THE FIVE QUALITIES

Tzu Chang asked Confucius a question about

Moral virtue. Confucius replied, “Moral virtue simply consists in being able, anywhere and everywhere, to exercise five particular qualities." Asked what these were, he said: "Self-respect, magnanimity, sincerity, earnestness, and benevolence. Show self-respect, and others will respect you; be magnanimous, and you will win all hearts; be sincere, and men will trust you; be earnest, and you will achieve great things; be benevolent, and you will be fit to impose your will on others."

RIGHTEOUSNESS

TZU Lu asked: “Does not the princely man value courage?" The Master said: "He puts righteousness first. The man of high station who has courage without righteousness is a menace to the State; the common man who has courage without righteousness is nothing more than a brigand.”

ON HATE

TZU Kung asked: "Has the nobler sort of man any hatreds?" The Master replied: "He has. He

hates those who publish the faults of others; he hates men of low condition who vilify those above them; he hates those whose courage is unaccompanied by self-restraint; he hates those who are audacious but narrow-minded."

"And you, Tzu," he added, "have you also your hatreds?” “I hate,” replied the disciple, “those who think that wisdom consists in prying and meddling; courage, in showing no compliance; and honesty, in denouncing other men."

THERE

THE FOUR WORDS

HERE were four words of which the Master barred the use: He would have no "shall's," no "must's," certainly no "I's."

CONFUCIUS ON HIMSELF

AT fifteen, my mind was bent on learning. At

thirty I stood firm. At forty I was free from delusions. At fifty I understood the laws of Providence. At sixty my ears were attentive to the truth. At seventy I could follow the promptings of my heart without overstepping the mean.

The failure to cultivate virtue, the failure to examine and analyze what I have learnt, the inability to move toward righteousness after being shown the way, the inability to correct my faults these are the causes of my grief.

I do not expound my teaching to any who are not eager to learn; I do not help out anyone who is not anxious to explain himself; if, after being shown one corner of a subject, a man cannot go on to discover the other three, I do not repeat the lesson.

If the pursuit of riches were a commendable pursuit, I would join in it, even if I had to become a chariot-driver for the purpose. But seeing that it is not a commendable pursuit, I engage in those which are more to my taste.

The Master said: "In me, knowledge is not innate. I am but one who loves antiquity and is earnest in the study of it."

If I am walking with two other men, each of them will serve as my teacher. I will pick out the good points of one and imitate them, and the bad points of the other and correct them in myself.

There are men, I dare say, who act rightly without knowing the reason why, but I am not one of them. Having heard much, I sift out the good and practice it; having seen much, I retain it in my memory. This is the second order of wisdom.

To divide wisdom and perfect virtue I can lay no claim. All that can be said of me is that I never falter in the course which I pursue and am unwearying in my instruction of others this and nothing more. Kung-hsi Hua said: "But those are just the qualities that we, your disciples, are unable to acquire."

ON OBSERVATION

MEN'S faults are characteristic. It is by observing a man's faults that one may come to know his virtues.

Observe a man's actions; scrutinize his motives; take note of the things that give him pleasure. How then can he hide from you what he really is?

Acquire new knowledge whilst thinking over the old, and you may become a teacher of others.

Study without thought is vain; thought (on Knowledge) without study is perilous.

Shall I tell you what true knowledge is? When you know, to know that you know, and when you do not know, to know that you do not know that is true knowledge.

The scholar who is bent on studying the principles of virtue, yet is ashamed of bad clothes and coarse food, is not yet fit to receive instruction.

PROMINENCE

INSTEAD of being concerned that you have no office, be concerned to think how you may fit yourself for office. Instead of being concerned that you are not known, seek to be worthy of being known.

WE

SELF-CONTROL

HEN you see a good man, think of emulating him; when you see a bad man, examine your own heart.