Nie Nianmeng
Confucius said: "How sad! I see the way of Zhou, and You and Li hurt it. Why should I leave Lu? Lu's suburban sacrifice is not rite, and Zhou Gong is in decline! Qi's suburban sacrifice is Yu's, and Song's suburban sacrifice is Qi's. This is the emperor's duty. Therefore, the emperor sacrifices to heaven and earth, and the princes sacrifice to the gods and grain." Zhu and Ku dare not change the old customs, which is called Dahuan. The words of the Zhugu are hidden in the ancestral priests and the shamans. This is not rite, and this is called the seclusion of the state. The wine cups and the corpses of the monarch are not rite, and this is called usurping the monarch. The crowns, hats, and weapons are hidden in private homes. This is not rite, and this is called threatening the monarch. The officials are in their official positions, but the sacrificial utensils are not used, and the music is all prepared. This is not rite, and this is called disordering the state. Therefore, those who serve the duke are called ministers, and those who serve the family are called servants. During the three-year mourning period, those who are married to the new bride are not allowed to serve for a period of time. Wearing mourning clothes to enter the court and living with the family servants is not rite, and this is called the monarch and the ministers are in the same country. Therefore, the emperor has land to live with his descendants, the princes have countries to live with their descendants, and the officials have jade to live with their descendants. This is called the system. Therefore, when the emperor visits the princes, he must leave the ancestral court and not enter according to the rites. This is called the emperor breaking the law and disordering the rules. The princes enter the ministers' houses without visiting the illness or condolences. This is called the monarch and the ministers are joking. Therefore, ritual is the great power of the ruler. It is used to distinguish between the obvious and the subtle, to consult ghosts and gods, to examine the system, to distinguish between benevolence and righteousness, so as to govern the country and keep the ruler safe. Therefore, if the government is not right, the ruler's position will be in danger; if the ruler's position is in danger, the ministers will betray him and the minor officials will steal. If the punishment is strict and the customs are corrupt, the law will be inconsistent; if the law is inconsistent, the ritual will be out of order; if the ritual is out of order, the scholars will not serve him. If the punishment is strict and the customs are corrupt, the people will not return to him, which is called a flaw in the country. Therefore, the government is the way for the ruler to hide himself. Therefore, the government must be based on heaven, and the destiny is sent down from heaven. Descending from the gods to the community is called the earth, descending from the ancestral temple is called benevolence and righteousness, descending from the mountains and rivers is called the creation, and descending from the five sacrifices is called the system. This is the solidity of the sage's self-concealment. Therefore, the sage participates in heaven and earth and in ghosts and gods to govern the country. To let people live in what they should be is the order of ritual; to enjoy what they should enjoy is the governance of the people. Therefore, the sky creates the time and the earth creates wealth; the father of a man is born and the teacher teaches him: the four things, the ruler uses them correctly, so the ruler stands in a place where there is no fault. Therefore, the ruler is what he should know, not what he should know people. The ruler is what he should raise, not what he should raise people. The ruler is what he should serve, not what he should serve people. Therefore, if the ruler knows people, he will make mistakes; if he raises people, he will be insufficient; if he serves people, he will lose his position. Therefore, the people should govern themselves, raise the ruler to make themselves safe, and serve the ruler to make themselves famous. Therefore, the rites are well-developed and the divisions are determined. Everyone loves death and worries about life. Therefore, use people's knowledge to get rid of their deceit, use people's courage to get rid of their anger, and use people's kindness to get rid of their greed. Therefore, when the country is in trouble, the ruler's death for the country is called righteousness, and the death of the ministers for the ancestral temple is called change. Therefore, the sage who treats the world as one family and China as one person is not just intentional, but must know the situation, avoid the righteousness, understand the benefits, and understand the dangers, and then he can do it. What is human nature? The seven emotions of joy, anger, sorrow, fear, love, hate, and desire are acquired without learning. What is human righteousness? The ten emotions of fatherly kindness, filial piety of son, goodness of elder brother, obedience of younger brother, righteousness of husband, obedience of wife, kindness of elder brother, obedience of younger brother, benevolence of ruler, and loyalty of minister are called human righteousness. To be trustworthy and harmonious is called human benefit. To fight and kill is called human trouble. Therefore, the sage governs the seven emotions of man and cultivates the ten righteousness, to be trustworthy and harmonious, to respect courtesy and give way, and to get rid of fighting. How can we govern without propriety? Food, sex, and love are the greatest desires of man; death, poverty, and misery are the greatest evils of man. Therefore, desire and evil are the great ends of the heart. Man hides his heart and cannot be measured; beauty and ugliness are in his heart and cannot be seen. If we want to understand them all, how can we do without propriety? Therefore, man is the virtue of heaven and earth, the interaction of yin and yang, the meeting of ghosts and gods, and the elegance of the five elements. Therefore, the sky holds the sun and hangs the sun and stars; the earth holds the yin and penetrates the mountains and rivers. The five elements are spread in the four seasons, and the moon is born after harmony. Therefore, three and five are full, and three and five are empty. The movement of the five elements is to exhaust each other. The five elements, four seasons, and twelve months are the basis of each other; the five sounds, six rhythms, and twelve pipes are the palaces of each other; the five flavors, six harmonies, and twelve foods are the essence of each other; the five colors, six chapters, and twelve clothes are the essence of each other. Therefore, people are the heart of heaven and earth, the beginning of the five elements, and they are born by eating, taste, sound, and color. Therefore, when a sage sets an example, he must take heaven and earth as the basis, yin and yang as the beginning, the four seasons as the handle, the sun and stars as the record, the moon as the measure, ghosts and gods as the followers, the five elements as the essence, etiquette and righteousness as the tool, human feelings as the field, and the four spirits as the livestock. With heaven and earth as the basis, things can be lifted; with yin and yang as the ends, feelings can be seen; with the four seasons as the handle, stories can be used to persuade; with the sun and stars as the record, stories can be listed; with the moon as the measure, achievements have skills; with ghosts and gods as the followers, stories have rules; with the five elements as the essence, stories can be repeated; with rites and righteousness as the tools, stories have examinations; with human nature as the field, people think it is profound; with the four spirits as livestock, food and drink have rules.
