A Fleabane Among Hemp Grows Straight Without Support

‘A fleabane growing among hemp becomes straight without support; white sand mixed with black earth becomes black with it.’ The line appears in Xunzi’s ‘Encouraging Learning’. The naturally crooked fleabane is guided by the upright hemp around it, while white sand takes on the colour of the dark material in which it is mixed.

The passage goes on to advise choosing one’s dwelling and companions, stressing that surroundings participate in a person’s formation. It does not prove that people lack choice, or that contact with a ‘bad’ person guarantees corruption. A restrained modern reading is that will does not work in isolation: repeated norms, companions and conditions alter how easy an action becomes. Choosing an environment matters, and so does improving one together.

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