Confucius’s quotations about gentlemen and villains

1. A gentleman is likened to righteousness, and a villain is likened to benefit.

From: "The Analects of Confucius·Liren".

Translation: What a gentleman can understand is morality, and what a villain can understand is benefit.

Gentlemen and villains have different value orientations. A gentleman must distinguish right from wrong, while a villain must consider the pros and cons of everything. The so-called "profit" refers to material interests such as money and wealth; the so-called "righteousness" refers to moral values ??such as morality and justice that transcend material interests.

A gentleman bases his actions on righteousness. Whatever he does or does not do, he compares it with righteousness. The villain only cares about self-interest and measures it by profit. He will abandon morality for profit and only think about whether there is profit in doing things.

2. Gentlemen are harmonious but different; villains are harmonious but not harmonious.

From: "The Analects of Confucius·Zilu".

Translation: A gentleman seeks harmony but not conformity; a villain only seeks complete agreement but not coordination.

A gentleman can maintain a harmonious and harmonious atmosphere with his surroundings, but he should have his own independent opinions on everything, instead of blindly following what others say. Villains do not have their own independent opinions. Although they are often consistent with others, they do not actually pursue true harmony.

3. A gentleman is magnanimous, but a villain is always concerned.

From: "The Analects of Confucius·Shuer".

Translation: A gentleman is upright and open-minded, while a villain is preoccupied and worried about gains and losses.

A gentleman is upright, fearless, and his mind is always bright and clear, like the spring breeze blowing, refreshing and smooth, like the autumn moon shining brightly and brightly. Maintain this state of mind and be kind to others, so you are "magnanimous". As for villains, they always worry about gains and losses. They don't feel that others are sorry for them, or that something is not good for them. They are busy with calculations, driven by various desires for gain, and often fall into fear, so they are always "always in love".

4. A gentleman seeks everything from himself, while a villain seeks everything from others.

From: "The Analects of Confucius·Wei Linggong".

Translation: A gentleman demands for himself, while a villain demands for others.

People with a gentleman's character will first look for the reasons within themselves when encountering problems, while those who are villains will always find ways to shirk responsibility and distance themselves from themselves when trouble occurs, and will never reflect on themselves or look for reasons from themselves. .

5. The beauty of a gentleman is not the evil of a man, but the villain is.

From: "The Analects of Confucius·Yan Yuan".

Translation: A gentleman accomplishes the good things of others and does not contribute to the bad things of others, while a villain does the opposite.

As a gentleman, he always starts from the desire to be kind or beneficial to others, and wholeheartedly promotes others to realize their good intentions and legitimate requirements, and does not look at the world with cold eyes. Or they are afraid that the world will not be chaotic, and they will not add fuel to the fire when others have failures, mistakes, or pain. Villains, on the contrary, are always "evil as adults but not beautiful as adults".