The: Analects: Contemporary Translation, translated by Erin M. Cline

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The: Analects: Contemporary Translation, translated by Erin M. Cline

Kongfuzi (called Confucius in the West) was a Chinese sage (c. 500 BC) whose teachings became fundamental in much of East Asia. Like all important teachers, contending schools developed and mistranslations occurred.

In her new translation, Erin M. Cline (Georgetown University) decided on gender-neutral pronouns: “In many cases,” she explains, this brings the text “closer to the original classical Chinese than previous English translations.” Kongfuzi sounds less male-superior in Cline’s rendition, and one hopes that this more accurately reflects his intentions. Cline made another decision that will make Kongfuzi more accessible. Rather than follow the traditional Chinese chapter-verse pattern, she rearranges the text by subject: Self-Cultivation, Harmony, Learning and Wisdom, Governance, etc.

So what did Kongfuzi say? The Analects resemble the Gospel of Thomas, largely a collection of short sayings as remembered by disciples. Unlike Jesus, Kongfuzi made no claims for innovation, saying only that he was a “transmitter” of traditions he feared were being lost. When asked about his aspirations, the “Master” replied: “To bring comfort to the old, inspire trust in my friends, and cherish the young.” Kongfuzi loved learning, deemed learning without knowledge as dangerous and preferred actions over words. He valued listening over talking.

“Don’t pretend to know more than you do,” Kongfuzi wrote. “I can remember historians who would reserve judgment and leave a blank space in their books.” Humility, respect, community and benevolence are the themes that run through the Analects.

Cline ignores the use to which China’s President Xi has put Confucianism. When asked about good governance Kongfuzi listed three essentials: “Have enough food, a sufficient military, and the people’s trust.” When asked which of the three he’d give up first, he replied, “the military.”

Get The Analects on Amazon here.

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