) and “correct”
) are etymologically related.]This book consists mainly of brief aphorisms on a variety of topics, in the style of the Analects. Among the most interesting and often-discussed passages in this book are 7B16, 7B24, 7B26, 7B31, and 7B37.
[1.1] Mengzi said, “How unbenevolent is King Hui of Liang! Those who are benevolent extend from what they love to what they do not yet love. Those who are unbenevolent extend from what they do not love to what they do love.”
[1.2] Mengzi’s disciple Gongsun Chou asked, “What do you mean?”
Mengzi replied, “King Hui of Liang led his people to war and slaughtered them for the sake of land. When he was defeated, he did it again. Fearing that he would be unable to win, he urged his beloved son to his death in battle. This is what I mean by extending from what he does not love to what he does love.”1
[2.1] Mengzi said, “There are no righteous wars in the Spring and Autumn [2.2] Annals. There are only cases of those that are better than others. A punitive war is when a superior attacks a subordinate. When hostile states attack one another, it is not a punitive war.”
[3.1] Mengzi said, “It would be better not to have the Documents than to [3.2] believe everything in it. I accept only two or three passages in the [3.3] ‘Completion of the War’ chapter. A benevolent person has no enemies in the world. When the one who was supremely benevolent attacked the one who was supremely unbenevolent, how could it be that ‘the blood flowed till it floated the threshing sticks?’” [This section of the Documents refers to how King Wu overthrew Tyrant Zhou.2]
{186} [4.1] Mengzi said, “There are people who say, ‘I am good at arranging military formations,’ or ‘I am good at waging war.’ These are great crimes. [4.2] If the ruler of a state is fond of benevolence, he will have no enemies [4.3] in the world. ‘When King Tang attacked in the east, the tribes of the west were bitter. When he attacked in the south, the tribes of the [4.4] north were bitter. They said, Why does he make us last?’3 And when King Wu attacked the Shang, he had three hundred war chariots and three [4.5] thousand infantry. But the King said, ‘Fear not! I bring you peace! I am no enemy of the people.’ Then the people bowed their heads, like animals [4.6] shedding their horns.4 To launch a ‘punitive attack’ means to correct. If each wishes to correct itself, of what use is war?” [The words “punitive attack”) and “correct”) are etymologically related.]
[5.1] Mengzi said, “A carpenter or a wheelwright can give another his compass or T-square, but he cannot make another skillful.” [This is a criticism of those who, like the Mohists, wish to reduce ethical action to some precise procedure that does not require wisdom. Nonetheless, Mengzi does not completely eschew the use of standards (4A1).]
[6.1] Mengzi said, “Shun ate dried grain and herbs as if he would do so for the rest of his life. But when he became Son of Heaven, he wore embroidered robes, played the zither, and enjoyed two female attendants as if he had always had them.” [Shun is adaptable and at ease in any situation.]
[7.1] Mengzi said, “It is only now that I understand the severity of killing someone’s parent. If you kill someone’s father, he will also kill your father. If you kill someone’s brother, he will also kill your brother. Although you did not kill your father or brother yourself, there is just a moment’s time between the two.”
[8.1] Mengzi said, “In ancient times, border gates were to prevent violence. [8.2] Nowadays, border gates are to engage in violence”
{187} [9.1] Mengzi said, “If one does not practice the Way oneself, one’s wife and children will not practice it. If one does not supervise others in accordance with the Way, one will be unable to direct one’s wife and children.”
[10.1] Mengzi said, “Just as one who is well supplied with wealth cannot be killed by a bad year, so one who is well supplied with Virtue cannot be disordered by an evil era.”
[11.1] Mengzi said, “If one is fond of making a name for oneself, one may be able to relinquish a state that can field a thousand chariots. But if one is just not that kind of person, relinquishing a basket of grain or a bowl of soup would show in one’s face.” [This passage refers to what is technically called a “counterfeit” of a virtue (cf. 7B37).]
[12.1] Mengzi said, “If people do not have faith in the benevolent and [12.2] worthy, the state will be empty. Without propriety and righteousness, [12.3] superiors and subordinates will be disordered. Without the activities of the government, material goods will not be sufficient.”
[13.1] Mengzi said, “There are cases of those who are not benevolent obtaining a state, but there are no cases of those who are not benevolent obtaining the world.”
