Dispelling Doubts說疑
凡治之大者，非謂其賞罰之當也。賞無功之人，罰不辜之民，非所謂明也。賞有功，罰有罪，而不失其人，方在於人者也，非能生功止過者也。是故禁姦之法，太上禁其心，其次禁其言，其次禁其事。今世皆曰「尊主安國者必以仁義智能」，而不知卑主危國者之必以仁義智能也。故有道之主，遠仁義，去智能，服之以法。是以譽廣而名威，民治而國安，知用民之法也。凡術也者，主之所執也；法也者，官之所師也。然使郎中日聞道於郎門之外，以至於境内日見法，又非其難者也。
What is great in governing is not that its rewards and punishments are fitting. To reward a man of no merit and punish a people without guilt is not what is called clear sight. To reward the meritorious and punish the guilty and not mistake the man rests only on the man himself; it cannot give birth to merit or put a stop to faults. Therefore, in the law that forbids treachery, the highest forbids the heart, the next forbids the words, the next forbids the deeds. Now the whole world says, "He who honors the ruler and settles the state must do it with benevolence and righteousness, wisdom and ability," and does not know that he who lowers the ruler and endangers the state also does it with benevolence and righteousness, wisdom and ability. So the ruler who has the Way keeps benevolence and righteousness far off, puts away wisdom and ability, and makes them submit by law. Thus praise is wide and his name has authority, the people are governed and the state is at peace, for he knows the law of using the people. Method is what the ruler holds. Law is what the offices take for their master. To have the palace attendants hear the Way each day outside the palace gate, and so bring it about that within the borders the law is seen each day, is also not a hard thing.
昔者有扈氏有失度，讙兜氏有孤男，三苗有成駒，桀有侯侈，紂有崇侯虎，晉有優施，此六人者，亡國之臣也。言是如非，言非如是，内險以賊，其外小謹，以徵其善；稱道往古，使良事沮；善禪其主，以集精微，亂之以其所好，此夫郎中左右之類者也。往世之主，有得人而身安國存者，有得人而身危國亡者。得人之名一也，而利害相千萬也，故人主左右不可不慎也。爲人主者誠明於臣之所言，則別賢不肖如黑白矣。
In old days the Youhu clan had Shidu, the Huandou clan had Gunan, the Sanmiao had Chengju, Jie had Houchi, Zhou had Chonghou Hu, and Jin had You Shi. These six men were ministers who ruined their states. They spoke of the right as if it were wrong and of the wrong as if it were right. Within they were dangerous and did harm, while outside they were a little careful, to show their goodness. They cited the old days of the past to block good undertakings. They charmed their rulers well and gathered up the finest feelings, and threw them into disorder by what they liked. Such are the palace attendants and the men at the ruler's side. Among the rulers of ages past, some got a man and their person was safe and their state endured; some got a man and their person was in danger and their state was ruined. The name of getting a man is one, but the gain and the harm differ by a thousand or ten thousand times. So a ruler cannot but be careful of those at his side. If the ruler is truly clear about what his ministers say, then telling the worthy from the unworthy is like telling black from white.
若夫許由、續牙、晉伯陽、秦顛頡、衛僑如、狐不稽、重明、董不識、卞隨、務光、伯夷、叔齊，此十二人者，皆上見利不喜，下臨難不恐，或與之天下而不取，有萃辱之名，則不樂食穀之利。夫見利不喜，上雖厚賞，無以勸之；臨難不恐，上雖嚴刑，無以威之，此之謂不令之民也。此十二人者，或伏死於窟穴，或槁死於草木，或饑餓於山谷，或沉溺於水泉。有民如此，先古聖王皆不能臣，當今之世，將安用之？
As for Xu You, Xu Ya, Bo Yang of Jin, Dian Xie of Qin, Qiao Ru of Wey, Hu Buji, Chongming, Dong Bushi, Bian Sui, Wu Guang, Bo Yi, and Shu Qi, these twelve men all looked up at gain without delight and faced hardship below without fear. Some were offered the world and would not take it. When a name of disgrace was on a thing, they took no pleasure in the gain of eating grain. Now if a man sees gain without delight, the ruler above may reward him richly and still have no way to urge him on. If he faces hardship without fear, the ruler above may make punishments severe and still have no way to awe him. Such are called people who cannot be commanded. Of these twelve men, some lay down and died in caves, some withered and died among the grass and trees, some starved in the mountain valleys, some sank and drowned in the waters and springs. When there are such people, even the sage kings of old could not make ministers of them. In the world of today, what use will there be for them?
