The good Emperors of old were not only filial to their parents, but also to the Supreme Father and Mother—that is, Heaven and the Earth. When an Emperor can live in harmony with his elders, there will be harmony throughout his dominion between superiors and inferiors; and when he is filial to the Supreme Father and Mother, he will be blessed by them. Although the Emperor is the highest of all ranks, yet he still has some one to respect. He has his father and elder brothers. Why do we offer sacrifices to our ancestors in our family shrine? Because we ought not to forget them. Why must we cultivate our minds and be circumspect in our actions? Because we do not wish to bring disgrace upon the name of our ancestors. If we can show respect to them when we offer them sacrifices in our family shrine, we shall be blessed by the Supreme Father and Mother. Filiality to parents and reverence to elders will be known to the Supreme Being, and will be followed by the people in every part of the world; no place can remain unaffected by their influence. In the _Shih Ching_ it is said that “from east to west and from north to south there is no one who does not submit to rule.” CHAPTER XVII SERVING THE SOVEREIGN Confucius said: “A good man always endeavours, while he is in the service of his sovereign, to express the utmost loyalty during audience with his August Master, and thinks at his leisure how to repair any wrong his August Master may have done. He will carry out any praiseworthy schemes projected by his master, and will correct any fault which he may commit. In this way a great affection will be fostered between them. “Thus in the _Shih Ching_ it is written: ‘Although the minister may be far away from his master, yet his affection will not be affected by the distance. He is so attached to him that he thinks of him every day.’” CHAPTER XVIII MOURNING FOR ONE’S PARENTS Confucius said: “When a filial son loses his parent, he, of course, cannot help crying piteously. He cannot feel happy when he hears music. He will have no appetite for food, however tempting a savoury. He will greet no visitor, have no regard for elegance of speech, and will put on a mourning-dress instead of a beautiful one. All these tell us the extent of his sorrow for his lost parent. What is meant by the saying that he must try to eat something after three days from the death of his parent, though he has no appetite for it? It teaches us that although we have to show great sorrow for the dead, yet we must not sacrifice ourselves on their account, and that we must not carry self-mortification so far as to destroy our life. This is the doctrine laid down by good men of old. That mourning only extends to the period of three years shows that there is a limit for our sorrow.