Confucian Analects Book XII Part 1 (孔夫子論語: 顏淵第十二 第一部份)

Author: Confucius (孔夫子); translated by James Legge

The Master said, Love is to conquer self and turn to courtesy. If we could conquer self and turn to courtesy for one day, all below heaven would turn to love. Does love flow from within, or does it flow from others?

顏淵第十二

BOOK XII

1. 顏淵問仁。子曰：「克己復禮，為仁。一日克己復禮，天下歸仁焉。為仁由己，而由 仁乎哉？」顏淵曰：「請問其目？」子曰：「非禮勿視，非禮勿聽，非禮勿言，非禮勿動。」顏 淵曰：「回雖不敏，請事斯語矣！」

Yen Yüan asked, What is love?
The Master said, Love is to conquer self and turn to courtesy. If we could conquer self and turn to courtesy for one day, all below heaven would turn to love. Does love flow from within, or does it flow from others?
Yen Yüan said, May I ask what are its signs?
The Master said, To be always courteous of eye and courteous of ear; to be always courteous in word and courteous in deed.
Yen Yüan said, Though I am not clever, I hope to live by these words.

2. 仲弓問仁。子曰：「出門如見大賓，使民如承大祭。己所不欲，勿施於人。在邦無怨 ，在家無怨。」仲弓曰：「雍雖不敏，請事斯語。」

Chung-kung asked, What is love?
The Master said, Without the door to behave as though a great guest were come; to treat the people as though we tendered the great sacrifice; not to do unto others what we would not they should do unto us; to breed no wrongs in the state and breed no wrongs in the home.
Chung-kung said, Though I am not clever, I hope to live by these words.

3. 司馬牛問仁。子曰：「仁者，其言也訒。」曰：「斯言也訒，斯謂之仁矣乎？」子 曰：「為之難，言之得無訒乎？」

Ssu-ma Niu asked, What is love?
The Master said, Love is slow to speak.
To be slow to speak! Can that be called love?
The Master said, Can that which is hard to do be lightly spoken?

4. 司馬牛問君子。子曰：「君子不憂不懼。」曰：「不憂不懼，斯謂之君子矣乎？」子 曰：「內省不疚，夫何憂何懼？」

Ssu-ma Niu asked, What is a gentleman?
The Master said, A gentleman knows neither sorrow nor fear.
No sorrow and no fear! Can that be called a gentleman?
The Master said. He searches his heart: it is blameless; so why should he sorrow, what should he fear?

5. 司馬牛憂曰：「人皆有兄弟，我獨亡！」子夏曰：「商聞之矣：『死生有命，富貴在 天』。君子敬而無失，與人恭而有禮；四海之內，皆兄弟也。君子何患乎無兄弟也？」

Ssu-ma Niu cried sadly, All men have brothers, I alone have none!
Tzu-hsia said, I have heard that life and death are allotted, that wealth and honours are in Heaven's hand. A gentleman is careful and does not trip; he is humble towards others and courteous. All within the four seas are brethren; how can a gentleman lament that he has none?

6. 子張問「明」。子曰：「浸潤之譖，膚受之愬，不行焉，可謂明也已矣。浸潤之譖， 膚受之愬，不行焉，可謂遠也已矣。」
Tzu-chang asked, What is insight?
The Master said, Not to be moved by lap and wash of slander, or by plaints that pierce to the quick, may be called insight. Yea, whom lap and wash of slander, or plaints that pierce to the quick cannot move may be called far-sighted.

7. 子貢問「政」。子曰：「足食，足兵，民信之矣。」子貢曰：「必不得已而去，於斯 三者何先？」曰：「去兵。」子貢曰：「必不得已而去，於斯二者何先？」曰：「去食。自古皆有死，民無信不立。」

Tzu-kung asked, What is kingcraft?
The Master said, Food enough, troops enough, and the trust of the people.
Tzu-kung said, If it had to be done, which could best be spared of the three?
Troops, said the Master.
And if we had to, which could better be spared of the other two?
Food, said the Master. From of old all men die, but without trust a people cannot stand.

8. 棘子成曰：「君子質而已矣，何以文為？」子貢曰：「惜乎，夫子之說君子也，駟不 及舌！文猶質也，質猶文也；虎豹之鞹，猶犬羊之鞹。」
Chi Tzu-ch'eng said, It is the stuff alone that makes a gentleman; what can art do for him?
Alas! my lord, said Tzu-kung, how ye speak of a gentleman! No team overtakes the tongue! The art is no less than the stuff, the stuff is no less than the art. Without the fur, a tiger or a leopard's hide is no better than the hide of a dog or a goat.

9. 哀公問於有若曰：「年饑，用不足，如之何？」有若對曰：「盍徹乎！」曰：「二， 吾猶不足，如之何其徹也？」對曰：「百姓足，君孰與不足？百姓不足，君孰與足？」

Duke Ai said to Yu Jo, In this year of dearth I have not enough for my wants; what should be done?
Ye might tithe the people, answered Yu Jo.
A fifth is not enough, said the Duke, how could I do with a tenth?
When all his folk have enough, answered Yu Jo, shall the lord alone not have enough? When none of his folk have enough, shall the lord alone have enough?

10. 子張問「崇德，辨惑。」子曰：「主忠信，徒義崇德也。愛之欲其生，惡之欲其死； 既欲其生，又欲其死，是惑也！」誠不以富，亦祗以異。
Tzu-chang asked how to raise the mind and scatter delusions.
The Master said, Put faithfulness and truth first, and follow the right; the mind will be raised. We wish life to what we love and death to what we hate. To wish it both life and death is a delusion.
Whether prompted by wealth, or not,Yet ye made a distinction.

11. 齊景公問政於孔子。孔子對曰：「君君，臣臣，父父，子子。」公曰：「善哉！信如 君不君，臣不臣，父不父，子不子，雖有粟，吾得而食諸？」

Ching, Duke of Ch'i, asked Confucius, What is kingcraft?
Confucius answered. For the lord to be lord and the liege, liege, the father to be father and the son, son.
True indeed! said the Duke. If the lord were no lord and the liege no liege, the father no father and the son no son, though the grain were there, could I get anything to eat?

12. 子曰：「片言可以折獄者，其由也與！」子路無宿諾。

The Master said, To stint a quarrel with half a word Yu is the man.
Tzu-lu never slept over a promise.

13. 子曰：「聽訟，吾猶人也，必也使無訟乎！」

The Master said, At hearing lawsuits I am no better than others. What is needed is to stop lawsuits.

14. 子張問「政」。子曰：「居之無倦，行之以忠。」

Tzu-chang asked, What is kingcraft?
The Master said, To be tireless of thought and faithful in doing.

15. 子曰：「博學於文，約之以禮，亦可以弗畔矣夫。」

The Master said, Breadth of reading and the ties of courtesy will keep us, too, from false paths.