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Chinese Literature - Renwuzhi

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Renwuzhi 人物志 "Treatise about Human Character" by Liu Shao 劉邵

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九徴 體別 流業 材理

才能 利害 接識 八觀


七繆 效難 釋爭1.The Nine Manifestations

2.Types of Personality

3.The Categories of Abilities

4.The Laws of Abilities

5.Capacities

6.Advantages and Dangers

7.How Men Understand Other Men

8.Heroes

9.Observing the Eight Points of View

10. The seven errors

11.The Difficulty of Obtaining Results

12.Dissolving Rivalries

10. The seven errors

The first error is this. In making an examination of a man's reputation, there is the error of partiality. The second is, that in coming in contact with men, there is the deception caused by love and hate. The third is, that when we measure what is in the mind of another, there are mistakes of quantity. The fourth is, the doubt as to whether the grade of a man's substance matures early or late in his life. The fifth is, in differentiating classes, there is the enmity of competitors. The sixth is, in discussing abilities, there is the deception due to judging by the position which the man holds. The seventh is, in observing the extraordinary, there is the defect of the two extremes.

夫採訪之要不在多少．然徴質不明者，信耳而不敢信目．故人以為是，則心隨而明之．人以為非，則意轉而化之．雖無所嫌，意若不意．

The important point in gathering information does not lie in quantity. But those who do not possess illumination in asking for substance truse their ears, but dare not trust their eyes. Therefore when others say that something is right, such a man's will follow their jugment in making his own estimate. If others say it is wrong, his mind will be changed and transformed with their judgment. Although he has no preonceived dislikes, there will seem to be doubt in his mind. [...]

夫人情莫不趣名利，避損害．名利之路在於是得．損害之源在於非失．故人無賢愚皆欲使是得在己．

Human nature always stries for fame and fortune and avoids injury. The road to fame and fortune lies in the rightness of acquisition. The source of injury lies in the wrongness of loss. Therefore men, whether worthy or foolish, desire to have the rightness of acquisition for themselves. [..]

中材之人，則隨世損益．是故藉富貴，則貨財充於內．施惠周於外．見贍者求可稱而譽之．見援者闡小美而大之．雖無異材，猶行成而名立．

Men of medium ability are controlled by circumstances. Therefore by availing themselves of wealth and rank, their riches will be full within, and their gifts large without. Those who receive their gifts will search for worthy qualities and praise them. Those who have been helped by them will elaborate their small merits, and enlarge them. Although they have no extraordinary abilities, it will be as if their acts are complete and their fame established.[...]


Translated by J. K. Shyrock

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south, the eclipse starts in the northwest and proceeds to southeast. If the sun is slightly to the east of the crossing point of the yellow and white paths, the upper part of the sun will be eclipsed; if the sun is slightly to the west of the crossing point, the lower part of it will be eclipsed. A total eclipse begins in the west and proceeds to the east. [Then follows the same description for the lunar eclipse.] The crossing point of yellow path and white path proceed each month one degree (1°5' to the west), describing a total circle of 249 crossing points (in 18.6 years). The old Indian astronomers called descending node (crossing point where the yellow path descends under the white path in western direction) "luohou", and the ascending node (crossing point where the yellow path ascends over the white path in western direction), "jidu".

１１．〈官政〉一：〈鹽〉

鹽之品至多，前史所載，夷狄間自有十餘種．中國所出亦不減數十種．今公私通行者四種：一者，末鹽，海鹽也．河北、京東、淮南、兩浙、江南東西、荊湖南北、福建、廣南東西十一路食之．其次顆鹽，解州鹽澤及晉、絳、潞、澤所出．京畿、南京、京西、陜西、河東、褒、劍等處食之．又次井鹽，井取之．益、梓、利、夔四路食之．又次崖鹽，生於土崖之間．階、成、鳳等州食之．

唯陜西路，顆鹽有定課，歲為錢二百三十萬緡．自餘盈虛不常，大約歲入二千餘萬緡．唯末鹽歲自抄三百萬，供河北邊〈入+米〉；其他皆給本處經費而已．緣邊買仰給於度支者，河北則海、末鹽，河東、陜西則顆鹽及蜀茶為多．運鹽之法，凡行百里，陸運斤四錢，船運斤一錢，以此為率．

11. Offices and government 1: Salt

There exist very many different kinds of salt; the historical records we can learn that the southern barbarians Yi and Di knew more than ten kinds. Even in the central plain of China, there existed not less than ten different types of salt. Today, there are four types officially accepted:

First, the "end salt" (moyan) that is made sea salt. It is produced and consumed in the ten circuits of Hebei, Jingdong (east of Kaifeng), Huainan, Liangzhe (modern Zhejiang), Jiangnan East and West (modern Jiangsu and Jiangxi), Jinghu South and North (modern Hunan and Hubei), Fujian, and Guangxi East and West.

Second, the "grain salt" (keyan), produced in the salt lakes of Xiezhou, Jinzhou, Jiangzhou, Luzhou, and Zezhou (all Shanxi), and consumed in the capital Kaifeng, Nanjing (south of Kaifeng), Jingxi (Henan), Shaanxi, Hedong (Shanxi), Baocheng (Shaanxi), and Jiange (Sichuan).

Third, the "well salt" (jingyan), prospected mines in the earth, and consumed in the four circuits of Yizhou, Zizhou (both Sichuan), Lizhou (Shaanxi) and Kuizhou (Sichuan).

Fourth, the "cliff salt" (yanyan), produced earthen cliffs, and consumed in Jiezhou, Chengzhou (both Gansu) and Fengzhou (Shaanxi).

In the circuit of Shaanxi, there is a fixed tax on "grain salt", (with a state income of) 2.300.000.000 qian (or 2.3 mio min or guan) p.a., but except this, the taxes are everywhere different, with an income of more than 20.000.000 min p.a. The state income by the tax for "end salt" is 3 mio., including the trade for foods in Hebei. The other taxes are provided to the local government. The salt types sold to the financial ministry and its offices, are mainly sea salt or "end salt" in the circuit of Hebei, and "grain salt" and tea Shu (Sichuan) in the circuits of Hedong and Shaanxi. The standard price for salt shipment are: 4 qian per jin of salt for land transport, and 1 qian per jin for water transport, both amounts for one hundred miles (li).

Translated by Ulrich Theobald

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