| Chinese Text Project | |
| Simplified Chinese version |
《吾子卷第二 - My Master》 | English translation: Jeffrey S. Bullock [?] | Library Resources |
| 1 | 吾子卷第... : | 或问：“吾子少而好赋。”曰：“然。童子雕虫篆刻。”俄而曰：“壮夫不为也。”或曰：“赋可以讽乎？”曰：“讽乎！讽则已，不已，吾恐不免于劝也。”或曰：“雾縠之组丽。”曰：“女工之蠹矣。”《剑客论》曰：“剑可以爱身。”曰：“狴犴使人多礼乎？” |
| My Master: |
Someone asked: When my Master was young, were you good at fu? Yangzi said: Yes. As a youngster I practiced cutting bronze, seal, and tally scripts. After a moment he said: Adults do not do this. The other said: Can fu not be used for remonstration through satire? Yangzi said: Satire! Once it satirizes, then it should stop. When it does not end, I am afraid that it does not avoid becoming encouragement. The other said: Like the silken beauty of misty gauze? Yangzi said: It is the worm in women's work. The other said: The Swordsman's Treatise says: "The sword can be used to protect the body." Yangzi said: But can the skills of a swordsman make men more skilled in li? | |
| 2 | 吾子卷第... : | 或问：“景差、唐勒、宋玉、枚乘之赋也，益乎？”曰：“必也淫。”“淫则奈何？”曰：“诗人之赋丽以则，辞人之赋丽以淫。如孔氏之门用赋也，则贾谊升堂，相如入室矣。如其不用何？” |
| My Master: |
Someone asked: Were the fu of Jing Cha, Tang Le, Song Yu, and Mei Cheng not of value? Yangzi said: They were excessive by necessity. The other said: What do you mean by "excessive?" Yangzi said: The fu of those who wrote shi style verse achieved beauty by means of standards. The fu of those who wrote ci style verse achieved beauty by means of going to excess. If the Confucian school had used fu, Jia Yi [would have] ascended the hall and Sima Xiangru [would have] entered the inner chambers. How could they have, if not for having used [fu]! | |
| 3 | 吾子卷第... : | 或问“苍蝇红、紫”。曰：“明视。”问“郑卫之似”。曰：“聪听。”或曰：“朱、旷不世，如之何？”曰：“亦精之而已矣。” |
| My Master: |
Someone asked about those who can reverse black and white and dazzle the eyes with unorthodox colors. Yangzi said: Look clearly. The other said: What if I hear music like that of Zheng and Wei? Yangzi said: Listen clearly. The other said: Li Zhu and Music Master Kuang are already dead. What can be done? Yangzi said: Single-mindedly concentrate on seeing and hearing and that's all. | |
| 4 | 吾子卷第... : | 或问：“交五声、十二律也，或雅或郑，何也？”曰：“中正则雅，多哇则郑。”“请问本。”曰：“黄钟以生之，中正以平之，确乎郑、卫不能入也！” |
| My Master: |
Someone asked: All music is based on the five tones and the twelve note scale, yet some music is ceremonial, and some is [like that of] Zheng and Wei. Why? Yangzi said: If it is proper and correct, then it is ceremonial. If it is excessive and unrestrained, then it is like that of Zheng and Wei. May I ask about the fundamentals of making music? Yangzi said: If the huangzhong is used as the root for producing the twelve note scale, and if one uses moderation and a correct attitude to make the notes of properly equal pitch, then one can insure that the music of Zheng and Wei will not be able to enter into and defile one's music. | |
| 5 | 吾子卷第... : | 或曰：“女有色，书亦有色乎？”曰：“有。女恶华丹之乱窈窕也，书恶淫辞之淈法度也。” |
| My Master: |
Someone said: Women have beauty, but do books not also have beauty? Yangzi said: They do. With women, one hates cosmetics that ruin their beauty. With books, one hates excessive words that create chaos in laws and institutions. | |
| 6 | 吾子卷第... : | 或问：“屈原智乎？”曰：“如玉如莹，爰变丹青。如其智！如其智！” |
| My Master: |
