A man of highest virtue Will not display it as his own; His virtue then is real. Low virtue makes one miss no chance To show his virtue off; His virtue then is nought. High virtue is at rest; It knows no need to act. Low virtue is a busyness Pretending to accomplishment. Compassion at its best Consists in honest deeds; Morality at best Is something done, aforethought; High etiquette, when acted out Without response from others, Constrains a man to bare his arms And make them do their duty! Truly, once the Way is lost, There comes then virtue; Virtue lost, comes then compassion; After that morality; And when that's lost, there's etiquette, The husk of all good faith, The rising point of anarchy. Foreknowledge is, they say, The Doctrine come to flower; But better yet, it is The starting point of silliness . So once full-grown, a man will take The meat and not the husk, The fruit and not the flower. Rejecting one, he takes the other. |
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