Yu, Ji, and Yan Hui
Text
English translation
Original Chinese text
禹、稷当平世,三过其门而不入,孔子贤之。颜子当乱世,居于陋巷,一箪食,一瓢饮,人不堪其忧,颜子不改其乐,孔子贤之。
English translation
Yu and Ji lived in an age of peace. They passed their own doors three times without entering while occupied with public duties, and Confucius praised their virtue. Yan Hui lived in troubled times in a poor alley, with only a basket of rice and a gourd of water. Others could not endure such hardship, yet Yan Hui did not lose his joy; Confucius praised him too.
Original Chinese text
孟子曰:“禹、稷、颜回同道。禹思天下有溺者,由己溺之也;稷思天下有饥者,由己饥之也。是以如是其急也。禹、稷、颜子易地则皆然。
English translation
Mencius said, “Yu, Ji, and Yan Hui followed the same Way. When Yu thought of people drowning in the realm, he felt as if he himself had drowned them; when Ji thought of people going hungry, he felt as if he himself had made them hungry. That is why they acted with such urgency. If Yu, Ji, and Yan Hui exchanged places, each would have acted as the others did.”
Original Chinese text
今有同室之人斗者,救之,虽被发缨冠而救之,可也。乡邻有斗者,被发缨冠而往救之,则惑也,虽闭户可也。”
English translation
“If people in the same household are fighting, one may rush to stop them even with one’s hair loose and cap strings untied. But if neighbors are fighting, rushing out in disarray to intervene would be misguided; it may be better simply to close one’s door.”