oooooooooolichen1943的部落格

《通書》

周敦頤  

誠上第一 

誠者，聖人之本。「大哉乾元，萬物資始」，誠之源也。「乾道變化，各正性命」，誠斯立焉。純粹至善者也。故曰：「一陰一陽之謂道，繼之者善也，成之者性也。」元、亨，誠之通；利、貞，誠之復。大哉易也，性命之源乎！ 

誠下第二 

聖，誠而已矣。誠，五常之本，百行之原也。靜無而動有，至正而明達也。五常百行非誠，非也，邪暗塞也。故誠則無事矣。至易而行難。果而確，無難焉。故曰：「一日克己復禮，天下歸仁焉。」 

誠幾德第三 

誠，無為，幾，善惡。德：愛曰仁，宜曰義，理曰禮，通曰智，守曰信。性焉安焉之謂聖。復焉執焉之謂賢。發微不可見，充周不可窮之謂神。 

聖第四 

寂然不動者，誠也；感而遂通者，神也；動而未形、有無之閒者，幾也。誠精故明，神應故妙，幾微故幽。誠、神、幾，曰聖人。 

慎動第五 

動而正曰道。用而和，曰德。匪仁，匪義，匪禮，匪智，匪信，悉邪矣。邪動，辱也；甚焉，害也。故君子慎動。 

道第六 

聖人之道，仁義中正而已矣。守之貴，行之利，廓之配天地。豈不易簡！豈為難知！不守不行不廓耳。 

師第七 

或問曰：「曷為天下善？」曰：「師。」曰：「何謂也？」曰：「性者，剛柔、善惡，中而已矣。」「不達」。曰：「剛善，為義，為直，為斷，為嚴毅，為幹固；惡，為猛，為隘，為強梁。柔善，為慈，為順，為巽；惡，為懦弱，為無斷，為邪佞。」惟中也者，和也，中節也，天下之達道也，聖人之事也。故聖人立教，俾人自易其惡，自至其中而止矣。故先覺覺後覺，闇者求於明，而師道立矣。師道立，則善人多；善人多，則朝廷正，而天下治矣。 

幸第八 

人之生，不幸，不聞過；大不幸﹐無恥。必有恥，則可教；聞過，則可賢。 

思第九 

洪範曰：「思曰睿，睿作聖。」無思，本也；思通，用也。幾動於彼，誠動於此。無思而無不通，為聖人。不思，則不能通微；不睿則不能無不通。是則無不通，生於通微，通微，生於思。故思者，聖功之本，而吉凶之幾也。易曰：「君子見幾而作，不俟終日。」又曰：「知幾其神乎！」 

志學第十

 聖希天，賢希聖，士希賢。伊尹、顏淵，大賢也。伊尹恥其君不為堯、舜，一夫　不得其所，若撻於市。顏淵「不遷怒，不貳過」「三月不違仁」。志伊尹之所志，學顏子之所學。過則聖，及則賢，不及則亦不失於令名。 

順化第十一 

天以陽生萬物，以陰成萬物。生，仁；成，義也。故聖人在上，以仁育萬物，以義正萬民。天道行而萬物順，聖德修而萬民化。大順大化，不見其跡，莫知其然之謂神。故天下之眾，本在一人。道豈遠乎哉！術豈多乎哉！ 

治第十二 

十室之邑，人人提耳而教，且不及，況天下之廣，兆民之眾哉！曰，純其心而已矣。仁、義、禮、智四者，動靜、言貌、視聽無違之謂純。心純則賢才輔。純心要矣，用賢急焉。 

禮樂第十三 

禮，理也；樂，和也。陰陽理而後和，君君、臣臣、父父、子子、兄兄、弟弟、夫夫、婦婦，萬物各得其理，然後和。故禮先而樂後。 

務實第十四 

實勝，善也；名勝，恥也。故君子進德修業，孳孳不息，務實勝也。德業有未著，則恐恐然畏人知，遠恥也。小人則偽而已！故君子日休，小人日憂。 

愛敬第十五 

「有善不及？」曰：「不及，則學焉。」問曰：「有不善？」曰：「不善；則告之不善。」且勸曰：「庶幾有改乎，斯為君子。」「有善一，不善二，則學其一，而勸其二」。有語曰：「斯人有是之不善，非大惡也。」則曰：「孰無過，焉知其不能改？改，則為君子矣。不改為惡，惡者天惡之。彼豈無畏耶？烏知其不能改！」故君子悉有眾善，無弗愛且敬焉。 

動靜第十六 

動而無靜，靜而無動，物也。動而無動，靜而無靜，神也。動而無動，靜而無靜，非不動不靜也。物則不通，神妙萬物。水陰根陽，火陽根陰。五行陰陽，陰陽太極。四時運行，萬物終始。混兮闢兮！其無窮兮！ 

樂上第十七 

古者聖王制禮法，修教化，三綱正，九疇敘，百姓大和，萬物咸若。乃作樂以宣八風之氣，以平天下之情。故樂聲淡而不傷，和而不淫。入其耳，感其心，莫不淡且和焉。淡則欲心平，和則躁心釋。優柔平中，德之盛也；天下化中，

治之至也。是謂道配天地，古之極也。後世禮法不修，政刑苛紊，縱欲敗度，下民困苦。謂古樂不足聽也，代變新聲，妖淫愁怨，導欲增悲，不能自止。故有賊君棄父，輕生敗倫，不可禁者矣。嗚呼！樂者古以平心，今以助欲；古以宣化，今以長怨。不復古禮，不變今樂，而欲至治者遠矣！ 

