with a sagely minded man who knows
How to explain them, it will be as if we meet him
Some morning or evening of the present days.
26
The Planet of Plants
All grand and small plants
On the planet Earth
Emanate a sense
Of the divine because
Being deeply rooted in earth
They seem to touch
With their tops and crowns
The core of the seventh roof
Hidden beyond the violet skies.
For this, it is completely alright
To feel that we might pick up
A great wisdom from the plants,
Resorting to the yarrow stalks --
The reliable agent of oracle.
If we could only produce
Their silent casting-out symbols
And read them rightfully,
We would succeed in discovering
Some profound knowledge
And secrets vital to our aims;
Or even more specifically,
Some revelations
Vital to our daily activities,
Our lasting spiritual experience
And insightful foreseeing.
27
Filial Piety
Among all things under the blue sky
There are two warning considerations:
One is requirement implanted in our bodies,
Another is conviction of our minds
About what is wrong and what is right.
The love of a son for his parents, let me say,
Is the implanted requirement and can never
Be separated from his nature;
The service of a manservant to his master
Is what is right, and from its obligation
There is no escaping anywhere in the space
Between Heaven and Earth.
So, a son finds his rest in serving his parents
Without reference to or a choice of placement;
And this is the height of filial duty.
In the same way a manservant finds his rest
In serving his master, without reference to
Or a choice of the trade;--
And this is the fullest discharge of fidelity.
When men are simply obeying the wills of heart,
The considerations of grief and joy
Are not readily set before them. They know that
There is no alternative to their acting as they do
And rest in it as what is appointed;--
And this is the highest achievement of virtue.
He who is in a position of a manservant or
Of a son has indeed to do what he cannot,
But he somehow does. Occupied with a trade in hand
And forgetful of his own self, what leisure
Has he to think of his pleasure in living
Or his dislike of death?
What's more, let our mind find its enjoyment
In the circumstances of our current situation;
Nourish the central course, which we try to pursue
By the reference to our unavoidable duties;--
This is the highest object for us to pursue!
What else can we do to fulfil the charge
Of our good parents and our superiors
If the latter are wise? The best thing we can do
Is to be prepared to sacrifice our own selves;
And this, you should know that,
Is the most difficult thing to do properly,
So long as we all make mistakes.
28
Diplomacy
In all intercourse between the states,
If they are located near to each other,
There should be mutual friendliness
Verified by mutually rewarding trades;
If they are far apart, there must be
Sincere adherence to truth in their messages.
Those messages will be transmitted
By their envoys. But to convey messages
Which express the complacence
Or dissatisfaction of two parties
Is the most delicate issue to settle.
If they be those of mutual complacence,
There is sure to be an overflow
Of expressions of satisfaction;
If of mutual dissatisfaction -- an overflow
Of expressions of dislike and discontent.
But all extravagance leads to reckless language
And such language fails to command belief.
When this distrust arises, woe to the messenger!
Hence the Protocol states, "Transmit the message
Exactly as it stands; do not transmit it
With any overflow of language; so is the envoy
Likely to keep himself whole; and this is
The essential point of what is called 'diplomacy.'
29
An Envoy and Duty
The Rules for Delivering Speech,
Article 3; Item 4, explicitly state,
'Let not an envoy depart
From his initial instructions. . .
Let him not urge on a settlement.'
If he goes beyond the regular rules,
Also known as the Protocol,
He will complicate the situation.
Departing from one's instructions
And urging on a settlement
Imperils further negotiations.
A good settlement is proved
By its lasting long while a bad one
Cannot be altered. In the wake
Of the Rules, ought each and
Every envoy not to be careful
With one's precocious tongue? . .
30
A Tutor's Prediction
Being about to undertake the job of a tutor
Of the eldest son of one famously known tycoon,
I first consulted with the divine Oracle,
My trusted Big Brother and an Old Hand, in one,
Which predicted me the following verdict:
"He is one of the young men whose character
Is bad as it could be. If you allow him
To proceed in a bad way, it will be at the peril
Of his entire family and the community as well;
If you insist on his proceeding in a right way,
It will indeed be at the peril of your own person.
His mind is just sufficient to know the errors
And faults of others, throwing stones at them,
But he does not know how he errs himself."
I asked, "What am I to do in such a case?"
The Oracle said, "Good question indeed!
Be on your guard; be careful all the time,
See that you keep yourself clearly correct!
Your best plan will be with your person
To seek some associations with him
And with your knowledge to try to be
In harmony with his disposition and yet,
There are dangers connected with both things.
Seeking to keep near to him, you thus
Do not enter his pursuits and yet,
While cultivating a harmony of mind with him,
Evade showing how much superior you are
To him, and this is only for your own safety.
If in your personal association with him
You enter into his pursuits, you will fall
And be ruined to tumble down with a crash."
Then the Oracle added, "If in maintaining
A harmony with his mind you show
How different you are, he will think you do so
For gaining your own prestige, and thus
Regard you as a man of evil omen.
If you find him to be a mere boy, be with him
As another boy; if you find him one of those
Who will not have their ground marked out
In the ordinary way, do humour him
/>
In the way of his likings; if you find him
To be free from lofty airs, show yourself
To be the same -- this way you will be able
To lead him on so, as to keep him free
From faults, killing two birds with one stone."
31
Survival of Virtue
O people, under present-day conditions!
How are your virtues degenerated!
The future is not to be waited for;
The past is not to be sought again.
When order prevails in the world,
The wise man tries to accomplish
All his service within the time limit.
When disorder prevails he preserves his life,
Remaining in the shade for awhile.
At the present time, it is enough
If he simply escapes, being finished quickly.
32
Mahayana Blues
If a man, who is only seeking for name
And able to secure it this way,
Can produce such an effect of superior person,
How much more may we look for
A greater result from one whose regulation
Is over even that of Heaven and Earth
And who holds his things in the Treasury House
And who has his lodging in the four limbs
And nine openings of his bodily stature,
Whom his ears and eyes serve but
As conveying all images of things and
Their deeply hidden numeric symbols,
Who comprehends all his knowledge
And wisdom in the unity of opposites
And whose mind is never worn-out or
Over-flooded, even by chance?
If such an idle man were to choose a day
On which he would ascend far on high,
All men would seek to follow him there
For the sake of their own salvation. . .
But how should he be willing
To occupy himself with all those men?
33
My Orchard
I will lie beneath
My rare fruit trees
And learn how,
After producing a crop,
They still make
Long shades of daytime
And a light rustle
Throughout the night.
34
Pains and Penalties
I have been told that when a mirror is bright,
The dust and dirt do not rest on it so far;
Otherwise, the mirror is not regarded as bright.
When one dwells long with a man of virtue,
He comes to be without faults himself.
Most criminals, in describing their offences,
Would make it out that they ought not
To be punished for them; and only very few
Would describe them so as to make it appear
That they should not have escaped their penalty.
When men stand before a skilful archer
With his bow bent tightly, if they are
In the field where they should surely be hit,
And if they're not hit, that also is appointed goal.
In a word, they are only the virtuous who know
That their calamity has been an unavoidable thing,
And hence rest in it as what is appointed for