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颜渊曰：“请问其目。”
子曰：“非礼勿视，非礼勿听，非礼勿言，非礼勿动。”
颜渊曰：“回虽不敏，请事斯语矣。”
XII.1. Yan Yuan asked Confucius about perfection of virtue. The Master replied:
— To conquer oneself and restore to one’s heart the honesty it received from nature, that is perfection of virtue. If one day you manage to conquer yourself and fully restore the honesty of the heart, then the whole world will say that your virtue is perfect. It is up to each person to be perfectly virtuous. Does it depend on other people?
Yan Yuan said:
— May I ask you what the practice of perfection of virtue consists in?
The Master replied:
— Let your eyes, ears, and tongue, everything in you, be kept in the rules of honesty.
Yan Yuan said:
— Despite my inability, I will try, if you permit me, to put this maxim into practice.
仲弓问仁。子曰：“出门如见大宾，使民如承大祭，己所不欲，勿施于人，在邦无怨，在家无怨。”
仲弓曰：“雍虽不敏，请事斯语矣。”
XII.2. Zhonggong asked Confucius about perfection of virtue. The Master replied:
— When you go out, be attentive, as if you were seeing an important guest; when you manage the people, be as diligent as if you were conducting a solemn sacrifice; do not do to others what you do not want done to yourself. In the state, no one will be dissatisfied with you; in the family, no one will complain about you.
Zhonggong said:
— Despite my inability, if you permit me, I will try to follow this maxim.
司马牛问仁。子曰：“仁者其言也仞。”
曰：“其言也仞，斯谓之仁已乎？”
子曰：“为之难，言之，得无仞乎？”
XII.3. Sima Niu asked Confucius about perfection of virtue. The Master replied:
— A perfect man speaks with difficulty, that is to say, with great restraint and caution.
Sima Niu said:
— Is being cautious in one’s words sufficient for being perfect?
The Master replied:
— Can one who is cautious in his actions not be cautious in his words?
司马牛问君子。子曰：“君子不忧不惧。”
曰：“不忧不惧，斯谓之君子已乎？”
子曰：“内省不疚，夫何忧何惧？”
XII.4. Sima Niu asked Confucius what a wise man is. The Master replied:
— The wise man is free from sorrow and fear.
Sima Niu said:
— Is being free from sorrow and fear sufficient for being wise?
The Master replied:
— If one, examining one’s heart, finds no fault in it, what sorrow or fear would one have?
司马牛忧曰：“人皆有兄弟，吾独亡。”
子夏曰：“商闻之矣，死生有命，富贵在天。君子敬而无失，与人恭而有礼，四海之内，皆兄弟也。君子何患乎无兄弟也。”
XII.5. Sima Niu said with sorrow:
— Other people all have brothers, older or younger; I alone have none.
Zixia replied:
— I have heard that life and death are subject to the decrees of Providence, that wealth and honors depend on Heaven. The wise man constantly attends to his own conduct; he is polite and strictly fulfills his duties toward others. Within the four seas, all men are his brothers. Does the wise man have cause to grieve for having no brothers?
Notes:
Sima Niu was from the state of Song. Seeing his elder brother Xiang Tuo incite a rebellion against the Prince of Song, and his other brothers Ziqing and Ziqiu take part in this crime, he experienced great sorrow and said, “Other people all have brothers; I alone have none.”
子张问明。子曰：“浸润之谮，肤受之诉，不行焉，可谓明也已矣。浸润之谮，肤受之诉，不行焉，可谓远也已矣。”
XII.6. Zizhang asked what perspicacity consists in. The Master replied:
— Not to admit slander that gradually creeps into the mind, nor accusations that cause those who listen to feel like the pain of a wound or a sting; this can be called perspicacity. Not to admit the cunning insinuations of slanderers, nor complaints that cause the feeling of pain from a wound or a sting; this is the perspicacity of a man who sees far.
子贡问政，子曰：“足食，足兵，民信之矣。”
子贡曰：“必不得已而去，于斯三者何先？”
曰：“去食。自古皆有死，民无信不立。”
XII.7. Zigong asked Confucius about the administration of public affairs. The Master replied:
— One who administers public affairs must ensure that food is sufficient, that military strength is adequate, and that the people trust him.
