| | Wealth and rank without knowledge are precisely sufficient to bring disaster; they are worse than poverty and low status. It is difficult for the poor and lowly to obtain external things, so how could they possibly exceed them? When going out, one uses a carriage; when returning, one is carried in a palanquin. One is devoted to self-indulgence and ease—this is called the mechanism that invites disaster. Rich meats and strong wines, consumed in pursuit of physical strength, are termed "foods that rot the intestines." Seductive beauty with white teeth and the music of Zheng and Wei, pursued for one's own pleasure—this is termed "the axe that fells human nature." These three afflictions are caused by wealth and rank. Therefore, there were people in ancient times who refused wealth and rank; this was because they valued life above all else—not for the sake of boasting about a name, but for the reality of preserving true nature. Therefore, these arguments cannot be overlooked without careful consideration.
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