No More Learning

XXXIII
L He said : You cannot know a proper man by small thmgs, but he can take hold of big ones, a small man cannot take hold of great things, but you can understand hrm by the small.
XXXIV
1. He said : The folk's humanity is deeper than fire or
water, I've seen people die from standing on fire or water.
I have seen no one die from taking a stand on his.
s~id :
(or even: Ive t. ned gomg a whole day without eating)
1;
H e
manho. od.
105
? ? ? ? --------. . . --
? CONFUCIAN ANALECTS
(Much of the raciness of Kung's remarks must lie in the click of a phrase, and the turning of different facets ? Of the word. ) Shen 5724, tao 6140, if in sense of violate, one can read the
remark as deep irony.
xxxv
1. He said: Manhood's one's own, not leavable to
teacher.
[Tang, 6087, has very interesting compfrx of mewnings, among which: undertake, fill an office. L. nearer meaning: functioning of man- hood cannot be handed over to teacher, more ironically: pedagogue. ]
XXXVI
1. He said : The proper man has a shell and a direc-
tion (chen').
This chen is a key word, . technical, from the "Changes" it is more t. han the ataraxia of stoics the insensitivity, ability to "take it. " It impli;s goitng somewhere. The Confucian will find most terms of Greek philosophy and most Greek aphorisms lacking in some essential~? they have three parts . of a necessary four, or four parts where five are needed, nice car, no carburetor, gearshift lacking.
He does not merely stick to a belief [pictogram: word and lofty, or capital].
XXXVII
1. He said : Serving a prince put reverence into the service, feeding comes second.
XXXVIII
1. He said : See that education has no snob divisions.
106
BOOK FIFTEEN
XXXIX
1. Those whose whole dispositions, whose whole
modes of thought and action are different, cannot plan
careers for each other.
XL
1. He said: Problem of style? Get the meaning across and then STOP.
XLI
1. Mien the (blind) musician called, when they reached the steps Confucius said: Steps; when they came to the mat, he said : Mat; when all were seated he said : So-and- so's there; so-and-so's over there.
2. Master Mien went out. Tze-chang asked : Is it
correct to speak to the music master in that way?
3.
He said : That is correct when helping the blind.
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? ? ? ? ? ? ? BOOK SIXTEEN
Ke She
The Head of Chi
I
1. The head of the Chi clan was about to attack Chwan-yii.
2. Zan Yu and Chi-Ju went to see Kung-tze, saying: The Chi Boss is going to give Chwan-yii the works.
3. Kung-tze said : Ain't that your fault, Hook?
4. It's a long time since one of the earlier kings appointed the headman of Chwan-yu to hold the sacrifices in East Mang, and it is in the middle of our own territory, the man who officiates at its chthonian and grain rites is one of our state servants, how can one attack it?
5. Zan Yu said: Our big man wants to, we two ministers are both against it.
6. Kung-tze said : Hook, Chau Zan used to say : While using your power, keep line; when you cannot, retire. How can one serve as guide to a blind man, if he do not support him, or help him up when he falls?
7. Moreover, your words err, when a tiger or rhino [P. buffle] gets out of its stockade, when a turtle or jewel
is broken in its casket, whose fault is that?
8. Zan Yu said: But Chwan-yii is now strong, and near Pi, if he don't take it now it vvill make trouble for
his sons and grandsons in corning generations.
9. Kung-tze said : Hook, you make a proper man sick refusing to say : I want, and needing to make a discourse
about it.
10. Me, Hillock. I have heard that men who have
states or head families are not worried about fewness, but worried about fairness [potter's wheel ideogram: aliter as verb: worried about ruling justly], not worried about scarcity, but worried about disquiet. If every man keeps
108
BOOK SIXTEEN
to his own land, there will be no poverty, with harmony there will be no lack of population but tranquillity without upsets (subversions).
