Chapter 45
小取
Minor Illustrations
夫辯者，將以明是非之分，審治亂之紀，明同異之處，察名實之理，處利害，決嫌疑。焉摹略萬物之然，論求群言之比。以名舉實，以辭抒意，以說出故。以類取，以類予。有諸己不非諸人，無諸己不求諸人。或也者，不盡也。假者，今不然也。效者，為之法也；所效者，所以為之法也。故中效則是也，不中效則非也，此效也。辟也者，舉也物而以明之也。侔也者，比辭而俱行也。援也者，曰子然，我奚獨不可以然也？推也者，以其所不取之同於其所取者，予之也。是猶謂也者，同也。吾豈謂也者，異也。
Bian is concerned with the following: (i) clarifying distinctions between right and wrong (true and false); (ii) investigating periods of order and disorder; (iii) clarifying decisions on sameness and difference; (iv) examining principles of name and entity; (v) judging benefit and harm; (vi) resolving doubt and uncertainty. It includes what is so of the form and outline of the ten thousand things, and discussion and analysis of the comparisons of the many words. It is through names that entities are picked out; it is through words/phrases that concepts are expressed; it is through explanations that causes emerge; it is through kinds (classes) that choices are made; it is through kinds (classes) that inferences are drawn. What one has in oneself, one does not criticize in others; what one does not have in oneself, one does not demand in others.
‘To doubt’ is about what is not complete. ‘To suppose’ is about what is presently not so. ‘To liken to’ is about taking something as a model. What is likened to is therefore taken as the model. Thus, if there is correspondence in the likening, it is so, and if there is not correspondence in the likening, it is not so. This is what ‘likening to’ is. ‘Comparing’ (pi) is putting forward one thing to make another thing clear. ‘Equating’ (mou) is taking one term to be equivalent to another. ‘Drawing an analogy’ (yuan) is to say: ‘If this is so why should I be the only one for whom it is not so?’ ‘Inferring’ (tui) is to take what has not been ascertained and identify it with what has been ascertained, and so make a judgement. This is like saying: ‘The other is the same’, so how can I say: ‘The other is different’?
夫物有以同而不率遂同。辭之侔也，有所至而正。其然也，有所以然也；其然也同，其所以然不必同。其取之也，有所以取之。其取之也同，其所以取之不必同。是故辟、侔、援、推之辭，行而異，轉而危，遠而失，流而離本，則不可不審也，不可常用也。故言多方，殊類異故，則不可偏觀也。
With respect to things, there is that by which they are the same yet not completely the same (i.e. pi). In equating terms, there is a proper limit to be reached (i.e. mou). (With things,) there is their being so and there is how they come to be so. In their being so they may be the same, but how they come to be so is not necessarily the same (i.e. yuan). (With things,) there is their being chosen and there is that by which they are chosen. In their being chosen they may be the same, but in that by which they are chosen they are not necessarily the same (i.e. tui). For this reason, with the terms comparing, equating, drawing an analogy and inferring, (there may be) differences as they proceed, dangers as they change, failure as they go too far and ‘slippage’ as they leave their basis. One must, then, be careful; one cannot expect constancy of use. Thus, if you say that there are many methods, and that different classes have different causes, it is not possible to take a prejudiced viewpoint.
夫物或乃是而然，或是而不然，或一周而一不周，或一是而一不是也，不可常用也。故言多方，殊類異故，則不可偏觀也。非也。
With respect to things (the following apply): 1. Sometimes it is this and is so. 2. Sometimes it is this and yet is not so. 3. Sometimes it is not this and yet is so. 4. Sometimes it is general in one case but not general in another case. 5. Sometimes it is this in one case but not this in another case.
白馬，馬也，乘白馬，乘馬也。驪馬，馬也，乘驪馬，乘馬也。獲，人也，愛獲，愛人也。臧，人也，愛臧，愛人也。此乃是而然者也。
A white horse is a horse. To ride a white horse is to ride a horse. A black horse is a horse. To ride a black horse is to ride a horse. Huo is a person. To love Huo is to love a person. Zang is a person. To love Zang is to love a person. These are examples of ‘it is this and is so’.
