加密数字货币交易所-《论语》详解：给所有曲解孔子的人-子曰：吾十有五而志于学，三十而立，四十而不惑，五十而知天命，六十而耳顺，七十而从心所欲不逾矩

Confucius said: “When I was fifteen, my goal was to learn; at thirty, I established myself; at forty, I had no doubts; at fifty, I knew the Mandate of Heaven; at sixty, my ears were receptive; at seventy, I could follow my heart’s desires without overstepping the bounds.”

Yang Bojun: Confucius said: “At fifteen, I had the aspiration to study; at thirty, I had confidence in my words and actions; at forty, I mastered various knowledge and was not confused; at fifty, I understood the Mandate of Heaven; at sixty, I could distinguish truth from falsehood in others’ words and judge right from wrong; by seventy, I could follow my heart’s desires without transgressing the rules.”

Qian Mu: The teacher said: “When I was fifteen, I first had the aspiration to learn. By thirty, I could stand firm and be independent. By forty, I understood all principles and no longer had doubts. By fifty, I knew what the Mandate of Heaven was. By sixty, everything I heard could be understood and connected, no longer feeling rebellious in my heart. By seventy, I let my heart’s desires run free, and there was no transgression of rules and laws.”

Li Zehou: Confucius said: “At fifteen, I made a firm decision to learn; at thirty, I established myself; at forty, I was no longer confused; at fifty, I recognized my destiny; at sixty, I naturally accepted various criticisms; at seventy, I did whatever I wished without violating rituals and rules.”

Detailed explanation:

This is a well-known saying, yet no one has truly understood it, not even pointing out the simple grammatical phenomenon where parallel components are omitted. After “fifteen,” the phrases “establish,” “no doubts,” “know the Mandate of Heaven,” “ears receptive,” and “follow heart’s desires without overstepping the bounds” all actually omit the phrase “aspire to” (志于). The complete sentence should be: “Confucius said: When I was fifteen, I aspired to learn; at thirty, I aspired to establish myself; at forty, I aspired not to be confused; at fifty, I aspired to know the Mandate of Heaven; at sixty, I aspired to be receptive to others’ words; at seventy, I aspired to follow my heart’s desires without transgressing the rules.”

“于” is equivalent to “being” or “used for”; “志,” the ancient character for “aspire,” marks the aspiration. “志于X” uses X to mark the goal. There are two meanings here: First, the ages fifteen, thirty, etc., roughly correspond to certain stages in Confucius’s development, but do not necessarily have absolute significance—being thirty does not necessarily mean “established,” and “thirty” and “established” are not necessarily directly related. These stages are not necessarily sequential in a mechanical age-based order; they are simply markers. Second, all previous explanations have ignored the omission of “志于,” treating the subsequent stages as inevitable results of “learning,” and treating each stage as a fixed standard. But each stage is self-sufficient and dynamic, with its own “formation, persistence, decay, and extinction.” The reason they are “aspirations” (志于) is just to mark each stage with a phrase; this does not obscure their vivid present reality.

“学” (learning) encompasses “hearing, seeing, learning, and practicing,” the “Way of the Sage.” “Hearing and seeing” lead to “learning,” and “learning” leads to “acting.” “Learning” is the hub connecting “hearing, seeing, learning, and practicing.” It includes all, corresponding to the stages and actions, marked by “learning.”

“立” (establish) signifies that everything in the world has a “standing” or position. To understand the origin, one must first understand “standing” and its position. Such stages and actions are marked by “standing.”

“不惑” (not confused) involves “standing,” which has its “hazard,” and “hazard” involves “confusion.” To “stand” is to “not have hazards,” and to “not have hazards” is to “not be confused.” The stage and action of “not having hazards and not being confused” are marked by “不惑.”

“天” (Heaven) refers to time; “时” (time) is the present moment; “命” (destiny) is survival and existence; “知” (wisdom). “Knowing the Mandate of Heaven” involves present survival and the manifestation of wisdom. All wisdom depends on the present existence; otherwise, it is empty fantasy. The achievement of wisdom must be a vivid presentation of current survival, and this stage and action are marked by “知天命.”

“顺” (follow) means to follow; “耳顺” (ears receptive) involves “ears,” which also means “hearing.” “Hearing and seeing” are inseparable from “learning” and “acting.” What do “hearing and seeing” follow? It is “knowing the Mandate of Heaven.” “Hearing and seeing,” “learning,” and “acting” follow the wisdom vividly present in the current moment. This is the true “ears receptive,” and this stage and action are marked by “耳顺.”

“从心所欲不逾矩” (follow your heart’s desires without transgressing the rules): “心” (heart) does not refer to selfish desire but to the people’s hearts. Following the people’s hearts and expectations without exceeding the “rules” (矩). What is “rules”? The stages of “hearing, seeing, learning, and acting,” the “Way of the Sage,” which can be realized in the current reality. Following the people’s hearts’ expectations but not surpassing the stages of “hearing, seeing, learning, and acting,” and the “Way of the Sage” that can be realized in the current reality. This stage and action are marked by “从心所欲不逾矩.”

“Hearing, seeing, learning, and acting,” the “Way of the Sage,” are fully realized in the current “standing,” and their “hazards” and “confusions” are eliminated in the present moment, allowing wisdom to vividly manifest as “knowing the Mandate of Heaven.” Only then can there be “inner sagehood” (耳顺) and “external kingship” (从心所欲不逾矩). Only with this understanding can one roughly grasp the main idea of this chapter.

Chánzhōng Shuōchán plain translation:

Confucius said: “When I was fifteen, my goal was to learn; at thirty, I established myself; at forty, I had no doubts; at fifty, I knew the Mandate of Heaven; at sixty, my ears were receptive; at seventy, I could follow my heart’s desires without overstepping the bounds.”

Confucius said: “At fifteen, I used ‘hearing, seeing, learning, and practicing the Way of the Sage’ to mark my stage; at thirty, I used ‘exhausting the possible stages of hearing, seeing, learning, and practicing the Way of the Sage’ to mark my stage; at forty, I used ‘penetrating the possible stages of hearing, seeing, learning, and practicing the Way of the Sage’ to mark my stage; at fifty, I used ‘letting wisdom vividly present in current survival’ to mark my stage; at sixty, I used ‘following the wisdom vividly present in current survival to achieve inner sagehood’ to mark my stage; at seventy, I used ‘following the people’s expectations but not surpassing the stages of hearing, seeing, learning, and practicing the Way of the Sage in current reality to achieve kingship’ to mark my stage. **$SLN **$PORTAL **$MAPO **