Somebody asked Confucius, saying,"Why are you not taking part in the government of the country？”
Confucius answered, What does the 'Book of Records' say of the duties of a good son?
"'Be dutiful to your parents; be brotherly to your brothers ; discharge your duties in the government of your family.' These ,then, are also duties of government. Why then must one take part in the government of the country in order to discharge the duties of the government?"
中文：或谓孔子曰：“子奚不为政？” 子曰：“《书》云：“孝乎惟孝、友于兄弟，施于有政。’ 是亦为政，奚其为为政？”
注释：有人问孔子，说:“你为什么不参与国家的政治呢？”
孔子回答：“《尚书》中是怎么谈论一个好儿子的义务的？
“‘对父母要恭顺，对兄弟要友爱，在家政中要履行你的义务。’ 那么，这也是政治的义务啊。一个人如果要履行政治的义务，为什么非要参与国家的政治呢？”
