A sentence in The Analects tells us a truth.

1. 1 Confucius said (1): "Learn (2) and learn (3), why not say (4)." Is it not delightful to have friends coming from distant quarters? People don't know (7) and don't care (8). Isn't it a gentleman (9)? "

To annotate ...

(1) Zi: In ancient China, it was a title of respect for people with status and knowledge, sometimes called men. "Confucius" in The Analects of Confucius refers to Confucius.

(2) Learning: The "learning" mentioned by Confucius here mainly refers to learning the traditional cultural classics such as rites, music, poems and books of the Western Zhou Dynasty.

(3) Time habit: During the Zhou and Qin Dynasties, the word "time" was used as an adverb, meaning "at a certain time" or "at an appropriate time". However, Zhu interpreted "time" as "constant" in his book The Analects of Confucius. "Xi" refers to exercises, rituals and music; Comment on poetry and books. It also means review, internship and practice.

(4) Say: sound yuè, with joy, joy and happiness.

(5) Have friends: There is a book called Friends and Friends. The old note said, "friends of the same school", that is, friends studying under the same teacher, that is, like-minded people.

(6) Music: different from talking. The old note said that joy is in the heart and joy is outside.

(7) People don't know: This sentence is incomplete, and there is nothing that people don't know. Missing object. Generally speaking, knowing is understanding. People don't know, that is, others don't know themselves.

(8) Yan: Anger, resentment.

(9) Gentleman: The gentleman in The Analects of Confucius sometimes refers to a virtuous person and sometimes refers to a person. This refers to Confucius' ideal person with noble personality.

translate

Confucius said, "isn't it pleasant to review exercises often after learning?" Is it not delightful to have friends coming from distant quarters? People don't understand me, and I'm not disgusted or angry. Isn't he also a virtuous gentleman? "

Comment and analysis

Zhu, a famous scholar in the Song Dynasty, spoke highly of this chapter, saying that it was "the door of enlightenment and the foundation of virtue accumulation". These three sentences in this chapter are familiar to everyone. The traditional explanation is: often review exercises after learning, are you unhappy, and so on. Three sentences, one meaning, and there is no coherence before and after the sentence. However, some people think that this explanation is not in line with the original intention, pointing out that "learning" here does not refer to learning, but to theories or propositions; "Time" can't be interpreted as always, but the meaning of the times or society. "Learning" is not reviewing, but applying, which means adopting. And these three sentences are not isolated, but coherent. These three sentences mean: if your own theory is adopted by society, you will be very happy; To say the least, if it is not adopted by the society, but many friends agree with my theory, I am also willing to come here to discuss the problem; To say the least, even if society doesn't adopt it and people don't understand me, I don't resent it. Isn't this a gentleman? (See Qilu Academic Journal, No.6, 1986) This explanation can be justified, and there is also some truth for readers to refer to when understanding the contents of this chapter.

In addition, in the explanation of the sentence "people don't know, but don't worry", some people think that there is no object behind "people don't know", so what does people don't know? At that time, because Confucius had a specific environment to speak, he didn't need to say what he knew, and others could understand it, but it left a mystery to future generations. Some people say this sentence is a continuation of the previous one. A friend from afar asked me for advice. I told him, but he still didn't understand, but I didn't resent it. In this way, the explanation that "people don't know" means "people don't know what I'm talking about" seems far-fetched.

In a word, this chapter puts forward that learning is a kind of fun, so that people don't know and don't worry about it, which embodies Confucius' thought of learning tirelessly, teaching tirelessly, paying attention to self-cultivation and being strict with self-discipline. These thoughts can be seen in many places in The Analects of Confucius, which is helpful to understand the contents of the first chapter.

original text

1.2 Youzi (1) said: "He is also filial to his younger brother (2), but he is easy to offend (3) and has a thick skin (4); It is not easy to make mistakes, but it is easy to make a mess, and it is not there (5). Gentleman's Business Book (6) is based on Tao (7). Filial piety is also the foundation of a person and (8)? "

To annotate ...

(1) Youzi: Confucius' student, surnamed You, whose name is Ruo, is 13 years younger than Confucius and 33 years younger. The latter is more credible. In the Analects of Confucius, the recorded Confucius students are generally called "Zi", but only Zeng Shen and You Ruo are called "Zi". So many people think that The Analects of Confucius was written by Zeng Shen and You Ruo.

(2) Filial piety: filial piety is the correct attitude of children towards their parents during the slave society; Brother, the pronunciaTion and meaning are the same as "ti", which is the correct attitude of brother to brother. Filial piety and younger brother are two basic moral norms specially advocated by Confucius and Confucianism. The old note says: parents are filial when they do good, and brothers are brothers when they do good.

