60 translated sentences of Confucius’ famous sayings

1. Knowing it silently, being tireless in learning, and tireless in teaching others, what is there for me?

Translation: Memorize (knowledge learned) silently, learn without feeling bored, teach without feeling tired, what is the reason for this for me?

2. If you are so angry that you forget to eat, and if you are happy you forget your worries, you don’t know that old age is coming.

Translation: When you study hard, you forget to eat; when you are intoxicated with knowledge, you forget about sorrow; you don’t know that aging is coming.

3. When three of us travel together, we must be our teacher. Choose the good ones and follow them, and change the bad ones.

Translation: Several people are walking together, and one of them must be my teacher. We should choose their strengths to learn from, and pay attention to correcting their shortcomings.

4. Scholars must be ambitious, and there is a long way to go. Isn't it important to think that benevolence is your duty? Isn't it just a matter of time before death?

Translation: A truly responsible person must have a strong will, because the responsibility he bears is heavy and the road to realization is long. Because it is one's responsibility to take benevolence as one's responsibility, it is a heavy responsibility. Because the end of life is the end of the mission, the road to realizing benevolence is long and distant.

5. Zi Jue Four: No intention, no necessity, no solidity, no self.

Translation: Confucius eliminated four shortcomings: no subjective suspicion, no expectations that must be realized, no stubbornness, and no selfishness.

6. Look ahead, suddenly look behind. Master is always good at seducing people. He persuades me with words and invites me with courtesy.

Translation: (For the teacher’s knowledge and morality), I looked up, and the more I looked, the higher I felt; I studied hard, and the more I studied, the more I felt it was inexhaustible. It seems to be in front, and suddenly it seems to be behind. The teacher was good at guiding me step by step, using various classics to enrich my knowledge, and using various etiquette to restrain my words and deeds, making it impossible for me to stop learning until I exhausted all my strength.

7. Rotten wood cannot be carved.

Translation: Rotten wood cannot be carved. It is a metaphor that people cannot be made good or that things and situations are corrupt and irredeemable. Also known as "rotten wood is difficult to carve." Also known as "rotten wood cannot be carved."

8. Ziyi’s four teachings: loyalty in writing and conduct.

Translation: Confucius educated his disciples from four aspects: 1. Literature, that is, the study of knowledge. Study how to increase visibility, and secondly, practice learning and standardize people's behavior so that people's words and deeds can be followed. 3. Loyalty is a matter of self-cultivation. It is to cultivate people to do what they should do voluntarily. 4. Faith learning is the learning of knowing people and distinguishing things, and the learning of cultivating people's judgment.

9. A gentleman is magnanimous, but a villain is always concerned.

Translation: A gentleman is broad-minded and tolerant of others; a villain is petty and narrow-minded.

10. He is sensitive and eager to learn, and he is not ashamed to ask questions. This is why he is called "literary".

Translation: It means not to be ashamed to ask for advice from those whose status and knowledge are lower than your own. Therefore, the word "文" can be used as his posthumous title.

11. Its knowledge is within reach, but its stupidity is beyond reach.

Translation: His intelligence can be learned, but others cannot catch up with his pretending to be stupid.

12. If quality is better than literature, the country will be wild; if literature is better than quality, history will be achieved. Be polite, then be a gentleman.

Translation: If simplicity exceeds ornamentation, it will be rough; if ornamentation exceeds simplicity, it will be vain. Only if simplicity and ornamentation are in the right proportion can one become a gentleman.

13. Those who know are not as good as those who are good at it, and those who are good at it are not as good as those who are happy.

Translation: Those who understand it are not as good as those who love it; those who love it are not as good as those who take pleasure in it.

14. When a bird is about to die, its song is sad; when a man is about to die, his words are also kind.

Translation: When a bird is about to die, its chirping sound is sad; when a person is about to die, its words are also kind.

15. If you are above the middle person, you can speak well; if you are below the middle person, you cannot speak well.

Translation: Confucius said: People with above-average qualifications can be taught profound truths; people with below-average qualifications can hardly be taught profound truths.

16. A wise man enjoys water, and a benevolent man enjoys mountains. The wise are active, the benevolent are still, the wise are happy, the benevolent are long-lived.

