鐔津文集 4.7

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."