Seeing good is like falling short, seeing bad is like exploring the soup.
——"Speech at the Third Plenary Session of the 18th Central Commission for Discipline Inspection" and other articles cited in it
■Interpretation
The most important thing is to cultivate one's moral character. The purpose is to pursue good and avoid evil. "Seeing good rather than falling short of it" means always cultivating the virtues of government. Adhere to "I examine myself three times a day", insist on "wiping away diligently at all times", always take the advanced as an example and the role model as a benchmark, discover one's own shortcomings, understand one's shortcomings, sweep away the weeds in the soul every day, and cultivate the realm of morality at all times . "Seeing evil is like exploring the soup" means to always have a sense of awe, not to be short-sighted because of petty gains, not to be eager for quick success and glory, build your own "firewall", set your own "curse", set up your own "high-voltage line", always We must "follow the party politically, do not lend a hand economically, and do not lose face in life", and truly develop an indestructible body. "Seeing good is like falling short" and "seeing bad is like exploring soup" are complementary to each other. Seeking good will avoid evil, and avoiding evil can also promote good. The former is the moral realm that should be pursued, while the latter is the moral bottom line that should be maintained. If there is no pursuit of a higher moral realm, it will be difficult to obtain the internal motivation to cultivate one's morality; if there is a lack of persistence in the moral bottom line, it will break through external constraints and go further and further down the wrong road.
■Original Canon
Confucius said: "Seeing good is like falling short, and seeing bad is like exploring soup. I have seen his person, and I have heard his words. Live in seclusion to pursue your ambitions, and practice righteousness to achieve your goals. I have heard his words, but I have not seen his person." ——"The Analects of Confucius·Ji Shi" from "Spring and Autumn Period"
■Explanation
"Seeing good is like falling short, and seeing unkindness is like exploring the soup." It means that when you see good behavior, you are afraid that you will not achieve it; when you see unwholesome behavior, you are like holding hands. Avoid it as quickly as you would reach into boiling water. Soup refers to hot water in ancient times. Confucius used the vivid metaphor of "exploring the soup" to illustrate the attitude a person should adopt when seeing something bad. Later generations often use this sentence to warn politicians to always cultivate the virtues of politics, always think about the harm of greed, and always have awe.
In addition, in "Hanshi Waizhuan" it is said that "higher comparisons lead to broad virtues, while lower comparisons lead to narrower practices", that is, compared with people with noble morals, they have high goals for striving, which will make them Virtue increases; compared with those who are lagging behind, the standard requirements are lowered, which will lead to a decrease in virtue. "Zengguang Xianwen" also says: "Follow what is good like flowing, and hate evil like enmity." They are all similar to Confucius's "Seeing good is like failing, seeing bad is like exploring soup", which also shows the consistency of the moral judgments of the ancients.