Sincerity and Good Faith誠信第十七
貞觀初，有上書請去佞臣者，太宗謂曰：「朕之所任，皆以為賢，卿知佞者誰耶？」對曰：「臣居草澤，不的知佞者，請陛下佯怒以試群臣，若能不畏雷霆，直言進諫，則是正人，順情阿旨，則是佞人。」太宗謂封德彜曰：「流水清濁，在其源也。君者政源，人庶猶水，君自為詐，欲臣下行直，是猶源濁而望水清，理不可得。朕常以魏武帝多詭詐，深鄙其為人，如此，豈可堪為教令？」謂上書人曰：「朕欲使大信行於天下，不欲以詐道訓俗，卿言雖善，朕所不取也。」
At the beginning of Zhenguan a man sent up a letter asking that flattering officials be removed. Taizong said:
"Those I have given office to are all men I hold to be worthy. Do you know who the flatterers are?"
He answered:
"Your servant lives out among the grass and the marshes, and does not exactly know who the flatterers are. I ask that Your Majesty feign anger and so test the officials. If a man is not afraid of the thunder and comes forward to remonstrate with straight words, he is an upright man. If he follows your mood and flatters your wishes, he is a flattering man."
Taizong said to Feng Deyi:
"Whether flowing water is clear or muddy lies in its source. The ruler is the source of government, and the common people are like water. For a ruler to practice deceit himself and want his officials to act straight is like muddying the source and hoping the water will be clear. Reason will not allow it. I have always held Emperor Wu of Wei low in my mind for his many deceits. If it is like this, how can it serve as teaching and command?"
He said to the man who had sent up the letter:
"I wish great good faith to be practiced through all the world, and I do not wish to teach custom by the way of deceit. Your words are good, but they are not what I will take."
貞觀十年，魏徵上疏曰：
In the tenth year of Zhenguan Wei Zheng sent up a memorial.
臣聞為國之基，必資於德禮，君之所保，惟在於誠信。誠信立則下無二心，德禮形則遠人斯格。然則德禮誠信，國之大綱，在於君臣父子，不可斯須而廢也。故孔子曰：「君使臣以禮，臣事君以忠。」又曰：「自古皆有死，民無信不立。」文子曰：「同言而信，信在言前；同令而行，誠在令外。」然則言而不信，言無信也；令而不從，令無誠也。不信之言，無誠之令，為上則敗德，為下則危身，雖在顛沛之中，君子之所不為也。
Your servant has heard that the ground of ordering a state must rest on virtue and the rites, and that what a ruler holds to lies only in sincerity and good faith. When sincerity and good faith stand, those below have no divided hearts. When virtue and the rites take form, distant men come. That being so, virtue and the rites and sincerity and good faith are the great cords of the state, and between ruler and official, between father and son, they cannot be laid aside for a moment.
Therefore Confucius said, "The ruler employs his officials with the rites, and the official serves his ruler with loyalty." He also said, "From of old all men have died, but the people cannot stand without good faith." Wenzi said, "That the same words are believed is because the good faith comes before the words. That the same orders are carried out is because the sincerity lies outside the orders." That being so, to speak and not be believed is to have no good faith in the words. To order and not be obeyed is to have no sincerity in the order. Words without good faith and orders without sincerity break down virtue in a man above and endanger the body of a man below. Even in the midst of stumbling and falling, these are what a gentleman does not do.
自王道休明，十有餘載，威加海外，萬國來庭，倉廩日積，土地日廣。然而道德未益厚，仁義未益博者，何哉？由乎待下之情，未盡於誠信，雖有善始之勤，未睹克終之美故也。昔貞觀之始，乃聞善驚嘆，暨八九年間，猶悅以從諫，自茲厥後，漸惡直言，雖或勉強有所容，非復曩時之豁如。謇諤之輩，稍避龍鱗；便佞之徒，肆其巧辯。謂同心者為擅權，謂忠讜者為誹謗。謂之為朋黨，雖忠信而可疑；謂之為至公，雖矯偽而無咎。強直者畏擅權之議，忠讜者慮誹謗之尤。正臣不得盡其言，大臣莫能與之爭。熒惑視聽，郁於大道，妨政損德，其在此乎？故孔子曰「惡利口之覆邦家者？」蓋為此也。
The kingly way has been fair and bright for more than ten years. Your awe reaches beyond the seas, ten thousand states come to your court, the granaries pile higher day by day, and the land grows wider day by day. And yet virtue has not grown thicker and benevolence and righteousness have not grown broader. Why is this? It is because the feeling with which you meet those below has not come to the full of sincerity and good faith, so that though there has been diligence in beginning well, the beauty of ending well is not yet to be seen.
In the early days of Zhenguan you were startled and moved when you heard of what was good, and through the eighth and ninth years you still took pleasure in following remonstrance. Since then you have come little by little to dislike straight words. Though at times you force yourself to bear with them, it is no longer the openness of former days. Men who are firm and outspoken little by little keep clear of the dragon's scales, and men who are smooth and flattering give free rein to their clever talk.