Translation: Smart people love water, and virtuous people love mountains; smart people are active, and virtuous people are quiet. Wise people are happy, and virtuous people live long.

18. They are similar in nature but far apart in habits.

Translation: When people are born, they are all kind in nature and have very similar temperaments. However, with the different changes and influences of their respective living environments, everyone's habits will vary.

19. Learning without thinking is a waste, thinking without learning is a disaster.

Translation: If you study without thinking, you will be blinded by the appearance of knowledge; if you think without learning, you will be more dangerous because of doubts.

20. Isn’t it true that one should learn and practice from time to time? Wouldn’t it be great to have friends from far away? Isn't it a gentleman if a person doesn't know something but doesn't get upset?

Translation: Isn’t it pleasant to review and practice after learning? Isn’t it nice to have like-minded people coming from afar? People don’t understand me, and I don’t resent or get angry. Aren’t I also a virtuous gentleman?

22. Listening to the Tao but scrupulously speaking is the abandonment of virtue!

Translation: If you hear rumors on the road and spread them everywhere, this is morally repugnant.

23. How can I be ignorant of the French language? Change it to expensive. If you hold your hand and talk to it, you can say nothing.

Translation: If it is correct, can you not obey it? Mistakes must be corrected seriously to be considered valuable. If you are respectful, can you not make people happy?

24. If you are respectful, you will not be insulted; if you are tolerant, you will win people; if you are trustworthy, you will be accepted by others; if you are sensitive, you will be successful; if you are kind, you will be able to win over others.

Translation: If you are dignified, you will not be insulted; if you are generous, you will win the support of everyone; if you are honest, you will be trusted by others; if you are diligent, you will improve your work efficiency; if you are kind, you will be able to control others.

25. Seeing and thinking about meaning.

Translation: It means that when you see wealth, you must think of morality and justice.

26. Seeing good is like exploring the water, and seeing evil is like exploring the soup.

Translation: When I see good people and good things, I am afraid that I will not have time to learn from them and do them too late. When you see evil people or do bad things, it's like coming into contact with hot water. You want to leave immediately and stay away.

27. A gentleman seeks the road but not food; a gentleman worries about the road but not poverty.

Translation: It is said that a truly knowledgeable gentleman who takes the world and the country as his own responsibility only worries about the failure of his way and does not consider the problems of life; for example, when cultivating fields, he only cares about the cultivation and not about the harvest. I only worry about my own character, not whether I am poor or not.

28. Those who look fierce but have a weak heart are like villains, they are like thieves who pass through the tunnel!

Translation: A villain who looks stern on the outside but is weak on the inside is like a thief who digs holes in the wall.

29. Those who know something from birth are the best; those who know it through learning are the next best thing; those who learn it after being trapped are the next best thing. If you are trapped and don’t learn, then the people will be like this!

Translation: Those who are born knowing are the best; those who learn through learning are the second-class people; those who learn only after encountering difficulties are the second-class people; those who encounter difficulties still do not understand People who study are the lowest class! "

30. Scholars who are determined to pursue the truth, but are ashamed of those who wear bad clothes and eat poorly, are not worthy of discussion.

Translation: Scholars who are determined to pursue the truth do not dress well. It is not worth talking to someone who is not worthy of success.

31. The army can seize the commander, but the ordinary man cannot seize the will.

Translation: The army can. A person cannot lose his ambition if he loses his commander-in-chief. This means that the courage of the three armies lies in his own people. Therefore, if the commander-in-chief can be taken away, it will not be called ambition.

32. The old are at peace, the friends are trusting, and the young are caring.

Translation: I hope that the elderly will be at ease, friends will trust each other, and the young will be cared for.

When it is cold, you will know that the pines and cypresses will wither.

Translation: In the cold season, you will know that the pines and cypresses will not lose their leaves. "

34. It is not enough for a scholar to be determined to learn and pursue the truth, but to be ashamed of bad clothes and food.

Translation: A man who is determined to learn and pursue the truth but regards poverty as a A shameful scholar is not worthy of discussing the truth with him.

