CONFUCIUS

THE ANALECTS

TRANSLATED WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY D.C. LAU

'How dare I claim to be a sage or a benevolent man?'

By constructing the philosophy expressed through The Analects, Confucius might well dare to make such a claim. The Analects are a collection of Confucius' sayings, compiled by his pupils shortly after his death in 497 B.C., and they reflect the extent to which Confucius held up a moral ideal for all men. The aim is the perfection of one's moral character, the method one of arduous pursuit of such moral attributes as benevolence, wisdom, courage; the result is no recompense either in this life or the next to follow the Way must be its own reward. A harsh philosophy perhaps, but shining through it is the splendid intellect and spirit of one of the most reasonable and humane thinkers of all time.

This volume contains an introduction, a bibliography and a glossary, and there are appendices on events in the life of Confucius, on The Analects themselves and on the Disciples who appear in them. The whole is a veritable feast of wisdom, philosophy and social morality.