能

親

仁

，

無

限

好

neng

qin

ren

wu

xian

hao

能夠

親近

有道德

沒有止境、不可估計

好處

be able

to draw near

humane

unlimited, immeasurable

good

如果能親近有仁德的人，那將帶給我們多麼大的好處。
To follow the truly humane will bring immeasurable good.

德

日

進

，

過

日

少

de

ri

jin

guo

ri

shao

品德

每日

進步

過錯

每日

減少

virtue

daily

to progress

mistakes

daily

to reduce

我們的品德會一天比一天進步，我們的過錯會一天比一天減少。
Virtue will grow day by day, day by day our mistakes will be fewer.

不

親

仁

，

無

限

害

bu

qin

ren

wu

xian

hai

不能夠

親近

有道德

沒有止境、不可估計

害處

don't

to draw near

humane

unlimited, immeasurable

harm

如果不親近有仁德的人，那將帶給我們多麼大的害處。
To not follow the truly humane will bring immeasurable harm.

小

人

進

，

百

事

壞

xiao

ren

jin

bai

shi

huai

沒有品德的人

向前接近

每件事情

敗壞

petty people

to come forward

hundred matters (everything)

to be ruined

小人會圍攏上來，各種事情也就敗壞了。
Unworthy people come forward; everything will be ruined.

前面說到唐太宗有個賢德的長孫皇后，還有個直言敢諫的諍臣魏徵。長孫皇后不但賢德守禮，學問也非常好，但是她卻從不因自己的才學而驕矜炫耀，或越禮干政；更不曾以自己的地位，而奢侈浮華，或妒害嬪妃。

Earlier we mentioned that Emperor Taizong of Tang Dynasty had an honorable queen, Zhang Sun, as well as a blunt and loyal minister, Wei Zheng. Not only was Queen Zhang Sun virtuous and respectable, but she was very knowledgeable too. However, she never flaunted her talent out of arrogance or improperly interfered with politics. Furthermore, she never used her position to indulge in extravagances or covetously harm the emperor's concubines.

長孫皇后嫻靜寡言，直到她死後，唐太宗才在她的遺物中，發現了長孫皇后親筆寫的《女則》，不禁感念涕下。為什麼呢？因為這部作品，博徵今古典型，條列賢善儀規，不唯文字簡鍊，更是義理分明。長孫皇后寫這《女則》，生前並無人知，可見她並非寫來賣弄文筆，或者希求稱譽的；這純是她一生默默修持道德和履行禮儀的經驗結晶。

Queen Zhang Sun was so modest and laconic that Emperor Taizong did not discover the queen's Guide for Women among her mementos until her death. The emperor couldn't help but become emotional over this discovery. Why? This work had collected past and present female role models and compiled imperatives encouraging kindness. The handbook was succinct and lucid. During her lifetime, no one knew that Queen Zhang Sun had written this Guide for Women; therefore we know that she didn't author this manual to parade her writing skill or to seek praise and reputation. This guide was strictly a product of the accumulated lessons of a woman's life time of quiet cultivation and propriety in action.

在她以身作則，統領六宮的期間，宮中沒有浪費浮誇之人，也無忌妒邪辟的事；長孫皇后的懿德嘉行真正是女人的典範。這本《女則》，在她身後廣為流傳，一直到清朝，都還是後宮女子必讀的課程呢！即便在今日男女平起平坐的時代，書上敘述的某些禮儀規矩，雖嫌迂腐落伍不復存在必要；但其原則道理，還是很值得現代婦女參考的。

During the time that she led the six imperial harems, she served as a role model. Imprudent and boastful people, incidents of jealousy and disarray were absent in these palaces. Queen Zhang Sun's remarkably virtuous conduct made her an exemplary archetype for women. The Guide for Women was widely circulated after her death. Up until the Qing Dynasty, women in imperial palaces were required to read this manual! Even in the current era of equality between the sexes, modern women may still find this handbook a worthwhile reference for noteworthy rationale and principles behind some of its arcane rites and rules.

