The Analects By Confucius

The Analects By Confucius

Part 6

The Master said, “There is Yung!-He might occupy the place of a prince.”

Chung-kung asked about Tsze-sang Po-tsze. The Master said, “He may
pass. He does not mind small matters.”

Chung-kung said, “If a man cherish in himself a reverential feeling
of the necessity of attention to business, though he may be easy in
small matters in his government of the people, that may be allowed.
But if he cherish in himself that easy feeling, and also carry it
out in his practice, is not such an easymode of procedure excessive?”

The Master said, “Yung’s words are right.”
The Duke Ai asked which of the disciples loved to learn.

Confucius replied to him, “There was Yen Hui; he loved to learn. He
did not transfer his anger; he did not repeat a fault. Unfortunately,
his appointed time was short and he died; and now there is not such
another. I have not yet heard of any one who loves to learn as he
did.”

Tsze-hwa being employed on a mission to Ch’i, the disciple Zan requested
grain for his mother. The Master said, “Give her a fu.” Yen requested
more. “Give her a yi,” said the Master. Yen gave her five ping.

The Master said, “When Ch’ih was proceeding to Ch’i, he had fat horses
to his carriage, and wore light furs. I have heard that a superior
man helps the distressed, but does not add to the wealth of the rich.”

Yuan Sze being made governor of his town by the Master, he gave him
nine hundred measures of grain, but Sze declined them.

The Master said, “Do not decline them. May you not give them away
in the neighborhoods, hamlets, towns, and villages?”

The Master, speaking of Chung-kung, said, “If the calf of a brindled
cow be red and homed, although men may not wish to use it, would the
spirits of the mountains and rivers put it aside?”

The Master said, “Such was Hui that for three months there would be
nothing in his mind contrary to perfect virtue. The others may attain
to this on some days or in some months, but nothing more.”

Chi K’ang asked about Chung-yu, whether he was fit to be employed
as an officer of government. The Master said, “Yu is a man of decision;
what difficulty would he find in being an officer of government?”
K’ang asked, “Is Ts’ze fit to be employed as an officer of government?”
and was answered, “Ts’ze is a man of intelligence; what difficulty
would he find in being an officer of government?” And to the same
question about Ch’iu the Master gave the same reply, saying, “Ch’iu
is a man of various ability.”

The chief of the Chi family sent to ask Min Tsze-ch’ien to be governor
of Pi. Min Tszech’ien said, “Decline the offer for me politely. If
any one come again to me with a second invitation, I shall be obliged
to go and live on the banks of the Wan.”

Po-niu being ill, the Master went to ask for him. He took hold of
his hand through the window, and said, “It is killing him. It is the
appointment of Heaven, alas! That such a man should have such a sickness!
That such a man should have such a sickness!”

The Master said, “Admirable indeed was the virtue of Hui! With a single
bamboo dish of rice, a single gourd dish of drink, and living in his
mean narrow lane, while others could not have endured the distress,
he did not allow his joy to be affected by it. Admirable indeed was
the virtue of Hui!”

Yen Ch’iu said, “It is not that I do not delight in your doctrines,
but my strength is insufficient.” The Master said, “Those whose strength
is insufficient give over in the middle of the way but now you limit
yourself.”

The Master said to Tsze-hsia, “Do you be a scholar after the style
of the superior man, and not after that of the mean man.”

Tsze-yu being governor of Wu-ch’ang, the Master said to him, “Have
you got good men there?” He answered, “There is Tan-t’ai Miehming,
who never in walking takes a short cut, and never comes to my office,
excepting on public business.”

The Master said, “Mang Chih-fan does not boast of his merit. Being
in the rear on an occasion of flight, when they were about to enter
the gate, he whipped up his horse, saying, “It is not that I dare
to be last. My horse would not advance.”

The Master said, “Without the specious speech of the litanist T’o
and the beauty of the prince Chao of Sung, it is difficult to escape
in the present age.”

