1.12 [12] 景公病久不愈欲誅祝史以謝晏子諫

齊景公生病經(jīng)久不愈打算誅殺祝史來向上帝謝罪，晏子進(jìn)諫

【原文】

景公疥且瘧，期年不已。召會譴、梁丘據(jù)、晏子而問焉，曰：“寡人之病病矣，使史固與祝佗巡山川宗廟，犧牲珪璧，莫不備具，（數(shù)其）〔其數(shù)〕常多〔于〕先君桓公，桓公一則寡人再。病不已，滋甚，予欲殺二子者以說于上帝，其可乎？”會譴、梁丘據(jù)曰：“可?！标套硬粚?。公曰：“晏子何如？”晏子曰：“君以為祝有益乎？”公曰：“然。”晏子免冠曰：“若以為有益，則詛亦有損也。君疏輔而遠(yuǎn)拂，忠臣擁塞，諫言不出。臣聞之，近臣默，遠(yuǎn)臣喑，眾口鑠金。今自聊、（?。矓z〕以東，姑、尤以西者，此其人民眾矣，百姓之咎怨誹謗，詛君于上帝者多矣。一國詛，兩人祝，雖善祝者不能勝也。且夫祝直言情，則謗吾君也；隱匿過，則欺上帝也。上帝神，則不可欺；上帝不神，祝亦無益。愿君察之也。不然，刑無罪，夏、商所以滅也?！惫唬骸吧平庥杌?，加冠！”命會譴毋治齊國之政，梁丘據(jù)毋治賓客之事，兼屬之乎晏子。晏子辭，不得命，受相退，把政，改月而君病悛。公曰：“昔吾先君桓公以管子為有功，邑狐與谷，以共宗廟之鮮，賜其忠臣，則是多忠臣者。子今忠臣也，寡人請賜子州款?！鞭o曰：“管子有一美，嬰不如也；有一惡，嬰不忍為也，其宗廟之養(yǎng)鮮也?！苯K辭而不受。

【今譯】

齊景公生了疥瘡又患有瘧疾，一年多了還沒痊愈。他召見會譴、梁丘據(jù)和晏子，問道：“我的病越來越嚴(yán)重了，我派史固和祝佗巡行山川宗廟，所用的犧牲和珪璧等祭品，沒有一樣不齊備的，而且數(shù)量還常常多于先君桓公，桓公用一份我就用兩份?？墒俏业牟〔粌H沒好，反而更嚴(yán)重了，我想殺了這兩個人以取悅上帝，你們覺得可以嗎？”會譴和梁丘據(jù)都說：“可以?！标套訁s不回話。景公說：“晏子您認(rèn)為如何？”晏子說：“您覺得向神靈禱告對您有好處嗎？”景公說：“當(dāng)然。”晏子（摘下帽子）說：“如果禱告有益，那么詛咒也就有損害了。您疏遠(yuǎn)輔政的大臣，忠臣有話悶在心里，不敢向您進(jìn)諫。我聽說，近臣沉默，遠(yuǎn)臣噤聲，眾人的言論可以銷熔金屬?，F(xiàn)在從聊、攝以東，姑、尤以西的地方，人口眾多，百姓們怨恨指責(zé)，向上帝詛咒您的人太多了。一個國家的人詛咒，兩個人禱告，即使是精于禱告的人也不能取勝。而且向神靈禱告時訴說實情，就是說您的壞話；隱瞞您的過失，又是欺騙上帝。上帝若是神靈，那就不能欺騙；上帝如果不是神靈，那么即使禱告也沒什么幫助。希望您能明察此事。否則，誅殺無罪之人，這就是夏桀、商紂滅亡的原因啊。”景公說：“您真是善于解除我的困惑，請您戴上帽子吧！”景公下令命會譴不得再參與齊國的政事，梁丘據(jù)不得再管理招待賓客的事，他們的事務(wù)都交給晏子處理。晏子推辭，沒有得到景公的允許，只好服從命令，接管了會譴和梁丘據(jù)的事務(wù)，晏子把持政務(wù)之后，過了一個月景公的病就好了。景公說：“從前我的先祖桓公認(rèn)為管仲是有功之臣，就把狐、谷兩地封給他，以便供應(yīng)宗廟祭祀所需要的血食，賞賜忠臣，就是嘉獎忠臣。您現(xiàn)在就是忠臣，請允許我把州款這個地方賞賜給您吧。”晏子推辭說：“管仲有一美德，我不如他；有一惡行，我也不忍去做，那就是用血食祭祀宗廟?！弊罱K還是推辭沒有接受封邑。

Duke Jing suffered from scabies and intermittent fever for a whole year. He summoned Hui Qian,^[2] Liangqiu Ju,and Yanzi and asked them about it: “Since my illness became severe I charged Gu,the Scribe,and Tuo,the Invocator,to tour the temples of the famous mountains and rivers,and the ancestral temple. A ll the requisite sacrificial animals and the gui jade baton and bi jade disk for offering were prepared; nothing was missing. I’ve always provided a greater number of offerings than did my predecessor,Duke Huan—where Duke Huan offered one,I doubled it—and still my illness did not cease but rather worsened greatly. I w ish to execute these two in order to make the God on High ^[3] happy. Would that be advisable?”

Hui Qian and Liangqiu Ju said: “It would.” Yanzi did not answer.

