University of Virginia Library

CHAPTER XXVI.

The Knowledge of Truth (Chih-shih).

Whenever people in their discussions depart from truth and
do not bear out their propositions by evidence, their arguments
may be never so pleasing, and their reasons never so abundant, yet
nobody believes them. If we urge that Sages are not in possession
of superhuman powers or prescience, and that in this prescience
they do not possess a peculiar kind of knowledge, this is not a
frivolous assertion or futile talk, but the result of conclusions drawn
from the human faculties, and there are proofs and testimonies to
establish the truth. How shall we show it?

[Confucius asked Kung-Ming Chia about Kung-Shu Wên, saying,
"Is it true that your master speaks not, laughs not, and takes not?
Is this so?"[1316] —Kung-Ming Chia replied, "This has arisen from the
reporters going beyond the truth. My master speaks when it is
the time to speak, and so men do not get tired of his speaking.
He laughs when there is occasion to be joyful, and so men do not
get tired of his laughing. He takes when it is consistent with
righteousness to do so, and so men do not get tired of his taking."—
Confucius said, "Is it so with him?"[1317] Is it so with him?"][1318]

There are men on earth as selfless as Po Yi who would not
accept a straw from others, but none that would neither speak nor
laugh. Since his own heart did not tell Confucius this, that he
might have decided for one alternative, his heart wondering and
not believing the reports, he cannot have had a penetrating intellect
or seen things from afar, thus being able to determine the truth.
He had to ask Kung-Ming Chia, to know the matter. This is the
first proof that Confucius did not possess foresight.

Ch ên [Tse Ch`in asked Tse Kung saying, "When our master
comes to any country, he does not fail to learn all about its government.
Does he ask his information, or is it given to him?"—Tse

Kung said, "Our master is benign, upright, courteous, temperate,
and complaisant, and thus he gets his information."][1319]

Benignity, uprightness, courteousness, temperance, and complaisance
are tantamount to obsequiousness. Men are well disposed
to him who is obsequious to them, and being well disposed, they
will give him information. Thus Confucius obtained his information
about government from what people told him. This was neither
supernatural nor an independent knowledge.

Duke Ching of Ch`i inquired of Tse Kung whether his master
was a Worthy. "My master," rejoined Tse Kung, "is a Sage; why
should he merely be a Worthy?"[1320]

Duke Ching was not aware that Confucius was a Sage, and Tse Kung
corrected the term. Tse Ch`in neither knew whence Confucius derived
his information about government, and Tse Kung had to communicate
to him the true facts. Since he answered Duke Ching, "My master
is a Sage, why should he merely be a Worthy?," he also ought
to have given to Tse Ch`in the reply that he was superhuman and
endued with spontaneous knowledge, so that he needed not listen
to what others said. The reply of Tse Kung to Tse Ch`in is the
second proof that Sages have no foresight.

When Yen Yuan was cooking his food some dust fell into
his pot. If he had left it there his food would have been impure,
had he thrown it away he would have spilled the rice, therefore
he picked it out and ate the rice. Confucius, witnessing it from a
distance, was under the illusion that Yen Yuan ate stealthily.[1321] This
is the third evidence that Sages have no foresight.

Fierce highwaymen lie in ambush, leaning on their swords, and
ferocious tigers crouch in jungles, gnashing their teeth, in wait for
their prey. Those who know it do not venture to proceed, and
if somebody does not know it, he runs into the swords of the
fierce highway robbers, or falls into the teeth of ferocious tigers.
The people of K`uang[1322] surrounded Confucius.[1323] Had he foreseen it,

he ought to have taken another road in time, to avoid the danger.
But he did not foresee it, encountered it, and came to grief. This
surrounding of Confucius is the fourth proof that Sages have no
foresight.