The Master said, “Who can go out but by the door? How is it that men
will not walk according to these ways?”

The Master said, “Where the solid qualities are in excess of accomplishments,
we have rusticity; where the accomplishments are in excess of the
solid qualities, we have the manners of a clerk. When the accomplishments
and solid qualities are equally blended, we then have the man of virtue.”

The Master said, “Man is born for uprightness. If a man lose his uprightness,
and yet live, his escape from death is the effect of mere good fortune.”

The Master said, “They who know the truth are not equal to those who
love it, and they who love it are not equal to those who delight in
it.”

The Master said, “To those whose talents are above mediocrity, the
highest subjects may be announced. To those who are below mediocrity,
the highest subjects may not be announced.”

Fan Ch’ih asked what constituted wisdom. The Master said, “To give
one’s self earnestly to the duties due to men, and, while respecting
spiritual beings, to keep aloof from them, may be called wisdom.”
He asked about perfect virtue. The Master said, “The man of virtue
makes the difficulty to be overcome his first business, and success
only a subsequent consideration;-this may be called perfect virtue.”

The Master said, “The wise find pleasure in water; the virtuous find
pleasure in hills. The wise are active; the virtuous are tranquil.
The wise are joyful; the virtuous are long-lived.”

The Master said, “Ch’i, by one change, would come to the State of
Lu. Lu, by one change, would come to a State where true principles
predominated.”

The Master said, “A cornered vessel without corners-a strange cornered
vessel! A strange cornered vessel!”

Tsai Wo asked, saying, “A benevolent man, though it be told him,-‘There
is a man in the well” will go in after him, I suppose.” Confucius
said, “Why should he do so?” A superior man may be made to go to the
well, but he cannot be made to go down into it. He may be imposed
upon, but he cannot be fooled.”

The Master said, “The superior man, extensively studying all learning,
and keeping himself under the restraint of the rules of propriety,
may thus likewise not overstep what is right.”

The Master having visited Nan-tsze, Tsze-lu was displeased, on which
the Master swore, saying, “Wherein I have done improperly, may Heaven
reject me, may Heaven reject me!”

The Master said, “Perfect is the virtue which is according to the
Constant Mean! Rare for a long time has been its practice among the
people.”

Tsze-kung said, “Suppose the case of a man extensively conferring
benefits on the people, and able to assist all, what would you say
of him? Might he be called perfectly virtuous?” The Master said, “Why
speak only of virtue in connection with him? Must he not have the
qualities of a sage? Even Yao and Shun were still solicitous about
this.

“Now the man of perfect virtue, wishing to be established himself,
seeks also to establish others; wishing to be enlarged himself, he
seeks also to enlarge others.

“To be able to judge of others by what is nigh in ourselves;-this
may be called the art of virtue.”

———————————————————————-

SECTION 2

Part 7

The Master said, “A transmitter and not a maker, believing in and
loving the ancients, I venture to compare myself with our old P’ang.”

The Master said, “The silent treasuring up of knowledge; learning
without satiety; and instructing others without being wearied:-which
one of these things belongs to me?”

The Master said, “The leaving virtue without proper cultivation; the
not thoroughly discussing what is learned; not being able to move
towards righteousness of which a knowledge is gained; and not being
able to change what is not good:-these are the things which occasion
me solicitude.”

When the Master was unoccupied with business, his manner was easy,
and he looked pleased.

The Master said, “Extreme is my decay. For a long time, I have not
dreamed, as I was wont to do, that I saw the duke of Chau.”

The Master said, “Let the will be set on the path of duty.

“Let every attainment in what is good be firmly grasped.

“Let perfect virtue be accorded with.
“Let relaxation and enjoyment be found in the polite arts.”

The Master said, “From the man bringing his bundle of dried flesh
for my teaching upwards, I have never refused instruction to any one.”

The Master said, “I do not open up the truth to one who is not eager
to get knowledge, nor help out any one who is not anxious to explain
himself. When I have presented one corner of a subject to any one,
and he cannot from it learn the other three, I do not repeat my lesson.”

