to do so." In the "Announcement of K'ang" it says, "carry out the renewal of the people." The Book of Odes says, "Even though Chou was an ancient state, its mandate was sustained anew." Therefore there is nothing in which the Superior Man does not fully exert himself. (tr. Muller) The Doctrine of the Mean The Zhongyong or Doctrine of the Mean, which like the "Great Learning" above was included in the Liji, uses de 22 times. While Confucianist texts generally describe the de of humans, one passage portrays that of guishen ( "ghosts and spirits; gods"). Confucius said: "The overabundance of the [] power of spiritual beings is truly amazing! Looking for them, they cannot be seen. Listening for them, they cannot be heard. There is nothing that they do not embody. They cause the people of the world to fast for purification, and wear beautiful clothes in order to participate at the sacrifices. They are overflowing, seeming to be above, seeming to be on the left and on the right. The Book of Odes says: 'Trying to investigate the spirits, we cannot reach them. How could we possibly grasp them with our thoughts?' The manifestation of the subtle and the inconcealability of sincerity is like this."(16, tr. Muller) Note how the Doctrine of the Mean attributes almost mystical powers to cheng ( "sincerity; truth; honesty"). Sincerity is just 'perfecting' and the Way is just 'following.' Sincerity is the beginning and end of all things. Without sincerity there is nothing. Thus the Superior Man values the process of "becoming-sincere." But sincerity is not "just-perfecting"; it also means "perfecting all things." To perfect yourself, you need jen. To perfect others, you need wisdom. The [] virtue of our nature is that it is none other than the Way by which inner and outer are merged. Thus we can always use it to set things right. (25, tr. Muller) Only that person who has fully actualized sincerity is able to adjust the strings of the Great Net of the World; is able to establish himself in the Great Root of the World; is able to understand the transformations and the nurturing of Heaven and Earth. So sincere is his jen; so unfathomable is his depth; so vast is his spaciousness. Who is able to understand this, but one who has the firm, acute, luminous sagely intelligence – who is permeated with