| 中国哲学书电子化计划 | |
| 简体字版 |
《问明卷第六》 | 英文翻译：Jeffrey S. Bullock[?] | 电子图书馆 |
| 1 | 问明卷第... : | 或问“明”。曰：“微。”或曰：“微何如其明也？”曰：“微而见之，明其悖乎！” |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: |
Someone asked about seeing clearly. Yangzi said: Focus on what is subtle. The other said: How can focusing on what is subtle be seeing clearly? Yangzi said: If it is subtle and yet you can perceive it, then can you not see wayward action clearly? | |
| 2 | 问明卷第... : | 聪明其至矣乎？不聪，实无耳也；不明，实无目也。“敢问大聪明。”曰：“眩眩乎，惟天为聪，惟天为明。夫能高其目而下其耳者，匪天也夫？” |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: |
Having keen hearing and eyesight is the best. Not being able to hear clearly is truly like not having ears. Not being able to see clearly is truly like not having eyes. Dare I ask about superior clarity of sight and hearing? Yangzi said: Dazzlingly bright, only Tian sees and hears perfectly. The one who is able to raise up its eyes to see far and wide and lower its ears to the ground, is it not Tian? | |
| 3 | 问明卷第... : | 或问：“小每知之，可谓师乎？”曰：“是何师与？是何师与？天下小事为不少矣，每知之，是谓师乎？师之贵也，知大知也。小知之师亦贱矣。” |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: |
Someone asked: Can someone who understands even the most trivial affairs be called a teacher? Yangzi said: What kind of teacher is this? What kind of teacher is this? The trivial affairs of the world are not few. Understanding them all, is this called being a teacher? The value of a teacher is knowing great knowledge. A teacher who only understands the trivial is indeed worthless. | |
| 4 | 问明卷第... : | 孟子疾过我门而不入我室。或曰：“亦有疾乎？”曰：“摭我华而不食我实。” |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: |
Mengzi detested "those who passed my gate but did not enter my inner chambers." Someone said: Are there others you detest as well? Yangzi said: Those who pick my flowers but do not eat my fruit. | |
| 5 | 问明卷第六: | 或谓“仲尼事弥其年，盖天劳诸，病矣夫？”曰：“天非独劳仲尼，亦自劳也。天病乎哉？天乐天，圣乐圣。” |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: |
Someone said: Confucius's affairs kept him busy all his life. Tian must have become weary belaboring him! Yangzi said: Tian did not only belabor Confucius, it also belabored itself. But does Tian become weary? Tian delights in being Tian, the sage delights in being the sage. | |
| 6 | 问明卷第... : | 或问：“鸟有凤，兽有麟，鸟、兽皆可凤、麟乎？”曰：“群鸟之于凤也，群兽之于麟也，形性。岂群人之于圣乎？” |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: |
Someone asked: Among birds there is the phoenix, among beasts there is the unicorn. Can all birds and beasts really become a phoenix or unicorn? Yangzi said: The difference between other birds and the phoenix, and other beasts and the unicorn, are of form and nature. How can this be so with the other people's relationship to the sage? | |
| 7 | 问明卷第... : | 或曰：“甚矣！圣道无益于庸也。圣读而庸行，盍去诸？”曰：“甚矣！子之不达也。圣读而庸行，犹有闻焉。去之，抏也。抏秦者，非斯乎？投诸火。” |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: |
Someone said: Indeed, the sage's dao is of no benefit in common practice. To read the sage's writings but continue in ordinary behaviors—why not just get rid of the sage's writings? Yangzi said: How much you fail to understand! If one reads the sage's writings but continues in ordinary behaviors, he still has knowledge of the sage's teachings. To get rid of the writings is foolishness. Was Li Si not the one who made fools of the Qin? He threw the writings into the fire! | |
| 8 | 问明卷第... : | 或问：“人何尚？”曰：“尚智。”曰：“多以智杀身者，何其尚？”曰：“昔乎臯陶以其智为帝谟，杀身者远矣！箕子以其智为武王陈《洪范》，杀身者远矣！” |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: |
Someone asked: What do people honor? Yangzi said: They honor wisdom. The other said: Many people are killed because of their wisdom. Why do they honor it? Yangzi said: In the past, Gao Yao used his wisdom to remonstrate with the emperor Shun. He was far from getting himself killed. Jizi used his wisdom to layout the Hongfan for King Wu. He too was far from getting himself killed. | |
