The Master said, “I hate the way purple usurps the place of vermilion. I hate the way the tunes of Zheng confound the elegant music. I hate the way sharp-tongued people overthrow states and families.”
Note
This passage from the Analects is a strong critique by Confucius against the phenomena of “passing off fake for genuine” and “subverting the orthodox with the unorthodox,” reflecting the Confucian persistent pursuit of “rectifying names” and “upholding the orthodox.” Confucius uses three instances of “hate” to express his deep pain over the destruction of social order and moral standards:
- Hating Purple Usurping Vermilion (Confusion of Aesthetics and Status): In the Zhou Dynasty’s ritual system, vermilion (bright red) was the orthodox color representing nobility, while purple was merely a secondary color. The popularity of purple replacing vermilion symbolized transgression and the confusion of social status. Confucius used this to emphasize the importance of maintaining the orthodoxy of the social hierarchy and the ritual system.
- Hating the Tunes of Zheng Confounding Elegant Music (Cultural and Moral Decline): Elegant music was the solemn music used for sacrifices and court ceremonies, representing the beauty of harmony and moral education. In contrast, the tunes of Zheng were popular folk songs at the time, considered overly frivolous and indulgent in desires. Confucius believed this music destroyed the inner peace of the people and the moral bottom line of society.
- Hating Sharp-Tongued People Overthrowing States and Families (Political and Verbal Disasters): “Sharp-tongued” refers to people who are eloquent but lack a moral bottom line. Relying on their glib tongues, they reverse right and wrong, ultimately leading to the ruin of states and the downfall of families. This is entirely consistent with Confucius’ consistent advocacy that “clever talk and a pretentious manner are rarely associated with true Benevolence” and that “the firm, the enduring, the simple, and the modest are near to Benevolence.”
The core of this thought lies in “nip it in the bud” and “correcting the source.” Confucius keenly realized that the collapse of society often does not start with earth-shattering events, but rather from the shift in aesthetic standards, the corruption of cultural ethos, and the hypocrisy of speech.
Further Reading
The Master said, “Clever talk and a pretentious manner are rarely associated with true Benevolence.”
Banish the tunes of Zheng, and keep far from specious talkers. The tunes of Zheng are licentious; specious talkers are perilous.
The Master said, “The ‘village worthy’ (the hypocrite who tries to please everyone) is the thief of virtue.”
These chapters collectively demonstrate Confucius’ extreme vigilance and aversion towards “hypocrisy,” “extravagance,” and the act of “subverting the orthodox with the unorthodox.” Whether strongly condemning the accommodating “village worthy,” criticizing the “clever talk and pretentious manner,” or warning against the licentious “tunes of Zheng” and the perilous “specious talkers,” their core logic is highly consistent: Confucianism highly values the “authenticity” and “orthodoxy” of things. They jointly prove that, in Confucius’s view, anything that appears glamorous or pleasing on the surface but essentially violates the moral bottom line and disrupts social order (whether it is a person, music, or color) is a highly destructive “disaster” that must be firmly resisted.
子曰：「惡紫之奪朱也，惡鄭聲之亂雅樂也，惡利口之覆邦家者。」
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