若夫關龍逄、王子比干、隨季梁、陳泄冶、楚申胥、吳子胥，此六人者，皆疾爭強諫以勝其君。言聽事行，則如師徒之勢；一言而不聽，一事而不行，則陵其主以語，待之以其身，雖身死家破，要領不屬，手足異處，不難爲也。如此臣者，先古聖王皆不能忍也，當今之時，將安用之？
As for Guan Longfeng, Prince Bi Gan, Ji Liang of Sui, Xie Ye of Chen, Shen Xu of Chu, and Zi Xu of Wu, these six men all fought bitterly and remonstrated by force, to overcome their rulers. When their words were heard and their affairs carried out, it was like the footing of master and disciple. But let one word go unheard, let one affair go undone, and they overbore their rulers with talk and set their own bodies against them. Though their bodies died and their houses were broken, though waist and neck no longer joined and hands and feet lay apart, they did not count it hard to do. Such ministers even the sage kings of old could not bear. In this present time, what use will there be for them?
若夫齊田恆、宋子罕、魯季孫意如、晉僑如、衛子南勁、鄭太宰欣、楚白公、周單荼、燕子之，此九人者之爲其臣也，皆朋黨比周以事其君，隱正道而行私曲，上偪君，下亂治，援外以撓内，親下以謀上，不難爲也。如此臣者，唯聖王智主能禁之，若夫昏亂之君，能見之乎？
As for Tian Heng of Qi, Zi Han of Song, Jisun Yiru of Lu, Qiao Ru of Jin, Zinan Jing of Wey, Grand Steward Xin of Zheng, Duke Bai of Chu, Shan Tu of Zhou, and Zi Zhi of Yan, these nine men served their rulers as ministers by forming cliques and banding together. They hid the straight Way and worked their private crookedness. Above, they pressed upon their rulers. Below, they threw the government into disorder. They drew in the outside to shake the inside, and made themselves close to those below to plot against those above, and did not count it hard to do. Such ministers only a sage king and a wise ruler can forbid. Could a ruler dark and disordered see them?
若夫后稷、臯陶、伊尹、周公旦、太公望、管仲、隰朋、百里奚、蹇叔、舅犯、趙衰、范蠡、大夫種、逢同、華登，此十五人者爲其臣也，皆夙興夜寐，卑身賤躰，竦心白意；明刑辟、治官職以事其君，進善言、通道法而不敢矜其善，有成功立事而不敢伐其勞；不難破家以便國，殺身以安主，以其主爲高天泰山之尊，而以其身爲壑谷鬴洧之卑；主有明名廣譽於國，而身不難受壑谷鬴洧之卑。如此臣者，雖當昏亂之主尚可致功，況於顯明之主乎？此謂霸王之佐也。
As for Houji, Gao Yao, Yi Yin, Dan the Duke of Zhou, Taigong Wang, Guan Zhong, Xi Peng, Baili Xi, Jian Shu, Jiufan, Zhao Cui, Fan Li, the minister Zhong, Feng Tong, and Hua Deng, these fifteen men served their rulers as ministers by rising early and going late to bed, lowering themselves and holding their own persons cheap, keeping their hearts upright and their intentions clean. They made the penal laws clear and put the offices in order, and so served their rulers. They brought forward good words and opened the way for the Way and the law, and did not dare boast of their goodness. They completed merit and established undertakings, and did not dare vaunt their labor. They did not count it hard to break their houses for the ease of the state, or to kill themselves to make their rulers safe. They held their rulers to be as high as high heaven and Mount Tai, and their own persons to be as low as a valley and a hollow. They let their rulers have a bright name and wide praise in the state, while they themselves did not count it hard to receive the lowness of a valley and a hollow. Such ministers can still bring merit even under a dark and disordered ruler. How much more under a ruler shining and clear. These are called the helpers of a hegemon king.
