《為政》 Passage 2.8

Zixia, a disciple of Confucius

• 子 prefix of a courtesy name, as in 子路 and 子貢; not the title Master
• 夏 name-forming character in Zixia; literally 'summer', unused here

to ask, inquire about

filial piety, devoted reverence and care for one's parents

the Master said

• 子 honorific title 'Master' (referring to Confucius)
• 曰 said, spoke (introduces a direct quotation)

keeping a genuinely reverent, pleasant countenance is the hard part

• 色 facial expression, countenance, demeanor
• 難 difficult, hard to do or maintain

A famously contested pair. 朱熹 takes 色 as the child's own expression in serving the parents (事親之際，惟色為難), the reading all eight translators follow; 包咸 in 何晏's 集解 takes it as the parents' countenance, which the child must read and comply with (承順父母顏色乃為難).

there is, when there is (existential)

a task, matter, work to be done

the young, junior members of the family

• 弟 younger brother; here, a junior member of the family
• 子 child, son; here, a junior member of the family

Here 弟子 denotes junior members of the household (lit. younger brother, son), not disciples in the later sense — though Slingerland renders it as 'disciples.'

to undertake, take on, bear

possessive pronoun: its, their (referring back to the task)

toil, laborious effort, burden of work

there is, when there is (existential)

wine and food, a meal

• 酒 wine, alcoholic drink
• 食 food, a meal

elders, senior members of the family

• 先 before, first; here, denoting a senior, elder person
• 生 born, living; here, denoting an elder, senior person

Here 先生 denotes senior members of the household (lit. one born before), not 'teacher' or 'Mr.' in the later sense.

to be served, given precedence in eating

rhetorical question frame: how could this alone be considered...?

• 曾 rhetorical intensifier: how could it be that, merely
• 乎 interrogative final particle

曾 intensifies the rhetorical doubt ('how could merely...') while 乎 marks the question; together they cast doubt that outward service alone satisfies filial piety.

demonstrative pronoun: this, this state of affairs

to regard as, consider to be, count as

• 以 to take as, regard as; by means of, using
• 為 to be, to count as, to be regarded as

filial, reverently devoted to one's parents