Climbing a Tree to Catch Fish

Have you ever worked harder and ended up further from what you wanted?

Original

曰：「王之所大欲，可得聞與？」王笑而不言。……曰：「然則王之所大欲可知已：欲辟土地，朝秦楚，蒞中國而撫四夷也。以若所為，求若所欲，猶緣木而求魚也。」王曰：「若是其甚與？」曰：「殆有甚焉。緣木求魚，雖不得魚，無後災；以若所為，求若所欲，盡心力而為之，後必有災。……蓋亦反其本矣。」

In plain words

Mencius said, “May I hear what it is Your Majesty wants most?” The king smiled and said nothing. … Mencius said, “Then I can tell what you want most: to open up new lands, to have Qin and Chu come to your court, to rule the central states and pacify the peoples on every border. But to seek what you want by doing what you do is like climbing a tree to catch fish.” The king said, “Is it as bad as that?” “Worse, I fear. Climb a tree for fish and you won't get any fish, but no disaster follows. Seek what you want by doing what you do, with all your heart and strength, and disaster is sure to follow. … Why not go back to the root?”

Key words

緣木yuán mùTo climb up a tree.
大欲dà yùOne's greatest desire; here, to dominate the whole world.
反其本fǎn qí běnGo back to the root: first let people live well.

Reading it step by step

Yesterday we said Mencius was a master of images. Today, his most famous one.

King Xuan of Qi wanted to follow the great warlords of the past, and asked Mencius about them. Mencius sidestepped: “I've never heard about those things. Let's talk about ruling by kindness.” Halfway through, he asked, “What is it you want most?” The king smiled and said nothing.

First: see what the other person really wants. Mencius doesn't guess straight away. He rules things out one by one. Not enough rich food? Fine clothes? Beautiful things to look at, music to hear, servants to order about? No, no and no. Then only one answer is left: more land, the great states of Qin and Chu bowing at your court, rule over the whole known world. Wisdom starts by seeing the big desire behind the polite smile. Notice that Mencius doesn't call the desire shameful. His point is about the method.

Second: the means must match the end. Fish live in water, not in trees. The king wants the world to turn to him, and his method is war: raising armies, putting his officers in danger, making enemies of every neighbour. Wanting loyalty while spreading fear is climbing a tree to catch fish. Mencius even makes the king do the sums. If tiny Zou fought mighty Chu, who would win? “Chu, of course.” Qi holds a ninth of the world; one against eight is Zou against Chu. The harder you climb, the further you are from the fish.

Third: the wrong method is worse than useless. “Is it really that bad?” asks the king. Worse, says Mencius. Climb a tree for fish and you come down empty-handed, but no harm done. Chase this goal with these means, with all your strength, and disaster follows. Later Qi did seize the state of Yan, the other states joined forces against Qi, and the king regretted not listening. Mencius's remedy was to go back to the root: govern with real care, so that officials, farmers, merchants and travellers all want to come to Qi. Then who could stop you?

tree for fish

no fish

but no harm done

the king's way

no world to rule

and disaster later

back to the root

govern with kindness

the world comes to you

We climb trees for fish too. We want a child to love books, so we nag him to read. We want a team's trust, so we add more monitoring. We want respect, so we raise our voice. The effort is real; the direction is backwards, and it leaves a disaster for later. The child hates books, the team learns to hide things, people fear you without respecting you.

Before you throw yourself into the next big push, stop and ask: where does my fish actually live?

One line to carry

Before you push, check where the fish actually live.

Today's question

Write down one goal you're working hard toward, and the method you're using. Is that method at the water's edge, or up a tree?

Quick check

Why does Mencius say the king's plan is worse than climbing a tree for fish?

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