| | 說民: |
國治：斷家王，斷官強，斷君弱。重輕刑去，常官則治。省刑要保，賞不可倍也。有姦必告之，則民斷於心。上令而民知所以應，器成於家而行於官，則事斷於家。故王者刑賞斷於民心，器用斷於家。治明則同，治闇則異。同則行，異則止。行則治，止則亂。治則家斷，亂則君斷。 |
| Discussion about the People:...: |
If the order of the country depends on the judgments of the family, it attains supremacy; if it depends on the judgments of the officials, it becomes only strong; if it depends on the judgments of the prince, it becomes weak. If light offences are heavily punished, punishments will disappear; if officials are permanent, there is orderly administration. The necessary guarantee for restricting the use of punishments is that promises of rewards are kept. If they make it their habit to denounce all crimes, then the people make the judgments in their own minds; and if, when the ruler gives his orders, the people know how to respond, so that the means for enforcing the law are really manufactured in the families and merely applied by the officials, then the judgments over affairs rest with the family. Therefore, in the case of one who attains supremacy, judgments with regard to punishments and rewards rest with the people's own minds, and those with regard to the application of the means for enforcing the law rest with the family. If there is a clear law, people will agree with one another; if there is an obscure law, people will differ from one another. If they agree, things run smoothly, but if they differ, things are hampered; in the former case, there is order, in the latter, disorder. If there is order, it is the families that make judgments; if there is disorder, it is the prince who makes judgments. |
| | 開塞: |
凡仁者以愛利為務，而賢者以相出為道。民眾而無制，久而相出為道，則有亂。故聖人承之，作為土地貨財男女之分。分定而無制，不可，故立禁。禁立而莫之司，不可，故立官。官設而莫之一，不可，故立君。既立君，則上賢廢，而貴貴立矣。然則上世親親而愛私，中世上賢而說仁，下世貴貴而尊官。上賢者，以贏相出也；而立君者，使賢無用也。親親者，以私為道也，而中正者使私無行也。此三者，非事相反也，民道弊而所重易也，世事變而行道異也。故曰：「王道有繩。」 |
| Opening and Debarring:...: |
Now virtuous men are concerned with love and the way of talented men is to outvie one another. As people increased and were not restrained and had for long been in the way of outvying one another, there was again disorder. Therefore a sage, who received the administration, made divisions of land and property, of men and women. Divisions having been established, it was necessary to have restraining measures, so he instituted interdicts. These being instituted, it was necessary to have those who could enforce them. Thereupon he established officials. These having been established, it was necessary to have some one to unify them. So he set up a prince. Once a prince had been set up, the idea of honouring talent disappeared, and that of prizing honour arose. Thus in the highest antiquity, people loved their relatives and were fond of what was their own; in middle antiquity, they honoured talent and talked of moral virtue; and in later days, they prized honour and respected office. Honouring talent means outvying one another with doctrines, but setting up a prince means relegating talented men to unemployment. Loving one's relatives means making selfishness one's guiding principle, but the idea of equity and justice is to prevent selfishness from holding the field. But these three methods did not aim at antagonistic purposes. The guiding principles of the people are base and they are not consistent in what they value. As the conditions in the world change, different principles are practised. Therefore it is said that there is a fixed standard in a king's principles. |
| | 開塞: |
夫王道一端，而臣道一端；所道則異，而所繩則一也。故曰：「民愚，則知可以王；世知，則力可以王。」民愚，則力有餘而知不足；世知，則巧有餘而力不足。民之性，不知則學，力盡而服。故神農教耕而王天下，師其知也；湯武致強而征諸侯，服其力也。夫民愚，不懷知而問；世知，無餘力而服。故以愛王天下者，并刑；力征諸侯者，退德。 |
| Opening and Debarring:...: |
