23
Now if the people on the one hand do not lack food, and on
the other[1]
do not suffer from cold, they can be taught and
governed through li and i. The Ode says,[2]
We offer to our ancestors, male and female,
And provide for all ritual.
When all ritual (
li) is provided for, all wishes are realized; when
all wishes are realized,
yin and
yang are in harmony. When
yin
and
yang are in harmony, hot and cold are equalized; when hot
and cold are equalized, the three radiances
[3]
are clear; when the
three radiances are clear, wind and rain are seasonable; when
wind and rain are seasonable, all living things are at peace. Under
such circumstances the Way of Heaven is operative. In this way
[a ruler] may know the empire without going outside his door,
and without looking out of his window he can view the Way of
Heaven. The Ode says,
"Here is a wise man;—
His views and words reach to a hundred li."[4]
"Oh! Happy was the king's leadership;
He followed the principle of nourishment in times of
darkness."[5]
It says he nourished them even in the darkness.