A Deep Exploration of the Way of Sovereign and Minister in 'The Analects: Xian Wen' and the Contingency of Benevolence and Righteousness

Section 7: Inquiry: Was Zang Wuzhong Truly Wrong$19

This is a question that must be directly confronted. From another angle, Zang Wuzhong’s situation was quite desperate:

He was forced to flee because he offended Ji Wuzi. He worried that once he left Lu, the Zang ancestral temple would have no one to officiate its rites. In the Zongfa system, the cessation of ancestral rites was the greatest act of unfilial piety. The Classic of Filial Piety (though its dating is debated, its core ideas are undoubtedly Pre-Qin) states: "Not loving one’s parents while loving others is called perverting virtue; not revering one’s parents while revering others is called perverting rites" (不爱其亲而爱他人者，谓之悖德；不敬其亲而敬他人者，谓之悖礼). Zang Wuzhong spared no means for the continuation of the ancestral rites; was this not a manifestation of "Filial Piety" (Xiao)$20

Furthermore, if he had not occupied Fang, the Duke of Lu might have ignored his request altogether—after all, he was now a disgraced exile. In a political environment where the strong prey on the weak, a request without power is merely idle talk.

This leads to a profound ethical dilemma: When a just objective must be achieved through unjust means, how should one choose$21

The Master’s answer is clear: Even if the goal is proper, an improper method is unacceptable. "Even if he said he was not coercing the ruler, I would not believe it" (Sui yue bu yao jun, wu bu xin ye)—the Master did not deny the sincerity of Zang Wuzhong’s motive for establishing a successor for the Zang clan, but he denied the legitimacy of the manner in which he acted.

This contrasts sharply with the dialogue in Analects, Chapter 16, where Ji Kangzi asked Confucius about governance: "If it means killing the lawless to establish the lawful, what do you think$22" Confucius replied: "If you rule politically, why use killing$23 If you desire goodness, the people will be good" (子为政，焉用杀？子欲善而民善矣). Even for the righteous goal of "establishing the lawful," the violent means of "killing the lawless" cannot be used, because the means corrupts the end.

This thought finds further resonance in Laozi, Chapter 30: "Those who assist a ruler with the Dao do not use military might to impose the world. Their achievements often rebound. Where armies camp, thorns grow. After a great army follows a year of famine" (以道佐人主者，不以兵强天下。其事好还。师之所处，荆棘生焉。大军之后，必有凶年). Even when force is used for a just cause, the outcome is often disastrous. Power and violence possess their own logic—"Their achievements often rebound"—what you impose on others will eventually return to you.

Zang Wuzhong’s act of using Fang to coerce the ruler, while perhaps successfully securing an heir for Zang, precisely accelerated the collapse of Lu’s political order—it set a terrible precedent for everyone: one could use strength to force the ruler to comply. Once this precedent was established, subsequent ministers could use even greater strength to pursue even more excessive demands.