[The Master was put in fear in K`uang, and Yen Yuan fell
behind. Confucius said, "I thought you had died."][1324]

If Confucius had been foreknowing he ought to have known
that Yen Yuan would certainly not have met with destruction, and
that the people of K`uang would not have wreaked their animosity
against him. It was not before Yen Yuan arrived that he knew
that he was not dead, for before he arrived he imagined that he
had died. This is the fifth proof that Sages have no foresight.

[Yang Huo[1325] wished to see Confucius, but Confucius did not wish
to see him. On this, he sent a present[1326] of a pig to Confucius, who,
having chosen a time when Yang Huo was not at home, went to
pay his respects. He met him, however, on the way.][1327]

Confucius did not wish to see him. The circumstance that,
when he went to pay him a visit, he chose the time when he
was not at home, shows that he did not wish to see him, but he
met him on the road. The meeting of Confucius with Yang Hu is
a sixth proof that Sages do not possess foresight.

[Ch`ang Chü and Chieh Ni were at work in the field together,
when Confucius passed by them, and sent Tse Lu to inquire for
the ford.][1328]

If Confucius knew the ford he ought not to have inquired for
it again. A critic might object that he merely wished to have a
look at the work done by the two recluses. However, being
prescient, Confucius must have known even this of himself and
required no inspection. If he did not know and had to ask, this
is the seventh evidence of his not possessing any foresight.

When the mother of Confucius had died, he did not know the
grave of his father, and therefore provisionally buried her on the
highway of Wu-fu.[1329] The people seeing it, thought that it was the
final burial, for a joint burial being impossible, and the rites for

the provisional one being performed with great care, they took
it for the final one. The mother of Man Fu of Tsou,[1330] a neighbour,
informed Confucius about the grave of his father. On this, he
buried his mother together with his father in Fang.[1331] The burial
place was in Fang. The fact that Confucius first buried her on a
highway is the eighth proof that Sages have no foresight.

Having buried his mother together with his father, [Confucius
returned, leaving the disciples behind. A great rain came on; and
when they rejoined him, he asked them what had made them so
late. "The earth slipped," they said, "from the grave at Fang."
They told him this thrice, without his giving them any answer.
He then wept freely, and said, "I have heard that the ancients
did not need to repair their graves."][1332]

Had Confucius been prescient he would have known the
collapse of the tomb in Fang beforehand, and, when his pupils
arrived he should have awaited them with tears, but he only
learned it after their arrival. That is the ninth evidence of a
Sage not possessing foresight.

[The Master, when he entered the grand temple, asked about
everything.][1333] He did not know, therefore he asked, to set an
example to mankind. Confucius had not yet entered the grand
temple; in the temple there was a great variety of sacrificial vessels
and, though a Sage, Confucius could not know them all. It has
been supposed that he had already seen them, and knew all about
them, and that he asked again, to set an example. Confucius says
that, being in doubt, one asks.[1334] Now, must he ask that is in
doubt, or must he who already knows the truth, ask again, with
the object of setting an example to others?

Confucius knew the Five Canons, and his disciples learned
them from him. He should have asked again about them, to set
an example to mankind; why did he directly impart them to his
pupils by word of mouth? Regarding the Five Canons with which
he was familiar, he did not ask again, but concerning the grand
temple with which he was well acquainted likewise, he inquired

again, to set an example to others. Wherefore did he not show
the same diligence in both cases? The visit of Confucius to the
grand temple affords the tenth proof that Sages have no foresight.

When a host[1335] invites a guest, food and drink are at the
disposal of the latter whenever he likes them, and he is lodged
as if he were in his own house. If, however, the guest has heard
that in the family of the host there are reprobate sons and grandsons
who prompt their parent to withdraw the dainty dishes and
keep back the choice food, so that there is nothing to eat or drink,
and to close his halls and shut his house to visitors, the guest, if
he is in his mind, on no account accepts an invitation, for he
knows that he would have no pleasure from it, he would go in
vain, and have nothing but annoyance, and expose himself to insult.
In case he goes he has no enjoyment, and returns annoyed and
insulted. He who does not know a family is not acquainted with
its real character. The real nature of men is difficult to know,
and it is not easy to foretell good or bad luck.