Indeed, a king's principles represent one viewpoint, and those of a minister another. The principles each follows are different, but are one in both representing a fixed standard. Therefore, it is said: 'When the people are stupid, by knowledge one may rise to supremacy; when the world is wise, by force one may rise to supremacy.' That means that when people are stupid, there are plenty of strong men but not enough wise, and when the world is wise, there are plenty of clever men, but not enough strong. It is the nature of people, when they have no knowledge, to study; and when they have no strength, to submit. So when Shen-nong taught ploughing and attained supreme sway, the leadership was by means of his knowledge; when Tang and Wu made themselves strong and attacked the feudal lords, the subjugation was by means of their force. That is, in the case of uneducated people, when they possess no knowledge, they are anxious to learn; in the case of an educated society, not having force, it submits. Therefore, he who wishes to attain supreme sway by means of love, rejects punishments, and he who wishes to subjugate the feudal lords by means of force, relegates virtue to the background. |
| | 開塞: |
聖人不法古，不修今。法古則後於時，修今則塞於勢。周不法商，夏不法虞，三代異勢，而皆可以王。故興王有道，而持之異理。武王逆取而貴順，爭天下而上讓；其取之以力，持之以義。今世強國事兼并，弱國務力守；上不及虞夏之時，而下不修湯武之道。湯武之道塞，故萬乘莫不戰，千乘莫不守。此道之塞久矣，而世主莫之能開也，故三代不四。非明主莫有能聽也，今日願啟之以效。古之民樸以厚，今之民巧以偽。 |
| Opening and Debarring:...: |
A sage does not imitate antiquity, nor does he follow the present time. If he were to imitate antiquity, he would be behind the times; and if he follows the present time, he is obstructed by circumstances. The Zhou dynasty did not imitate the Shang dynasty, nor did the Xia dynasty imitate the period of Yu; the three dynasties encountered different circumstances, but all three succeeded in attaining supremacy. So to rise to supremacy, there is a definite way, but to hold it there are different principles. For example, Wu as a rebel seized the empire, and yet he prized obedience to the law; he disputed the empire, and yet exalted compliancy; by force he seized it, but by righteousness he held it. Nowadays strong countries aim at annexation, while weak countries are concerned for defence by force, which means that compared with early times they are not equal to the times of Yu and Xia, and compared with later times they do not practise the principles of Tang and Wu. Because the principles of Tang and Wu are obstructed, of the countries of ten thousand chariots there is not one that does not wage war, and of the countries of a thousand chariots there is not one that is not on the defence. These principles (of Tang and Wu) have been obstructed a long time, and none of the rulers of the world is able to develop them. Therefore, there is not a fourth added to the three dynasties, and unless there be an intelligent ruler, there is none who succeeds in being obeyed. Now you want to develop the people by imitating the ancient rulers, but the people of old were simple through honesty, while the people of today are clever through artificiality. |
| | 立本: |
凡用兵，勝有三等：若兵未起而錯法，錯法而俗成，俗成而用具。此三者必行於境內，而後兵可出也。行三者有二勢：一曰輔法而法行；二曰舉必得而法立。故恃其眾者謂之葺，恃其備飾者謂之巧，恃譽目者謂之詐。此三者恃一，因其兵可禽也。故曰強者必剛其鬥意：鬥則力盡，力盡則備。是故無敵於海內。治行則貨積，貨積則賞能重矣。賞壹則爵尊，爵尊則賞能利矣。故曰：兵生於治而異，俗生於法而萬轉，過勢本於心而飾於備勢。三者有論，故強可立也。是以強者必治，治者必強；富者必治，治者必富；強者必富，富者必強。故曰治強之道三，論其本也。 |
| Establishment of Fundamentals:...: |
Generally, in the utilizing of soldiers, there are three stages to victory: prior to the outbreak of hostilities, laws should be fixed (764); laws being fixed, they should become the custom; when they have become customary, supplies should be provided. These three things should be done within the country before the soldiers can be sent abroad. For performing these three things, there are two conditions; the first is to support the law, so that it can be applied; the second is to obtain the right men in appointments, so that the law can be established. For reliance on masses is said to be the assembling of a mob; reliance on outward appearances is said to be smartness; reliance on fame and sight is said to be deceitfulness. If one relies on any one of these three, one's soldiers may be captured. Therefore is it said: 'The strong are unbending; they fight for what they desire. By fighting, their strength develops to the full, and thus they are prepared. In this way, they have no rival in the four seas, and by order prevailing, products are accumulated; by the accumulation of products, it is possible for the rewards