their possession of them, to make a distinction between themselves and brutes.
6. 23. In the highest antiquity they prized (simply conferring) good; in the time next to this, giving and repaying was the thing attended to[1]. And what the rules of propriety value is that reciprocity. If I give a gift and nothing comes in return, that is contrary to propriety; if the thing comes to me, and I give nothing in return, that also is contrary to propriety. 24. If a man observe the rules of propriety, he is in a condition of security; if he do not, he is in one of danger. Hence there is the saying, "The rules of propriety should by no means be left unlearned." 25. Propriety is seen in humbling ones self and giving honour to others. Even porters and pedlers are sure to display this giving honour (in some cases); how much more should the rich and noble do so (in all)! 26. When the rich and noble know to love propriety, they do not become proud nor dissolute. When the poor and mean know to love propriety, their minds do not become cowardly.
7. 27. When one is ten years old, we call him a boy; he goes (out) to school. When he is twenty, we call him a youth; he is capped. When he is thirty, we say, "He is at his maturity;" he has a wife[2].
When
- ↑ Compare with this paragraph the state of "the highest antiquity" described in the Tâo Teh King, chapters 18, 19, et al.
- ↑ When it is said that at thirty a man has a wife, the meaning must be that he ought not to reach that age without being married. Early marriages were the rule in ancient China, as they are now. Confucius was married when barely twenty. In the same way we are to understand the being in office at forty. A man might take office at thirty; if he reached forty before he did so, there was something wrong in himself or others.