When the Master was eating by the side of a mourner, he never ate
to the full.

He did not sing on the same day in which he had been weeping.

The Master said to Yen Yuan, “When called to office, to undertake
its duties; when not so called, to he retired;-it is only I and you
who have attained to this.”

Tsze-lu said, “If you had the conduct of the armies of a great state,
whom would you have to act with you?”

The Master said, “I would not have him to act with me, who will unarmed
attack a tiger, or cross a river without a boat, dying without any
regret. My associate must be the man who proceeds to action full of
solicitude, who is fond of adjusting his plans, and then carries them
into execution.”

The Master said, “If the search for riches is sure to be successful,
though I should become a groom with whip in hand to get them, I will
do so. As the search may not be successful, I will follow after that
which I love.”

The things in reference to which the Master exercised the greatest
caution were-fasting, war, and sickness.

When the Master was in Ch’i, he heard the Shao, and for three months
did not know the taste of flesh. “I did not think'” he said, “that
music could have been made so excellent as this.”

Yen Yu said, “Is our Master for the ruler of Wei?” Tsze-kung said,
“Oh! I will ask him.”

He went in accordingly, and said, “What sort of men were Po-i and
Shu-ch’i?” “They were ancient worthies,” said the Master. “Did they
have any repinings because of their course?” The Master again replied,
“They sought to act virtuously, and they did so; what was there for
them to repine about?” On this, Tsze-kung went out and said, “Our
Master is not for him.”

The Master said, “With coarse rice to eat, with water to drink, and
my bended arm for a pillow;-I have still joy in the midst of these
things. Riches and honors acquired by unrighteousness, are to me as
a floating cloud.”

The Master said, “If some years were added to my life, I would give
fifty to the study of the Yi, and then I might come to be without
great faults.”

The Master’s frequent themes of discourse were-the Odes, the History,
and the maintenance of the Rules of Propriety. On all these he frequently
discoursed.

The Duke of Sheh asked Tsze-lu about Confucius, and Tsze-lu did not
answer him.

The Master said, “Why did you not say to him,-He is simply a man,
who in his eager pursuit of knowledge forgets his food, who in the
joy of its attainment forgets his sorrows, and who does not perceive
that old age is coming on?”

The Master said, “I am not one who was born in the possession of knowledge;
I am one who is fond of antiquity, and earnest in seeking it there.”

The subjects on which the Master did not talk, were-extraordinary
things, feats of strength, disorder, and spiritual beings.

The Master said, “When I walk along with two others, they may serve
me as my teachers. I will select their good qualities and follow them,
their bad qualities and avoid them.”

The Master said, “Heaven produced the virtue that is in me. Hwan T’ui-what
can he do to me?”

The Master said, “Do you think, my disciples, that I have any concealments?
I conceal nothing from you. There is nothing which I do that is not
shown to you, my disciples; that is my way.”

There were four things which the Master taught,-letters, ethics, devotion
of soul, and truthfulness.

The Master said, “A sage it is not mine to see; could I see a man
of real talent and virtue, that would satisfy me.”

The Master said, “A good man it is not mine to see; could I see a
man possessed of constancy, that would satisfy me.

“Having not and yet affecting to have, empty and yet affecting to
be full, straitened and yet affecting to be at ease:-it is difficult
with such characteristics to have constancy.”

The Master angled,-but did not use a net. He shot,-but not at birds
perching.

The Master said, “There may be those who act without knowing why.
I do not do so. Hearing much and selecting what is good and following
it; seeing much and keeping it in memory: this is the second style
of knowledge.”

It was difficult to talk profitably and reputably with the people
of Hu-hsiang, and a lad of that place having had an interview with
the Master, the disciples doubted.

The Master said, “I admit people’s approach to me without committing
myself as to what they may do when they have retired. Why must one
be so severe? If a man purify himself to wait upon me, I receive him
so purified, without guaranteeing his past conduct.”