If Confucius had been prescient he would have been aware
that the feudatory lords were humbugged by malicious ministers,
and would never have employed him, and that all his efforts would
have been in vain, and only have brought disgrace upon him.
When the invitations and summonses arrived, he should have stayed
at home, and not have gone. A superior man does not do useless
things, nor venture upon undertakings calculated to bring him
dishonour. He would not travel about in response to invitations,
only to suffer the ignominy of having his foot-prints wiped out,
nor have wasted his admonitions on unworthy rulers, only to come
into danger of being cut off from his supplies.[1336] Accordingly Confucius
did not even know things quite near him.

It will perhaps be objected that Confucius himself knew quite
well that he would not find employment, but his holy heart could
not bear the idea that his doctrine should not be carried out, and
that the people would continue living in a state of abject misery.
Probably he wished to assist the princes, in order to carry out his
principles and save the people, wherefore he accepted the invitations
and travelled about, undaunted by shame and disgrace. He thought
of his doctrine and not of himself, therefore he did not hesitate
to brave all dangers; solicitous for the people and not for his
name, he did not care about the aspersions cast upon his character.

I say this is not true. [Confucius said, "I returned from Wei
to Lu, and then the Music was reformed, and the Songs and
Dithyrambs all found their proper places."][1337] That means to say
that Confucius himself knew the proper time. How did he know
it? Lu and Wei were the most virtuous states on earth. Since
Lu and Wei could not employ him, nobody in the world could
employ him, wherefore he retired and produced the Ch`un-ch`iu,
and revised the Shiking and the Shuking. From this return from
Wei to Lu we infer that Confucius himself was in the dark as to
the proper time for going and accepting an invitation.

As long as there were no signs or indications, the Sage did
not find out the truth, but when Wei and Lu declined his services,
he knew that the end had come, and when the people of Lu
caught a unicorn,[1338] he was convinced that all was over. His doctrine
had come to an end, and his career was stopped. These
signs being manifest, all the hopes cherished by his heart were
frustrated, and he retired to quiet meditation.

Restlessly wandering about, he was like a sick man who,
before he dies, prays and divines, with a view to curing his disease.
Before the signs of death appear, he still hopes to retain his life.
Thus Confucius, before seeing indications that all was over, obeyed
the calls, expecting to find employment. When the marks of death
appear, the diviners are dismissed, and the physicians[1339] sent home.
Confucius, then, resolutely grasped the pencil and revised the books.
His acceptance of the invitations and his wanderings are the eleventh
proof that Sages have no foresight.

Confucius said, ["The swimming animals can be caught with
a line and those running,[1340] be shot with an arrow. As regards
the dragon, I do not know, whether it can ride on the wind and
the clouds, and thus rise on high. To-day I saw Lao Tse. Should
he perhaps be like a dragon?"]

A Sage knows all creatures and their actions. Lao Tse and
the dragon are a human and another creature, and their doings
in the sky and on the earth are actions. Why did he not know

them? If Lao Tse was a spirit, a dragon is also a spirit, and a sage
likewise. All spirits obey the same law, and their spiritual fluids
are entwined. Why did he not know them? Confucius ignorance
about the dragon and Lao Tse is the twelfth proof that Sages' have
no foresight.

[Confucius said, "Filial indeed is Min Tse Ch`ien. Men have no
words of disparagement[1341] for his conduct in reference to his parents
and brothers."][1342]

Shun of Yü was a great sage, who hushed up the crimes of
his own flesh and blood, and so far still surpassed Min Tse Ch`ien.
Ku Sou and Hsiang[1343] bade Shun build a granary and excavate a
well, with the intention to bring about his death.[1344] Shun should
have seen the attempt made upon his life and, in time, have remonstrated
and averted it, or if he had no means to do so, he
should have made his escape, and not have carried out the orders.
If he disliked such a course, then why did he allow his father
and brother to become guilty of murder, so that still after thousands
of generations people hearing of such a father and brother
detested them? That Shun did not foreknow this is the thirteenth
proof that Sages have no foresight.

