(PD) Wang Ximeng's A Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains (Cropping, text, and modifications by Larry Neal Gowdy)
Copyright ©2023 April 13, 2023
Analects 17:24-25 陽貨 - Yang Huo
Two Paragraphs, Three Words
Most everyone alive does 惡, 孫 and 怨 every day. If people were told what 惡, 孫 and 怨 are, then people would surely realize how simple 惡, 孫 and 怨 are. Regardless of how important the three words are, most people do not have curiosity, nor do most people strive to self-think and to self-discern what the three words mean. Most people do not believe in their own lives; most people only believe what other people's peer-reviews and dictionaries tell them to believe.
Paragraphs #24 and #25 of the Analects book #17 (陽貨 Yang Huo) are very useful as an illustration of how dictionaries, James Legge, and others purposefully mistranslated and misrepresented the ancient Chinese texts. Paragraph #25 is also a primary text that feminists wrongly claim to infer that Confucius hated females.
The topic is expansive of countless related topics, but this article will be overly brief and straight to the point.
The original text of paragraph #24 is: 子貢曰 君子亦有惡乎 子曰 有惡 惡稱人之惡者 惡居下流而訕上者 惡勇而無禮者 惡果敢而窒者 曰 賜也亦有惡乎 惡徼以為知者 惡不孫以為勇者 惡訐以為直者. Give notice that the word 惡 was used eleven times. As previously explained in Word Meanings Change #3, 惡 does not mean 'hate', 'evil', nor any other extreme negativity that Legge and others have used to define the word.
The following is a very rough word-per-word draft of paragraph #24. Note that the phrase 'aberrant-heart' is purposefully inaccurate, but it is still close enough to be an aid for individuals interested in translating the paragraph. Words and phrases in brackets '{}' signify sentence particles or words that imply a pause, punctuation mark, or end of sentence. Noted words are numbered (i.e. (#)).
'Zi Gong say: Junzi(noble son, quality man) too have aberrant-heart {?-is-as}
Zi say: Have aberrant-heart
aberrant-heart measure people it aberrant-heart person-ist
aberrant-heart home lower class while slander-ridicule upper person-ist
aberrant-heart brave while not-have manners(li) person-ist
aberrant-heart fruit(product) dare-venture while obstruct person-ist
Say: Ci(give) {also}, too have aberrant-heart {?-is-as}
Aberrant-heart boundary use be know person-ist
aberrant-heart not descendent(1) use be brave person-ist
aberrant-heart pry-invade-gossip use be upright-just person-ist'
The original text for paragraph #25: 子曰唯女子與小人為難養也近之則不孫遠之則怨. A literal word-per-word draft translation that makes use of common dictionary definitions:
'Zi say: {only} Female child and tiny people be difficult raise-nurture {also}.
Near, it then not descendent.(1)
Far, it then resent.'(2)
Notes on the Original Text
[(1): The English word "descendent" for 孫 is inaccurate within its vagueness, but close enough to convey the intended meaning. 孫 is a very easy word to read, the meaning is very obvious, and there is no excuse for Legge nor anyone else to have given the Chinese word a negative English term.]
[(2) The dictionary word "resent" for 怨 is fully false, as are all known dictionary synonyms false. The word 怨 is easy to read. Its meaning is very, very obvious. Legge's inability to translate 怨, proves that he and others were unable to read Chinese. Nevertheless, for the moment the wrong dictionary word "resent" will be left as-is for the purpose of illustrating that 'dictionary translations' are always wrong.]
Comparing the Original Texts to Legge's Translation
James Legge translated paragraph #24 as:
"Zi Gong said, "Has the superior man his hatreds(3) also?" The Master said, "He has his hatreds. He hates those who proclaim the evil of others.(4) He hates the man who, being in a low station, slanders his superiors. He hates those who have valor merely, and are unobservant of propriety. He hates those who are forward and determined, and, at the same time, of contracted understanding." The Master then inquired, "Ci, have you also your hatreds?" Zi Gong replied, "I hate those who pry out matters, and ascribe the knowledge to their wisdom. I hate those who are only not modest, and think that they are valorous. I hate those who make known secrets, and think that they are straightforward.""
James Legge's translation of Analects 17:25:
"The Master said, "Of all people, girls and servants are the most difficult to behave to. If you are familiar with them, they lose their humility(5). If you maintain a reserve towards them, they are discontented(6).""
Another translation of #25 by James Legge:
""Of all others," said the Master, "women-servants and men-servants are the most difficult people to have the care of. Approach them in a familiar manner, and they take liberties(5); keep them at a distance, and they grumble(6).""
