Book 7: 《述而》 Shu Er (Transmission)
《述而》 Passage 7.37
子曰：「君子坦蕩蕩，小人長戚戚。」
Legge Translation (1861)
The Master said: "The superior man is satisfied and composed; the mean man is always full of distress."Word by word
- 子曰 zǐ yuē
the Master said
- 子 master, teacher; honorific title for Confucius
- 曰 said, spoke
- 君子 jūn zǐ
exemplary person, gentleman
- 君 lord, ruler; 君子 is literally a lord's son
- 子 son; 君子 is literally a lord's son, one of the ruling class, which the Analects makes a term of character
- 坦蕩蕩 tǎn dàng dàng
calm and unperturbed, at ease
- 坦 calm, at ease, self-possessed
- 蕩 expansive, open-hearted, carefree
- 蕩 expansive, open-hearted, carefree
- 小人 xiǎo rén
petty person, small-minded person
- 小 small; petty, small-minded
- 人 person, man
- 長 cháng
always, constantly
read cháng, always, constantly (經典釋文: 直良反), not zhǎng.
- 戚戚 qī qī
worried, anxious, distressed
- 戚 worried, anxious, distressed
- 戚 worried, anxious, distressed
The reduplication of 戚 intensifies the sense, evoking continuous, nagging anxiety rather than a single instance of worry.
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