Character Building
Guard against greed
1.A sage abides in his innate virtues and does not crave for anything beyond that. If he craves for more, he will end up losing all his accumulated blessings. But if he continues with his cultivation of morality, he will naturally attain what he hopes to achieve.
Scroll 41: Huai Nan Zi
2.Eliminate detrimental desires so that one can pursue the path of righteousness; give up unimportant endeavors so that one can be better prepared for future undertakings. Is this not a useful way of carving out a reputation and moral character for ourselves?
Scroll 28: Wu Zhi, Vol. 2
3.Contentment breeds happiness, but excessive cravings breed misery. While a contented person may enjoy wealth eventually, a virtuous leadership brings forth nobility. Hence, a person who craves for titles of nobility but disregards moral integrity cannot be deemed a man of honor despite becoming a ruler; and a person with endless cravings for wealth will never be contented despite owning the whole world.
Scroll 8: Han Shi Wai Zhuan
4.While some have ruined themselves due to endless desires, no one has ever courted danger because they do not have cravings. While some have tried to run a good government but ended up in chaos, no one has ever failed to be a good ruler because they followed the righteous path.
Scroll 41: Huai Nan Zi
5.The Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties enjoyed reigns of prosperity because the rulers exercised a strict restraint over their cravings and desires. The consequential downfall of the three dynasties was due to unrestrained spending and excessive luxuriating.
Scroll 29: Jin Shu, Vol. 1
6.The sun and the moon would always shine brightly, but the clouds enveloped them; the water in the river would always be as clear as crystal, but the sand and stones polluted them. Humans by nature would always want to have inner calmness, but desires and cravings tainted their minds. If one is in pursuit of endless cravings, he might lose his conscience and commit acts of misdeeds. This would cause him serious consequences, and if he is the ruler of a country the whole nation would be at stake.
Scroll 41: Huai Nan Zi
7.Of all the foolishness in the world none can be worse than an inability to see the dire consequences trailing behind immediate gains.
Scroll 12: Wu Yue Chun Qiu
8.People become criminals and face imprisonment or execution because they could not restrain their endless desires and exercise self-discipline.
Scroll 41: Huai Nan Zi
9.Anything that grows rapidly will come to a premature end. Any achievement that is hastily gained over a short period of time will soon wane away.
Scroll 22: Hou Han Shu, Vol. 2
Be frugal and diligent
10.Frugality is a great virtue; extravagance is a great misdeed.
Scroll 29: Jin Shu, Vol. 1
11.In ancient times, scholars would ignore talks that were irrelevant to classical learning; farmers would not disrupt their chores for matters that were unrelated to farming; craftsmen would not produce utensils that were irrelevant for the seasons; and merchants would not supply things that had no demand in the market. Scholars were mindful of the teachings of the sages; farmers were mindful of farming; craftsmen were mindful of the practicality of the utensils; and merchants were mindful of the supply and demand of daily necessities. Hence, the supply of goods for men in high positions remained sufficient and the daily needs of the general public were met.
Scroll 49: Fu Zi
Refrain from anger
12.The oracle of Sun 損1 implies “decrease”. When a man of noble character (Junzi) notices the Sun oracle, he understands that he should control his anger and restrain his desires.
Scroll 1: Zhou Y
13.Had not the inhuman brutality of Emperor Qin Shi Huang gone to the extremes? To him, killing human beings was like slaughtering domestic animals. Any person with a conscience would only slaughter domestic animals sparingly. Emperor Qin put people to death simply because he was agitated by them and had no regrets about his acts of cruelty. To make matters worse, his Prime Minister, Li Si, imposed laws with harsh punishments and killed anyone who opposed him. Consequently, the Qin dynasty reigned for less than two generations and Li Si was executed together with his whole clan.
Scroll 49: Fu Zi
14.Confucius said: “When we see men of worth, we should try to emulate them; when we see people lacking in morality, we should reflect and ask ourselves whether we have anything in common with them.”
Scroll 9: Lun Yu
15.It is considered the highest form of virtues when one enjoys doing kind deeds; less so if kind deeds are done habitually; lesser still when one encourages oneself to do kind deeds.
Scroll 35: Zeng Zi
Correcting our own mistakes
16.The oracle of Yi 益2 implies “increase”. When a man of noble character (Junzi) notices the Yi oracle, he understands that if he discovers the good points in others he should strive to emulate them. If he makes a mistake, he should rectify it instantly.
Scroll 1: Zhou Yi
17.To err is human. There is nothing greater than the initiative to mend one’s fault after committing it.
Scroll 5: Chun Qiu Zuo Shi Zhuan, Vol. 2
18.The highest state of mind is to have no evil thoughts; less so is when a mistake is corrected soon after it is made; lesser still is when a frequently committed mistake could be eventually corrected.
Scroll 35: Zeng Zi
19.Confucius said: “If a man of noble character (Junzi) does not discipline his mind and dignify his demeanor, he will not only lose the respect of others but will also lack a firm footing in his studies. So he should befriend trustworthy people and avoid the company of those who are incompatible with his ideals. When he makes a mistake, he should have the courage to rectify it.”
Scroll 9: Lun Yu