The Way of the gentleman is both vast and hidden.
Even ordinary men and women, in their simplicity, can understand something of it; yet at its utmost height, even sages have what they do not fully know.
Even unvirtuous husbands and wives can practice it in daily life; yet at its ultimate reach, even sages have what they cannot fully accomplish.
Though Heaven and Earth are immense, humans still feel a sense of incompleteness. Thus, when the gentleman speaks of the Way as vast, nothing under Heaven can contain it; when he speaks of it as minute, nothing under Heaven can dissect or exhaust it.
The Book of Odes says:
“The kite (hawk) soars to the heavens; the fish leaps in the deep.”
This expresses how the Way is manifest both above and below – pervading all levels of existence.
The Way of the gentleman begins with the everyday lives of ordinary couples; yet when carried to its fullness, it illuminates the principles of Heaven and Earth.
君子之道費而隱。
夫婦之愚，可以與知焉，及其至也，雖聖人亦有所不知焉；
夫婦之不肖，可以能行焉，及其至也，雖聖人亦有所不能焉。
天地之大也，人猶有所憾，故君子語大，天下莫能載焉；語小，天下莫能破焉。
《詩》云：「鳶飛戾天，魚躍于淵。」言其上下察也。
君子之道，造端乎夫婦，及其至也，察乎天地。
Note
This chapter from the Doctrine of the Mean profoundly reveals the dual nature of the Confucian “Way” (Dao): the unity of immanence and transcendence, ordinariness and profundity.
The key phrase “vast yet hidden” captures this paradox: “vast” signifies the Way’s boundless pervasiveness – it is everywhere; “hidden” denotes its subtle, unfathomable depth. This apparent contradiction is precisely the essence of the Mean: the Way is present in the most mundane acts – between husband and wife, in sweeping floors or answering guests – and simultaneously extends to the cosmic order and the relationship between Heaven and humanity.
Confucius stresses that the Way is not remote or inaccessible. Even the “simple” or “unvirtuous” can grasp and practice it through everyday ethics – marital harmony, filial piety, loyalty, and trustworthiness. This reflects the Confucian principle that “the Way is not far from people” (Doctrine of the Mean, Ch. 13). Yet when this ordinary Way is extended to its ultimate horizon – participating in the generative processes of Heaven and Earth, harmonizing all nations, exhausting the principles of all things – even sages find limits. This does not diminish sages but affirms that the Way’s infinity transcends the finitude of any individual life.
The quotation from the Book of Odes (Book of Poetry) – “The hawk soars to the heavens; the fish leaps in the deep” – uses natural imagery to illustrate the Way’s omnipresence: from the highest sky to the deepest abyss, the vitality of the Way manifests everywhere. Zhu Xi, in his Commentary on the Doctrine of the Mean, remarks: “This describes how the substance and function of the Way fill Heaven and Earth and permeate past and present.” He explains that the Way is both essence (hidden) and function (vast) – two aspects of one reality.
Finally, “it begins with ordinary couples and, at its fullest, illuminates Heaven and Earth” outlines the Confucian path of cultivation: starting from the most immediate human relationships and daily practices, one progresses through sustained self-cultivation to ultimately share in the virtue of Heaven and Earth. This rejects both abstract metaphysical speculation divorced from life and utilitarian fixation on trivial affairs, embodying the Confucian wisdom of “sublime in its height, yet rooted in the Mean.”
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