FROM ACROSS THE HIGH HIMALAYAS

It’s Teacher’s Day and I thought it
would be nice to explore ancient
wisdom other than our own. Let
us cross the Himalayas to China,
setting geopolitics aside for a
moment. I like this story about
Confucius, the iconic Chinese
guru.
Someone told Confucius, “Repay an injury
with kindness.” Confucius said, “If you reward
injury with kindness, what will you
reward kindness with? You should repay
an injury with justice and kindness with
kindness.” This sensible story about not
turning the other cheek meekly cleared my
head of the cobwebs that have confused Indians
for decades.
Another teaching story that I found both
modern and moral and would like to retell
is about Yan Ying, a famous contemporary
of Confucius who lived 2,500 years ago in
the state of Qi. This is in the present-day
Chinese provinces of Shandong and Hebei.
In passing, I recall the miles of deep pink
roses planted on either side of the modern
Shandong Road. It was a beautiful sight.
Yan Ying was sent by Duke Jing, the ruler
of Qi, to govern Donge Province. By the
end of three years, so many complaints
about him had reached Duke Jing that he
decided to relieve Yan Ying of his post and
summoned him to that effect.
“I see the error of my ways now, Your
Highness. If you give me another three
years, I promise I will improve,” said Yan
Ying in a composed manner.
Three years later there were a thousand
good reports about Yan Ying which the
Duke heard, and was pleased. He summoned
Yan Ying to court to be rewarded for
his good services in Donge. But Yan Ying
disagreed.
“During my first tenure at Donge,” he
told the surprised Duke, “I built roads,
wells, shelters, schools and hospitals. I
cleaned up corruption in government. I advocated
frugal living and urged people to
respect their parents and behave responsibly
to family and society. I punished criminals.
I gave a fair hearing to all people without
indulging the rich and powerful. When
people asked me for favours, I only gave
them what was permissible. When I had to
entertain my superiors, I did not go above
the limit. That was why all those people
spoke ill of me.
“The second time, I changed my way of
governance. I did not undertake public
works. I gave corrupt officers a free hand.
Criminals were not punished. I didn’t say
a word about frugal living. I granted all favours
in full. I let the rich and powerful
have their way. I lavished hospitality on my
seniors. Everyone praised me and in time
you heard those compliments.
“I should be rewarded for my first three
years of work and punished for the last
three. So I do not deserve a reward now.”
Duke Jing was so impressed that he appointed
Yan Ying the Prime Minister of Qi.
The story goes that Qi soon became a very
prosperous state.
Once, when Confucius visited Duke Jing,
he refused to meet Yan Ying because he
doubted his integrity. This was because
Yan Ying had served three dukes in his career.
When Yan Ying was told this, he was
shocked. “I served three dukes because
they all had the same goal of peace and
prosperity. I would not have served even
one duke otherwise. I had high regard for
Confucius. But now I am not so sure,” he
said.
These remarks by Yan Ying spread fast
and reached Confucius. He realised his error
of judgement which was fuelled by
loose chat and incomplete information,
and sincerely apologised to Yan Ying.
That was the effect of ‘social media’
then. It has made us masters of information
today but are we also acquiring knowledge?
This story tells its own tale.
Jadestone is a precious object in Chinese
culture. There was a young Chinese man
who wanted to become an expert on jade.
He went to a jade master and shyly asked
to become his pupil. The great teacher invited
him to sit and conversed pleasantly
with him over bowls of green tea. He asked
him to come back the next day.
The teacher had a big collection of jade
pieces and carved jade bowls, figurines and
ornaments in white, light and dark green,
and ‘spinach’ or streaky jade. They were
from the eras of many Chinese dynasties
and some were valuable antiques.
When the young man arrived, the teacher
invited him to sit in the garden. He gave
him a piece of jade to hold. He fetched tea
and spoke about painting, music and dance.
He did not say a word about jade. After an
hour, he asked the young man to come back
the next day.
The second day was exactly like the first.
The teacher gave the young man a piece of
jade to hold and talked about everything
under the sun except jade. This went on for
a year, two years and four. Finally, the
young man gathered the courage to ask,
“Respected teacher, when may I learn about
jade?” The master smiled gently and said,
“Tomorrow.”
When the excited young man arrived,
the teacher as usual gave him a piece to
hold. But the minute he held it, the young
man leapt up crying, “This is not jade!”
The lesson was to engage closely and
consistently with your subject to know it.
As we say in India, “Let good thoughts
come to us from every side”.