍之孫也君於吳後武王克商封虞仲於周未知孰是言二人皆奔之逺地以避賢君故曰避地】仲長子光天隠者也無往而不適矣【因言數人其隠則一而道徳相逺或蔵名或混俗或讓國皆執一有跡也惟天隱浩然太虛孰為名孰為俗孰為國惟變所適人不能知是天隠也】子曰遁世無悶其避世之謂乎【避世即天隠也生世間治則彰亂則晦樂則行憂則違適時而已又何悶哉此與名隠人隠地隠異矣】非夫無可無不可不能齊也【可不可齊致則成天隠】文中子曰小雅盡廢而春秋作矣【四夷交侵故春秋作以尊中國】小化皆衰而天下非一帝【續詩有大化小化亦大小雅之義也及其衰也四夷僣帝號故曰非一帝】元經所以續而作者其衰世之意乎【救世衰故續春秋之法】子在絳出於野遇陳守【叔達時為絳郡守】曰夫子何之乎子曰將之夏【絳州夏城縣】陳守令勸吏息役【慮其師見役民】董常聞之曰吾知夫子行國矣未嘗虛行也【漢置八使行國以觀天下風俗文中子一布衣出行而郡守息役是不虛行也】賈瓊事楚公因防而歸以告子【楚公注見上】子曰瓊汝將閉門卻掃歟不知緘口而內修也【古人杜門卻掃者義在緘口淨其內也】瓊未達古人之意焉【將謂真閉門】仲長子光曰在險而運竒不若宅平而無為【運竒一時之用無為長世之圖】文中子以為知言【言得大者逺者】文中子曰其名彌消其徳彌長其身彌退其道彌進此人其知之矣【此人即謂仲長子光也退宅平無為則知消長進退之極致也】子曰知之者不如行之者【苟不能行猶不知】行之者不如安之者【委物以能不勞聰明安然而事自行此亦廣上文無為之義】仲長子光字不曜董常字履常子曰稱徳矣子之叔弟績字無功子曰字朋友之職也【朋友呼而字之非自立也】神人無功非爾所宜也常名之【績終號無功子自作傳棄官不仕】季弟名靜薛收字之曰保名子聞之曰薛生善字矣靜能保名有稱有誡薛生於是乎可與友也【表徳則稱之未有可稱則誡之葢益友矣】

The Master said: As for ritual and music, I have only corrected what was lost [only correcting the wording of the history of ritual and music]. As for creating them, that waits for a clear-sighted sage, who must surely be raised to high honor [only when the kingly way flourishes can ritual and music be made; a clear-sighted gentleman must obtain the exalted position of a high minister before he can help bring the kingly way to completion]. Jia Qiong and Xue Shou said: If the Way cannot be practiced, what then? The Master said: If parents are at ease with you, brothers love you, and friends trust you, and this extends to the conduct of government, then the Way is practiced; how can you say it is not practiced? [In a disordered age, when the Way cannot save the world, cultivating oneself to set one's household right is enough.] The Master said: The marriages of the Ren, Xue, Wang, Liu, Cui and Lu clans are not in the ancient manner; why look at the genealogies? [In ancient times clan genealogies were used to mark out family standing and to be careful about marriage (the base text has a character that is probably a copying error for "mark"). The Ren clan descends from Da Ren, a sixth-generation descendant of the Yellow Emperor, and the Xue clan from Xi Zhong, also a sixth-generation descendant, who dwelt in Xue; these two clans share a genealogy. The Wang clan descends from the line of Shun enfeoffed at Liu, and in the Han the title of King of Qi gave rise to the Wang clan; these two share a genealogy. The Cui clan descends from Jiang Yuan, consort of Emperor Ku, who dwelt in the town of Cui, and the Lu clan too descends from the Jiang line and dwelt in the state of Lu; these two share a genealogy. By ancient ritual, such clans did not intermarry.] Wenzhongzi said: It has been a long time since an emperor was truly like an emperor [the title of emperor claimed by the many kings was inherited from earlier ages, beginning with the First Emperor of Qin; hence he says it has been long since there was a true emperor]. Wang Xiaoyi said: May I ask what the Yuan Jing means by "emperor" [the Three Dynasties called their rulers kings, so the Spring and Autumn Annals writes "king" to honor the Son of Heaven and to receive the correct calendar; Qin and Han called theirs emperors, so the Yuan Jing writes "emperor" to honor the Central States and make plain the legitimate line]? The Master said: Examine the name and seek out the reality; this cannot be dropped [citing the names of later ages, the value lies in preserving the reality of the earlier emperors; the Son of Heaven of the Central States cannot give up this title]. As emperors, in fact the reality was lost and only the name remained [the reality is the Way; the name is an empty title only]. Someone asked about Xie An. The Master said: Simple [Xie An, courtesy name Anshi, was chancellor of the Eastern Jin; though in wealth and rank he alone withdrew into quiet, showed no joy on defeating Fu Jian, and finally lived at ease in the Eastern Mountains; his simplicity can be seen]. He asked about Wang Dao. The Master said: Reverent [Wang Dao, courtesy name Maohong (a character is missing in the base text after transcription, namely "hong"), served as chancellor under three emperors of Jin, Yuan, Ming and Cheng, and each time he was promoted in rank he first paid homage at the tomb of Emperor Yuan; his reverence can be seen]. He asked about Wen Jiao. The Master said: A resolute man [Jiao, courtesy name Taizhen, with Wang Dao had merit in putting down the rebellions of Wang Dun and Su Jun. At first he garrisoned Wuchang, and on hearing of the national crisis he wept and led his troops to the rescue; the Son of Heaven kept Jiao to assist in government, and Jiao yielded the post to Wang