Ji Kangzi was troubled by theft and asked Confucius for advice. Confucius replied, “If you yourself did not desire stolen goods, even if you offered rewards for stealing, people would not steal.”
Note
This passage from the Analects of Confucius powerfully illustrates Confucius’s belief that social disorder originates in the moral failings of those in power, not in the common people. Rather than proposing harsher punishments or surveillance—typical responses to crime—Confucius turns the focus inward: the ruler’s greed and hypocrisy set a corrupt example that normalizes exploitation and dishonesty. If leaders covet rare goods, hoard wealth, or live extravagantly while the people suffer, they implicitly license theft as a response to inequality or injustice. Conversely, if the ruler embodies moderation, integrity, and detachment from material gain (“not desiring”), the people will naturally follow suit through moral resonance. The hyperbolic statement “even if you rewarded stealing, they wouldn’t do it” underscores that ethical leadership creates a cultural climate where wrongdoing loses its appeal. This reflects the core Confucian principle that governance is rooted in de (virtue), not coercion—and that true order flows from the top down through moral exemplarity, not bottom-up enforcement.
Further Reading
Ji Kangzi asked Confucius about governance. Confucius replied, “Governance means uprightness. If you lead with uprightness, who would dare not be upright?” Analects 12.17 (Yan Yuan)
Both locate the root of public morality in the ruler’s personal conduct—leadership by moral example, not punishment.
The Master said, “The virtue of the noble person is like wind; the virtue of the common people is like grass. When wind blows over grass, it must bend.” Analects 12.19 (Yan Yuan)
Reinforces the idea that the masses naturally follow the moral direction set by their leaders—just as grass bends to the wind.
The Master said, “Guide the people by laws and align them through punishments, and they will avoid crime but have no sense of shame. Guide them by virtue and align them through ritual, and they will have shame and become upright.” Analects 2.3 (Wei Zheng)
Contrasts punitive control with moral cultivation—aligning with Confucius’s rejection of force-based solutions to theft.
The Master said, “When your own conduct is upright, you need give no orders and people will follow; when it is not upright, even orders go unheeded.” Analects 13.6 (Zi Lu)
Emphasizes that authority derives from personal integrity, not position—directly supporting the logic of 12.18.
季康子患盜，問於孔子。孔子對曰：「苟子之不欲，雖賞之不竊。」
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