Analects 13.12
The Analects (論語), BOOK XIII. TSZE-LU 子路第十三
子曰、如有王者、必世而後仁。
The Master said, "If a truly royal ruler were to arise, it would still require a generation, and then virtue would prevail."
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
- 曰yuēto speak; to say
- 如rúas, as if, like, such as, supposing
- 有yǒuto have, to own, to possess; to exist
- 王wángking, ruler; royal; surname
- 者zhěthat which; they who; those who
- 必bìsurely, certainly; must; will
- 世shìgeneration, era, age; world
- 而érand, and then, and yet; but
- 後hòuafter; behind, rear; descendants
- 仁rénbenevolent, humane, kind
Passages with shared wording
- Zhuangzi On Declining Power
- Tao Te Ching Chapter 38
- Zhuangzi Knowledge travels North
- Analects 6.28
- Analects 8.11
- Zhuangzi The Great Supreme
Data: English Wikisource (Public domain texts; transcription CC BY-SA 4.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.