16.1. 季氏將伐顓臾，冉有、季路見於孔子，曰：“季氏將有事於顓臾。”孔子曰：“求，無乃爾是過與？夫顓臾，昔者先王以為東蒙主，且在邦域之中矣，是社稷之臣也。何以伐為？”冉有曰：“夫子欲之，吾二臣者皆不欲也。”孔子曰：“求，周任有言曰：‘陳力就列，不能者止。’危而不持，顛而不扶，則將焉用彼相矣？且爾言過矣，虎兕出於柙，龜玉毀於櫝中，是誰之過與？”冉有曰：“今夫顓臾固而近於費，今不取，後世必為子孫憂。”孔子曰：“求，君子疾夫舍曰欲之而必為之辭。丘也聞，有國有家者，不患寡而患不均，不患貧而患不安。蓋均無貧，和無寡，安無傾。夫如是，故遠人不服則修文德以來之，既來之，則安之。 今由與求也相夫子，遠人不服而不能來也，邦分崩離析而不能守也，而謀動干戈於邦內。 吾恐季孫之憂不在顓臾，而在蕭牆之內也。”
The head of the Ji family was going to attack Zhuanyu. Ran You and Zi Lu came to see Confucius and said, "Our chief is going to attack Zhuanyu." Confucius said, "Ran You, is it not your fault? Long ago Zhuanyu was appointed by former kings to preside over the sacrifice to the Eastern Meng. Moreover, it lies within the boundaries of our state, and it is a vassal state to safeguard our land. How can such an attack be justified?" Ran Yu said, "It is our chief who wishes the attack. Neither of us wishes it, but we are only his officials." Confucius said to Ran You, "The historian Zhou Ren said, 'Take the office if you can display your ability, or decline it if you cannot!' What is the use of a minister if he cannot support a state in stake or prop up a tottering state? Moreover, what you say is wrong. If a tiger or wild bull should escape from its cag, or a tortoise shell or gem be broken in its box, whose fault is it if not the keeper's?" Ran You said, "At present Zhuanyu is a vassal state strongly fortified near the chief fief of Fei. If our chief does not take it now, it would become a pest to his posterity." Confucius said, "Ran You, a cultured man dislikes those who try to find a pretext for taking what they want. I have heard that the chief of a state or of a family need not care for scarcity but for inequality, nor for poverty but for security. There would be no poverty if wealth is equally shared, no scarcity if people live in harmony, no danger if people live in security. If people do not pay homage from afar, then culture must be enhanced to atttract them. When won over, they must be comfortably installed. Now, Ran You and Zi Lu, advisors as you are to your chief, you cannot help him to subdue nor attract people from afar, nor restore the state to order out of chaos, but plan hostile activities within the state. I am afraid the trouble with the Ji family may not arise from Zhuanyu but from the sovereign behind the scene."
16.2. 孔子曰：“天下有道，則禮樂征伐自天子出；天下無道，則禮樂征伐自諸侯出。自諸侯出，蓋十世希不失矣；自大夫出，五世希不失矣；陪臣執國命，三世希不失矣。天下有道，則政不在大夫；天下有道，則庶人不議。”
Confucius said, "When the world goes the right way, the orders on ritual and music and military expeditions are issued by the sovereign of the state. When it goes the wrong way, they are issued by feudal princes, but few princes could maintain their rule for ten generations. If such orders are issued by ministers, few ministers could maintain their rule for five generations. If they are issued by officials, few officials could maintain theirs for three generations. When the world goes the right way, the state will not be governed by officials, When the world goes the right way, the people will not dispute with the government."
16.3. 孔子曰：“祿之去公室五世矣，政逮於大夫四世矣，故夫三桓之子孫微矣。”
Confucius said, "The ducal house of Lu has lost power for five generations, and government has been in the hands of the ministers for four generations. No wonder the descendants of the three Lu families are fast losing their power."
16.4. 孔子曰：“益者三友，損者三友。友直、友諒、友多聞，益矣；友便辟、友善柔、友便佞，損矣。”
Three kinds of friend will do you good, said Confucius, and other three will do you harm. To make friends with the upright, the faithful and the well-informed will do you good; to make friends with the prejudicial, the insidious and the hypocritical will do you harm.
16.5. 孔子曰：“益者三樂，損者三樂。樂節禮樂、樂道人之善、樂多賢友，益矣；樂驕樂、樂佚遊、樂宴樂，損矣。”
Three delightful things, said Confucius, will do you good: delight in ritual and music, in speaking well of others and in making good friends. Three pleasures will do you harm: extravagant pleasure, lascivious pleasure and sumptuous pleasure.
