Book 7: 《述而》 Shu Er (Transmission)
《述而》 Passage 7.4
Legge Translation (1861)
When the Master was unoccupied with business, his manner was easy, and he looked pleased.Word by word
- 子 zǐ
the Master, Confucius
- 之 zhī
possessive particle: his
Most translators recast 子之燕居 as a temporal clause ('when the Master was at leisure') rather than a possessive noun phrase, so the possessive goes unworded by five of eight; Slingerland, Peimin Ni, and Lau keep it as 'his'.
- 燕居 yàn jū
at leisure, off duty
- 燕 at ease, leisurely
- 居 dwelling, residing; being off duty, at leisure
- 申申如也 shēn shēn rú yě
composed, dignified, correct in bearing
- 申 composed, dignified in bearing (reduplicated form)
- 申 composed, dignified in bearing (reduplicated form)
- 如 suffix forming a descriptive expression: -like, in the manner of
- 也 sentence-final particle marking a descriptive assertion
Reduplicated adjective + 如也 is a fixed descriptive pattern for bearing. 馬融 in 何晏's 集解 glosses both 申申 and 夭夭 as 和舒之貌, relaxed and unconstrained, and 朱熹 reads 申申 as 其容舒, so Legge 'easy' and Watson 'very relaxed' follow the commentators; the composed or dignified 申申 set against a relaxed 夭夭 is 楊伯峻's reading (整齊).
- 夭夭如也 yāo yāo rú yě
relaxed, at ease, genial
- 夭 relaxed, at ease in bearing (reduplicated form)
- 夭 relaxed, at ease in bearing (reduplicated form)
- 如 suffix forming a descriptive expression: -like, in the manner of
- 也 sentence-final particle marking a descriptive assertion
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