The Analects – Chapter 194 (8.8). The three stages of cultivation: Confucius on poetry, ritual, and music

8.8
The Master said,”Let a man be first incited by the Songs, then given a firm footing by the study of ritual, and finally perfected by music.”

子曰：「興於詩，立於禮。成於樂。」

Notes

This statement from the Analects concisely outlines Confucius’ classical path of personal cultivation: from emotional awakening, to behavioral discipline, to moral completion.

• Poetry (especially the Classic of Poetry, or Book of Poetry) awakens natural emotions, cultivates moral consciousness, and inspires willpower.
• Ritual norms regulate personal behavior within social frameworks.
• The essence of music is harmony – like rhythmic coordination and melodic resonance – it unites emotion with reason, external actions with internal values, ultimately achieving personal sublimation and moral fulfillment.

“The Book of Songs contains three hundred poems, but in a single phrase, their essence can be summed up: ‘There is no depravity in their thoughts.’”(Analects 2.2)

It clarifies that the core value of the Book of Songs lies in “no depravity in thoughts”, which provides the content foundation for the idea of “arousing one’s mind with poetry”. It emphasizes the role of poetic education in rectifying one’s temperament and emotions, which is highly consistent with the emotional edification function of “arousing one’s mind with poetry”.

“Without understanding ritual propriety, one cannot establish oneself in the world.”(Analects 20.3)

It directly points out that ritual propriety is the foundation of establishing oneself, which is fully consistent with the core concept of “establishing oneself with ritual”. It underscores the fundamental role of ritual in an individual’s social existence.