Book 3: 《八佾》 Ba Yi (Eight Rows)
《八佾》 Passage 3.3
Legge Translation (1861)
The Master said: "If a man be without the virtues proper to humanity, what has he to do with the rites of propriety? If a man be without the virtues proper to humanity, what has he to do with music?"Word by word
- 子曰 zǐ yuē
the Master said
- 子 honorific title: the Master, teacher (refers to Confucius)
- 曰 said, spoke (introduces a quotation)
- 人 rén
a person, a man
- 而 ér
conditional particle after the subject: if, supposing (a man who is not humane)
Links the subject 人 to a predicate describing a deficiency; translators render it variously as a relative 'who', a conditional 'if', or a concessive 'and yet'.
- 不 bù
not, without, lacking
- 仁 rén
humaneness, benevolence
仁 (ren), Confucius's cardinal ethical term; most translators converge on humaneness/benevolence, with Slingerland's 'Good' and Ames & Rosemont's 'authoritative conduct' as notable outliers.
- 如…何 rú … hé
interrogative frame: what is to be done about..., what good is...
- 如 here marks a rhetorical 'what is to be done with' construction
- 何 what; completes a rhetorical 'what is to be done about' question
Rhetorical 如...何 construction implying the answer 'nothing' — ritual is hollow without ren.
- 禮 lǐ
ritual, the rites (li), proper ceremonial conduct
禮: the ritual forms and norms structuring Zhou aristocratic and religious life.
- 人 rén
a person, a man
- 而 ér
concessive particle: and yet, though
Links the subject 人 to a predicate describing a deficiency; translators render it variously as a relative 'who', a conditional 'if', or a concessive 'and yet'.
- 不 bù
not, without, lacking
- 仁 rén
humaneness, benevolence
仁 (ren), Confucius's cardinal ethical term; most translators converge on humaneness/benevolence, with Slingerland's 'Good' and Ames & Rosemont's 'authoritative conduct' as notable outliers.
- 如…何 rú … hé
interrogative frame: what is to be done about..., what good is...
- 如 here marks a rhetorical 'what is to be done with' construction
- 何 what; completes a rhetorical 'what is to be done about' question
Rhetorical 如...何 construction implying the answer 'nothing' — music is hollow without ren.
- 樂 yuè
music, ritual musical and dance performance
Read yuè, music, not lè, joy; 樂 pairs with 禮 as the two pillars of Zhou ritual-aesthetic education.
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