Analects 17.20
The Analects (論語), BOOK XVII. YANG HO 陽貨第十七
孺悲欲見孔子、孔子辭以疾、將命者出戶、取瑟而歌、使之聞之。
Zu Pei wished to see Confucius, but Confucius declined, on the ground of being sick, to see him. When the bearer of this message went out at the door, (the Master) took his lute and sang to it, in order that Pei might hear him.
James Legge (1861), Confucian Analects, The Chinese Classics vol. 1 (1861; 2nd ed. 1893) — public domain.
Character glossary
- 孺rúchild; blood relation; affection
- 悲bēisorrow, sadness, grief; to be sorry
- 欲yùdesire, want, longing, intent
- 見jiànto see, to observe, to meet, to appear
- 孔kǒngopening, hole, orifice; great
- 子zison, child; seed, egg; fruit; small thin
- 辭cíwords, speech; to resign, to take leave
- 以yǐaccording to; so as to; because of; then
- 疾jísickness, illness, disease; to envy, to
- 將jiāngthe future, what will be; ready, prepare
- 命mìnglife; destiny, fate, luck; an order, ins
- 者zhěthat which; they who; those who
- 出chūto go out, to send out; stand; produce
- 戶hùdoor; family
- 取qǔto take, to receive, to obtain; to selec
- 瑟sèa large string instrument; to tremble, t
- 而érand, and then, and yet; but
- 歌gēsong, lyrics; to sing, to chant
- 使shǐcause, mission, orders; envoy, messenger
- 之zhīmarks preceding phrase as modifier of fo
- 聞wénnews; to hear, to smell; to make known
Passages with shared wording
- Analects 11.25
- Zhuangzi The Universe
- Analects 14.47
- Zhuangzi Kêng Sang Ch’u
- Zhuangzi Lieh Tzŭ
- Analects 17.1
Data: English Wikisource (Public domain texts; transcription CC BY-SA 4.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.