鐔津文集 4

English (machine translation) 4

Language: English

4.1

Composed by Śramaṇa Qisong of Dongshan in Tanjin, Tengzhou

That which all under Heaven hold in common is called great impartiality. The central correctness of all under Heaven is called the August Ultimate. Central correctness is that by which the minds of the myriad things are unified. What is not central and correct is that by which the minds of the myriad things are alienated. If they are alienated, all under Heaven will be in disorder; if they are unified, all under Heaven will be well-ordered. Those who are good at governing all under Heaven must first uphold the August Ultimate to achieve great impartiality. Those who are not good at governing all under Heaven must first cast aside the August Ultimate and abandon great impartiality. For this reason, when the ancient sages promoted the August Ultimate to rulers of men, it was for no other reason than wanting them to govern all under Heaven. When they taught the August Ultimate to the common people, it was for no other reason than wanting all under Heaven to be well-ordered. The court and the state are the great body of all under Heaven. Wealth, honor, and exalted status are the great momentum of all under Heaven. If one upholds them according to the Dao, then the body and momentum are strong; if one upholds them losing the Dao, then the body and momentum are weak. As for the Dao, it is no other Dao than the Dao of the August Ultimate. King Wen and King Wu of Zhou quelled and eliminated calamity and turmoil, broadly expanded the royal enterprise, possessed wealth, honor, and exalted status, and passed them from father to son in succession. In the divinations of their generations, they were numerous; in the divinations of their years, they were long-lasting. Even through past and present, none have surpassed them. Their meritorious virtues and fame were luminous and magnificent, their light spreading without limit. This is what is called upholding them and obtaining the Dao. When it came to King Yi, King Ping, King Zhuang, and King Jing, they stepped down from the hall to pay court to the feudal lords, moved east to timidly avoid the Rong and Di barbarians, were unable to restrain the tyrannical vassal states, and were unable to command respect for wealth, honor, and exalted status. Precariously, they were on the verge of letting fall the magnificent enterprise of their former kings. This is what is called upholding them and losing the Dao. Alas! A family of several mouths, with an estate of five mu, presided over by an ordinary man and woman—their character is of the utmost simplicity, and their governance is of the most minute scale. Yet when they maintain central correctness in overseeing it, their family members love them and their neighbors admire them. The prosperity of their family way can still be transmitted to their descendants for successive generations. How much more so when one is endowed with the great body of all under Heaven and rides upon the great momentum of all under Heaven, possessing the resources to achieve it and the momentum that makes it easy to carry out! If one uses the August Ultimate to promote it, who would not follow and submit? Would they not rub shoulders and tread upon heels in turning toward it? The Book of Odes says: "The benign and noble person / rectifies the people of the state. / Rectifying the people of the state, / why should he not endure for ten thousand years?" This is what it refers to. Someone said: "What kind of Dao is the August Ultimate?" I reply: "It is the Dao of Heaven, the Dao of Earth, and the Dao of humanity—unifying the Three Powers into one." He asked: "What does that mean?" I replied: "If the Dao of Heaven is not central and correct, then the sun, moon, stars, and constellations will not be bright, wind, rain, frost, and snow will not be seasonal, the Five Phases will become disordered, and the myriad things will not grow. If the Dao of Earth is not central and correct, then mountains and hills will collapse, rivers and waterways will congeal, the grasses, trees, and hundred fruits will not mature, and city walls and houses will all topple over. If the Dao of humanity is not central and correct, then natures and emotions will be thrown into confusion, internally giving rise to madness and falsehood, externally creating calamities and harm, personally injuring one's own life and outwardly harming other people. Therefore, though Heaven is lofty, luminous, broad, and vast, without the August Ultimate, what would make it Heaven? Though Earth is wide, thick, and boundless, without the August Ultimate, what would make it Earth? Though human beings receive refined qi and are more intelligent than the myriad things, without the August Ultimate, what would make them human? Therefore, the August Ultimate is not something made by the sages; it is the inherent principle of Heaven and Earth. Hence, when human beings lose the August Ultimate, the anomalies of Heaven and Earth follow upon it. Sages are those who attain the August Ultimate before our people; therefore, they accordingly extend it to teach their people. Yi Yin said: 'I am one among Heaven's people who is the first to awaken; I will use this Dao to awaken these people.' Sages are called those who awaken first. Therefore, the reason sages were cautious regarding the August Ultimate was their urgency in helping people and the depth of their concern for all under Heaven—why was this? After Shun and Yu, their eras grew increasingly degenerate. Disputatious and anxious, who among people is without fault? Minor ones err in their families; major ones err in their states; still greater ones err in all under Heaven. The August Ultimate was then raised up to stimulate them, and thus began to be implemented in the Nine Categories. King Wu attained it and created the realm of Zhou; the realm was both vast and enduring. Therefore, the five blessings and the six extremes are bound to the August Ultimate of an individual; favorable omens and calamitous omens are bound to the August Ultimate of a state and of all under Heaven. Can the August Ultimate ever be abandoned? Alas! None among people fail to lift weights and