(3) Attack: attack, attack, attack. Up, refers to the person in the upper position.

(4) fresh: sound Xi m: n, less meaning. This is how the word "fresh" is used in The Analects of Confucius.

(5) Nothing is also: This is the inverted sentence type of "Nothing is also". There is a rule in the syntax of ancient Chinese. If the object of a negative sentence is a pronoun, it usually comes before the verb.

(6) Service: service, dedication and commitment. Ben, not at all.

(7) Tao: In China's ancient thoughts, Tao has many meanings. The Tao here refers to the benevolence advocated by Confucius, that is, the whole moral thought system with benevolence as the core and its embodiment in real life. Simply put, it is the basic principle of governing the country and being a man.

(8) Benevolence: Benevolence is the highest category of Confucius' philosophy and a moral principle. Being the foundation of benevolence is the foundation of filial piety. Another explanation is that the word "benevolence" in ancient times is the word "human", and the foundation of benevolence is the basis of being a man.

translate

A son said, "People seldom show filial piety to their parents, obey their brothers and like to offend the upper rulers." . I don't like to offend the upper rulers, but there are no people who like to rebel. When a gentleman is committed to the fundamental things, the way of governing the country and being a man is established. Filial piety is the essence of benevolence! "

Comment and analysis

Some people think that people can be filial to their parents and brothers at home, so they can serve the country faithfully outside, with filial piety as the premise and filial piety as the purpose. Confucianism believes that filial piety at home, there will be no "offence and insurrection" within the rulers; If filial piety is extended to the working people, the people will absolutely obey, not rebel, thus maintaining the stability of the country and society.

Filial piety mentioned here is the foundation of benevolence, which is very important for readers to understand Confucius' philosophy and ethical thought with benevolence as the core. During the Spring and Autumn Period, the Zhou Emperor adopted the eldest son inheritance system, and the other concubines were enfeoffed as princes, and so were the subsequent princes. The political structure of the whole society, from emperors to princes to doctors, is based on the feudal patriarchal blood relationship, and the theory of filial piety and filial piety reflects the moral requirements of the patriarchal society at that time.

Filial piety is directly related to social stability. Confucius saw this, so all his thoughts were based on it. He explained that filial piety is the fundamental truth of benevolence from the point that filial piety will not happen. Since the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, feudal rulers and scholars of all dynasties have inherited Confucius' theory of filial piety and advocated "ruling the world with filial piety". The Han Dynasty is an obvious example. They regarded moral education as an important means to implement feudal rule, and imprisoned the common people in the shackles of Confucian orthodoxy and ethics, which had a great influence on the common people's moral concepts and behaviors, and also had a far-reaching impact on the whole traditional culture of China. The theory of filial piety serves feudal rule and patriarchal clan system. We should have a clear understanding, analysis and judgment, abandon feudal toxin, inherit its reasonable content, and give full play to the due role of morality in social stability.

original text

1.3 Confucius said: clever words make color (1), fresh (2) benevolence. "

To annotate ...

(1) Clever words make colors: Zhu Note: "Good words, good colors, make the outside look good, and speak people's words." Both Joe and Ling refer to beautiful women. But this should be interpreted as pretending to be happy.

(2) Fresh: the meaning of less.

translate

Confucius said: "If you speak well and pretend to be likable, such people will have no kindness."

Comment and analysis

As pointed out in the previous chapter, the core of Confucius and Confucianism is benevolence, and one of the manifestations of benevolence is filial piety and kindness. This is a positive explanation of what benevolence is. In this chapter, the antithesis of Confucius' benevolence is rhetoric and rhetoric. Confucianism advocates simplicity and opposes exaggeration; We advocate that you should be careful what you say and do it well first. We are opposed to doing what we say, just saying and not doing it, and staying in words. This shows that Confucius and Confucianism pay attention to people's practical actions, especially emphasizing that people should be consistent in words and deeds, and avoid empty talk and duplicity. This down-to-earth attitude and simple spirit have long influenced China people and become the essence of China's traditional ideology and culture.

original text

1.4 Ceng Zi (1) said, "I am in three Japanese provinces, and ② is my body. Cheating for others (3)? Make friends without trust (4)? Can't you learn? "

To annotate ...

(1): Zeng Zi was born in 505 BC, and his surname was Zeng (pronounced shēn). He was born in the state of Lu, and he is a descendant of the nobles in the mountain country who were destroyed by the state of Lu. Zeng Shen is a proud pupil of Confucius and is famous for his dutiful son. It is said that he wrote the Book of Filial Piety.

