The Doctrine of the Mean Passage 23
自誠明，謂之性；自明誠，謂之教。誠則明矣，明則誠矣。唯天下至誠，為能盡其性；能盡其性，則能盡人之性；能盡人之性，則能盡物之性；能盡物之性，則可以贊天地之化育；可以贊天地之化育，則可以與天地參矣。
When we have intelligence resulting from sincerity, this condition is to be ascribed to nature; when we have sincerity resulting from intelligence, this condition is to be ascribed to instruction. But given the sincerity, and there shall be the intelligence; given the intelligence, and there shall be the sincerity. It is only he who is possessed of the most complete sincerity that can exist under heaven, who can give its full development to his nature. Able to give its full development to his own nature, he can do the same to the nature of other men. Able to give its full development to the nature of other men, he can give their full development to the natures of animals and things. Able to give their full development to the natures of creatures and things, he can assist the transforming and nourishing powers of Heaven and Earth. Able to assist the transforming and nourishing powers of Heaven and Earth, he may with Heaven and Earth form a ternion.
English: James Legge (1861), The Doctrine of the Mean, The Chinese Classics vol. 1 (1861); romanization modernized on Wikisource — public domain. Chinese: Chinese text from the Wikisource bilingual edition.
Character glossary
- 自zìself; private, personal; from
- 誠chénghonest, sincere, true; actually, really
- 明míngbright, clear; to explain, to understand
- 謂wèito call, to say, to tell; name, title; m
- 之zhīmarks preceding phrase as modifier of fo
- 性xìngsex, nature, character; suffix convertin
- 教jiàoschool, education
- 則zérule, law, regulation; grades
- 矣yǐparticle of completed action
- 唯wéionly; sole
- 天tiānsky, heaven; god, celestial
- 下xiàbelow, underneath; inferior; to bring do
- 至zhìreach, arrive; very, extremely
- 為wèito do, to act; to handle, to govern; to
- 能néngcan, may; capable, full of energy
- 盡jǐnto exhaust, to use up, to deplete
- 其qíhis, her, its, their; that
- 人rénman, person; people
- 物wùthing, substance, matter; creature
- 可kěmay, can, -able; possibly
- 以yǐaccording to; so as to; because of; then
- 贊zànto help, to support; to laud, to praise
- 地deearth, ground, soil; land, region; struc
- 化huàto change, to convert, to reform; -ize
- 育yùto produce, to give birth to; to educate
- 與yǔand; with; to; for; to give, to grant
- 參cānto take part in, to intervene; ginseng
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Data: English Wikisource (Public domain texts; transcription CC BY-SA 4.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.
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