鐔津文集 6.32

6.32

司馬長卿楊子雲。其人其文皆世之稱也。及楊子為劇秦美新。長卿為封禪書也。封禪之言怪乎淫徒。加其夸大之心者也。美新之言苟言也。記曰。國無道其默足以容賢而不默孰與默邪。是皆不宜為而為之也。晁錯論五帝三王之道諧其極也。宜賢于管子仲晏子嬰。及其請削諸侯之封。舌未卷而晁氏以赤其族。蓋時未可言而言之也。東方朔枚乘其才俊坌涌飛書走檄不足其奮筆。然皆不能效一官就一政。蓋徒才而不得其實能也。劉向劉歆皆漢室之賢儒暨治傳也。父子各專師說而家自是非。蓋得道而不得其極也。道而不極非道也。才而不效徒才也。發而不時逆理也。為而不宜失義也。是故事貴合宜。智貴識時。器貴適用。法貴折中。中也者道義之端也。用也者器效之端也。時也者動靜之端也。宜也者事制之端也。四端者君子之道之至者也。善學者不得其端不盡也。善為者不得其端不舉也。是故古之聖賢學道而有道。興事而濟事。存其端而已漢。世之二三子雖激昂而無所成其德。抑亦未得端而然也。

Sima Xiangru and Yang Ziyun—both their persons and their writings were praised by their ages. Yet Yang Xiong wrote 'Rebuking the Qin and Praising the Xin', and Sima Xiangru wrote the 'Treatise on the Feng and Shan Sacrifices'. Words concerning the feng and shan sacrifices are eccentric, the work of licentious men who add their boastful intentions; words praising the Xin dynasty are reckless flattery. The Record says: 'When the state lacks the Way, one's silence is sufficient to preserve the worthy.' When one is not silent, how can that compare to silence? These were things that ought not to have been done, yet they did them. Chao Cuo discussed the Way of the Five Emperors and Three Kings, harmonizing with its highest peak, such that he should have been considered worthier than Guan Zhong and Yan Ying. Yet when he requested the reduction of the feudal lords' territories, before his tongue had even retracted, the Chao clan was exterminated to the last man. This was because he spoke when the time was not ripe for speaking. Dongfang Shuo and Mei Sheng had talents that surged forth in a torrent; sending off letters and dispatching proclamations were not enough to exhaust the vigor of their brushes. Yet neither could achieve results in a single official post or accomplish a single policy of government. They possessed talent alone, but lacked practical capability. Liu Xiang and Liu Xin were both worthy Ruists of the Han court who transmitted the classics. Yet father and son each adhered exclusively to their own masters' explanations, their household setting up its own right and wrong. They had attained the Way, yet did not attain its highest culmination. A Way that does not reach its culmination is not the true Way; talent that produces no effect is mere talent; acting out of season goes against reason; doing what is not fitting loses righteousness. Therefore, in affairs what is valued is hitting upon what is fitting; in wisdom what is valued is recognizing the season; in instruments what is valued is applicability to use; in standards what is valued is striking the mean. The mean is the cardinal point of the Way and righteousness; application is the cardinal point of an instrument's efficacy; timing is the cardinal point of movement and rest; appropriateness is the cardinal point of the regulation of affairs. These four cardinal points are the utmost of the gentleman's Way. A skilled learner who does not grasp their cardinal points will not comprehend completely; a skilled actor who does not grasp their cardinal points will not accomplish successfully. Therefore, when the sages and worthies of old studied the Way, they possessed the Way; when they undertook affairs, they brought them to completion. They simply preserved their cardinal points. Although the various gentlemen of the Han era were spirited and vehement, they accomplished nothing of virtue; was this not also because they failed to grasp the cardinal points?