An anonymous Wei hermit carrying a straw basket hears Confucius playing stone chimes. He detects Confucius’ worldly frustration and advises flexible withdrawal via a poetic metaphor. Confucius acknowledges the resolute Daoist wisdom of going with natural tides.
Gongsun Chou cites Gaozi’s claim that Xiao Bian, full of resentment, is a petty man’s poem. Mencius refutes this: its grief springs from deep familial love. He balances filial emotion, noting resentment fits grave parental faults yet not trivial ones.
All people crave honor, yet genuine nobility lies in inner morality rather than worldly status granted by nobles like Zhao Meng, who can revoke such glory. Fully fulfilled with benevolence and righteousness, one transcends material vanity and external praise.
Qu Yuan (c. 340–278 BCE) was a statesman and poet of the Warring States period, hailing from the state of Chu. His given name was Ping, and his courtesy name was Yuan. Born into the Chu aristocracy, he initially enjoyed the deep trust of King Huai of Chu and held key offices such as…
The Master said, “If a person can recite all three hundred poems of the Classic of Poetry, yet when entrusted with government affairs cannot manage them effectively, and when sent as an envoy to foreign states cannot respond independently—what use is all that learning, no matter how extensive?”
Zi Zhang asked how to cultivate virtue and discern confusion. The Master said, “Make loyalty and trustworthiness your foundation, and always align yourself with righteousness—this is how you elevate virtue. As for confusion: when you love someone, you wish him to live; when you hate him, you wish him to die. Now wanting him…
Nan Rong repeatedly recited the lines from the Book of Odes: “A flaw in a white jade tablet can still be polished away; but a flaw in one’s speech can never be undone.” Because of this, Confucius gave his elder brother’s daughter to Nan Rong in marriage.
Confucius said, “After I returned from Wei to Lu, I put the music in order, so that the ‘Ya’ and ‘Song’ sections each found their proper place.”