Book 5: 《公冶長》 Gong Ye Chang
《公冶長》 Passage 5.21
Legge Translation (1861)
The Master said: "When good order prevailed in his country, Ning Wu acted the part of a wise man. When his country was in disorder, he acted the part of a stupid man. Others may equal his wisdom, but they cannot equal his stupidity."Word by word
- 子曰 zǐ yuē
the Master said
- 子 Master; honorific title for Confucius
- 曰 to say, speak; introduces a quotation
- 甯武子 nìng wǔ zǐ
Ning Wuzi, a Wey grandee whose conduct is here appraised
- 甯 surname element in the personal name Ning Wuzi
- 武 Wu, posthumous epithet in 甯武子 (Ning Wuzi)
- 子 honorific suffix in a male personal name: -zi, sir
- 邦有道 bāng yǒu dào
the state had the Way, was well-governed
- 邦 state, country, domain
- 有 to have, possess; here: to be present, to prevail
- 道 the Way; here: good government, right order in the state
- 則 zé
conditional/sequential particle: then, in that case
- 知 zhì
wise, acting wisely
Read zhì, standing for 智, wise, as at 5.18; not zhī, to know.
- 邦無道 bāng wú dào
the state lacked the way, fell into disorder
- 邦 state, country, domain
- 無 to lack, be without
- 道 the Way; here: good government, now absent from the state
- 則 zé
conditional/sequential particle: then, in that case
- 愚 yú
stupid, foolish, simple-minded
Traditionally read as deliberate, feigned incompetence adopted to survive a bad ruler, not literal foolishness -- a reading the closing line about his unmatched 'stupidity' depends on.
- 其 qí
his, referring to Ning Wuzi
- 知 zhì
wisdom, intelligence, cleverness
- 可及 kě jí
can be matched, equaled, attained
- 可 can be, is able to be (marks passive potential)
- 及 to reach, match, come up to
- 也 yě
final particle marking assertion or pause
- 其 qí
his, referring to Ning Wuzi
- 愚 yú
stupidity, foolishness, simple-mindedness
The point of the verse: what looks like folly is judged impossible for anyone else to replicate, marking it as calculated self-protection rather than a defect.
- 不可及 bù kě jí
cannot be matched, equaled, attained
- 不 not
- 可 can be, is able to be (marks passive potential)
- 及 to reach, match, come up to
- 也 yě
final particle marking assertion or pause
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