Welcome to the traditional Confucian curriculum. Below are links to the “Four Books” with Wing-tsit Chan’s public domain translations alongside the Classical Chinese text for bilingual study. When encountering Confucian terminology, you can consult our handbook “Learning of the Way: An Explanation of Terms.”

1. Great Learning《大學》

2. The Discourses《論語》

3. The Book of Mengzi《孟子》

4. Doctrine of the Mean《中庸》

“When we read, we must first of all understand the meanings of the words. Only then can we find out the ideas of the text. It has never been possible to understand the ideas without knowing the meanings of the words.” – Chengzi

Note: This is an in-progress summarization-digitization of the Sishu ziyi 四書字義 (“An Explanation of Terms in the Four Books”) by Zhu Xi's renowned pupil Chen Chun. When complete, it will serve as an online study resource for the Four Books.

1. The Noble Man 君子

2. The Five Virtues 五常

3. Fundamental Concepts of Reality 天本

4. Man’s Mind and Character 心德

5. Central Concepts [in progress]

6. Secondary Values [in progress]

7. Various Terminology [in progress]

8. Learning of the Way [coming soon]

9. Lineage of the Dao [coming soon]

10. Worthy Persons [coming soon]

“This is the first volume of the Discourses, hence what is written is for the most part on the intention of devoting oneself to the fundamentals (ben 本). These serve as the gate through which one enters the Way (dao 道), the foundation for accumulating virtue, and the first concern of the student. Altogether there are sixteen verses.” – Zhu Xi

Note: This is an in-progress translation of volume one of Lunyu jizhu 論語集注 (“The Discourses with Collected Commentaries”), the influential curriculum created by Zhu Xi. As the full text is extensive and untranslated, only the first part is targeted initially.

Book Introduction by the Cheng Brothers and He Yan 序說

Volume 1: Fundamentals of the Way: Introduction by Zhu Xi《道本》

1. Learn and Then 學而

2. As for Human Behavior 其為人也

3. Skillful Words 巧言

4. Three Introspections 三省

5. Way of the Great State [in progress]

6. Young Sons [in progress]

7. Valuing Worthiness [in progress]

8. Noble Man [in progress]

9. Mind the End [in progress]

10. Our Teacher [in progress]

11. When the Father is Alive [in progress]

12. The Usefulness of Ritual [in progress]

13. Trustworthiness is Close to Rightness [in progress]

14. Learning the Way [in progress]

15. Endless Refinement [in progress]

16. Knowing Others [in progress]

Additional Resources:

See the Q&A for basic background information useful in understanding the Four Books, and Chinese philosophy in general: “What are the Four Books; What are the Collected Commentaries; Who is Zhu Xi; What is the Confucian Dao?” Most native English speakers will have learned none of this in their formal education. Therefore much information is condensed into this “get up to speed fast” page.

For a first reading of the Four Books the best starting point is Wing-tsit Chan’s partial translation in one hundred pages: Source Book pg. 14 – 114. As a public domain work, it is also hosted on this site, converted to modern pinyin. There is also Legge’s full translation with notes in over a thousand pages: The Four Books. Unfortunately, neither of these include Zhu Xi’s Collected Commentaries, which are necessary to properly interpret and inspire practice.

In following the Four Books curriculum, you can use our handy guide Learning of the Way: An Explanation of Terms for studying the fundamental concepts and their corresponding characters. The explanations of terms adhere to the orthodox interpretation established by the Cheng-Zhu School, which authored the curriculum itself. See also Flashcards for Confucian Concepts.

For learning Classical Chinese (古文), which is not the same as modern Chinese, I recommend Stanford’s Classical Chinese Self-study Course. It is not difficult to learn some characters and basic grammar. As you delve deeper into classical, strongly consider using A Student’s Dictionary of Classical and Medieval Chinese by Paul Kroll, available as an add-on in the Pleco app for iPhone.

For an overview of Chinese philosophy as a whole, in the words of the sages themselves, there is none better than Professor Wing-tsit Chan’s textbook A Source Book in Chinese Philosophy, which is freely available as a PDF. This collection of translations is both scholarly and readable, and covers the full lineage of Chinese thought (Confucius to Mao) in chronological order. See other book recommendations in the Q&A.

For an essay on how the Lunyu was branded in English as “Analects” by translator James Legge over 150 years ago, and why it is more properly titled “Discourses,” see The Analects of Confucius, a Rectification of Names. Ironically, even Legge himself gave “Discourses and Dialogues” as the literal translation in his introduction to the book. In this curriculum we follow Legge and Chan in their more literal translation: Discourses.

Take a deep dive into this central concept, li 理 (“the organizing pattern or principle of Nature”), which runs through the entirety of Chinese philosophy. The Evolution of Li, a companion to Wing-tsit Chan’s essay by the same name, brings together li-quotes across thousands of years. Really, li is more central than dao!

There is a new page of Sino-Philosophy Diagrams which presents fundamental concepts in Chinese philosophy. Feel free to share them around the internet, try them out in your classes, and contact me with ideas for improvements and new builds.

For daily Confucian quotes you can follow “Solzi” on Twitter or Facebook. Online discussion in the Sino-corners of Twitter is actually quite good, with numerous scholars and enthusiasts taking part. Given the shifting geopolitical landscape, understanding [real] East Asian thought is increasingly important, yet remains essentially nonexistent in the English-speaking world.