There are seven methods for securing the stability of a state, and six paths that lead it to danger.
The Seven Methods of Stability:
First, rewards and punishments shall follow right and wrong.
Second, fortune and misfortune shall follow good and evil deeds.
Third, life and death shall be determined by law.
Fourth, there shall be worthy and unworthy men, but no favoritism or aversion in judging them.
Fifth, there shall be foolish and wise men, but no judgment based on slander or praise.
Sixth, there shall be fixed standards of measurement, but no arbitrary estimation.
Seventh, there shall be trustworthiness, but no deceit.
The Six Paths of Danger:
First, cutting within the guideline – that is, bending the law from within.
Second, severing beyond the law – that is, making arbitrary decisions outside the law.
Third, profiting from what harms others.
Fourth, taking pleasure in what brings disaster to others.
Fifth, endangering others in their peace and security.
Sixth, failing to draw close to those one loves, and failing to distance oneself from those one despises.
If these six paths are followed, the people will lose what makes life worth living, and cease to value death as something to be feared. When the people no longer enjoy life, the ruler will not be respected. When they no longer fear death, his decrees cannot be enforced.
Note
This Han Feizi excerpt presents seven stability‑building measures and six perilous paths for states. It stresses impersonal objective legal standards, warning unjust governance will erode popular respect for royal decrees.
The Author
Han Fei (韩非, c. 280–233 BC): The greatest synthesizer of Legalist (法家, Fǎjiā) philosophy during the Warring States period. He combined three core concepts – laws (法), methods (术), and strategic power (势) – into a comprehensive political theory. His ideas profoundly influenced Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China, who used Legalist principles to unify the country in 221 BC.
Methods of Stability:
The seven principles Han Fei proposes for maintaining national security. They all share one core idea: governance must be based on objective, impersonal standards rather than the ruler’s personal feelings. This is the Legalist answer to the Confucian reliance on moral virtue.
Paths of Danger:
The six behaviors that lead a state toward collapse. Han Fei uses the metaphor of a carpenter’s guideline (绳, shéng) – the ink line used to mark a straight cut on wood. “Cutting within the guideline” means corrupting the law from within its own framework; “severing beyond the law” means acting outside the law entirely. Both destroy the rule of law.
Enjoying Life and Fearing Death (乐生与重死):
This is one of Han Fei’s most profound insights. He argues that effective governance depends on making people want to live well under the law and fear the consequences of breaking it. When a regime becomes so unjust that people no longer care about living or dying, all authority collapses. This is essentially a theory of legitimacy through institutional fairness.
The Carpenter’s Guideline:
In ancient Chinese woodworking, a carpenter would stretch an inked string across a piece of wood and snap it to create a perfectly straight line. This “guideline” (墨线) became a powerful metaphor in Chinese philosophy for objective standards and the rule of law. Just as a carpenter must follow the line to cut straight, a ruler must follow the law to govern justly.
Standards of Measurement (尺寸):
Literally “feet and inches,” this refers to any objective measuring standard. Han Fei uses it metaphorically to argue that governance requires fixed, measurable criteria – not subjective guesswork (意度). This reflects the Legalist obsession with quantifiable, verifiable standards as opposed to the Confucian reliance on moral intuition.
安术有七，危道有六。
安术：一曰，赏罚随是非；二曰，祸福随善恶；三曰，死生随法度；四曰，有贤不肖而无爱恶；五曰，有愚智而无非誉；六曰，有尺寸而无意度；七曰，有信而无诈。
危道：一曰，断削于绳之内；二曰，断割于法之外；三曰，利人之所害；四曰，乐人之所祸；五曰，危人于所安；六曰，所爱不亲，所恶不疏。如此，则人失其所以乐生，而忘其所以重死。人不乐生，则人主不尊：不重死，则令不行也。
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