Profiles from the Analects: Lord She
Lord She (葉公) was a high-level minister of Chu who was appointed as governor of She when the state acquired the district in 495 BCE. Previously, She had been part of Cai but its remaining population had been left to fend for itself when the ruler of the state decided to relocate his court closer to the protective embrace of the state of Wu.
Born in around 478 BCE, Lord She lived until 529 BCE and had the full name of Shen Zhuliang (沈諸梁). He is featured several times in the Commentary of Zuo for his political maneuvers in the highly volatile court of Chu. But he is best known for the still-ongoing controversy he ignited by sharing with Confucius the story of a man called Upright Gong who reported his father to the authorities for stealing a sheep. Confucius’s enigmatic response to this can be found in 13.18.
Lord She first met Confucius soon after taking up his position as governor of the district, so he was not doubt eager for advice from the sage on how to make a success of it when he asked him about governance in 13.16. Confucius readily obliged by telling him if that if he looked after the people already living there properly, others would surely come from afar to boost its small population. Judging by his question to Zilu in 7.18, it is also possible that the Lord She was considering offering Confucius a job, though if this is true nothing came from it.
According to the Commentary of Zuo, Lord She served as governor of the district for twelve years before returning to capital of Chu to help resolve the bitter power struggles and violent rivalries that were afflicting the court. He must have gained a real affection for the district of She during his time as governor, however, for he returned there to live out his retirement.
Appearances in the Analects of Confucius
Book 7, Chapter 18
Book 13, Chapter 16
Book 13, Chapter 18
Book 7
Chapter 18
葉公問孔子於子路，子路不對。子曰：「女奚不曰，其為人也，發憤忘食，樂以忘憂，不知老之將至云爾。」
Lord She asked Zilu about Confucius. Zilu did not reply. Confucius said: “Why did you not say, ‘He is the kind of man who gets so lost in his passions that he forgets to eat and so caught up in his happiness that he forgets his worries and does not even notice he is growing old?’”
Book 13
Chapter 16
葉公問政。子曰：「近者說，遠者來。」
Lord She asked about governance. Confucius said: “If you make the people near to you happy, others will come to you from afar.”
Chapter 18
葉公語孔子曰：「吾黨有直躬者，其父攘羊而子證之。」孔子曰：「吾黨之直者異於是，父為子隱，子為父隱，直在其中矣。」
Lord She declared to Confucius: “Among my people, there’s a man we call ‘Upright Gong.’ When his father stole a sheep, he informed on him.” Confucius said: “Among my people, the ones we consider to be ‘upright’ are different. Fathers watch the backs of their sons and sons watch the backs of their fathers. ‘Uprightness’ can be found in this.”