樂中第十八 

樂者，本乎政也。政善民安，則天下之心和。故聖人作樂，以宣暢其和心，達於天地，天地之氣，感而太和焉。天地和，則萬物順，故神衹格，鳥獸馴。 

樂下第十九 

樂聲淡則聽心平，樂辭善則歌者慕，故風移而俗易矣。妖聲艷辭之化也，亦然。 

聖學第二十 

「聖可學乎」？曰：「可。」曰：「有要乎？」曰：「有。」「請問焉。」曰：「一為要。一者，無欲也，無欲則靜虛、動直，靜虛則明，明則通；動直則公，公則溥。明通公溥，庶矣乎！」 

公明第二十一 

公於己者公於人，未有不公於己而能公於人也。明不至則疑生。明，無疑也。謂能疑為明，何啻千里？ 

理性命第二十二 

厥彰厥微，匪靈弗瑩。剛善剛惡，柔亦如之，中焉止矣。二氣五行，化生萬物。五殊二實，二本則一。是萬為一，一實萬分。萬一各正，小大有定。 

顏子第二十三 

顏子「一簞食，一瓢飲，在陋巷，人不堪其憂，而不改其樂。」夫富貴，人所愛也。顏子不愛不求，而樂乎貧者，獨何心哉？天地閒有至貴至愛可求，而異乎彼者，見其大、而忘其小焉爾。見其大則心泰，心泰則無不足。無不足則富貴貧賊處之一也。處之一則能化而齊。故顏子亞聖。 

師友上第二十四 

天地閒，至尊者道，至貴者德而已矣。至難得者人，人而至難得者，道德有于身而已矣。求人至難得者有於身，非師友，則不可得也已！ 

師友下第二十五 

道義者，身有之，則貴且尊。人生而蒙，長無師友則愚。是道義由師友有之。而得貴且尊，其義不亦重乎！其聚不亦樂乎！ 

過第二十六 

仲由喜聞過，令名無窮焉。今人有過，不喜人規，如護疾　而忌醫，寧滅其身而無悟也。噫！ 

勢第二十七 

天下，勢而已矣。勢，輕重也。極重不可反。識其重而亟反之，可也。反之，力也。識不早，力不易也。力而不競，天也。不識不力，人也。天乎？人也，何尤！ 

文辭第二十八 

文所以載道也。輪轅飾而人弗庸，徒飾也；況虛車乎！文辭，藝也；道德，實也。篤其實，而藝者書之，美則愛，愛則傳焉。賢者得以學而至之，是為教。故曰：「言之無文，行之不遠。」然不賢者，雖父兄臨之，師保勉之，不學也；強之，不從也。不知務道德而第以文辭為能者，藝焉而已。噫！弊也久矣！ 

聖蘊第二十九 

「不憤不啟，不悱不發，舉一隅不以三隅反，則不復也。」子曰：「予欲無言。天何言哉！四時行焉，百物生焉。」然則聖人之蘊，微顏子殆不可見。發聖人之蘊，教萬世無窮者，顏子也。聖同天，不亦深乎！常人有一聞知，恐人不速知其有也，急人知而名也，薄亦甚矣！

精蘊第三十 

聖人之精，畫卦以示；聖人之蘊，因卦以發。卦不畫，聖人之精，不可得而見。微卦，聖人之蘊，殆不可悉得而聞。易何止五經之源，其天地鬼神之奧乎！ 

乾損益動第三十一 

君子乾乾，不息於誠，然必懲忿窒欲，遷善改過而後至。乾之用其善是，損益之大莫是過，聖人之旨深哉！「吉凶悔吝生乎動。」噫！吉一而已，動可不慎乎！ 

家人睽復無妄第三十二 

治天下有本，身之謂也；治天下有則，家之謂也。本必端；端本，誠心而已矣。則必善。善則；和親而已矣。家難而天下易，家親而天下疏也。家人離，必起於婦人。故睽次家人，以「二女同居，其志不同行」也。堯所以釐降二女於媯汭，舜可襌乎？吾玆試矣。是治天下觀於家，治家觀身而已矣。身端，心誠之謂也。誠心，復其不善之動而已矣。不善之動，妄也；妄復，則無妄矣；無妄，則誠矣。故無妄次復，而曰「先王以茂對時育萬物」。深哉！ 

富貴第三十三 

君子以道充為貴，身安為富，故常泰無不足。而銖視軒冕，塵視金玉，其重無加焉爾！ 

陋第三十四 

聖人之道，入乎耳，存乎心，蘊之為德行，行之為事業。彼以文辭而已者，陋矣！ 

擬議第三十五 

至誠則動，「動則變，變則化」故曰：「擬之而後言，議之而後動，擬議以成其變化。」 

刑第三十六 

天以春生萬物，止之以秋。物之生也，既成矣，不止則過焉，故得秋以成。聖人之法天，以政養萬民，肅之以刑。民之盛也，欲動情勝，利害相攻，不止則賊滅無倫焉。故得刑以治。情偽微曖，其變千狀。茍非中正、明達、果斷者，

