Analects 2.2
The Analects (論語), BOOK II. WEI CHANG 爲政第二
子曰、詩三百、一言以蔽之、曰、思無邪。
The Master said, "In the Book of Poetry are three hundred pieces, but the design of them all may be embraced in one sentence—'Having no depraved thoughts.'"
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
- 詩shīpoetry; poem, verse, ode
- 三sānthree
- 百bǎione hundred; numerous, many
- 一yīone; a, an; alone
- 言yánwords, speech; to speak, to say
- 以yǐaccording to; so as to; because of; then
- 蔽bìto cover, to hide, to shelter
- 之zhīmarks preceding phrase as modifier of fo
- 思sīto think, to ponder, to consider; final
- 無wúno, not; lacking, -less
- 邪xiéwrong, evil, demonic; perverse, depraved
Passages with shared wording
Data: English Wikisource (Public domain texts; transcription CC BY-SA 4.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.