《 DISCOURSES 1.12 》
THE USEFULNESS OF RITUAL 《禮之用》
THE USEFULNESS OF RITUAL
《禮之用》
In the usefulness of ritual, harmony makes it valuable.
The ways of the ancient kings, in this was the beauty;
both the great and the small follow it.
Yet if there is something not working,
and knowing harmony, one tries to harmonize,
without conjoining it with rites,
still, it cannot work.– Youzi 有子
禮之用，和為貴。
先王之道斯為美，
小大由之。
有所不行，
知和而和，
不以禮節之，
亦不可行也。
In the usefulness of ritual, harmony makes it valuable. The ways of the ancient kings, in this was the beauty; both the great and the small follow it.
Yet if there is something not working, and knowing harmony, one tries to harmonize, without conjoining it with rites, still, it cannot work.– Youzi 有子
禮之用，和為貴。 先王之道斯為美，小大由之。 有所不行， 知和而和， 不以禮節之， 亦不可行也。
[currently under review]
In the usefulness of ritual, harmony makes it valuable. The ways of the ancient kings, in this was the beauty; both the great and the small follow it.
Ritual (li 禮) is regulation and ornament according to the organizing Principle of Nature¹; it is the form and standard of human affairs. As for harmony (he 和) it is an easy manner without an intention to compel. Undoubtedly the substance of ritual is rigorous, and yet in all cases it comes from natural principles. Therefore in its function (yong 用, “use”) it should be with an easy manner and without being compelled [i.e., harmonious], thereupon it can be valuable. The ways of the ancient kings are considered beautiful for this reason, and there are no affairs, great or small, that do not follow this.
– Zhu Xi 朱熹
禮者，天理之節文，人事之儀則也。和者，從容不迫之意。蓋禮之為體雖嚴，而皆出於自然之理，故其為用，必從容而不迫，乃為可貴。先王之道，此其所以為美，而小事大事無不由之也。
Yet if there is something not working, and knowing harmony, one tries to harmonize, without conjoining it with rites, still, it cannot work.
Continuing from the above text, it can be said that if there are situations where it is thus [valuing harmony], and yet there is still something not working, it is because one merely recognizes the value of harmony and becomes wholly fixated on harmonizing without also regulating² it with the rites. After all, this too is not the fundamental nature of this pattern (li 理, “principle”). This is why it drifts about ungoverned, forgets its origin, and still cannot work.
– Zhu Xi 朱熹
承上文而言，如此而復有所不行者，以其徒知和之為貴而一於和，不復以禮節之，則亦非復理之本然矣，所以流蕩忘反，而亦不可行也。
° ° °
When ritual dominates it creates an estranged detachment. Hence “in the usefulness of ritual, harmony makes it valuable.” The “ways of the ancient kings,” with this were they beautiful, and “both the great and the small follow it.” When music³ dominates it drifts aimless and unrestrained. Hence situations where “there is something not working, and knowing harmony one tries to harmonize, but without regulating it with rites it still cannot work.”
– Cheng Brothers 程子
禮勝則離，故禮之用和為貴。先王之道以斯為美，而小大由之。樂勝則流，故有所不行者，知和而和，不以禮節之，亦不可行。
The substance of ritual is always founded in seriousness, while its function uses harmony to make it valuable. Seriousness is the means by which ritual is established; harmony is that from which music is born. As pertaining to Youzi, he can be said to have comprehended the foundations of ritual and music.³
– Fan Zuyu 范祖禹⁴
凡禮之體主於敬，而其用則以和為貴。敬者，禮之所以立也；和者，樂之所由生也。若有子可謂達禮樂之本矣。
I humbly say that the nature of this pattern, which embodies the entirety of ritual, is strictness and yet accommodation, harmony but with regulation. When there is a hair’s breadth deviation it will lose its correct balance (zhong 中, “the Mean”), then it leans toward either side and cannot work evenly.
– Zhu Xi 朱熹
愚謂嚴而泰，和而節，此理之自然，禮之全體也。毫釐有差，則失其中正，而各倚於一偏，其不可行均矣。
Translated text: Discourses with Collected Commentaries, Qing Dynasty imperial library edition, pg5: chapter 1, verse 12.
Character Notes by Zhu Xi
Li 禮 (“ritual”) is ‘regulation and ornament according to the organizing Principle of Nature’ (天理之節文); it is the ‘norms and standards of human affairs’ (人事之儀則). As for he 和 (“harmony”) it is ‘an easy manner without an intention to compel’ (從容不迫之意).
Footnotes
¹ “The organizing principle of Nature” (tian li 天理) refers to the observable principles, patterns, or order (li 理) within nature or the universe (tian 天). This concept is central to the rationalist Confucian philosophy that emerged during the Song Dynasty. All things follow it and are imbued with it.
² “To regulate” (zhi 節) means to make something regular, in this context to order social interactions. Originally meaning a “joint,” literally the joints or “nodes” in bamboo, here a social network “conjoined” by rites.
³ “Ritual and music” (li and yue 禮樂) have been the fundamentals of social functions from ancient times. There must be reverence and joy in the mind, but without rites and music, how can it be seen? Yet if there are merely rites and music without this mind, how can they be substantial? It is by means of this that human affairs are brought into order and harmony.
⁴ Fan Zuyu 范祖禹 (1041-1098) was a prominent Neo-Confucian scholar-official and historian, a pupil of the Cheng Brothers, who was known for his doctrine of sincerity. He critiqued Daoism as leading humans into chaos.
pg6: verse 12 continued.