11. It's just like that. Therefore if distant people do not conform, one should attract them by one's own dis- ciplined culture, and by honest action, when they have come in, they will quiet down.
12. Y ou, Y u and Ch'iu, are now aides to your big man, distant tribes do not come in, and cannot come [L. he cannot attract them]. The state is divided and decadent, people are going away and splitting up, the state can't hold onto them [L. h~ cannot preserve it].
13. And he plans to take up shield and lance inside the territory. I am afraid the Chi grandsons' trouble is not in Chwan-yil, it is inside their own door-yard, behind their own gate-screen. [Hsiao\ troublesome, or even whistling round their gate-screen. lVI. gives ch'iang, merely as wall. 2620. ]
II
1. Kung-tze said: When the empire is decently governed, the rites, music (musical taste), police work and punitive expeditions proceed from the Child of Heaven; when the empire is not governed, these proceed from tJ:ie feudal chiefs. When they are decided by these princes, they usually lose (sovereignty) within ten generations. vVhen these (rites, etc. ) proceed from the great officers the loss usually occurs within five generations; when the subsidiary ministers in charge of the states give the -orders, they usually smash within three generations.
2. When the empire is properly governed the govern- ment is NOT in the control of the great officers.
3. When the empire is properly governed, the folk don't discuss it.
III
1. Kung-tze said: For five generations the revenue has not come in to the ducal house. The government was
109
? ? ? ? ? ? ? CONFUCIAN ANALECTS
seized by the great officers, four generations ago, the three lines of the Hwan (Dukes) are mere epigones.
' IV
l. Kung-tze said : There are three valuable friend-
ships, and three harmful. Friendship with the straight, with the faithful [Liang, 3947 b. not in sense as above in XV, xxxvi, has also sense: considerate] and with the well- informed are an augment; making a convenience of snobs, nice softies (excellent squshies), and of pliant flatterers does one harm.
v
1. Kung-tze said : There are three pleasures which augment a man, three that harm. The pleasure of dis- sociating perceptions of rites and music; pleasure in other men's excellence; the pleasure in having a lot of friends with talent and character, augment; the enjoyment of
swank, loafing and debauchery, harm. VI
l. Kung-tze said : When you manage to meet a proper man, there are three committable errors : to speak when it is not up to you to speak, videlicet hastiness; not to speak when you should, that's called covertness; and to speak without noting a man's expression, that is called blindness.
VII
l. Kung-tze said : The proper man guards against three things : in youth before the blood and spirits have come to orderly course, he guards against taking root in luxurious appearances; at maturity when the blood and spirits are in hardy vigour, he guards against quarrel- someness; and in old age when the blood and spirits have waned, against avarice.
110
BOOK SIXTEEN
VIII
l. Kung-tze said : The proper man has three awes : he stands in awe of the decrees of destiny [heaven's mouth and seal], he stands in awe of great men, and of the words of the sages.
2. The piker does not recognise the decrees of heaven, he is cheeky with great men, and sneers at the words of the sages.
IX
1. Kung-tze said: Those who know instinctively (as at birth) are the highest; those who study and find out, come next; those who are hampered and study come next
[k'un, hampered, a tree bo,xed in, limited, in poverfylO chance of growth. In distress, weary]. Those who are boxed in [L. stupid] and do not study constitute the lowest people.
x
1. Kung-tze said: The proper man has three subjects of meditation : in seeing, that he see with intelligence [or with his intelligence, definite pictogram of moving eye and light from above, very strong and very inclusive phrase], in hearing, that he hear accurately, i. e. appre- hend [the component mind in lower nt/ of ideogram, get the meanVng], that his appearance be serene, his beari~g respectful, and that his speech come from the plumb centre of his mind (not slanty), that his affairs maintain
reverence [I do not think 1this ideogram, can be too far separated from the original s. ource, it has to do with vege- tative order] ; when in doubt, that he ask questions, and when enraged that he think of troublesome consequence; when he sees the chance of gain, that he think of equity.
