子曰以不教民战是谓弃之
The Master said, “Leading people who have not been instructed into battle—this is called, ‘throwing them away.’ ”
Confucius, & Slingerland, E. (2003). Analects: With selections from traditional commentaries. Hackett Publishing.
The Master said, To fail to instruct the common people in warfare—you could call that throwing them away.
Confucius, & Watson, B. (2007). The Analects of Confucius. Columbia University Press.
子曰善人教民七年亦可以即戎矣
The Master said, “Having been instructed by an excellent person for seven years, the common people will be ready for anything, even the taking up of arms.”
Confucius, & Slingerland, E. (2003). Analects: With selections from traditional commentaries. Hackett Publishing.
The Master said, Let a good man instruct them for seven years, and the common people will be capable of military service.
Confucius, & Watson, B. (2007). The Analects of Confucius. Columbia University Press.
子路问曰何如斯可谓之士矣子曰切切偲偲怡怡如也可谓士矣朋友切切偲偲兄弟怡怡
Zilu asked, “What does a person have to be like to be considered a true scholar-official?”
The Master replied, “He must be earnest and critical, but also affable—earnest and critical with his friends, and affable with his brothers.”
Confucius, & Slingerland, E. (2003). Analects: With selections from traditional commentaries. Hackett Publishing.
Zilu asked, How should one conduct himself in order to be called a man of station?
The Master said, Earnest, exacting, but also harmonious—that would qualify you to be called a man of station. With friends, earnest, exacting. With elder and younger brothers, harmonious.
Confucius, & Watson, B. (2007). The Analects of Confucius. Columbia University Press.
子曰刚毅木讷近仁
The Master said, “Resolute, decisive, straightforward, and reticent—these qualities are close to Goodness.”
Confucius, & Slingerland, E. (2003). Analects: With selections from traditional commentaries. Hackett Publishing.
The Master said, The firm, the bold, the simple, the slow in speech are near to humaneness.
Confucius, & Watson, B. (2007). The Analects of Confucius. Columbia University Press.
子曰君子泰而不骄小人骄而不泰
The Master said, “The gentleman is grand, but never arrogant; the petty person is arrogant, but never grand.”
Confucius, & Slingerland, E. (2003). Analects: With selections from traditional commentaries. Hackett Publishing.
The Master said, The gentleman is self-possessed but not arrogant. The petty man is arrogant but not self-possessed.
Confucius, & Watson, B. (2007). The Analects of Confucius. Columbia University Press.
子曰君子易事而难说也说之不以道不说也及其使人也器之小人难事而易说也说之虽不以道说也及其使人也求备焉
The Master said, “The gentleman is easy to serve, but hard to please. If you attempt to please him in a manner not in accordance with the Way, he will not be pleased, but when he employs others, he does so in consideration of their particular capacities. The petty person is hard to serve, but easy to please. If you attempt to please him, he will be pleased, even if it is in a manner not in accordance with the Way, but when it comes to his employment of others, he demands everything from them.”
Confucius, & Slingerland, E. (2003). Analects: With selections from traditional commentaries. Hackett Publishing.
The Master said, The gentleman is easy to serve but hard to please. Try to please him with what does not accord with the Way, and he will not be pleased. But when he employs others, he thinks of their particular capabilities.
The petty man is hard to serve but easy to please. Try pleasing him with what does not accord with the Way, and he will be pleased. But when he employs others, he expects them to be able to do anything.
Confucius, & Watson, B. (2007). The Analects of Confucius. Columbia University Press.
子贡问曰乡人皆好之何如子曰未可也乡人皆恶之何如子曰未可也不如乡人之善者好之其不善者恶之
Zigong asked, “What would you make of a person whom everyone in the village likes?”
The Master said, “I would not know what to make of him.”
“What about someone whom everyone in the village hates?”
“I would still not know. Better this way: those in the village who are good like him, and those who are not good hate him.”
Confucius, & Slingerland, E. (2003). Analects: With selections from traditional commentaries. Hackett Publishing.
Zigong asked, If everyone in the village liked him, how would that do?
The Master said, Not good enough.
If everyone in the village hated him, how would that do?
The Master said, Not good enough. Better if the good people in the village liked him, and the not-good people hated him
Confucius, & Watson, B. (2007). The Analects of Confucius. Columbia University Press.
子曰君子和而不同小人同而不和
The Master said, “The gentleman harmonizes, and does not merely agree. The petty person agrees, but he does not harmonize.”
Confucius, & Slingerland, E. (2003). Analects: With selections from traditional commentaries. Hackett Publishing.
The Master said, The gentleman acts in harmony with others but does not ape them. The petty man apes others but is not in harmony with them.
Confucius, & Watson, B. (2007). The Analects of Confucius. Columbia University Press.
子曰南人有言曰人而无恒不可以作巫医善夫不恒其德或承之羞子曰不占而已矣
The Master said, “The Southerners have a saying, ‘The fate of a person who lacks constancy cannot be diagnosed by the shaman-healers.’ How well put!”
[It is also said,] “One inconstant in Virtue will probably incur disgrace.” The Master commented, “It simply cannot be foretold through divination.”
Confucius, & Slingerland, E. (2003). Analects: With selections from traditional commentaries. Hackett Publishing.
The Master said, Southerners have a saying: If a person lacks constancy, he cannot become a shaman or a doctor. Well put, is it not? Someone not constant in virtue is likely to suffer disgrace.
And the Master said, No need to consult a diviner to know that much!
Confucius, & Watson, B. (2007). The Analects of Confucius. Columbia University Press.
子曰不得中行而与之必也狂狷乎狂者进取狷者有所不为也
The Master said, “If you cannot manage to find a person of perfectly balanced conduct to associate with, I suppose you must settle for the wild or the fastidious. In their pursuit of the Way, the wild plunge right in, while the fastidious are always careful not to get their hands dirty.”
Confucius, & Slingerland, E. (2003). Analects: With selections from traditional commentaries. Hackett Publishing.
The Master said, If you can’t get someone to work with whose actions follow the mean, then you must choose between the assertive and the cautious. The assertive will forge ahead decisively. The cautious can be trusted to have things that they will not do.
Confucius, & Watson, B. (2007). The Analects of Confucius. Columbia University Press.
