Social Relations

Original Text:

子夏之门人问交于子张子张曰子夏云何对曰子夏曰可者与之其不可者拒之子张曰异乎吾所闻君子尊贤而容众嘉善而矜不能我之大贤与于人何所不容我之不贤与人将拒我如之何其拒人也

Translation:

Other Translations:

The disciples of Zixia asked Zizhang about social relations.

Zizhang said, “What does Zixia have to say about this?”

They responded, “Zixia says, ‘Associate with those who are acceptable, and reject those who are unacceptable.’ ”

Zizhang said, “This is different from what I have learned. The gentleman treats the worthy people with reverence, and is tolerant of the masses; he praises excellence, but takes pity on those who are incapable. If I am truly a great worthy, what will I not tolerate in my dealings with others? If I am, in fact, unworthy, then people will reject me—what need is there for me to reject them?”

Confucius, & Slingerland, E. (2003). Analects: With selections from traditional commentaries. Hackett Publishing.

A disciple of Zixia asked Zizhang about personal relations. Zizhang said, What does Zixia say? The disciple replied, Zixia says, Associate with those who are fit to be associated with; reject those who are not.

Zizhang said, That’s different from what I’ve heard. The gentleman honors worthy persons and tolerates the multitude. He applauds good men and sympathizes with those who lack ability. Am I myself a person of great worth? If so, why shouldn’t I tolerate others? Am I a person who lacks worth? If so, others will reject me. What need is there for me to reject others?

Confucius, & Watson, B. (2007). The Analects of Confucius. Columbia University Press.