Confucius said, “Wearing a tattered cotton robe and standing beside someone clad in luxurious fox or badger fur – yet feeling no shame: perhaps only Zilu can do this! As the Odes say, ‘Not envious, not greedy – how could one not be good?’ ” Zilu recited this verse for the rest of his life. Confucius then remarked, “Is this alone sufficient for true excellence?”
Note
This passage from the Analects of Confucius highlights a commendable moral attitude through Zilu’s character: contentment in poverty and freedom from vanity. Though poorly dressed, Zilu felt neither inferiority nor jealousy when standing among the wealthy, demonstrating inner confidence and moral integrity. Confucius quotes the Book of Odes – “Not envious, not greedy” – to affirm Zilu’s mindset, showing he has transcended worldly comparisons and desires. However, when Zilu took this as the ultimate standard and “recited it all his life,” Confucius gently corrected him: “Is this alone sufficient for true excellence?” The point is that “not being envious or greedy” is merely the foundation of moral cultivation, not its culmination. A true junzi must not only remain unashamed of poverty and free from craving, but also actively practice the Way and fulfill humaneness (ren). Confucius thus cautions against stopping at passive virtue (“not doing wrong”) and urges progression toward active moral contribution (“doing good”). This reflects the full Confucian ideal of personal development: inner tranquility must be complemented by outward ethical engagement – what is later termed “inner sageliness and outer kingliness.”
Further Reading
The Master said, “Eating coarse food, drinking water, and resting my head on a bent arm – I find joy in this. Wealth and rank gained through unrighteousness are to me like floating clouds.” Analects 7.16 (Shu Er)
Both emphasize finding contentment in simplicity and rejecting ill-gotten wealth; however, Confucius’s joy comes from alignment with the Way, not mere indifference.
子曰：「衣敝縕袍，與衣狐貉者立，而不恥者，其由也與？『不忮不求，何用不臧？』」子路終身誦之。子曰：「是道也，何足以臧？」
Leave a Reply