"A gentleman is understood by righteousness, and a villain is understood by profit." From "The Analects of Confucius·Li Ren"

Translation

Confucius said: "A gentleman understands righteousness, and a villain only understands righteousness." Know about small profits."

Appreciation

"A gentleman is known for his righteousness, and a villain is known for his profit." This is a saying in Confucius's teachings that has a greater influence on later generations and is legendary. This clearly raises the issue of justice and interests. Confucius believed that profit should be subordinated to righteousness, and that righteousness should be valued over profit. His righteousness refers to the morality of obeying the hierarchical order. Blindly pursuing personal interests will lead to rebellion and destroy the hierarchical order. Therefore, people who pursue personal interests are regarded as villains. After the development of Confucianism in later generations, this thought became a sharp opposition between righteousness and benefit, an either-or view of righteousness and benefit.