What is meant by “cultivating the self depends on rectifying the mind” is this:
When the mind is agitated by anger, it cannot be rectified;
when dominated by fear, it cannot be rectified;
when carried away by desire or pleasure, it cannot be rectified;
when burdened by anxiety or worry, it cannot be rectified.
When the mind is absent – distracted and not present – one may look but not truly see,
listen but not truly hear,
eat but not taste the food.
This is why it is said: “Cultivating the self lies in rectifying the mind.”
所謂修身在正其心者：
身有所忿懥，則不得其正；
有所恐懼，則不得其正；
有所好樂，則不得其正；
有所憂患，則不得其正。
心不在焉，視而不見，聽而不聞，食而不知其味。
此謂修身在正其心。
Note
This passage clarifies the intrinsic relationship between “rectifying the mind” and “cultivating the self” within the Eight Steps of The Great Learning: the mind governs the body, and if disturbed by emotions, true self-cultivation becomes impossible.
In Confucian thought, the “mind” is not merely a cognitive faculty but the central hub of moral discernment and volitional action. While emotions like anger, fear, desire, and anxiety are natural human experiences, allowing them to dominate clouds the clarity of one’s original moral nature and leads one away from the balanced Way. Thus, “rectifying the mind” does not mean suppressing emotions, but rather cultivating awareness and discipline so that emotions arise in accordance with ritual propriety and harmony – what the Doctrine of the Mean describes as “when expressed, all are in due measure – that is harmony.”
The phrase “when the mind is absent” offers a profound psychological insight: when the mind is scattered – distracted by external objects or inner cravings – perception and action lose authenticity. One may go through the motions of seeing, hearing, or eating, yet remain spiritually disconnected. This state of “body present but spirit absent” is precisely what undermines self-cultivation. Only when the mind is rectified can the senses function clearly and conduct be grounded in moral awareness.
Zhu Xi, in his Collected Commentaries on The Great Learning, stresses: “If the mind is not present, there is nothing to regulate the body.” Without the mind as moral sovereign, bodily actions lack direction and integrity. Hence, “rectifying the mind” serves as the crucial bridge between inner sincerity and outward self-cultivation – it is the essential practice for achieving inner sagehood.
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