Dao. His resoluteness can be known]. He asked about Huan Wen. The Master said: Near in wisdom but far in schemes; rarely does such a man avoid disaster [Wen, courtesy name Ziyuan, as a general of Jin had merit in defeating Li Shi and pacifying Fu Jian; as grand commander he campaigned north without cease, was defeated by Murong Chui, and on returning secretly harbored the ambition to usurp the throne (the base text has a character that is a mistake for "usurp"). This is the proof of being near in wisdom and far in schemes]. Jia Qiong asked about the way of living among a group. The Master said: Agreeing should not harm what is right, and differing should not injure others [outwardly agreeing yet inwardly being upright; inwardly differing yet outwardly doing no injury. This is the Doctrine of the Mean, perhaps]. He asked: Can this be practiced for one's whole life? The Master said: Why can it not? ["Wu" here means "why".] People of old who had the Way did not lose their true nature within and did not differ from the customs of their time without. In this way they stayed whole [knowing that one can go along the Way together, not losing one's true nature one can take a stand together, not differing from custom one can act with flexibility together. With these three combined, where would one not be whole?]. Fan Shixuan (a character is missing in the base text after transcription, namely "xuan") said: May I ask the benefit of studying antiquity? The Master said: By holding to the past one commands what exists in the present, probably. The Master said: To dwell near and know what is far, to live in the present and know the past, is possible only through study [Confucius said: I was not born with knowledge; I love antiquity and diligently seek it]. The Master said: Reverence makes people submit [being solemn, people look at him and revere him (the base text has a mistaken character for "revere")], sincerity brings accomplishment [first make one's intentions true], and fairness transforms people [being without selfishness toward things, things too become impartial]. The Master said: I have never seen a man who is fair [Sui government was full of selfishness]. Someone said: A gentleman need only be benevolent; what use is ritual? The Master said: That cannot be done [practicing benevolence must be regulated by ritual]. Someone said: Was ritual set up for people like us? [These are the words of Ruan Ji.] The Master did not answer, but afterward said to Xue Shou: This man goes sideways and does not flow [he goes sideways into one corner and does not know the change of flowing freely], so how could he understand the meaning of teaching? You Ruo said the way of the former kings, in this, was beautiful [You Ruo was a disciple of Confucius]. Wenzhongzi said: With the rulers of the seven institutions, the Way was then at its height [for the seven institutions, see the note above]. Xue Shou said: Why is that so? The Master said: Alas, only an enlightened king can receive instruction [the continuation of the Book of Documents has the "Instruction" genre]. Shou said: Where there is no institution yet there is instruction; what does that mean? The Master said: Perhaps the institutions of the former emperors have not yet perished? And the commands of the great ministers are still upright? [For example, when the institutions of Emperor Xiaowu had not perished and the commands of Huo Guang were still upright, one could instruct the emperors of the Former Han; when the institutions of Guangwu (the base text has a mistaken character for "Guang") had not perished and the commands of Huan Rong were still upright, one could instruct the rulers of the Later Han.] Where there is no institution yet there is instruction, the world will probably have no great fault; otherwise the common people will not lack for great sorrow [for example, had the Prince of Changyi not been deposed and the Prince of Donghai not yielded, military strife would surely have arisen and the people would have grieved]. Xue Shou said: The "Eulogy" genre is probably not ancient [the continuation of the Book of Documents has the "Eulogy"]? The Master said: In the age of Tang and Yu it was then at its height. Yu the Great and Gao Yao thereby followed Heaven's good mandate [Yi gave a eulogy to Yu, and Gao Yao also said, "I would help and assist"]. Wenzhongzi said: Deliberation is what the Son of Heaven uses to gather views widely and listen broadly [the continuation of the Book of Documents