问：「《修道说》言『率性之谓道』，属圣人分上事；『修道之谓教』，属贤人分上事。」
先生日：「众人亦率性也，但率性在圣人分上较多，故『率性之谓道』属圣人事；圣人亦修道也，但修道在贤人分上多，故『修道之谓教』属贤人事。」又曰：「《中庸》一书，大抵皆是说修道的事。故后面凡说君子，说颜渊，说子路，皆是能修道的；说小人，说贤知、愚不肖，说庶民，皆是不能修道的；其他言舜、文、周公、仲尼至诚至圣之类，则又圣人之自能修道者也。」
有人问：「《修道说》里讲『率性之谓道』属于圣人分上的事，『修道之谓教』属于贤人分上的事。」
先生说：「众人也率性，只是率性在圣人分上较多，所以说『率性之谓道』属圣人之事；圣人也修道，只是修道在贤人分上较多，所以说『修道之谓教』属贤人之事。」又说：「《中庸》一书，大抵都是讲修道的事。所以后面凡说君子、说颜渊、说子路，都是能修道的；说小人、说贤知与愚不肖、说庶民，都是不能修道的；其他讲舜、文王、周公、仲尼至诚至圣之类，又是圣人中自能修道的人。」
Someone asked: 'The Essay on Cultivating the Way assigns following nature-is-the-Way to the sage's share, cultivating the Way-is-teaching to the worthy's.'
The Master said: 'The crowd too follows nature — only in the sage the share is greater, hence following nature is the sage's affair; the sage too cultivates the Way — only in the worthy the share is greater, hence cultivating is the worthy's affair.' He added: 'The Doctrine of the Mean is broadly all about cultivating the Way. Its talk of the noble person, of Yan Hui, of Zilu — all who can cultivate; of the petty, the merely clever, the dull and unworthy, the common folk — all who cannot; its Shun, King Wen, the Duke of Zhou, Confucius, the utterly sincere and sage — sages who cultivated of themselves.'