Leadership Lessons from Confucius: goodness, water, and fire

Confucius said: “Goodness is even more vital to the common people than water and fire. I have seen people step through water and fire and die; I have yet to see anyone step through goodness and die.”
子曰：「民之於仁也，甚於水火。水火，吾見蹈而死者矣，未見蹈仁而死者也。」

What are your true motivations? This is another question you need to ask yourself on a regular basis. Is it money, wealth, and fame that you are looking for? Or is it something less tangible such as job satisfaction, high moral standards, or spiritual fulfilment?

Do these motivations match with your professional and personal priorities? If not, how can you align them more closely in order to achieve a greater sense of overall balance?

Notes
This article features a translation of Chapter 35 of Book 15 of the Analects of Confucius. You can read my full translation of Book 15 here.

(1) Confucius is making the rather bold assertion that people should be more concerned about morality than material comforts, though perhaps his point is obscured by his hyperbolic language. While fire and water are essential for keeping you alive, they represent external goods that you have no control over. Too much or too little water or fire can lead you to desperate actions and even kill you. Goodness, in contrast, can be found inside you. The quest for it will never bring you harm and can sustain you during even the most difficult of times.

(2) The character 蹈 (dǎo), meaning to step or to tread, is probably a play on words with character 道 (dào), meaning the way. As such “step through goodness” could be taken to mean “step along the way of goodness”.

(3) See 4.4, 4.5, and 12.7 for similar riffs on how goodness overrides everything else:

“Dedicating yourself to the pursuit of goodness leaves no room for evil.”

“Riches and rank are what people desire; but if they can only obtain them through improper ways, they should not pursue them. Poverty and obscurity are what people detest; but if they can only escape from them through improper ways, they should accept them. If a leader abandons goodness, how can they live up to that name? A leader never abandons goodness, even for as long as it takes to eat a single meal; in moments of haste and confusion they still stay true to it.”

Zigong asked about governance. Confucius said: “Enough food, enough weapons, and the trust of the people.” Zigong said: “If you had to go without one of these three, which one would you give up?” Confucius replied: “Weapons.” Zigong asked: “If you had to go without one of the remaining two, which one would you give up?” Confucius replied: “Food. From ancient times, death has been the fate of everyone. But without the trust of the people, the government cannot stand.”

I took this image at the Mencius Cemetery in Qufu.