has the "Deliberation" genre]. Only a ruler of utmost impartiality can choose among them [the court deliberates in common, choosing the good and following it]. Wenzhongzi said: The "Admonition" has probably reached the highest point [the continuation of the Book of Documents has the "Admonition"]? The enlightened kings of old were reverent about what they had not yet seen and fearful about what they had not yet heard, and engraved their warnings on basins and bowls [the basin inscription says "virtue renews itself daily"; Xunzi says: the ruler is the basin and the people are the water; if the basin is round the water is round; the ruler is the bowl, and if the bowl is square the water is square] and carved them on tables and staffs [the staff inscription says "support the endangered and steady the toppling"; all are admonitions]. At rest they had constant mindfulness, in action they made no mistakes; this is probably the achievement of the admonition [constant mindfulness of daily renewal and the admonition to support the endangered naturally leave no fault]. Xue Shou said: Remonstrance can probably reveal the heart of a loyal minister [the continuation of the Book of Documents has the "Remonstrance"]? His will is straight and his words are perilous [a straight will is like Zhou Chang saying, "My mouth cannot speak, but my heart knows it cannot be done"; perilous words are like Fan Kuai saying, "Has Your Majesty alone not seen the affair of Zhao Gao?"]. The Master said: One must be straight without being pressing and perilous without being abusive; this is probably the conduct of one who knows destiny [not pressing is like Jia Yi saying, "Those who give counsel today all say the world is well governed, but I alone think it is not yet so"; knowing destiny is knowing that if one's ruler can be remonstrated with one remonstrates, and in advancing or withdrawing does not go against the mandate of Heaven]. One who is cunning and goes against his superior I do not approve of [cunning means the will is not straight and the words are not perilous, which is not loyal compliance, so it is called going against]. Jia Qiong said: How cruel; Emperor Wu of Han never once followed remonstrance. The Master said: Emperor Xiaowu was perhaps born with knowledge? Though he did not follow it, he never failed to take it with pleasure and tolerance [the Master said that Emperor Wu of Han, on the whole, was born knowing and ordered affairs without needing others' remonstrance. Early in his reign he honored the Imperial Academy, established the Hall of Light, dismissed the hundred schools and set examinations for worthy men; with great talent and bold strategy, all this was Heaven-given. Even Ji An's hard criticism and Dongfang Shuo's jesting, though not heeded, were tolerated]. So worthy men were gathered at court, and straight words were pressed close to his ears. He had a will toward the Way, and so he could repent and restore the imperial enterprise [the worthy men were such as Dong Zhongshu, Shen Gong, Mei Gao, Sima Xiangru, Yan Zhu and Xu Le. Whenever the great ministers presented matters, these men all debated them, so they were gathered at court and attached to his ear. In his later years he issued an edict showing awareness of his regret over military campaigns, and enfeoffed Chancellor Tian Qianqiu as Marquis of Enriching the People; this is repenting, and the imperial enterprise was restored]. Can one not say he was a ruler with a will? [This is why the continuation of the Book of Documents has the "Will" genre.] The Master said: The eloquence of Yao Yi, the wisdom of Li Jing, the uprightness of Jia Qiong and Wei Zheng, the benevolence of Xue Shou, the writing of Cheng Yuan and Wang Xiaoyi, together with steadfastness [the seven men each had one strength, and with added sincerity there is firmness], extended by ritual and music, can make a complete man [once firm, he will surely be able to achieve it; only after one has mastered ritual and music is it complete]. The Master said that Jing Fang and Guo Pu were men of old who threw constants into disorder [Jing Fang, courtesy name Junming, studied the lore of calamities and changes and used the hexagrams to assign each day's affairs. His family name was originally Li, but he reckoned the pitch-pipes himself and changed it to Jing. Guo Pu, courtesy name Jingchun, was fond of yin-yang and calculation arts, let down his hair and held a knife in his mouth, and in the end was executed. Both men departed