[14.1] Mengzi said, “The people are the most important, the altars to the land [14.2] and grain are next, and the ruler is the least important. For this reason, one who wins over the common people becomes the Son of Heaven. One who wins over the Son of Heaven becomes one of the various lords. One who wins over one of the various lords becomes a Chief Counselor.
[14.3] “So when one of the various lords endangers the altars to the land [14.4] and grain through his misrule, he is replaced. But when there are plenty of sacrificial animals, the vessels of millet are pure, and the sacrificial rituals are performed on time, yet there is still drought or flooding, then one replaces the altars to the land and grain.” [The last verse makes the striking suggestion that human well-being takes precedence over the agency of the spirits associated with the altars to the land and grain.]
{188} [15.1] Mengzi said, “A sage is a teacher for a hundred generations. Such were Bo Yi and Liuxia Hui. Hence, when they hear of the style of Bo Yi, the unperceptive develop discretion, and the weak develop resolution. And when they hear of the style of Liuxia Hui, the stingy become generous, and the narrow become tolerant.5 These two were distinguished a hundred generations ago, and a hundred generations from now all those who hear of them will be inspired. Could they have done this if they were not sages? How much more so did they affect those who knew them personally!”
[16.1] Mengzi said, “Benevolence is simply being human. The Way is simply to harmonize with benevolence and put it into words.” [According to this passage, the Way is something immanent in this world, not something metaphysical that transcends it (cf. Analects 15.29).]
[17.1] Mengzi said, “When Kongzi left the state of Lu, he said, ‘I’m in no hurry.’ This is the Way to leave the state of one’s parents. But when Kongzi left the state of Qi, he just scooped up the rice he was about to cook and went. This is the Way to leave another state.”6
[18.1] Mengzi said, “Kongzi ended up in a dire situation while traveling from Chen to Cai simply because superiors and subordinates did not communicate.”7
[19.1] A certain Mo Qi said, “I am not articulate in speech at all.”
[19.2] Mengzi replied, “There is no harm in that. Nobles dislike those who [19.3] talk too much. The Odes say, ‘I am sad, / Hated by the rabble.’ This could be said of Kongzi. It also says, ‘He did not quell their hatred, / But neither did he lose his honor.’ This could be said of King Wen.” [The Odes cited are Mao nos. 26 and 237.]
[20.1] Mengzi said, “Worthies use their own insight to make others insightful. But nowadays people try to make others insightful with only their own ignorance.”
[21.1] Mengzi said to his disciple Gaozi, “Mountain paths become roads if they are used frequently. But if they are not used for a while they {189} become overgrown with brush and weeds. Your heart is now becoming overgrown with brush and weeds.”8
[22.1] Mengzi’s disciple Gaozi said, “The music of Yu surpassed the music of King Wen.”
[22.2] Mengzi asked, “Why do you say that?”
Gaozi replied, “Because the rope of the bell used to play it is almost worn through.”
[22.3] Mengzi answered, “How is that sufficient? Are the ruts at the city gate made by a single pair of horses?”
[23.1] There was a famine in Qi, and Chen Zhen said to Mengzi, “The people of the state all think that you will again ask for the granaries to be opened. I wonder whether you will be able to do so?”
[23.2] Mengzi replied, “That would be to act like Feng Fu. In the state of Jin there was a certain Feng Fu who was skilled at capturing tigers. He ended up as a distinguished official. When he was traveling in the countryside, there was a mob chasing a tiger. The tiger was cornered, and no one dared to approach it. But when the people saw Feng Fu, they rushed over and greeted him. So Feng Fu rolled up his sleeves and got out of his carriage to assist with the tiger. The mob was pleased, but those who were officials laughed at him.” [What is appropriate for a person to do depends upon his social role. It is not the job of a high official to chase tigers. Similarly, Mengzi had once been an official under the king of Qi, but he resigned and is leaving the state, so he is not in a position to ask for famine relief.]
[24.1] Mengzi said, “The mouth in relation to flavors, the eyes in relation to sights, the ears in relation to notes, the nose in relation to odors, the four limbs in relation to comfort—these are matters of human nature, but they are also fated. Nonetheless, a gentleman does not refer to them as ‘human nature.’