| 9 | 问明卷第... : | 仲尼，圣人也，或者劣诸子贡，子贡辞而精之，然后廓如也。于戏！观书者违子贡，虽多亦何以为？ |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: | Confucius was a sage, but some said that he was inferior to Zigong. Zigong's own words cleared up the issue, so that afterwards, such an idea was dropped. Indeed! If those who read the the sage's writings oppose Zigong on this issue, then although they may have read much, what good has it done them? | |
| 10 | 问明卷第... : | 盛哉！成汤丕承也，文王渊懿也。或问“丕承”。曰：“由小至大，不亦丕乎？革夏以天，不亦承乎？”“渊懿”。曰：“重《易》六爻，不亦渊乎？浸以光大，不亦懿乎？” |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: |
How magnificent! Cheng Tang was glorious and inherited the Mandate. King Wen was profound and virtuous. Someone said: What do you mean by "Cheng Tang was glorious and inherited the Mandate?" Yangzi said: He made the Shang to transform from a small kingdom into a great dynasty. Is this not glorious? He revolted against the Xia using Heaven's Mandate, is this not to inherit the Mandate itself? What do you mean by "King Wen was profound and virtuous?" Yangzi said: Doubling the Yijing's trigrams to make hexagrams, was this not profound? Making the Zhou gradually become honorable and great, is this not exemplary? | |
| 11 | 问明卷第... : | 或问“命”。曰：“命者，天之命也，非人为也。人为不为命。”“请问人为。”曰：“可以存亡，可以死生，非命也。命不可避也。”或曰：“颜氏之子，冉氏之孙。”曰：“以其无避也。若立岩墙之下，动而征病，行而招死，命乎！命乎！” |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: |
Someone asked about fate. Yangzi said: Fate is Tian's decree, it is not man's doing. What is effected by man is not fate. May I ask what you mean by "effected by man?" Yangzi said: Situations in which one may either survive or perish, live or die, are not matters of fate. Fate is what cannot be avoided. The other said: What about Yan Yuan and Ran Geng? Yangzi said: Because of fate, they could not avoid an early death. But if you choose to stand under a wall that is about to collapse, where moving will summon disaster and any action will result in death, is that fate? | |
| 12 | 问明卷第... : | 吉人凶其吉，凶人吉其凶。 |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: |
Fortunate people treat their good fortune as bad fortune. Unfortunate people treat their bad fortune as good fortune. | |
| 13 | 问明卷第... : | 辰乎辰！曷来之迟，去之速也，君子兢诸。 |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: | Time! Time! How slowly it comes and how quickly it goes. The junzi races with it. | |
| 14 | 问明卷第... : | 謣言败俗，謣好败则，姑息败德。君子谨于言，慎于好，亟于时。 |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: | Recklessly exaggerated speech destroys societal norms. Unrestrained desires destroy the law. Self-indulgence destroys de. The junzi is careful in speech, cautious in desire, and pressed by time. | |
| 15 | 问明卷第... : | 吾不见震风之能动聋聩也。 |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: | I have not seen a thundering storm that was able to stir a deaf person. | |
| 16 | 问明卷第... : | 或问“君子在治”。曰：“若凤。”“在乱？”曰：“若凤。”或人不谕。曰：“未之思矣！”曰：“治则见，乱则隐。鸿飞冥冥，弋人何篡焉。鹪明遴集，食其洁者矣！凤鸟跄跄，匪尧之庭。” |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: |
Someone asked: What is the junzi like in times of just government? Yangzi said: He is like the phoenix. What is he like in chaotic times? Yangzi said: He is like the phoenix. The other did not understand. Yangzi said: You have yet to think it through. If it is a time of just government, he appears. If it is a time of chaos, he hides. When the wild goose flies high and far, how can the archer hope to shoot him? The jiao ming carefully chooses a place to gather and eats only pure things. When the phoenix takes off, he flies to the hall of Yao. | |
| 17 | 问明卷第... : | 亨龙潜升，其贞利乎？或曰：“龙何如可以贞利而亨。”曰：“时未可而潜，不亦贞乎？时可而升，不亦利乎？潜升在己，用之以时，不亦亨乎。” |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: |
A successful dragon lays low or rises to view in accordance with his integrity and advantage. The other said: How does the dragon use his integrity and advantage and thereby succeed? Yangzi said: If the time is not right, he hides. Is this not integrity? If the time is right, he rises. Is this not seizing an advantage? If one is able both to hide and to rise, and act according to the times, is this not indeed success? | |
