Confucius Spiritual Development
孔子的精神修养发展历程
In the Taoist work, the Chuang-tzu, we see that the Taoists often ridiculed Confucius as one who confined himself to the morality of human-heartedness and righteousness, thus being conscious only of moral values, and not super-moral value.
在道家著作《庄子》中，经常可见道家学者嘲笑孔子，说他把自己局限于仁义道德中，只知道道德价值，不知道超道德价值。
Superficially they were right, but actually they were wrong.
从表面上看他们是正确的，实际却错了
Thus speaking about his own spiritual development, Confucius said: "At fifteen I set my heart on learning. At thirty I could stand. At forty I had no doubts. At fifty I knew the Decree of Heaven. At sixty I was already obedient [to this Decree]. At seventy I could follow the desires of my mind without overstepping the boundaries [of what is right]." (Analects, II, 4)
孔子在谈到自己的精神发展历程时说：“吾十有五，而至于学。三十而立。四十而不惑。五十而知天命。六十而耳顺。七十而从心所欲，不逾矩。”
The learning which Confucius here refers to is not what we now would call learning.
孔子在此说的“学”跟我们现在说的“学”是不一样的。
In the Analects, Confucius said: "Set your heart on the Tao." (VII, 6.)
孔子在《论语》中说：“志于道”。
And again: "To hear the Tao in the morning and then die at night, that would be all right." (IV, 9.)
又说：“朝闻道，夕死可矣。”
Here Tao means the Way or Truth.
道，即真理。
It was this Tao which Confucius at fifteen set his heart upon learning.
孔子十五岁时至于学即此道。
What we now call learning means the increase of our knowledge, but the Tao is that whereby we can elevate our mind.
我们现在说的“学”指知识的增加，“道”指精神境界的提升。
Confucius also said: "Take your stand in the li [rituals, ceremonies, proper conduct]." (Analects, VIII, 8.)
孔子还说：“立于礼。”
Again he said: "Not to know the li is to have no means of standing." (XX, 3.)
又说：“不知礼，无以立也。”
Thus when Confucius says that at thirty he could "stand”, he means that he then understood the li and so could practice proper conduct.
所以当孔子说三十可以“立”，他的意思是这时他懂得了礼，言行举止得当。
His statement that at forty he had no doubts means that he had then become a wise man.
For, as quoted before, "The wise are free from doubts."
他说四十不惑意思是这时候他已经成为知者，因为如前文所引用的，“知者不惑。”
Up to this time of his life Confucius was perhaps conscious only of moral values.
孔子的一生中，到此为止可能仅仅关注到道德价值。
But at the age of fifty and sixty, he knew the Decree of Heaven and was obedient to it.
但是五十、六十时，他意识到了天命并且能顺乎天命。
In other words, he was then also conscious of super-moral values.
也就是说，这时他也认识到了超道德价值。
Confucius in this respect was like Socrates.
在这方面，孔子很像苏格拉底。
Socrates thought that he had been appointed by a divine order to awaken the Greeks, and Confucius had a similar consciousness of a divine mission.
苏格拉底认为他是受神的指派，来唤醒希腊人。孔子同样觉得他受到神的指派。
For example, when he was threatened with physical violence at a place called K'uang, he said: "If Heaven had wished to let civilization perish, later generations (like myself) would not have been permitted to participate in it. But since Heaven has not wished to let civilization perish, what can the people of K'uang do to me?" (Analects, IX, 5.)
比如，当他在一个叫匡的地方被威胁时说：“天之将丧斯文也，后死者不得与于斯文也；天之未丧斯文也，匡人其如予何！”
One of his contemporaries also said: "The world for long has been without order. But now Heaven is going to use the Master as an arousing tocsin. (Analects, III, 24)
一个跟孔子同时代的人说：“天下之无道也久矣，天将以夫子为木铎。”
Thus Confucius in doing what he did, was convinced that he was following the Decree of Heaven and was supported by Heaven; he was conscious of values higher than moral ones.
所以孔子在做事情时，深信他是在执行神的旨意，受到神的支持；他认识的价值也就高于道德价值。
The super-moral value experienced by Confucius, however, was, as we shall see, not quite the same as that experienced by the Taoists.
然而，我们将会看到，孔子所体验到的超道德价值，跟道家体验到的是不完全一样的。
For the latter abandoned entirely the idea of an intelligent and purposeful Heaven, and sought instead for mystical union with an undifferentiated whole.
因为道家完全抛弃了有理智、有目的的天的观念，代之以追求与混沌的整体达到什么的合一。
The super-moral value which they knew and experienced, therefore, was freer from the ordinary concepts of the human relationships.
因此道家所认识的及体验的超道德价值，距离人伦日用更远了。
At seventy, as has been told above, Confucius allowed his mind to follow whatever it desired, yet everything he did was naturally right of itself.
就像上面说到的，孔子到了七十就能从心所欲，而他做的一切都自然而然的正确。
His actions no longer needed a conscious guide.
他的行为不再需要有意识的指导。
He was acting without effort.
他的所作所为也用不着努力。
This represents the last stage in the development of the sage.
这表明已经发展到了圣人的最高阶段。