The Duke said: “Yanzi,what do you think about it?”^[4]

Yanzi said:^[5] “Do you believe that prayers are beneficial,my Lord?”

The Duke said: “Yes.”

Yanzi continued: “If you think that prayers are beneficial,then surely curses are also harm ful. If you neglect your aides and distance your reliable advisors,my Lord,then loyal ministers will be blocked and remonstrations w ill not be issued. I have heard: ‘When ministers close at hand are rendered speechless and ministers removed from the throne become mute,the mouths of the masses seethe like molten metal.’^[6] Now,numerous people live in the area ranging from the East of Liao and She to the West of Gu and You.^[7] M any among the common people reproach,vilify,and curse you to the God on High,my Lord. When an entire state curses you and only two pray for you,then even if they are very good invocators,they w ill not be able to prevail. Moreover,if the invocators’ prayers truthfully describe the state of things,then they will vilify you. If they conceal your mistakes,then they w ill cheat the God on High,my Lord. If the God on High has numinous force,then he cannot be deceived; but if he has not,then prayer to him is of no benefit. I w ish that you would thoroughly consider the matter,my Lord. Otherw ise you w ill execute the innocent,and this was the reason for the downfall of Xia and Shang.”

The Duke said: “You are good at dispelling my confusion. I hereby endow you w ith additional official titles.^[8] Then he ordered Hui Qian to stop dealing with the business of government in Qi,and Liangqiu Ju to stop dealing w ith the affairs of guests of the state,and charged Yanzi with both tasks.

Yanzi wanted to refuse,but he was not granted permission to do so. He accepted the position of prime minister and left the audience. He took charge of the affairs of the government,and during the next month the Duke recovered from his illness.

The Duke said: “In the past,my predecessor,Duke Huan,thought that Guanzi^[9] was meritorious^[10] and enfeoffed him w ith the cities of Hu and Gu so that he could offer freshly killed game in his ancestors’ temple. To grant gifts to a loyal minister is to praise a loyal minister. Now you are my loyal m inister; I would like to grant you Zhou-kuan as a fiefdom.”

Yanzi declined,saying: “Guanzi had one excellent trait that renders me inferior and one vice that I cannot bear to comm it. The latter is his sacrificing of game at the temple of the ancestors.”^[11]

He ultimately declined and did not accept the enfeoffment.

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注釋

[1]Item 1.12 [12] ? Item 7.7 [177]; Zuozhuan,B10.20.6/374/27. For a discussion of the Zuozhuan’s version,see Yuri Pines,Foundations of Confucian Thought: Intellectual Life in the Chunqiu Period,722-453 B.C.E. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press (2002): 81-82.

[2]An unidentified figure. In the alternative versions,mentioned above,a Qi official by the name of Yi Kuan 裔款 assumes the role of Hui Qian 會譴.

[3]Shang-di 上帝—the God on High or the Supreme Lord of Heaven,one of the most prom inent gods of ancient China. For a short analysis and useful references to relevant discussions concerning Shang-di 上帝,see Andrew Plaks,tr. Ta Hsüeh and Chung Yung (The Highest Order of Cultivation and On the Practice of the Mean). Harmondsworth,Penguin (2003): 111-112; Mu-chou Poo,In Search of Personal Welfare: A View of Ancient Chinese Religion. SUNY Series in Chinese Philosophy and Culture. A lbany (1998): 29-30; Julia Jing,Mysticism and Kingship in China: The Heart of Chinese Wisdom. Cambridge studies in religious traditions. Cambridge University press,Cambridge: (1997): passim. For a sim ilar case in which a human sacrifice is offered to God on High,see Mozi,4.3/29/10.

[4]The way in which the Duke addresses Yanzi in this item (晏子何如) is somewhat anachronistic. Throughout the entire text,the Duke always addresses Yanzi with the current designation of the period 夫子 or 子–“M aster.”

[5]JS,45/9,suggests inserting 免冠 into the sentence 晏子曰 so that the new ly-formed sentence would read: 晏子免冠曰 (“Yanzi took off his cap saying :”).

[6]Cf. Zhanguoce 戰(zhàn)國策,273/144/17; Xinxu,3.7/16/24.

[7]Liao 聊 and She 攝 were two cities on the Western border of Qi. Gu 姑 and You 尤 were two rivers on the Eastern boarder of Qi. Yanzi therefore refers to the population that lives throughout the w idth of the state of Qi.

[8]加冠 may also mean: “You may put on your cap.” For this reason the JS,45/9 suggested the alternative wording,which appears in note 68,above: 晏子免冠曰(“Yanzi took off his cap saying :”).

[9]Guanzi 管子 is Guan Zhong 管仲,the famous seventh-century Minister of the State of Qi w ho meritoriously served Duke Huan. The philosophical w ork entitled Guanzi管子 is traditionally ascribed to him.

[10]力→功 JS,47/22.

[11]JS,47-48/26,regards these seven characters (其宗廟之養(yǎng)鮮也) problematic. It first quotes Sun Xingyan 孫星衍,who stated that the offering of game in the ancestral temple was forbidden and considered a vice by the rites. Wu Zeyu 吳則虞,the compiler of the JS,then concludes that all attem pts to exp lain the sentence as an integral part of the YZCQ text are doubtful and the seven characters are probably a latter interpolation.