from the right classics and threw human relations into disorder]. The Master said: When the capping ceremony is abandoned, the world has no adults; when the marriage ceremony is abandoned, the world has no family way [the capping and marriage rites for gentlemen, capping at twenty and marrying at thirty, by which one becomes an adult and sets the household right, cannot be abandoned]; when mourning rites are abandoned, the world abandons its parents; when sacrificial rites are abandoned, the world forgets its ancestors [this also refers to the mourning and sacrificial rites of gentlemen. Mencius said that there has never been a benevolent man who abandoned his parents, and also that sacrifice must begin with one's ancestors]. Alas, there is nothing I can do about it [grieving that the age has abandoned these four rites]. The Duke of Yue asked about government. The Master said: Be reverent and frugal [Yang Su was arrogant and extravagant, so he was guarded against (here the word for "guard" means to dike or embank)]. The Duke of Pi asked about government [Su Wei was enfeoffed as Duke of Pi and served as Grand Secretary]. The Master said: Be pure and fair [Wei, as an old minister of high rank, brought his son Su Kui into the government, which was not pure or fair, so he too was admonished]. The Duke of Anping asked about government [Li Delin was enfeoffed as Duke of Anping commandery]. The Master said: Do not contend with others over reputation [Delin made a name in letters, but was often self-assured and was slandered in his time, so he was admonished not to contend over reputation]. The Master said to Xue Shou and Jia Qiong: The Spring and Autumn Annals and the Yuan Jing probably carry the meaning of a declining age; their righteousness is direct but subtle, their words roundabout but on target [direct yet subtle, roundabout yet on target, probably acting with flexibility to take the mean]. When the Duke of Yue first saw the Master, he met the Palace Secretary, Lord Xue, and said: Have you met Wang Tong? [Yang Su was asking Xue Daoheng.] Lord Xue said: He is a man from my home region [both their families were in Hedong]. His family has handed down its learning for seven generations [the family tradition was Confucian learning], all with the way of ordering the world but without meeting the right post [not meeting an enlightened age]. The Duke of Yue said: How can there be seven generations in the world who did not meet the right time? Lord Xue said: When the way of the gentleman is on the wane, even ten generations without meeting it can happen [for example, from Fu Fuhe succeeding Duke Li, through Zheng Kaofu assisting Dukes Dai, Wu and Xuan, to Kong Fujia setting up Duke Shang, down to Zhongni, three hundred years in all without meeting an enlightened age; thirty years make a generation]. The Duke of Yue said: How does he compare with his forebears? Lord Xue said: The Wang family has grandfathers and fathers, sons and grandsons. Even so, those who stay long in their Way concentrate the finest in this man, and this man will surely be able to set the constant relations in order (a character is missing in the base text after transcription, namely "constant") [the Six Classics are continued and the constant relations put in order]. The Master came out through Pu Pass [from Chang'an, leaving by the Longmen Pass of Puzhou to return north to Jin]. The pass official Lu Feng stopped him and said: You still must not leave me, the living people. [Lu Feng was a worthy man who hid himself as a pass official.] The Master stayed one night for him and left the next day [the Master knew he was worthy and meant the living people, so he stayed specially for him and could not bear to leave at once]. Lu Feng saw the Master off and said: Go on. The sturgeon and whales of the rivers and lakes cannot be contained by ditches and channels [the sage's way is great and is not understood by the many petty ones]. Cheng Yuan said: May I ask what is meant by "wind comes out of fire: the family" [the judgment text of the Book of Changes]? The Master said: Brightness is within and order is without [Li is brightness, Xun is order], so when the family way is right the world is right [one who governs a state first sets his household in order]. The Master said: Benevolence and righteousness are probably the root of teaching [the way of establishing humankind is called benevolence and righteousness; this is called the root of teaching]. The former kings used