MENCIUS

(MENG TZU)

Mencius, also known by his birth name Meng Ke or Ko, was born in the State of Zou.

Mencius Life

After he was born, his father died, and he was subsequently brought up by his mother alone.

Mencius served as an official and scholar at the Jixia Academy in the State of Qi.

Meng Tzu went on to become Confucius's greatest disciple.

He is an itinerant Chinese philosopher and sage. Mencius too was a teacher.

It was Mencius who introduced the large component of compassion to Confucianism. Contrary to Kao Tzu, Mencius believed that, by nature, all people were good.Mencius believed the qualities characteristic only to man were believed to be innate.

Two characteristic qualities to man.1. Humanity or Jen

2. Justice or Yi

-love for one’s fellow man

-ability to judge right from wrong

“The ruler who neglects the people for himself is not a true ruler. He loses the Mandate of Heaven, and the people under such circumstances have the right to revolt."

Mencius's mother is often held up as an exemplary female figure in Chinese culture.

One of the most famous traditional Chinese four-character idioms is 孟母三遷(mèng mǔ sān qiān; literal translation: "Mencius's mother, three moves"

Mencius Mother

His mother Zhǎng (仉 ) raised her son alone. They were very poor. At first, they lived by a

cemetery . The next house was near a

market in the town.

Then they moved their house again next to Mencius’ school.

Mencius Influence

It is a 

Yuan Dynasty 

turtle with a

stele honoring

Mencius.

Influence on Human Nature

Mencius asserted the innate goodness of the individual, believing that it was society's influence – its lack of a positive cultivating influence – that caused bad moral character.

"He who exerts his mind to the outmost knows his nature" and "the way of learning is none other than finding the lost mind."

Influence on Education

According to Mencius, education must awaken the innate abilities of the human mind. He denounced memorization and advocated active interrogation of the text, saying:

"One who believes all of a book would be better off without

books"

DESTINY

Mencius also believed in the power of Destiny in shaping the roles of human beings in society.

Mencius denied that Heaven would protect a person regardless of his actions, saying:

"One who understands Destiny will not stand beneath a tottering

wall".

View on Politics

Mencius emphasized the significance of the common citizens in the state. While Confucianism generally regards rulers highly, he argued that it is acceptable for the subjects to overthrow or even kill a ruler who ignores the people's needs and rules harshly.

He held an important position in the government of a state, but he resigned later to travel from state to state to teach the principles of Confucius, because the ruler didn’t follow his advice.

Comparisons to Contemporaries

His alleged years make him contemporary with Xun Zi, Zhuangzi, Gaozi, and Plato.

Xun Zi was a Confucian who believed that human nature is centered on self-interest and greed, and the purpose of moral cultivation is to develop our nature into goodness. Plato Mencius's argument that unjust rulers may be overthrown is reminiscent of Socrates' argument in Book I of Plato's Republic.

After in all, Mencius is buried in the "Mencius Cemetery" ( 孟 子 林 , Mengzi Lin, also known as 亚 圣 林 , Yasheng Lin), which is located 12 km to the northeast of Zoucheng's central urban area. A stele carried by a giant stone tortoise and crowned with dragons stands in front of his grave

Short Quiz

1 & 2. What are the two characteristic qualities believed by Mencius?

4. What is the literal translation of mèng mǔ sān qiān?

5. What is the birth name of Mencius?

3. Who is Mencius mother ?

“One who understands 8._________will not stand beneath a tottering wall.”

Fill in the blanks. According to Mencius, education must awaken the innate abilities of the 7.________ ____.

“One who believes all of a 9._____ would be better off without books.”

6. It is a characteristic qualities that means the ability to judge right from wrong.

10. What is this?

1&2. Humanity or Jen Justice or Yi

3. Zhang

4. “Mencius's mother, three moves”

5. Meng Ke or Ko

6. Justice or Yi

7. human mind

10. Yuan Dynasty turtle

8. Destiny

9. book