若夫周滑之、鄭王孫申、陳公孫寧、儀行父、荊芋尹申亥、隨少師、越種干、吳王孫頟、晉陽成泄、齊竪刁、易牙，此十二人者之爲其臣也，皆思小利而忘法義，進則揜蔽賢良以陰闇其主，退則撓亂百官而爲禍難；皆輔其君，共其欲，苟得一說於王，雖破國殺衆，不難爲也。有臣如此，雖當聖王尚恐奪之，而況昏亂之君，其能無失乎？有臣如此者，皆身死國亡，爲天下笑。故周威公身殺，國分爲二；鄭子陽身殺，國分爲三；陳靈公身死於夏徵舒氏；荊靈王死於乾谿之上；隨亡於荊；吳并於越；知伯滅於晉陽之下；桓公身死七日不收。故曰：諂諛之臣，唯聖王知之，而亂主近之，故至身死國亡。
As for Gu Zhi of Zhou, Wangsun Shen of Zheng, Gongsun Ning of Chen, Yi Xingfu, Shen Hai the yuyin of Chu, the junior preceptor of Sui, Zhong Gan of Yue, Wangsun E of Wu, Yangcheng Xie of Jin, Shu Diao of Qi, and Yi Ya, these twelve men served their rulers as ministers by thinking of small gains and forgetting law and righteousness. Coming forward, they screened off the worthy and the good and darkened their rulers. Drawing back, they shook and disordered the hundred offices and made calamity and trouble. All of them helped their rulers along and shared their desires, and if they could snatch one moment of pleasure from the king, they did not count it hard to break the state and kill the multitude. With ministers like these, even a sage king would fear to be robbed. How much more a ruler dark and disordered. Could he escape loss? Those who had such ministers all died in their persons and lost their states, and became the laughter of the world. So Duke Wei of Zhou was killed and his state was split in two. Zi Yang of Zheng was killed and his state was split in three. Duke Ling of Chen died at the hands of Xia Zhengshu. King Ling of Chu died on the bank of Ganxi. Sui was ruined by Chu. Wu was swallowed up by Yue. Zhi Bo was wiped out below Jinyang. Duke Huan died and lay ungathered for seven days. Therefore it is said: the flattering minister only a sage king knows, while a disordered ruler keeps him close, and so it comes to a body dead and a state ruined.
Interlinear notes 1
The base text has 周滑之; it is read Gu Zhi. — translator
聖王明君則不然，内舉不避親，外舉不避讎。是在焉，從而舉之；非在焉，從而罰之。是以賢良遂進而姦邪並退，故一舉而能服諸侯。其在記曰：堯有丹朱，而舜有商均，啓有五觀，商有太甲，武王有管、蔡。五王之所誅者，皆父兄子弟之親也，而所殺亡其身、殘破其家者何也？以其害國傷民敗法類也。觀其所舉，或在山林藪澤巖穴之間，或在囹圄緤紲纏索之中，或在割烹芻牧飯牛之事。然明主不羞其卑賤也，以其能爲可以明法，便國利民，從而舉之，身安名尊。
With a sage king and a bright ruler it is not so. In raising men within, he does not avoid his kin. In raising men without, he does not avoid his enemies. Where the right lies, he follows it and raises the man up. Where the wrong lies, he follows it and punishes him. Thus the worthy and the good come forward at last and the treacherous and the crooked withdraw together, and so with one raising he can make the lords submit. It is said in the records: Yao had Danzhu, Shun had Shangjun, Qi had Wuguan, Shang had Taijia, King Wu had Guan Shu and Cai Shu. Those whom the five kings cut down were all their own kin, fathers and elder brothers, sons and younger brothers. Why then did they kill them and wipe out their persons, tear down and break their houses? Because those men harmed the state, hurt the people, and ruined the order of law. Look at the men they raised up. Some were among the mountain forests, the marshes and pools, and the rocky caves. Some were in prison, bound with cords and ropes. Some were at the work of cutting and boiling meat, of feeding fodder and herding oxen. Yet the bright ruler was not ashamed of their lowness. He held that their ability could make the law clear, ease the state, and profit the people, and so he followed that and raised them up. Thus his person was safe and his name was honored.