When Wu Wang was ill Chou Kung asked for Heaven's decree.
When the altars had been erected, the straws where consulted,
and the prayer was spoken, he was still in doubt whether Heaven
had granted his request or not, therefore he divined from three
tortoises, and all three gave a favourable reply.[1345] If Sages were
prescient, then Chou Kung ought to have known whether Heaven
granted his prayer, and it was not necessary still to divine by
means of three tortoises. But the Sage would not make a law of
his own view, wherefore he still prayed for a decree, which being
hidden cannot be seen, for the will of Heaven is hard to be known.
Consequently, he divined and compared the various omens. The
omens having brought a decision, his mind was settled, and he
acted accordingly. This is the fourteenth proof that Sages do not
possess foresight.

Yen Tse[1346] had arrived in Lu with a message of friendly inquiries.
One does not hurriedly walk up the hall, but Yen Tse did

it, and presenting a jewel, one does not kneel, but Yen Tse knelt.
The disciples wondering, asked Confucius about it, but Confucius
did not know it either and inquired of Yen Tse. When the latter
had explained the reason he understood it.[1347] This is the fifteenth
proof that Sages have no foresight.

[Ch`ên Chia asked Mencius saying, "What kind of man was
the duke of Chou?"—"A sage," was the reply.—"Is it the fact that
he appointed Kuan Shu to oversee Yin, and that Kuan Shu rebelled?"
—"It is."—"Did the duke of Chou know that he would rebel,
and purposely appoint him to that office, or did he not know?"
Mencius said, "He did not know."—"Then, though a sage, he
still fell into error?"—"The duke of Chou," answered Mencius, "was
the younger brother, Kuan Shu was his elder brother. Was not
the error of Chou Kung in accordance with what is right?"][1348]

Mencius is a man qualified to examine into a thing to the
very bottom. He says that the Duke of Chou administering the
affairs under his sway, according to his sagehood, did not know
that Kuan Shu was going to rebel. That is the sixteenth proof
that Sages have no foresight.

Confucius said, ["T`se did not receive Heaven's decree, but
his goods are increased by him, and his calculations are generally
correct."][1349] Confucius finds fault with Tse Kung for being too much
given to opulence. Observing the rising and falling of prices,
he succeeded, by his calculations, in hitting upon the right moment
for his speculations, and his wealth increased to such a degree,
that he was as rich as T`ao Chu.[1350] The prescience of a Sage bears
some resemblance to the computations and correct calculations of
Tse Kung. A Sage takes signs and omens to investigate the nature
of things, which he thus comprehends. Upon seeing extraordinary
phenomena, he gives them their proper names, and, by his extensive
learning, he knows them. He is an able thinker, never short of
ideas, with vast views and an excellent memory. From small indications
he draws his inferences, and considering the present, he
foresees, in his mind, a thousand years still to come. His knowledge
is like a vast ocean, so to say.

The glance of Confucius fell into every corner, noticing the
smallest minutiæ, his mind was penetrating, his talents and intellect

both most remarkable, his energy never flagging, and his eyes and
ears outvying those of other people in keenness. But he could not
look through obstacles, or know things unknowable to mankind.
If the Sage had been able to look through things, or perceive
them from the greatest distance, to hear through solid bodies, or
catch imperceptible sounds, or if he could talk to Heaven and
Earth and converse with ghosts and spirits, then he would know
everything in the heavens and on earth, and might well be regarded
as a spirit, endowed with foresight, and far superior to man.
But now his eyes and ears see and hear like those of other people,
and coming across something, or perceiving some object, he does
not behave himself otherwise. He barely surpasses worthies by
one degree; why then should he be held to be a spirit and totally
different? Sages are like Worthies, and the most excellent among
men are called Sages; consequently Sages and Worthies are merely
designations for a higher and a lower degree, but not names
indicating a total difference, as may be gathered from the following
story:—