The Master said, “Is virtue a thing remote? I wish to be virtuous,
and lo! virtue is at hand.”

The minister of crime of Ch’an asked whether the duke Chao knew propriety,
and Confucius said, “He knew propriety.”

Confucius having retired, the minister bowed to Wu-ma Ch’i to come
forward, and said, “I have heard that the superior man is not a partisan.
May the superior man be a partisan also? The prince married a daughter
of the house of WU, of the same surname with himself, and called her,-‘The
elder Tsze of Wu.’ If the prince knew propriety, who does not know
it?”

Wu-ma Ch’i reported these remarks, and the Master said, “I am fortunate!
If I have any errors, people are sure to know them.”

When the Master was in company with a person who was singing, if he
sang well, he would make him repeat the song, while he accompanied
it with his own voice.

The Master said, “In letters I am perhaps equal to other men, but
the character of the superior man, carrying out in his conduct what
he professes, is what I have not yet attained to.”

The Master said, “The sage and the man of perfect virtue;-how dare
I rank myself with them? It may simply be said of me, that I strive
to become such without satiety, and teach others without weariness.”
Kung-hsi Hwa said, “This is just what we, the disciples, cannot imitate
you in.”

The Master being very sick, Tsze-lu asked leave to pray for him. He
said, “May such a thing be done?” Tsze-lu replied, “It may. In the
Eulogies it is said, ‘Prayer has been made for thee to the spirits
of the upper and lower worlds.'” The Master said, “My praying has
been for a long time.”

The Master said, “Extravagance leads to insubordination, and parsimony
to meanness. It is better to be mean than to be insubordinate.”

The Master said, “The superior man is satisfied and composed; the
mean man is always full of distress.”

The Master was mild, and yet dignified; majestic, and yet not fierce;
respectful, and yet easy.

Part 8

The Master said, “T’ai-po may be said to have reached the highest
point of virtuous action. Thrice he declined the kingdom, and the
people in ignorance of his motives could not express their approbation
of his conduct.”

The Master said, “Respectfulness, without the rules of propriety,
becomes laborious bustle; carefulness, without the rules of propriety,
becomes timidity; boldness, without the rules of propriety, becomes
insubordination; straightforwardness, without the rules of propriety,
becomes rudeness.

“When those who are in high stations perform well all their duties
to their relations, the people are aroused to virtue. When old friends
are not neglected by them, the people are preserved from meanness.”

The philosopher Tsang being ill, he cared to him the disciples of
his school, and said, “Uncover my feet, uncover my hands. It is said
in the Book of Poetry, ‘We should be apprehensive and cautious, as
if on the brink of a deep gulf, as if treading on thin ice, I and
so have I been. Now and hereafter, I know my escape from all injury
to my person. O ye, my little children.”

The philosopher Tsang being ill, Meng Chang went to ask how he was.

Tsang said to him, “When a bird is about to die, its notes are mournful;
when a man is about to die, his words are good.

“There are three principles of conduct which the man of high rank
should consider specially important:-that in his deportment and manner
he keep from violence and heedlessness; that in regulating his countenance
he keep near to sincerity; and that in his words and tones he keep
far from lowness and impropriety. As to such matters as attending
to the sacrificial vessels, there are the proper officers for them.”

The philosopher Tsang said, “Gifted with ability, and yet putting
questions to those who were not so; possessed of much, and yet putting
questions to those possessed of little; having, as though he had not;
full, and yet counting himself as empty; offended against, and yet
entering into no altercation; formerly I had a friend who pursued
this style of conduct.”

The philosopher Tsang said, “Suppose that there is an individual who
can be entrusted with the charge of a young orphan prince, and can
be commissioned with authority over a state of a hundred li, and whom
no emergency however great can drive from his principles:-is such
a man a superior man? He is a superior man indeed.”

The philosopher Tsang said, “The officer may not be without breadth
of mind and vigorous endurance. His burden is heavy and his course
is long.

