Analects 1.5 · Xue Er
“To govern a state of a thousand chariots, attend to affairs with reverence and keep your word, spend sparingly and care for people, and call on the people’s labor only at the proper season.”
Meaning, context, and how to apply it today
道千乘之國 敬事而信 節用而愛人 使民以時 (dǎo qiān shèng zhī guó, jìng shì ér xìn, jié yòng ér ài rén, shǐ mín yǐ shí) means “To govern a state of a thousand chariots, attend to affairs with reverence and keep your word, spend sparingly and care for people, and call on the people’s labor only at the proper season.” It is a passage from the Analects of Confucius, Book 1 (Xue Er), Chapter 5.
道千乘之國 敬事而信 節用而愛人 使民以時
- Pinyin
- dǎo qiān shèng zhī guó, jìng shì ér xìn, jié yòng ér ài rén, shǐ mín yǐ shí
- Translation
- To govern a state of a thousand chariots, attend to affairs with reverence and keep your word, spend sparingly and care for people, and call on the people’s labor only at the proper season.
- Source
- Analects, Book 1 (Xue Er), Chapter 5
What does this passage mean?
In this passage from Xue Er, Confucius compresses the principles of government into three points. A state of a thousand chariots was a large feudal domain by the standards of the day. First, handle affairs with reverence and keep faith, so that the people can trust you. Second, be frugal in expenditure so that the burden does not fall on the people, and thereby show that you care for them. Third, when you must call on the people’s labor, do so at the right season, avoiding the times of planting and harvest. What sustains a great state is not dazzling policy but the modest principles of sincerity, restraint, and consideration.
How can we apply it today?
These three principles translate directly into running an organization today. A leader who does not cut corners and who keeps promises earns trust. An executive who treats company money as carefully as personal money does not reach first for layoffs when a crisis comes. And respecting people’s time, not dropping tasks on them after hours or during vacations and avoiding requests when deadlines pile up, is what it means to call on their labor at the proper season. The larger the organization, the more these basic attitudes, rather than technical skill, decide how long it lasts. The same holds for a team leader or a parent.
Questions to reflect on
- ·Do you handle your responsibilities carefully enough to earn the trust of those around you?
- ·How much do you consider the time and circumstances of the people you work with?
- ·Which of the resources you use could you spend more sparingly?
Character-by-character breakdown
| Character | Pinyin | Meaning | Strokes | Radical |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 道 | dǎo | lead | 13 | 辵 (walk) |
| 千 | qiān | thousand | 3 | 十 (ten) |
| 乘 | shèng | chariot | 10 | 丿 (slash) |
| 之 | zhī | go; possessive particle | 4 | 丿 (slash) |
| 國 | guó | state | 11 | 囗 (enclosure) |
| 敬 | jìng | respect | 13 | 攴 (tap) |
| 事 | shì | affair | 8 | 亅 (hook) |
| 而 | ér | and; but | 6 | 而 (and) |
| 信 | xìn | trust | 9 | 人 (person) |
| 節 | jié | joint | 15 | 竹 (bamboo) |
| 用 | yòng | use | 5 | 用 (use) |
| 而 | ér | and; but | 6 | 而 (and) |
| 愛 | ài | love | 13 | 心 (heart) |
| 人 | rén | person | 2 | 人 (person) |
| 使 | shǐ | cause | 8 | 人 (person) |
| 民 | mín | the people | 5 | 氏 (clan) |
| 以 | yǐ | by means of | 5 | 人 (person) |
| 時 | shí | time | 10 | 日 (sun) |
Frequently asked questions
Q. What does “To govern a state of a thousand chariots…” mean?
道千乘之國 敬事而信 節用而愛人 使民以時 (dǎo qiān shèng zhī guó, jìng shì ér xìn, jié yòng ér ài rén, shǐ mín yǐ shí) means “To govern a state of a thousand chariots, attend to affairs with reverence and keep your word, spend sparingly and care for people, and call on the people’s labor only at the proper season.” It comes from the Analects, Book 1 (Xue Er), Chapter 5.
Q. Where does this passage appear in the Analects?
It is Analects 1.5: Book 1 (Xue Er), Chapter 5.
Q. How can this teaching be applied today?
These three principles translate directly into running an organization today.A leader who does not cut corners and who keeps promises earns trust.