Analects 14.30
The Analects (論語), BOOK XIV. HSIEN WAN 憲問第十四
子曰、君子道者三、我無能焉、仁者不憂、知者不惑、勇者不懼。子貢曰、夫子自道也。
1. The Master said, "The way of the superior man is threefold, but I am not equal to it. Virtuous, he is free from anxieties; wise, he is free from perplexities; bold, he is free from fear.
2. Tsze-kung said, "Master, that is what you yourself say."
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
- 君jūnsovereign, ruler, prince, monarch, chief
- 道dàomethod, way; path, road
- 者zhěthat which; they who; those who
- 三sānthree
- 我wǒI, me, my; our, us
- 無wúno, not; lacking, -less
- 能néngcan, may; capable, full of energy
- 焉yānwhy? where? how?; strange; thereupon, th
- 仁rénbenevolent, humane, kind
- 不bùno, not, un-; negative prefix
- 憂yōusad, grieving; melancholy, grief
- 知zhīto know, to perceive, to comprehend
- 惑huòto confuse, to mislead; to doubt
- 勇yǒngbrave, courageous, fierce
- 懼jùto fear, to dread
- 貢gòngto offer, to contribute; tribute, gifts
- 夫fūman, husband; worker; those
- 自zìself; private, personal; from
- 也yěalso, too
Passages with shared wording
Data: English Wikisource (Public domain texts; transcription CC BY-SA 4.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.