“Perfect virtue is the burden which he considers it is his to sustain;-is
it not heavy? Only with death does his course stop;-is it not long?

The Master said, “It is by the Odes that the mind is aroused.

“It is by the Rules of Propriety that the character is established.

“It is from Music that the finish is received.”
The Master said, “The people may be made to follow a path of action,
but they may not be made to understand it.”

The Master said, “The man who is fond of daring and is dissatisfied
with poverty, will proceed to insubordination. So will the man who
is not virtuous, when you carry your dislike of him to an extreme.”

The Master said, “Though a man have abilities as admirable as those
of the Duke of Chau, yet if he be proud and niggardly, those other
things are really not worth being looked at.”

The Master said, “It is not easy to find a man who has learned for
three years without coming to be good.”

The Master said, “With sincere faith he unites the love of learning;
holding firm to death, he is perfecting the excellence of his course.

“Such an one will not enter a tottering state, nor dwell in a disorganized
one. When right principles of government prevail in the kingdom, he
will show himself; when they are prostrated, he will keep concealed.

“When a country is well governed, poverty and a mean condition are
things to be ashamed of. When a country is ill governed, riches and
honor are things to be ashamed of.”

The Master said, “He who is not in any particular office has nothing
to do with plans for the administration of its duties.”

The Master said, “When the music master Chih first entered on his
office, the finish of the Kwan Tsu was magnificent;-how it filled
the ears!”

The Master said, “Ardent and yet not upright, stupid and yet not attentive;
simple and yet not sincere:-such persons I do not understand.”

The Master said, “Learn as if you could not reach your object, and
were always fearing also lest you should lose it.”

The Master said, “How majestic was the manner in which Shun and Yu
held possession of the empire, as if it were nothing to them!

The Master said, “Great indeed was Yao as a sovereign! How majestic
was he! It is only Heaven that is grand, and only Yao corresponded
to it. How vast was his virtue! The people could find no name for
it.

“How majestic was he in the works which he accomplished! How glorious
in the elegant regulations which he instituted!”

Shun had five ministers, and the empire was well governed.

King Wu said, “I have ten able ministers.”
Confucius said, “Is not the saying that talents are difficult to find,
true? Only when the dynasties of T’ang and Yu met, were they more
abundant than in this of Chau, yet there was a woman among them. The
able ministers were no more than nine men.

“King Wan possessed two of the three parts of the empire, and with
those he served the dynasty of Yin. The virtue of the house of Chau
may be said to have reached the highest point indeed.”

The Master said, “I can find no flaw in the character of Yu. He used
himself coarse food and drink, but displayed the utmost filial piety
towards the spirits. His ordinary garments were poor, but he displayed
the utmost elegance in his sacrificial cap and apron. He lived in
a low, mean house, but expended all his strength on the ditches and
water channels. I can find nothing like a flaw in Yu.”

Part 9

The subjects of which the Master seldom spoke were-profitableness,
and also the appointments of Heaven, and perfect virtue.

A man of the village of Ta-hsiang said, “Great indeed is the philosopher
K’ung! His learning is extensive, and yet he does not render his name
famous by any particular thing.”

The Master heard the observation, and said to his disciples, “What
shall I practice? Shall I practice charioteering, or shall I practice
archery? I will practice charioteering.”

The Master said, “The linen cap is that prescribed by the rules of
ceremony, but now a silk one is worn. It is economical, and I follow
the common practice.

“The rules of ceremony prescribe the bowing below the hall, but now
the practice is to bow only after ascending it. That is arrogant.
I continue to bow below the hall, though I oppose the common practice.”

There were four things from which the Master was entirely free. He
had no foregone conclusions, no arbitrary predeterminations, no obstinacy,
and no egoism.

The Master was put in fear in K’wang.
He said, “After the death of King Wan, was not the cause of truth
lodged here in me?

