A Deep Exploration of the Way of Sovereign and Minister in 'The Analects: Xian Wen' and the Contingency of Benevolence and Righteousness
This paper focuses on the core political discourse passages in 'The Analects: Xian Wen' concerning figures like Zang Wuzhong, Guan Zhong, and Duke Ling of Wei. It analyzes Confucius's profound insights into the sovereign-minister relationship, the distinction between hegemony and true kingship, and the calibration of benevolence (Ren) and righteousness (Yi), particularly investigating the gap between 'the difficulty of action' and 'the essence of Ren'.
Section 3: The Deeper Implication of "Da" (通达, Attainment)
The character "Da" (Attainment) has multiple meanings in the Pre-Qin lexicon, including "penetration," "arrival," and "comprehension."
Analects, Chapter 15, records the Master answering Zhang Gong's question about "Da": "Being straightforward and fond of righteousness, discerning speech and observing countenance, and considering how to be subordinate to others. In the state, one will attain; in the family, one will attain" (质直而好义，察言而观色，虑以下人。在邦必达，在家必达). "Da" is a state of penetration achievable in any environment.
However, the "Da" here seems to carry a layer of "achievement" or "mastery"—"Shang Da" is the continuous spiritual refinement, reaching a higher realm; "Xia Da" is the continuous descent into private gain, sinking into a lower abyss.
Xunzi, Quan Xue states: "Learning cannot cease. Indigo is taken from indigo plant, yet it is bluer than the plant; ice is made from water, yet it is colder than water" (青，取之于蓝，而青于蓝；冰，水为之，而寒于水). The superior man’s "Shang Da" is this never-ending process of learning and cultivation.
"Xia Da" is the reverse process—the constant indulgence of desires, the lowering of standards, eventually falling into an irredeemable abyss.
Laozi, Chapter 48, states: "In the pursuit of learning, increase day by day; in the pursuit of the Dao, decrease day by day. Decrease and decrease again until one reaches non-action. With non-action, there is nothing left undone" (为学日益，为道日损。损之又损，以至于无为。无为而无不为). What Laozi calls "decreasing" is a refinement aimed upward—shedding excess desire and distraction until reaching the state of "non-action." This shares the same ultimate direction as the Master’s "Shang Da"—an upward, inward, Dao-oriented movement.