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Zigong asked, “Is there one word that can be practiced for a lifetime?” The Master said, “Perhaps it is ‘shu’ (reciprocity)! Do not impose on others what you yourself do not desire.”
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The Master asked Zigong, “Ci, do you think I am someone who has acquired much knowledge and simply remembered it all?”Zigong replied, “Yes – aren’t you?”The Master said, “No. I hold to one principle that unifies everything.”
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The Master sighed, “No one truly understands me!”Zigong asked, “Why is it that no one understands you?”The Master replied, “I do not blame Heaven, nor do I resent others. I study what is below and thereby penetrate what is above. Perhaps only Heaven truly understands me!”
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Zigong was fond of criticizing others. The Master said, “Ci (Zigong), are you already so virtuous? As for me, I have no time for that.”
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The Master said, “There are three qualities of the noble person’s Way, none of which I have been able to attain: the benevolent are free from anxiety, the wise are free from perplexity, and the courageous are free from fear.”Zigong replied, “This is precisely a description of yourself, Master!”
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Zigong asked about friendship. The Master said, “Give loyal advice and guide gently; if he does not accept it, stop—do not humiliate yourself.”
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Confucius, ancient China’s greatest philosopher, shared profound bonds with his students, among whom Yan Hui, Zilu, and Zigong stood out as his most cherished disciples. Their stories, recorded in The Analects, reveal Confucius’ ideals of virtue, loyalty, and wisdom.
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Ji Zicheng said, “A noble person needs only inner substance—why bother with outward refinement?”Zigong replied, “What a pity, sir, that you speak this way of the noble person! Once words are spoken, even a team of four horses cannot overtake them. Refinement is as essential as substance, and substance is as essential as refinement.…