Chapter One
The Way of Great Learning lies in illuminating luminous virtue, renewing the people, and abiding in utmost goodness.
Knowing where to abide brings stability; stability brings tranquility; tranquility brings security; security brings deliberation; deliberation brings attainment. All things have roots and branches; all affairs have beginnings and ends. Knowing precedence and sequence approaches the Way.
Those ancients wishing to illuminate virtue under heaven first governed their states. To govern states, they first regulated families. To regulate families, they first cultivated selves. To cultivate selves, they first rectified hearts. To rectify hearts, they first made intentions sincere. To make intentions sincere, they first extended knowledge. Extending knowledge lies in investigating things. When things are investigated, knowledge becomes complete. Complete knowledge leads to sincere intentions. Sincere intentions lead to rectified hearts. Rectified hearts lead to cultivated selves. Cultivated selves lead to regulated families. Regulated families lead to ordered states. Ordered states lead to peaceful realms. From Son of Heaven to commoners all take self-cultivation as root.
If roots are disordered, governance of branches cannot exist. To treat the substantial as trivial and trivial as substantial this never was nor shall be.
Chapter Two
The Announcement to Kang said: To manifest virtue. Tai Jia said: Reflect on the clear mandate of Heaven. The Canon of Emperor said: To manifest lofty virtue. All refer to self-illumination.
Chapter Three
The inscription on Tang's plate reads: If you can renew yourself for one day, you can renew yourself daily, and continue to renew yourself. The Announcement to Kang says: Create new citizens. The Book of Songs says: Although Zhou is an ancient state, its mandate is to renew. Therefore, a gentleman spares no effort in his endeavors.
Chapter Four
The Book of Songs says: The land extends a thousand miles, where the people reside. The Book of Songs says: The yellow bird rests at the corner of the hill. Master said: To know where to rest, can a person be inferior to a bird?
The Book of Songs says: King Wen was solemn and revered in his conduct! As a ruler, rest in benevolence; as a minister, rest in respect; as a son, rest in filial piety; as a father, rest in kindness; in dealings with the people, rest in trustworthiness.
The Book of Songs says: Look at the Qi River's banks, the lush green bamboo sways. The virtuous gentleman is like being carved and polished, like being cut and ground. He is serene and dignified, radiant and resounding. The virtuous gentleman is never to be forgotten! Being carved and polished refers to the study of Dao. Being cut and ground refers to self-cultivation. Serene and dignified refers to being cautious and respectful. Radiant and resounding refers to imposing manners. The virtuous gentleman is never to be forgotten because his virtue and goodness are so profound that the people cannot forget.
The Book of Songs says: Alas, the former kings are not forgotten! The gentleman values the virtuous and cherishes his kin, while the petty person enjoys his pleasures and seeks his gains, thus they are remembered throughout their lives.
Chapter Five
Master said: "In hearing lawsuits, I am like others. What is necessary is to make people not litigate." The heartless cannot fully express themselves. Greatly fear the will of the people; this is called knowing the root.
This is called knowing the root, this is called the ultimate knowledge.
Chapter Six
The so-called "investigation of things to extend knowledge" means that to extend our knowledge, we must investigate things and exhaust their principles. The human mind is inherently knowledgeable, and everything in the world has its principles. Only when these principles are not fully explored, our knowledge remains incomplete. Therefore, the Great Learning begins by teaching scholars to investigate all things in the world, using the principles they already know to further explore them, seeking to reach the ultimate. After long effort, one day everything becomes clear, and the essence and subtleties of all things are fully understood, and the full potential of our mind is illuminated. This is called the investigation of things, this is called the ultimate knowledge.
Chapter Seven
To make one's intentions sincere is to not deceive oneself. Like detesting foul odors, like loving beauty, this is called self-humility. Therefore, a gentleman must be cautious when alone. A petty person, when idle, does evil without restraint, but upon seeing a gentleman, they feign propriety, concealing their evil and displaying their good.
If people see through you as if they see your innermost organs, what benefit is there? This is called sincerity within, manifesting outwardly, thus a gentleman must be cautious when alone.
Zengzi said: "The eyes of ten are watching, the fingers of ten are pointing, how severe it is! Wealth enriches the house, virtue enriches the body, a broad mind and a plump body, thus a gentleman must make his intentions sincere."
Chapter Eight
The so-called cultivation of the self lies in rectifying the heart. If one harbors anger, it cannot be rectified; if one harbors fear, it cannot be rectified; if one harbors pleasure, it cannot be rectified; if one harbors worry, it cannot be rectified. When the mind is absent, one sees without seeing, hears without hearing, eats without tasting. This is what is meant by cultivating oneself through rectifying the heart.