[24.2] “Benevolence between father and son, righteousness between ruler and minister, propriety between guest and host, wisdom in relation to the worthy, the sage in relation to the Way of Heaven—these are fated, but they also involve human nature. Nonetheless, a gentleman does not refer to them as ‘fated.’” [The term “fate” (or “Mandate”) emphasizes what we must simply accept because it cannot be changed. The term {190} “nature” emphasizes what we must actively cultivate. Our sensual desires and our virtuous inclinations are both inevitable aspects of who we are. However, people do not need to emphasize the cultivation of their sensual desires; they are essentially automatic (6A15). In contrast, people should think of their virtuous inclinations as something that needs cultivation, rather than as simply something one must accept with resignation.9]
[25.1] Mengzi’s disciple Haosheng Buhai asked, “What sort of person is Yuezhengzi?”
Mengzi replied, “He is a good and faithful person.”10
[25.2] Haosheng Buhai asked, “What do you mean by ‘good’ and ‘faithful’?”
[25.3] Mengzi replied, “What may be desired is what is meant by ‘good.’ [Mengzi’s comment should not be misinterpreted as expressing a hedonistic or subjectivist conception of goodness. As Zhu Xi explains, “What is good, according to the Pattern of the world, is necessarily desirable, and what is bad is necessarily dislikeable. So a person who may be desired [25.4] but not disliked can be said to be ‘good.’”] To have it in oneself [25.5] is what is meant by being ‘faithful.’ To fill out the core of this is what is [25.6] meant by being ‘fine.’ To fill out the core of this until it is glorious is [25.7] what is meant by being ‘great.’ To be so great that one transforms others [25.8] is what is meant by being a ‘sage.’ For one’s sagacity to be beyond understanding [25.9] is what is meant by being ‘spiritual.’ Yuezhengzi has attained the first two but is beneath the last four.”
[26.1] Mengzi said, “Those who defect from the Mohists always turn toward Yang Zhu. Those who defect from Yang Zhu always turn toward Confucianism. When they turn toward us, we should simply accept them. [On the philosophies of the Mohists and Yang Zhu, see 3B9.9–10 and the Introduction, “Mengzi’s Philosophy.” Mengzi is suggesting that, because Mohist impartiality makes demands of people that are psychologically unrealistic, those who fail at it will easily lapse into the extreme partiality of egoism (cf. 2A2.9–16). But since Yang Zhu at least acknowledged the importance of human nature, it is sometimes easier to get his [26.2] followers to recognize their own “sprouts of virtue” (2A6, 6A10).] But nowadays those who dispute with followers of Yang Zhu and the {191} Mohists act like they are chasing escaped pigs: even after they have gotten them back in the fold, they go ahead and hog-tie them! [Zhu Xi comments, “In this chapter, we see how sages and worthies oppose other positions. They oppose them firmly, but when people are converted, they show sympathy. Because they oppose them firmly, others understand that those positions are wrong. But because they treat converts with sympathy, people understand that it is all right to turn toward them. This is both the height of benevolence and the fathoming of righteousness.”]
[27.1] Mengzi said, “There is taxation levied in cloth, taxation levied in grain, and taxation levied in labor. A gentleman takes only one at a time, deferring the other two. If he takes two at a time, the people will go hungry. If he takes three at a time, families will be destroyed.”
[28.1] Mengzi said, “The treasures of one of the various lords are three: land, the people, and the activities of government. If he treasures pearls and jade instead, disaster will come upon him.”
[29.1] A certain Pencheng Kuo took office in Qi. Mengzi commented, “Pencheng Kuo is a dead man.”
When Pencheng Kuo was killed, the disciples asked, “Master, how did you know that he would be killed?”
Mengzi replied, “He was a person of little talent who had never heard the great Way of a gentleman. He had just enough ability to hasten his own death.”
[30.1] Mengzi went to the state of Teng and was lodged in the upper palace. Someone had left a pair of unfinished sandals by the window, and when he came back for them he could not find them.
[30.2] Someone asked Mengzi, “Is this what your followers are like—thieves?”
Mengzi said, “Sir, do you actually think they came here to steal sandals?”
