韩 非 子
Translated by W. K. Liao

BOOK ONE

4 愛臣第四

Chapter IV.

On Favourite Vassals{愛臣.}: A Memorial

愛臣太親，必危其身；人臣太貴，必易主位；主妾無等，必危嫡子；兄弟不服，必危社稷。

Favouritevassals, if too intimate with the ruler, would cause him personal danger. Ministers, if too powerful, would overturn the august position of the sovereign. Wives and concubines, if without distinction of rank, would cause legitimate sons dangers. Brothers, if not subservient to the ruler, would endanger the Altar of the Spirits of Land and Grain.

臣聞千乘之君無備，必有百乘之臣在其側，以徙其民而傾其國；萬乘之君無備，必有千乘之家在其側，以徙其威而傾其國。是以姦臣蕃息，主道衰亡。是故諸侯之博大，天子之害也；群臣之太富，君主之敗也。將相之管主而隆（國）家，此君人者所外也。

Thy servant has heard: "The ruler of one thousand chariots, if not on his guard, would find close by him vassals of one hundred chariots aiming to shake his authority {With Wang Wei 民 should be 威.} and upset his country. The ruler of ten thousand chariots, if not on his guard, would find close by him vassals of one thousand chariots aiming to shake his authority and upset his country." That being so, wicked ministers can multiply while the sway of the sovereign declines. Therefore, the territorial expansion of the feudal lords leads to the damnation of the Son of Heaven; the extraordinary wealth of ministers leads to the downfall of the ruler. Hence generals and ministers who would leave the sovereign’s interests behind {With Kao Hêng 管主 should be 後主.} and prosper {With Kao 國 between 隆 and 家 is superfluous.} the welfare of their own families instead, should be ousted by the ruler of men.

萬物莫如身之至貴也，〔位之至尊也〕，〔主威之重〕，〔主勢之隆也〕。此四美者，不求諸外，不請於人，議之而得之矣。故曰：人主不能用其富，則終於外也。此君人者之所識也。

Nothing is more valuable than the royal person, more honourable than the throne, more powerful than the authority of the sovereign, and more august than the position of the ruler. These four excellences are not obtained from outside nor secured from anybody else, but are deliberated in the ruler’s own mind and acquired thereby. Hence the saying: "The lord of men, if unable to exercise his equipment with the four excellences, is bound to end his life in exile." This the ruler of men must keep firmly in mind.

昔者紂之亡，周之卑，皆從諸侯之博大也。晉之分也，齊之奪也，皆以群臣之太富也。夫燕、宋之所以弒其君者，皆（以）〔此〕類也。故上比之殷、周，中比之燕、宋，莫不從此術也。

Of old, the ruin of Chow and the fall of Chou were both due to the territorial expansion of the feudal lords; the partition of Chin {In 376 b.c.by the Chao, Han, and Wey Clans.} as well as the usurpation of Ch`i {In 386 b.c.by the T`ien Clan.} was due to the extraordinary wealth of ministers. So were the regicides in Yen and Sung, indeed. Thus, whether in the cases of Yin and Chou or in the cases of Chin and Ch`i, or in the modern cases of Yen and Sung, the same reason never failed to hold true.

是故明君之蓄其臣也，盡之以法，質之以備。故不赦死，不宥刑。赦死宥刑，是謂威淫。社稷將危，國家偏威。

For this reason, the intelligent ruler, in keeping officials in service, exhausts their abilities with laws and corrects their errors with measures. Hence no release from the death penalty, no remission of punishment. Both release from the death penalty and remission of punishment, being called "authority-losing" {威淫.} on the part of the ruler, mark the fall of the Altar of the Spirits of Land and Grain into danger as well as the shifting of the state under the "deflected authority" {偏威.} of the wicked ministers.

是故大臣之祿雖大，不得藉威城市；黨與雖眾，不得臣士卒。故人臣處國無私朝，居軍無私交，其府庫不得私貸於家。此明君之所以禁其邪。

Therefore, no minister, however large his bounty may be, should be allowed to include {With Yü Yüeh 藉 should read 籍 and 威 below it is superfluous.} the capital city in his private fief; nor should he be allowed, however numerous his adherents and supporters may be, to subject officers and soldiers as personal vassals. Accordingly, no official, while serving the state, should be allowed to have any private governmental office. While in the army, nobody should be allowed to cultivate personal friendships. No official should be allowed to make any loan from the public treasury to individual families. This is the way the intelligent ruler should forbid wicked practices.

是故不得四從，不載奇兵，非傳非遽，載奇兵革，罪死不赦。此明君之所以備不虞者也。

For the same reason, no minister should be allowed to have a four-horsed chariot as personal escort nor should he be allowed to carry any kind of weapons. If anyone, being neither a public courier nor a herald of urgent messages, transport implements of war from place to place, he should be condemned to death without mercy. This is the way the intelligent ruler should provide against accidents.