Notes on Legge's Translations
[(3): Notice that Legge translated 惡 to be "hatred", "hate", and "evil". Popular modern translations also use the extremely negative English words, plus the word "hates". According to James Legge, Homer Dubs, et al, all junzies hate people, and that it is a standard of measure that a person cannot be a junzi if the person does not hate people. The extreme mental sickness of Legge and others is evidenced in the very words that they wrote with their own hands.
[(4): Give firm attention to Legge's statement: "He hates (惡) those who proclaim the evil (惡) of others." According to Christian missionary and Oxford University sinology employee James Legge, Confucius 'hated (惡) and proclaimed evil (惡) everyone who hated (惡) and proclaimed the evil (惡) of others'.]
[(5): All known original texts of paragraph #25 — and #24, as well as several other Analects books — use the 'descendent' word. The popular English translations of "humility", "liberties", etc. are fully wrong, and appear to have been given on purpose.
[(6): Legge's use of "discontented" and "grumble" for 怨 are fully false. Two probabilities: (1) either Legge could not read Chinese, which permanently renders him to have been a fraud Christian missionary and a fraud Oxford University scholar-employee, or (2) Legge purposefully chose negative English words for the purpose of hating on Confucian texts, which permanently renders him to have been a fraud Christian missionary and a fraud Oxford University scholar-employee. Regardless of whether Legge's translations were purposeful or due to extreme ignorance, either way, he was still extremely defective of mind.
Comments On Legge's et al Translations
The common translations of paragraph #25 mostly all suggest that, when near, females and tiny people are immodest, impertinent, insolent, unattentive, uncompliant, and a sizable list of other negative English terms that infer mental states of disrespect, selfishness, and other negative behaviors. The common translations also suggest that, when distant, females and tiny people are discontented, offended, resentful, and a sizable list of other English terms that infer mental states of whiney immaturity and other negative behaviors.
Humorously, Legge's 'translation' was reasonably accurate relative to the modern feminists' (women libbers) behaviors, of their demanding favoritism while being mentally incapable of reading a whole nine words: 近之則不孫遠之則怨. Nine words, only nine words, and still the feminists cannot do it.
Comparison
A humorous comparison is from Analects book #8, Tai Bo 泰伯, paragraph #21: "子曰禹吾無間然矣菲飲食而致孝乎鬼神惡衣服而致美乎黻冕卑宮室而盡力乎溝洫禹吾無間然矣". Notice that the paragraph includes the word 惡 that Legge claimed to mean "hate" and "evil". A quick word-per-word draft with use of dictionary words plus the 'aberrant-heart' phrase:
Zi say: Yu(emperor), I not-have intervals like-that {yi carry-!}
impoverished drink eat while convey(zhi) filial-piety {hu is-as-?-pause} spirit essence
aberrant-heart clothes wear while convey(zhi) beautiful {hu is-as-?-pause} embroidery-official-gown crown
humble dwelling room while complete(jin) effort {hu is-as-?-pause} drain ditch
Yu, I not-have intervals like-that {yi carry-!}
According to reports, emperor Yu is of a story (perhaps mythical) of an official of around 2200 B.C. who devoted about thirteen years of his life to the building of flood-controls. The man is said to have often labored with the laborers who dug channels, he wore worker's clothing, and he lived in commoner housing. The filial piety appears to suggest Yu's spirit of devotion to helping citizens. When the channels were finished, the king chose Yu to be the next king.
Now compare the original text to James Legge's translation:
Legge: The Master said, "I can find no flaw in the character of Yu. He used himself coarse food and drink, but displayed the utmost filial piety towards the spirits. His ordinary garments were poor, but he displayed the utmost elegance in his sacrificial cap and apron. He lived in a low, mean house, but expended all his strength on the ditches and water channels. I can find nothing like a flaw in Yu."
Where did 惡 disappear to? Why did Legge not write about hate, hatred, and evil? Was the word "poor" Legge's translation of 惡? As always in everything he wrote, Legge's translation ignored the original Chinese texts, and in their place Legge simply invented aberrant fairytales.
Sum
The neighbor's 犬 barked and barked and barked all night, the 犬 chased cats all day, and the 犬 growled at the mailman. Very often, an unknown word's meaning is clarified by how the word is used in a sentence. Does 犬 mean 'hate', 'evil', and 'hatred'? No? Then how is anyone able to believe that 惡 means 'hate', 'evil', and 'hatred'? The reason of why Legge et al believed that 惡 means 'hate', 'evil', and 'hatred', is because the individuals were mentally unable to cross-light and to reason.
惡, 孫, 怨, and 思 are very easy words to read. No dictionary is required, but, an active intelligence is required, which is a thing that Legge et al did not possess, and yet Legge et al claimed of themselves to be experts.
Within the fashion that James Legge translated Yang Huo paragraphs #24 and #25, so did he translate all of the other ancient Chinese texts.