16.6. 孔子曰：“侍於君子有三愆：言未及之而言謂之躁，言及之而不言謂之隱，未見顏色而言謂之瞽。”
In the presence of a cultured man, said Confucius, three mistakes should be avoided: to speak before called on to speak is rash; not to speak when called on to is unfrank; to speak without observing the expression of his face is blind.
16.7. 孔子曰：“君子有三戒：少之時，血氣未定，戒之在色；及其壯也，血氣方剛，戒之在鬥；及其老也，血氣既衰，戒之在得。”
A cultured man, said Confucius, should beware of three things. He should beware of lust in youth when his vigor is uncouth, of strife in his prime when he is full of vigor, and of greed in old age when his vigor is on the decline.
16.8. 孔子曰：“君子有三畏：畏天命，畏大人，畏聖人之言。小人不知天命而不畏也，狎大人，侮聖人之言。”
Three things, said Confucius, inspire a cultured man with awe: Heaven's will, great men and words of the sage. An uncultured man does not know Heaven's will, so he does not stand in awe. He respects no great men, and makes light of the sage's words.
16.9. 孔子曰：“生而知之者上也，學而知之者次也；困而學之又其次也。困而不學，民斯為下矣。”
Highest are those born wise, said Confucius, next come those who become wise by learning, still next those who strive to learn, and last come those people who will not strive at all.
16.10. 孔子曰：“君子有九思：視思明，聽思聰，色思溫，貌思恭，言思忠，事思敬，疑思問，忿思難，見得思義。”
An intelligentleman, said Confucius, should be considerate in nine respects: he should see clearly, hear distinctly, look mild, appear respectful, speak sincerely, act carefully, ask questions when in doubt, think of the consequences when in anger, and bear in mind what is right in sight of gain.
16.11. 孔子曰：“見善如不及，見不善如探湯；吾見其人矣。吾聞其語矣。隱居以求其志，行義以達其道；吾聞其語矣，未見其人也。”
I have heard, said Confucius, of those who would lose no time to do what is good when they see it, and to shrink from what is harmful as from boiling water, and I have seen such men. I have heard of those who would retire so as not to go on the wrong way and then come out so as to go on the right way, but I have not seen such men.
16.12. 齊景公有馬千駟，死之日，民無德而稱焉； 伯夷、叔齊餓於首陽之下，民到於今稱之。 其斯之謂與？”
Duke Jing of the state of Qi had a thousand chariots with four steeds, but nobody praised him on the day of his death for he had done no good for the people. Bo Yi and Shu Qi, two loyal brothers, starved at the foot of the Sunny Mountain, but people praise them down to the present day. Is this not an illustration of what is said above?
16.13. 陳亢問於伯魚曰：“子亦有异聞乎？”對曰：“未也。嘗獨立，鯉趨而過庭，曰：‘學《詩》乎？’對曰：‘未也。’‘不學《詩》，無以言。’鯉退而學《詩》。他日，又獨立，鯉趨而過庭，曰：‘學《禮》乎？’對曰：‘未也。’‘不學《禮》，無以立。’鯉退而學《禮》。聞斯二者。”陳亢退而喜曰：“問一得三，聞《詩》，聞《禮》，又聞君子之遠其子也。”
Chen Kang asked Bo Yu, son of Confucius, whether he had heard from his father anything different from what the others had. Bo Yu said, "No. One day my father was standing alone in the hall when I passed by respectfully. He asked me whether I had studied Poetry. When I replied, 'Not yet,' he said, 'You cannot speak well if you have not.' Then I retired and studied Poetry. Another day he was again standing in the hall when I passed by respectfully. He asked me whether I had studied the rituals. When I replied, 'Not yet,' he said, 'You cannot be established in society if you have not.' Then I retired and studied rituals. These two things are what I have heard from him." Delighted, Chen Kang came away and said, "Asking one thing, I have learned three. I have heard about poetry, rituals and impartiality of an intelligentleman towards his son."
16.14. 邦君之妻，君稱之曰夫人，夫人自稱曰小童； 邦人稱之曰君夫人，稱諸异邦曰寡小君； 异邦人稱之亦曰君夫人。
The prince of a state calls his wife "Madame." She calls herself "Your humble servant." The people of the state call her "Madame Princess." When speaking of her to guests of another state, the prince calls her "My humble princess." The guests also call her "Madame Princess."