Confucius said: The attitude of a filial son who uses utensils to send funerals and thus determines that the deceased is ignorant is unloving, and this should not be done. The attitude of a filial son to use utensils for burial and thus assume that the deceased is knowledgeable is irrational and should not be done. Therefore, funeral utensils can neither be canceled nor made as perfect as those used by the living. The bamboo utensils for funeral purposes are not easy to use without Teng Yuan; The clay basin leaks and is not good for washing the face; The woodwork was not carefully carved; Although the strings were open, the scales were not tuned; There are also a lot of pipes in the gansheng, but they just can't blow the tune; There is no shortage of bell chimes, but there are no shelves for hanging bell chimes. Such funeral vessels are called "Ming vessels", which means that the deceased are treated as gods.

Youzi asked Zengzi, "Have you ever heard from your master how to deal with losing your official position?" Zeng Tzu said: I heard the master say that if you lose your official position, it is better to be poor quickly; It's dead, it's better to rot quickly. Youzi said, "This is not like what a gentleman should say." Zengzi said, "This is what I heard from my own ears from the Master." Youzi still insisted: This is not like what a gentleman should say. Zeng Zi said: It was me and Ziyou who heard the master say this. The Son said, "Well, then, I believe the Master said so." But the Master must have said this with something in mind.

Zeng Zi told Ziyou about this conversation. Zi Lobby: It's really amazing, if you have a son, it's too much like a master! In the past, the master lived in the Song Kingdom, and when he saw that Huan Sima had made a stone brace for himself, and it took three years of hard work before he could finish it, the master said: If a luxury like him dies, it is better to rot it quickly. It's better to rot quickly if you're dead, this is for Huan Sima. After Uncle Nangong Jing lost his official position, every time he returned to the country, he must go to meet the monarch with treasures. The master said: It is better to be poor as soon as he loses his position if he bribes him to seek an official position.

If you lose your official position, it's better to be poor quickly, this is for Uncle Nangong Jing. Zeng Zi told Zi You's words to Youzi again, and Youzi said: That's right, I originally said that this is not like what the master said. Zeng Tzu said: How do you know? Youzi said: When the master was all slaughtered, he once stipulated that the inner coffin was four inches thick and the outer support was five inches thick. Also, in the past, the master lost his official position as the Sikou of the Lu State and was about to fight hard to become an official in the Chu State, so he first sent Zixia to arrange it, and then sent Ran You to help handle it.

Chen Zhuangzi, the doctor of Qi State, died, and sent someone to report the funeral in Lu State. The monarch of Lu didn't want to cry for Chen Zhuangzi, but he was afraid of offending Qi Guo. So Mu Gong summoned the county and asked him what to do about it. The county said: The ancient doctor couldn't talk about any interaction with neighboring countries at all, and even if you wanted to cry for him, you didn't have that kind of opportunity. The current doctor controls the country's politics and has frequent interactions with the princes, even if you don't want to cry for him, how can you do it? However, I have heard people say that there are two ways to cry, some cry because they love him, and some cry because they are afraid of him. Mu Gong said: You are right, but the question is what to do in order to deal with the situation. The county said: It is recommended that you cry him in the ancestral temple with a different surname. So Mu Gong went to the ancestral temple of the county clan to cry.

Zhongxian said to Zengzi: The Xia Dynasty used unusable Ming utensils to accompany the funeral to show the people that the deceased was unconscious. The Yin people used usable sacrificial vessels to accompany the burial to show the people that the deceased was conscious. The Zhou people used both Ming and sacrificial vessels to show the people that it is difficult to determine whether the deceased was knowledgeable or ignorant. Zeng Zi said: I'm afraid it's not like that! I'm afraid not! The so-called Ming utensils are specially made utensils for ghosts; The so-called sacrificial vessel is that the filial son uses the utensils he is using to sacrifice to the ancestors, both of which are used to express the infinite intention of the filial son. Why did the ancients assume that their dead relatives were unconscious!

Uncle Zhu had a half-brother who died, and asked Ziyou for advice on what mourning clothes to wear. Sub Lobbying: Maybe it's a big deal, right? Di Yi had a half-brother who died, and asked Zi Xia for advice on what mourning clothes to wear. Zixia said: I have never heard of this situation in the past. I only know that Lu Guo's approach is to serve him in decline. So Di Yi was convinced. Now people are serving their half-brothers, and it was only through Di Yi that it was decided.

Zisi's mother remarried to Weiguo after his father's death, and now that she is dead, Zisi went to mourn. There is a pair of people named Liu Ruo in the Wei Kingdom who said: You are a descendant of a saint, and people everywhere are concerned about how you mourn for your married mother, so you have to be careful. Zisi said: What do I have to watch out for! I have heard that if you do what you have to do according to the rules of etiquette, if you don't have enough money, you can't do it. Do what you should do according to the rules of etiquette, and the financial resources are enough, but without the opportunity, the gentleman cannot do the salute. What do I have to watch out for!

The county said: I heard that in ancient times, it was not because of their dignity that they downgraded the mourning clothes of their collateral relatives, whether they were elders or juniors, they all mourned according to their original kinship. For example, Teng Bowen, the monarch of Teng State, used the dignity of the monarch to serve Meng Hu because Meng Hu was Teng Bowen's uncle; And Teng Bowen is in decline for Meng Pi, because Teng Bowen is Meng Pi's uncle.

Houmu said: Regarding the funeral, I heard the county say that the funeral must be done without thinking deeply. The coffin I bought should be smooth inside and out, and I want to do that when I die.

Zeng Tzu said: The corpse has not yet been bathed, facelifted, and dressed, and the curtain must be opened in the hall; The body was already dressed up after the funeral, so the curtain was removed. Zhong Liangzi said: The person has just died, and the master and housewife are in a hurry, so the curtain is opened in the hall. After the small funeral, all kinds of things have been in place, so the curtain is removed. At the time of the small funeral, the sub-lobbied that the sacrifice be placed in the east of the corpse. Zeng Tzu said: Put the corpse in the west. And not on the ground, but on the mat. The memorial items of the small burial are placed in the west of the corpse, which is to follow the wrong customs of the last days of the Lu Kingdom.