Zeng Dian, whose courtesy name was Xi (Zhe), was the father of Zeng Shen (Zengzi, a prominent disciple of Confucius) and a native of the State of Lu. His birth and death years are unknown. He is mentioned once in The Analects and was one of Confucius's early disciples. His ancestors were aristocrats who moved to the State of Lu from another state, losing their former prominent status. By Zeng Dian's time, the family was poor, and his wife wove cloth to make a living. His thinking was rather detached; according to "The Analects, Book of Advanced" (Xian Jin), his aspiration was to play the zither and sing, which Confucius greatly admired. He detested the decline of Li (ritual propriety) in his time and was determined to change the situation, leading Confucius to consider him an ambitious and unrestrained individual. When Ji Wuzi (a senior official of the State of Lu) died, Zeng Dian visited his funeral, "leaned against the gate and sang," and was thus called a "madman of Lu." He was very strict with his son Zeng Shen's education. According to the "School Sayings of Confucius" (Kongzi Jiayu), when Zeng Shen was tilling a melon field and accidentally broke a melon root, Zeng Dian flew into a rage and struck Zeng Shen's back with a large wooden staff, causing Zeng Shen to fall to the ground unconscious for half a day. After Zeng Shen grew up, Zeng Dian made him become a disciple of Confucius. Later, Zeng Shen achieved great learning, became a master of Confucianism, and was extremely filial to his parents.