尽心上 · 第 09 / 46 章 · 孟子 7A.9
《孟子·尽心上》7A.9:穷则独善其身,达则兼善天下
孟子在 7A.9 区分不得志与得志时的责任:不得志先修身守义,得志则把善扩到更大范围,而不是只求自保。
孟子谓宋句践曰:「子好游乎?吾语子游:人知之亦嚣嚣,人不知亦嚣嚣。」曰:「何如斯可以嚣嚣矣?」曰:「尊德乐义,则可以嚣嚣矣。故士穷不失义,达不离道。穷不失义,故士得己焉。达不离道,故民不失望焉。古之人,得志,泽加于民;不得志,修身见于世。穷则独善其身;达则兼善天下。」
英文参考译文
Mencius said to Song Gou Jian, 'Are you fond, Sir, of travelling to the different courts? I will tell you about such travelling. If a prince acknowledge you and follow your counsels, be perfectly satisfied. If no one do so, be the same.' Gou Jian said, 'What is to be done to secure this perfect satisfaction?' Mencius replied, 'Honour virtue and delight in righteousness, and so you may always be perfectly satisfied. Therefore, a scholar, though poor, does not let go his righteousness; though prosperous, he does not leave his own path. Poor and not letting righteousness go - it is thus that the scholar holds possession of himself. Prosperous and not leaving the proper path - it is thus that the expectations of the people from him are not disappointed. When the men of antiquity realized their wishes, benefits were conferred by them on the people. If they did not realize their wishes, they cultivated their personal character, and became illustrious in the world. If poor, they attended to their own virtue in solitude; if advanced to dignity, they made the whole kingdom virtuous as well.'
重点修订页
人工补强的解释层
核心问题
为什么孟子把“独善其身”和“兼善天下”放在同一条路上?
直接回答
因为两者不是对立选项,而是同一个原则在不同处境下的展开:失位时不失义,得位时不离道,于是个人善与公共善才连得起来。
第一性原理
境遇改变的是责任半径,不改变判断尺度。
为什么重要
这是最常见的孟子名句之一,直接服务“独善其身”“兼善天下”“个人修养与公共责任”这些搜索问题。
延伸阅读
这章在做什么
这章是《尽心上》第 9 / 46 章,最直接的进入线索是“子好游乎”。放回全卷,它讨论的是尽心、诚与保存本心,并可与仁政、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
《尽心上》重点是尽心、诚与如何保存已经给定的人心能力。
引用提示
不要把“独善其身”理解成自私退场。孟子说的是在不得志时先守住义,而不是把公共责任彻底取消。