太宰问于子贡曰：“夫子圣者与？何其多能也？”子贡曰：“固天纵之将圣，又多能也。”子闻之，曰：“太宰知我乎！吾少也贱，故多能鄙事。君子多乎哉？不多也。”
1A high officer asked Tsze-kung, saying, 'May we not say that your Master is a sage? How various is his ability!'
2Tsze-kung said, 'Certainly Heaven has endowed him unlimitedly. He is about a sage. And, moreover, his ability is various.'
3The Master heard of the conversation and said, 'Does the high officer know me? When I was young, my condition was low, and therefore I acquired my ability in many things, but they were mean matters. Must the superior man have such variety of ability? He does not need variety of ability.'