54. Deep Roots
Text
English translation
Original Chinese text
善建不拔，善抱者不脱，子孙以祭祀不辍。
English translation
What is well established cannot be uprooted; what is well held cannot slip away. Thus descendants continue the ancestral rites without interruption.
Practices and values with deep foundations can endure and be handed down. Lasting continuity depends on steady cultivation, not momentary display.
Original Chinese text
修之于身，其德乃真；修之于家，其德乃余；修之于乡，其德乃长；修之于国，其德乃丰；修之于天下，其德乃普。
English translation
Cultivate it in yourself, and its virtue becomes genuine. Cultivate it in the family, and its virtue becomes abundant. Cultivate it in the community, and its virtue grows. Cultivate it in the state, and its virtue flourishes. Cultivate it throughout the world, and its virtue becomes universal.
Virtue spreads outward in widening circles, beginning with personal practice and extending through family and public life. Its broad influence still depends on a genuine foundation in oneself.
Original Chinese text
故以身观身，以家观家，以乡观乡，以国观国，以天下观天下。
English translation
Therefore, observe the person through the person, the family through the family, the community through the community, the state through the state, and the world through the world.
Each sphere should be understood through its actual patterns and effects. Sound judgment begins with close observation rather than standards imposed without regard for reality.
Original Chinese text
吾何以知天下然哉？
English translation
How do I know that this is so throughout the world?
The question asks for the basis of knowledge rather than appealing to authority. It prepares the answer that follows: understanding comes from this way of observing.
Original Chinese text
以此。
English translation
By this.
“This” refers to the preceding method of observing each sphere through its own lived reality, from the individual outward to the whole world.