為政以德

以道德原則執掌國政、治理國家。孔子在西周統治者一向秉承的“明德慎罰”的基礎上提出了為后世儒家所遵循的“德政”理念。“德政”與“威刑”相對。“為政以德”并非不要刑法，而是突出強調道德對政治的決定作用，將道德教化視為治國的根本原則與方法。

Governance of a state should be guided by virtue. Confucius proposed this philosophy—which was upheld by Confucians after him—on the basis of “the illustration of virtue and the cautious use of punishment”， an approach advocated by the rulers in the Western Zhou Dynasty. Governance based on virtue stands in contrast to rule by use of harsh punishment as a deterrent. It does not， however， exclude penal codes， but rather highlights the decisive role of virtue in governance， and regards moral edification as the fundamental principle and the essential means for governance.

引例 Citation：

◎ 為政以德，譬如北辰居其所，而眾星共之。（《論語·為政》）

（以道德教化來治理政事，就像北極星位于天空一定的方位，而眾星都環繞著它運行。）

Governance based on virtue is like the North Star taking its position in the sky， while all the other stars revolve around it. （The Analects）