不能治也。訟卦曰：「利見大人，」以「剛得中」也。噬嗑　曰：「利用獄」，以「動而明」也。嗚呼！天下之廣，主刑者民之司命也。任用可不慎乎！ 

公第三十七 

聖人之道，至公而已矣。或曰：「何謂也？」曰：「天地至公而已矣。」 

孔子上第三十八 

春秋，正王道，明大法也，孔子為後世王者而修也。亂臣賊子誅死者於前，所以懼生者於後也。宜乎萬世無窮，王祀夫子，報德報功之無盡焉。 

孔子下第三十九 

道德高厚，教化無窮，實與天地參而四時同，其惟孔子乎！ 

蒙艮第四十

「童蒙求我」，我正果行，如筮焉。筮，叩神也。再三則瀆矣，瀆則不告也。「山下出泉，」靜而清也。汩則亂，亂不決也。慎哉！其惟「時中」乎！「艮其背，」背非見也。靜則止，止非為也，為不止矣。其道也深乎！

香港人文哲學會提供通書英譯：

http://www2.kenyon.edu/Depts/Religion/Fac/Adler/Reln471/TSChou.htm

• Being Authentic (A)[3]

  Being authentic is the foundation of the Sage. "Great indeed is the originating [power] of Ch'ien! The myriad things rely on it for their beginnings."[4] It is the source of being authentic. "The way of Ch'ien is transformation, with each [thing] receiving its correct nature and endowment."[5] In this way authenticity is established. Being pure and flawless, it is perfectly good. Thus: "The alternation of yin and yang is called the Way. That which issues from it is good. That which fulfills it is human nature."[6] "Origination and development" are the penetration of authenticity;[7] "adaptation and correctness" are the recovery of authenticity. Great indeed is change (i)![8]   It is the source of human nature and endowment.

• Being Authentic (B)

  Being a Sage is nothing more than being authentic. Being authentic is the foundation of the Five Constant [Virtues] and the source of the Hundred Practices. It is imperceptible when [one is] still, and perceptible when [one is] active;[9] perfectly correct [in stillness] and clearly pervading [in activity]. When the Five Constants and Hundred Practices are not authentic, they are wrong; blocked by depravity and confusion.

  Therefore one who is authentic has no [need for] undertakings (shih). It is perfectly easy, yet difficult to practice; when one is determined and precise, there is no difficulty with it. Therefore [Confucius said], "If in one day one could subdue the self and return to ritual decorum, then all under Heaven would recover their humanity."[10]

• Authenticity, Incipience, and Virtue [11]

  In being authentic there is no deliberate action (wu-wei). In incipience (chi) there is good and evil.[12] As for the [Five Constant] Virtues, loving is called humaneness (jen), being right is called appropriateness (i), being principled (li) is called ritual decorum (li), being penetrating is called wisdom (chih), and preserving is called trustworthiness (hsin). One who is by nature like this, at ease like this, is called a Sage. One who recovers it and holds onto it is called a Worthy. One whose subtle signs of expression are imperceptible, and whose fullness is inexhaustible, is called Spiritual (shen).[13]

• Sagehood [14]

  That which is "completely silent and inactive"[15] is authenticity. That which "penetrates when stimulated"[16] is spirit (shen). That which is active but not yet formed, between existing and not existing, is incipient.[17] Authenticity is of the essence (ching), and therefore clear. Spirit is responsive, and therefore mysterious. Incipience is subtle, and therefore obscure. One who is authentic, spiritual, and incipient is called a Sage.[18]

• Cautious Activity

  To be active and yet correct is called the Way (tao). To be functioning and yet harmonious is called virtue (te).[19] To rebel against humanity, to rebel against appropriateness, to rebel against propriety, to rebel against wisdom, and to rebel against honesty is to be completely depraved. To be depraved in one's activity is abuse. To do so to an extreme is injury. Therefore the superior person is cautious in activity.

• The Way

  The Way of the Sages is nothing more than humanity, appropriateness, equilibrium, and correctness. Preserve it and it will be ennobling. Practice it and it will be beneficial. Enlarge it and it will match heaven-and-earth. How can it not be easy and simple? How can it be difficult to know? By not preserving it, not practicing it, and not enlarging it.

• The Teacher

  Someone asked: "Who makes all under Heaven good?"

  Reply: "The teacher."

  "What do you mean?"

  "[He is one whose] nature is simply in equilibrium between firm and yielding good and evil."

  "I do not understand."

  Reply: "Firmness is good when it is appropriate, direct, decided, dignified, capable and certain. It is evil when it is violent, narrow, and limited. Yielding is good when it is compassionate, docile, and mild. It is evil when it is weak, indecisive, and treacherous."

  Only equilibrium is harmonious and "moderately regulated."[20] This is "the all-encompassing Way of the world."[21] It is the activity of the Sage. Therefore the Sage establishes education, to enable common people to change their evil [tendencies], and on their own to reach equilibrium and stay there. Therefore those who first become aware awaken those who become aware later, the unenlightened seek from the enlightened, and the Way of instruction is established. With the Way of instruction established, then good people will proliferate. When good people proliferate, then the Court will be correct and all under Heaven will be well-governed.

• Good Fortune

  In human life, it is unfortunate not to hear about one's errors. To lack shame is a great misfortune. Only with a sense of shame can one be taught. If one hears about one's errors, then one can become a Worthy.

• Thinking

  The Hung-fan says: "[The virtue of ] thinking (ssu) is called perspicacity (jui).... Perspicacity makes one a Sage."[22] To be without thinking is the foundation. When thinking is penetrating, this is its function. When there is incipient activity on the one hand, and authentic activity on the other, with no thinking and yet penetrating everything,[23] one is a Sage.

  If one does not think, then one cannot penetrate subtleties. If one is not perspicacious, then one cannot penetrate everything. Thus, [the ability] to penetrate everything arises from penetrating subtleties, and [the ability] to penetrate subtleties arises from thinking.

