一孔录The video for this chapter is still in production. For now this page gives the original text, the facsimile page, a working translation and the commentary; the full reading follows when the video is out.
子曰：蓋有不知而作之者，我無是也。多聞擇其善者而從之，多見而識之，知之次也。The Master said: There may be those who act without knowing; I am not one of them. I hear much, choose the good and follow it; I see much and remember it. This is the next best to knowing.
What this chapter says
一孔按：有人不懂就乱做，孔子说我没有这毛病。多听，择善而从；多见，记在心里，这是次一等的知。是谦辞，也是做学问的办法：先分清知道和听说。常有人问：孔子说多闻多见是“知之次也”，孔子也只算次一等吗？上面是一孔录的回答。
Yikonglu's reading of this chapter is in Chinese for now; the English version comes with the video.
白Plain Chinese
孔子说：世上大概有自己不明白却胡乱去做的人，我不这样。多多地听，从中选好的照着做；多多地看，一一记住；这样做，比真正明白道理只差一等。
Draft plain-Chinese rendering following Zhu Xi; it will be checked when the chapter is covered.
看Watch this chapter
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Connections
- Same line elsewhere
- Analects 7.21 三人行，必有我師焉。擇其善者……
- Other books
- Cited by commentatorsDaodejing 48: Su Zhe explains "In pursuing learning, one gains daily" (为学日益) by citing Confucius's "hear much, choose the good and follow it," and calls this only "the next level of knowing."
Relationship map of the whole book · The Analects, AI-reconstructed edition (PDF)
Close reading and checking
For readers who want to go deeper or check our work: key words in the commentary, what other commentators say, textual variants, the commentaries in their own words with facsimile pages, pronunciation and corrections. Tap a heading to open it.
常The common reading
孔子说多闻多见是“知之次也”，孔子也只算次一等吗？
注Key words in the commentary
不知而作，不知其理而妄作也。孔子自言未尝妄作，盖亦谦辞，然亦可见其无所不知也。
核Zhu Xi's commentary, line by line
Zhu Xi's own words on each line of this chapter, each checked against the base-edition page. Other commentators are added when the chapter is covered. About this edition
| Line | Quoted text | Page |
|---|---|---|
| 子曰：盖有不知而 | “不知而作，不知其理而妄作也。孔子自言未尝妄作，盖亦谦辞，然亦可见其无所不知也。” | page 102 |
| 多闻择其善者而从 | “识，记也。所从不可不择，记则善恶皆当存之，以备参考。如此者虽未能实知其理，亦可以次于知之者也。” | page 102 |
见Cross-references
- 多闻择其善者而从 Elsewhere in the Analects：择其善者而从之，其不善者而改之。（《论语》集注分章7.21（底本第 99 页））
家Other commentaries
Our base text is Zhu Xi's Collected Commentaries (above). Here are other commentaries side by side: for old commentaries, the first line of the sub-commentary with a link to the woodblock scan; for modern editions, one short quoted translation for comparison. The “compared with Zhu Xi” notes are written by Yikonglu, not quoted.
皇侃《论语义疏》Liang dynasty · 1750 Japanese woodblock edition · juan 四
“云蓋有云云者，蓋，語辭。”……
Compared with Zhu Xi
| Commentary | Point | Relation | Confidence | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 钱穆《论语新解》 | 作 | nuance | fairly sure | 钱主创制立说、与述而不作相应；朱指不知理而妄作。均以多闻择从、多见记善恶为次于真知。 |
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