Duke Huan of Ch`i,[1351] together with Kuan Chung, planned an
attack upon Chü.[1352] Before this plan was carried out, it was already
rumoured in that State. Duke Huan amazed, asked Kuan Chung
saying, "What is the reason that the scheme I just laid with you
of attacking Chü has already transpired in that State, before it is
carried out?"—"There must be a Sage in that State," said Kuan
Chung. After a short while, Tung-Kuo Ya arrived, and Kuan Chung
said, "This, no doubt, is he," and he caused him to be treated as
a guest and to be given the place of honour, all the others taking
their places according to their rank.

Kuan Chung said, "Is it you that spoke of an invasion of
Chü?"—"Yes," was the reply.—"I do not invade Chü," said Kuan
Chung, "wherefore do you speak of an invasion of Chü?"—"Your
servant," replied Tung-Kuo Ya, "has heard that a superior man is
great in forming plans, whereas small people are skilful in finding
them out. I have ventured to do so."—"I did not say," rejoined
Kuan Chung, "that I was going to attack Chü; why do you suppose
it?"—"I have heard," answered the other, "that a superior man has
three different airs:—buoyant joy and merriment, the air of bells
and drums, sorrow and stillness, the air of mourning, and anger
running through arms and legs, the warlike air. When you make

a wry face and do not open your mouth, you think of Chü, and
when you lift your arm and point with your finger, you have
Chü in view. Your servant begs leave to contend that the small
State disliked by all the princes can only be Chü, therefore I
said so."

Kuan Chung was a man with a splendid intellect, well fit for
nice distinctions and investigations. His statement that there must
be a Sage in the State, was perfectly correct, for there was one.
When Tung-Kuo Ya arrived he said that this, no doubt, was he
i. e., that Tung-Kuo Ya was a Sage. If Sages and Worthies were
two totally different classes, Kuan Chung knew that at that period
there were no men like the Twelve Sages, and he should have
said that there must be a Worthy in the State, instead of saying
a Sage. The plan being spoken about in the State before it was
made public, Kuan Chung supposed that there must be a Sage, that
means to say that a Sage is prescient. Upon seeing Tung-Kuo Ya,
he declared that this man must be he i. e., that a Worthy was a
Sage. Tung-Kuo Ya knew the plan, and in no wise differed from
a Sage.

A gentleman introduced Ch`un-Yü K`un[1353] to King Hui of Liang.[1354]
He saw him twice, but never uttered a syllable. The king was
surprised at it, and, by way of reproach, said to the gentleman,
"In praising Ch`un-Yü K`un,[1355] you said that he outstripped Kuan
Chung and Yen Ying, but when he saw me, I had nothing of him.
Am I not worthy to be spoken to?"—The gentleman informed
Ch`un-Yü K`un who replied, "It is true. When I first saw the
king, his mind was far away, and when I saw him a second time,
it was engrossed with sounds, wherefore I remained silent."—The
gentleman having apprized the king, the latter greatly astonished,
exclaimed, "Dear me! Ch`un-Yü K`un is a Sage indeed. When he
came the first time somebody had presented me with a dragon
horse,[1356] and I had not yet had time to look at it; at that moment
Ch`un-Yü K`un arrived. Afterwards, somebody had offered me a
song which I had not yet tried, when Ch`un-Yü K`un arrived.
Although I had dismissed my attendants, my heart was still occupied
with those things."

Thus Ch`un-Yü K`un saw that King Hui's mind was absent
or intent on sounds. Even the sagacity of T`ang and Yü could
not have gone farther. The mind is in the bosom, but hidden and
invisible, still Ch`un-Yü K`un did know it. If men like Ch`un-Yü
K`un be deemed Sages, then he must have been one; if his equals
be not regarded as Sages, then how does the knowledge of Sages
exceed that of Ch`un-Yü K`un respecting King Hui?

