有度

No state is permanently strong; no state is permanently weak. When those who uphold the law are strong, the state is strong; when those who uphold the law are weak, the state is weak. King Zhuang of Chu annexed twenty-six states and opened up three thousand li of territory — yet after King Zhuang's death, Chu declined. Duke Huan of Qi annexed thirty states and opened up three thousand li of territory — yet after Duke Huan's death, Qi declined. King Xiang of Yan took the Yellow River as his border and Ji as his capital, overran Zhuo and Fangcheng, devastated Qi, and pacified Zhongshan; those who had Yan's support gained weight, those who lacked it lost it — yet after King Xiang's death, Yan declined. King Anxi of Wei attacked Yan, rescued Zhao, and seized lands east of the Yellow River; conquered all the territory of Tao and Wei; sent troops against Qi and took the capital of Pinglu; attacked Han and captured Guan, winning victory below the Qi River; in the affair of Suiyang, the Chu army grew old waiting and withdrew; in the affairs of Cai and Shaoling, the Chu army was routed; his soldiers spread across the realm, his authority extending over all the civilized states — yet when King Anxi died, Wei declined. Thus when Chu had a King Zhuang and Qi had a Duke Huan, Chu and Qi could become hegemons; when Yan had a King Xiang and Wei had a King Anxi, Yan and Wei could become strong. Yet all are now ruined states. The reason is that their assembled ministers and officials all devoted themselves to what produces disorder rather than to what produces order. Their states were already in chaos and weakened, and on top of that, they all abandoned the laws of the state and pursued private interests abroad — this is like carrying firewood to put out a fire; the chaos and weakness only grow worse!

Therefore in the present age, one who can abandon private bias and follow public law will find his people at peace and his state well-governed; one who can abandon private conduct and practice public law will find his army strong and his enemies weak. When one who examines gains and losses has a system of legal standards to apply above his assembled ministers, then the ruler cannot be deceived by fraud and falsehood. When one who examines gains and losses has a balanced scale to weigh with, using it to evaluate distant affairs, then the ruler cannot be deceived about the relative weight of matters in the realm. Now if advancement is based on reputation, then ministers will abandon the ruler above and form cliques below. If officials are appointed through factions, then the people will devote themselves to making connections rather than seeking employment through the law. When offices lose their capable men, the state falls into disorder. If reputation is made the basis of reward and slander the basis of punishment, then those who love reward and hate punishment will abandon public conduct, pursue private schemes, and form cliques to help one another. They forget the ruler and cultivate outside connections to advance their associates, and so what those below do for those above becomes thin indeed. When connections are many and associates are numerous, forming factions both inside and outside the court, then even great offenses will be covered up. Thus loyal ministers are endangered and killed for offenses they did not commit, while treacherous ministers live securely and profit without merit. When loyal ministers face danger and death without having committed real crimes, then good ministers go into hiding. When treacherous ministers enjoy security and profit without merit, then treacherous ministers advance. This is the root of ruin.

When things reach this point, the assembled ministers abandon public law and give weight to private interests, treating public law lightly. They go constantly to the doors of influential men but never once to the ruler's court. They think a hundred times about what benefits their private households but never once plan for the ruler's state. Though their subordinates are many, these do not serve to honor the ruler. Though the hundred offices are filled, these do not serve to sustain the state. In such cases the ruler has the title of a ruler, but in reality power rests with the households of his ministers. Therefore your servant says: The court of a doomed state has no men. To say the court has no men does not mean the court is deserted — rather, the great families work to benefit each other and do not work to enrich the state. The great ministers work to elevate each other and do not work to elevate the ruler. The lesser officials receive their salaries and use them to cultivate connections, not treating their offices as their true business. The reason this happens is that the ruler does not make decisions from above according to law, but entrusts action to those below. Therefore the enlightened ruler uses law to select men and does not select them personally; he uses law to measure merit and does not measure it personally. When the capable cannot be hidden, the incompetent cannot be disguised, the praised cannot be advanced by flattery, and the slandered cannot be removed by calumny, then the relationship between ruler and minister is clearly defined and the state is easy to govern. Therefore the ruler should match himself to the law, and all will be well.

A worthy man in the role of minister faces north and pledges his loyalty with a single heart, harboring no divided allegiance. At court he does not dare refuse lowly assignments; on campaign he does not dare refuse dangerous ones. He follows the actions of his superior, obeys the laws of his ruler, empties his mind to await orders, and makes no judgments of right and wrong on his own. Though he has a mouth, he does not use it for private speech. Though he has eyes, he does not use them for private observation. His superior controls everything. A minister is like a hand: above, it tends the head; below, it tends the feet. Whether cold or hot, it must provide relief. If a sharp blade touches the body, it dares not fail to ward it off. There should be no privately favored wise ministers, no privately patronized capable officers. Thus the people do not cross their local boundaries to form connections, and there is no influence reaching beyond a hundred li. The noble and base do not overstep their stations; the foolish and wise stand in balanced measure. This is the perfection of good governance.