to be big.' If rewards are uniform, rank will be honoured; if rank is honoured, rewards will bring profit. Therefore is it said: 'The army, being based on a state of order, there is a marvellous result; custom, being based on law, ten thousand changes of circumstances are brought about; a condition of supremacy, being based upon the mind, it is outwardly manifested in a condition of preparedness. If these three points of view are all taken into consideration, the result will be that the strong may be firmly established.' Thus orderly government is the necessary result of strength, and strength again of orderly government; orderly government of riches, and riches again of orderly government; riches of strength, and strength again of riches. Therefore is it said: 'The way to orderly government and strength is to discuss fundamentals.' |
| | 來民: |
臣之所謂兵者，非謂悉興盡起也；論境內所能給軍卒車騎，令故秦兵，新民給芻食。天下有不服之國，則王以此春違其農，夏食其食，秋取其刈，冬凍其葆。以大武搖其本，以廣文安其嗣。王行此十年之內，諸侯將無異民，而王何為愛爵而重復乎！周軍之勝，華軍之勝，秦斬首而東之。東之，無益亦明矣；而吏猶以為大功，為其損敵也。今以草茅之地，徠三晉之民，而使之事本。此其損敵也，與戰勝同實，而秦得之以為粟，此反行兩登之計也。 |
| Encouragement of Immigration:...: |
When I speak of soldiers, I do not mean that all should be raised and mobilized to the last man, but according to the number of armies, soldiers, chariots and cavalry that can be furnished within the territory, cause the old population of Qin to serve as soldiers and the new people to provide fodder and food. Should there be a state in the empire that does not submit, then Your Majesty should, herewith, in spring prevent their farming, in summer live on their produce, in autumn lay hold of their harvest, and in winter pickle their vegetables: by the methods of the "Great Warfare" shake their fundamental means of existence, and by those of the "Extensive Culture" pacify their descendants. If Your Majesty follows this policy, then within ten years the various feudal lords will have no people from other countries and wherefore, then, should Your Majesty be sparing in the conferment of titles or regard exemption from taxes as a serious matter? At the victories in the Zhou and in the Hua battles, Qin extended its territory eastwards by cutting off heads, but it is clear that there was no advantage in this eastward extension; and yet officials regard these events as great accomplishments, because loss was inflicted on the enemy. Now, if the people of the three Jin states are induced to immigrate by means of grasslands and cottages, and if they are made to occupy themselves with primary things, then this way of inflicting damage on the enemy is just as real as a victory in war, and Qin will have the advantage of obtaining agricultural products. Conversely, by this plan, two birds will be hit with one stone. |
| | 來民: |
齊人有東郭敞者，猶多願，願有萬金。其徒請賙焉，不與，曰：「吾將以求封也。」其徒怒而去之宋，曰：「此無益於愛也，故不如與之利也。」今晉有民，而秦愛其復，此愛非其有以失其有也，豈異東郭敞之愛非其有而失其徒乎？ |
| Encouragement of Immigration:...: |
Amongst the citizens of Qi was one Dong-guo Chang, who had very many desires and wished to have ten thousand pieces of gold. When his retainer begged for a monetary subsidy (in case he would obtain that money), he would not give it, saying: 'I want to use it to obtain a fief.' His retainer became angry, and left him and went to Song, saying: 'This is being stingy about what he has not; therefore he is now in a worse position than when he first had me with him.' Now Jin has the people, and Qin is sparing in the granting of exemptions from taxes; this is being stingy about what one has not, with the result that one loses what one might have. Is this not just like Dong-guo Chang's being stingy about what he did not have, and so losing his retainer? |
| | 賞刑: |
聖人之為國也：壹賞，壹刑，壹教。壹賞則兵無敵，壹刑則令行，壹教則下聽上。夫明賞不費，明刑不戮，明教不變，而民知於民務，國無異俗。明賞之猶，至於無賞也；明刑之猶，至於無刑也；明教之猶，至於無教也。 |
| Rewards and Punishments:...: |
