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：譬如為山，未成一簣，止，吾止也；譬如平地，雖覆一簣，進，吾往也。The Master said: It is like building a mound: if I stop when it lacks only one basket of earth, it is I who stop. It is like leveling the ground: even if I have tipped out only one basket, if I go on, it is I who go forward.
What this chapter says
一孔按：堆山差一筐没成，停下来是我停的；平地才倒一筐，往前进也是我进的。成与不成都在自己，不在别人。常有人问：“譬如为山，未成一篑，止，吾止也”，进和停在谁？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：好比用土堆山，只差一筐土就成了，停下来，那是我自己停的；好比在平地上填土，虽然才倒下一筐，接着往前干，那是我自己往前的。
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
- Other books
- Read alongside (Yikonglu)Daodejing 64: "A nine-story terrace rises from a heap of earth" (九层之台，起于累土): Confucius says that if you stop when the mound is one basketful short, it is you who stopped.
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
“譬如为山，未成一篑，止，吾止也”，进和停在谁？
注Key words in the commentary
篑，土笼也。书曰：为山九仞，功亏一篑。夫子之言，盖出于此。言山成而但少一篑，其止者，吾自止耳。
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：譬如为山， | “篑，土笼也。书曰：为山九仞，功亏一篑。夫子之言，盖出于此。言山成而但少一篑，其止者，吾自止耳；平地而方覆一篑，其进者，吾自往耳。盖学者自强不息，则积少成多；中道而止，则前功尽弃。其止其往，皆在我而不在人也。” | page 125 |
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 五
“此戒人為善垂成而止者也。”……
Compared with Zhu Xi
| Commentary | Point | Relation | Confidence | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 钱穆《论语新解》 | same | fairly sure | 同以篑为土笼，比喻积学与中止皆在己，不在人；少一篑而止即弃前功，一篑而往可积少成多。 |
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