Up to now we have IU1ll1 many definitions of words, several chapters define or dissociate categories, ref/ Ta S'eu, testament, verses 3, 4.
111
? ? ? ? CONFUCIAN ANALECTS
BOOK SIXTEEN
l heard of the Book of Rites, I heard that a proper man don't nag his son.
XIV
l. The wife of the prince of a state is styled by the prince : The distinguished person; she calls herself : Small child; the people of the state call her: The Prince's dis? tinguished person; those of other states style her : Little small sovran, and of (still) other states style her Prince's distinguished person.
XI.
l. Kung? tze said: Seeing the good as if unreachable; seeing evil as if it were boiling to the touch; I have seen such men, and heard such talk.
2. Living in retirement to find out what they really
want, practising equity to carry into conduct. I have heard conversation about this, but have not seen such men.
XII
l. Duke Ching of Ch'i had a thousand quadriga, on the day of his death (even at his funeral) the people did not praise his honesty [L. not praise for single virtue]. Po-i and Shu? ch'i died of hunger 'neath Southslope Head and the folk praise them down to this day.
2. That illustrates what I was saying.
Kung? fu-tzu's son
XIII
l. Ch'an K'ang asked Po-yu if he had heard anything "different" [i. e. from what K. told the rest of them].
2. He replied: No, he was standing alone (one day) as I was passing the hall in a hurry (or going by the court? yard), he said : Studied the odes? (Or are you studying the odes? )
I replied : No.
"Not study the odes, won't be able to use words. "
I went out and studied the Odes.
3. Another day he was again standing alone, I went
by the court in a hurry. Said : Studying the rites? Replied: No.
" If you don't study the rites you won't be able to
stand up" (build up a character).
I went out and studied the Rites.
4. Those are the two things I've heard (from him).
5. Ch'an K'ang retired saying delightedly: Asked one
question and got to three things. I heard of the Odes,
112
113
------------. . -------~
? ? ? ? ? ? ? BOOK SEVENTEEN
Yang H. o
(a minister who had usurped power)
I
l. Yang Ho wanted to see Confucius (Kung-tze), Kung-tze did not see him. He sent Kung-tze a pig. Kung- tze, timing to miss him, went out to pay his duty call, but met Yang on the road.
2.
He said : I want to talk to you : keeping treasure inside you, country in chaos, call that manly?
Said: No.
"In love with work (in love with following the service) continually missing the time, call that intelligent? "
Said: No.
~' Sun and moon move, the year don't wait for you. " Said : 0 . K. . I'll take office.
II
He said : Men are born pretty much alike, it's practis- ing something that puts distance between them.
III
He said: Only those of highest intelligence, and lowest simplicity do not shift. [L cannot be changed, le. rt probably. includes b. oth meaning$. ]
IV
(On cultural persuasfon)
l. At Battle-Wall he heard the sound of strmged instrtunents and singing.
2. The big man smiled with pleasure saying : Why use an ox knife to kill a fowl?
114
BOOK SEVENTEEN
3. Tze-yu replied, I'm the man, sir, who once heard
you say : If the gentleman studies the process and loves men, the lower people will study the process and be easy to rule. [I suppose Yen Tze-yu was in charge of tlv>s frontier town on a crag. ]
4. He said: You fellows, Yen's words are on the_ line,
I was just joking round it.
v
l. Kung-shan Fu-zao givmg trouble in the passes [field paths, 4896, short-cuts, hence vb/ rebel] of Pi,
invited him and he (Confucius) wanted to go.
2. Tze-Iu was "not amused," said: Not to be done,
that's that. Why must you poke into that Kung-shan gang?
3. He said : The man's invited me, suppose I go with
him [aliter: is that empty, an empty gesture. Depends on which sense one gives to 6536 (or c) t'uJ. suppose he should make use of me, couldn't I create a Chou in the East?
