Classical motto of Legalism

Legalism, a school of thought with the rule of law as its core during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods in China. This school of thought denies the hierarchical system of natural inheritance of hereditary nobles. Let’s take a look at the contents of the classic Legalist maxims compiled by me below.

1. You don’t see what you want. (A monarch should not reveal his preferences)

2. Do not let grudges enter the public domain. (Official affairs will not be affected by personal quarrels)

3. If you remove the negative and the negative, the body will be harmless. (If you don’t act excessively, you won’t endanger yourself.)

4. A gentleman can go as far as he can. (A gentleman should behave in moderation and should not be excessive)

5. If you are not straight, you cannot be treacherous. (If you are not strong and upright, you will not be able to correct evil tendencies)

6. The master has no authority but is focused on the left and right. (When a monarch loses his maintenance, he has to rely on his subordinates instead)

7. Go back on what you say to avoid suspicion. (Deliberately saying the right thing or doing the right thing, to test the subordinates)

8. Shooting with one hand, although it is fast and silent. (Clap one hand, no matter how hard you try, there will be no sound)

9. Because of the situation, seek the easy way. (Look for methods that are easy to succeed based on the situation where success is possible)

10. It is not because of the inconvenience of the situation that you can succeed. (Therefore, when the situation is inconvenient, you should not show off your strength)

11. There is no way to show the way, but the trick is not to be seen. (The law must be understood by others, and the technique must not be noticed by others)

12. If private actions win, public merits will be less. (When corruption and corruption are prevalent, the ministers will not be able to fulfill their duties and serve the king)

13. If you lose water while swinging, you will be proud of the ants. (When a fish swims to the shore and becomes stranded, it will be eaten by ants)

14. Punishment should not be too much, and punishment should not be too little. (If the punishment is appropriate, it will not be too much, and if the punishment is inappropriate, it will not be too little.)

15. He's jade is not decorated with five colors. (Beautiful jade like He's jade does not need to be decorated with five-color ornaments)

16. There are things in this world that cannot be obtained, and things cannot be achieved. (There are always things that cannot be obtained in the world, and there are always things that cannot be done)

17. The law is not noble, and the rope is not bent. (The law cannot cater to the powerful, just as the ink rope cannot accommodate bends.)

18. Therefore, we should sacrifice our abilities and judge and punish according to the law. (So ??you abandon your own talents and decide rewards and punishments according to laws)

19. Profit is better than simplicity, and happiness is better than peace. (The greatest benefit is simplicity, and the greatest blessing is stability)

20. If the palace is chalky and the utensils are clean, it will be clean. (The palace will be painted and the utensils will be clean after being washed.)

21. No reward, no forgiveness or punishment. (A wise monarch will not give out rewards at will, nor will he pardon those who should be punished.

22. There is no love for evil. (The monarch should be able to distinguish between the virtuous and the foolish, but he should not He is wise and foolish and likes or dislikes it)

23. Drawing a circle with the right hand and a square with the left hand cannot be successful (it is impossible to draw a circle with the right hand and a square with the left hand)

24. Don’t avoid ministers when punishing others, and don’t avoid common people when rewarding good deeds (don’t protect ministers when you impose punishments, don’t ignore the common people when giving rewards)

25. Get rid of their wisdom, eliminate their abilities, and get rid of them. Unable to predict. (If the monarch hides his wisdom and does not reveal his talents, his ministers will not be able to guess his intentions)

26. If the ministers see their true nature, the true face of the monarch will be revealed. Then the monarch will not be deceived)

27. Therefore, in a well-governed country, there are rewards and punishments but no joy and anger (so in a well-governed country, rewards and punishments are clear and the people have no resentment)

28. Those who do things but fail, but do not do them (sometimes things are done but fail, but this is better than not doing it)

29. Cleverness. (It is smart to make a chariot, but it is stupid to make a wooden kite) (Explanation: Consider the cost and actual effect)

30. Being quiet and doing nothing, you can see flaws in the dark. .

(Remaining quiet and inactive, you will often learn about other people’s behavioral loopholes from a hidden perspective)

31. Seeing but not seeing, hearing but not hearing, knowing but not knowing (seeing as if not seeing, listening as if not seeing) If you don’t hear it, if you know it, you don’t know it)

32. If you practice virtuousness and abandon the heart of self-virtue, how can you go without beauty? (If you do virtuous things but don’t think you are virtuous, what else can’t be done?)

33. Don’t avoid enemies when doing things externally, and don’t avoid children when doing things internally. (When recommending outsiders, you do not exclude your enemies, and when you recommend close people, you do not exclude your own sons.)