these to continue the Way and virtue and to raise ritual and music [Han Yu said that benevolence and righteousness are fixed names, while the Way and virtue are empty positions. So the Way and virtue are the root, and benevolence, tempered by the mean and harmony, is what makes ritual and music]. The Master said: Ritual is probably the gate of the supreme ridgepole? It is how sages face the light and regulate the world [as a figure of speech the gate faces south, lets people go in and out, and sets limits between inside and outside]. It probably holds to the middle way [this explains the meaning of the supreme ridgepole in the previous passage]. So it can distinguish high from low and settle the people's will [superiors do not press on inferiors, inferiors do not overstep superiors, and people's wills are naturally settled; this is the mean]. Someone asked about the gentleman. The Master said: He knows the subtle, knows the manifest, knows the soft and knows the hard [Book of Changes, Appended Remarks]. He asked: The gentleman is not a utensil; what does that mean? The Master said: That is what it is to be not a utensil [this very knowing of the subtle, the manifest, the soft and the hard is being not a utensil (the base text has a mistaken character for "know" before "manifest", with the word "subtle" omitted following the preceding passage)]. Wenzhongzi said: In the age of Zhou and Qi, kings, dukes and great ministers had no leisure to attend to ritual [from Gao Yang of Northern Qi to Gao Wei was twenty-eight years, and from Yuwen Jue of Later Zhou to the Duke of Jie was twenty-five years; day after day they sought shield and spear, and though there were famous ministers, how could they find leisure to attend to ritual]. Duke Xian said [Duke Xian of Ankang]: When the Son of Heaven loses ritual, the feudal lords cultivate it in their states; when the feudal lords lose ritual, the great officers cultivate it in their families [after the Zhou moved east, the rites of the state were lost, and when Han Xuanzi went to Lu he said that the rites of Zhou were in Lu, this being the feudal lords cultivating them in their states. The Three Families of Lu monopolized government, and eight rows of dancers performed in the courtyard; only when Confucius returned from Wei to Lu were ritual and music settled, this being the great officers cultivating them in their families]. The making of ritual and music was Duke Xian's aspiration [the "Discourse on Ritual" and "Discourse on Music" were probably composed by extending Duke Xian's aspiration]. Cheng Yuan asked about the purport of the Six Classics [the continuations]. The Master said: I continued the Book of Documents to preserve the reality of Han and Jin [the continuation of the Book of Documents begins with Emperor Gaozu of Han and ends with Emperor Wu of Jin], continued the Book of Songs to distinguish the customs of the six dynasties [the songs of the six dynasties are given above], compiled the Yuan Jing to settle doubts between north and south [after Jin moved east, southern scholars who reckoned the cycles therefore took Qi, Liang and Chen as the legitimate line; the Later Wei held the Central Plain, so northern scholars who reckoned the cycles took Northern Qi, Zhou and Sui as legitimate. Thus the two histories, southern and northern, called each other barbarians and the world was in doubt. This is why the Yuan Jing honors the Central States: when the Central States have no ruler, legitimacy lies with Jin and Song, and when the Central States have a ruler, legitimacy goes to Wei and Zhou], praised the Way of the Changes to set forth and make plain the purport of the former teachers (the base text has a mistaken character for "purport") [setting forth the Ten Wings], and corrected ritual and music to expose the faults of later kings [where later kings departed from the creations of the Duke of Zhou, I discussed and corrected them]. That is all. Cheng Yuan said: One who creates is called a sage, one who transmits is called enlightened; where does the Master stand ["stand" means to take the middle position]? The Master said: As for the Way, I merely make it plain again and again [meaning that I neither create nor transmit; probably because subtle words were cut off and great meanings were distorted, I only make them plain again and again]. Probably I love it and can take pleasure in it, work at it and do not tire [meaning that I merely love learning and do not tire of it]. As for sage and