“If Heaven had wished to let this cause of truth perish, then I, a
future mortal! should not have got such a relation to that cause.
While Heaven does not let the cause of truth perish, what can the
people of K’wang do to me?”

A high officer asked Tsze-kung, saying, “May we not say that your
Master is a sage? How various is his ability!”

Tsze-kung said, “Certainly Heaven has endowed him unlimitedly. He
is about a sage. And, moreover, his ability is various.”

The Master heard of the conversation and said, “Does the high officer
know me? When I was young, my condition was low, and I acquired my
ability in many things, but they were mean matters. Must the superior
man have such variety of ability? He does not need variety of ability.
Lao said, “The Master said, ‘Having no official employment, I acquired
many arts.'”

The Master said, “Am I indeed possessed of knowledge? I am not knowing.
But if a mean person, who appears quite empty-like, ask anything of
me, I set it forth from one end to the other, and exhaust it.”

The Master said, “The Fang bird does not come; the river sends forth
no map:-it is all over with me!”

When the Master saw a person in a mourning dress, or any one with
the cap and upper and lower garments of full dress, or a blind person,
on observing them approaching, though they were younger than himself,
he would rise up, and if he had to pass by them, he would do so hastily.

Yen Yuan, in admiration of the Master’s doctrines, sighed and said,
“I looked up to them, and they seemed to become more high; I tried
to penetrate them, and they seemed to become more firm; I looked at
them before me, and suddenly they seemed to be behind.

“The Master, by orderly method, skillfully leads men on. He enlarged
my mind with learning, and taught me the restraints of propriety.

“When I wish to give over the study of his doctrines, I cannot do
so, and having exerted all my ability, there seems something to stand
right up before me; but though I wish to follow and lay hold of it,
I really find no way to do so.”

The Master being very ill, Tsze-lu wished the disciples to act as
ministers to him.

During a remission of his illness, he said, “Long has the conduct
of Yu been deceitful! By pretending to have ministers when I have
them not, whom should I impose upon? Should I impose upon Heaven?

“Moreover, than that I should die in the hands of ministers, is it
not better that I should die in the hands of you, my disciples? And
though I may not get a great burial, shall I die upon the road?”

Tsze-kung said, “There is a beautiful gem here. Should I lay it up
in a case and keep it? or should I seek for a good price and sell
it?” The Master said, “Sell it! Sell it! But I would wait for one
to offer the price.”

The Master was wishing to go and live among the nine wild tribes of
the east.

Some one said, “They are rude. How can you do such a thing?” The Master
said, “If a superior man dwelt among them, what rudeness would there
be?”

The Master said, “I returned from Wei to Lu, and then the music was
reformed, and the pieces in the Royal songs and Praise songs all found
their proper places.”

The Master said, “Abroad, to serve the high ministers and nobles;
at home, to serve one’s father and elder brothers; in all duties to
the dead, not to dare not to exert one’s self; and not to be overcome
of wine:-which one of these things do I attain to?”

The Master standing by a stream, said, “It passes on just like this,
not ceasing day or night!”

The Master said, “I have not seen one who loves virtue as he loves
beauty.”

The Master said, “The prosecution of learning may be compared to what
may happen in raising a mound. If there want but one basket of earth
to complete the work, and I stop, the stopping is my own work. It
may be compared to throwing down the earth on the level ground. Though
but one basketful is thrown at a time, the advancing with it my own
going forward.”

The Master said, “Never flagging when I set forth anything to him;-ah!
that is Hui.” The Master said of Yen Yuan, “Alas! I saw his constant
advance. I never saw him stop in his progress.”

The Master said, “There are cases in which the blade springs, but
the plant does not go on to flower! There are cases where it flowers
but fruit is not subsequently produced!”

The Master said, “A youth is to be regarded with respect. How do we
know that his future will not be equal to our present? If he reach
the age of forty or fifty, and has not made himself heard of, then
indeed he will not be worth being regarded with respect.”