Zigong said:
— If it is absolutely necessary to neglect one of these three, which should be neglected?
— Military strength, replied Confucius.
— And if it is absolutely necessary to neglect a second, said Zigong, which should it be?
— Food, replied Confucius, for all people are always subject to death, but if the people have no trust in those who govern them, that is the end of them.
棘子成曰：“君子质而已矣，何以文为？”
子贡曰：“惜乎，夫子之说君子也。驷不及舌。文，犹质也；质，犹文也。虎豹之椁，犹犬羊之椁。”
XII.8. Ji Zicheng said:
— For the sage to have solid virtues is enough. What need has he for courtesy and everything that would serve only as ornament to his person?
Zigong replied:
— That is a pity! You usually speak, Sir, like a sage. A team of four horses cannot go as fast as the tongue. One must care for the exterior as for the interior, and for the interior as for the exterior. A tiger or leopard skin cannot be distinguished from a dog or sheep skin when the fur is scraped off.
哀公问与有若曰：“年饥，用不足，如之何？”
有若对曰：“合彻乎？”
曰：“二，吾犹不足，如之何其彻也？”
对曰：“百姓足，君孰与不足？百姓不足，君孰与足？”
XII.9. Ai, duke of Lu, said to You Ruo:
— This year the harvests failed; I do not have enough for my expenses; what should I do?
You Ruo replied:
— Why do you not take only a tenth of the produce of the land?
The duke said:
— Two tenths are not enough for me. How can I make do with only a tenth?
You Ruo retorted:
— When the people have enough, does the duke not also have enough with all his subjects? When the people do not have enough, does the duke not also not have enough?
子张问崇德辨惑。子曰：“主忠信，徙义，崇德也。爱之欲其生，恶之欲其死。既欲其生，又欲其死，是惑也。诚不以富，以祗以异。”
XII.10. Zizhang asked Confucius what one should do to acquire great virtue and to recognize error. The Master replied:
— The way to acquire great virtue is to apply oneself chiefly to keeping fidelity and sincerity, and to observe justice. To wish the preservation of those you love and the death of a man whose preservation you previously wished is to deceive yourself.
齐景公问政于孔子。孔子对曰：“君君，臣臣，父父，子子。”
公曰：“善哉！信如君不君，臣不臣，父不父，子不子，虽有粟，吾得而食诸？”
XII.11. Jing, duke of Qi, asked Confucius about the art of governance. Confucius replied:
— Let the duke be a duke, the minister a minister, the father a father, the son a son.
Well said, said the duke. Indeed, if the duke is not a duke, the minister not a minister, the father not a father, the son not a son, even if the grain is sufficient, could I have anything to live on?
子曰：“片言可以折狱者，其由也与？子路无宿诺。”
XII.12. The Master said:
— You is one who can settle a lawsuit with a single word.
Zilu kept his promises without delay.
Notes:
Zilu was just, sincere, perspicacious, and decisive. As soon as he spoke a word, people submitted to his decision with confidence.
子曰：“听讼，吾犹人也，必也使无讼乎。”
XII.13. The Master said:
— Hearing litigants, I can do so like anyone else. What is important is to make it so that there are no more litigants.
子张问政。子曰：“居之无倦，行之以忠。”
XII.14. Zizhang asked Confucius about administration. The Master replied:
— One must apply one’s mind to affairs without relaxation and treat them with justice.
子曰：“博学于文，约之以礼，亦可以弗畔矣夫。”
XII.15. The Master said:
— The sage helps others to do good, but not to do evil. The vulgar person does the opposite.
子曰：“君子成人之美，不成人之恶。小人反是。”
XII.16. The Master said:
— The sage helps others to do good, but not to do evil. The vulgar person does the opposite.
季康子问政于孔子。孔子对曰：“政者正也，子帅以正，孰敢不正。”
XII.17. Ji Kangzi asked Confucius about the art of governance. Confucius replied:
— Governing or leading people is to make them follow the right path. If you yourself, Sir, walk at their head on the right path, who would dare not to follow?
