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Jin Xin II · 孟子 7B.9

Passage 09

孟mèng子zǐ曰yuē：「身shēn不bù行xíng道dào，不bù行xíng於wū妻qī子zǐ；使shǐ人rén不bù以yǐ道dào，不bù能néng行xíng於wū妻qī子zǐ。」

Mencius said, 'If a man himself do not walk in the right path, it will not be walked in even by his wife and children. If he order men according to what is not the right way, he will not be able to get the obedience of even his wife and children.'

First-principles reading

Begin with the words and context, expose the premise beneath the argument, then test the conditions and limits of the principle.