34. If you are empty, you will know the true feelings, and if you are still, you will know that the active person is right. (Only when you stay out of the situation can you see the truth clearly; only when you stay calm can you formulate principles of action)

　35. If those who have done no good work are rewarded, their wealth will collapse and their popularity will be ruined. (If people who do not perform well are rewarded, it will lead to a lack of property and people will complain.)

　36. If things are done according to the principle, it will be achieved without hard work. (If you deal with things according to the laws of development, you will achieve something without straining your body and mind.)

37. Therefore, get rid of likes and dislikes, and humbly believe in the Tao and equanimity. (Therefore, emotions such as intimacy and disgust should be abandoned together in order to successfully use the tactics of tactics)

　38. Those who love more will not be able to establish the law, and those who are intimidating will invade from below. (If you pamper your ministers too much, it will be difficult to establish the law. If you lack dignity, you will be bullied by your ministers)

　39. Survival depends on reality, not on numbers. (The survival of a country depends on whether the power is in the hands of the monarch, not on the strength of the country's military force)

40. It is up to the ministers to seize the opportunity to kill, and in this case, they invade. (The power of life and death falls into the hands of the ministers, so the monarch is in danger of losing power)

41. Punishing lightly is not considered kind, and punishing severely is not cruel. It is just a common practice. (Light punishment does not mean mercy, heavy punishment does not mean cruelty, it is just suitable for the actual situation.)

42. Therefore, there is wisdom in the removal of wisdom, merit in the removal of virtuous people, and strength in the removal of courage. (You can see clearly without wisdom, you can achieve great things without showing talent, you can still be strong without showing off your bravery)

43. Today, people who want to follow the politics of the previous kings will all stick to the status quo. (Today's subjects who want to use the laws of the past kings to come here are the same as sitting back and waiting)

44. Not pardoning death and not excusing punishment. Pardoning death and excusing punishment is called coercion. (Not pardoning the condemned criminals and not showing mercy to those who deserve to be punished. Both pardon and forgiveness are abuses of power.)

45. If you don’t criticize, you will look for small flaws. If you don’t wash away the dirt, it will be difficult to see. (Don’t blow open the hair on the skin to look for tiny scars, don’t wash the dirt on the utensils to look for minor flaws)

46. If the king releases his punishment and virtue and lets his ministers use it, then The king is in control of his ministers. (The monarch allows his subordinates to privately impose punishments and kindness, which will be controlled by his subordinates)

47. It is considered that the name is not appropriate, and the harm is greater than the great merit, so it is punished. (Because the goals stated in advance were too low, the harm far exceeded their merits, so they should be punished.)

48. Ban, the way of the Lord, must be clear about the distinction between public and private, and the legal system. Go to personal favors. (Some prohibitions are the way of the monarch. Public and private affairs must be distinguished, the law must be strict, and no favoritism should be tolerated.)

49. If you pretend to love someone, you will not be able to hate him again; if you pretend to hate someone, you will not be able to love him again. (If you pretend to hate it, you will no longer be able to hate it; if you pretend to hate it, you will no longer be able to show kindness to it)

50. If you love a minister too dearly, you will be intimidated; if you love a minister too dearly, you will be easily changed Theme. (If you favor your subordinates too much, you will definitely endanger the monarch himself; if the subordinates are too powerful, they will definitely have the intention to usurp the throne)

51. Therefore, the ministers state their words, and the king teaches them according to his words, and takes responsibility for their achievements. (So ??the ministers put forward opinions, the monarch orders them to act according to the opinions, and then evaluates their effectiveness based on the results)

52. The way of the saint is to eliminate wisdom and cleverness. It's hard to live without wisdom. (A saint does not need wisdom and tact to live in the world. Because if you do not abandon wisdom and tact, it will be difficult to maintain it for a long time.)

53. Therefore, if the master uses his punishment virtue on his own, the officials will fear his power and Return to its benefit. (So ??if the monarch personally controls the power of rewards and punishments, then the officials will fear his punishment and pursue his rewards.)

54. If you lose sight of the mirror, you will not be able to straighten your eyebrows; There is no way to be confused. (If the eyes lose the mirror, they cannot correct their appearance; if a person loses the avenue, he cannot solve his own confusion.

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55. If you don’t do things yourself, you will know your clumsiness and skill; if you don’t think about yourself, you will know your blessings and faults. (You can clearly see whether your subordinates are competent or not without personally handling affairs; you can know the misfortunes and blessings of your subordinates' actions without personally planning.) ;