Now, one who makes light of rank and salary and readily departs to choose a different ruler — your servant does not call this integrity. One who speaks deceptively, defies the law, turns his back on his ruler, and forces his remonstrances upon him — your servant does not call this loyalty. One who distributes favors and bestows benefits to win a following among the people and gain a reputation — your servant does not call this benevolence. One who separates himself from the common world and lives in seclusion, then uses deceitful arguments to criticize the ruler — your servant does not call this righteousness. One who serves as envoy to other lords abroad while depleting his own state at home, watching for moments of peril and danger to frighten his ruler by saying, 'Without me, alliances cannot be made close; without me, grudges cannot be resolved' — and the ruler believes him and entrusts the state to his management. To lower the ruler's reputation in order to elevate his own person, to diminish the state's resources in order to enrich his own household — your servant does not call this wisdom. These several types are the doctrines of a treacherous age, and what the laws of the former kings would have eliminated. The laws of the former kings say: 'No minister shall arrogate authority; no minister shall arrogate profit; follow the king's direction. Let no one make mischief; follow the king's road.' In antiquity, the people of a well-governed age upheld public law, abandoned private schemes, concentrated their minds on a single course, and prepared themselves fully to await appointment.

If a ruler personally inspects the hundred officials, then the days will not suffice and his strength will not be equal to it. Moreover, if the ruler uses his eyes, those below will adorn appearances. If the ruler uses his ears, those below will embellish sounds. If the ruler uses his own deliberation, those below will multiply their rhetoric. The former kings considered these three insufficient, and therefore set aside personal ability and relied on legal methods, rigorously applying reward and punishment. What the former kings held to was essential, and so the laws were few yet not violated. They controlled everything within the four seas single-handedly: the clever and intelligent could not employ their deceptions; the reckless and impetuous could not push through their flattery; the treacherous and wicked had nothing to rely on. Those far away, a thousand li distant, did not dare alter their words. Those in positions of influence close to the ruler did not dare conceal merit or disguise faults. The assembled officials at court, from the highest down to the humblest, did not dare overstep one another. Thus there was more than enough governance and days to spare — the ruler's reliance on positional authority made it so.

The way ministers encroach upon their ruler is like the shifting of terrain — it happens gradually over time, causing the ruler to lose his bearings until east and west have traded places without his knowing it. Therefore the former kings established a compass to fix the directions of morning and evening. Thus the enlightened ruler ensures that his assembled ministers do not let their thoughts wander beyond the law, do not bestow favors outside the law, and make no move that is not in accordance with law. Stern laws are the means to cut down those who transgress and stray into private interests. Strict punishments are the means to carry out commands and chastise those below. Authority must not be exercised in two places; control must not share the same gate. If authority and control are shared, then the multitude of evils will become manifest. If the law is not trusted, then the ruler's conduct will be endangered. If punishments are not decisive, then wickedness will not be overcome.

Therefore it is said: A skilled craftsman can estimate by eye and hit the mark of the plumb line, yet he must first use compass and square as his measure. A man of superior intelligence can act swiftly and hit upon the right course, yet he must first take the laws of the former kings as his standard. Therefore when the plumb line is stretched straight, crooked timber is cut; when the level is set even, high branches are trimmed; when the steelyard is hung, heavy things are lightened; when the measuring vessels are set out, excess is reduced. Thus to govern a state by law is simply a matter of applying measures — nothing more. The law does not fawn on the noble; the plumb line does not bend for the crooked. What the law is applied to, the wise cannot talk their way out of and the brave do not dare contest. In punishing faults, it does not avoid great ministers; in rewarding merit, it does not pass over commoners. Therefore for correcting the errors of superiors, examining the wickedness of subordinates, governing disorder, resolving confusion, pruning excess, and rectifying error — for bringing the people onto a single track — nothing compares to law. For sharpening the authority and reputation of officials, for silencing licentious speech, and for stopping fraud and falsehood — nothing compares to punishment. When punishments are heavy, men dare not use their nobility to treat the lowly with contempt. When the law is rigorously applied, the ruler is honored and his authority is not encroached upon. When the ruler is honored and his authority is not encroached upon, the ruler is strong and holds the essentials. Therefore the former kings valued this and transmitted it. If the ruler abandons law and employs private judgment, then the distinction between superior and inferior dissolves.