He replied, “Perhaps not. But when you give lessons, Master, you do not chase after those who leave, nor refuse any who come. You simply accept anyone who comes with the right heart.” [The comment is intended as a criticism of how undiscriminating Mengzi is in accepting students. However, it is recorded here as a testimony to Mengzi’s open-mindedness in accepting students, regardless of their nobility or wealth.] {192} [31.1] Mengzi said, “People all have things that they will not bear. To extend this reaction to that which they will bear is benevolence. People all have things that they will not do. To extend this reaction to that which they will do is righteousness. [Zhu Xi comments, “People all have the hearts of compassion and disdain (2A6, 6A6). Hence, no one fails to have things that he will not bear or will not do. These are the sprouts of benevolence and righteousness. Nonetheless, because of the partiality of their qi and the obscuration of their material desires, there are sometimes other cases in which people are unable to have these reactions. But if they extend what they are able to do so that they reach to what they were unable to do, then there will be nothing in which they are not [31.2] benevolent and righteous.” (Cf. 1A7.12, 7A15, 7A17, and 7B1.)] If people can fill out the heart that does not desire to harm others, their benevolence will be inexhaustible. If people can fill out the heart that will not trespass, their righteousness will be inexhaustible. [Zhu Xi suggests that “trespassing” is a reference to being a thief, but the phrase [31.3] might also refer to an illicit sexual encounter (3B3.5).] If people can fill out the core reaction of refusing to be addressed disrespectfully, there [31.4] will be nowhere they go where they do not do what is righteous.11 If a noble speaks when he may not speak, this is tricking someone with speech. If one does not speak when he should, this is tricking someone with silence. These are both in the category of trespassing.” [Mengzi uses examples familiar to nobles of his era: the temptation to benefit oneself by lying or holding back the truth (cf. Analects 15.8). Zhu Xi comments, “Whether someone is being glib or secretive, the intention is to defraud someone. This is in the category of trespassing, but since it is more subtle, people easily overlook it. Hence, he particularly holds it up as an example to clarify that one must extend the heart that will not trespass so that it reaches to and avoids this. Only then will one be able to fill out the heart that will not trespass.”]
[32.1] Mengzi said, “The best teachings are those that discuss what is near but with significance that is far-reaching. The best Way is the one that preserves what is crucial but has broad application. Although the teachings of a gentleman come from nowhere but his bosom, the Way exists in [32.2] them. The gentleman maintains his own self-cultivation and so the [32.3] world is at peace. The problem with other people is that they abandon {193} their own fields and weed the fields of others. They demand much of others, while putting little responsibility on themselves.”
[33.1] Mengzi said, “Yao and Shun always treated it as their nature. Tang and [33.2] Wu turned toward it.12 The height of Virtue is for every turn of one’s movements and expressions to precisely accord with ritual. When one cries and mourns for the dead, it is not to impress the living. When one follows the path of Virtue without turning back, it is not for the sake of a salary. When one’s words are necessarily faithful, it is not in order [33.3] to justify one’s actions. A gentleman simply acts in accordance with the proper norm and awaits his fate.”
[34.1] Mengzi said, “When persuading ‘great people,’ look down upon them, [34.2] and don’t even glance at their ostentatious displays. Huge halls with massive beams—if I got my wish, I would not have them. Food spread out across banquet tables with hundreds of servants—if I got my wish, I would not have them. Carousing and drinking beer, dashing through the hunting fields with a retinue of a thousand chariots—if I got my wish, I would not have them. What they have is nothing I would have. What I have are the ancient institutions. So why should I be in awe of them?”
[35.1] Mengzi said, “For cultivating the heart, nothing is better than having few desires. If someone has few desires, although there will be times when he does not persevere, they will be few. If someone has many desires, although there will be times when he perseveres, they will be few.” [“To persevere” means to “preserve one’s heart” (4B28).]
[36.1] Zeng Xi was fond of dates, so after he died his son Zengzi could not bear to eat dates.
[36.2] Mengzi’s disciple Gongsun Chou asked, “Which is a finer dish: dates or a roast?”
Mengzi replied, “A roast.”
Gongsun Chou then asked, “In that case, when he was in mourning, why did Zengzi eat roast but not dates?”
Mengzi replied, “Roast is a common preference, whereas dates are more distinctive. It’s like the name taboo: we avoid using someone’s personal name but not his clan name. The clan name is common whereas {194} the personal name is more distinctive.” [Zengzi was a disciple of Kongzi who was known for his filiality (cf. 4A19.3). As part of ritual mourning, one avoids fine foods. But Zengzi better expresses his grief by avoiding a simple dish that reminds him more of his late father. Mengzi compares this to the ritual taboo against using the personal name of the deceased. Chinese family names are common, like “Smith” or “Jones” in English, while a personal name is more distinctive. Consequently, the naming taboo applies only to the latter.]
