Analects 18.1
The Analects (論語), BOOK XVIII. WEI TSZE 微子第十八
微子去之、箕子爲之奴、比干諫而死。孔子曰、殷有三仁焉。
1. The Viscount of Wei withdrew from the court. The Viscount of Chi became a slave to Chau. Pi-kan remonstrated with him and died.
2. Confucius said, "The Yin dynasty possessed these three men of virtue."
James Legge (1861), Confucian Analects, The Chinese Classics vol. 1 (1861; 2nd ed. 1893) — public domain.
Character glossary
- 微wēismall, tiny, trifling; micro-
- 子zison, child; seed, egg; fruit; small thin
- 去qùto go away, to leave, to depart
- 之zhīmarks preceding phrase as modifier of fo
- 箕jīsieve; dust pan; garbage bag
- 爲wèido, handle, govern, act; be
- 奴núslave, servant
- 比bǐto compare, liken; comparison; than
- 干gànarid, dry; to oppose; to offend; to inva
- 諫jiànto admonish, to remonstrate
- 而érand, and then, and yet; but
- 死sǐdead; death; impassable, inflexible
- 孔kǒngopening, hole, orifice; great
- 曰yuēto speak; to say
- 殷yīnmany, great; abundant, flourishing
- 有yǒuto have, to own, to possess; to exist
- 三sānthree
- 仁rénbenevolent, humane, kind
- 焉yānwhy? where? how?; strange; thereupon, th
Passages with shared wording
Data: English Wikisource (Public domain texts; transcription CC BY-SA 4.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.