Someone asked: Was Qu Yuan wise or not? Yangzi said: Like jade, like chiseled jade—transformed into reds and greens! But such was his wisdom, such was his wisdom! | |
| 7 | 吾子卷第... : | 或问：“君子尚辞乎？”曰：“君子事之为尚。事胜辞则伉，辞胜事则赋，事、辞称则经。足言足容，德之藻矣！” |
| My Master: |
Someone asked: Does the junzi esteem words? Yangzi said: The junzi esteems reality. When the reality goes beyond the words, it is unrefined. When the words go beyond the reality, then it is exaggerated like fu. When the reality and the words are in balance, then it is a standard. Both words and comportment fully adequate, that is how to embellish de. | |
| 8 | 吾子卷第... : | 或问：“公孙龙诡辞数万以为法，法与？”曰：“断木为棋，捖革为鞠，亦皆有法焉。不合乎先王之法者，君子不法也。” |
| My Master: |
Someone asked: Gongsun Long took his ten thousand clever words to be a model. Can they be used as a model? Yangzi said: Cutting wood to make chess pieces and scraping hides to make a ball, these kinds of activities all have a model. But as for those things that do not accord with the model of the former kings, the junzi does not take them as a model. | |
| 9 | 吾子卷第... : | 观书者譬诸观山及水，升东岳而知众山之逦迤也，况介丘乎？浮沧海而知江河之恶沱也，况枯泽乎？舍舟航而济乎渎者，末矣；舍五经而济乎道者，末矣。弃常珍而嗜乎异馔者，恶睹其识味也？委大圣而好乎诸子者，恶睹其识道也？” |
| My Master: | Looking at the the Confucian Books is comparable to looking at mountains and water: Ascending Mt. Tai, one knows the small and winding landscape of the other mountains of the range, how much more that of the little hills. Floating on the blue-green ocean, one knows the muddiness of the rivers, how much more that of the dried up marshes. Throwing away the boat and yet crossing a great river, there has never been anyone who could do this]. Thowing away the Five Classics and yet reaching the Dao, there has never been anyone who could do this either! As for one who rejects the regular delicacies and is fond of strange dishes, how do you know that he can recognize tastes? As for one who abandons the great sage and loves the various philosophers, how do you know that he can recognize the Dao? | |
| 10 | 吾子卷第... : | 山𡷨之蹊，不可胜由矣；向墙之户，不可胜入矣。曰：“恶由入？”曰；“孔氏。孔氏者，户也。”曰：“子户乎？”曰：“户哉！户哉！吾独有不户者矣？” |
| My Master: |
A trail down a mountain ravine cannot be followed to the end; a door facing a wall cannot be entered. The other said: From where can one enter? Yangzi said: Confucius. Confucius is the door. The other said: Have you passed through Confucius's door? Yangzi said: The door! The door! How could I be the only one who has not entered through the door? | |
| 11 | 吾子卷第... : | 或欲学《苍颉》、《史篇》。曰：“史乎！史乎！愈于妄阙也。” |
| My Master: |
Someone wanted to study the Cangjie and the Shipian. Yangzi said: The Shi! The Shi! It is better than forgetting about and losing it! | |
| 12 | 吾子卷第... : | 或曰：“有人焉，曰云姓孔而字仲尼，入其门，升其堂，伏其几，袭其裳，则可谓仲尼乎？”曰：“其文是也，其质非也。”“敢问质。”曰：“羊质而虎皮，见草而说，见豺而战，忘其皮之虎矣。” |
| My Master: |
Someone said: Suppose there is a man who says that his surname is Kong, and his name Zhongni. If he enters Confucius's gate, ascends his hall, sits in his chair, and wears his clothes, then may he be called Confucius? Yangzi said: His outer appearance (wen), yes. His zhi, no. The other said: May I dare ask about zhi? Yangzi said: One who has a sheep's zhi and a tiger's skin sees grass and is happy, sees a jackal and shivers. He forgets he is wearing a tiger's skin. | |
| 13 | 吾子卷第... : | 圣人虎别，其文炳也。君子豹别，其文蔚也。辩人狸别，其文萃也。狸变则豹，豹变则虎。 |
