Confucius and Analects: Two Fibers in the Single Thread of the Master's Way

In book IV, chapter 15 of the Analects, the Master tells us, as elsewhere (XV.3, to be considered below), that "There is one single thread binding my way together." (Lau p. 33) With the interpretive help of Zengzi, whom we may assume understands the Master's meaning, we are told what this thread is - or so it would seem.

Before proceeding to pull on this thread, however, let us carefully consider the words of the Master's claim. "There is a single thread binding my way together" is Lau's translation of "wu dao yi yi guan zhi." While nothing is terribly amiss with this rendition, another reading is possible, which may be of value to consider. If one reads this phrase as two parallel clauses,"wu dao yi" and "yi guan zhi," one may render something to the effect of "As for the unity of my way, by means of a thread united." In book XV, chapter 3 (Lau p. 149), almost exactly the same phrase occurs when the Master insists that he has "a single thread binding [his learning] all together." Here, there is no possibility of the parallelism which may be found in IV.15, but a similar rendition is possible: "wu yi," "As for my unity," "yi guan zhi," by means of a thread united." By 'his unity,' on this reading, would be meant the unity of his learning, the subject he brings up at the beginning of the chapter.

While this translation of this phrase may not be any more plausible than Lau's, it does slightly change the focus of the statement. Here, the first clause makes the assumption that the Master's way is unified in a general sense, while the second clause states that further, above and beyond the fact of this general coherence, it is a specific single thread which achieves this unity. In a word, this reading puts a slightly greater emphasis on the thread itself. Regardless, this exegesis is not strictly necessary for the considerations which follow, and the gist of the Master's statement is clear enough in Lau's translation.
Identifying the nature of the thread at first seems deceptively simple, for Zengzi has already named the two fibers that make it up: zhong and shu. Lau (over-)translates these as "doing one's best" and "using oneself as a measure to gauge the likes and dislikes of others." (Lau p. 33) Let us closely examine these two fibers of the thread, one at a time.

Zhong may fairly be translated simply as "loyal" or "loyalty," as far as general usage goes. Lau, by drawing the word out as "doing one's best" must mean to draw attention to a nuance of the word, the sense of complete exertion (in being loyal), not holding back anything. (Perhaps something comparable in the west is the faithfulness of Abraham to God's command to bring up Isaac.) This sense of exertion may be found throughout the Analects, though not necessarily with explicit reference to zhong. VI.11 is a fine example (Lau p. 49). Here the Master praises Yan Hui's ascetic lifestyle, saying that "most men would find [it] insupportable, but Hui does not allow this to affect his joy." The Master again lauds the spartan life of 'a bowlful of rice and a ladleful of water' in VII.16 (Lau p. 61), this time adding that "Wealth and rank attained through immoral means have as much to do with me as passing clouds." In VI.11, the Master simply praises this strenuous lifestyle; here, he associates it with morality, or righteousness (yi). One more example may be found in VIII.21 (Lau p. 75), where the Master reflects on the faultless devotion and constant exertion of Yu, founder of the Xia dynasty.

In these three examples, this ascetic behavior is certainly praised, but what has it to do with zhong? While these passages are not presented in order to explicitly define zhong by example, they may do just that, at least partially. From these passages, then, let us tentatively take this asceticism as an aspect of zhong. We shall turn our attention to one more aspect before considering what exactly the nature of this 'loyality' is, and what may be said to be its object.

Self-examination is this second aspect, and it illustrated quite clearly by Zengzi's three daily points in I.4 (Lau p. 3). Interestingly, the first of these is "In what I have undertaken on another's behalf, have I failed to do my best [bu zhong]?" At last, zhong is connected to one's behavior in regard to others, and in light of this connection, its meaning and the manner in which it forms the single thread of the Master's way becomes much clearer. As Zengzi's concern suggests, the generic object of this 'loyalty' is in some way other people. The aspect of asceticism noted above is thus not a self-centered practice - living strenuously simply because it is healthy or (solely) conducive to self-cultivation - but a manner of living in which one exerts oneself for others' sake. The Master's example of Yu; especially highlights this point, since Yu's labors to control the floods were an effort to benefit the people, and one in which he held nothing back, working, as we are often told, till his skin was black and there was no hair on his shins.

Perhaps we now have an understanding of zhong, as a manner of strenuous, self-examining exertion for the sake of others, yet it remains unclear what sort of action exactly this loyalty is supposed to produce. To complement zhong, and fill out the understanding of the Master's single thread, we must turn to the second fiber thereof, shu. The simple, common meaning may be translated "forgiveness" or "to forgive." Lau's "using oneself as a measure in gauging the wishes of others," while wordy, gets at the sense of a 'golden rule' of sorts. We may use "compassion" or "reciprocity" to more concisely convey this consideration for others, but Lau's unwieldy translation should be kept in mind. In XV.24 (Lau p. 155), the Master gives us his own gloss. Zigong asks the Master if there is "a single word which can be a guide to conduct throughout one's life," to which he replies "It is perhaps the word 'shu'. Do not impose on others what you yourself do not desire."

It is shu, this sense of consideration for others' wishes, that informs zhong, the exhaustive commitment of loyalty to maintaining this consideration. The self-examination aspect of zhong is part of this ongoing effort of maintenance. Hence the Master says in XV.16 (Lau p. 153) that a man must constantly be asking himself "'What am I to do? What am I to do?'" That is, he must constantly keep in mind what to do in consideration of others' wishes. This goal of reciprocal consideration, rather than self-cultivation for one's own sake, is why "The gentleman [junzi] is troubled by his own lack of ability, not by the failure of others to appreciate him." (XV.19, Lau p. 153) Furthermore, junzi's thoughts turn constantly to matters of how his own behavior reflects on and affects his relations to those around him (XVI.10, Lau p. 165-166).

This is the composition of the thread tying together the Master's way. Further, if ren, "benevolence," is taken to mean "humanism" or "humanitarianism" in the sense of holding other people above oneself (a reading supported by the character's supposed composition of the elements ren, "people" and shang, "above"), then zhong and shu as we have come to understand them are the essential qualities of ren. Junzi, the "gentleman" or the perfected person, acts with zhong, unreserved loyalty toward his constant practice of shu, consideration of the wishes of others, so that he may embody the principle of ren, which is just this holding others above himself through zhong and shu, that he may act appropriately to the relationship, the connection between him and every other person. In this sense, ren is the end, that is, the goal of the Master's way, while the thread of zhong and shu guides one along and gets one to this end. At the same time, the thread itself constitutes the end, and thus junzi is not only the perfected, but the constantly perfecting.