scales to correct the lightness or heaviness of gold, or pull the inked line to correct the crookedness or straightness of wood. Yet when it comes to cultivating oneself or governing the state and all under Heaven, they do not know to raise up the August Ultimate to correct it. In this way, the wisdom of sages, worthies, and heroes turns out to fall below that of master carpenters and craftsmen. Mencius said: 'This is not doing it; it is not being unable to do it.' When ancient rulers (one text reads: noble persons) took action, they raised up the August Ultimate and put it into practice. Therefore they did not hesitate or waver, did not inquire of spirits, and did not make arbitrary decisions based on personal whim. Even though Yao gave all under Heaven to another person, the people under Heaven did not resent Yao for not giving it to his own kin. Even though Yu passed all under Heaven to his son, the people under Heaven did not resent Yu for favoring his own kin. Tang's punitive expeditions began with the state of Ge, and all under Heaven trusted him. When he campaigned toward the east, the western Yi barbarians felt resentment; when he campaigned toward the south, the northern Di barbarians felt resentment, saying: 'Why leave us for last?' The people looked toward him as if looking for clouds and rainbows during a great drought. Yet all under Heaven also did not resent Tang for wearying them with his campaigns. This was because he shared all under Heaven with the common people. Shun received all under Heaven from another as an ordinary man; the Duke of Zhou enfeoffed more than fifty states to those of his own clan; yet Shun and the Duke of Zhou never doubted all under Heaven out of self-interest, and all under Heaven also regarded Shun and the Duke of Zhou as impartial toward all under Heaven. Zhou had ten capable ministers to bring order, and its state was well-governed; King Zhou of Shang had millions of ordinary people, yet his state perished—why was this? Employing people with central correctness, they did not need to be numerous; employing people without central correctness, what benefit is there even if they are numerous? Someone asked: 'What is called employing people with central correctness?' I replied: 'Great talents are assigned great affairs; small talents are assigned small affairs. Those who can bear great affairs must not be cast aside on account of small faults; those suitable for small affairs must not be entrusted with great accomplishments. The Book of Odes says: "On the mountain are hazel trees, in the marshland are water chestnuts. / Whom am I thinking of? / The beautiful person in the west. / That beautiful person / is someone of the west." This is thinking of Zhou's employment of people, where both great and small were given their proper place. Rewarding and punishing, demoting and promoting, are the sovereign's great powers. Issuing decrees and administering penal laws are the sovereign's great teachings. If teachings lack central correctness, then the people will doubt; if power lacks central correctness, then authority will deceive. It is asked: 'What is central correctness in power and teaching?' I reply: 'Rewards are that by which impartiality is advanced; one must not increase them lavishly out of arbitrary affection. Punishments are that by which selfishness is suppressed; one must not make them heavier out of arbitrary hatred. Demotions are that by which errors are chastised; one must not make the laws inconsistent based on noble or base status. Promotions are that by which the Dao is elevated; one must not evaluate a person based on slander or praise. Decrees are that by which the people are settled; they must not be issued lightly or altered repeatedly. Penal laws are that by which the people are restrained; they must not be excessively enacted or overly fastidious. If they are excessively enacted and overly fastidious, then the people become vexed and perceive no benevolence; if decrees are issued lightly and altered repeatedly, then the people are confused and have no standard. If evaluating a person based on slander or praise, then those who love or hate them will be able to indulge their words. If making laws inconsistent based on noble or base status, then the prominent will be able to rely on their influence. If making punishments heavier out of arbitrary hatred, the fault lies in unbenevolence; if increasing rewards lavishly out of arbitrary affection, the fault lies in non-propriety. Ritual is the appearance of the August Ultimate; music is the voice of the August Ultimate; institutional systems are the implements of the August Ultimate. If its implements are not raised up, then the well-field system will fall into disorder, taxation will become chaotic, and carriages, clothing, palaces, and chambers will see superiors usurped and inferiors encroached upon. If its voice is not sounded, then humans and spirits will not be in harmony, and customs will drift into dissolution. If its appearance is not made manifest, then there will be no distinction between noble and base, and superiors and inferiors will become confused. As for the August Ultimate, it does not exist merely because of antiquity, nor is it absent because of the present. It does not grow because of Yao, Shun, Yu, and Tang, nor does it diminish because of Jie, Zhou, You, and Li. It lies solely in those who put it into practice. Putting it into practice to the utmost is how one becomes an emperor or a king. Putting it into practice imperfectly is how one becomes the Five Hegemons or feudal lords. Severing it and not practicing it is how states perish. Those who attain it become sages; those who walk in it become worthies; those who abandon it and do not learn it—are they not petty people?' Someone asked: 'Did Qin and Han attain the August Ultimate to the utmost?' I replied: 'Although Qin perished and its state is not worth discussing, the August Ultimate can certainly be discerned. As for Han and the August Ultimate, examining its historical records, it can be distinguished in detail; speaking generally, it also did not attain it to the utmost. It resided between the kingly way and the hegemonic way.' The interlocutor agreed."