The way in which a sage administers a state is by unifying rewards, unifying punishments, and unifying education. The effect of unifying rewards is that the army will have no equal; the effect of unifying punishments is that orders will be carried out; the effect of unifying education is that inferiors will obey superiors. Now if one understands rewards, there should be no expense; if one understands punishments, there should be no death penalty; if one understands education, there should be no changes, and so people would know the business of the people and there would be no divergent customs. The climax in the understanding of rewards is to bring about a condition of having no rewards; the climax in the understanding of punishments is to bring about a condition of having no punishments; the climax in the understanding of education is to bring about a condition of having no education. |
| | 賞刑: |
所謂壹賞者，利祿官爵，摶出於兵，無有異施也。夫固知愚，貴賤，勇怯，賢不肖，皆盡其胸臆之知，竭其股肱之力，出死而為上用也。天下豪傑賢良從之如流水。是故兵無敵，而令行於天下。萬乘之國，不敢蘇其兵中原。千乘之國，不敢捍城。萬乘之國，若有蘇其兵中原者，戰將覆其軍。千乘之國，若有捍城者，攻將凌其城。戰必覆人之軍，攻必凌人之城，盡城而有之，盡賓而致之，雖厚慶賞，何費匱之有矣。 |
| Rewards and Punishments:...: |
What I mean by the unifying of rewards is that profits and emoluments, office and rank, should be determined exclusively by military merit, and that there should not be different reasons for distributing them. For thus the intelligent and the stupid, the noble and the humble, the brave and the timorous, the virtuous and the worthless, will all apply to the full whatever knowledge they may have in their breasts, exert to the uttermost whatever strength they may have in their limbs, and will be at the service of their ruler even to death; and the outstanding heroes, the virtuous and the good, of the whole empire will follow him, like flowing water, with the result that the army will have no equal, and commands will be carried out throughout the whole empire. A country of ten thousand chariots will not dare to assemble its soldiers in the plains of the Middle Kingdom; nor will a country of a thousand chariots dare to defend a walled city. Should a country of ten thousand chariots assemble its soldiers in the plains of the Middle Kingdom, one would in battle, rout its army; and should a country of a thousand chariots defend a walled city, one would in the assault, capture that town. If, in battles, one always routs the other's army and, in assaults, one always captures the other's towns, with the result that finally one has all the cities, and all their riches accrue, then what expense or loss can one suffer, even though there are rich congratulatory rewards? |
| | 畫策: |
昔者昊英之世，以伐木殺獸，人民少而木獸多。黃帝之世，不麛不卵，官無供備之民，死不得用槨。事不同，皆王者，時異也。神農之世，男耕而食，婦織而衣，刑政不用而治，甲兵不起而王。神農既沒，以強勝弱，以眾暴寡。故黃帝作為君臣上下之義，父子兄弟之禮，夫婦妃匹之合；內行刀鋸，外用甲兵，故時變也。由此觀之，神農非高於黃帝也，然其名尊者，以適於時也。故以戰去戰，雖戰可也；以殺去殺，雖殺可也；以刑去刑，雖重刑可也。 |
| Policies: |
Of old, in the times of the Great and Illustrious Ruler, people found their livelihood by cutting trees and slaying animals; the population was sparse, and trees and animals numerous. In the times of Huang-di, neither young animals nor eggs were taken; the officials had no provisions, and when the people died, they were not allowed to use outer coffins. These measures were not the same, but that they both attained supremacy was due to the fact that the times in which they lived were different. In the times of Shen-nong, men ploughed to obtain food, and women wove to obtain clothing. Without the application of punishments or governmental measures, order prevailed; without the raising of mailed soldiers, he reigned supreme. After Shen-nong had died, the weak were conquered by force and the few oppressed by the many. Therefore Huang-di created the ideas of prince and minister, of superior and inferior, the rites between father and son, between elder and younger brothers, the union between husband and wife, and between consort and mate. At home, he applied sword and saw, and abroad he used mailed soldiers; this was because the times had changed. Looking at it from this point of view, Shen-nong is not higher than Huang-di, but the reason that his name was honoured was because he suited his time. Therefore, if by war one wishes to abolish war, even war is permissible; if by killing one wants to abolish killing, even killing is permissible; if by punishments one wishes to abolish punishments, even heavy punishments are permissible. |