  Therefore thinking is the foundation of the Sage's achievement and the opportunity for good fortune or misfortune. The I says, "The superior person perceives incipience and acts, without waiting all day."[24] It also says, "Knowing incipience is his spirituality."[25]

• Determination to Learn

  The Sage emulates Heaven. The Worthy emulates the Sage. The literatus emulates the Worthy. I-yin and Yen Yüan were great Worthies. I-yin was ashamed that his prince was not Yao or Shun. If one person did not attain his rightful place, it was like being whipped in the marketplace. Yen Yüan "did not transfer his anger and did not repeat an error,"[26] and "for three months did nothing contrary to humanity."[27]

  Be determined to have I-yin's determination. Learn what Yen Yüan learned. If you exceed this you will be a Sage. If you reach it you will be a Worthy. Even if you do not reach it you will not miss out on an honorable reputation.

• Compliance and Transformation

  Heaven generates the myriad things through yang, and fulfills the myriad things through yin. Generating is humanity. Fulfillment is appropriateness. Therefore when a Sage is above [on the throne], he nourishes the myriad things with humanity and corrects the myriad people with appropriateness.

  The Way of Heaven proceeds and the myriad things comply [with it]. The virtue of the Sage cultivates [others] and the myriad people are transformed. Great compliance and great transformation leave no visible trace. Since no one understands them, they are considered spiritual. Therefore everything under Heaven is originally contained in every person. How can the Way be distant? How can its methods be numerous?

• Government

  Teaching by speaking directly to everyone is not sufficient even in a village of ten households. How much more difficult in an extensive Empire with millions of people! I say: Purify the mind/heart, that is all. "Purify" means to do nothing contrary to the four [virtues of] humanity, appropriateness, propriety and wisdom, whether in activity or when still, in one's speech, appearance, seeing and hearing. When his mind/heart is pure, then worthy and talented men will assist him. When worthy and talented men assist him, the Empire will be well-governed. Purifying the heart/mind is indeed essential. Employing worthy men is urgent.

• Ritual and Music

  Ritual (li) is Order (li). Music is harmony. Yin and yang are harmonious only when Ordered. Then the ruler is [truly] ruler, the minister is minister, father is father, son is son, elder brother is elder brother, younger brother is younger brother, husband is husband, and wife is wife. The myriad things are harmonious only when each achieves its Order. Therefore ritual is first and music follows.

• Being Devoted to Actualization

  For actualization to dominate [one's work] is good. For fame to dominate is shameful. Therefore the superior person advances his virtue and cultivates his work with unceasing diligence, devoting himself to the dominance of actualization. If his virtue and affairs are not prominent, he apprehensively fears that others will know [about it]; he wants to distance himself from shame. The inferior person, on the other hand, is simply hypocritical. Therefore the superior person is always at ease, while the inferior person is always anxious.

• Love and Reverence

  [What if I] do not measure up to a good person?[28]

  "If you do not measure up, then learn to do so."        

  Question: "[What if] there is a bad person?"        

  "If he is not good, then inform him that he is not good. Furthermore, exhort him, saying, 'Suppose you change; you will then become a superior person.'"

  "If one person is good and two are not good, then learn from the one and exhort the two."        "If someone says, 'This person has done something that is not good, but it is not a great evil,' then say, 'Who makes no errors? How do we know that he cannot change? If he changes, then he can become a superior person. Not changing results in evil. Evil is what Heaven hates. How can he not fear [Heaven]? How do we know that he cannot change?'"

  Therefore the superior person possesses all goodness, and there is no one who does not love and revere him.

• Activity and Stillness

  Activity as the absence of stillness and stillness as the absence of activity characterize things (wu). Activity that is not [empirically] active and stillness that is not [empirically] still characterize spirit (shen). Being active and yet not active, still and yet not still, does not mean that [spirit] is neither active nor still. For while things do not [inter-]penetrate (t’ung),[29] spirit subtly [penetrates/pervades] the myriad things.

  The yin of water is based in yang; the yang of fire is based in yin. The Five Phases are yin and yang; yin and yang are the Supreme Polarity (t'ai-chi).[30] The Four Seasons revolve; the myriad things end and begin [again]. How undifferentiated! How extensive! And how inexhaustible!

• Music (A)

  The ancient sages and kings systematized the ritual procedures and reformed education. The Three Bonds were corrected, the Nine Divisions were arranged, the hundred surnames [i.e. all people] were in great harmony, and the myriad things were all in accord. They created music to give expression to the airs of the eight [directional] winds and to pacify the dispositions of all under Heaven.

  Therefore the sounds of music are placid and not distressing, harmonious and not licentious. When they enter the ear they move the heart/mind; [yet] they are entirely placid and harmonious. Being placid, they calm the desirous heart/mind. Being harmonious, they ease the fierce heart/mind.

  To be easy-going and evenly-balanced is the height of virtue. In the transformation of all under Heaven, government is perfected. This is what is meant by the Way that matches Heaven-and-Earth, the Ultimate of antiquity.[31]

  Later generations have neglected ritual.[32] Their governmental measures and laws have been in disorder. Rulers have indulged their material desires without restraint, and consequently the people below them have suffered bitterly. Rulers have claimed that ancient music is not worth listening to and replaced it by or changed it into modern music, which is seductive, licentious, depressive, and complaining. It arouses desires and increases bitterness without end. Therefore there have been cases of people destroying their rulers, casting away their fathers, taking life lightly, and ruining human relations, and it has been impossible to put an end to such atrocities.

