Book 18
18.1
Weizi left him; Jizi became his slave; Bigan remonstrated with him and died. Confucius said, "There were three ren men of Yin."
18.2
When Liuxia Hui served as warden, he was thrice dismissed. People asked him, "Should you not leave for another state?"
"If one serves a lord by means of the straight dao, where could one go and not be thrice dismissed? To serve a lord by means of a crooked dao, why need one leave the country of one’s parents?"
18.3
Duke Jing of Qi received Confucius, saying, "To host him as I would the head of the Ji family, this I am unable to do. Establish him at a level between that used to host the Ji family and that used to host the Meng family."
Then he further said, "I am old; I cannot employ him."
Confucius departed.
18.4
The people of Qi made a present of female musicians. Ji Huanzi received them, and for three days he did not attend court.
Confucius departed.
18.5
A madman of Chu encountered the chariot Confucius was driving, and walking across its path, intoned: Phoenix, phoenix,
How virtue has withered!
What is past is beyond repairing,
What is to come is still worth pursuing.
Enough, enough!
Danger now for those at court.
Confucius stepped down, wishing to speak with him, but the madman hurried to dodge away, and Confucius was unable to speak with him.
18.6
Chang Ju and Jie Ni were ploughing the fields in harness together. Confucius passed by and sent his disciple Zilu over to ask directions.
Chang Ju said, "Who is that holding the carriage reins?"
Zilu said, "That is Kong Qiu."
"Kong Qiu of Lu?"
"Yes."
"Why, then, he knows where he can
go!"
Zilu then asked Jie Ni.
Jie Ni said, "And who are you?"
"I am Zhong Yóu."
"Are you a disciple of Kong Qiu of Lu?"
"I am."
"The world is inundated now. Who can change it? Would you not be better off joining those who have fled from the world altogether, instead of following someone who flees from this man to that one?"
Then the two of them went on with their ploughing.
Zilu returned to report to Confucius.
The Master’s brow furrowed. "I cannot flock together with the birds and beasts!" he cried. "If I am not a fellow traveler with men such as these, then with whom? If only the Way prevailed in the world I would not have to try to change it!"
18.7
Zilu fell behind. He encountered an old man with a staff, using his staff to carry a basket. Zilu asked him, "Have you seen my master?"
The old man said, "A man whose limbs have never moved in labor, who can’t tell one grain from another who is your master?" Then he planted his staff in the ground and began weeding.
Zigong bowed and stood in place.
The old man had Zilu stop with him overnight. He killed a chicken and made a millet congee with it, and he fed Zilu, introducing his two sons to him afterwards.
The next day, Zilu caught up and reported all this. The Master said, "He is a recluse," and he had Zilu take him back to see the old man. When they reached the place, the man had gone.
Zilu said, "It is unrighteous not to serve. The codes that govern the relation of old and young may not be discarded; how can the proper relation of ruler and minister be discarded? They want to purify their persons, but they disrupt the basic relationships among people. The service of a junzi is the enactment of right. That the dao does not prevail, this we already know."
18.8
Those who withdrew from service: Bo Yi and Shu Qi; Yu Zhong, Yi Yi, and Zhu Zhang; Liuxia Hui and Shao Lian.
The Master said, "Never compromising their aims, never subjecting their persons to disgrace would this not be Bo Yi and Shu Qi?"
He characterized Liuxia Hui and Shao Lian thus: "They compromised their aims and subjected their persons to disgrace. Speech always fitting the role, conduct always matching the plan this they fulfilled, but no more."
Of Yu Zhong and Yi Yi he said, "They hid themselves away and relinquished public comment. In one's person abiding in purity, in choosing retirement maintaining discretion.
"As for me, I differ from them all. I have no rule of what is permissible and what is not."
18.9
Grand Music Master Zhi fled to the state of Qi; the master of the second course, Gan, fled to the state of Chu; the master of the third course, Liao, fled to the state of Cai; the master of the fourth course, Que, fled to the state of Qin; the drummer, Fangshu, fled up the Yellow River valley; the hand drum player, Wu, fled down the Han River valley; the Master’s assistant, Yang, and the beater of the stone chimes, Xiang, fled out to sea.
18.10
The Duke of Zhou addressed the Duke of Lu, saying, "The junzi does not put aside his family; he does not allow his high ministers to become resentful that they are not used; he does not abandon old friends without great cause; he does not demand of any one man that he be skilled in all things."