獲之親，人也。獲事其親，非事人也。其弟，美人也。愛弟，非愛美人也。車，木也。乘車，非乘木也。船，木也。乘船，非人木也。盜人，人也。多盜，非多人也。無盜，非無人也。奚以明之？惡多盜，非惡多人也。欲無盜，非欲無人也。世相與共是之。若若是，則雖盜人人也，愛盜非愛人也，不愛盜非不愛人也，殺盜人，非殺人也。無難盜無難矣。此與彼同類，世有彼而不自非也，墨者有此而非之，無也故焉，所謂內膠外閉與心毋空乎，內膠而不解也，此乃是而不然者也
Huo’s parents are people, but Huo’s serving his parents is not serving people. His younger brother is a beautiful person, but loving his younger brother is not loving a beautiful person. A cart is wood, but riding a cart is not riding wood. A boat is wood, but boarding a boat is not boarding wood. A robber is a person, but many robbers are not many people. There not being robbers doesn’t mean there are not people. How can this be made clear? To dislike there being many robbers is not to dislike there being many people. To wish there were no robbers is not to wish there were no people. The world is united in its agreement that this is so. If it is so, then although (one says): ‘A robber is a person; loving a robber is not loving a person; not loving a robber isn’t not loving a person; killing a robber is not killing a person’, there is no difficulty. This and that are both of the same class. Nevertheless, the people of the world believe that and consider themselves not mistaken, whereas the Mohists believe this and everyone else considers them mistaken. This is without good reason and may be spoken of as being fixed with respect to what is within and unreceptive to what is without (i.e. as having a closed mind that is not susceptible to change). These are instances of ‘it is this and yet is not so’.
且夫讀書，非好書也。且鬥雞，非雞也。好鬥雞，好雞也。且入井，非入井也。止且入井，止入井也。且出門，非出門也。止且出門，止出門也。若若是，且夭，非夭也。壽夭也，壽夭也。有命，非命也；非執有命，非命也。無難矣，此與彼同類。世有彼而不自非也，墨者有此而罪非之，無也故焉，所謂內膠外閉與心毋空乎，內膠而不解也。此乃是而不然者也。
Being about to read a book is not reading a book. Liking to read a book is reading a book. There being about to be a cockfight is not a cockfight. Liking cockfighting is for there to be cockfighting. Being about to enter a well is not entering a well. To stop being about to enter a well is to stop entering a well. Being about to go out a door is not going out a door. To stop being about to go out a door is to stop going out a door. If it is thus (then one may say): ‘Being about to die young is not dying young; living a long time is not dying young.’ To consider there to be Fate does not mean there is Fate and ‘to reject fatalism is to reject Fate’ is without difficulty. This and that are of the same class. The people of the world believe that and do not consider themselves mistaken, whereas the Mohists believe this and everyone else considers them mistaken. This is without good reason and may be spoken of as being fixed with respect to what is within and unreceptive to what is without (i.e. as having a closed mind that is not susceptible to change). These are examples of ‘not this and yet is so’.
愛人，待周愛人而後為愛人。不愛人，不待周不愛人。不周愛，因為不愛人矣。乘馬，不待周乘馬然後為乘馬也。有乘於馬，因為乘馬矣。逮至不乘馬，待周不乘馬而後為不乘馬。此一周而一不周者也。
Loving people awaits universally loving people and afterwards becomes loving people. Not loving people does not await universally not loving people. Not universally loving is a consequence of not loving people. Riding horses does not await universally riding horses (riding all horses) for there subsequently to be riding horses. There is riding on a horse and as a consequence there is riding horses. When it comes to not riding horses, this does not await a universal not riding of horses (not riding all horses) for there subsequently to be not riding horses. These are examples of ‘one generalized’ (universal) and ‘one not generalized’ (not universal).
居於國，則為居國；有一宅於國，而不為有國。桃之實，桃也，棘之實，非棘也。問人之病，問人也。惡人之病，非惡人也。人之鬼，非人也。兄之鬼，兄也。祭人之鬼，非祭人也。
If you live in a state, it is deemed the state you live in. If you have one house in a state, you are not deemed to have the state. The fruit of the peach tree is the peach; the fruit of the ji tree is not the ji. To ask about a person’s illness is to ask about the person; to dislike a person’s illness is not to dislike the person. A person’s spirit is not the person; an older brother’s spirit is the older brother. To sacrifice to a person’s spirit is not to sacrifice to the person.
祭兄之鬼，乃祭兄也。之馬之目盼，則為之馬盼。之馬之目大，而不謂之馬大。之牛之毛黃，則謂之牛黃。之牛之毛眾，而不謂之牛眾。一馬，馬也。二馬，馬也。馬四足者，一馬而四足也，非兩馬而四足也。一馬，馬也。馬或白者，二馬而或白也，非一馬而或白。此乃一是而一非者也。
To sacrifice to the older brother’s spirit is to sacrifice to the older brother. If this horse’s eyes are blind, we call it a blind horse. If this horse’s eyes are large, we don’t call it a large horse. If this ox’s hairs are yellow, we call it a yellow ox. If this ox’s hairs are many, we don’t call it many oxen. One horse is ‘horse’. Two horses are ‘horse’. With respect to a horse and four legs, there is one horse and four legs, not two horses and four legs. A white horse is a horse. With respect to some horses being white, there are (at least) two horses and some are (one is) white, not one horse and some are (one is) white. These, then, are instances of one being so and one not being so.