Commentary on the Confucian Analects, Book 20: "Yao Yüeh" Part 1/1

"(1.) The Master said, 'Without recognizing the ordinances of Heaven, it is impossible to be a superior man. (2.) Without an acquaintance with the rules of Propriety, it is impossible for the character to be established. (3.) Without knowing the force of words, it is impossible to know men.'"

Hello everyone! This is the last article in my series of commentaries on the Confucian Analects. This series has spanned several months (that's my fault), and accounts for 35 of my total articles. Later today, I will have an article out with the exact statistics of the series (stuff like word count and payout totals). So, stay tuned for that. If you have missed any of the previous articles, they will be linked at the bottom of this article. Now, without any further delay, let's get into book 20!

Here are my commentaries on Book 20: Yao Yüeh:

[Image Source: pixabay.com, License: CCO Public Domain]

Original text from the Public Domain Confucian Analects (from the 2013 edition of "The Art of War and Other Classics of Eastern Thought")

@cmp2020 original commentary

Yao Yüeh

I
Principles and ways of Yao, Shun, Yü, T'ang, and Wu

Yao said, "Oh! you, Shun, the Heaven-determined order of succession now rests in your person. Sincerely hold fast the due Mean. If there shall be distress and want within the four seas, the Heavenly revenue will come to a perpetual end."

Shun also used the same language in giving charge to Yü.

T'ang said, "I, the child, Li, presume to use a dark colored victim, and presume to announce to Thee, O most great and sovereign God, that the sinner I dare not pardon, and thy ministers, O God, I do not keep in obscurity. The examination of them is by thy mind, O God. If, in my person, I commit offenses, they are not to be attributed to you, the people of the myriad regions. If you in the myriad regions commit offenses, these offenses must rest on my person."

Chau conferred great gifts, and the good were enriched.

"Although he has his near relatives, they are not equal to my virtuous men. The people are throwing blame upon me, the One man."

He carefully attended to the weights and measures, examined the body of the laws, restored the discarded officers, and the good government of the kingdom took its course.

He revived States that had been extinguished, restored families whose line of succession had been broken, and called to office those who had retired into obscurity, so that throughout the kingdom the hearts of the people turned towards him.

What he attached chief importance to, were the food of the people, the duties of mourning, and sacrifices.

By his generosity, he won all. By his sincerity, he made the people repose trust in him. By his earnest activity, his achievments were great. By his justice, all were delighted.

This passage lists the traits that made these five good rulers. Shun and Yü were sincere and unwavering in their ruling. T'ang took responsibility for the actions and decisions of his followers, Chau was generous, sincere, and sought justice. Yao was prominent in his recognition of others.

II
How government may be conducted with efficiency, by honoring five excellent things, and putting away four bad things-a conversation with Tsze-chang

Tsze-chang asked Confucius, saying, "In what way should a person in authority act in order that he may conduct government properly?" The Master replied, "Let him honor the five excellent, and banish away the four bad, things-then may he conduct government properly." Tsze-chang said, "What are meant by the five excellent things?" The Master said, "When the person in authority is beneficent without great expenditure; when he lays tasks on the people without their repining; when he pursues what he desires without being covetous; when he maintains a dignified ease without being proud; when he is majestic without being fierce."

Tsze-chang said, "What is meant by being beneficent without great expenditure?" The Master replied, "When the person in authority makes more beneficial to the people the things from which they naturally derive benefit-is not this being beneficent without great expenditure? When he chooses the labors which are proper, and makes them labor on them, who will repine? When his desires are set on benevolent government, and he secures it, who will accuse him of covetousness? Whether he has to do with many peopole or few, or with things great or small, he does not dare to indicate any disrespect-is not this to maintain a dignified ease without any pride? He adjusts his clothes and cap, and throws a dignity into his looks, so that, thus dignified, he is looked at with awe-is not this to be majestic without being fierce?"

Tsze-chang then asked, "What are meant by the four bad things?" The Master said, "To put the people to death without having instructed them-this is is called cruelty. To require from them, suddenly, the full table of work, without having given them warning-this is called oppression. To issue orders as if without urgency, at first, and, when the time comes, to insist on them with severity-this is called injury. And, generally, in the giving pay or rewards to men, to do it in a stingy way-this is called acting the part of a mere official."

This passage speaks of five excellent things that a superior man does and four bad things that a superior man does not do in his ruling in government. The five things that a superior man does are making giving benefits without large expenditure-looking to govern in a way that benefits all, not just himself; assigning tasks that can be reasonably accomplished-this avoids protest from his employees; seeking what he wants while keeping the group's best interest in mind-this creates trust; being dignified, yet not egotistical-this creates loyalty; and being inspirational without being mean-this creates influence.

The four bad things that he does not fulfill are cruelty, or punishing people for faults that occured due to a lack of instruction; oppression, or setting high standards suddenly without warning; injury, or punishing someone for not completing something by an unspecified date; and lacking professionalism, or being cheap in how you reward your employees..

III
The ordinances of heaven, the rules of Propriety, and the force of words, all necessary to be known

The Master said, "Without recognizing the ordinances of Heaven, it is impossible to be a superior man."

"Without an acquaintance with the rules of Propriety, it is impossible for the character to be established."

"Without knowing the force of words, it is impossible to know men."

I think the point of this final passage is that there are certain aspects to superiority that are standard. There are specefically three things which are standard in achieving superiority. These things are the understanding of natural laws, the application of manners, and the understanding of the impact of your choices. Natural laws are things that cannot be changed, and therefore must be understood by someone who wishes to be superior. Without manners character cannot be determined. A known character is one of the most important aspects of the superior man. A man without concrete character is not superior. Without knowing the impact of your decisions before you make them, it is impossible to carry out a life of superiority. This creates an uncertainty in people as to how a situation will progress. A superior man must have the certainty of his followers. In order to achieve this, he must know the impact of his decisions.

Confucian Analects

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Commentary on the Confucian Analects, Book 20: "Yao Yüeh" Part 1/1

"(1.) The Master said, 'Without recognizing the ordinances of Heaven, it is impossible to be a superior man. (2.) Without an acquaintance with the rules of Propriety, it is impossible for the character to be established. (3.) Without knowing the force of words, it is impossible to know men.'"

Yao Yüeh

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