Chapter Nine
To regulate one's family, one must first cultivate oneself. People tend to avoid those they love, those they despise, those they fear and respect, those they pity, and those they treat with arrogance and laziness. Therefore, it is rare to love and know their faults, or to hate and know their virtues. Thus, the saying goes: No one knows the faults of their own child, nor the excellence of their own crops. This means that without self-cultivation, one cannot regulate their family.
Chapter Ten
The principle that governing a state begins with ordering one's household: none can teach others while failing to teach their own kin. Thus noble persons educate the realm without leaving households. Filial piety serves rulers; fraternal duty serves elders; compassion commands the multitude. Announcement to Kang states: "Cherish infants as red babes." Sincerely seek this, and though not perfect, you approach it. None learn child-rearing before marriage. One household benevolent whole realm embraces benevolence; one household yielding realm adopts yielding; one man greedy realm descends into chaos: such is the pivot. A single word may ruin affairs; a single man may steady the state. Yao and Shun led through benevolence people followed. Jie and Zhou ruled through violence people complied. Commands contradicting one's nature go unheeded. Thus noble persons possess virtues before demanding them; condemn faults only when free of them. None who lack self-empathy can enlighten others. Hence, governing the state lies in ordering households.
The Book of Songs chants: "Peach blossoms lush, leaves dense. This maiden weds, harmonizing her household." Harmonized households teach the nation.
The Songs say: "Brotherly harmony achieved." Harmonious brothers instruct the people.
The Songs declare: "His bearing flawless, rectifying all states." When father-son-brother relations model virtue, people emulate them. This is why governing the state lies in ordering households.
Chapter Eleven
To govern the realm lies in ordering one's state: when superiors honor elders, people cultivate filial piety; when leaders respect seniors, people foster fraternal duty; when rulers care for orphans, people don't abandon them. Thus noble persons uphold the principle of the measuring square.
What you loathe from superiors, do not inflict on inferiors; what you detest from below, do not serve above; what you abhor before you, don't impose on successors; what you scorn behind you, don't follow predecessors; what you despise on the right, don't extend to the left; what you reject on the left, don't exchange with the right this is called the measuring square's principle.
The Book of Songs states: "Joyful is the nobleman, parent of the people." Cherishing what people cherish, hating what people hate this makes one their parent. The Songs say: "Towering Southern Mountain, crags sheer and steep." Illustrious Master Yin, all gaze upon you. Rulers must be vigilant deviation brings universal condemnation. The Songs declare: "Before Yin lost virtue, it matched Heaven's mandate. Learn from Yin: upholding mandate proves arduous." The Way gains followers to hold states, loses them to lose kingdoms.
Thus noble persons first cultivate virtue. Virtue attracts people; people secure land; land yields wealth; wealth enables utility.
Virtue is root, wealth mere branch. Prioritizing branch over root incites plunder. Wealth hoarded scatters people; wealth shared gathers them. Words twisted in departure return twisted; goods ill-gotten enter, likewise depart.
The Announcement to Kang states: "Mandate isn't constant. Follow goodness to gain it, abandon goodness to lose."
The Chu Documents say: "Chu treasures no jade only virtue as jewel." Jiu Fan declared: "Exiles treasure no gold only kinship as gem."
The Qin Oath proclaims: "Should there be a minister, resolute though lacking other skills, his mind at ease, capacious as valleys. Others' skills he claims as own; others' wisdom he loves beyond mere words. Such tolerance protects descendants and people blessing indeed! But should one envy others' skills, obstruct their wisdom such intolerance endangers all. Let benevolent rulers banish them to wilds, unworthy of Central Lands. Only benevolent ones can truly love and hate. Seeing worth but not promoting, promoting but not prioritizing this errs; seeing vice but not removing, removing but not distancing this fails. Loving what people hate, hating what people love this violates human nature, inviting calamity. Thus noble persons follow the Great Way: gain through loyalty and trust, lose through arrogance."
Wealth-generation has principles: many producers, few consumers; swift creation, measured use thus wealth abounds. Benevolent ones employ wealth to elevate virtue; vicious ones sacrifice virtue for wealth. Never has a ruler cherished benevolence without subjects upholding righteousness; never has righteousness flourished without tasks accomplished; never have treasuries held illegitimate wealth. Meng Xianzi said: "Horse-owning lords don't count chickens; ice-cutting nobles don't herd cattle; hundred-chariot houses shun tax-extorting ministers. Better thieves than extortioners." This means states profit through righteousness, not greed. Rulers prioritizing wealth inevitably follow petty men. Letting villains govern brings disasters even sages cannot salvage this. Thus states must seek righteousness as true profit.