4.4

Explanation of the Doctrine of the Mean, Part 1

4.5

Someone said: "The Doctrine of the Mean (Zhongyong) seems to differ from the Book of Rites (Liji). Ritual propriety is that by which ranks and degrees are ordered and institutions are regulated. The Doctrine of the Mean, on the other hand, is merely an exposition rectifying nature and destiny. Does it not differ from the various ritual classics?" The old man thereupon analyzed it, saying: "Do you really not understand the Doctrine of the Mean? The Doctrine of the Mean is indeed the culmination of ritual and the source of benevolence and righteousness. Ritual, music, punishments, governance, benevolence, righteousness, wisdom, and trustworthiness—these eight are united in the Doctrine of the Mean. When humans lose their equilibrium, their nature comes into contact with external things, and joy, anger, sorrow, fear, love, and hate are born therein; desires and appetites burst forth. There were sages who feared that the heavenly principle would be extinguished and human relationships would lack regulation. Therefore, they instituted ritual, music, punishments, and governance to regulate their joy, anger, sorrow, fear, love, hate, desires, and appetites. They instituted benevolence, righteousness, wisdom, and trustworthiness to broaden their teachings and the Way. In establishing ritual, there are high and low, inner and outer, so that those who feel joy may not be improperly intimate, and those who feel anger may not be improperly estranged. In establishing music, there are refined, correct, peaceful, and harmonious tones to engage their qi, so that those who feel joy and desires may not fall into licentiousness. In establishing punishments, there are executions, penal servitude, banishment, and censures, so that those who are angry and vent malice may not oppress one another. In establishing governance, there are rewards and penalties, so that those who grieve may have recourse and those who fear may receive encouragement. In establishing benevolence, they taught them to be generous and accommodate all things. In establishing righteousness, they taught them that when performing actions they must be fitting. In establishing wisdom, they taught them to be discerning and comprehend change. In establishing trustworthiness, they taught them that when speaking words they must not deceive. Therefore, ritual, music, punishments, and governance are the great regulations of the world; benevolence, righteousness, wisdom, and trustworthiness are the great teachings of the world. If the arising of emotions does not exceed their regulation, and the cultivation of conduct does not lose its teaching, then the Way of the Mean will be nearly attained! The Doctrine of the Mean is the Way by which humans are established. For this reason, when a noble person is about to act or conduct himself, he must cultivate the Mean and only then proceed. Food and drink can be forsaken; the prestige of wealth, honor, and eminence can be yielded; but the Mean cannot be abandoned. For those who would make their intentions sincere, cultivate their persons, regulate their families, govern their states, and make their bright virtue shine throughout the world, if they cast aside the Mean, how could they accomplish this? People who ruin their states and destroy their persons invariably do so because they forgot the Mean. The text says: 'The Way is that which cannot be departed from for an instant; what can be departed from is not the Way.' Does it not mean this?"