[37.1] Wan Zhang asked, “When in the state of Chen, Kongzi said, ‘Perhaps I should return home. The scholars of my school are wild and hasty, advancing and grasping but failing to forget their former behavior.’ When in Chen, why did Kongzi think of the wild scholars of his home state of Lu?”
[37.2] Mengzi replied, “Kongzi said, ‘If I do not get to associate with those who attain the Way exactly, then must it not be those who are wild or squeamish? Those who are wild advance and grasp. Those who are squeamish have some things that they will not do.’ Did Kongzi not want those who attained the Way exactly? But he could not be sure of getting them. Hence, he thought of the next best.” [“To attain the Way exactly” is more literally “to hit the mean of the Way”(
).]
[37.3] Wan Zhang said, “May I ask what those called ‘wild’ were like?”
[37.4] Mengzi replied, “Those like Qin Zhang, Zeng Xi, and Mu Pi are the ones Kongzi called ‘wild.’” [Zhao Qi states that “Qin Zhang” is another name for Kongzi’s disciple Zizhang.13 Comparing him to another disciple, Kongzi said, “Zizhang overshoots the mark, while Zixia falls short of it…. Overshooting the mark is just as bad as falling short of it.” (Analects 11.16). Kongzi chides him for confusing being renowned with being genuinely virtuous (Analects 12.20). Zeng Xi was the father of Kongzi’s disciple Zengzi. A charming anecdote portrays him as having simple but admirable aspirations (Analects 11.26). We don’t know anything about Mu Pi. (For the quotations attributed to Kongzi in 37.1–2 above, see Analects 5.22 and 13.21.)]
[37.5] Wan Zhang said, “Why did he call them ‘wild’?”
[37.6] Mengzi replied, “Their resolutions were grand. They chanted, ‘The ancients! The ancients!’ But if one calmly examines their conduct, it [37.7] does not match their resolutions and words. If he also failed to get those who are wild, he wanted to associate with those who disdain to do {195} what is not pure. These are the squeamish. They are the next best. [Verses 37.1–7 discuss what are technically known as “deformations of virtue,” due to exceeding or falling short of the proper mean (cf. 4B7, 4B10; Analects 6.29). Liuxia Hui might be an example of someone who is “wild,” while Bo Yi is “squeamish” (5B1). Zhu Xi comments, “The wild have resolution. The squeamish preserve something. One can advance on the Way with those who have resolution. Those who preserve something will not lose themselves” (4A19).]
[37.8] “But Kongzi said, ‘The only ones who pass by my door without entering my home whom I do not regret having as associates are the village worthies. The village worthies are the thieves of virtue.’”
Wan Zhang said, “What must one be like to be called a ‘village worthy’?”
[37.9] Mengzi replied, “The village worthies are those who say,
Why are (the resolutions of the wild scholars) so grand? Their words take no notice of their actions, and their actions take no notice of their words. Then they chant, “The ancients! The ancients!” And why are the actions (of the squeamish) so solitary and aloof? Born in this era, we should be for this era. To be good is enough.
Eunuch-like, pandering to their era—these are the village worthies.” [Instead of the high aspirations of the “wild” and the integrity of the “squeamish,” the village worthies set low standards for themselves that are easy to meet and adequate to obtain the approval of most people. But genuine Virtue is much more demanding than this, and Kongzi wants nothing to do with those who settle for safe, socially-acceptable mediocrity.]
[37.10] Wan Zhang said, “If the whole village declares them worthy people, there is nowhere they will go where they will not be worthy people. So why did Kongzi regard them as thieves of virtue?”
[37.11] Mengzi replied, “If you try to condemn them, there is nothing you can point to; if you try to censure them, there is nothing to censure. They are in agreement with the current customs; they are in harmony with the sordid era in which they live. They seem to dwell in devotion and faithfulness; their actions seem to be blameless and pure. The multitude delight in them; they regard themselves as right. But you cannot enter into the Way of Yao and Shun with them. Hence, Kongzi said they are ‘thieves of virtue.’