  Alas! Ancient music appeased the heart but modern music enhances desires. Ancient music spread a civilizing influence, but modern music increases discontent. To hope for perfect government without restoring ancient ritual and changing modern music is to be far off the mark.[33]

• Music (B)

  Music is based in government. When government is good and the people are at peace, then the minds/hearts of all under Heaven are harmonious. Therefore the Sages created music to give expression to these harmonious hearts/minds. When it spreads throughout heaven-and-earth, the ch'i of heaven-and-earth is stimulated and there is great harmony throughout. When heaven-and-earth are harmonious, then the myriad things are compliant. Therefore the ancestral and natural spirits (shen ch'i) will approach [when sacrifices are offered], and birds and beasts will be tame.

• Music (C)

  When the sound of music is quiet then the listener's mind is pacified. When the music's lyrics are good then the singer is respectful. Thus styles shift and customs change. The influence of weird sound and passionate lyrics is also like this.

• Learning to be a Sage

  [Someone asked:] "Can Sagehood be learned?"

  Reply: It can.

  "Are there essentials (yao)?"

  Reply: There are.

  "I beg to hear them."

  Reply: To be unified (i)[34] is essential. To be unified is to have no desire.[35] Without desire one is vacuous when still and direct in activity. Being vacuous when still, one will be clear (ming); being clear one will be penetrating (t’ung). Being direct in activity one will be impartial (kung); being impartial one will be all-embracing (p’u). Being clear and penetrating, impartial and all-embracing, one is almost [a Sage].

• Being Impartial and Clear

  One who is impartial toward oneself will be impartial toward others. There has never been one who was not impartial toward oneself and yet was able to be impartial toward others. When one is not perfectly clear [ming] then doubts arise. Clarity is the absence of doubts. To say that being able to doubt is clarity is a thousand miles off the mark.

• Order, Human Nature, and Endowment

  The manifest and the subtle: without intelligence one cannot perceive them. There is firm good and firm evil, and the same for yielding. Rest in the mean [chung] between them. The two [modes of] ch'i and the five phases transform and generate the myriad things. The five are the differentia and the two are the actualities; the two are fundamentally one. Thus the many are one, and the one actuality is divided into the many. Each one of the many is correct; the small and the large are distinct.

• Yen Tzu[36]

  Yen Tzu "had only one dish [of rice] to eat, only one gourdful [of water] to drink, and he lived in a squalid lane. Others could not have endured such distress, yet it did not alter his happiness." Now, wealth and honor are what people love. Yet Yen Tzu, neither loving nor seeking them, took pleasure in being humble. What was his idea?

  In the world there is extreme honor and extreme wealth, which can be loved and sought after. Yet he [Yen Tzu] was one who differed from others in seeing what was great and ignoring what was petty. Seeing what was great, his mind was at peace. With his mind at peace, nothing was insufficient. With nothing insufficient, then wealth and honor, poverty and humble station were all the same [to him]. Being all the same, then he was able to transform and equalize [others, i.e. regard others as equal].[37] Thus Yen Tzu was second only to the Sage [Confucius].

• Teachers and Friends (A)

  The most revered thing in the world is the Way; the most honored is virtue; the most rare [difficult to attain] is the human being. What is rare about the human being is having the Way and virtue in one's own body. Without teachers and friends, it is impossible to seek out and obtain in one's own body that which makes the human being the most rare.

• Teachers and Friends (B)

  Morality [tao-i] is valued and honored only when it is possessed by a person. People at birth are ignorant. As they grow, if they have no teachers and friends they become stupid. This is why morality acquires honor and reverence when it is possessed by a person in reliance on teachers and friends. Is the meaning [of teachers and friends] not important? Is it not a pleasure to associate with them?

• Transgressions

  Chung Yu [Tzu-lu] was happy to hear about his transgressions, and his good name [reputation] was inexhaustible. Today, when people transgress, they are not happy for others to correct them. It is like concealing one's illness and avoiding a doctor, preferring to harm oneself without being aware of it. Alas!

• Power

  The empire is simply power. Power is either weak or strong. Ultimate power cannot be overcome. If one recognizes its strength and promptly [tries to] overcome it, one can [succeed]. If one does not recognize it early, the effort to overcome it will not be easy. When effort is exerted without success, it is due to Heaven. When it is not recognized or no effort is made, it is due to the person. Is it due to Heaven? Then how can a person find fault?

• Literary Expression

  Writing is the vehicle of the Way. When the wheels and shafts of a carriage are ornamented but inoperable, the ornamentation is in vain. How much more so an empty carriage!

  Literary expression is an art. The Way and virtue are real (shih). If one is devoted to what is real and expresses it artistically in writing, its beauty will be loved. Being loved, it will be transmitted, and Worthies will be able to learn it and achieve its object. This is education. Thus it is said, "When one's words are not written, they will not go far" (Tso-chuan, Duke Hsiang, 25th year).[38]

  But the unworthy will not learn it even if father and elder brother are nearby, or teachers and tutors exhort them. Even if forced, they will not comply. They do not know how to devote themselves to the Way and virtue; they lower themselves to being experts in literary expression. This is nothing more than art [i.e. it does not express concrete reality]. Alas! This is a long-standing defect.

• The Comprehensiveness of the Sage

  "To those who are not eager to learn I do not explain anything, and to those who are not bursting to speak I do not reveal anything. If I raise one angle and they do not come back with the other three angles, I will not repeat myself."[39] "The Master said, 'I wish to do without speech. ...What ever does Heaven say? Yet the four seasons run their course through it and all things are produced by it'."[40]

  So then, were it not for Yen Tzu, the Sage's comprehensiveness (yün) might not have been seen. Yen Tzu was the one who brought out the Sage's comprehensiveness and taught 10,000 generations without limit. Was he not equally profound?