4.6

Exposition of the Doctrine of the Mean, Part Two

4.7

Someone asked, saying: "It was said that ritual, music, punishments, and governance are the great regulations of the world; benevolence, righteousness, wisdom, and trustworthiness are the great teachings of the world; if the arising of emotions does not exceed their regulation, and the cultivation of conduct does not lose its teaching, then the Way of the Mean will be nearly attained. I am in the dark and have not grasped its meaning. Would you explain it for me again?" The old man said: "Young man, you are indeed resolute! You can be told of the Way. Teaching is that which is extended to others; regulation is that which restrains emotions. When benevolence, righteousness, wisdom, and trustworthiness are promoted, human relationships have their order. When ritual, music, punishments, and governance are cultivated, human emotions find their proper place. When people do not violently disrupt their life, human life's principle is attained; when emotions do not disturb their nature, human natural principle is upright. Then the Way of the Mean is present therein. Therefore, joy, anger, sorrow, pleasure, love, hate, desires, and appetites are what drag people down into losing the Mean. Benevolence, righteousness, wisdom, trustworthiness, ritual, music, punishments, and governance are what guide people to return to the Mean. Hence it is said: 'Benevolence, righteousness, wisdom, trustworthiness, ritual, music, punishments, and governance—these eight are united in the Doctrine of the Mean.' Now, the Mean is non-action; it is not a vessel. It is brighter than the sun and moon yet cannot be seen; it is more subtle than ghosts and spirits yet cannot be measured (some texts have 'nothing' for 'measured'). Only the noble person can preserve wholeness through the Mean; only the petty person can effect corruption away from the Mean. When one who preserves its wholeness does good, there is nowhere he does not reach; when one who corrupts it does evil, there is also nowhere he does not reach. The text says: 'All people say, "I know," but choosing the Mean, they cannot maintain it for a single month.' How could the sage not desire that people abide in the Mean from beginning to end and be cautious regarding its corruption? Shun used it to be a ruler, and later generations praised his sagacity; Yan Hui used it to be a minister, and later generations praised his worthiness; King Wu and the Duke of Zhou used it to be filial sons, and later generations praised their filial piety. How could the Mean be false? Alas, among the rulers, ministers, and descendants of later generations, if later generations do not praise them, there is no other reason: it is because they did not cultivate the Mean."

4.8

Exposition of the Doctrine of the Mean, Part Three

4.9

Someone asked: "The 'Great Plan' (Hongfan) says: 'The sovereign establishes the Ultimate.' Commentators say this means 'greatly establishing that which is centered.' Is this then different from or the same as what you call the Way of the Mean?" [The old man] replied: "It shares great similarities with the Sovereign Ultimate (Huangji) but has minor differences. They are the same in that they both tend toward the substance of good governance; they differ in that they differ regarding teaching and the Way. The Sovereign Ultimate is teaching; the Mean is the Way. The Way issues forth all things and enters into all things; therefore, the Way is taken as the center. The Doctrine of the Mean says: 'Before joy, anger, sorrow, and pleasure arise, it is called equilibrium (the center). When they arise and all hit the proper measure, it is called harmony. Equilibrium is the great root of all under Heaven; harmony is the universal Way of all under Heaven. Reaching equilibrium and harmony, heaven and earth find their proper positions.' Does this not issue forth and enter into all things? Teaching is what rectifies all things and aligns all things; therefore, teaching is taken as the center. The 'Great Plan' says: 'Without partiality, without lopsidedness, follow the King's righteousness; have no self-willed desires, follow the King's Way; do no evil deeds, follow the King's path. Without partiality, without partisanship, the King's Way is vast and boundless; without partisanship, without partiality, the King's Way is level and smooth; without perversity, without deviation, the King's Way is straight and upright. Converge upon this Ultimate; return to this Ultimate.' Does this not align and straighten all things? The relation of the Doctrine of the Mean to the 'Great Plan' is like the outer and the inner, or like a person having a mind. If a person had no mind, how could bodily life exist? If the mind had no person, how could it exert its functions of thought and deliberation?" The interlocutor asked: "Master Zheng [Xuan], in his commentary on 'What Heaven ordains is called human nature,' says: 'Heaven's ordinance means that which Heaven ordains in generating humans. This is called nature and destiny. The spirit of wood is benevolence; the spirit of metal is righteousness; the spirit of fire is ritual; the spirit of water is wisdom; the spirit of earth is trustworthiness.' Examining Master Zheng's meaning, it seems as if when Heaven ordains the generation of humans, their nature comes into being according to what is resonated with: resonating with the spirit of wood produces a nature of benevolence; resonating with the spirits of metal, water, fire, or earth produces natures of righteousness, ritual, wisdom, or trustworthiness. This seems not to be acquired through practice. Does this not differ from your statement that benevolence, righteousness, ritual, wisdom, and trustworthiness must be completed through teaching with respect to nature? I would be glad to hear the reason for this." The old man said: "Delightful is your question! I have long been troubled that Master Zheng's explanation is inadequate, but have not had leisure to critique it. Yet how could Master Zheng have plumbed the discourse on nature and destiny? As for 'what Heaven ordains is called nature,' Heaven's ordinance refers to the numbers of Heaven and Earth, while nature refers to spiritual nature. It means that humans are born through the numbers of Heaven and Earth combined with spiritual nature. Nature is an inherent principle; emotions arise when stimulated. Because the sage knew that human nature inherently possesses emotions of affection and love, gratitude and stirring, discernment and distinction, thought and deliberation, and compliant following, he utilized his teachings to accordingly fulfill them: affection and love can complete benevolence; gratitude and stirring can complete righteousness; discernment and distinction can complete ritual; thought and deliberation can complete wisdom; compliant following can complete trustworthiness. Who ever attained their nature based upon resonance with external spirits? When things have not yet taken form, nature and birth both do not exist. What could there be to resonate? Once a person is born, why would they wait to resonate with spiritual objects in order to have their nature? Those elements—metal, wood, water, fire, and earth—are objects without consciousness. Who among them could earnestly mandate such a thing? How bizarre is Master Zheng's statement! He indeed failed to reflect on it deeply. If it were as he said, what need would the sages have for teaching? Yet some people silently agree with him."