Those of one mind with you are called men who take power for themselves, and the loyal and upright are called slanderers. Once a man is called a partisan, he may be loyal and faithful and still be doubted. Once a man is called perfectly fair, he may be false and feigning and still be held blameless. The firm and straight fear the charge of taking power for themselves, and the loyal and upright dread the blame of slander. Upright officials cannot say all they have to say, and the great ministers cannot contend with such men. Sight and hearing are thrown into confusion and the great way is blocked. Is this not where government is harmed and virtue is worn away? Therefore Confucius said, "I hate the sharp mouth that overturns the state and the house." This is what he meant.
且君子小人，貌同心異，君子掩人之惡，揚人之善，臨難無茍免，殺身以成仁。小人不恥不仁，不畏不義，唯利之所在，危人自安。夫茍在危人，則何所不至？今欲將求致治，必委之於君子；事有得失，或訪之於小人。其待君子也則敬而疏，遇小人也必輕而狎。狎則言無不盡，疏則情不上通。是則毀譽在於小人，刑罰加於君子，實興喪之所在，可不慎哉！此乃孫卿所謂：「使智者謀之，與愚者論之，使修潔之士行之，與汙鄙之人疑之。欲其成功，可得乎哉？」夫中智之人，豈無小惠，然才非經國，慮不及遠，雖竭力盡誠，猶未免於傾敗；況內懷奸利，承顏順旨，其為禍患，不亦深乎？夫立直木而疑影之不直，雖竭精神，勞思慮，其不得，亦已明矣。
Moreover the gentleman and the small man look alike but differ in heart. The gentleman covers the faults of others and spreads word of their good. He faces hardship without looking for a shabby escape, and he kills his body to complete benevolence. The small man is not ashamed of being unkind and is not afraid of being unrighteous. He goes only where profit is, and endangers others to make himself safe. If a man is set on endangering others, what will he not come to?
Now if you would seek to reach good government, you must entrust it to gentlemen. Yet when a matter has its gains and losses, you sometimes ask small men about it. You treat gentlemen with respect but keep them at a distance, and you meet small men lightly but keep them close. Being close, they leave nothing unsaid. Being distant, their feelings do not reach above. So blame and praise rest with small men, while punishment falls upon gentlemen. Here truly is where rising and perishing lie. Can one be anything but careful?
This is what Sun Qing meant when he said, "He has the wise plan it and then debates it with fools. He has clean and cultivated scholars carry it out and then doubts it with foul and mean men. He wants the work to succeed. Can that be had?"
A man of middling wisdom is not without small kindnesses, but his talent is not for ordering a state and his thought does not reach far. Though he spend all his strength and all his sincerity, he still will not escape toppling and ruin. How much more the man who harbors crooked profit within and watches your face to follow your wishes. Will he not be a deep disaster and trouble? If a man sets up a straight tree and then doubts whether its shadow is straight, then though he spend his spirit and wear out his thought, it is already clear that he will not get what he wants.
夫君能盡禮，臣得竭忠，必在於內外無私，上下相信。上不信，則無以使下，下不信，則無以事上，信之為道大矣。昔齊桓公問於管仲曰：「吾欲使酒腐於爵，肉腐於俎，得無害霸乎？」管仲曰：「此極非其善者，然亦無害於霸也。」桓公曰：「如何而害霸乎？」管仲曰：「不能知人，害霸也；知而不能任，害霸也；任而不能信，害霸也；既信而又使小人參之，害霸也。」晉中行穆伯攻鼓，經年而弗能下，餽間倫曰：「鼓之嗇夫，間倫知之。請無疲士大夫，而鼓可得。」穆伯不應，左右曰：「不折一戟，不傷一卒，而鼓可得，君奚為不取？」穆伯曰：「間倫之為人也，佞而不仁，若使間倫下之，吾可以不賞之乎？若賞之，是賞佞人也。佞人得志，是使晉國之士舍仁而為佞。雖得鼓，將何用之？」夫穆伯，列國之大夫，管仲，霸者之良佐，猶能慎於信任、遠避佞人也如此，況乎為四海之大君，應千齡之上聖，而可使巍巍至德之盛，將有所間乎？
That a ruler can fulfill the rites and an official can exhaust his loyalty lies in there being no private ends within or without, and in those above and below trusting each other. If those above do not trust, they cannot employ those below. If those below do not trust, they cannot serve those above. Great is good faith as a way.
Long ago Duke Huan of Qi asked Guan Zhong, "I would let the wine rot in the cup and the meat rot on the block. Would this do no harm to my hegemony?" Guan Zhong said, "This is not at all a good thing, yet neither does it harm your hegemony." Duke Huan said, "What then harms hegemony?" Guan Zhong said, "Not knowing men harms hegemony. Knowing them and not being able to give them office harms hegemony. Giving them office and not being able to trust them harms hegemony. Trusting them and then letting small men take part harms hegemony."
