The Great Learning Passage 9
所謂修身在正其心者：身有所忿懥，則不得其正；有所恐懼，則不得其正；有所好樂，則不得其正；有所憂患，則不得其正。心不在焉，視而不見，聽而不聞，食而不知其味。此謂修身在正其心。
What is meant by, "The cultivation of the person depends on rectifying the mind" may be thus illustrated: If a man be under the influence of passion, he will be incorrect in his conduct. He will be the same, if he is under the influence of terror, or under the influence of fond regard, or under that of sorrow and distress. When the mind is not present, we look and do not see; we hear and do not understand; we eat and do not know the taste of what we eat. This is what is meant by saying that the cultivation of the person depends on the rectifying of the mind.
English: James Legge (1861), The Great Learning, The Chinese Classics vol. 1 (1861); romanization modernized on Wikisource — public domain. Chinese: Chinese text from the Wikisource bilingual edition.
Character glossary
- 所suǒplace, location; "that which", a particl
- 謂wèito call, to say, to tell; name, title; m
- 修xiūto study; to repair; to decorate; to cul
- 身shēnbody, torso; person; pregnancy
- 在zàiat, in, on; to exist; used to indicate t
- 正zhèngstraight, right, proper, correct, just,
- 其qíhis, her, its, their; that
- 心xīnheart; mind; soul
- 者zhěthat which; they who; those who
- 有yǒuto have, to own, to possess; to exist
- 忿fènanger, fury; exasperation
- 懥zhìangry, enraged, resentful; hate
- 則zérule, law, regulation; grades
- 不bùno, not, un-; negative prefix
- 得déto obtain, to get, to acquire; suitable,
- 恐kǒngfearful, apprehensive; to fear, to dread
- 懼jùto fear, to dread
- 好hǎogood, excellent, fine; proper, suitable;
- 樂lècheerful, happy, laughing; music
- 憂yōusad, grieving; melancholy, grief
- 患huànsuffering; misfortune; trouble; to suffe
- 焉yānwhy? where? how?; strange; thereupon, th
- 視shìto look at, to inspect, to observe, to r
- 而érand, and then, and yet; but
- 見jiànto see, to observe, to meet, to appear
- 聽tīngto hear, to listen; to understand; to ob
- 聞wénnews; to hear, to smell; to make known
- 食shífood; to eat
- 知zhīto know, to perceive, to comprehend
- 味wèitaste; smell, odor; delicacy
- 此cǐthis, these; in this case, then
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Data: English Wikisource (Public domain texts; transcription CC BY-SA 4.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.