一孔录子曰：三年无改于父之道，可谓孝矣。The Master said: If for three years he does not alter his father's way, he may be called filial.
Tap any sentence of the original to copy it with its source.
白Plain Chinese
孔子说：如果三年里不急着改掉父亲的做法，可以算是孝了。
A plain modern-Chinese rendering following Yikonglu's reading.
常The common reading
Taken alone, read as “after a father dies, nothing may be changed for three years”.
注Key words in the commentary
Zhu Xi cites Hu Yin: “已见首篇，此盖复出而逸其半也” — this already appears in the first book; here it is repeated and has lost its first half. The chapter repeats Xue Er 1.11 without its opening, “父在，观其志；父没，观其行” (while the father lives, observe his intent; after the father dies, observe his conduct).
家What other commentators say
Under Xue Er 1.11, Zhu Xi cites Yin Tun and You Zuo: what is not in accord with the Way need not wait three years; what can be changed but can wait is left a while, to give the unbearing heart time (this episode revisits that original page).
读How Yikonglu reads it
The half sentence must be read with the half before it; “do not alter for three years” cannot be taken alone as an iron rule. Today: when young we remember only half of what our parents said, and recall the other half only after running a household ourselves.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| “父在，观其志；父没，观其行” | 学而经文 | page 20 |
| “已见首篇，此盖复出而逸其半也” | 朱注引胡氏 | page 58 |
页Pages of the base edition
Yikonglu, Analects Li ren (Book 4) 4.20 “For three years not altering his father's way”, https://yikonglu.com/en/lunyu/li-ren/20.html, version 2026-11-05.Last checked: 2026-11-05. Changes are logged on theerrata page.
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This chapter is read in Yikonglu episode “里仁六”:YouTubeBilibili(in mainland China use Bilibili)
