The Distinction between Penalties and Virtue and the Learning of Heaven’s People: A Deep Exegesis of the Five Chapters in Xunzi’s "Dali"

Chapter 1: "King Wen executed four, King Wu executed two, the Duke of Zhou completed the work, and by the time of Cheng and Kang, there were no executions" — Interpretation and Inquiry

I. The Literal Meaning of the Text

"King Wen executed four, King Wu executed two, the Duke of Zhou completed the work, and by the time of Cheng and Kang, there were no executions."

These nineteen characters are deceptively simple, yet their philosophical weight is profound. Literally, it means: During his reign, King Wen of Zhou carried out four major executions; King Wu continued this, carrying out two major executions; the Duke of Zhou then completed the great enterprise of the House of Zhou; and by the time of King Cheng and King Kang, the world was at peace, and there was no further need for executions.

However, a closer examination of this statement raises many questions.

The first question: Does "executed four" or "executed two" refer to the number of people killed, or to the number of military campaigns conducted$7 In pre-Qin texts, the term zhu (誅, to execute/punish) has a broad meaning. The Shuowen Jiezi, though a Han dynasty text, inherits pre-Qin usage, defining zhu as "to chastise/punish." In the pre-Qin context, zhu could mean the killing of an individual, the military campaign against a state, or the act of punishment in the name of justice.

Master Xun's use of zhu here likely carries the dual meaning of military conquest and penal punishment. Why$8 Because regarding King Wen, his life’s campaigns are documented in the Shangshu, the Classic of Poetry, and the Yi Zhou Shu. The Classic of Poetry ("Huang Yi") records his campaigns against the Mi, Chong, and others. These four major campaigns are the probable referents for "executed four." King Wu’s "executed two" most significantly refers to the Battle of Muye and the subsequent pacification of the remaining Yin-Shang forces.

Yet, there is another interpretation: "executed four" and "executed two" might not refer solely to the number of military campaigns, but to the number of times or subjects for which the state had to resort to severe punishment to rectify the social order. This also holds merit, as the primary theme of Master Xun's text is the inverse relationship between punishment and moral transformation. Whether it is military conquest or penal law, the essence of zhu here is "subduing people with force" and "stopping evil with punishment." The progression from four to two to zero is clear evidence of the transition from "subduing people by force" to "transforming people by virtue."

The second question: Why is there a downward numerical trend$9 This is a critical point. From the "four" of King Wen to the "two" of King Wu, and then to the "zero" of the Cheng-Kang era, this is not an accidental sequence but a profound insight into the process of governance.

King Wen’s era was the end of the Shang Dynasty, a time of great disorder where the tyrant Zhou was in power. To implement benevolent governance in an era where the Rites and Music had collapsed, one must first remove the violent with force. Without removing the violent, the good cannot settle; without correcting the disorder, transformation cannot be implemented. Thus, even a ruler of utmost benevolence like King Wen had to engage in conquest. "The Zhou is an old state, but its mandate is new"—this "newness" refers to building a new order amidst the collapse of the old. This required a process of "breaking," which is the deep meaning of "executing four."

King Wu’s executions were fewer because King Wen had already laid the foundation. By the time of Kings Cheng and Kang, the efforts of three generations had established a complete system of Rites and Music. The people lived in peace, and moral transformation had taken root. At this stage, order no longer needed to be maintained through execution—people obeyed out of internal identification with the order, not out of fear of punishment. This is the essence of the Confucian ideal: punishment is a means, not an end; execution is a last resort, not the norm.

II. The Deep Meaning of the Three Generations — The Ebb and Flow of Transformation and Punishment

Master Xun’s historical narrative reveals a major political philosophy: the highest state of governance lies not in the strictness of punishment, but in the extinction of punishment.

This thought finds resonance throughout pre-Qin Confucian classics. Confucius famously said in the Analects (Weizheng): "If you lead the people with administrative measures and keep them in order with punishments, they will avoid the punishment but have no sense of shame. If you lead them with virtue and keep them in order with the Rites, they will have a sense of shame and will correct themselves." This is the internal logic of the progression from "executing four" to "no executions."

Why does leading the people with punishment only achieve "avoidance without shame"$10 Master Xun explains in the Xing'e (Human Nature is Evil) chapter that human nature requires the "laws of teachers" and "rites and righteousness" to become upright. Punishment can stop people from doing evil, but it cannot teach them to do good. It is a remedy for symptoms, while transformation is a remedy for the root cause. Confucius also noted that it takes a "hundred years" (roughly three generations) for a virtuous man to overcome cruelty and eliminate the need for killing. From King Wen to Kings Cheng and Kang, the timeframe is approximately a hundred years, perfectly aligning with this Confucian insight.

III. "The Duke of Zhou Completed the Work" — The Critical Link of Institutional Construction

Master Xun inserts the phrase "the Duke of Zhou completed the work" between King Wu and the Cheng-Kang era. This is the crucial bridge from "conquest" to "transformation." If Kings Wen and Wu conquered the world by force, the Duke of Zhou solidified it through institutional construction. Without his "completion," military victory could not have been converted into lasting peace.

The Duke of Zhou’s profound understanding, as recorded in the Shangshu ("Duo Shi" and "Kang Gao"), reflects his deep reflection on the collapse of the Xia and Shang dynasties. He understood that relying solely on military conquest was insufficient; one must establish a rational system where people voluntarily accept the new order. His central concept, "illustrious virtue and cautious punishment," meant that virtue must come first, and punishment must be used sparingly and cautiously. This is the essence of his "completion": establishing a governance system based on virtue, supported by punishment.

IV. "By the Time of Cheng and Kang, There Were No Executions" — Governance by Non-Action and the Age of Great Peace

"There were no executions" does not mean that there were no laws, but that the law existed in a state of suspended animation. It is like a sword in its sheath; its power lies in the fact that it does not need to be drawn. This shares a deep affinity with the Daoist concept of "governing by non-action" (wuwei).

However, a distinction remains: the Daoist "non-action" is a fundamental principle of governance, while the Confucian "no executions" is the result of a historical process. For the Confucians, one must first be "active"—conquering the violent, establishing systems, and practicing moral education—before one can reach the ideal state where punishment is no longer necessary.

V. The Ancient Perspective — Mythological Removal of Violence and Cultivation

In ancient mythology, the "executions" by the Yellow Emperor or the taming of floods by Great Yu represent the movement from "subduing by force" to "transformation by guidance." Great Yu’s shift from the "blocking" method of his father, Gun, to the "draining and guiding" method of his own, is the ultimate example of "transformation" transcending "execution." This aligns with the transition from the violent order of the early Zhou to the refined order of the Cheng-Kang era.

VI. From Execution to Non-Execution — The Grand Outline of Penal Philosophy

In summary, Master Xun’s passage reveals a complete penal philosophy:

1. Punishment is a means, not an end. The highest state of a physician is not being good at using medicine, but preventing the disease; the highest state of a ruler is not being good at using punishment, but preventing the need for it.
2. The reduction of punishment is a marker of civilizational progress. It signals a move from barbarism to civilization, from force to reason.
3. The realization of "no executions" depends on the cumulative efforts of generations. Political ideals are not achieved in an instant; they are the result of continuous, sustained efforts to build a foundation of virtue and ritual.