16. The Master said, ‘Ssu, only with a man like you can one discuss the Odes. Tell such a man something and he can see its relevance to what he has not been told.’ The Master said, ‘It is not the failure of others to appreciate your abilities that should trouble you, but rather your failure to appreciate theirs.

13. Tzu-kung said, ‘If you had a piece of beautiful jade here, would you put it away safely in a box or would you try to sell it for a good price?’ The Master said, ‘Of course I would sell it. Of course I would sell it. All I am waiting for is the right offer.’

20. The Master said, ‘I was not born with knowledge but, being fond of antiquity, I am quick to seek it.’

12. Chi-lu asked how the spirits of the dead and the gods should be served. The Master said, ‘You are not able even to serve man. How can you serve the spirits?’ ‘May I ask about death?’ ‘You do not understand even life. How can you understand death?’

11. The Master said, ‘A man is worthy of being a teacher who gets to know what is new by keeping fresh in his mind what he is already familiar with.’

1. The Master said, ‘I transmit but do not innovate; I am truthful in what I say and devoted to antiquity. I venture to compare myself to our Old P’eng.’1

8. The Master said, ‘I never enlighten anyone who has not been driven to distraction by trying to understand a difficulty or who has not got into a frenzy trying to put his ideas into words. ‘When I have pointed out one corner of a square to anyone and he does not come back with the other three, I will not point it out to him a second time.

22. Fan Ch’ih asked about wisdom. The Master said, ‘To work for the things the common people have a right to and to keep one’s distance from the gods and spirits while showing them reverence can be called wisdom.’ Fan Ch’ih asked about benevolence. The Master said, ‘The benevolent man reaps the benefit only after overcoming difficulties. That can

39. The Master said, ‘In instruction there is no separation into categories.’