Page 218 - 《孟子》（一）中·英对照版
P. 218
?孟
子
a sage?”
Mencius said, “Oh! what words are these?
Formerly Zigong asked Confucius, saying, ‘Master,
are you a sage?’ Confucius answered him, ‘A sage
is what 1 cannot rise to. I learn without satiety, and
teach without being tired.’ Zigong said, ‘You learn
without satiety—that shows your wisdom. You teach
without being tired—that shows your benevolence.
Benevolent and wise—Master, you ARE a sage.’
Now, since Confucius would not allow himself to be
regarded as a sage, what words were those?”
Chou said, “Formerly, I once heard this: Zi
-xia, Ziyou, and Zizhang had each one member of
the sage. Ran Niu, the disciple Min, and Yan Yuan
had all the members, but in small proportions. I
venture to ask, With which of these are you pleased
to rank yourself?”
Mencius replied, “Let us drop speaking about
these, if you please.”
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