  The ordinary person, having heard or understood one thing, is anxious that others will not quickly know he has it. To be in haste to be known by others by reputation is very superficial.

• Essence and Comprehensiveness

  The essence of the Sage was displayed in the drawing of the hexagrams [of the I Ching].[41] The comprehensiveness of the Sage is expressed by means of the hexagrams. Were the hexagrams not drawn, the essence of the Sage could not have been seen. Were it not for the hexagrams, it would almost be impossible to know about the comprehensiveness of the Sage. How can the I merely be one of the Five Classics? It is the mystery of Heaven and Earth, ghosts and spirits!

• Ch'ien [Heaven, hexagram 1], Sun [Decrease, hexagram 41], I [Increase, hexagram 42], and Activity

  "The superior person is creatively active and unceasing in his authenticity."[42] But he must "control his anger and repress his desires,"[43] and move towards the good and correct his transgressions[44] before he can reach his goal. Among the functions of Ch'ien this is the best. Of the greatness of Sun and I, nothing surpasses this. The Sage's meaning is profound indeed! "The auspicious, the inauspicious, repentance and regret arise from activity."[45] Alas! The auspicious is only one [of the four]. Can we not be careful about activity?

1. Chia-jen (Family Members, hexagram 37), K'uei (Opposition, hexagram 38), Fu (Return, hexagram 24), and Wu-wang (No Error, hexagram 25)

   There is a foundation for ruling the world; it is called the [individual] person.[46] There is a model for ordering the world; it is called the family. The foundation must be proper (tuan); the proper foundation is nothing but the authentic mind. The model must be good; the good model is nothing but harmonious relations. The family is difficult [to regulate], while the empire is easy. For the family is close, but the state is distant. If family members are separated, it is surely caused by the wife. Thus K'uei (Opposition) comes after Chia-jen (Family Members). "When two women live together, their wills do not go together."[47] This is why Yao "sent down (li-chiang) his two daughters to Kuei-jui" [to marry] Shun, to determine whether to abdicate to him, saying "I will test him."[48]

   Thus to see how one rules the empire, observe his family. To see how he rules his family, observe his personal life. When his personal life is proper, we say his mind is authentic. An authentic mind is simply one that turns away (fu) from activity that is not good. Activity that is not good is error. When error is turned around (fu), there is no error. With no error, one is authentic. Thus Wu-wang (No Error) follows Fu (Return) and says, "The former kings vigorously nourished the myriad things according to the season."[49] How profound!

• Wealth and Honor

  The superior person takes agreement with the Way as honor, nd personal peace as wealth. Therefore he is always at peace, with nothing lacking. He regards ceremonial carriages and caps as small change; he regards gold and jade as dust. The weight [of his riches] cannot be exceeded.

• Vulgarity

  The Way of the Sages enters through the ear, is preserved in the mind/heart, is comprehended in one's moral behaviour, and is enacted in one's affairs and undertakings. Those who engage merely in literary expression are vulgar.

• Deliberation and Discussion

  "Being perfectly authentic,"[50] one acts. Acting, one changes. Changing, one transforms. Thus it is said, "Deliberate before speaking; discuss before acting. By such deliberation and discussion one can complete one's transformation."[51]

• Punishment

  Heaven gives birth to the myriad things in the spring and ceases in the autumn. Not to cease after things have come alive and been completed would be going too far. Therefore comes the autumn for completion. The Sage models Heaven in governing and nourishing the myriad people. He regulates them with punishment. As the people flourish, their desires become active and their feelings overwhelming, and benefit and harm come into conflict. If not stopped, there would be injury and destruction and no more human relations. Therefore they receive punishment to regulate [their behavior].

  Feelings are unreliable [false] and obscure; they change in a thousand ways. They can only be regulated with centrality and correctness, clarity and intelligence, firmness and decisiveness. Sung [Conflict, hexagram 6] says, "It is beneficial to see the great man,"[52] for "the firm [line] has gained the central position."[53] Shih-ho [Biting Through, hexagram 21] says, "It is beneficial to use litigation"[54] to "clarify through activity."[55]

  Ah! Throughout the empire, those who control punishment direct the lives of the people. In appointing them to their position, can one not be careful?

• Impartiality

  The Way of the Sage is perfectly impartial. Someone said, "What does that mean?" I replied, "Heaven and Earth are perfectly impartial."

• Confucius (A)

  The Spring and Autumn [Annals] rectifies the Kingly Way and clarifies the great models [of the past]. Confucius compiled it for the kings of later generations. The rebellious ministers and wicked soms who were put to death in the past are a means of arousing fear in those to come. It is fitting that for 10,000 generations without end, kings have sacrificed to Confucius to repay his inexhaustible virtue and achievement.

• Confucius (B)

  Confucius was the only one whose Way and virtue were lofty and abundant, whose educational influence was unlimited, and who could truly form a trinity with Heaven and Earth and be equal to the Four Seasons.

• Meng [Ignorance, hexagram 4] and Ken [Keeping Still, hexagram 52]

  "The ignorant youth (t'ung-meng) seeks me out,"[56] and I "correct"[57] him and "determine his course of actions,"[58] as in divination. Divination is beseeching the spirits. [To ask] a second or third time is a violation. In that case, I make no pronouncement.