4.10

Exposition of the Doctrine of the Mean, Part Four

4.11

Someone said: "I have heard that human nature has higher and lower grades, just like the hands and feet, which cannot be interchanged. Therefore Confucius said: 'Only the highest wisdom and the lowest stupidity do not change.' Master Han said: 'Those of the upper grade are simply good; those of the lower grade are simply evil.' Mencius said: 'Is the nature of a dog then like the nature of an ox, and the nature of an ox like the nature of a human?' Yet your account of nature seems to hold that there is no distinction between the worthy and the unworthy, nor between humans and beasts; it blends them into one without distinguishing their higher and lower grades, so that feet could be placed on the head, and the head placed on the feet—turned completely upside down! How does this show what does not change? How do you differ from the teachings of the sages and worthies?"

The elder said: "Although I talk on and on with you all day, you remain stubborn and unenlightened; is there nothing to be done? You take up my words without connecting them with your mind, and still reproach me with mere matters of fact! Though I might speak skillfully, how could I escape the condemnation of being verbose? When Zhongni said, 'Only the highest wisdom and the lowest stupidity do not change,' he meant that people have talent and lack of talent, and their allotments are fixed. Those who are talented and clear-sighted are the upper; those who are untalented and benighted are the lower. How could he have meant that their nature has higher and lower grades? Therefore, he first said: 'By nature they are near to one another; by habituation they grow far apart,' and then followed this with 'the highest wisdom and the lowest stupidity do not change.' If we were to hold that nature has higher and lower grades that cannot change, then the nature that desires food, drink, men, and women would belong only to the wise, and the foolish would not possess it. If all possess it, one cannot say that their nature is fixed in higher and lower grades. Master Han's words drew upon what Zhongni called 'do not change'; failing to examine its meaning deeply, he rashly fixed higher and lower grades by goodness and evil—how could that be correct? Good and evil pertain to the passions (qing), not to nature. Why is it that the passions have good and evil, whereas nature has neither good nor evil? Nature is tranquil; the passions are active. The forms of good and evil become visible in activity. When Mencius said that the nature of a dog is like the nature of an ox, and the nature of an ox is like the nature of a human, Master Meng was pointing to what nature desires; naturally these are not the same. What I speak of is nature; what those two masters spoke of is the passions. As for passions, who is not different? As for nature, who is not identical?"

Someone said: "If that is so, then dogs and oxen are like humans, and ordinary people are like the sages and worthies. How then are ordinary people and sages and worthies distinguished?"

