知者は惑わず chisha wa madowazu The Wise Have No Delusions

One who understands how things are is not at a loss: the wise do not waver when the moment comes to act. It is Confucius, one of three clauses said in a breath, the wise are not perplexed, the humane are not anxious, the brave are not afraid, each virtue named by the one thing it frees a person from; the Japanese have quoted the clauses one or two at a time for centuries, as these words quote one clause, and the other two are offered on their own. The English title's delusions is the Buddhist sense of 惑; Confucius wrote the everyday word, to waver, to be at a loss, and these words say that. Which of the three, and for whom, is yours.

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