Stories from Ancient China: Benevolence Can Move a Thief

Chen Shi was a county magistrate. One day, a thief hid on top of the rafter in Chen's house, waiting to steal things from the house after everyone had left, but Chen Shi saw him. He asked his son to come and instructed him, "Some people do bad deeds. It is not because their nature is bad, but merely because of their old habits. The man on the rafter is just this type." When he heard it, the thief came down from the rafter and apologised to Chen Shi by kneeling before him. Chen Shi said, "You don't look like a bad man. That you want to steal must be caused by your poor living conditions." Then Chen Shi gave the man two rolls of clothes. The thief was so touched that he never stole again.

Yu Lingyi in Ming Dynasty was a loyal and honest man. He never did anything harmful to other people in order to benefit himself. When he became elderly, his family was quite wealthy. One day a thief tried to steal things from his house. Yu Lingyi's sons caught the thief who turned out to be their neighbour's son. Yu Lingyi said, "You rarely commit any wrong deeds. Why do you want to be thief now?" The man answered, "It is all because we are too poor." Yu Lingyi asked him what he wanted. He said, "Ten thousand copper coins would be enough for me to buy food and clothes." So Yu Lingyi gave him ten thousand copper coins. Right after the thief left, Yu Lingyi called him back. At that moment, the thief was very frightened, thinking Yu had changed his mind. Yu Lingyi said, "You are very poor. But now you are taking ten thousand copper coins back home. I am afraid that you will be questioned by the patrol." So he let the man stay in his house until daybreak. The thief felt very ashamed of his conduct. From then on, he only did good deeds. The villagers all acclaimed Yu Lingyi as a good man.

Kong Min from Huainan was a recluse in the countryside. He devoted himself to cultivation. He made a decision not to strive for any official position all his life and he was known for his noble integrity. A man repeatedly stole bamboo from his garden. Kong Min felt sorry for the thief because the thief had to wade through chilly river water to get to the garden. Hence he built a bridge for the thief to get to the garden. Sensing Kong Min's benevolence upon him, the thief felt ashamed of what he had done.