Doctrine of the Mean

Trey Smith

Now that we have finished with The Analects of Confucius, we will move on to the serialization of another Confucian text, James Legge's translation of The Doctrine of the Mean. As with the Analects, the posts -- which will begin tomorrow -- will be featured at 7:30 a.m. and 8:30 p.m.

What is The Doctrine of the Mean? Here's an explanation I found.

The Doctrine of the Mean belongs to the Confucian Canon, which has inspired Chinese Culture for centuries. The text is said to be composed around 450-500 BCE (estimatedly), written down by Confucian students and scholars after Confucius' death.

The text is rich with symbolism and guidance to perfecting oneself, and has been subjected to different interpretations. In James Legge's translation and understanding of the text, the goal is to maintain balance and harmony from directing the mind to a state of constant equilibrium and stick to it. Thereby superior persons are cautious, gentle teachers that do what is natural enough where they happen to be.

The doctrine of the mean may be taken to represent moderation, rectitude, objectivity, sincerity, honesty and propriety. [Ebu]

The work is divided into three parts. They are:

The Axis - Confucian Metaphysics (chaps 1-17)
The Process - Politics (chaps 18-24)
The Perfect Word/Sincerity - Ethics (chaps 25-33)