  "Below the mountain issues forth a spring;"[59] still [mountain] and clear [water]. When disturbed, [the water] is mixed up; when mixed up, it is not clear.

  Be cautious! This means [to follow] the "timely mean"![60] "Keep the back still,"[61] for the back is not seen. When still (ching), one can stop [at the right point]. To stop is not to act [deliberately]. To act [deliberately] is not to stop [at the right point]. This Way is profound!

NOTES

1. This translation is extracted from my work in progress on Chu Hsi’s appropriation of Chou Tun-i, which includes a complete translation of Chu Hsi’s commentaries on and recorded conversations about Chou’s two major works, the T’ai-chi-t’u shuo (Explanation of the Supreme Polarity Diagram) and the T’ung-shu. The source text is Chang Po-hsing, comp., Chou Lien-hsi hsien-sheng ch'üan-chi (Complete Collection of Master Chou Lien-hsi; 1708), in Cheng-i t'ang ch'üan-shu (Library of Cheng-i Hall) (Pai-pu ts'ung-shu chi-ch'eng ed.), hereafter cited as Chou Lien-hsi chi. Other, more easily accessible sources of the two texts by Chou alone are: Li Kuang-ti, comp., Hsing-li ching-i (Essential Meanings of Nature and Principle) (1715; rpt. Ssu-pu pei-yao ed.), ch. 1; and Huang Ts’ung-hsi and Ch’üan Tsu-wang, comp., Sung-Yüan hsüeh-an (Scholarly Record of the Sung and Yüan Dynasties), ch. 11. [Back]

2. This is the conventional translation, following Chu Hsi’s claim that the original title was I t’ung shu, or “Penetrating Writing on [the Classic of] Change.” Although this is not misleading, since the piece certainly does focus on the Chou I (or I-ching), the title could just as well be translated more literally as “Penetrating Writing.”[Back]

3. “Authenticity” (ch’eng) is a term found prominently in the Chung-yung (“Doctrine of the Mean,” or “Centrality and Commonality”). The usual translation is “sincerity,” although that does not convey the metaphysical connotations of genuineness and reality that the word holds both here and in the Chung-yung. See Joseph A. Adler, "Response and Responsibility: Chou Tun-i and Neo-Confucian Resources for Environmental Ethics," in Confucianism and Ecology: The Interrelation of Heaven, Earth, and Humans, ed. Mary Evelyn Tucker and John Berthrong (Cambridge: Harvard University Center for the Study of World Religions, 1998), pp. 130-135.[Back]

4. I-ching (Classic of Change), T'uan commentary on hexagram 1. See Chu Hsi, Chou-I pen-i (The Original Meaning of the Classic of Change) (1177; rpt. Taipei: Hua-lien, 1978), 1:3a.[Back]

5. Ibid. (Chou-I pen-i, 1:3b).[Back]

6. I-Ching, Hsi-tz’u (Appended Remarks), A.5.1 (Chou-I pen-i, 3:5a). [Back]

7. "Origination, development, adaptation and correctness" are from the Ch’ien hexagram text, and came to be known as the "Four Virtues (or Powers)" of Ch’ien (see Chou-I pen-i, 1:1a). For a discussion of the Four Virtues and various interpretations of them see Iulian K. Shchutskii, Researches on the I Ching, trans. Wm. L. MacDonald and Tsuyoshi Hasegawa, with Hellmut Wilhelm (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1979), pp. [Back]

8. This sentence is the same as the penultimate sentence of the "Explanation of the Supreme Polarity Diagram," where i is interpreted as the Classic of Change rather than the process of change (following Chu Hsi's readings). But, while the different readings make sense in their contexts, both meanings were probably intended by Chou in both cases. This would reflect a traditional view (expressed in the Hsi-tz’u appendix of the Classic of Change) that the hexagrams comprising the core of the text are "spiritual things" (shen-wu); they are manifestations of the cosmic process, not merely symbols of it.[Back]

9. "Imperceptible" and "perceptible" are wu and yu, literally "absent” and "present.”[Back]

10. Analects 12:1, referring to the ruler. Chou Lien-hsi chi, 5:9a-10a.[Back]

11. This chapter title, ch'eng chi te, is usually parsed as a sentence, e.g. by Wing-tsit Chan: "Sincerity is the subtle, incipient, activating force of virtue" (A Source Book in Chinese Philosophy, p. 466). However, in Chu Hsi's comments on this chapter in the Chu-tzu yü-lei, he consistently treats chi "incipience" as a distinct phase of mind, never subordinating it grammatically to te "virtue" or to ch'eng "authenticity." I have therefore translated the title in accordance with Chu Hsi's treatment, parsing it as three distinct terms -- the topics of the first three lines of the chapter -- with no closer grammatical connection. The Chapter titles were added by Hu Hung and/or Chu Hsi. [Back]

12. As explained below and in the previous section, the Sage is authentically good without deliberate effort. "Incipience" is the first subtle stirring of activity, and the first point at which good and evil can meaningfully be differentiated. The "Five Constant Virtues" are the full expression of the innately good nature.[Back]

13. Chou Lien-hsi chi, 5:11b-12a.[Back]

14. The characteristics described here refer specifically to the mind of the Sage.[Back]

15. I-ching, Hsi-tz’u, A.10.4 (Chou-I pen-i, 3:12b).[Back]

16. Ibid.[Back]

17. I.e., the point at which mental activity has begun but is not yet apparent. [Back]

18. In other words, the mind of the Sage expresses the moral nature, it responds immediately to stimuli, and it is aware of the first stirrings of its activity.[Back]

