Analects 17.11 · Yang Huo
“Ritual, ritual! Does it mean nothing but jade and silk? Music, music! Does it mean nothing but bells and drums?”
Meaning, context, and how to apply it today
禮云禮云 玉帛云乎哉 樂云樂云 鐘鼓云乎哉 (lǐ yún lǐ yún, yù bó yún hū zāi, yuè yún yuè yún, zhōng gǔ yún hū zāi) means “Ritual, ritual! Does it mean nothing but jade and silk? Music, music! Does it mean nothing but bells and drums?” It is a passage from the Analects of Confucius, Book 17 (Yang Huo), Chapter 11.
禮云禮云 玉帛云乎哉 樂云樂云 鐘鼓云乎哉
- Pinyin
- lǐ yún lǐ yún, yù bó yún hū zāi, yuè yún yuè yún, zhōng gǔ yún hū zāi
- Translation
- Ritual, ritual! Does it mean nothing but jade and silk? Music, music! Does it mean nothing but bells and drums?
- Source
- Analects, Book 17 (Yang Huo), Chapter 11
What does this passage mean?
This passage comes from the eleventh chapter of Yang Huo. People speak of ritual and speak of music, but does ritual mean gifts of jade and silk, and does music mean bells and drums? Jade and silk were the objects exchanged when ritual was performed, and bells and drums the instruments on which music was played. Confucius lamented that people thought they had fulfilled ritual and music merely by furnishing these forms. The essence of ritual is a reverent heart, and the essence of music is a harmonious one. It matches his remark in Ba Yi that without humaneness ritual and music are nothing, and reflects his consistent concern to return a culture trapped in form to its root in the heart.
How can we apply it today?
We often see events that are grand but heartless and gifts that are expensive but careless: the formulaic messages exchanged on every anniversary, the family occasions attended out of obligation, the gatherings held for the photographs. Confucius’s question still applies. Is courtesy a gift? Is a celebration a cake? Form is necessary, but form cannot substitute for feeling; in fact the larger the form, the more visible it becomes whether feeling is present. That is why a few handwritten lines outlast an expensive present. Asking not what is exchanged but what is contained in it is where ritual and music begin.
Questions to reflect on
- ·Does the courtesy you show carry feeling, or only form?
- ·Is there a small act of care that has stayed with you longer than any expensive gift?
- ·Have you recently kept up a form while leaving out the heart?
Character-by-character breakdown
| Character | Pinyin | Meaning | Strokes | Radical |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 禮 | lǐ | ritual propriety | 18 | 示 (spirit) |
| 云 | yún | say | 4 | 二 (two) |
| 禮 | lǐ | ritual propriety | 18 | 示 (spirit) |
| 云 | yún | say | 4 | 二 (two) |
| 玉 | yù | jade | 5 | 玉 (jade) |
| 帛 | bó | silk | 8 | 巾 (turban) |
| 云 | yún | say | 4 | 二 (two) |
| 乎 | hū | grammatical particle | 5 | 丿 (slash) |
| 哉 | zāi | grammatical particle | 9 | 口 (mouth) |
| 樂 | yuè | music | 15 | 木 (tree) |
| 云 | yún | say | 4 | 二 (two) |
| 樂 | yuè | music | 15 | 木 (tree) |
| 云 | yún | say | 4 | 二 (two) |
| 鐘 | zhōng | bell | 20 | 金 (metal) |
| 鼓 | gǔ | drum | 13 | 鼓 (drum) |
| 云 | yún | say | 4 | 二 (two) |
| 乎 | hū | grammatical particle | 5 | 丿 (slash) |
| 哉 | zāi | grammatical particle | 9 | 口 (mouth) |
Frequently asked questions
Q. What does “Ritual, ritual! Does it mean nothing but…” mean?
禮云禮云 玉帛云乎哉 樂云樂云 鐘鼓云乎哉 (lǐ yún lǐ yún, yù bó yún hū zāi, yuè yún yuè yún, zhōng gǔ yún hū zāi) means “Ritual, ritual! Does it mean nothing but jade and silk? Music, music! Does it mean nothing but bells and drums?” It comes from the Analects, Book 17 (Yang Huo), Chapter 11.
Q. Where does this passage appear in the Analects?
It is Analects 17.11: Book 17 (Yang Huo), Chapter 11.
Q. How can this teaching be applied today?
We often see events that are grand but heartless and gifts that are expensive but careless: the formulaic messages exchanged on every anniversary, the family occasions attended out of obligation, the gatherings held for the photographs.