Analects 3.18
The Analects (論語), BOOK III. PA YIH 八佾第三
子曰、事君盡禮、人以爲諂也。
The Master said, "The full observance of the rules of propriety in serving one's prince is accounted by people to be flattery."
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
- 事shìaffair, matter, business; to serve; acci
- 君jūnsovereign, ruler, prince, monarch, chief
- 盡jǐnto exhaust, to use up, to deplete
- 禮lǐcourtesy, manners, social customs
- 人rénman, person; people
- 以yǐaccording to; so as to; because of; then
- 爲wèido, handle, govern, act; be
- 諂chǎnto flatter, to cajole; toady, yes-man
- 也yěalso, too
Passages with shared wording
Data: English Wikisource (Public domain texts; transcription CC BY-SA 4.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.