Analects 1.10
The Analects (論語), BOOK I. HSIO R 學而第一
子禽問於子貢曰、夫子至於是邦也、必聞其政、求之與、抑與之與。子貢曰、夫子溫、良、恭、儉、讓、以得之、夫子之求之也、其諸異乎人之求之與。
1. Tsze-ch'in asked Tsze-kung, saying, "When our master comes to any country, he does not fail to learn all about its government. Does he ask his information? or is it given to him?"
2. Tsze-kung said, "Our master is benign, upright, courteous, temperate, and complaisant, and thus he gets his information. The master's mode of asking information!—is it not different from that of other men?"
James Legge (1861), Confucian Analects, The Chinese Classics vol. 1 (1861; 2nd ed. 1893) — public domain.
Character glossary
- 子zison, child; seed, egg; fruit; small thin
- 禽qínbirds, fowl; to capture; surname
- 問wènto ask about, to inquire after
- 於yúat, in, on; to, from; alas!
- 貢gòngto offer, to contribute; tribute, gifts
- 曰yuēto speak; to say
- 夫fūman, husband; worker; those
- 至zhìreach, arrive; very, extremely
- 是shìto be; indeed, right, yes; okay
- 邦bāngcountry, nation, state
- 也yěalso, too
- 必bìsurely, certainly; must; will
- 聞wénnews; to hear, to smell; to make known
- 其qíhis, her, its, their; that
- 政zhènggovernment, politics
- 求qiúto seek; to request, to demand; to besee
- 之zhīmarks preceding phrase as modifier of fo
- 與yǔand; with; to; for; to give, to grant
- 抑yìto curb, to hinder; to keep down, to rep
- 溫wēnwarm, lukewarm
- 良liánggood, virtuous, respectable
- 恭gōngpolite, respectful, reverent
- 儉jiǎntemperate, frugal, economical
- 讓ràngto allow, to permit, to yield
- 以yǐaccording to; so as to; because of; then
- 得déto obtain, to get, to acquire; suitable,
- 諸zhūall, many, various; surname
- 異yìdifferent, strange, unusual; foreign; su
- 乎hūinterrogative or exclamatory final parti
- 人rénman, person; people
Passages with shared wording
Data: English Wikisource (Public domain texts; transcription CC BY-SA 4.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.