一孔录祭如在，祭神如神在。子曰：吾不与祭，如不祭。Sacrifice as if they were present; sacrifice to the spirits as if the spirits were present. The Master said: If I do not take part in the sacrifice, it is as if I had not sacrificed.
Tap any sentence of the original to copy it with its source.
常The common reading
Did Confucius believe in spirits?
注Key words in the commentary
Cheng Yi: “祭，祭先祖也；祭神，祭外神也；祭先主于孝，祭神主于敬” — ji is sacrifice to ancestors, jishen to other spirits; ancestors call for filial piety, spirits for reverence; “此门人记孔子祭祀之诚意” — the disciples record Confucius's sincerity in sacrifice; yu (take part) in the departing tone; “此心缺然，如未尝祭也” — the heart feels the gap, as if one had never sacrificed.
家What other commentators say
Fan Zuyu: “有其诚则有其神，无其诚则无其神” — with sincerity there are spirits, without it there are none; “诚为实，礼为虚也” — sincerity is the substance, ritual the empty form.
读How Yikonglu reads it
The form of the rite can be laid out by the book; the heart in it has to be brought by the one who sacrifices.
核Check every citation
Every commentary line quoted in the video: the original wording, who said it, and the page in the base edition. “Paraphrase” marks our summary, not the commentator's words. About this edition
| Quoted text | Source | Page |
|---|---|---|
| “祭，祭先祖也。祭神，祭外神也。祭先主于孝，祭神主于敬” | Cheng Yi, quoted by Zhu Xi | page 43 |
| “愚谓此门人记孔子祭祀之诚意” | Zhu Xi's commentary | page 43 |
| “与，去声。又记孔子之言以明之。言己当祭之时，或有故不得与，而使他人摄之，则不得致其如在之诚。故虽已祭，而此心缺然，如未尝祭也” | Zhu Xi's commentary | page 43 |
音Pronunciation
| Character | In the line | Read as |
|---|---|---|
| 与 | 吾不与祭 | yù |
页Pages of the base edition
Yikonglu, Analects Ba yi (Book 3) 3.12 “Sacrifice as if present”, https://yikonglu.com/en/lunyu/ba-yi/12.html, version 2026-11-04.Last checked: 2026-11-04. Changes are logged on theerrata page.
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