公孙丑上 · 第 07 / 09 章 · 孟子 2A.7
《孟子·公孙丑上》2A.7:仁,人之安宅也;反求诸己而已矣
孟子把仁说成“人之安宅”,又用射者取譬说明修身的方向:不中,不怨胜己者,只反求诸己。这章也适合放回四端、性善与王道根据这一问题链中理解。
孟子曰:「矢人岂不仁于函人哉?矢人惟恐不伤人,函人惟恐伤人。巫匠亦然。故术不可不慎也。孔子曰:『里仁为美。择不处仁,焉得智?』夫仁,天之尊爵也,人之安宅也。莫之御而不仁,是不智也。不仁不智,无礼无义,人役也。人役而耻为役,由弓人而耻为弓、矢人而耻为矢也。如耻之,莫如为仁。仁者如射:射者正己而后发;发而不中,不怨胜己者,反求诸己而已矣。」
英文参考译文
Mencius said, 'Is the arrow-maker less benevolent than the maker of armour of defence? And yet, the arrow-maker's only fear is lest men should not be hurt, and the armour-maker's only fear is lest men should be hurt. So it is with the priest and the coffin-maker. The choice of a profession, therefore, is a thing in which great caution is required. Confucius said, "It is virtuous manners which constitute the excellence of a neighbourhood. If a man, in selecting a residence, do not fix on one where such prevail, how can he be wise?" Now, benevolence is the most honourable dignity conferred by Heaven, and the quiet home in which man should awell. Since no one can hinder us from being so, if yet we are not benevolent - this is being not wise. From the want of benevolence and the want of wisdom will ensue the entire absence of propriety and righteousness;-- he who is in such a case must be the servant of other men. To be the servant of men and yet ashamed of such servitude, is like a bowmaker's being ashamed to make bows, or an arrow-maker's being ashamed to make arrows. If he be ashamed of his case, his best course is to practise benevolence. The man who would be benevolent is like the archer. The archer adjusts himself and then shoots. If he misses, he does not murmur against those who surpass himself. He simply turns round and seeks the cause of his failure in himself.'
重点修订页
人工补强的解释层
核心问题
为什么孟子一面说“仁是安宅”,一面又说“反求诸己”?
直接回答
因为仁不是外加任务,而是人本该安顿自己的居所。真正偏离时,重点不在抱怨外部竞争,而在回头校正自己是否已经离开了这条正路。
第一性原理
修身不是先打败别人,而是先让自己回到那个本该安住的位置;外部比较只有在内部失位之后才会变形为怨恨。
为什么重要
这章把仁、羞耻、自我校正和反求诸己连成一条线,适合承接“仁者如射”“反求诸己”“benevolence as home”这类搜索问题。
延伸阅读
这章在做什么
这章是《公孙丑上》第 7 / 9 章,最直接的进入线索是“矢人岂不仁于函人哉”。放回全卷,它讨论的是四端、性善与王道根据,并可与浩然之气互相印证。
更宽的搜索入口
如果你带着更宽的问题进入这一章,先从正确的 hub 页进入
全卷语境
《公孙丑上》是理解四端、性善与仁政根据的关键卷次。
关联主题
引用提示
不要只摘“反求诸己”做情绪安慰。前面“仁,人之安宅也;义,人之正路也”的定义,才说明为什么回头检讨不是自责成瘾,而是重回正位。