The Complete Translation of the Analects

Author: Yan Tao
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2000-06-01
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(16) The Master said, "Eat coarse grain, drink cold water, and curl your arm as a pillow—pleasure is found in this. But if it is not right, then there is no pleasure. Wealth and honor that are not earned through righteousness are like floating clouds to me."
(17) The Master said, "Add me a few years, and I will make no great mistakes." For years, he studied the I Ching at the age of fifty. The Master said, "If I had studied the I Ching earlier, I would not have made great mistakes."
[Note] I Ching: The Book of Changes, an ancient divination text.
(18) The Master spoke the "Yaya" in certain contexts, reading the Book of Songs and the Book of Documents, and performing rites. The "Yaya" refers to the standard speech of the Spring and Autumn period, which was widely used across the region, similar to the "official language" of the time, known as "Yaya." The translation uses "common speech" to convey this.
[Note] Yaya: During the Spring and Autumn period, the languages of different regions were not uniform, but there was still a widely used language, which was the dialect of Shaanxi, known as "Yaya" at the time. The translation uses "common speech" for this term.
(19) Ye Gong asked Zi Lu about the Master. Zi Lu did not answer. The Master said, "Why did you not say, 'He is a man of knowledge, who forgets to eat when he is diligent and forgets his worries when he is joyful, not even realizing that old age is approaching.'"
[Note] Ye Gong: Shen Zhuoliang, a minister of the State of Chu, styled Zi Gao. He was called Ye Gong because he served as an official in the state of Ye.
(20) The Master said, "I am not one who knows everything by birth. I am one who loves ancient culture and seeks knowledge diligently."
(21) The Master did not speak of strange things, brute force, chaos, or spirits.
[Note] These four categories refer to strange phenomena, brute force, chaos, and spirits.
(22) The Master said, "When three people walk together, each of them is my teacher. Choose the good and follow it, and choose the bad and correct it."
(23) The Master said, "Heaven has given me this virtue, and Huan Chi can do nothing to me."
[Note] Huan Chi: A minister of the State of Song, styled Chi, who was a descendant of King Huan of Song. The Records of the Grand Historian records that in 492 BCE, when the Master passed through the State of Song, he and his disciples practiced rites under a large tree. Huan Chi cut down the tree and threatened to kill the Master. On his way out of Song, the Master told his disciples this story.