Analects 2.15
The Analects (論語), BOOK II. WEI CHANG 爲政第二
子曰、學而不思則罔、思而不學則殆。
The Master said, "Learning without thought is labour lost; thought without learning is perilous."
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
- 學xuélearning, knowledge, science; to study,
- 而érand, and then, and yet; but
- 不bùno, not, un-; negative prefix
- 思sīto think, to ponder, to consider; final
- 則zérule, law, regulation; grades
- 罔wǎngnone; to deceive; to slander
- 殆dàialmost, probably; danger, peril; to enda
Passages with shared wording
Data: English Wikisource (Public domain texts; transcription CC BY-SA 4.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.