| My Master: | The sage is in the tiger class, his stripes (wen) are bright and distinct. The junzi is in the leopard class, his spots (wen) are colorful and abundant. The sophists are in the wildcat class, their markings (wen) are collected together thickly. If the wildcat transforms, then he is a leopard. If the leopard transforms, then he is a tiger. | |
| 14 | 吾子卷第... : | 好书而不要诸仲尼，书肆也。好说而不要诸仲尼，说铃也。君子言也无择，听也无淫，择则乱，淫则辟。述正道而稍邪哆者有矣，未有述邪哆而稍正也。 |
| My Master: | People who love books but do not seek instruction from Confucius are like a bookshop. Those who love to engage in persuasion but do not seek instruction from Confucius talk like jingling bells. What the junzi says does not corrupt others. What he listens to is without exaggeration. Corruption results in disorder. Exaggeration results in the unorthodox. There have been those who transmitted the straight dao but gradually went crooked; but there has never been anyone who transmitted the crooked dao and gradually went straight. | |
| 15 | 吾子卷第... : | 孔子之道，其较且易也。或曰：“童而习之，白纷如也，何其较且易？”曰：“谓其不奸奸，不诈诈也。如奸奸而诈诈，虽有耳目，焉得而正诸？” |
| My Master: |
Confucius's dao—how clear and easy it is! Someone said: Starting from his youth and practicing it, one studies until his hair turns white, and he is still confused. How can you say it is so clear and easy? Yangzi said: I am referring to its not being crooked in order to deal with the crooked, and not being crafty in order to deal with the crafty. If it were crooked and crafty, even though you had ears and eyes, how would you be able to correct them. | |
| 16 | 吾子卷第... : | 多闻则守之以约，多见则守之以卓。寡闻则无约也，寡见则无卓也。 |
| My Master: | If you hear much, then hold onto the essential. If you see much, then hold onto the profound. If you do not hear much, then nothing is essential. If you do not see much, then nothing is profound. | |
| 17 | 吾子卷第... : | 绿衣三百，色如之何矣！紵絮三千，寒如之何矣！ |
| My Master: | Three hundred green robes—but what about the color? Three thousand scraps of hemp—but what about the cold? | |
| 18 | 吾子卷第... : | 君子之道有四易：简而易用也，要而易守也，炳而易见也，法而易言也。 |
| My Master: | The dao of the junzi is easy in four ways: being simple, it is easy to use; being essential, it is easy to grasp; being bright, it is easy to see; being the model, it is easy to explain. | |
| 19 | 吾子卷第... : | 震风陵雨，然后知夏屋之为帡幪也；虐政虐世，然后知圣人之为郛郭也。 |
| My Master: | After thunderous winds and heavy rains, one knows that a big house is a shelter. After harsh government and a chaotic age, one knows the sage is a bastion wall. | |
| 20 | 吾子卷第... : | 古者杨墨塞路，孟子辞而辟之，廓如也。后之塞路者有矣，窃自比于孟子。 |
| My Master: | Among the ancients, Yang Zhu and Mo Di blocked the road, Mengzi spoke and burst it open, making the road broad. There were others after him who blocked the road. I humbly compare myself to Mengzi. | |
| 21 | 吾子卷第... : | 或曰：“人各是其所是而非其所非，将谁使正之？”曰：“万物纷错则悬诸天，众言淆乱则折诸圣。”或曰：“恶睹乎圣而折诸？”曰：“在则人，亡则书，其统一也。” |
| My Master: |
Someone asked: Each person affirms what he affirms and denies what he denies—who will set them right? Yangzi said: If the ten thousand things are confused and disorderly, they are corrected by Tian; if the multitude of words are confused and chaotic, then they are judged by the sage. Someone said: Whence can one look to a sage to render judgment? Yangzi said: When he is alive, there is the man; when he is gone, there are the Books. Their guiding principle is the same. |
URN: ctp:yangzi-fayan/juan-er