The Analects
Book 6 · Yong Ye
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Yong Ye · 6.1
The Master said, “Yong could be entrusted with facing south as a ruler.” Zhonggong asked about Zisang Bozi. The Master said, “He is acceptable: he is uncomplicated.” Zhonggong said, “To remain reverent within and act with simplicity in approaching the people—is that not acceptable? But to be lax within and also act with simplicity—would that not be far too lax?” The Master said, “Yong is right.”
Yong Ye · 6.2
Duke Ai asked, “Which of your disciples loves learning?” Confucius replied, “There was Yan Hui, who loved learning. He did not transfer his anger to another person or repeat a fault. Unfortunately, he died young. Now there is no one; I have not heard of another who loves learning.”
Yong Ye · 6.3
Zihua went on a mission to Qi, and Master Ran requested grain for his mother. The Master said, “Give her a fu.” He asked for more. “Give her a yu.” Master Ran gave her five bing of grain. The Master said, “When Chi went to Qi, he rode well-fed horses and wore light fur robes. I have heard that an exemplary person helps those in urgent need, rather than adding to the wealth of the rich.”
When Yuan Si served as the Master's steward, he was given an allowance of nine hundred measures of grain, but declined it. The Master said, “Do not refuse! Could you not use it to give to your neighbors and the people of your village?”
Yong Ye · 6.4
The Master said of Zhonggong, “The calf of a plow ox may be red and have well-formed horns. Even if people wish not to use it for sacrifice, would the spirits of mountains and rivers reject it?”
Yong Ye · 6.5
The Master said, “For three months at a time, Hui's heart does not depart from humaneness. The others reach it only for a day or a month at a time.”
Yong Ye · 6.6
Ji Kangzi asked, “Could Zhong You take part in government?” The Master said, “You is decisive. What difficulty would government present for him?” “Could Si take part in government?” “Si is perceptive. What difficulty would government present for him?” “Could Qiu take part in government?” “Qiu has many abilities. What difficulty would government present for him?”
Yong Ye · 6.7
The Ji family wanted Min Ziqian to become steward of Fei. Min Ziqian said, “Please decline it properly for me. If anyone comes to summon me again, I shall certainly be beyond the Wen River.”
Yong Ye · 6.8
Boniu was ill. The Master visited him and held his hand through the window, saying, “We are losing him! It must be fate! That such a person should have such an illness! That such a person should have such an illness!”
Yong Ye · 6.9
The Master said, “How worthy Hui is! A basket of food, a gourd of water, living in a poor alley—others could not bear its distress, but Hui does not let it change his joy. How worthy Hui is!”
Yong Ye · 6.10
Ran Qiu said, “It is not that I do not delight in your Way, Master; my strength is insufficient.” The Master said, “Those whose strength is insufficient give up along the way. But you have drawn a boundary in advance.”
Yong Ye · 6.11
The Master said to Zixia, “Be a learned practitioner of the exemplary kind, not a learned practitioner of the petty kind.”
Yong Ye · 6.12
Ziyou was steward of Wucheng. The Master said, “Have you found anyone of ability there?” He replied, “There is Tantai Mieming. In walking, he takes no shortcuts. Unless it is on public business, he has never come to my room.”
Yong Ye · 6.13
The Master said, “Meng Zhifan did not boast. During a retreat, he brought up the rear. As they were about to enter the city gate, he whipped his horse and said, ‘It was not that I dared to stay behind; my horse would not go forward.’”
Yong Ye · 6.14
The Master said, “Without the glib tongue of the invocator Tuo, even with the beauty of Song Chao, it would be hard to escape trouble in the world today.”
Yong Ye · 6.15
The Master said, “Who can go out without using the door? Why, then, does no one follow this Way?”
Yong Ye · 6.16
The Master said, “When natural substance outweighs refinement, one is uncouth. When refinement outweighs substance, one is merely an elegant clerk. Only when refinement and substance are well balanced does one become an exemplary person.”
Yong Ye · 6.17
The Master said, “Human life rests on uprightness. If a crooked person survives, it is through the luck of escaping harm.”
Yong Ye · 6.18
The Master said, “Those who know it are not the equal of those who love it; those who love it are not the equal of those who find joy in it.”
Yong Ye · 6.19
The Master said, “With people of above-average understanding, one may discuss higher matters. With people of below-average understanding, one may not discuss higher matters.”
Yong Ye · 6.20
Fan Chi asked about wisdom. The Master said, “Devote yourself to what is right among the people; respect ghosts and spirits but keep them at a distance. This may be called wisdom.” Asked about humaneness, he said, “The humane person takes on the difficulty first and places the reward afterward. This may be called humaneness.”
Yong Ye · 6.21
The Master said, “The wise delight in water; the humane delight in mountains. The wise are active; the humane are still. The wise are joyful; the humane are long-lived.”
Yong Ye · 6.22
The Master said, “With one transformation, Qi could reach the condition of Lu; with one transformation, Lu could reach the Way.”
Yong Ye · 6.23
The Master said, “A gu ritual cup that is no longer a gu—can it still be a gu? Can it still be a gu?”
Yong Ye · 6.24
Zai Wo asked, “If a humane person were told, ‘There is humaneness down in the well,’ would he follow it down?” The Master said, “Why should he do that? An exemplary person can be induced to go there, but cannot be trapped. He may be deceived, but cannot be made to abandon judgment.”
Yong Ye · 6.25
The Master said, “An exemplary person who studies cultural learning broadly and restrains it through ritual can surely avoid departing from the Way.”
Yong Ye · 6.26
The Master met Nanzi, and Zilu was displeased. The Master swore, “If I have done anything wrong, may Heaven reject me! May Heaven reject me!”
Yong Ye · 6.27
The Master said, “Surely the constant Mean as a virtue is the highest attainment! For a long time, it has been rare among the people.”
Yong Ye · 6.28
Zigong said, “Suppose someone could benefit the people widely and bring help to the multitude. What would you think? Could that person be called humane?” The Master said, “Why stop at humaneness? Surely such a person would have to be a sage! Even Yao and Shun would have found this difficult.
“As for the humane person: wishing to establish oneself, help others establish themselves; wishing to succeed, help others succeed. To be able to draw an analogy from what is close at hand may be called the method of humaneness.”
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