If you ask people, "What is the most important thing in life?" most would probably give answers such as gold, silver, precious gems, fertile fields and fine houses, or a happy family and a successful career. Actually, the most precious thing we own is our virtue. Only by cherishing virtue as a treasure can we devote ourselves to practicing virtuous deeds; only by devoting ourselves to virtuous work can we cultivate the Way and achieve virtue; and only by cultivating the Way and achieving virtue can we maintain a good conscience and have no cause for remorse before Heaven and people. As it's said, "The humane are not worried; the wise are not deluded; the brave are not frightened. "What is it that they are not worried, deluded, or frightened about? And why are they not worried, deluded, or frightened? Actually, fame and profit are at the bottom of it. The humane dwell in humaneness and don't worry about whether or not they have fame or profit. The wise help the humane and are not deluded by the gain or loss of fame and profit. The brave admire the humane and are not afraid of whether their fame and profit are large or small. These three types of people all cherish virtue. When they are successful, they are modest and courteous. When they are in poverty, they remain peaceful and content. In whatever they do, they do it properly without seeking fame or profit. Since they aren't seeking fame or profit, they naturally will not expect things from others, and so what could they possibly be worried, deluded, or frightened about?

Confucius' disciple Zilu, for example, was truly a brave man. It is recorded in history that, dressed in ragged clothes, he mingled with lords and dukes without the slightest embarrassment or fear. Why was this? It was because his character was honest and straightforward, and so he had no reason to feel inferior to or afraid of powerful people. Yuan Xian, another disciple of Confucius, was a person of virtuous purity who was poor yet delighted in the truth and was not ashamed of his humble clothing or food. When Confucius was still alive, Yuan Xian was already very resolute and incorruptible. After Confucius passed away, he resigned from his govern­ment post and became a hermit in the wilderness of the state of Wei. Al­though his roof was made of thatch and his door of raspberry vines, through which the wind could blow and the rain could seep in, and what he ate was wild vegetables and plain water, and he didn't always have food for a meal, he continued to kneel and play on his lute without pause. After Zi Gong became the prime minister of Wei, he went, dressed in satin and accompa­nied by a large retinue of mounted men, through the wilderness to where the poor peasants lived, to visit his old friend Yuan Xian. When Zi Gong saw Yuan Xian dressed in tattered clothes and looking gaunt and haggard, he asked in surprise, "Are you sick?"Yuan Xian replied, "I've heard it said that, 'Those who own nothing are said to be poor; those who study the Way and are unable to practice it are said to be sick. 'I am merely poor, not sick! "Upon hearing those words, Zi Gong felt very ashamed and left in low spirits. Throughout his life, Zi Gong always felt ashamed if he spoke carelessly. Actually Zi Gong was a talented businessman who could ex­press himself very eloquently. He and Yuan Xian were totally disparate in terms of wealth. As an official, Zi Gong was both rich and honored. It's quite remarkable that he showed such concern for his old friend and went to visit him. Seeing Yuan Xian's poverty, Zi Gong expressed his surprise from the point of view that "an official is one who studies and gains abun­dantly" and out of grief that someone of talent should suffer so. Therefore, we need not criticize Zi Gong too much, since he was one who would repent and feel lifelong shame whenever he learned of his own faults. This is not a quality found in ordinary people. Yuan Xian's disregard for wealth and honor and his ability to take the bitter with the sweet is also a rare quality worthy of our admiration.

The great poet Bai Juyi of the Tang dynasty once wrote a poem containing the following lines: "Yearn not for wealth and honor. Grieve not about poverty and low status. Ask yourself how your cultivation of the Way is, and that will suffice to determine whether you are noble or lowly." This is the same principle as that expressed in the line from the Confucian Analects: "The superior person devotes his attention to the Way and not to food." These sayings tell people that cultivating virtue is the essential thing, and we should not waste our energy on externals such as clothing aid food. An idiom says, "You may have all the delicacies of the world, but you cannot eat more than three meals in a day. You may have luxurious, sprawling mansions, but you only take up a few feet of space when you sleep." What' s the point of working so hectically for such things? And if you kill creatures just to please your palate, you may suffer the consequences for many lifetimes to come!