Though Thousands Stand Against Me

When everyone is against you, what gives you the right to keep going?

Original

「我四十不動心。」……孟施舍之所養勇也，曰：「……舍豈能為必勝哉？能無懼而已矣。」……昔者曾子謂子襄曰：「子好勇乎？吾嘗聞大勇於夫子矣：自反而不縮，雖褐寬博，吾不惴焉；自反而縮，雖千萬人，吾往矣。」

In plain words

Mencius said, “At forty my heart stopped being stirred.” … Of how Meng Shishe nourished his courage: “How could I be sure of winning? All I can do is not be afraid.” … Long ago Zengzi said to Zixiang: “Do you love courage? I once heard from Confucius what great courage is. If I look within and find I am not upright, then even before a common man in coarse, baggy clothes, how could I not tremble? If I look within and find I am upright, then even against thousands upon thousands, I go.”

Key words

不動心bù dòng xīnA heart not stirred by gain, temptation or fear; steady underneath.
縮suōHere it means “straight”: being in the right, standing upright.
自反zì fǎnTurning back to examine yourself, starting from the chance you're wrong.

Reading it step by step

This page opens our third theme: growing a flood-like spirit. The last theme argued that the human heart leans toward good. This one asks how that lean becomes strength, enough to keep a person standing in any weather. Mencius begins with courage.

His student Gongsun Chou asked: if you were made chief minister of Qi, would your heart be stirred? Mencius said, “At forty my heart stopped being stirred.” A heart that stays steady needs courage underneath it.

First: there are three kinds of courage. Beigong You's courage was defiance: stab him and he doesn't flinch; slight him and he strikes back. His courage is all on the outside. There's a Roman story like it: an envoy, to show how brave his people were, held his hand in a brazier until it burned, and the other side decided not to fight. Meng Shishe's courage was fearlessness: outnumbered, he still fought as if victory were certain. If you only fought when the numbers guaranteed a win, the two armies could just swap intelligence reports and go home. Battles also turn on spirit. Both kinds would chill an opponent. Neither, says Mencius, is great courage.

Beigong Youdefiance: never yields, always hits back

Meng Shishefearlessness: simply not afraid

Zengzi · great couragelooking within: am I upright?

Each step turns courage further inward.

Second: we only remember the second half. “Though thousands stand against me, I go” is the famous line. The first half gets skipped: “If I look within and find I am not upright, should I not tremble even before a man in coarse cloth?” Say you're driving, someone is slow on the zebra crossing, you lean on the horn, and he jumps, falls and breaks what he was carrying. He can do nothing to you. You should still be afraid: not of him, but of the right of the matter. If I push around someone who can't push back, I've signed up to a rule that says the strong may push the weak. When someone stronger comes for me, I'll have no argument left.

Third: 缩 means straight, in the right. Only after looking within and finding myself upright can I say, “I go.” But there's a trap: everyone feels they are in the right. The only safeguard is to start by assuming I might be wrong, and check again and again. If I still stand after that, my steps are steady. Real courage is not aimed at other people. It is first aimed at yourself.

Today it might look like this. Your whole team backs a plan you think is wrong. Don't slam the table, and don't go quiet either. Go home and walk through your reasons once more. Is this about the plan, or about your pride? If your case survives that, speak up the next day, calmly.

Great courage starts with a mirror.

One line to carry

Check that you're upright first. Then decide whether to go.

Today's question

Recall a time you stood your ground. Did you check yourself first? If it happened again, how would you look within before going on?

Quick check

What is the key to the “great courage” Zengzi describes?

Next pageMy Flood-like SpiritPage 17

III · Growing a Flood-like Spirit — From self-cultivation to standing tall in the world

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