(2) Three provinces: province, inspection xǐng inspection. There are several explanations in the three provinces: first, three inspections; The second is to check from three aspects; The third is to check many times. In fact, in ancient times, adding numbers before verbs with actions meant that there were many actions, which did not have to be recognized as three times.

(3) loyalty: the old note said: loyalty. We should do our best here.

(4) letter: the old note says: the believer is sincere. Believe in honesty. People are required to keep faith with each other according to etiquette rules to adjust the relationship between people.

(5) Pass on without learning: Pass on, and the old note says, "Master Pass on. The teacher taught himself Learning, like the word "learning while learning", refers to review, practice, exercise and so on.

translate

Ceng Zi said, "I have to reflect on myself many times every day. Do I try my best to do things for others? Is it honest and trustworthy to associate with friends? Have you reviewed what the teacher taught you? "

Comment and analysis

Confucianism attaches great importance to personal moral cultivation in order to shape ideal personality. Introspection mentioned in this chapter is the basic method of self-cultivation.

During the Spring and Autumn Period, social changes were very drastic, which was reflected in the field of consciousness, that is, people's thoughts and beliefs began to shake, and traditional ideas seemed to be in crisis in people's minds. Therefore, Zeng Shen put forward the cultivation method of "introspection and internal pursuit", and constantly checked his words and deeds to make himself a perfect ideal personality. The Analects of Confucius talked about introspection many times, asking Confucius disciples to consciously reflect on themselves, make self-criticism, strengthen personal ideological cultivation and moral cultivation, and correct all kinds of mistakes in personal words and deeds. This introspective way of moral cultivation is still worth learning today, because it especially emphasizes the consciousness of self-cultivation.

In this chapter, Ceng Zi also put forward the categories of "loyalty" and "faithfulness". Loyalty is characterized by a word "do your best", do your best until death do us part. As later Confucianism said, "Do your best to serve the country with loyalty". "Infidelity for others refers to all people, not to the monarch. It means helping everyone, including the monarch. Therefore, "loyalty" was a universal moral category in the pre-Qin period, which was not only used in the relationship between monarch and minister. As for the word "loyalty" gradually evolved into "loyalty to the monarch" after the Han Dynasty, which is not only related to the loyalty of Confucianism, but also has important differences. "Trust" has two meanings, one is trust and the other is credit. Its content is honesty, which is used to deal with the relationship between superiors and subordinates and friends. Letters are especially related to speech, which means telling the truth and keeping promises. This is the cornerstone of a person's life.

original text

Confucius said, "Tao (1) is a thousand times that of the country (2). As far as respect (3) is concerned, saving money and loving others (4) makes people timely (5). "

To annotate ...

(1) Tao: A book is a "guide" and a verb. This means governance.

(2) the country of a thousand riders: riding, with the sound of shèng, means car. This refers to the basic units of the ancient army. Every time you ride in a four-horse chariot, there are 3 military personnel, 72 people beside the chariot and 25 logistics personnel, totaling 100. A thousand chariots country refers to a country with 1000 chariots, that is, a vassal state. Wars were frequent in the Spring and Autumn Period, so the strength of a country was calculated by the number of vehicles. In the era of Confucius, the country of a thousand riders was no longer a big country.

(3) Respect for things: The word respect is generally used to express personal attitude, especially to be cautious, single-minded and conscientious about what you do.

(4) Lover: In ancient times, the meaning of "person" was divided into broad sense and narrow sense. "People" in a broad sense refers to all people; "People" in a narrow sense only refers to people from all walks of life above scholar-officials. Here "person" and "person" are relative, so its usage is narrow.

(5) Make people seize the time: time refers to farming time. In ancient times, agriculture was the pillar of the people, which meant that people should cultivate and harvest according to the farming time.

translate

Confucius said: "To govern a country for a thousand years, the most urgent task is to seriously handle state affairs, keep promises, be honest and clean, save financial expenses, and care for officials and servants so that the people will not miss the farming season."

Comment and analysis

This chapter of Confucius is mainly aimed at the rulers of the country, and it is about the basic principles of governing the country. He talked about three aspects, that is, he asked the rulers to seriously handle all aspects of state affairs and abide by credit; Save money and care about officials; To serve the people, we should pay attention not to delay the farming season. This is the basic point of governing the country and safeguarding the country.