| 18 | 问明卷第... : | 或问“活身”。曰：“明哲。”或曰：“童蒙则活，何乃明哲乎？”曰：“君子所贵，亦越用明保慎其身也。如庸行翳路，冲冲而活，君子不贵也。” |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: |
Someone asked about preserving one's life. Yangzi said: It is a matter of illuminated wisdom. The other said: If the young and unenlightened can preserve themselves, then how is it only a matter of illuminated wisdom? Yangzi said: The junzi only values using his wisdom to preserve his life. If it means blundering in panic down a darkened road like a fool and somehow preserving his life, the junzi would not value it. | |
| 19 | 问明卷第... : | 楚两龚之洁，其清矣乎！蜀庄沈冥。蜀庄之才之珍也，不作苟见，不治苟得，久幽而不改其操。虽随、和何以加诸？举兹以旃，不亦宝乎？吾珍庄也，居难为也。不慕由，即夷矣。何毚欲之有？ |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: | The purity of Gong Sheng and Gong She from Chu were lofty indeed! Zhuang Zun of Shu lived in deep seclusion, and his talents were truly valuable. He neither acted for attention and respect, nor did he serve in government in order to obtain wealth and honor. He hid himself for a long time and did not deviate from his principles. Even if one had the pearls of the Sui or the He Shi Bi, how could these surpass the value of Zhuang's integrity. I raise him up as a banner—is he not indeed precious? I greatly admire Zhuang, his position was difficult to maintain. If he did not aspire to equal Xu You, then he aspired to equal Bo Yi. What greedy desires could he have had? | |
| 20 | 问明卷第... : | 或问：“尧将让天下于许由，由耻。有诸？”曰：“好大者为之也。顾由无求于世而已矣！允喆尧儃舜之重，则不轻于由矣。好大累克，巢父洒耳，不亦宜乎？灵场之威，宜夜矣乎！” |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: |
Someone asked: Yao was about to cede all under Heaven to Xu You, but Xu You was ashamed. Did this really happen? Yangzi said: That is how those who like to exaggerate would tell it. In fact, Xu You had no worldly desires at all. If one truly understood the seriousness with which Yao abdicated to Shun, then one would know that he would not have rashly abdicated to Xu You. Those who like to exaggerate have built up the story and gone beyond the truth of the matter. The story of Chaofu washing out his ears, isn't this also the same sort of exaggeration? To frighten people the way haunted places do, don't you need the dark of night? | |
| 21 | 问明卷第... : | 朱鸟翾翾，归其肆矣。或曰：“奚取于朱鸟哉？”曰：“时来则来，时往则往，能来能往者，朱鸟之谓与？” |
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The swallow flits around, coming and going without restraint. Someone said: What do you admire about the swallow? Yangzi said: When it is time to come, he comes. When it is time to go, he goes. One who is able to come and go—that describes a swallow, does it not? | |
| 22 | 问明卷第... : | 或问：“韩非作《说难》之书而卒死乎说难，敢问何反也？”曰：“说难盖其所以死乎？”曰：“何也？”曰：“君子以礼动，以义止，合则进，否则退，确乎不忧其不合也。夫说人而忧其不合，则亦无所不至矣！”或曰：“说之不合，非忧邪？”曰：“说不由道，忧也；由道而不合，非忧也。” |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: |
Someone said: Han Feizi wrote the Difficulty of Persuaders and ended up dying because of the difficulties of persuasion. Dare I ask why the situation turned back on him? Yangzi said: The Difficulty of Persuaders is probably what killed him. The other said: Why? Yangzi said: A junzi acts in accord with li and stops in accord with yi. If he conforms to the ruler's opinion he serves in government, otherwise he retires. He stands firm and does not worry that he does not conform. Now, if he is a persuader and worries about not conforming, then he will stop at nothing. The other said: Is it not worth worrying whether one's persuasion will fail to conform? Yangzi said: If one's persuasion does not follow the Dao, that is worth worrying about! But following the Dao and not conforming—this is nothing to worry about! | |
| 23 | 问明卷第... : | 或问“哲”。曰：“旁明厥思。”问“行”。曰：“旁通厥德。” |
| Asking About Seeing Clearly:...: |
Someone asked about wisdom. Yangzi said: Make your thoughts completely clear. He asked about action. Yangzi said: Let your de pervade everywhere. |
URN: ctp:yangzi-fayan/juan-liu