{196} [37.12] “Kongzi said, ‘I hate that which seems but is not. I hate weeds out of fear that they will be confused with grain sprouts. I hate cleverness out of fear that it will be confused with righteousness. I hate glibness out of fear that it will be confused with faithfulness. I hate the tunes of the state of Zheng out of fear that they will be confused with proper music. I hate purple out of fear that it will be confused with vermillion. I hate the village worthies out of fear that they will be confused with those who have Virtue.’ [Zhu Xi comments, “Village worthies are neither ‘wild’ nor ‘squeamish,’ and everyone regards them as good. They seem to have attained the Way exactly, but that is not actually so. Hence, he fears that they will confuse people about Virtue.”]
[37.13] “The gentleman simply returns to the standard. If the standard is correct, then the multitudinous people will be inspired. When the people are inspired, then there will be no evil or wickedness.” [Verses 37.8–13 discuss what are technically called “semblances of virtue” (cf. 4B6 and 7B11). Yin Tun commented, “Kongzi preferred those who were ‘wild’ or ‘squeamish.’ The wild have great resolutions so that one can enter upon the Way with them. The squeamish have some things that they will not do, and so one can act with them (4B8, 7B31). What he hated about the ‘village worthies’ that made him wish to avoid them completely was that they seem to be right but are wrong. This deeply misleads people. There is no other technique for avoiding them than what he called ‘returning to the standard.’” (On the comments attributed to Kongzi in verses 37.8 and 37.12, see Analects 17.13, 17.18, and 15.11.)
Kongzi and Mengzi divide the world into the noble, the wild, the squeamish, and the village worthies. Which are you?]
[38.1] Mengzi said, “From Yao and Shun to Tang was more than five hundred years. So while Yu and Shun’s minister Gao Yao understood the former sages by seeing them, Tang understood the former sages only by hearing about them.
[38.2] “From Tang to King Wen was more than five hundred years. So while Tang’s ministers Yi Yin and Lai Zhu understood the former sage by seeing him, King Wen understood the former sages only by hearing about them.
[38.3] “From King Wen to Kongzi was more than five hundred years. So while King Wen’s ministers Taigong Wang and San Yisheng understood the former sage by seeing him, Kongzi understood the former sages only by hearing about them.
{197} [38.4] “From Kongzi to the present time is a little more than one hundred years. It is not long from the era of a sage, and we are close to the home of a sage. Yet where is he? Where is he?” [The Mengzi closes in sadness over the current state of the world, but also with an implicit challenge to pick up where Kongzi left off (cf. 2B13).]
[Mengzi taught that those who are talented have an obligation to use their skills for the betterment of society and not merely their own selfaggrandizement. He said that we must look within ourselves to find our best inclinations and develop them. He argued that loving families with good values produce caring adults who have integrity. He asserted that government must aim at the well-being of all the people not just the well-off. He declared that rulers who punish those who steal because they live in poverty and lack education are merely setting traps for the people. He claimed that war is a final resort that usually causes more troubles than it solves. We have advanced beyond Mengzi’s iron-age, agrarian, aristocratic society in many ways. But his basic ethical teachings are as relevant today as they were two millennia ago. So why not take up Mengzi’s challenge and carry forward the Way of the ancients?]
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1 On “extension,” see also 1A7.12, 7A15, and 7A17.
2 “Completion of the War,” from the Documents of Zhou in the Documents (Legge, The Shoo King, vol. 3 of The Chinese Classics, 315).
3 “The Announcement of Zhong Hui,” from the Documents of Shang in the Documents (Legge, The Shoo King, vol. 3 of The Chinese Classics, 180–81).
4 Contrast “The Great Declaration,” from the Documents of Zhou in the Documents (Legge, The Shoo King, vol. 3 of The Chinese Classics, 293).
5 Cf. this passage to 5B1.
6 Cf. 5B1.4.
7 Cf. Analects 15.2, 11.2.
8 On Gaozi, see also the following chapter, 7B22, and 6B3.
9 Zhuangzi might be seen as arguing for the opposite position (Zhuangzi 4, in Readings, especially 229–31).
10 On Yuezhengzi, see 1B16, 4A24–25, and 6B13.
11 Cf. 4A27 on “core reaction.”
12 Contrast 7A30.
13 Zhao Qi, Mengzi zhu, commentary on 7B37.