弘明集 9.102

9.102

答曰。夫聖人者顯仁藏用窮神盡變。故曰聖達節而賢守節也。寧可求之蹄筌局以言教。夫欺者。謂傷化敗俗導人非道耳。苟可以安上治民移風易俗。三光明於上。黔黎悅於下。何欺妄之有乎。請問。湯放桀武伐紂。是殺君非耶。而孟子云。聞誅獨夫紂。未聞殺君也。子不責聖人放殺之迹。而勤勤於郊稷之妄乎。郊丘明堂乃是儒家之淵府也。而非形神之滯義。當如此何耶。

The reply: As for the sage, he manifests benevolence, conceals function, exhausts the spirit, and fathoms all transformations. Thus it is said: 'The sage transcends rules, while the worthy upholds rules.' How could one seek him through hare-traps and fish-nets, restricting him to verbal teachings? Deception means harming moral transformation, corrupting customs, and leading people into improper ways. If it can bring peace to superiors, govern the people, and transform manners and customs, so that the three luminaries shine above and the common folk rejoice below, what deception or falsehood is there? May I ask: Tang exiled Jie, and Wu attacked Zhou—was this killing a ruler or not? Yet Mencius said: 'I have heard of executing the tyrant Zhou, but I have not heard of killing a ruler.' You do not reproach the sages for their actions of exile and execution, yet you obsess over the suburban sacrifice to Ji as a falsehood? The suburban mound and the Hall of Light are the profound treasuries of the Confucians, not rigid dogmas about corporeal form and spirit. What is to be done about this?