亂主則不然，不知其臣之意行，而任之以國，故小之名卑地削，大之國亡身死，不明於用臣也。無數以度其臣者，必以其衆人之口斷之。衆之所譽，從而悅之；衆之所非，從而憎之。故爲人臣者破家殘賥，内搆黨與、外接巷族以爲譽，從陰約結以相固也，虚相與爵祿以相勸也。曰：「與我者將利之，不與我者將害之。」衆貪其利，劫其威：「彼誠喜，則能利己；忌怒，則能害己。」衆歸而民留之，以譽盈於國，發聞於主。主不能理其情，因以爲賢。彼又使譎詐之士，外假爲諸侯之寵使，假之以輿馬，信之以瑞節，鎮之以辭令，資之以幣帛，使諸侯淫說其主，微挾私而公議。所爲使者，異國之主也；所爲談者，左右之人也。主說其言而辯其辭，以此人者天下之賢士也。内外之於左右，其諷一而語同。大者不難卑身尊位以下之，小者高爵重祿以利之。夫姦人之爵祿重而黨與彌衆，又有姦邪之意，則姦臣愈反而說之，曰：「古之所謂聖君明王者，非長幼世及以次序也；以其搆黨與，聚巷族，偪上弑君而求其利也。」彼曰：「何知其然也？」因曰：「舜偪堯，禹偪舜，湯放桀，武王伐紂。此四王者，人臣弑其君者也，而天下譽之。察四王之情，貪得之意也；度其行，暴亂之兵也。然四王自廣措也，而天下稱大焉；自顯名也，而天下稱明焉。則威足以臨天下，利足以蓋世，天下從之。」又曰：「以今時之所聞，田成子取齊，司城子罕取宋，太宰欣取鄭，單氏取周，易牙之取衛，韓、魏、趙三子分晉，此八人者，臣之弑其君者也。」姦臣聞此，蹷然舉耳以爲是也。故内搆黨與，外攄巷族，觀時發事，一舉而取國家。且夫内以黨與劫弑其君，外以諸侯之權矯易其國，隱正道，持私曲，上禁君，下撓治者，不可勝數也。是何也？則不明於擇臣也。記曰：「周宣王以來，亡國數十，其臣弑其君而取國者衆矣。」然則難之從内起與從外作者相半也。能一盡其民力，破國殺身者，尚皆賢主也。若夫轉身易位，全衆傳國，最其病也。
With a disordered ruler it is not so. He does not know the intentions and the conduct of his ministers, and he entrusts the state to them. So in the small case his name sinks low and his land is pared away, and in the great case his state is ruined and his person dies, for he is not clear about using ministers. One who has no measure by which to gauge his ministers must decide by the mouths of the multitude. What the multitude praises, he follows and is pleased with. What the multitude calls wrong, he follows and hates. So the man who is a minister breaks his house and wastes his goods, weaving cliques within and joining with the lanes and clans without, to make praise for himself. In secret he binds his pacts to make himself firm, and they urge one another on with empty offers of rank and salary. He says, "Whoever is with me I will make to profit. Whoever is not with me I will make to suffer." The multitude covets his gain and is cowed by his authority: "If he is truly pleased, he can profit me. If he shrinks from me in anger, he can harm me." The multitude turns to him and the people stay with him, and his praise fills the state and comes to the ruler's ear. The ruler cannot make out the real state of things, and takes him on that account for a worthy man. Then he also sets deceitful gentlemen to pretend outside to be favored envoys of the lords. He lends them carriages and horses, gives them credit with tallies of office, backs them with set speeches, and stakes them with silk and gifts, so that the lords may speak extravagantly to his ruler, slipping in their private aim while calling it public counsel. Those called envoys are said to be the rulers of other states. Those who speak are the men at his own side. The ruler is pleased with their words and admires their eloquence, and takes such a man for the worthiest gentleman in the world. Within and without, toward the men at his side, the hinting is one and the talk is the same. In the great way they do not count it hard to lower themselves and raise his seat and go beneath him. In the small way they profit him with high rank and heavy salary. Now when the rank and salary of the treacherous man grow heavy and his clique grows ever larger, and there are treacherous and crooked designs besides, then the treacherous minister turns further still and says, "Those who in old days were called sage rulers and bright kings did not come to it by age and by succession in order. They wove cliques, gathered the lanes and clans, pressed upon those above and killed their rulers, and so sought their own gain." The other says, "How do you know it was so?" Then he says, "Shun pressed upon Yao, Yu pressed upon Shun, Tang drove out Jie, King Wu smote Zhou. These four kings were ministers who killed their rulers, and yet the world praises them. Examine the feelings of the four kings, and it was a greed to get. Gauge their conduct, and it was the weapons of violence and disorder. Yet the four kings spread themselves wide, and the world calls them great. They made their own names shine, and the world calls them bright. Then their authority was enough to stand over the world and their gain enough to cover the age, and the world followed them." And he says