Those who from a person's looks draw inferences as to his
character, want some data on which to base their reasoning:—When
King Ling of Ch`u had a meeting with the other feudal lords,[1357] Tse
Ch`an of Chêng declared that Lu, Chu, Sung, and Wei[1358] would not
come. When the meeting took place the four States really did
not attend.

When Chao Yao was registrar in the seal department, Fang Yü
Kung, a native of Chao spoke to the registrar-general Chou Ch`ang
saying, "Your registrar, Chao Yao, will by and by succeed to your
office." In course of time Chao Yao really became registrar-general.

Tse Ch`an discovered the reason why the four States would
not attend the meeting, and Fang Yü Kung saw from outward appearances
that Chao Yao would be made registrar-general. By
searching the reason and observing appearances one may make
manifest the future, and thus comprehend it.

Kung-Sun Ch`ên[1359] of Lu, under the régime of Hsiao Wên Ti, sent
in a memorial to the effect that, the ruling element of the Han
being earth, its correlate, a yellow dragon, ought to become visible.
Subsequently a yellow dragon put in an appearance and became
the style of a reign.[1360] Consequently, Kung-Sun Ch`ên had foreseen
the appearance of the yellow dragon, and ascertained it by his
calculations.

The knowledge of Worthies and Sages requires research.
Both are possessed of the faculty of foresight, but to practice this
foresight, they have recourse to their devices, and use their computations,
or they are excellent thinkers and shrewd wits. Sages
are not endowed with spontaneous knowledge, and miracles and

prodigies belong to quite another sphere than that of Sages and
Worthies. Their knowledge does not exceed all bounds, and they
use their mental faculties in a similar manner; nor does any
miracle take place when they are in a perplexity. Wherefore their
names may be interchanged, for Worthies and Sages are designations
implying excellency, virtue, wisdom, and genius. Spirits are
obscure, diffuse, and formless entities. The substances being different,
the natures cannot accord, and the substances being equal, their
manifestations cannot be inconsistent. The names of Sages and spirits
are not the same, therefore Sages are not looked upon as spirits,
nor are spirits held to be sage.

Tung-Kuo Ya, by his acuteness, knew the affairs of the State,
and Tse Kung, by his shrewdness, acquired a fortune and made
great profits. The foresight of a Sage is that of Tung-Kuo Ya and
Tse Kung. It being equal to that of these two men, Tung-Kuo Ya,
Tse Kung, and the like must be Sages as well. Accordingly, the
nature of Worthies and Sages is the same, only their designations
differ, but that does not disclose any divergence between their
talents or any discrepance between their knowledge. [A high officer
asked Tse Kung, saying, "May we not say that your Master is a
Sage? How various is his ability!"—Tse Kung said, "Of course[1361]
Heaven has endowed him unlimitedly. He is about a Sage. And,
moreover, his ability is various."][1362]

"About" is as much as "will be,"[1363] and signifies that he was
not yet a Sage, but would be one, i. e., that sagehood was not yet
reached by Confucius. A Sage is like a Worthy:—they regulate
their lives and polish their conduct. Before his conduct is well
ordered, it is said of a person that he will be a Worthy. In this
case it is stated that Confucius is going to become a Sage, sagehood
being in his reach.

[Confucius said, "At fifteen, I had my mind bent on learning.
At thirty, I stood firm, at forty, I was not tempted astray, at fifty,
I knew the decrees of Heaven, and at sixty, my ear was an obedient
organ.][1364]

In the interval between the time when he knew the decrees
of Heaven and the time when his ear was an obedient organ, his
learning was completed, and his wisdom expanded, certain signs

of complete sagehood. To the period before the age of fifty and
sixty was reached, when he was still ignorant of the decrees of
Heaven, until the ear became an obedient organ, the term "will
be" is applicable. The time when Tse Kung replied to the high
officer, was most likely the period of thirty and forty years.

