1. The Master said, "I would prefer not speaking."

2. Tsze-kung said, "If you, Master, do not speak, what shall we, your disciples, have to record?"

3. The Master said, "Does Heaven speak? The four seasons pursue their courses, and all things are continually being produced, but does Heaven say anything?"

17. A repetition of I. 3.

18. CONFUCIUS'S INDIGNATION AT THE WAY IN WHICH THE WRONG OVERCAME THE RIGHT. 紫之夺朱,—see X. 6, 2. 朱 is here as 'a correct' colour, though it is not among the five such colours mentioned in the note there. 紫 I have here translated—'purple'. 'Black and carnation mixed', it is said, 'give 紫'. 'The songs or sounds of Ch'ing',—see XV.10. 'The nga',—see on IX. 14. 国家 is a common designation for 'a state', the 国, or kingdom of the prince, embracing the 家，'families', of his great officers.

19. THE ACTIONS OF CONFUCIUS WERE LESSONS AND LAWS, AND NOT HIS WORDS MERELY. Such is the scope of this ch., according to Choo He and his school. The older comm. say that it is a caution to men to pay attention to their conduct rather than to their words. This interpretation is farfetched, but, on the other hand, it is not easy to defend Conf. from the charge of presumption in comparing himself to Heaven. 3. 天何言哉，'Does Heaven speak',—better than 'what does Heaven say?'