The Master said, 'Learning without thought is labour lost; thought without learning is perilous.'
The Master said, 'Learning without thought is labour lost; thought without learning is perilous.'
- Source
- The Analects of Confucius (James Legge English translation)
Book II, complete printed chapter XV; James Legge translation; Undated digitized James Legge English edition; printed publication year/publisher not supplied in this cached text
Read the original context ↗ - Attribution confidence
- attributed · historical anthology
Preserved as printed; independently unverified. - Historical coordinate
- c. 515 BC · ancient
traditional author lifetime midpoint (551–479 BCE), Stanford Encyclopedia; not quotation composition date; not composition date. - Rights & edition
- Public domain (United States)
Translations and rights may differ elsewhere.
Provenance and licences ↗
Word-matched topics
The voice behind the words.
The Analects transmit collected sayings and representations of Master Kong, rather than an independently authenticated author manuscript. Traditional lifetime551–479BCE follows Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy; the Gutenberg catalogue uses552–480BCE. Only complete Master-speech chapters are represented here; other speakers and dialogue remain held.
More from Confucius (traditional attribution) ↗