The Eastern Yi

The disposition of the Eastern Yi is to think little of ritual and to lack a sense of righteousness; they are fierce, impetuous, and skilled in fighting; they take mountains as their barrier and seas as their moat, relying on dangerous terrain to secure themselves. When those above and those below are harmonious and the common people live in peace and comfort, they cannot yet be plotted against. But if those above fall into disorder and those below become alienated, then one may sow discord among them. Once discord takes effect, cracks will arise; once cracks arise, one may cultivate manifest virtue to draw their people in, and at the same time consolidate armor and weapons to strike them; their defeat will then be inevitable. Modern Application:This chapter extends the internal rule-rigidity established in the previous chapter, “Authority and Orders,” to the judgment of external objects. Its core logic lies not in “whether the opponent is fierce” but in the observable coupling relationship between fierceness and unity. The Eastern Yi “think little of ritual and......