enlightened, how would I dare to claim them [not daring to accept what Cheng Yuan said]. The Master said: Some obtain it by sitting, and some do not obtain it by sitting; some arrive by walking, and some arrive without walking [Laozi said, "sitting, one advances in this Way"; the Book of Documents said, "practice is the hard part". Sitting and walking are one, yet some obtain and some do not, some arrive and some do not. This is saying that people's natures differ, each according to what they have practiced, and so they are far apart]. The Master said: Seeing and preserving [preserving in the heart what one has seen] is not as good as preserving without seeing [not waiting to see, the heart always preserves it, as one hits the mark without effort and is trusted without speaking]. The Master said: A gentleman can be invited but cannot be lured [he can be invited by ritual but not lured by schemes], can be abandoned but cannot be insulted [abandoning means the Ways differ; insulting injures the teaching of names]. To praise lightly and slander carelessly, to love and hate and favor anger, is small men's way [these four follow one's feelings]. The Master said: Those who associate through power will break off when power falls; those who associate through profit will scatter when profit runs out. So the gentleman does not take part [does not associate with them]. The Master said that Xue Shou was good at dealing with small men, being distant but not estranged, near but not familiar, easy and unaffected ["easy and unaffected" means without stiffness]. The Master toured the Fen Pavilion and sat playing the zither [a gentleman does not put away the zither]. A man fishing from a boat passed by and said: How fine is the zither's meaning! [The fisherman was a recluse, who knew its meaning on hearing the zither.] It is grieved yet gentle, resentful yet calm! [grief, resentment, gentleness and calm are the slackening and tightening of the strings]. Dwelling in mountains and marshes yet having the aspiration of the temple and court: if not Taigong in Panxi, then Zhongni living by the Si River [in a disordered age worthy men hide in the wilds. Pronunciation note: "Pan" is read bo-guan]. The Master suddenly played the Southern Breeze. The fisherman said: Ah, that is not for today. A Way able to benefit the living people, a merit sufficient to save the world, perhaps this comes from the heart of the Lord of Youyu? It is better that Shun himself play it. The sound remains but the mood has changed [the sound of the Southern Breeze as handed down remains, but the feeling of the one who plays it has changed and is no longer similar]. The Master quickly put down the zither and said to his disciples: Is it so, that feeling alters sound? He rose, about to invite him over, but the fisherman shook his pole, beat the oar and left. The disciples chased after him. The Master said: Do not pursue. Wu the drum-shaker entered the river, and Xiang the stone-chime striker went into the sea; there have always been such things [the officials in charge of the hand drum and the stone chime, Wu and Xiang being their names. In the time of Duke Ai of Lu ritual collapsed and music was lost, and the musicians all left]. So he recorded this and composed the "Fen Pavilion Melody" [Wenzhongzi composed this melody]. The Master went to Xiacheng [Jiangzhou has Xiacheng county]. Xue Shou and Yao Yi were behind, and met a swineherd to ask the way. The herder said: Whom do you follow? Xue Shou said: We follow Master Wang. The herder said: There are birds, there are birds, and they fly in the sky; there are fish, there are fish, and they dive in the deep [one text has "spring" here; later people avoided a Tang taboo]. Those who know are perhaps silent [the herder too was a recluse; the meaning is that fish and birds even find their places, so why do those who know not keep silent and hide away]. The Master heard this and said to Xue Shou: To perfect oneself alone is acceptable [this rebukes the herder]. If there is no one who speaks, who will make the Way plain? [Since he says he knows, he cannot perfect himself alone; he must speak to the world so that it is made clear and put into practice.] The Master did not read faces for fortune [one must not judge people by appearance], did not pray over illness [an unexpected illness needs no medicine to bring joy], and did not divine about what is not righteous [if there is no doubt, why divine]. The Master said: A gentleman does not accept