之審固人 人思也道誠身 執也 而誠也 也乎 弗篤 之弗能弗措也有弗 誠身道 不之不 身有道不明乎善不 容者誠明 弗 之博揭 中而人者乎 有學 明學 學善 道中之天 弗學辨之而聖不道 thoughts in upon himself, finds a want of sincerity, he will not be obedient to his parents. There is a way to the attainment of sincerity in one's-self;-if a man do not understand what is good, he will not attain sincerity in himself. 18. 66 Sincerity is the way of Heaven. The attainment of sincerity is the way of men. He who possesses sincerity, is he who, without an effort, hits what is right, and apprehends, without the exercise of thought; he is the sage who naturally and easily embodies the right way. He who attains to sincerity, is he who chooses what is good, and firmly holds it fast. 19. "To this attainment there are requisite the extensive study of what is good, accurate inquiry about it, careful reflection on it, the clear discrimination of it, and the earnest practice of it. 20. “The superior man, while there is any thing he has not studied, or while in what he has studied there is any thing he cannot understand, will not intermit his labour. While there is any thing creto’This is not quite correct. For誠者| which Maou says: :一此猶中庸之修道 is in the concrete, as much as the other, and is 以為道者也,成乎人也;‘this is 者is the quality possessed absolutely. 誠 之者 is the same acquired. The way of Hea tion from man But this takes the second and said, below, to be characteristic of the sage. like the cultivation of the path in the Mean, considered to be THE PATH, having its complethird utterances in the Work as independent sentiments, which they certainly are not. I do not see my way to rest in any but the old interpretation, extravagant as it is.-At this point, the chapter in the 家語 ceases to be the same ven,'—this, acc. to Ying-tă,='the way which 中庸之率性以爲道者也本 6 ture in the Mean, considered to be THE PATH, having its root in Heaven.' We might acquiesce in this, but for the opposition of 人之道, on with that before us, and diverges to another subject. 19. There are here described the dif ferent processes which lead to the attainment of sincerity. The gloss in the says that 'the five all refer to the what is good in the last ch., the five universal duties, and the nine standard rules being included therein.' Rather it seems 强矣之能 雖愚必明雖柔必 自誠明謂之性自 篤措有思 也弗思 果之措 措有辨 之 問問之弗知弗措也 此十人 必道能一行弗 he has not inquired about, or any thing in what he has inquired about which he does not know, he will not intermit his labour. While there is any thing which he has not reflected on, or any thing in what he has reflected on which he does not apprehend, he will not intermit his labour. While there is any thing which he has not discriminated, or his discrimination is not clear, he will not intermit his labour. If there be any thing which he has not practised, or his practice fails in earnestness, he will not intermit his labour. If another man succeed by one effort, he will use a hundred efforts. If another man succeed by ten efforts, he will use a thousand. 21. “Let a man proceed in this way, and, though dull, he will surely become intelligent; though weak, he will surely become strong.' CHAPTER XXI. When we have intelligence resulting from sin cerity, this condition is to be ascribed to nature; when we have sincerity resulting from intelligence, this condition is to be ascribed to me, that the Z, acc. to the idiom pointed out several times in the Analects, simply intensifies the meaning of the diff. verbs, whose regimen it is. 20. Here we have the determination which is necessary in the prosecution of the above processes, and par. 21 states the result of it. Choo He makes a pause at the end of the first clause in each part of the par., and interprets thus : If he do not study, well. But if he do, he will not give over till he understands what he studies,' and so on. But it seems more natural to carry the supposition in ·over the whole of every part, as in the translation, which moreover substantially agrees with Ying-ta's interpretation. Here terminates the third part of the Work. It was to illustrate, as Choo He told us, how the path of the Mean cannot be left.' The author seems to have kept this point before him in chapters xiii-xvi., but the next three are devoted to the one subject of filial piety, and the 20th, to the general subject of government. Some things are said worthy of being