接下來，我們再說那個令唐太宗又敬又畏的魏徵。唐太宗固然是聖明天子，能夠虛心納諫；魏徵對於唐太宗的寵信，也是又慶幸又感恩，因此也更加盡心盡力。舉凡有利邦國或有損君主的事情，魏徵無不盡其能諫之事；對魏徵的勸諫，唐太宗也總是讓他有暢所欲言之快。言路既開，賢者自來，唐朝想要不興旺也難。

Next, we'll talk about Wei Zheng, whom Emperor Taizong feared yet respected. Although Emperor Taizong was a holy and understanding son of the heavens who accepted suggestions humbly, Wei Zheng was still glad about and grateful for the emperor's partiality and trust. Consequently, Wei Zheng dedicated himself wholeheartedly, providing a thorough critique on any matter that benefited other countries or harmed the monarch. Emperor Taizong always let Wei Zheng speak his mind too. Since the path of free speech existed, worthy people were attracted to this ruler, and the Tang Dynasty had no choice but to flourish.

魏徵死後，唐太宗親臨痛哭，廢朝五日，並下令厚葬魏徵。而守正不阿的魏徵，也有個賢德清廉的夫人，她竟然婉拒唐太宗賜予的殊榮，說﹕「徵平生節儉樸素，如今用一品厚葬，不是亡者之志。」結果只用布車運棺。

After Wei Zheng's death, Emperor Taizong personally arrived and grieved in pain. The emperor failed to govern national affairs for five days and mandated an elaborate funeral for Wei Zheng. The just and incorruptible Wei Zheng also had a virtuous and fair wife. Mrs. Wei actually rejected the Emperor's bequest of honor, saying, "Zheng was typically economical and simple. If we perform the funeral of the highest grade, then that would go against the wish of the deceased. " As a result, only cloth carriages were used to transport the casket.

出殯之日，唐太宗下詔百官送出城郊，自己登樓望喪，痛哭不已。唐太宗說﹕「人有三面鏡子﹕以銅片（那時還沒有玻璃鏡）為鏡，可以把衣帽穿戴端正；以歷史為鏡，可以知道往來興替；以人為鏡，可以觀察自己得失。我常保有這三面鏡子，以防止過錯和疏忽；魏徵一走，我喪失最寶貴的一面鏡子了！」唐太宗一生內無後宮之亂，外則賢能滿朝，把有唐一代，帶到太平盛世。

On the day of the funeral procession, the emperor ordered all ministers and officials to accompany the casket out to the countryside while he ascended atop a tower to watch the funeral, crying uncontrollably. Emperor Taizong said, "Each person has three mirrors. Using the mirror of copper (glass mirrors didn't exist yet), one can dress appropriately. Using the mirror of history, one recognizes the successes and failures of the past and present. Using the mirror of people, one examines one's own merits and faults. I always keep these three mirrors around to prevent mistakes and negligence. With the departure of Wei Zheng, I have lost one of my most precious mirrors!" It is no wonder that during Emperor Taizong's lifetime he had no stirrings among his harems and capable sages filled his imperial court.

這並非只是唐太宗個人特別能幹；歷史上能幹的君王也不算少了，但像唐太宗這樣德智過人，知道親賢后，納諫臣的，卻是不多，毋怪乎他能成就曠世的豐功偉業。

It was not only through his own competence that this Emperor led the Tang Dynasty to peace and prosperity. Historically, there were plenty of gifted monarchs; however, there were few rulers who were virtuous and wise like Emperor Taizong. There was only a handful of heads of state who knew to cherish an exemplary queen and accept a minister's admonition. Thus, it was no surprise that Emperor Taizong built an empire that reached heights incomparable in the world and throughout history.