further, "By what is heard in this present time, Tian Chengzi took Qi, Zi Han the sicheng took Song, Grand Steward Xin took Zheng, the Shan clan took Zhou, Yi Ya took Wey, and the three men of Han, Wei, and Zhao divided Jin. These eight men were ministers who killed their rulers." The treacherous minister hears this and starts up with his ears raised, and takes it for right. So he weaves cliques within and spreads out the lanes and clans without, watches the time and raises the matter, and with one stroke takes the state. And those who within, with their cliques, coerce and kill their rulers, and without, with the power of the lords, bend and change their states, who hide the straight Way and keep their private crookedness, who forbid the ruler above and shake the government below, cannot be counted. Why is this? Because he is not clear in choosing ministers. The records say, "Since King Xuan of Zhou, the states that were ruined number in the tens, and many were the ministers who killed their rulers and took the state." Then troubles that rise from within and troubles that are made from without are half and half. One who spends all the strength of his people at once and breaks his state and kills his person is still among worthy rulers. But to turn one's person about and change seats, keeping the multitude whole and handing over the state, is the worst sickness of all.
爲人主者，誠明於臣之所言，則雖罼弋馳騁，撞鐘舞女，國猶且存也；不明臣之所言，雖節儉勤勞，布衣惡食，國猶自亡也。趙之先君敬侯，不修德行，而好縱慾，適身體之所安，耳目之所樂，冬日罼弋，夏浮淫，爲長夜，數日不廢御觴，不能飲者以筩灌其口，進退不肅、應對不恭者斬於前。故居處飲食如此其不節也，制刑殺戮如此其無度也，然敬侯享國數十年，兵不頓於敵國，地不虧於四鄰，内無羣臣百官之亂，外無諸侯鄰國之患，明於所以任臣也。燕君子噲，邵公奭之後也，地方數千里，持戟數十萬，不安子女之樂，不聽鐘石之聲，内不堙汙池臺榭，外不罼弋田獵，又親操耒耨以修畎畝。子噲之苦身以憂民如此其甚也，雖古之所謂聖王明君者，其勤身而憂世不甚於此矣。然而子噲身死國亡，奪於子之，而天下笑之。此其何故也？不明乎所以任臣也。
If a ruler is truly clear about what his ministers say, then though he net and shoot and gallop his horses, though he strike the bells and set women dancing, the state will still endure. If he is not clear about what his ministers say, then though he be sparing and thrifty, diligent and hard-working, in cloth clothes and eating poor food, the state will still be ruined of itself. Marquis Jing, the former ruler of Zhao, did not cultivate virtuous conduct but loved to let his desires run, and he fitted his life to what his body found easy and his ears and eyes found pleasant. On winter days he netted and shot. In summer he sank into water sports. He made the night long, and for days on end the wine cup was not put away, and those who could not drink had it poured into their mouths through a tube, while any who came and went without gravity or answered without respect were cut down before him. So his dwelling and his food and drink were without restraint like this, and his ordering of punishment and slaughter was without measure like this. And yet Marquis Jing enjoyed his state for some tens of years. His arms were not blunted against enemy states. His land was not pared away by the four neighbors. Within there was no disorder among the mass of ministers and the hundred offices, and without there was no trouble from the lords and the neighboring states, for he was clear about how to entrust ministers. Zi Kuai, the ruler of Yan, was a descendant of Duke Shao Shi. His land was some thousands of li square and he held several hundred thousand men with halberds. He did not rest in the pleasures of women and children. He did not listen to the sound of bells and chimes. Within he did not dig ponds or raise terraces and pavilions. Without he did not net and shoot and hunt. He even took plow and hoe in his own hands and worked the furrows and fields. Zi Kuai's pains with his own body and his care for the people were as deep as this. Even those of old who were called sage kings and bright rulers did not labor in body and grieve for the world more deeply than this. And yet Zi Kuai died in his person and his state was ruined, snatched away by Zi Zhi, and the world laughed at him. What was the reason for this? He was not clear about how to entrust ministers.