remembered, and others which require a careful sifting; but, on the whole, we do not find ourselves advanced in an understanding of the argument of the Work. 21. THE RECIPROCAL CONNECTION OF SINCERITY AND INTELLIGENCE. With this chap. commences the fourth part of the Work, which, as Choo observes in his concluding note, is an expansion of the 18th par. of the prec, chapter. It is, in a great measure, a glorification of the sage, finally resting in the person of Confucius, but the high character of the sage, it is maintained, is not unattainable by others. He real izes the ideal of humanity, but by his example and lessons, the same ideal is brought within humanity, the perfect character belonging to the reach of many, perhaps of all. The ideal of the sage, which ranks him on a level with Hes 罽唯天下至誠爲能 矣明 之以二言 道思 章 人 覆皆 推子此之 明思以 下 明誠謂之教誡則明 思承上章夫子天 右第二十一章子 章言十五天 矣。教 肥 to instruction. But given the sincerity, and there shall be the intelligence; given the intelligence, and there shall be the sincerity. The above is the twenty-first chapter. Tsze-sze takes up in it, and discourses from, the subjects of "the way of Heaven” and “the way of men," mentioned in the preceding chapter. The twelve chapters that follow are all from Tsze-sze, repeating and illustrating the meaning of this one. CHAPTER XXII. It is only he who is possessed of the most complete sincerity that can exist under heaven, who can give its full ven,−is indicated by 誡, and we have no sin- | sage. Men, not naturally sages, may, by culgle term in English, which can be considered tivating the intelligence of what is good, raise as the complete equivalent of that character. themselves to this elevation. and carry The Chinese themselves had great difficulty in us back to the first chapter, but the terms arriving at that definition of it which is now have a different force, and the longer I dwell generally acquiesced in. In the四書通(quo meaning. Under the Sung dynasty, first came upon it, the more am I satisfied with Choo He's ted in the 匯參 中庸 xvI. 5), we are told pronouncement in his 語類 that 性 is here that the Han scholars were all ignorant of its 性之, possessing from nature,' and 教=學 李邦值 who defined it by 不欺, free 之‘learning it,' and therefore I have transdom from all deception. After him, however, he makes a difference in the conneclated 謂之 by is to be ascribed to. When, said that it meant, ceaselessness. Then, tion between the parts of the two clauses one of the Ching called it 無妄, freedom 則明明則誠, and explains 誠 from all moral error; and finally, Choo He added to this the positive element of 眞實, truth and 則無不明明則可以至誠 sin reality, on which the definition of was complete.' Remusat calls it-la perfection, and 'la perfection morale.' Intorcetta and his friends call it vera solidaque perfectio. Simplicity or singleness of soul seems to be what is chiefly intended by the term;-the disposition to, and capacity o, what is good, without any deteriorating element, with no defect of intelligence, or intromiss o1 of selfish thoughts. This belongs to Heaven, to Heaven and Earth, and to the Icerity is invariably intelligent, and intelligence may arrive at sincerity,' this is not dealing fairly with his text. Here, at the outset. I may observe that, in this portion of the Work, there are specially the three following dogmas, which are more than ques tionable:-1st, That there are some men-sages -naturally in a state of moral perfection; 2d, That the same moral perfection is attainable by others, in whom its development is impeded by their material organization, and the influence of 以地化可能則 性、性、盡 育以盡能能 天化可贊物盡盡能 地育以天之物人盡能 參則贊 贊地 性之之人盡 矣。可天之則性性之其 development to his nature. Able to give its full development to his own nature, he can do the same to the nature of other men. Able to give its full development to the nature of other men, he can give their full development to the natures of animals and things. Able to give their full development to the natures of creatures and things, he can assist the transforming and nourishing powers of Heaven and Earth. Able to assist the transforming and nourishing powers of Heaven and Earth, he may with Heaven and Earth form a ternion. external things; and 3d, That the understanding of what is good will certainly lead to such moral perfection. 