19. Tao-te in colloquial usage means “moral.” The two terms separately are, of course, central to the classical Taoist thought of the Lao Tzu, or Tao te ching (Classic of the Way and its Power). Chou Tun-i, given his Taoist connections, must certainly have had the Taoist usage in mind, but here he is giving the terms a clear Confucian meaning, stressing moral activity. [Back]

20. Quoting Chung-yung (Doctrine of the Mean), 1.[Back]

21. Ibid.[Back]

22. Hung-fan chapter of the Shu-ching. See Legge, trans., The Chinese Classics, v. 3, p. 327.[Back]

23. Wu ssu erh wu pu t'ung. This is undoubtedly a pun on Lao Tzu 37,"No doing and yet nothing undone" (wu wei erh wu pu wei).[Back]

24. Hsi-tz'u B.5.11 (Chou-I pen-i 3:22b).[Back]

25. Ibid.[Back]

26. Analects 6:2.[Back]

27. Analects 6:5.[Back]

28. The text appears fragmentary here, lacking specific indication of dialogue.[Back]

29. I.e. they are limited by their physical forms.[Back]

30. There is a nearly identical sentence in the "Explanation of the Supreme Polarity Diagram."[Back]

31. Paraphrasing Lao Tzu 68.[Back]

32. The rest of this chapter of Chou's text is given in Wing-tsit Chan's translation (Source Book, pp. 472-473), substituting "ritual" for "ceremonies." [Back]

33. In what is apparently an oversight, Chan here has omitted the word "ritual" [or "ceremonies"]. Chu Hsi's commentary, which Chan generally follows, makes no sense without it.[Back]

34. I.e. to focus the mind on fundamentals.[Back]

35. See Chou's parenthetical note in the "Explanation of the Supreme Polarity Diagram."[Back]

36. Yen Yüan, or Yen Hui, was Confucius' favorite disciple. He was known for his dedication to self-cultivation despite personal poverty.[Back]

37. According to Mencius (7B.25), the capacity to "transform" (hua) others is the hallmark of the Sage. "Equalizing" (ch'i) others, or seeing all things as equal, is a characteristic of a Taoist Sage in the tradition of Chuang Tzu (see Chuang Tzu, chapter 2). Given Chou Tun-i's Taoist connections, this is not an implausible thing for him to say, although it seems to trouble Chu Hsi.[Back]

38. Legge, trans., The Chinese Classics, vol. 5, pp. 512, 517.[Back]

39. Analects 7:8, trans. Raymond Dawson, The Analects (Oxford Univ. Press, 1993), p. 24.[Back]

40. Analects 17:19, trans. Dawson, op. cit., pp. 71-72.[Back]

41. While the "comprehensiveness of the Sage" in the previous chapter refers to Confucius, here it must refer to Fu-hsi, and possibly King Wen. Fu-hsi was considered to have been the Sage who first drew the trigrams of the I. King Wen later combined them into hexagrams and wrote the hexagram texts (although according to a variant tradition, Fu-hsi also combined them and King Wen only wrote the texts). [Back]

42. This sentence is composed of three fragments from the texts of Ch'ien (Heaven): Yao (Line text), 3rd line; Ta-hsiang chuan (Greater Image Commentary); and Wen-yen (Words on the Text), 2nd line. Chou-I pen-i, 1:2a, 1:4a, 1:5b.[Back]

43. From Ta-hsiang commentary to Sun (Decrease), (Chou-I pen-i 2:17a).[Back]

44. Paraphrase of Ta-hsiang commentary to I (Increase) (Chou-I pen-i 2:18b).[Back]

45. Hsi-tz'u B.1 (Chou-I pen-i 3:17a). These are four of the basic oracular pronouncements that form the core of the original text of the I-ching.[Back]

46. Cf. the Ta-hsüeh (Great Learning): "From the Son of Heaven to the common person, in each case self-cultivation is the foundation." The core text of the Ta-hsüeh, particularly the "eight steps," is alluded to throughout this chapter.[Back]

47. T'uan commentary to K'uei (Opposition) (Chou-I pen-i 2:12a).[Back]

48. Shu Ching (Book of Documents), "Yao tien" (Canon of Yao). See Legge, trans., The Chinese Classics, vol. 3, pp. 26-27.[Back]

49. Ta-hsiang commentary to Wu-wang (No Error) (Chou-I pen-i 1:50a).[Back]

50. This phrase occurs six times in the Chung-yung (Doctrine of the Mean) (chs. 22, 23, 24 twice, 26, and 32) and in the Hsi-tz'u ( ).[Back]

51. Chou-I, Hsi-tzu A.8 (Chou-I pen-i 3:7b).[Back]

52. Chou-I, hexagram text of Sung (Conflict) (Chou-I pen-i 1:19b).[Back]

53. Chou-I, T'uan commentary to Sung (Chou-I pen-i 1:20a).[Back]

54. Chou-I, hexagram text of Shih-ho (Chou-I pen-i 1:43b).[Back]

55. Chou-I, T'uan commentary on Shih-ho (Chou-I pen-i 1:44a).[Back]

56. Hexagram text of Meng (Chou-I pen-i 1:15b).[Back]

57. T'uan commentary on Meng (Chou-I pen-i 1:16a).[Back]

58. Ta-hsiang commentary on Meng (Chou-I pen-i 1:16b).[Back]

59. Ibid.[Back]

60. T'uan commentary on Meng (Chou-I pen-i 1:16a).[Back]

61. Hexagram text of Ken (Chou-I pen-i 2:34b). [Back]