[The elder] said: "You truly do not understand. Dogs and oxen are dogs and oxen; ordinary people are ordinary people; sages and worthies are sages and worthies. What makes dogs and oxen to be dogs and oxen is that they have nature but lack discernment. What makes ordinary people to be ordinary people is that they have spiritual awareness (ling) but lack clarity. What makes worthy people to be worthy people is that they are clear but not yet fully authentic (cheng). What makes sages to be sages is that they are both authentic and clear. Now authenticity is what is called great authenticity (some editions read 'da' [great], others read 'xing' [nature]); it is the Way of the Mean. In stillness, it shares its principle with Heaven and Earth; in movement, it accords in its operation with the four seasons. For this reason, when the sage applies it to ritual propriety, rulers and ministers take their proper stations, fathers and sons are affectionate, brothers are fraternal, men and women are distinguished; the elderly have someone to care for them, the young have someone to teach them, the able-bodied have someone to serve, the weak have someone to secure them; weddings and funerals obtain their proper fitness from beginning to end; and none of the myriad things of Heaven and Earth lacks its order. When he applies it to music, the court is dignified and harmonious, the world is free of sorrow, yin and yang are in harmony, the wind and rain are timely, and among all creatures possessing blood and breath, none fails to be revived and gladdened; songs are sung at the suburban altars and the ancestral temple, and the ghosts and spirits arrive. When he applies it to punishments, the armies, prisons, and litigations are well-ordered, the four Yi and eight Man barbarians stand in awe of his majesty, and the common people stay far from crime and turn toward goodness. When he applies it to governance, the worthy advance daily, the flatterers are cut off and banished, institutions are broadly established, and cultural glory and institutional splendor can be displayed to later generations. Loving them with benevolence, the four seas are peaceful; ordering them with righteousness, the myriad things are fitting; directing them with wisdom, affairs are accomplished; sustaining them with trustworthiness, the world responds with actuality. Such is the sage's enactment of the Mean."

4.12

Exposition of the Mean, Part Five

4.13

The inquirer bowed twice, stepped forward, and said: "Utmost indeed are your words, sir! From now on, I know that the Mean is supreme; it is the ultimate Way of the realm. Heaven, Earth, ghosts, and spirits cannot surpass it. Without the Mean, how could we humans live? May I ask, can the Mean be learned?"

[The elder] said: "What does that mean? What cannot be learned? The Mean is not silent and useless. Therefore, reaching utmost accord, it adapts; adapting, it penetrates. Measures and regulations are that by which its adaptation is governed; learning is that by which its penetration is practiced. Adapting and according with righteousness is what makes a noble person; penetrating yet losing moral instruction is what makes a petty person. Therefore, speaking of the Mean consists precisely in learning."

"If so, then how does one learn it?"

[The elder] said: "Learn ritual propriety; learn music. When ritual propriety and music are cultivated, the Mean is attained. Ritual propriety is that by which seeing and hearing are corrected, actions and movements are corrected, speech is corrected, and desires and cravings are curbed. Music is that by which blockages and depressions are vented, and the blood and breath are harmonized. When seeing and hearing are not depraved, actions and movements are not disordered, speech is not false, desires and cravings do not arise, thoughts are calm and unburdened, and the blood and breath are peaceful and harmonious, then the Mean [is attained]. Thereafter, benevolence settles it, righteousness practices it, wisdom penetrates it, and trustworthiness preserves it; punishments and governance abide within them."

[The inquirer] said: "Among the ancients, who was able to embody the Mean? I wish to follow such a person."

[The elder] said: "Viewing it through the texts, it was Shun and Confucius; next to them were Master Yan and Zisi. King Wu and the Duke of Zhou were said to be able to practice filial piety through the Mean."

Someone said: "Were not Yao, Yu, Tang, Wen, Wu, and the Duke of Zhou sages? Why does [your account] not reach up to Yao, and not extend down to Yu, Tang, Wen, Wu, and the Duke of Zhou?"

[The elder] said: "Confucius did not speak of them, so how would I dare to discuss them?"

[The inquirer] said: "Meng Ke studied under Zisi; was he able to embody the Mean?"

[The elder] said: "I do not know."

[The inquirer] said: "In the Tang dynasty, was Li Ao able to embody the Mean?"

[The elder] said: "Ao merely imitated the Mean; that he was able to embody it, I have not heard."

[The inquirer] said: "Are you able to embody the Mean, sir?"

[The elder] said: "Unworthy as I am, how would I dare? Rather, having once studied our own Way, and finding that the Mean is close to our Way, I have ventured to speak of it. How could I dare say I am able to embody the Mean?"

Someone said: "Although I am not clever, I beg to apply myself to these words." Bowing twice with head to the ground, he withdrew.

4.14

Collected Writings of Tanjin, Fascicle Four

Linked texts (1)

鐔津文集 — Classical Chinese