22. THE RESULTS OF SINCERITY; AND HOW THE POSSESSOR OF IT FORMS A TERNION WITH HEAVEN AND EARTH. On 天下至誠, Choo He says that it denotes the reality of the virtue of the sage, to which there is nothing in the world that can be added.' This is correct, and if we were to render-'It is only the most sincere man under heaven,' the translation would be wrong. 盡 means simply ‘to exhaust,' but, by what processes and in what way, the character tells us nothing about. The ‘giving full develop- as a man's.' Maou himself illustrates the 'exhausting the nature of things,' by reference to the Shoo-king IV. iii. 2, where we are told that under the first sovereigns of the Hea dynasty, ‘the mountains and rivers, all enjoyed tranquil. lity, and the birds and beasts, the fishes and tortoises, all realized the happiness of their nature.' It is thus that the sage 'assists Heaven and Earth.) Kang-shing, indeed, explains this by saying: The sage, receiving Heaven's appointment to the imperial throne, extends every where a happy tranquillity.' Evidently there is a reference in the language to the mystical paragraph in the 1st chapter 致中 和天地位焉,萬物育焉Hear ven and Earth' take the place here of the single term Heaven,' in ch. xx. par. 18. On this Ying-ta observes :-It is said above, sincerity is the way of Heaven, and here mention is made also of Earth. The reason is, that the reference above, was to the principle of sincerity in its spiritual and mysterious origin, and thence the expression simple,-The way of Heaven; but here we have the transformation and nourishing seen in the production of things, and hence Earth is associated with Heaven' This is not very intelligible, but it is to bring out the idea of a ternion, that the great, supreme, ruling, Power is thus dualized. is ‘a file of three,' and I employ 'ternion,' to express the idea, just as we use 'quaternion,' for a file of four. What is it but blasphemy, thus to file man with the supreme Power? 體孽祥知 為變 為變則誠 禍見國國至能則 則明誠其 化。化明則: 將將將之 至龜 道 善動必必可 必乎有有以 先四妖禛前 則形致 天動形曲 下動則曲 至則著能 誠變著有 CHAPTER XXIII. Next to the above is he who cultivates to the utmost the shoots of goodness in him. From those he can attain to the possession of sincerity. This sincerity becomes apparent. From being apparent, it becomes manifest. From being manifest, it becomes brilliant. Brilliant, it affects others. Affecting others, they are changed by it. Changed by it, they are transformed. It is only he who is possessed of the most complete sincerity that can exist under heaven, who can transformn. CHAPTER XXIV. It is characteristic of the most entire sincerity to be able to foreknow. When a nation or family is about to flourish, there are sure to be happy omens; and when it is about to perish, there are sure to be unlucky omens. Such events are seen in the milfoil and tortoise, and affect the movements of the four limbs. 23. THE WAY OF MAN;–THE DEVELOPMENT OF PERFECT SINCERITY IN THOSE NOT NATURAL LY POSSESSED OF IT. 其次,‘the next,’or would show itself, and it will travel round the stone, and come out crookedly at its side.' So it is with the good nature, whose free development is repressed. It shows itself in shoots, but if (his next,' referring to the 自誠明者, they be cultivated and improved, a moral con dition and influence may be attained, equal to that of the sage. 24. THAT ENTIRE SINCERITY CAN FOREKNOW. 至誠之道 is the quality in the abstract, while at the end, is the entirely sincere individual,—the sage, by nature, or by attain to Ana. VII. viii, 舉一隅不以三隅| ment. 禎祥, lucky omens.' In the dict 反 as a sentiment analogous to the one in 致祥 is used to define 禎祥 may be used It also of inauspicious omens, but here it cannot embrace such. Distinguishing between the two terms, Ying-ta says that unusual appearances 曲:There is difficulty about the term. properly means 'crooked,' and with a bad application, like偏, often signifies 'deflection from what is straight and right.' Yet it cannot have a bad meaning here, for if it have, the phrase, of things existing in a country are , and ap pearances of things new are 禎妖孽 are 致曲:will be, in the connection, unintelligi- | .unlucky omens,' the former being spoken of ble. One writer uses this comparison : Put a stone on a bamboo shoot, or where the shoot 'prodigies of plants, and of strangely dressed boys singing ballads,' and the latter of prodi |