Mountains:
How jagged and precipitous, sheer and steep,
soaring and colossal, towering and craggy,
long enduring, they do not collapse or crumble,
Just like the humane man or resolute scholar-gentleman.
Confucius said: “Mountains!
1 Spirits and earth divinities [must have] erected them.”
2Treasures to store and amass,
implements to use and enrich.
[Whether] crooked or straight, [their trees are equally] suitable.
The large [trees] can be crafted into palaces, dwellings, terraces, and pavilions;
the small [trees] can be made into boats, carts, pontoons, and rafts.
3None of the large ones are not just right;
none of the small ones are unacceptable.
Take up the ax and fell [their trees];
take up the sickle and reap [their grasses].
There,
living people support themselves,
wild animals take refuge,
and the dead are interred.
Numerous are the achievements [of mountains], yet they say nothing; this is why the Noble Man compared himself to them.
Moreover, as earth piles up to become a mountain,
it causes no injury;
as it attains its height,
it does no harm;
as it grows in size,
it causes no loss.
Small at the apex
and massive at the base,
it long remains stable
for future generations, without the slightest movement, majestically standing alone.
Such is the virtue of the mountain.
An Ode says:
“How lofty is the Southern Mountain,
with rocks so steep and precipitous!
Majestic and awesome are you, Grand Master Yin.
The people all revere you!”
4This expresses it.
Water:
How it gushes forth and rushes forth from sources and springs;
day and night it is never depleted,
resembling those who are strong.
It overflows every barrier and moves on,
resembling those who are just.
It flows downward through tiny fissures,
not neglecting the smallest gaps,
resembling those who are discerning.
It flows through gully and ravine without going astray;
even rushing forth for ten thousand li, it always reaches its destination,
resembling those who are knowledgeable.
Though obstructions hinder it,
it remains fresh and calm,
resembling those who understand their destiny.
Unclean, one enters it,
to emerge refreshed and clean;
it resembles those who excel at transforming others.
Flowing toward a gorge a thousand fathoms
5 deep,
it enters it without hesitation,
resembling those who are courageous.
All things are destroyed by fire;
water alone conquers it.
It resembles those who are martial.
Getting it, one lives,
losing it, one dies.
It resembles those who possess virtue.
While standing by a river, Confucius said, “What has passed away resembles this flowing water. Day and night it does not cease.”
6 This expresses it. [73/72/3–8]
