《菜根谭》(君子诈善、无异小人)
君子而诈善,无异小人之肆恶;君子而改节,不及小人之自新。
A supposedly virtuous man who pretends to do good deeds is no better than a selfish scoundrel. When a virtuous man abandons his moral principles, he is not worth as much as a mean person who has turned over a new leaf.
(保罗·怀特 译)
If an accomplished man feigns virtue, he is not different from a villain who has done all manners of evil. If an accomplished man changes his aspiration and abandons himself to vice, he is no better than a scoundrel that has corrected his errors and made a fresh start.
(周文标 译)
The junzi gentleman feigning virtue is no different from the xiaoren petty man running wild; the junzi gentlemen changing his moral principles is not worth the xiaoren petty man turning over a new leaf.
(蒋坚松 译)