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Yuan Xian asked Confucius what constituted “shame.”The Master said, “When the state is well governed, it is right to draw a salary as an official; but when the state is poorly governed, to still draw a salary is shameful.”Yuan Xian then asked, “If someone can suppress competitiveness, boastfulness, resentment, and desire, can he be…
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The Master said, “To send the people into battle without first instructing them is to abandon them.”
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The Master said, “If a good person instructs the people for seven years, they will be ready to take up arms.”
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Zilu asked, “What must one be like to be called a ‘shi’ (a morally cultivated scholar or gentleman)?”The Master said, “One who is earnest and mutually encouraging, yet also gentle and harmonious at home—such a person may be called a shi. Specifically, friends should be earnest and supportive of each other; brothers should be…
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The Master said, “Firmness, resoluteness, simplicity, and cautious speech—these qualities bring one close to benevolence/humaneness.”
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The Master said, “The noble person is calm and composed but not arrogant; the petty person is arrogant but not calm.”
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The Master said, “The noble person (Confucian gentleman) is easy to work with but hard to please. If you try to please him in ways that violate the Way (Dao), he will not be pleased; yet when he employs others, he uses them according to their abilities. The petty person is hard to work…