Gongye Chang公冶長第五

The Master said of Gongye Chang, "He is fit to be a husband. Though he was once bound in prison, the crime was not his." And he gave him his own daughter in marriage.

The Master said of Nanrong, "When the state has the Way he will not be cast aside, and when the state is without the Way he will escape punishment." And he gave him his elder brother's daughter in marriage.

The Master said of Zijian, "A noble man indeed is such a one! If Lu had no noble men, where would he have got this?"

Zigong asked, "What am I like?" The Master said, "You are a vessel." "What kind of vessel?" "A hulian (瑚璉)."

Someone said, "Yong is humane but has no ready tongue." The Master said, "What use is a ready tongue? A man who fends others off with a glib mouth earns their dislike again and again. I do not know whether Yong is humane, but what use is a ready tongue?"

The Master wanted Qidiao Kai to take office. He answered, "I am not yet sure of myself in this." The Master was pleased.

The Master said, "The Way is not practiced. I shall take a raft and float out on the sea. The one who follows me will be You (由)." Zilu heard it and was delighted. The Master said, "You loves courage more than I do, but he does not know how to weigh things."

Meng Wubo asked, "Is Zilu humane?" The Master said, "I do not know." He asked again, and the Master said, "You could be put in charge of the levies in a state of a thousand chariots. Whether he is humane I do not know." "And what of Qiu (求)?" The Master said, "Qiu could be made steward of a town of a thousand households or of a house of a hundred chariots. Whether he is humane I do not know." "And what of Chi (赤)?" The Master said, "Chi, with his sash bound, could stand at court and speak with the guests. Whether he is humane I do not know."

The Master said to Zigong, "Which is the better, you or Hui?" He answered, "How would I dare look as high as Hui? Hui hears one thing and knows ten. I hear one thing and know two." The Master said, "You are not his equal. Neither you nor I are his equal."

Zai Yu was sleeping in the daytime. The Master said, "Rotten wood cannot be carved, and a wall of dung earth cannot be plastered. What is the use of scolding Yu (予)?" The Master said, "At first, when I dealt with men, I heard their words and trusted their deeds. Now, when I deal with men, I hear their words and watch their deeds. It was Yu who made me change this."

The Master said, "I have never seen a firm man." Someone answered, "There is Shen Cheng." The Master said, "Cheng is full of craving. How can he be firm?"

Zigong said, "What I do not want others to do to me, I also wish not to do to others." The Master said, "Ci, that is not something you have reached."

Zigong said, "The Master's writings we could hear. The Master speaking of human nature (性) and the Way of Heaven (天道) we could not hear."

When Zilu had heard a teaching and had not yet been able to act on it, his one fear was to hear another.

Zigong asked, "Why was Kong Wenzi given the name Wen (文)?" The Master said, "He was quick and loved to learn, and he was not ashamed to ask those below him. That is why he was called Wen."

The Master said of Zichan, "He had four ways of a noble man. He bore himself with deference, he served those above him with reverence, he nourished the people with kindness, and he called up the people justly."

The Master said, "Yan Pingzhong knew well how to deal with others. Long acquaintance, and still he showed them respect."

The Master said, "Zang Wenzhong kept a great tortoise, and carved hills on his pillar tops and painted water plants on his kingposts. In what way was he wise?"

Zizhang asked, "Ziwen the prime minister was three times made prime minister, and showed no sign of joy. Three times he was put out of office, and showed no sign of anger, and he always told the new prime minister how the old one had run affairs. What of him?" The Master said, "He was loyal." "Was he humane?" "I do not know. How could that be humaneness?" "When Cuizi killed the ruler of Qi, Chen Wenzi, who had ten teams of horses, left them behind and went away. Coming to another state he said, 'They are like our own grandee Cuizi,' and left. Coming to yet another state he again said, 'They are like our own grandee Cuizi,' and left. What of him?" The Master said, "He was clean." "Was he humane?" "I do not know. How could that be humaneness?"

Ji Wenzi thought three times before he acted. The Master heard it and said, "Twice is enough."

The Master said, "Ning Wuzi was wise when the state had the Way, and a fool when the state was without the Way. His wisdom can be matched. His folly cannot be matched."

The Master was in Chen. He said, "Let us go home, let us go home! The young men of my own district have great ambitions but are rough in their work. They have made a bright pattern, but they do not know how to cut it to shape."

The Master said, "Bo Yi and Shu Qi kept no old grudges in mind, and so resentment against them was rare."

The Master said, "Who calls Weisheng Gao straight? Someone came to beg vinegar of him, and he begged it from a neighbor and gave it to the man."

The Master said, "Clever words, a groomed face, and deference overdone: Zuo Qiuming was ashamed of them, and I am ashamed of them too. To hide resentment and befriend the man: Zuo Qiuming was ashamed of it, and I am ashamed of it too."

Yan Yuan and Ji Lu were in attendance. The Master said, "Why do you not each speak your wish?" Zilu said, "I would share my carriage and horses, my robes and furs, with my friends, and feel no regret when they were worn out." Yan Yuan said, "I would not boast of what I do well, nor lay my toil upon others." Zilu said, "We would like to hear the Master's wish." The Master said, "To give the old their ease, to be trusted by my friends, and to hold the young in my care."

The Master said, "It is hopeless! I have never seen a man who could see his own fault and call himself to account within."

The Master said, "In a hamlet of ten houses there is surely someone as loyal and trustworthy as I am, but none who loves learning as I do."