lines 17 - 24
Consider: Our histories tell us many stories of children who grew up
the correct way. The most important thing for young children to learn
is how to behave properly towards their parents and others in their
families. This is what we call filial piety.
Long ago a boy named Huang
Xiang set an example for all children to know and to follow.
By the age of only nine, he understood perfectly what filial piety
means. In the summer months, when it is difficult to sleep because of
the heat, he fanned the mosquito nets of his parents to cool them and
to drive away bothersome insects. In the cold winter months,
when it is unpleasant to get into bed, he would slip into his parents'
bed before them to take the chill from the bedding and he attended the
fire they kept going to be sure they would be comfortable in the
morning. He did all this and more because he understood his filial duty
toward his parents. When he grew up he became a noted scholar and high
official continued to serve as an example for all to emulate.
Indeed:
17. Nine
year old Xiang knew how to perform household duties.
18. Children
should be very filial towards their parents.
Consider: Children's duties extend to their whole families, not just to
their parents. In this respect we remember the deeds of Kong Rong,
a twentieth generation descendant of Confucius, the first and greatest
of our philosophers. He is now known as being one of the seven great
geniuses of his era. But when he was only four years old he showed the
proper attitude and when his brothers were squabbling about who should
have the biggest and best pear that they had picked, he went and chose
the smallest for himself, thereby leaving the best for the others and
showing them the correct attitude, that his elders deserved the better
fruit.
Later in his life his righteousness led to him being put to death for
his fearless indictment of the actions of a prime minister of his time
in arbitrarily accusing Rong's brother of harboring a political
refugee.
Indeed:
19. Four-year old Rong
gave the best
pears to his family.
Consider: Parents and family, family and parents, children constantly
must remember their duties towards them. And they must behave properly
towards them at all times. This is the beginning of your education. You
cannot proceed in your learning if you do not have the proper attitude
towards and relations with your family. This is the foundation of your
success as a student.
Indeed:
20. One of the first
things
to know is the proper way for younger people to relate to older people.
21. The very
first thing to learn is
filial piety and fraternal love, then learn other things.
Consider: To be able to understand what our philosophers, historians,
and poets have to tell us, we must be able to read and to count,
numbers and characters must be studied diligently both in reading and
in reading if you want to become a good person. So, after the
foundation is properly in place there is much more to learn.
Indeed:
22. Learn to count, learn
to read.
Consider: Numbers form many patterns and if you know the patterns, the
numbers become more easy to understand. Numbers start at one run to
ten. Ten tens give us one hundred.
Indeed:
23. The numbers got from
one to ten,
from ten to one hundred . . .
Consider: The pattern continues, as ten hundreds give us a thousand and
ten thousands give us ten thousand. (For numbers in a range useful in
everyday life, a new and different word is used for each power of ten.)
Indeed:
24. . . .
from one hundred to a
thousand, from a thousand to ten thousand.\\