鐔津文集 6.14

6.14

性生人者之自得者也。命生人者之得於天者也。德能正其生人者也。藝能資其生人者也。然性命有厚薄。而德藝有大小也。性命者生所雖得而未嘗全得其厚薄者也。德藝者人所宜能而未必全能其大小者也。古之人厚其性而薄其命有也。而古人不惑。古之人達於藝而窮於德有也。而古人不亂。故曰聖賢無全德。君子無全能。有其內而無其外。聖賢之所以無全德也。能於德而不能於藝。君子之所以無全能也。德上也藝下也。君子修其上而正其下也。故其不必工於百工而尊於百工也。性內也命外也。聖賢正其性而任其命。故其窮之不憂。而通之不疑也伊尹古之賢人也。方耕于莘佃。佃之耕夫以其能尚之。而伊尹不敢與之校。呂望古之賢人也。方漁于棘津。津之漁人以其能尚之。而呂望不敢與之校。迨乎二子德顯于商周也。而天下百姓由之正矣。孔子古之聖人也。方力聘之秋猶一旅人而不暇息也。方時命大謬而亂物物焉不失其道也。顏子子思原憲孟軻古之賢人也。窮於幽閻委巷樂然將終其身。而眾子也不易其樂。夫德也者。總仁義忠孝之謂也。性也者。原道德思慮之謂也。仁義忠孝修而足以推於人矣。君子之學。學其正也。何必多乎。道德思慮明。而足以安其生矣。聖賢之盡。盡其生也。何必皆乎。是故聖賢之世。而占相卜祝者無所張其巧也。君子之前。而孫吳申商者無所夸其法也。夏人之學曰教。殷人之學曰序。周人之學曰庠。夫三代之學皆所以詔人而學於德也。德義者學之本也。文藝者學之末也。三代之盛其教天下所以學其本也。三代之敝其教天下所以學其末也。學末故天下皆偽也。學本故天下皆厚也。是故君子貴其敦本也。聖賢貴其盡理也。古人有言曰。晉楚之富不可及也。彼以其富我以吾仁。彼以其爵我以吾義。吾何慊哉。古人有言。樂天知命吾何憂乎。窮理盡性吾何疑乎。

Nature is what humans possess inherently by being born. Destiny is what humans receive from Heaven by being born. Virtue is what can rectify humans. Arts are what can sustain humans. Yet nature and destiny have thickness and thinness, while virtue and arts have greatness and smallness. Nature and destiny are what life obtains, yet one never completely obtains their fullness or scarcity. Virtue and arts are what a person ought to be capable of, yet one is not necessarily completely capable in both greatness and smallness. Among the ancients, some were abundant in nature yet sparse in destiny, but the ancients were not deluded. Among the ancients, some were accomplished in arts yet deficient in virtue, but the ancients were not disordered. Therefore it is said: sages and worthies do not have complete virtue, and the noble person does not have complete capability. Possessing the internal while lacking the external is why sages and worthies do not have complete virtue. Being capable in virtue while not being capable in arts is why the noble person does not have complete capability. Virtue is superior; arts are inferior. The noble person cultivates what is superior and rectifies what is inferior. Therefore he does not need to be skilled in the hundred crafts, yet he is more honored than the hundred craftsmen. Nature is internal; destiny is external. Sages and worthies rectify their nature and submit to their destiny; thus in distress they do not worry, and in success they do not doubt. Yi Yin was a worthy of antiquity. When he was plowing in the fields of Youxin, the farmers who plowed beside him surpassed him in skill, yet Yi Yin did not dare compete with them. Lü Wang was a worthy of antiquity. When he was fishing at Jijin, the fishermen at the ford surpassed him in skill, yet Lü Wang did not dare compete with them. When the virtue of these two men became manifest in the Shang and Zhou, the common people of the world were rectified through them. Confucius was a sage of antiquity. In the prime of his travels, he was like a lone traveler with no leisure to rest. When the times and destiny were gravely awry and things were in turmoil, he never lost his Way. Yanzi, Zisi, Yuan Xian, and Meng Ke were worthies of antiquity. Living in distress in secluded alleys and humble lanes, they joyfully spent their lives, and none of them altered their joy. Virtue is the collective term for benevolence, righteousness, loyalty, and filial piety. Nature is the origin of the Way, virtue, contemplation, and thought. When benevolence, righteousness, loyalty, and filial piety are cultivated, they suffice to extend to others. The learning of the noble person is to learn what is correct; why must it be multifaceted? When the Way, virtue, contemplation, and thought are illuminated, they suffice to secure one's life. The fulfillment of sages and worthies is to fulfill their life; why must it encompass everything? For this reason, in an age of sages and worthies, diviners, physiognomists, and shamans have nowhere to deploy their cleverness. Before the noble person, Sun Wu, Wu Qi, Shen Buhai, and Shang Yang have nowhere to boast of their methods. The school of the Xia people was called Xiao; the school of the Yin people was called Xu; the school of the Zhou people was called Xiang. The schools of the Three Dynasties all served to instruct people to learn virtue. Virtue and righteousness are the root of learning; culture and arts are the branch of learning. In the height of the Three Dynasties, they taught the world to learn the root. In the decline of the Three Dynasties, they taught the world to learn the branches. When learning the branches, the world becomes deceitful. When learning the root, the world becomes genuine. For this reason, the noble person values consolidating the root; sages and worthies value exhausting the principle. The ancients had a saying: "The wealth of Jin and Chu cannot be matched. Let them take their wealth; I have my benevolence. Let them take their rank; I have my righteousness. Why should I feel dissatisfied?" The ancients had a saying: "Rejoicing in Heaven and knowing destiny, what do I worry about? Exhausting principle and fully developing nature, what do I doubt?"