It is upon the Trunk that a gentleman works.
—Analects
of Confucius, I.2
Comments:
What does he mean? I imagine that in the laws of morals and the way, man needs to work at the base and from there up. It is the base or the foundation that holds up the tree or the house; neither allowing powerful winds nor any calamity to fell the tree or house. So it follows to society and men; we need to work from the trunk up and never from any particular branch. If the base of the tree is strong so will the rest of the tree be strong enough to stand. If the trunk is weak, then the tree will fall. If we apply this to society, then we need to be certain what the trunk means in society. What is the trunk of society? Of nations? Of people?
Psalm 1:3 He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, Which yields its fruit in its season And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he prospers. The trunk is those things that don't change, that don't drop in the winter. The eternal values within you. C mentions being good to your parents is a trunk of goodness. Bringing eternal values inside yourself is working on the trunk. Like exercises to strengthen your core.
ReplyDeleteI grow more and more appreciation for Chinese philosophy. Sort of like a quote from Plato that for all the millions working on trimming branches there is one person who works on the roots. thanks for your comment.
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