King Chao of Wei[1365] questioned T`ien Ch`ü saying, "When I
was in the eastern palace, I heard you express the opinion that to
be a Sage is easy. Is that so?"—"It is," rejoined T`ien Ch`ü, "what
I have learned."—"Then," quoth the king, "are you a Sage?"—
T`ien Ch`ü replied, "To know a Sage, before his having won distinction,
is like Yao's knowing Shun; to know him only after he has
made his mark, is like the market people knowing Shun. Now, I
have not yet won laurels, and Your Majesty asks me whether I
am a Sage. May I venture the counter-question whether Your
Majesty perhaps is a Yao?"

Sagehood may be learned, therefore T`ien Ch`ü declared it to
be easy. If it were entirely beyond human power, and a spontaneous
faculty, received with the original nature, how could it be
learned then or acquired? T`ien Ch`ü averred that it was easy; if
sagehood could not be acquired, then T`ien Ch`ü could not have made
the statement that is was easy. His reply to the king that it was
what he had learned, would seem to be consistent with truth.[1366]
Worthies can learn sagehood, and only their efforts made to that
end may differ. Consequently the benevolent as well as the wise
are entitled to the name of Worthy or Sage.

[Tse Kung asked Confucius saying, "Master, are you a Sage?"—
Confucius answered him, "A Sage is what I cannot rise to. I learn
without satiety, and teach without being tired." Tse Kung said,
"You learn without satiety:—that shows your wisdom. You teach
without being tried:—that shows your benevolence. Benevolent
and wise:—Master, you are a Sage."][1367]

It may be seen from this that the benevolent and the wise
may be called Sages. [Mencius said, "Tse Hsia, Tse Yu, and Tse
Chang had each one member of the Sage. Jan Niu, Min Tse Ch`ien,[1368]
and Yen Yuan had all the members, but in small proportions.][1369] All

these six disciples, at their time, possessed the talents of the Sage,
but either these talents were very refined, but not complete, or they
were complete, but not very brilliant. Nevertheless, they were all called
Sages, sagehood, therefore, is attainable by exertion.

Mencius also said, ["Not to serve a prince whom he did not
esteem, nor command a people whom he did not approve; in a
time of good government to take office, and on the occurrence of
confusion to retire:—this was the way of Po Yi. To say:—"Is
he whom I serve not my master, and are those whom I command
not my people?," in a time of good government to take office, and
when disorder prevailed, also to take office:—that was the way
of Yi Yin. When it was proper to go into office, to go into it;
when it was proper to keep retired from office,[1370] then to keep retired
from it; when it was proper to continue in it long, then to continue
in it long; when it was proper to withdraw from it quickly,
then to withdraw quickly:—that was the way of Confucius. These
were all Sages of antiquity."][1371]

And again he said, ["A Sage is the teacher of a hundred
generations:—this is true of Po Yi and Hui of Liu-hsia. Therefore
when men now hear the character of Po Yi, the corrupt become
pure, and the weak acquire determination. When they hear the
character of Hui of Liu-hsia, the mean become generous, and the
niggardly become liberal. Those two made themselves distinguished
a hundred generations ago, and after a hundred generations, those
who hear of them, are all aroused in this manner. Could such
efforts be produced by them, if they had not been Sages? And how
much more did they affect those who were in contiguity with them,
and felt their inspiring influence!"][1372]

Yi Yin, Po Yi, and Hui of Liu-hsia did not equal Confucius,
yet Mencius called them all Sages. Worthies and Sages fall
under the same category, and for that reason may be denoted by
the same name. Tsai Yü[1373] said, "In my opinion the Master is a
greater Worthy then Yao and Shun by far." Confucius being a Sage,
he ought to have said "a greater Sage than Yao and Shun" in lieu
of saying a greater Worthy. Worthies and Sages are about the
same, wherefore their names are promiscuously used.