Analects 3:19

 In this particular day I shall interpret a verse from the Analects, namely 3:19.  In A Source Book In Chinese Philosophy, Wing Tsit Chan presents the verse:

“Duke Ting asked how the ruler should employ his ministers and how the ministers should serve their ruler.  Confucius said, ‘ A ruler should employ his ministers according to the principle of propriety, and ministers should serve their ruler with loyalty.’ ” ¹

Firstly, let us discuss the theme of the verse.  The verse revolves around the theme of the regulation of virtue and not law or force in achieving social harmony.  By regulation, Confucius meant that it is only foremost to put it into practice.  This is because Confucius believed that it is in through virtue that harmony can be established in a society.  If people treat each other with goodness and respect, surely disagreements and ill intentions will be avoided, making each one effective citizens and individuals. 

Let us deepen our understanding on this theme in the first sentence in the answer given by Confucius to Duke Ting.

“A ruler should employ his ministers according to the principle of propriety.”

In this sentence, the emphasis is virtue.  Taking the example of the ruler, treating his ministers with propriety will do him good.  It will be very beneficial for him.  This is because they will respect him as their superior, and thus work more efficiently because of the motivation provided by that real gesture of respect.  It is undeniable that in a workplace such as a government office, pressures can be factors of mental breakdown.  The need for recognition and motivation is needed in such a pressure-filled environment.   Going by the principles of propriety gives both the individual doing it and the persons around him the benefit of being better persons.   In this way administration and other duties will be carried out properly, and negative attitudes such as dishonesty and office politics will be avoided.  This is because each individual sees each other with the same dignity that he sees in himself.  With this kind of treatment, the leadership of the ruler has quality. 

Should the ruler impose respect with brutality and with an iron fist, the results will be the opposite.  Harmony will not prevail for the ruler failed to relate himself with the people around him.  Forcing subjects into submission is not an effective way to promote social harmony.  Instead, it makes the possibility of such harmony remote.  Force begets force.  It does not imply order.  If one forces people into recognizing them, one will receive the opposite of what he is expecting.  This is observable in the practices of dictators around the globe.  They envisioned a future strengthened by an iron fist, thinking that it is only in force that people will recognize their resolves for the society.  But in the end, revolutions destroyed the very foundations of their empire.  If they had treated the people the way they deserved to be treated then maybe things will turn out differently. 

“Ministers should serve their ruler with loyalty.”

This second phrase implies reciprocity in the part of the subjects or the subordinates of the ruler.  This is an essential part of promoting social harmony.  This is because a society cannot be considered as one when there are no people which constitute it.  Harmony cannot be done without the participation of both ruler and his subjects.  Without the reciprocity between these two, nothing will happen.  If the subjects are too apathetic in recognizing the efforts done by their ruler, then social harmony will never be a reality.  Cooperation is needed in building up a harmonious society.  Without the contributions of each member in making it better, the idea of harmony will be dismissed as a mere ideal. 

In this sense one can look at the regulation of virtue being not exclusive to rulers of a state.  The people that constitute the state are involved in this regulation as well.  The people should treat their leaders and their community properly.  In this way social harmony can be preserved, making government transaction and other social activity cultivate each person in the community.   

The Confucian verse gives the emphasis of regulating virtue instead of force or law.  Humanism in leadership can promote more cooperation and motivation to the citizens.  Leadership is a matter of partnership between the ruler and the ruled.  Propriety in hiring personnel begets loyalty on the part of the one hired.  Propriety in hiring entails objective evaluation of the abilities, skills, competencies and values of the personnel to be hired.   It is in this that the one hired finds appreciation and recognition of his qualifications.  With this attitude, the ruler becomes a true example of propriety. This manifests also his integrity.  Rulers with moral standards are worthy of respect, trust and loyalty.

Source:

   1.       Wing Tsit Chan, “The Humanism of Confucius”, (United States: Princeton University Press, 1963), In A Source Book In Chinese Philosophy, 25.