Confucius WisdomSubscribe

On Learning

见善如不及,见不善如探汤。

"When you see good, pursue it as if you could not reach it; when you see what is not good, recoil as from scalding water."

Chinese Original

见善如不及,见不善如探汤。

English Rendering

When you see good, pursue it as if you could not reach it; when you see what is not good, recoil as from scalding water.

Chinese Translation

见善如不及,见不善如探汤。

Modern Meaning

In "见善如不及,见不善如探汤," Confucius focuses on when you see good, pursue it as if you could not reach it. The exact principle is that virtue is proven by choices when convenience, fear, or comparison pulls the other way. The tension is not generic humanity and virtue; it is the specific problem that people praise goodness in principle but fail to move toward it when a concrete moment asks for cost, which still appears in noticing a person to emulate, a fault to avoid, or a small chance to do the right thing.

How to Apply Today

Use this teaching today in noticing a person to emulate, a fault to avoid, or a small chance to do the right thing. Because this line says "When you see good, pursue it as if you could not reach it," turn the observed virtue or fault into one behavior you can copy or refuse today, so the lesson becomes visible in one behavior.

Reflection Question

For "见善如不及,见不善如探汤" (row 34, 为学篇 / On Learning), What specific virtue is this situation asking me to show rather than merely admire?

Action Step

Name one good trait you saw today and copy it once in a concrete interaction, specifically in response to this demand: "When you see good, pursue it as if you could not reach it."

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Related Quotes

More Confucius quotes connected to this theme.

On Learning

人能弘道,非道弘人。

"A person can enlarge the right path; the right path does not enlarge the person."

In "人能弘道,非道弘人," Confucius focuses on a person can enlarge the right path. The exact principle is that wisdom has to become a visible pattern of conduct, not a sentence one merely agrees with. The tension is not generic conduct; it is the specific problem that people understand a principle abstractly but fail to choose the behavior it requires in the next situation, which still appears in facing a routine decision where character is easier to postpone than practice.

Read this Confucius quote

On Learning

学而时习之,不亦说乎 ?

"Is it not a pleasure to learn and practice what one has learned at the proper time?"

In "学而时习之,不亦说乎 ," Confucius focuses on is it not a pleasure to learn and practice what one has learned at the proper time. The exact principle is that learning becomes real only when repeated, corrected, and carried into conduct. The tension is not generic practice; it is the specific problem that knowledge stays shallow when it is consumed once and never reviewed, practiced, or taught, which still appears in after finishing one lesson, book chapter, work memo, or conversation.

Read this Confucius quote

On Learning

学而不厌,悔人不倦。

"To learn without weariness and teach without tiring."

In "学而不厌,悔人不倦," Confucius focuses on to learn without weariness and teach without tiring. The exact principle is that learning becomes real only when repeated, corrected, and carried into conduct. The tension is not generic practice; it is the specific problem that knowledge stays shallow when it is consumed once and never reviewed, practiced, or taught, which still appears in after finishing one lesson, book chapter, work memo, or conversation.

Read this Confucius quote

Related Analects

Analects explained for the same modern problem.

Analects 1.1

Learning and Daily Practice

子曰:学而时习之,不亦说乎?

The opening of the Analects defines wisdom as practiced knowledge. Confucius does not separate study from conduct.

Read this Analects explanation

Analects 13.3

The Discipline of Clear Roles

子曰:名不正,则言不顺;言不顺,则事不成。

The rectification of names is a practical doctrine of clarity. A title should match a duty, and a promise should match behavior.

Read this Analects explanation