empty praise, does not pray for undeserved blessing, and does not shun death for righteousness [these three are constant virtues]. Wenzhongzi said: Remembering others' good and forgetting their faults, Wen Daya is able [deep and broad, able to hold others]; remaining unafraid in poverty and low station, Wei Zheng is able [straight and thorough, able to stand firm]; glad when hearing of his faults, Cheng Yuan is able [fond of learning]; ashamed of wealth and rank in a disordered age, Dou Wei is able [fond of ritual, frugal and grave; pronunciation note: "Dou" is read tian-hou (a character is missing in the base text after transcription, namely "hou")]; careful, secretive and not going out, Dong Chang is able [knowing the times]. Chen Shuda said to the Master: Looking at the Master's Way, how early it was accomplished [the Master had his audience with Emperor Wen of Sui at twenty-one; this is early accomplishment]. The Master said: One who has a will toward the Way, how would he look for early accomplishment? [This says that one sets one's will on learning the Way and does not strive for early accomplishment.] Shuda went out and met Cheng Yuan and Dou Wei on the road, and told them of it. Cheng Yuan said: As to the Master's accomplishment, we who admire the Way have long known it, and he has never failed to fulfill our desire [what is asked about the Way he always fulfills fully]. Of those who visit the Master's gate, none asks without being answered or seeks without being supplied [all who come to his door are satisfied]. The Book of Songs says, "it truly gains my heart". Probably Heaven opened it, and it cannot be reached by accumulated study [this says that early accomplishment is not from aspiring to learn but probably from being Heaven-endowed with innate knowledge]. The Master heard this and said: Yuan, do you know? There is no one in the world who succeeds without learning [one must learn]. Someone asked about the way of long life and immortals. The Master said: If benevolence and righteousness are not cultivated and filial piety and brotherly respect not established, what use is a long life? [If one is neither benevolent nor filial, what is long life for?] How excessive, people's insatiability! [The First Emperor of Qin and Emperor Wu of Han were insatiable and sought recklessly.] Someone asked about Yan Guang and Fan Ying, reclusion for the sake of fame [Guang, courtesy name Ziling, studied in youth with Emperor Guangwu of Han, was appointed a remonstrance counselor but did not take office, and farmed at Fuchun Mountain and fished at the rapids. Fan Ying, courtesy name Jiqi, was learned in the classics and skilled in calendrical calculation, was summoned by Emperor Shun but did not go out, and lived in hiding at Hu Mountain. Neither sought fame by reclusion, so it is called reclusion for fame]. The Master said: People of old who avoided words [merely avoiding words of praise and blame]. He asked about Dongfang Shuo [Shuo, courtesy name Manqian, was a gentleman attendant under Emperor Wu of Han; the other attendants called him mad, and in his drunken song he said, "hidden among the common crowd, avoiding the world at the Golden Horse Gate"]. The Master said: A man who hides among men [he concealed his traces and blended into custom, not seeking to distinguish himself from others, so it is called hiding among men]. The Master said: Since Taibo and Yuzhong, there have been few in the world who withdrew from their land [Gugong's eldest son was Taibo, the second Yuzhong, the youngest Jili. Jili's son Chang had a sage's omens, and Taibo and Yuzhong, knowing that Jili would be established and then Chang, went to Jing and Wu to yield to Jili. One account says Yuzhong was a grandson of Zhongyong, ruled at Wu, and later King Wu, after conquering Shang, enfeoffed Yuzhong in Zhou; which is right is unknown. The point is that both fled to a distant land to avoid a worthy ruler, so it is called withdrawing from the land]. Master Zhongchang Guang was a man who hid in Heaven, going nowhere without being at ease [on account of this he mentioned several men; their hiding was one but their Way and virtue were far apart. Some concealed their names, some blended into custom, some yielded the state, all clinging to one thing and leaving traces. Only hiding in Heaven is vast and empty; what is name, what is custom, what is a state? One goes only where change takes one, and people cannot know it; this is hiding in Heaven]. The Master said: To