Six Secret Teachings, Civil Teaching — Honoring the Worthy六韜 上賢
1The six robbers and the seven harms
文王問太公曰：「王人者，何上何下，何取何去，何禁何止？」太公曰：「上賢，下不肖。取誠信，去詐偽。禁暴亂，止奢侈。故王人者有六賊七害。」文王曰：「願聞其道。」太公曰：「夫六賊者：一曰，臣有大作宮室池榭，遊觀倡樂者，傷王之德。二曰，民有不事農桑，任氣遊俠，犯陵法禁，不從吏教者，傷王之化。三曰，臣有結朋黨，蔽賢智，障主明者，傷王之權。四曰，士有抗志高節，以為氣勢；外交諸侯，不重其主者，傷王之威。五曰，臣有輕爵位，賤有司，羞為上犯難者，傷功臣之勞。六曰，強宗侵奪，陵侮貧弱，傷庶人之業。七害者：一曰，無智略權謀，而重賞尊爵之。故強勇輕戰，僥倖於外，王者謹勿使為將。二曰，有名無實，出入異言，掩善揚惡，進退為巧，王者謹勿與謀。三曰，樸其身躬，惡其衣服，語無為以求名，言無欲以求利，此偽人也，王者謹勿近。四曰，奇其冠帶，偉其衣服；博聞辯辭，虛論高議，以為容美；窮居靜處，而誹時俗，此奸人也，王者謹勿寵。五曰，讒佞苟得，以求官爵；果敢輕死，以貪祿秩；不圖大事，貪利而動；以高談虛論，悅於人主，王者謹勿使。六曰，為雕文刻鏤，技巧華飾，而傷農事，王者必禁。七曰，偽方異技，巫蠱左道，不祥之言，幻惑良民，王者必止之。故民不盡力，非吾民也。士不誠信，非吾士也。臣不忠諫，非吾臣也。吏不平潔愛人，非吾吏也。相不能富國強兵，調和陰陽，以安萬乘之主，正群臣，定名實，明賞罰，樂萬民，非吾相也。夫王者之道，如龍首，高居而遠望，深視而審聽；示其形，隱其情。若天之高，不可極也；若淵之深，不可測也。故可怒而不怒，奸臣乃作。可殺而不殺，大賊乃發。兵勢不行，敵國乃強。」文王曰：「善哉！」
King Wen asked Taigong, "He who is king over men — what does he raise up and what does he put down, what does he take and what does he cast away, what does he forbid and what does he stop?" Taigong said, "He raises up the worthy and puts down the unworthy. He takes the sincere and the trustworthy and casts away the false. He forbids violence and disorder and stops extravagance. And so a king has six robbers and seven harms." King Wen said, "I should like to hear the way of this." Taigong said, "As for the six robbers: first, when a minister builds great palaces and ponds and pavilions, and roams and looks on and delights in music, this harms the king's virtue. Second, when the people do not work at farming and silkworms but give rein to their temper and play the gallant, break the laws and prohibitions and do not follow the teaching of the officials, this harms the king's civilizing work. Third, when ministers form factions and screen off the worthy and the wise and block the ruler's clear sight, this harms the king's power. Fourth, when a gentleman raises his ambition high and his principles high and makes of them a show of force, and joins with the lords abroad and does not hold his own ruler weighty, this harms the king's authority. Fifth, when a minister holds rank light and thinks the officers low, and is ashamed to face hardship for his ruler, this harms the labor of the ministers of merit. Sixth, when powerful clans seize and take and trample on the poor and weak, this harms the livelihood of the common people. As for the seven harms: first, there is the man without wisdom or strategy or counsel, who is heavily rewarded and given high rank. He is strong and brave and holds battle light, and hopes for good luck out in the field. Let the king be careful not to make him a general. Second, there is the man with a name and no substance, who says one thing coming in and another going out, who covers the good and spreads abroad the bad, and is artful in advancing and retiring. Let the king be careful not to plan with him. Third, there is the man who makes his person plain and his clothes shabby, who speaks of doing nothing in order to seek a name and speaks of having no desires in order to seek profit. This is a false man. Let the king be careful not to bring him near. Fourth, there is the man who makes his cap and sash strange and his robes grand, who has wide learning and a ready tongue, and makes an ornament of empty talk and lofty argument, who lives poor and keeps quiet and slanders the ways of the time. This is a crooked man. Let the king be careful not to favor him. Fifth, there is the man who flatters and grasps in order to seek office and rank, who is rashly bold and holds death light out of greed for pay and station, who plans nothing great but moves out of greed for gain, and pleases the ruler with high talk and empty argument. Let the king be careful not to employ him. Sixth, there are those who carve and engrave and deck things out with skill and finery, and so harm the work of farming. The king must forbid this. Seventh, there are false arts and strange skills, sorcery and curses and crooked ways, and unlucky words that bewitch good people. The king must put a stop to this. So if the people do not spend their strength, they are not my people. If the gentlemen are not sincere and trustworthy, they are not my gentlemen. If the ministers do not remonstrate loyally, they are not my ministers. If the officials are not fair and clean and do not love the people, they are not my officials. If the chief minister cannot make the state rich and the army strong, harmonize the dark and the bright, set at ease a ruler of ten thousand chariots, keep the host of ministers upright, settle name and substance, make reward and punishment clear and make the myriad people glad, he is not my chief minister. The way of a king is like the head of a dragon. He dwells high and looks far, he sees deep and listens closely. He shows his form and hides his feeling. He is high as Heaven, and cannot be reached to the top. He is deep as an abyss, and cannot be sounded. So when he should be angry and is not angry, crooked ministers arise. When he should kill and does not kill, great robbers break out. When the power of his arms is not exercised, the enemy state grows strong." King Wen said, "Good."