The Original Quote:
佛肸召，子欲往。子路曰：“昔者由也闻诸夫子曰。亲于其身为不善者，君子不入也。佛肸以中牟畔，子之往也，如之何？＂子曰：“然。有是言也。不曰坚乎，磨而不磷？不曰白乎，涅而不缁。吾岂匏瓜也哉？焉能系而不食？”
Fú Xī zhào, zǐ yù wǎng. Zǐlù yuē: “Xīzhě yóu yě wén zhū fūzǐ yuē. Qīn yú qí shēn wéi bùshàn zhě, jūnzǐ bù rù yě. Fú Xī yǐ Zhōngmóu pàn, zǐ zhī wǎng yě, rú zhī hé?” Zǐ yuē: “Rán. Yǒu shì yán yě. Bù yuē jiān hū, mó ér bù lín? Bù yuē bái hū, niè ér bù zī. Wú qǐ páo guā yě zāi? Yān néng xì ér bù shí?”
English Translation:
When Fú Xī summoned him, the Master was inclined to go. Zǐlù said, “In times past, I have heard you teach: ‘The noble person (jūnzǐ) does not enter into the company of one who personally commits evil deeds.’ Now Fú Xī has rebelled, holding Zhōngmóu. How can you justify going to him?” The Master replied, “Indeed, I have spoken thus. Yet is it not said of what is hard, that grinding cannot wear it thin? And of what is white, that dyeing cannot stain it black? Am I but a bitter gourd (páo guā) to be hung up and never eaten?”
Key Concepts Explained:
- Jūnzǐ (君子): The noble person or exemplary individual, one who cultivates virtue (dé) through ritual propriety (lǐ) and benevolence (rén), acting as a moral beacon in society.
- Rén (仁): Benevolence or human-heartedness, the core Confucian virtue of empathetic care and moral integrity, even amidst corruption.
- Dé (德): Virtue or moral power, an inner quality that remains untainted by external circumstances, akin to the hard and white essence in the metaphor.
- Yì (义): Righteousness or moral duty, guiding the jūnzǐ to engage with the world when it serves the greater good, not out of selfish ambition.
Cultural Context:
This passage from the Analects (Lúnyǔ) captures Confucius’s pragmatic idealism during the Spring and Autumn period, a time of political fragmentation and moral decay. Fú Xī, a rebellious official, summons Confucius, who considers going despite the risk of association with wrongdoing. Zǐlù’s objection reflects a strict adherence to purity, but Confucius counters with a metaphor of indomitable integrity: the noble person can engage with evil without being corrupted, like a stone that grinding cannot wear thin or silk that dye cannot blacken. His final rhetorical question—comparing himself to a bitter gourd hung up and useless—reveals a deep commitment to worldly service (yòng shì), driven by the urgency to spread the Way (Dào) and practice benevolence (rén) amid chaos. This tension between moral purity and active engagement remains a central theme in Confucian thought, illustrating the jūnzǐ’s duty to transform society from within, even at personal risk.