withdraw from the world without distress is probably the meaning of avoiding the world [avoiding the world is hiding in Heaven. Living in the world, when it is well ordered one shines and when disordered one is dim, when happy one acts and when sorrowful one departs, only according to the time, so what is there to be distressed about? This differs from hiding for fame, hiding among men, or hiding by withdrawing from a land]. If one is not the sort who says nothing is permitted and nothing forbidden, one cannot make them equal [if allowed and not allowed are brought to one, it becomes hiding in Heaven]. Wenzhongzi said: When the Lesser Odes were entirely abandoned the Spring and Autumn Annals was made [the four barbarians invaded in turn, so the Spring and Autumn Annals was made to honor the Central States]. When the lesser transformation had declined the world no longer had one emperor [the continuation of the Book of Songs has the Greater Transformation and the Lesser Transformation, which also carry the meaning of the Greater and Lesser Odes. When they declined, the four barbarians usurped the title of emperor, so he says there was not one emperor]. The Yuan Jing was continued and made probably with the meaning of a declining age [to rescue a declining age, hence continuing the method of the Spring and Autumn Annals]. The Master was in Jiang and went out into the countryside, and met the Governor of Chen [Shuda at that time was governor of Jiang commandery], who said: Where is the Master going? The Master said: I am going to Xia [Xiacheng county of Jiangzhou]. The Governor of Chen ordered the officials to stop the labor service [out of concern that his teacher would see the people being conscripted]. Dong Chang heard of it and said: I know now that the Master's travels through the states have never been in vain [the Han set up eight envoys to travel the states to observe the customs of the world. Wenzhongzi, a commoner, traveled and a governor stopped his labor service; this is not a vain journey]. Jia Qiong served the Duke of Chu and returned home because of slander (the base text has a mistaken character for "slander"), and took it to tell the Master [for the Duke of Chu, see the note above]. The Master said: Qiong, will you close your door and sweep away visitors? You do not know to seal your mouth and cultivate within [the ancients closed their doors and swept away visitors, the sense being to seal the mouth and purify the inside]. Qiong had not yet understood the ancients' meaning [he thought it was to really close the door]. Zhongchang Zi Guang said: Taking risks and working wonders is not as good as dwelling in peace and doing nothing [working wonders is for a moment's use; doing nothing is a plan for the long term]. Wenzhongzi considered this knowing words [meaning that it grasps what is great and far-reaching]. Wenzhongzi said: The more his name fades, the more his virtue grows; the more his person withdraws, the more his Way advances. This man probably understood [this man refers to Zhongchang Zi Guang. Withdrawing, dwelling in peace and doing nothing, he knew the ultimate of waning and waxing, retreat and advance]. The Master said: One who knows it is not as good as one who practices it [if one cannot practice it, it is as if one did not know]; one who practices it is not as good as one who is at ease in it [entrusting things to those who are able, not wearying one's own hearing and sight, resting at ease while affairs carry on by themselves. This also extends the meaning of doing nothing in the passage above]. Zhongchang Zi Guang's courtesy name was Buyao, and Dong Chang's courtesy name was Lüchang. The Master said: They match their virtue. The Master's uncle and younger brother Ji had the courtesy name Wugong. The Master said: A courtesy name is the duty of friends [friends call one by it; one does not set it for oneself]. A divine man has no merit, which is not what you should have. He gave him this name regularly [Ji in the end took the style "Wugong", wrote his own biography, and gave up office and did not serve]. His youngest brother was named Jing, and Xue Shou gave him the courtesy name Baoming. The Master heard it and said: Master Xue is good at choosing courtesy names. Being still can preserve a name; there is both praise and warning in it. With Master Xue one can make friends [when a virtue is shown he praises it, and when there is not yet anything praiseworthy he warns. He is probably a beneficial friend].