Analects 7.5 · Shu Er
“How I have declined! It has been so long since I dreamed of the Duke of Zhou.”
Meaning, context, and how to apply it today
甚矣吾衰也 久矣吾不復夢見周公 (shèn yǐ wú shuāi yě, jiǔ yǐ wú bù fù mèng jiàn zhōu gōng) means “How I have declined! It has been so long since I dreamed of the Duke of Zhou.” It is a passage from the Analects of Confucius, Book 7 (Shu Er), Chapter 5.
甚矣吾衰也 久矣吾不復夢見周公
- Pinyin
- shèn yǐ wú shuāi yě, jiǔ yǐ wú bù fù mèng jiàn zhōu gōng
- Translation
- How I have declined! It has been so long since I dreamed of the Duke of Zhou.
- Source
- Analects, Book 7 (Shu Er), Chapter 5
What does this passage mean?
In the fifth chapter of Shu Er, Confucius laments his own decline. The Duke of Zhou established the ritual and musical institutions of the Zhou dynasty and was the ideal statesman whom Confucius admired and sought to emulate all his life. In his youth, Confucius longed so earnestly to spread the Way of the Duke of Zhou that he met him even in his dreams. When, in old age, the dreams stopped coming, he felt keenly that his resolve and vitality had waned, and he sighed these words. The passage holds the sorrow of a man whose yearning for an ideal once reached into his dreams, and who now recognizes that yearning cooling.
How can we apply it today?
Before it is a lament about aging, this passage is about how to measure passion. When we desire something intensely, we see it even in our dreams: the student before an exam, the founder building a first product, the person newly in love. If that dream has vanished, the cause may be a cooling heart rather than age. Confucius admitted it honestly. Looking at what you dream about these days is a way of taking the temperature of your own passion. If something still appears in your dreams, that is the most important thing in your life right now.
Questions to reflect on
- ·Is there something you think about even in your dreams these days?
- ·Is there a longing that was once urgent but has cooled?
- ·Can you honestly admit that a passion has faded?
Character-by-character breakdown
| Character | Pinyin | Meaning | Strokes | Radical |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 甚 | shèn | excessive | 9 | 甘 (sweet) |
| 矣 | yǐ | grammatical particle | 7 | 矢 (arrow) |
| 吾 | wú | I; me | 7 | 口 (mouth) |
| 衰 | shuāi | decline | 10 | 衣 (clothes) |
| 也 | yě | grammatical particle | 3 | 乙 (second) |
| 久 | jiǔ | long | 3 | 丿 (slash) |
| 矣 | yǐ | grammatical particle | 7 | 矢 (arrow) |
| 吾 | wú | I; me | 7 | 口 (mouth) |
| 不 | bù | not | 4 | 一 (one) |
| 復 | fù | again | 12 | 彳 (step) |
| 夢 | mèng | dream | 14 | 夕 (evening) |
| 見 | jiàn | see | 7 | 見 (see) |
| 周 | zhōu | Zhou (dynasty) | 8 | 口 (mouth) |
| 公 | gōng | duke | 4 | 八 (eight) |
Frequently asked questions
Q. What does “How I have declined! It has been so long…” mean?
甚矣吾衰也 久矣吾不復夢見周公 (shèn yǐ wú shuāi yě, jiǔ yǐ wú bù fù mèng jiàn zhōu gōng) means “How I have declined! It has been so long since I dreamed of the Duke of Zhou.” It comes from the Analects, Book 7 (Shu Er), Chapter 5.
Q. Where does this passage appear in the Analects?
It is Analects 7.5: Book 7 (Shu Er), Chapter 5.
Q. How can this teaching be applied today?
Before it is a lament about aging, this passage is about how to measure passion.