35. If you learn the truth in the morning, you will die in the evening.

Translation: If you learn the truth in the morning, you will die that night without regrets. "It means that life is endless and learning is endless.

36. Look at the reason and the reason. How can a person be thin?

Translation: To understand a person, you need to look at what he has done, not only to understand his past, but also to observe his present. In this case, will the understanding of that person be incomplete?

37. One can become a teacher by reviewing the past and learning something new.

Translation: Anyone who can gain new knowledge by reviewing the knowledge he has learned can become a teacher.

38. Isn’t it a joy to have friends coming from afar?

Translation: Isn’t it a joy to have like-minded people coming from afar?

39. Different ways, no.

Translation: People with different political opinions should not discuss each other. This is a principle of friendship. People with different political opinions should not seek each other. It is impossible to discuss with each other. The same is true for making friends. It is difficult for people of different walks of life to make friends.

40. The passing of time is like this. This river is like water, flowing day and night.

41. Those who know are not as good as those who are good at it, and those who are good at it are not as good as those who are happy.

Translation: Those who know how to study are not as good as those who love it. Those who love studying are not as happy as those who enjoy studying.

42. Don’t worry about knowing what you know.

Translation: Don’t be afraid that others won’t know you, just strive to make achievements by yourself.

43. A gentleman seeks everything from himself, while a villain seeks everything from others.

Translation: A gentleman is strict with himself, while a villain is strict with others.

44. The beauty of a gentleman is not the evil of a man.

Translation: A gentleman accomplishes the good things of others and does not promote the bad things of others.

45. A gentleman is magnanimous, but a villain is always concerned.

Translation: A gentleman is open-minded and treats people and things as if he were walking on a flat road, peaceful and comfortable; a villain is always obsessed with things and worries about gains and losses, so he is always worried.

46. Making mistakes without correcting them is called making mistakes.

Translation: Failure to correct mistakes is a real mistake.

47. A little impatience will mess up a big plan.

Translation: If you cannot tolerate small things, you will ruin big things. The small things here include two meanings: small anger and small benevolence, that is, a woman's kindness cannot be tolerated in love; a man's courage cannot be tolerated in anger, both of which can mess up a big plan.

48. People who have no long-term worries must have immediate worries.

Translation: If a person does not have a long-term plan, troubles will soon appear.

49. If a worker wants to do his job well, he must first sharpen his tools.

Translation: If a craftsman wants to do his job well, he must first prepare his tools. This is a metaphor, that is, if you want to do something well, you must first have the prerequisites to do it before you can get twice the result with half the effort.

50. A gentleman wants to be slow in words but quick in deeds.

Translation: A gentleman should be cautious in his words and diligent and quick in his actions.

51. To listen to the Tao and then explain it is to abandon virtue.

Translation: The act of spreading gossip is a betrayal of morality.

52. Don’t do to others what you don’t want others to do to you.

Translation: Don’t do things to others that you don’t want to do.

53. Repay grievance with straightness and repay kindness with kindness.

Translation: Treat resentment with fairness and integrity, and repay kindness with kindness.

54. Listen to his words and watch his actions.

Translation: After listening to his words, you have to observe his behavior before you believe it.

55. If you are not in your position, you will not seek your political affairs.

Translation: If you are not in that position, you will not plan political affairs in that area.

56. If the name is not correct, the words will not be smooth.

Translation: If one’s status is not correct, one’s speech cannot be logical.

57. How can I cut a chicken with a knife?

Translation: Why use a cow-killing knife to kill a chicken?

58. A gentleman does not use words to promote others, nor does he use people to waste words.

Translation: The rulers do not promote people because they say nice things, nor do they despise the correct things they said because they are bad people.

59. There is no distinction between education and distinction.

Translation: I educate everyone who comes to study without distinction.

60. To know something is to know it, and to know something is to know it, and to know it is to know it.

Translation: If you understand, just understand. If you don’t understand, just say you don’t understand. Only smart people are.

61. A wise man never loses people or loses words.

Translation: Not to communicate with someone you can communicate with is to miss the person; to talk to someone with whom you cannot communicate is to make a mistake. ” He believes that only smart people (knowers) can do it without being disrespectful of people or words.

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