季康子患盗，问与孔子。孔子对曰：“苟子之不欲，虽赏之不窃。”
XII.18. Ji Kangzi was troubled by thieves; he consulted Confucius. The philosopher replied:
— Sir, if you are neither greedy nor ambitious, there will be no thieves, even if you encouraged theft with rewards.
季康子问政于孔子曰：“如杀无道，以就有道，何如？”
孔子对曰：“子为政，焉用杀。子欲善，而民善矣。君子之德风，小人之德草，草上之风，必偃。”
XII.19. Ji Kangzi, asking Confucius about the way of governance, said:
— Would it not be good to put to death the wicked, to make the people virtuous?
Confucius replied:
— In governing the people, Sir, do you need capital punishment? You yourself should earnestly be virtuous, and your people will be virtuous. The virtue of the prince is like the wind; that of the people is like the grass. At the blowing of the wind, the grass always bends.
子张问：“士何如，斯可谓之达矣。”
子曰：“何哉，尔所谓达者？”
子张对曰：“在邦必闻，在家必闻。”
子曰：“是闻也，非达也。夫达也者，质直而好义，察言而观色，虑以下人。在邦必达，在家必达。夫闻也者，色取仁而行违，居之不疑，在邦必闻，在家必闻。”
XII.20. Zizhang asked Confucius what the disciple of wisdom should do to be called illustrious. The Master said:
— What do you call an illustrious man?
Zizhang replied:
— One who has a reputation with his prince, his fellow citizens, and all his relatives.
The Master said:
— That one has reputation, but he does not have genuine honor. An illustrious man is simple, upright, and a lover of justice. He pays attention to the words he hears and observes the countenance. He takes care to put himself below others. He is illustrious among his fellow citizens and relatives. One who has only reputation adorns himself with the appearance of virtue, but his actions are contrary to virtue. He flatters himself that he is virtuous and is confident of it. He has reputation among his fellow citizens and relatives.
樊迟从游于舞雩之下，曰：“敢问崇德修慝辨惑？”
子曰：“善哉问。先事后得，非崇德与？攻其恶，无攻人之恶，非修慝与？一朝之忿，忘其身以及其亲，非惑与？”
XII.21. Fan Chi, accompanying Confucius on a walk at the foot of the hill called Wu Yu, said:
— May I ask you how one can acquire great virtue, correct one’s faults, and recognize one’s errors?
The Master replied:
— What an excellent question! To aim at practice rather than possession of virtue, is that not the way to acquire great virtue? To wage war on one’s own faults and not on those of others, is that not the way to correct oneself? In a moment of anger, to endanger one’s life and that of one’s parents, is that not delusion?
樊迟问仁。子曰：“爱人。”问知。子曰：“知人。”樊迟不达，子曰：“举直错诸枉，能使枉者直。”樊迟退，见子夏曰：“向也吾见于夫子而问知，子曰：举直错诸枉，能使枉者直。何谓也？”
子夏曰：“富哉言乎！舜有天下，选于众，举皋陶，不仁者远矣。汤有天下，选于众，举伊尹，不仁者远矣。”
XII.22. Fan Chi asked what the virtue of humanity consists in.
— It consists in loving people, replied the Master.
Fan Chi asked what prudence consists in.
— It consists in knowing people, replied Confucius.
Fan Chi not understanding, the Master said:
— By promoting the virtuous to office and setting aside the wicked, one can make the wicked reform themselves.
Fan Chi, having withdrawn, went to Zixia and said:
— Just now, I went to see the Master and asked him what prudence consists in. He replied: By promoting the good to office and setting aside the wicked, one can make the wicked reform themselves. What do these words mean?
Zixia said:
— These words are full of meaning. Shun, having become master of the empire, selected among all his subjects and promoted Gao Yao; the wicked went far away. Tang, having ascended to the empire, selected among all his subjects and promoted Yi Yin; all the wicked disappeared.
子贡问友。子曰：“忠告而善道之，不可则止，无自辱焉。”
XII.23. Zigong having asked Confucius about friendship, the Master said:
— Warn your friends with frankness and advise them with gentleness. If they do not approve your advice, stop; fear to bring reproach upon yourself.
曾子曰：“君子以文会友，以友辅仁。”
XII.24. Zengzi said:
— The sage makes friends through his learning, and friendship is a means of perfection for him and for them.