VI
Tze-chang asked Kung-tze about manhood. Kung-tze said: To be able [neng', power in union, as differing from k'e, power to support, hold up, carry] to practise five things (all together) wonld humanize the whole empire.
(Chang) asked clarification.
Said: Sobriety (? serenvtas), magnanimity, sticking by
one's word, promptitude (in attention to detail), kindli- ness (caritas).
Serenity will shape things so that you will not be insnlted.
With magnanimity you will reach the mass.
Keep your word and others will confide [aim: trust you enough to employ you].
115
- ------- ------
? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? pertinence.
116
-----------
? CONFUCIAN ANALECTS
By promptitude you will get through your jobs, (meritorious work).
Kindliness is enough to get results from those you employ.
VII
1. Pi Hsi invited him and he wanted to go.
Tze-Lu said : I, Sprout, am the chap who heard you
say, sir, "When a man personally does evil, a proper man
won't enter [won't go into (it with him)].
Pi-Hsi is in rebellion in Chung-rnau. If you go, what's
that like?
2. He said : I said it. But isn't it said : You can grind
a hard thing without making it thin.
Isn't it said : Some white things can be dipped and not
blackened. [Cf. G. Guinvcetli].
3. Am I like a bitter melon, to be hung up and not
eaten?
VIII
1. He said : Sprout, have you heard the six terms (technical terms) and the six befuddlements (over- growings)?
Replied : No.
2. " Sit down, I'll explain 'em to you. "
3. Love of manhood minus love of study: befuddle-
ment into naivete.
Love of knowledge without love of study: runs wild
into waste incorrelation.
Love of keeping one's word, without study runs amok
into doing harm.
Love of going straight without studying where to,
degenerates into bad manners.
Love of boldness without love of study, leads to chaos.
Love of hard edge (hardness, stiffness) leads to im-
BOOK SEVENTEEN
IX
1. He said :, Mes enfants, why does no one study the great Odes? [Or more probably: these Odes. ]
2. The Odes can exhilarate (lift the will).
3. Can give awareness (sharpen the vision, help yOu
spot the bird).
4. Can teach dissociation. [L. takes it as: exchange,
sociability. ]
5. Can cause resentment (against evil).
L. regulate feelings? ? katharsis? ? means o f dealing with resentment. I mistrust a soft interpretation.
6. Bring you near to being useful to your father and
mother, and go on to serving your sovran.
7. Remen1ber the names of many birds, animals, plants
and trees.
x
He said to (his son) Po-Yu: You go to work on the Chao-South and Shao-South poems. A man who hasn't worked on the Chao-nan and Shao-nan is like one who stands with his face to a wall.
XI
He said : Rites, they say, Rites! How do we place the
jewels and the silk robes? Music, they say, Music! Where do the gongs and drums stand? [Mind on in- struments not on shape of the musvc. ]
XII
He said : Hard as a whetstone outside and wobbly as grass (or squashy) inside is rather like a picayune fellow who bores a hole in a wall to steal.
XIII 2556 He said : These (? lenient) village prototypes are pur-
loiners (con men) acting on a conscience not their own
117
? ? ? ? ? ? CONFUCIAN ANALECTS
[L. takes yuan' (7725) as equiv. ; 7727. Rousseauesques] good careful, thieves of virtue. [P: cherchent /es suffrages des mllageois. Note 7725 a. J
XIV
He said : To pass on wayside gossip and smear with
BOOK SEVENTEEN
statements unl<ss they are taken as fixing the
meaning and usage of the words. ]
the old punctilio [attention, ed. almost be point of honour] was modest (implying consideration of values)' the present is mere peevishness ; the old simplicity was direct, the present consists in thinking you can fool others by simple wheezes, [or simply: is faked] and that's that.
XVII
He said: Elaborate phrases and a pious expression (L. M. insinuating) seldom indicate manliness.
