一孔录子曰：道千乘之国：敬事而信，节用而爱人，使民以时。The Master said: To govern a state of a thousand chariots: be careful in affairs and keep faith; be sparing in expense and love the people; and call on the people's labour only in the right season.
常The common reading
No common misreading; the question is why governing a state should be only these five things.
注Key words in the commentary
“道，治也” — dao here means to govern; “敬者，主一无适之谓” — jing (care) is keeping the mind on one thing and not wandering; “时，谓农隙之时” — the right season is the slack time in farming; Yang Shi cites the Changes: “节以制度，不伤财，不害民” — regulate by set measures, and neither wealth nor people are harmed.
读How Yikonglu reads it
Cheng Yi: “此言至浅……若推其极，尧舜之治亦不过此” — the words are plain, but pushed to the limit, even Yao and Shun governed no differently. Today: a shopkeeper who keeps his word, doesn't waste money, and doesn't send staff on private errands in the busy season.
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.
| Quoted text | Source | Page |
|---|---|---|
| “道，治也；千乘，诸侯之国，其地可出兵车千乘者也” | Zhu Xi's commentary | page 16 |
| “敬者，主一无适之谓；敬事而信者，敬其事而信于民也；时，谓农隙之时” | Zhu Xi's commentary | page 16 |
| “上不敬则下慢，不信则下疑，下慢而疑，事不立矣” | Yang Shi, quoted by Zhu Xi | page 16 |
| “易曰：节以制度，不伤财，不害民” | The Book of Changes, via Yang Shi in Zhu Xi | page 16 |
| “然使之不以其时，则力本者不获自尽，虽有爱人之心，而人不被其泽矣” | as above | page 16 |
| “此言至浅，然当时诸侯果能此，亦足以治其国矣；此三言者，若推其极，尧舜之治亦不过此” | Cheng Yi, quoted by Zhu Xi | page 16 |
音Pronunciation
| Character | In the line | Read as |
|---|---|---|
| 道 | 道千乘之国 | dào |
| 乘 | 千乘 | shèng |
页Pages of the base edition
Yikonglu, Analects Xue er (Book 1) 1.5 “Governing a state of a thousand chariots”, https://yikonglu.com/en/lunyu/xue-er/5.html, version 2026-11-03.Last checked: 2026-11-03. Changes are logged on theerrata page.
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