<Previous Section>
<Next Section>

3. 皋陶謨

曰若稽古皋陶,曰:「允迪厥德,謨明弼諧。」禹曰:「俞,如何?」皋陶曰:「都!慎厥身修,思永。惇敘九族,庶明勵翼,邇可遠、在茲。」禹拜昌言曰:「俞。」皋陶曰:「都!在知人,在安民。」禹曰:「吁!咸若時,惟帝其難之。知人則哲,能官人;安民則惠,黎民懷之。能哲而惠,何憂乎驩兜?何遷乎有苗?何畏乎巧言令色孔壬?」

皋陶曰:「都!亦行有九德;亦言其人有德,乃言曰:載采采。」禹曰:「何?」皋陶曰:「寬而栗,柔而立,愿而恭,亂而敬,擾而毅,直而溫,簡而廉,剛而塞,強而義;彰厥有常,吉哉。日宣三德,夙夜浚明有家;日嚴祗敬六德,亮采有邦。翕受敷施,九德咸事;俊乂在官,百僚師師,百工惟時。撫于五辰,庶績其凝。無教逸欲有邦。兢兢業業,一日二日萬幾。無曠庶官,天工人其代之。

天敘有典,敕我五典五惇哉;天秩有禮,自我五禮有庸哉。同寅協恭和衷哉。天命有德,五服五章哉;天討有罪,五刑五用哉。政事懋哉懋哉。天聰明,自我民聰明;天明畏,自我民明威。達于上下,敬哉有土!」

皋陶曰:「朕言惠,可厎行。」禹曰:「俞,乃言厎可績。」皋陶曰:「予未有知,思曰贊贊襄哉。」

BOOK III. THE COUNSELS OF KÂO-YÂO.

1

Examining into antiquity, (we find that) Kâo yâo said, 'If (the sovereign) sincerely pursues the course of his virtue, the counsels (offered to him) will be intelligent, and the aids (of admonition that he receives) will be harmonious.' Yü said, 'Yes, but explain yourself.' Kâo-yâo said, 'Oh! let him be careful about his personal cultivation, with thoughts that are far-reaching, and thus he will produce a generous kindness and nice observance of distinctions among the nine branches of his kindred. All the intelligent (also) will exert themselves in his service; and in this way from what is near he will reach to what is distant.' Yü did homage to the excellent words, and said, 'Yes.' Kâo-yâo continued, 'Oh! it lies in knowing men, and giving repose to the people.' Yü said, 'Alas! to attain to both these things might well be a difficulty even to the Tî. When (the sovereign) knows men, he is wise, and can put every one into the office for which he is fit. When he gives repose to the people, his kindness is felt, and the black-haired race cherish him in their hearts. When he can be (thus) wise and kind, what occasion will he have for anxiety about a Hwan-tâu? what to be removing a lord of Miâo? what to fear any one of fair words, insinuating appearance, and great artfulness?'

Kâo-yâo said, 'Oh! there are in all nine virtues to be discovered in conduct, and when we say that a man possesses (any) virtue, that is as much as to say he does such and such things.' Yü asked, 'What (are the nine virtues)?' Kâo-yâo replied, 'Affability combined with dignity; mildness combined with firmness; bluntness combined with respectfulness; aptness for government combined with reverent caution; docility combined with boldness; straightforwardness combined with gentleness; an easy negligence combined with discrimination; boldness combined with sincerity; and valour combined with righteousness. (When these qualities are) displayed, and that continuously, have we not the good (officer)? When there is a daily display of three (of these) virtues, their possessor could early and late regulate and brighten the clan (of which he was made chief). When there is a daily severe and reverent cultivation of six of them, their possessor could brilliantly conduct the affairs of the state (with which he was invested). When (such men) are all received and advanced, the possessors of those nine virtues will be employed in (the public) service. The men of a thousand and men of a hundred will be in their offices; the various ministers will emulate one another; all the officers will accomplish their duties at the proper times, observant of the five seasons (as the several elements predominate in them),--and thus their various duties will be fully accomplished. Let not (the Son of Heaven) set to the holders of states the example of indolence or dissoluteness. Let him be wary and fearful, (remembering that) in one day or two days there may occur ten thousand springs of things. Let him not have his various officers cumberers of their places. The work is Heaven's; men must act for it!'*

'From Heaven are the (social) relationships with their several duties; we are charged with (the enforcement of) those five duties;--and lo! we have the five courses of honourable conduct 2. From Heaven are the (social) distinctions with their several ceremonies; from us come the observances of those five ceremonies;--and lo! theu appear in regular practice 3. When (sovereign and ministers show) a common reverence and united respect for these, lo! the moral nature (of the people) is made harmonious. Heaven graciously distinguishes the virtuous;--are there not the five habiliments, five decorations of them 4? Heaven punishes the guilty;--are there not the five punishments, to be severally used for that purpose? The business of government!--ought we not to be earnest in it? ought we not to be earnest in it? * 'Heaven hears and sees as our people hear and see; Heaven brightly approves and displays its terrors as our people brightly approve and would awe;--such connexion is there between the upper and lower (worlds). How reverent ought the masters of territories to be!'*

Kâo-yâo said, 'My words are in accordance with reason, and may be put in practice.' Yü said, 'Yes, your words may be put in practice, and crowned with success.' Kâo-yâo added, '(As to that) I do not know, but I wish daily to be helpful. May (the government) be perfected!'

Notes

1. KÂO-YÂO was Minister of Crime to Shun, and is still celebrated in China as the model for all administrators of justice. There are few or no reliable details of his history. Sze-ma Khien says that Yü on his accession to the throne, made Kâo-yâo his chief minister, with the view of his ultimately succeeding him, but that the design was frustrated by Kâo-yâo's death. But if there had been such a tradition in the time of Mencius, he would probably have mentioned it, when defending Yü from the charge of being inferior to Yâo and Shun, who resigned the throne to the worthiest, whereas he transmitted it to his son. Kâo-yâo's surname was Yen, but an end was made of his representatives, when the principality belonging to them was extinguished in the dynasty of Kâu by the ambitious state of Khû. There is still a family in China with the surname Kâo, claiming to be descended from this ancient worthy; but Kâo and Yâo are to be taken together in the Shû as his name.The 'Counsels' in the Book do not appear as addressed directly to Shun, but are found in a conversation between Yü and Kâo-yâo, the latter being the chief speaker. The whole may be divided into four chapters:--the first, enunciating the principle that in government the great thing is for the ruler to pursue the course of his virtue, which will be seen in his knowledge and choice of men for office, thereby securing the repose of the people; the second, illustrating how men may be known; the third, treating of the repose of the people; in the fourth, the speaker asserts the reasonableness of his sentiments, and humbly expresses his own desire to be helpful to the sovereign.

2. The five duties are those belonging to the five relationships, which are the constituents of society;--those between husband and wife, father and son, ruler and subject, elder brother and younger, friend and friend.

3. The five ceremonies are here those belonging to the distinctions of rank in connexion with the five constituent relations of society.

4. See in next Book, ch. I.

<Previous Section>
<Next Section>
IATHPublished by The Institute for Advanced Technology in the Humanities, © Copyright 2003 by Anne Kinney and the University of Virginia