The Master said, “Can men refuse to assent to the words of strict
admonition? But it is reforming the conduct because of them which
is valuable. Can men refuse to be pleased with words of gentle advice?
But it is unfolding their aim which is valuable. If a man be pleased
with these words, but does not unfold their aim, and assents to those,
but does not reform his conduct, I can really do nothing with him.”

The Master said, “Hold faithfulness and sincerity as first principles.
Have no friends not equal to yourself. When you have faults, do not
fear to abandon them.”

The Master said, “The commander of the forces of a large state may
be carried off, but the will of even a common man cannot be taken
from him.”

The Master said, “Dressed himself in a tattered robe quilted with
hemp, yet standing by the side of men dressed in furs, and not ashamed;-ah!
it is Yu who is equal to this!

“He dislikes none, he covets nothing;-what can he do but what is good!”

Tsze-lu kept continually repeating these words of the ode, when the
Master said, “Those things are by no means sufficient to constitute
perfect excellence.”

The Master said, “When the year becomes cold, then we know how the
pine and the cypress are the last to lose their leaves.”

The Master said, “The wise are free from perplexities; the virtuous
from anxiety; and the bold from fear.”

The Master said, “There are some with whom we may study in common,
but we shall find them unable to go along with us to principles. Perhaps
we may go on with them to principles, but we shall find them unable
to get established in those along with us. Or if we may get so established
along with them, we shall find them unable to weigh occurring events
along with us.”

“How the flowers of the aspen-plum flutter and turn! Do I not think
of you? But your house is distant.”

The Master said, “It is the want of thought about it. How is it distant?”

Part 10

Confucius, in his village, looked simple and sincere, and as if he
were not able to speak.

When he was in the prince’s ancestral temple, or in the court, he
spoke minutely on every point, but cautiously.

When he was waiting at court, in speaking with the great officers
of the lower grade, he spoke freely, but in a straightforward manner;
in speaking with those of the higher grade, he did so blandly, but
precisely.

When the ruler was present, his manner displayed respectful uneasiness;
it was grave, but self-possessed.

When the prince called him to employ him in the reception of a visitor,
his countenance appeared to change, and his legs to move forward with
difficulty.

He inclined himself to the other officers among whom he stood, moving
his left or right arm, as their position required, but keeping the
skirts of his robe before and behind evenly adjusted.

He hastened forward, with his arms like the wings of a bird.

When the guest had retired, he would report to the prince, “The visitor
is not turning round any more.”

When he entered the palace gate, he seemed to bend his body, as if
it were not sufficient to admit him.

When he was standing, he did not occupy the middle of the gateway;
when he passed in or out, he did not tread upon the threshold.

When he was passing the vacant place of the prince, his countenance
appeared to change, and his legs to bend under him, and his words
came as if he hardly had breath to utter them.

He ascended the reception hall, holding up his robe with both his
hands, and his body bent; holding in his breath also, as if he dared
not breathe.

When he came out from the audience, as soon as he had descended one
step, he began to relax his countenance, and had a satisfied look.
When he had got the bottom of the steps, he advanced rapidly to his
place, with his arms like wings, and on occupying it, his manner still
showed respectful uneasiness.

When he was carrying the scepter of his ruler, he seemed to bend his
body, as if he were not able to bear its weight. He did not hold it
higher than the position of the hands in making a bow, nor lower than
their position in giving anything to another. His countenance seemed
to change, and look apprehensive, and he dragged his feet along as
if they were held by something to the ground.

In presenting the presents with which he was charged, he wore a placid
appearance.

At his private audience, he looked highly pleased.
The superior man did not use a deep purple, or a puce color, in the
ornaments of his dress.

Even in his undress, he did not wear anything of a red or reddish
color.

In warm weather, he had a single garment either of coarse or fine
texture, but he wore it displayed over an inner garment.

Over lamb’s fur he wore a garment of black; over fawn’s fur one of
white; and over fox’s fur one of yellow.

The fur robe of his undress was long, with the right sleeve short.

