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.
曾子曰：士不可以不弘毅，任重而道遠。仁以為己任，不亦重乎？死而後已，不亦遠乎？Zengzi said: A scholar must be broad and resolute, for his burden is heavy and his road is long. He takes humaneness as his burden — is that not heavy? It ends only with death — is that not long?
What this chapter says
一孔按：士要弘大又坚毅，因为担子重、路又远：以仁为己任，到死才放下。弘是撑得开，毅是撑得久。常有人问：“士不可以不弘毅，任重而道远”，这担子到底有多重？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
曾子说：读书人不能不胸襟宽广、意志坚韧，因为他肩上担子重而路途远。把实现仁当作自己的责任，这担子还不重吗？到死方才放下，这路还不远吗？
Draft plain-Chinese rendering following Zhu Xi; it will be checked when the chapter is covered.
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Connections
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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
“士不可以不弘毅，任重而道远”，这担子到底有多重？
注Key words in the commentary
弘，宽广也。毅，强忍也。非弘不能胜其重，非毅无以致其远。仁者，人心之全德，而必欲以身体而力行之，可谓重矣。
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 |
|---|---|---|
| 曾子曰：士不可以 | “弘，宽广也。毅，强忍也。非弘不能胜其重，非毅无以致其远。仁者，人心之全德，而必欲以身体而力行之，可谓重矣。一息尚存，此志不容少懈，可谓远矣。” | page 110 |
| 死而后已，不亦远 | “弘而不毅，则无规矩而难立；毅而不弘，则隘陋而无以居之。” | page 110 |
| 死而后已，不亦远 | “弘大刚毅，然后能胜重任而远到。” | page 110 |
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
“云曾子曰士不可以不弘毅者，士，通謂大夫也。”……
Compared with Zhu Xi
| Commentary | Point | Relation | Confidence | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 杨伯峻《论语译注》 | differs | settled | 弘杨据章太炎作强，朱训宽广；毅两者均强调强忍决志，任重道远的整体义相同。 | |
| 钱穆《论语新解》 | same | fairly sure | 同以弘广能胜重、毅强能致远，仁为终身所任而不懈；钱将仁说成人道、朱说人心全德，皆要求身体力行。 |
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