故曰：人臣有五姦，而主不知也。爲人臣者，有侈用財貨賂以取譽者，有務慶賞賜予以移衆者，有務朋黨徇智尊士以擅逞者，有務解免赦罪獄以事威者，有務奉下直曲、怪言、偉服、瑰稱以眩民耳目者。此五者，明君之所疑也，而聖主之所禁也。去此五者，則譟詐之人不敢北面立談，文言多、實行寡而不當法者不敢誣情以談說。是以羣臣居則修身，動則任力，非上之令不敢擅作疾言誣事，此聖王之所以牧臣下也。彼聖主明君，不適疑物以闚其臣也。見疑物而無反者，天下鮮矣。故曰：孽有擬適之子，配有擬妻之妾，廷有擬相之臣，臣有擬主之寵，此四者，國之所危也。故曰：内寵並后，外寵貳政，枝子配適，大臣擬主，亂之道也。故《周記》曰：「無尊妾而卑妻，無孽適子而尊小枝，無尊嬖臣而匹上卿，無尊大臣以擬其主也。」四擬者破，則上無意、下無怪也；四擬不破，則隕身滅國矣。
Therefore it is said: ministers have five kinds of treachery, and the ruler does not know them. Among those who are ministers, there is one who spends goods and bribes lavishly to take praise for himself. There is one who works at celebrations and rewards and gifts to shift the multitude to his side. There is one who works at cliques, follows the clever, and honors gentlemen to have his own way. There is one who works at loosing and excusing and pardoning crimes and lawsuits to make himself an authority. There is one who serves those below and calls the crooked straight, and with strange words and outlandish dress and odd sayings dazzles the ears and eyes of the people. These five the bright ruler holds in suspicion, and the sage ruler forbids. Put these five away, and the noisy and deceitful man will not dare stand facing north and hold forth, and the man whose polished words are many and whose real conduct is little, who does not square with the law, will not dare falsify the facts and talk. Thus the mass of ministers, when they are at rest, cultivate themselves, and when they move, give their strength to the task. Unless it is the command of the ruler above, they dare not make hasty speeches or falsify affairs of their own will. This is how the sage king herds his ministers. That sage ruler, that bright ruler, does not set out suspicious things to spy on his ministers. Those who see a suspicious thing and do not turn are rare in the world. Therefore it is said: when among the sons of concubines there is a son who matches the heir, when among the consorts there is a concubine who matches the wife, when in the court there is a minister who matches the prime minister, when among the ministers there is a favorite who matches the ruler, these four are what endangers a state. Therefore it is said: when the favorite within stands level with the queen, when the favorite without makes the government double, when a branch son is matched with the heir, when a great minister matches the ruler, this is the road to disorder. Therefore the Zhou ji says, "Do not honor the concubine and hold the wife low. Do not treat the heir as a concubine's son and honor a lesser branch. Do not honor a favored minister and make him the equal of the high ministers. Do not honor a great minister so that he matches his ruler." If the four matchings are broken, then those above have no other designs and those below have nothing strange in them. If the four matchings are not broken, then the person falls and the state is wiped out.