He required his sleeping dress to be half as long again as his body.

When staying at home, he used thick furs of the fox or the badger.

When he put off mourning, he wore all the appendages of the girdle.

His undergarment, except when it was required to be of the curtain
shape, was made of silk cut narrow above and wide below.

He did not wear lamb’s fur or a black cap on a visit of condolence.

On the first day of the month he put on his court robes, and presented
himself at court.

When fasting, he thought it necessary to have his clothes brightly
clean and made of linen cloth.

When fasting, he thought it necessary to change his food, and also
to change the place where he commonly sat in the apartment.

He did not dislike to have his rice finely cleaned, nor to have his
mince meat cut quite small.

He did not eat rice which had been injured by heat or damp and turned
sour, nor fish or flesh which was gone. He did not eat what was discolored,
or what was of a bad flavor, nor anything which was ill-cooked, or
was not in season.

He did not eat meat which was not cut properly, nor what was served
without its proper sauce.

Though there might be a large quantity of meat, he would not allow
what he took to exceed the due proportion for the rice. It was only
in wine that he laid down no limit for himself, but he did not allow
himself to be confused by it.

He did not partake of wine and dried meat bought in the market.

He was never without ginger when he ate. He did not eat much.

When he had been assisting at the prince’s sacrifice, he did not keep
the flesh which he received overnight. The flesh of his family sacrifice
he did not keep over three days. If kept over three days, people could
not eat it.

When eating, he did not converse. When in bed, he did not speak.

Although his food might be coarse rice and vegetable soup, he would
offer a little of it in sacrifice with a grave, respectful air.

If his mat was not straight, he did not sit on it.
When the villagers were drinking together, upon those who carried
staffs going out, he also went out immediately after.

When the villagers were going through their ceremonies to drive away
pestilential influences, he put on his court robes and stood on the
eastern steps.

When he was sending complimentary inquiries to any one in another
state, he bowed twice as he escorted the messenger away.

Chi K’ang having sent him a present of physic, he bowed and received
it, saying, “I do not know it. I dare not taste it.”

The stable being burned down, when he was at court, on his return
he said, “Has any man been hurt?” He did not ask about the horses.

When the he would adjust his mat, first taste it, and then give it
away to others. When the prince sent him a gift of undressed meat,
he would have it cooked, and offer it to the spirits of his ancestors.
When the prince sent him a gift of a living animal, he would keep
it alive.

When he was in attendance on the prince and joining in the entertainment,
the prince only sacrificed. He first tasted everything.

When he was ill and the prince came to visit him, he had his head
to the east, made his court robes be spread over him, and drew his
girdle across them.

When the prince’s order called him, without waiting for his carriage
to be yoked, he went at once.

When he entered the ancestral temple of the state, he asked about
everything.

When any of his friends died, if he had no relations offices, he would
say, “I will bury him.”

When a friend sent him a present, though it might be a carriage and
horses, he did not bow.

The only present for which he bowed was that of the flesh of sacrifice.

In bed, he did not lie like a corpse. At home, he did not put on any
formal deportment.

When he saw any one in a mourning dress, though it might be an acquaintance,
he would change countenance; when he saw any one wearing the cap of
full dress, or a blind person, though he might be in his undress,
he would salute him in a ceremonious manner.

To any person in mourning he bowed forward to the crossbar of his
carriage; he bowed in the same way to any one bearing the tables of
population.

When he was at an entertainment where there was an abundance of provisions
set before him, he would change countenance and rise up.

On a sudden clap of thunder, or a violent wind, he would change countenance.

When he was about to mount his carriage, he would stand straight,
holding the cord.

When he was in the carriage, he did not turn his head quite round,
he did not talk hastily, he did not point with his hands.

Seeing the countenance, it instantly rises. It flies round, and by
and by settles.

The Master said, “There is the hen-pheasant on the hill bridge. At
its season! At its season!” Tsze-lu made a motion to it. Thrice it
smelt him and then rose.