我們平常人若想進德修業，也是要「親仁者；遠小人」。語云﹕「物以類聚。」我們行仁者之事，仁者自然來相親；仁者來相親，德業會更進步。反之，我們行小人之事，小人自然來相親；小人來相親，德業就會漸頹廢。所以有德君子，總有良師益友和佳偶；無行小人，每多邪師損友與妖姬。

For us ordinary people who want to make progress in cultivating virtue and further our aspirations, we must also "draw near humane ones and distance ourselves from scoundrels." The Analects states, "similar objects tend to gather together"; in other words, "birds of a feather flock together." If we do the deeds of civilized characters, then civil persons will naturally draw near us; when humane characters draw near us, our virtues advance. In contrast, if we do the deeds of scandalous ones, then villains will naturally draw near us; when villains draw near us, then our virtues deteriorate gradually. Therefore, virtuous people always have good teachers, beneficial friends and helpful partners, while unscrupulous scoundrels usually have evil teachers, harmful friends, and sullen seducers.

然則孰是仁者？誰為小人？這似乎是孔子和學生們最喜歡的議題，在《論語》和《孔子家語》中，其定義比比可見。有一次，顏回又問怎樣是小人？孔子解釋說﹕「專把他人的善行說成壞事，卻自喜是辯才無礙；內心狡詐陰險，還自認是聰明絕頂；見人犯錯，就幸災樂禍；自己不虛心向學，反而動輒笑人無知；這都是標準的小人行徑。」那小人的言論有什麼特質呢？孔子又說﹕「君子以實際行事作為語言，小人只靠口舌。所以君子會在合乎義理的事情上相互批評砥礪，私底下卻彼此親敬；小人則是在做壞事時相互倚賴合作，私底下卻彼此仇視。」

Who's considered humane and who's considered scandalous, how- ever? This appeared to have been one of the favorite debate topics for Confucius and his students. The Confucian Analects and the Words for the Household repeatedly iterated these definitions. For example, once Yan Hill inquired about the definition of a scoundrel. Confucius explained that a crook was "One who purposely depicts others' good deeds as bad, yet merrily considers oneself flawlessly eloquent. A scoundrel is calculating and endangering, yet one considers himself exceptionally intelligent. One sees others make mistakes and delights in the disaster. One doesn't try to learn humbly but actually laughs at others' ignorance. These are some of the typical habits of a scoundrel." Then what are the outstanding qualities of a civil being? Confucius answered, "The civil one uses action as his language whereas the scoundrel relies only on words. Thus, civil persons will mutually criticize and compare according to reason and pertinence of the issue. Privately they value and respect each other. On the other hand, scoundrels cooperate and depend on one another while committing crime. Privately they treat each other like enemies."

總之，君子小人最大的不同，在於「君子喻於義；小人喻於利」，也就是說一個胸懷公開正直，以義自守；一個居心狹隘自私，唯利是圖。所以君子會面，無不諮諏勸善；小人碰頭，總是狼狽為奸。因此，我們雖說眾生平等，要「汎愛眾」；卻是要善惡明了，以「親仁」為依歸。汎愛眾本是心存等慈，是其原則；親仁則是行事合宜，是個權便。存心當仁，行事須智；仁心智行，就足以頂天立地，通達四海了。

In summary, the biggest difference between civilized humanitarians and scoundrels is that "Civil ones are acclimatized to justice while uncivil ones are acclimatized to self-interest." In other words, one maintains an open and straightforward heart, safeguarding integrity while the other dwells selfishly in narrow-mindedness, caring only for one's benefits. When gentlemen gather, for instance, they always consult one another and encourage each other to be good. When rascals meet up, however, they always collaborate to do evil. Thus, although we speak of equality among living beings and "love of all beings," we should be clear about good and evil, using "drawing near humaneness" as an anchor. The principle of loving living beings is basically the principle of maintaining equitable kindness; to draw near civility is an expedient act that concurs with principle. If you intend to be a humanitarian, you must conduct yourself wisely. A humane heart and wise conduct are sufficient to prop up heaven and earth and enter the brilliance of the four seas.