一孔录子曰：中人以上，可以语上也；中人以下，不可以语上也。The Master said: To those above the middling, one can speak of higher things; to those below the middling, one cannot speak of higher things.
Tap any sentence of the original to copy it with its source.
白Plain Chinese
孔子说：中等以上资质的人，可以跟他讲高深的道理；中等以下的，就不能跟他讲高深的。
A plain modern-Chinese rendering following Yikonglu's reading.
常The common reading
Is Confucius looking down on people here?
注Key words in the commentary
“语，告也” — “yu” means to tell; “言教人者，当随其高下而告语之，则其言易入而无躐等之弊也” — one who teaches should speak according to the learner's level; then the words go in easily and there is no fault of skipping steps; “上” is read shàng.
家What other commentators say
Zhang Jingfu: “圣人之道，精粗虽无二致，但其施教，则必因其材而笃焉……使之切问近思，而渐进于高远也” — the sage's Way is one in its fine and coarse parts, but in teaching he always builds on each person's capacity … making them ask closely and reflect on what is near, and so advance gradually to the high and far.
读How Yikonglu reads it
This is not ranking people, but fitting words to the listener: speak too high and the listener cannot catch it, and harm is done. Teach according to capacity, and climb step by step.
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 三
“此謂為教化法也。”……
Compared with Zhu Xi
| Commentary | Point | Relation | Confidence | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 钱穆《论语新解》 | same | fairly sure | 同主因材循序而不躐等，未到程度骤说高远反有弊。钱特别指出不可不是禁绝学习高道，而是难以骤达。 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| “语，告也……而无躐等之弊也” | Zhu Xi's commentary | page 85 |
| “张敬夫曰：圣人之道……而渐进于高远也” | Zhang Shi, quoted by Zhu Xi | page 85 |
音Pronunciation
| Character | In the line | Read as |
|---|---|---|
| 上 | 中人以上 | shàng（读本音） |
| 上 | 可以语上、不可以语上 | shàng |
| 语 | 语上、告语之、语之 | yù |
页Pages of the base edition
Yikonglu, Analects 雍也第六 6.19 “Was Confucius looking down on people?”, https://yikonglu.com/en/lunyu/yong-ye/19.html, version 2026-11-06.Last checked: 2026-11-06. Changes are logged on theerrata page.
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