Kang Youwei said that Confucius' theory is "love" and loves everyone. But the "lover" mentioned in this chapter does not mean this. The "people" he said are not ordinary people, but officials and people with status; "People" is the people and the object of the ruled. It can be seen that the "lover" does not love everyone, but only the people in the ruling group. The idea of "helping others and loving others, making people timely" is reasonable and embodies Confucius' social thought. But it has nothing to do with love or not. On the other hand, Confucius is here to make suggestions for the rulers to govern the country and the people.

Mr. Lu Xun once pointed out: "Confucius once planned an excellent method of governing the country, but it was all for the people, that is, the method envisioned by the powerful people, for the people themselves, but nothing." (Confucius in Modern China: Two Views on Opposing the Court) This is a view of Confucius' general plan of governing the country from the standpoint of the people. So, it's still quite sharp.

original text

1.6 Confucius said: "Disciples (1) are filial to those who enter (2), and those who leave are young (3). They sincerely believe in (4), they love people (5), and they are kind to people (6) and have spare capacity (7), so they learned to write (8). "

To annotate ...

Disciple (1): Generally speaking, there are two meanings: one is a younger brother and the other is a son; The second refers to students. Here is a kind of "disciple"

(2) Entering: In ancient times, father and son lived in different places and studied abroad. "Book of Rites Neize": "From the order of men to the top, father and son are different palaces". Entering is entering the father's palace, that is, entering the father's house or home.

(3) Going out: as opposed to "entering", it means going out to learn from teachers. Being a younger brother means treating teachers with younger brothers, and it can also refer to people older than yourself.

(4) Sincerity: Few people call it sincerity.

(5)□: The sound fàn has the same meaning and a wide range of meanings.

(6) Benevolence: Benevolence means benevolence, and people with benevolence.

(7) spare capacity: that is, having leisure time.

(8) Text: ancient literature. There are mainly cultural knowledge such as poetry, calligraphy, ceremony and music.

translate

Confucius said: "Disciples are filial to their parents; When you are away from home, you should obey your teachers, be cautious in words and deeds, be honest and trustworthy, keep quiet, love everyone widely, and be close to people with kindness. After practicing like this, if you still have spare capacity, you will study literary knowledge again. "

Comment and analysis

Filial piety is mentioned in the second chapter of this paper, and it is mentioned again in this chapter. Confucius asked his disciples to devote themselves to filial piety, faith, love for the masses, kindness, and cultivate good moral concepts and behaviors. If they still have leisure time and spare capacity, they will use it to study ancient books and increase their cultural knowledge. This shows that Confucius' education is centered on moral education, focusing on cultivating students' moral cultivation, and the study of book knowledge is second.

In running a school, Confucius put the cultivation of students' moral concepts in the first place, and cultural learning was only the second. In fact, any class in history, whether it is the slave owner class, the landlord class or the bourgeoisie, education serves its politics, paying special attention to students' moral conduct and political performance, and putting "morality" before "knowledge", which is the need of the class. They just want to train all kinds of talents to meet the requirements of their own class.

original text

1.7 Xia Zi (1) said: "Xian Xian (2) changed color; Parents can do their best; Things, can cause its body 4; Make friends and keep your word. Although I have not studied, I will call it learning. "

To annotate ...

Xia Zi: A student of Confucius, surnamed Bu, a famous businessman, was 44 years younger than Confucius and was born in 507 BC. After the death of Confucius, he publicized Confucius' thoughts in Wei State.

(2) Dedication: The first word "Dedication" is used as a verb to show respect. Being virtuous means respecting virtuous people.

(3) Yi: There are two explanations; First, the meaning of change, this sentence is to respect the virtuous and change the lust; The second is the meaning of contempt, that is, valuing morality over women.

(4) For the body: it means "giving" and "doing my best". This means giving your life to the monarch.

translate

Xia Zi said: "A person can attach importance to virtue, instead of a woman serving her parents and doing her best;" Serving the monarch can give his life; Communicate with friends, speak honestly and keep your word. Such a person, although he says he hasn't studied, I must say he has. "

Comment and analysis

There was a sentence in the last chapter, "study literature if you have spare capacity." . What Xia Zi said in this chapter is actually a further development of the previous chapter. Xia Zi believes that whether a person has knowledge mainly depends on his cultural knowledge, but on whether he can practice traditional morality, such as filial piety, loyalty and faithfulness. As long as the latter points are achieved, even if he says that he has never studied, he is already a person with moral cultivation. Therefore, by reading and analyzing this chapter in combination with the previous chapter, we can see the basic characteristics of Confucius' education focusing on virtue.