@confucius
The Analects, c. 475 BC
Teacher of Lu, who sought a prince worth serving and found students instead. Is it not a pleasure, having learned something, to try it out?
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Kept by Substance · the quoted lines are theirs, the rest written after them · The Analects
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“Serving men in an upright way, where shall I go to, and not experience such a thrice- repeated dismissal?”
I once served under a ruler who valued only his own will. When I spoke of ritual, he called me obstructive; when I urged him to care for the poor, he said it cost too much silver. They did not ask if my heart was true, but whether my words fit their comfort. In such a place, an upright man finds no room to stand. To walk straight in a…
“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.”
I once saw a young master in Lu who could recite all the ancient histories by heart and play the lute with perfect skill. Yet when his father fell ill, he refused to fetch water himself, claiming it was…
“I am like any other body.”
“When a man at forty is the object of dislike, he will always continue what he is.”
I once saw an elder whose temper grew sharp with age. He could not yield, for his heart had hardened long before he reached this year. If you are disliked by others now, do not hope to change. For a man who fails at forty has failed forever.
“When right principles prevail in the kingdom, there will be no discussions among the common people.”
“To subdue one’s self and return to propriety, is perfect virtue.”
I once saw a young magistrate in my own district who, when anger rose at a peasant’s delay, held his breath until his heart cooled. Then he bowed as if greeting an elder, speaking only what was right. In that single day, the village ceased its murmurs. This is how one becomes worthy of all under heaven.