XVIII
He said : I hate the way purple spoils vermilion, I hate the way the Chang sonority confuses the music of the Elegantiae, I hate sharp mouths (the clever yawp, mouths set on profits) that overturn states and families.
XIX
l. He said : I'd like to do without words.
2. Tze-kung said : But, boss, if you don't say it, how can we little guys pass it on?
3. He said: Sky, how does that talk? The four seasons go on, everything gets born. Sky, what words does the sky use?
xx
Zu Pei wanted to see Kung-tze. Kung-tze declined on
account of illness. As the messenger was going out the
front door, he took his lute and sang so that the latter
could hear.
L. notes indicate that Zu had probably asked advice before and not taken it, and that the call was fake, try on.
119
scolding is to defoliate one's candour. 2
'I'u is primarily smear, secondarily road, with binome L. and M. tell what one has heard on the road.
General sense perfectly clear, the verse is against careless gossip and ill-natured slander, "smear-scold" is there in the pictogram if one wants it.
(To waste acts proceeding from clear conscience) is to
stop acting on one's own inner perceptions.
xv
1. He said: How can one serve a prince along with these village-sized (kinky) minds?
2. Until they get on they worry about nothing else, and, when they have, they worry about losing the advantages.
3. When they are afraid of losing (advantages, privileges) there is nothing, absolutely nothing they will not do to retain (them) (no length they won't go to).
XVI
l. He said : iMen of old had three troubles which no longer exist.
2. The old uppishness was reckless (ostentatious), the
present uppishness, mere dissipation;
[Mvght say, old was hearty, present dissolute. Excess vs. pettiness, petty leaks. Exuberance vs. license. There is no~hing in such brief
118
? ? ? ? ? CONFUCIAN ANALECTS XXI
1. Tsai Wo asked about three years' mourning, wasn't one foll year enough?
2. He said : If gentlemen do not observe the rites, the rites will go to ruin; if music is not played for three years the music will slip down.
3. The old (good) grain is exhausted, the new grain has risen; fire you kindle by twirling wood is a different fire, you can stop at tht end of a year.
L. put. in idea that " kindling by friction we go thru all the changes of wood" on the belief that they used different kinds of wood drills at dirfjerent seas. ans, elm, willow, in spring, dat~, almond in summer. I should be more inclined to think that Kwng indicates a break in con- tinuity, but ends on the note: but do it if you
like. Cf. verse 6 below.
4. He said : You'd feel at ease eating your rice and
wearing embroidered clothes?
Said : Quite.
5. He said : If you can feel easy, go ahead, but the
proper man during the period of mourning, does not savour sweet food, does not delight in hearing n1usic, does not feel easy in cushy surroundings, and therefore does not indulge, but if you now feel easy about it, go ahead.
6. Tsai Wo went out.
He said : He is not fully humane, a child does not leave its parental arms till it is three; three years' mourning is observ<;d everywhere under heaven, did (Tsai Wo) Yu have three years' parental affection?
I suggest that the medimval debate betwem active and contemplative life is moderated Ui the old Chinese disposition, the need of con- templaitive period being answered by the years of mourning.
120
BOOK SEVENTEEN
XXII
, He said: Stuffing in food all day, nothing that he puts his mind on, a hard case ! Don't chess players at least do something and have solid merit by comparison? ?
XXIII
Tze-lu said : Does the proper man honour bravery?
He said : The proper man puts equity at the top, if a gentleman have courage without equity it will make a mess; if a mean man have courage without equity he will steal.
XXIV
1. Tze-kung said : Does the proper man have his hatreds also?
Said : He has hates, he hates those who proclaim the ill doing of others; he hates those who live below the current and s? lander those above; he hates those who are bold without observing the rites (don't use their courage rightly, audacious in outraging the proper procedures), he hates those who obstinately presume and obstruct* [or, 'vho are satisfied to presume and obstruct. ]
2.