Zhonghang Mubo of Jin attacked Gu, and a year passed and he could not bring it down. Kui Jianlun said, "I know the steward of Gu. I ask that you not wear out your officers. Gu can be taken." Mubo did not answer. Those about him said, "Not one halberd will be broken and not one soldier hurt, and Gu can be taken. Why does my lord not take it?" Mubo said, "Jianlun is a man who flatters and is not benevolent. If I let Jianlun bring the city down, can I refuse to reward him? If I reward him, this is rewarding a flatterer. If a flatterer gets his wish, this makes the officers of Jin cast off benevolence and take up flattery. Though I got Gu, what would I use it for?"
Mubo was a great officer of one of the states and Guan Zhong was a good helper to a hegemon, and even they were as careful as this in trusting and giving office, and in keeping far from flatterers. How much more for one who is the great ruler of all within the four seas and answers to the highest sage of a thousand years. Will you let a gap be opened in the fullness of that high and lofty utmost virtue?
若欲令君子小人是非不雜，必懷之以德，待之以信，厲之以義，節之以禮，然後善善而惡惡，審罰而明賞。則小人絕其私佞，君子自強不息，無為之治，何遠之有？善善而不能進，惡惡而不能去，罰不及於有罪，賞不加於有功，則危亡之期，或未可保，永錫祚胤，將何望哉？
If you would have right and wrong in gentlemen and small men kept unmixed, you must hold them with virtue, meet them with good faith, spur them with righteousness, and give them measure with the rites. Only then can you call the good good and hate what is bad, weigh punishments and make rewards clear. Then small men will cut off their private flattery and gentlemen will make themselves strong without rest, and how far off is the government that acts without acting?
If you call the good good and cannot bring them forward, and hate what is bad and cannot remove it, if punishment does not reach the guilty and reward is not given to the deserving, then the day of danger and ruin may not be warded off, and what hope is there of blessings handed down forever to your heirs?
太宗覽疏嘆曰：「若不遇公，何由得聞此語？」
Taizong read the memorial and sighed.
"If I had not met you, how should I have heard these words?"
太宗嘗謂長孫無忌等曰：「朕即位之初，有上書者非一，或言人主必須威權獨任，不得委任群下；或欲耀兵振武，懾服四夷。惟有魏徵勸朕『偃革興文，布德施惠，中國既安，遠人自服』。朕從此語，天下大寧，絕域君長，皆來朝貢，九夷重譯，相望於道。凡此等事，皆魏徵之力也。朕任用，豈不得人？」徵拜謝曰：「陛下聖德自天，留心政術。實以庸短，承受不暇，豈有益於聖明？」
Taizong once said to Zhangsun Wuji and the others:
"When I first came to the throne, more than one man sent up a letter. Some said that a ruler must hold awe and power alone and must not entrust them to those below. Some wished to make the army shine and shake out its warlike might, and so cow the barbarians of the four quarters into submission. Only Wei Zheng urged me, 'Lay down your armor and raise up learning. Spread virtue and bestow kindness. Once the Middle Kingdom is at peace, distant men will submit of themselves.' I followed these words, and the world has come to great peace. The rulers and elders of far countries all come and bring tribute, and the nine barbarian peoples pass their words through interpreter after interpreter, so that on the roads they are within sight of one another. All these things are the work of Wei Zheng. In giving him office, have I not found the right man?"
Wei Zheng bowed and gave thanks.
"Your Majesty's sagely virtue comes from Heaven, and you have set your mind on the arts of government. Truly, with my poor and slight powers I have no leisure even to receive what you give. What could I add to your sageness and brightness?"
貞觀十七年，太宗謂侍臣曰：「傳稱『去食存信』，孔子曰：『民無信不立』。昔項羽既入咸陽，已制天下，向能力行仁信，誰奪耶？」房玄齡對曰：「仁、義、禮、智、信，謂之五常，廢一不可。能勤行之，甚有裨益。殷紂狎侮五常，武王奪之，項氏以無信為漢高祖所奪，誠如聖旨。」
In the seventeenth year of Zhenguan Taizong said to the officials attending him:
"The tradition tells us, 'Cast away food and keep good faith,' and Confucius said, 'The people cannot stand without good faith.' Long ago, when Xiang Yu had entered Xianyang and already held the world in his hand, if he had been able to work at benevolence and good faith, who would have taken it from him?"
Fang Xuanling answered:
"Benevolence, righteousness, the rites, wisdom and good faith are called the five constants, and not one of them may be laid aside. To be able to practice them diligently is of great help. Zhou of Yin made light of the five constants and mocked them, and King Wu took his realm from him. The house of Xiang had no good faith and lost all to Gaozu of Han. It is truly as Your Majesty says."