Analects 15.2 · Wei Ling Gong
“The exemplary person holds firm in hardship; the petty person, in hardship, goes to excess.”
Meaning, context, and how to apply it today
君子固窮 小人窮斯濫矣 (jūn zǐ gù qióng, xiǎo rén qióng sī làn yǐ) means “The exemplary person holds firm in hardship; the petty person, in hardship, goes to excess.” It is a passage from the Analects of Confucius, Book 15 (Wei Ling Gong), Chapter 2.
君子固窮 小人窮斯濫矣
- Pinyin
- jūn zǐ gù qióng, xiǎo rén qióng sī làn yǐ
- Translation
- The exemplary person holds firm in hardship; the petty person, in hardship, goes to excess.
- Source
- Analects, Book 15 (Wei Ling Gong), Chapter 2
What does this passage mean?
The background of the second chapter of Wei Ling Gong is this. Confucius and his followers ran out of provisions in Chen, and those who followed him fell ill and could not rise. Zilu, angry, demanded to know whether even the exemplary person has to endure hardship, and Confucius gave this answer. The exemplary person also suffers hardship but holds firm in it, while the petty person, in hardship, overflows into excess. To hold firm in hardship means to keep oneself in the midst of want; the last character means to go beyond the Way, as water overflows its banks. The difference between the two lies not in whether they suffer hardship but in how they act within it. Spoken in the midst of hunger, these words show that the Way of Confucius was no abstraction.
How can we apply it today?
Everyone keeps their dignity when times are good. A person’s real character shows when the money runs out, the job is lost, and a trusted relationship collapses. Do they abandon their principles and reach for shortcuts, or keep their own standards even when it is hard? Confucius did not promise to remove hardship. He said only that we can choose what kind of person to remain within it. Passing through unemployment, failure, or illness without collapsing is a matter of attitude, not ability. Hardship tests a person, but it also proves one.
Questions to reflect on
- ·How did you act in your hardest time?
- ·What principle kept you standing in hardship?
- ·If you are in difficulty now, what kind of person do you want to remain?
Character-by-character breakdown
| Character | Pinyin | Meaning | Strokes | Radical |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 君 | jūn | ruler | 7 | 口 (mouth) |
| 子 | zǐ | son | 3 | 子 (child) |
| 固 | gù | firm | 8 | 囗 (enclosure) |
| 窮 | qióng | destitute; in straits | 15 | 穴 (cave) |
| 小 | xiǎo | small | 3 | 小 (small) |
| 人 | rén | person | 2 | 人 (person) |
| 窮 | qióng | destitute; in straits | 15 | 穴 (cave) |
| 斯 | sī | this | 12 | 斤 (axe) |
| 濫 | làn | overflow; go to excess | 17 | 水 (water) |
| 矣 | yǐ | grammatical particle | 7 | 矢 (arrow) |
Frequently asked questions
Q. What does “The exemplary person holds firm in…” mean?
君子固窮 小人窮斯濫矣 (jūn zǐ gù qióng, xiǎo rén qióng sī làn yǐ) means “The exemplary person holds firm in hardship; the petty person, in hardship, goes to excess.” It comes from the Analects, Book 15 (Wei Ling Gong), Chapter 2.
Q. Where does this passage appear in the Analects?
It is Analects 15.2: Book 15 (Wei Ling Gong), Chapter 2.
Q. How can this teaching be applied today?
Everyone keeps their dignity when times are good.A person’s real character shows when the money runs out, the job is lost, and a trusted relationship collapses.