Mencius said to Wan Zhang, “An excellent scholar of a village will make friends with the excellent scholars of that village; an excellent scholar of a state will make friends with the excellent scholars of that state; an excellent scholar of the world will make friends with the excellent scholars of the world. If one considers making friends with the excellent scholars of the world to be insufficient, one will further trace back to befriend the sages of antiquity. By chanting their poems and reading their books, can one truly know them without understanding the person? Therefore, one must also study the era in which they lived. This is what is meant by tracing back to befriend the ancients.”
Note
This passage from the Wan Zhang II chapter of the Mencius is an immortal discourse on the “way of friendship” and the “method of reading.” Drawing on historical context and traditional commentaries, we can understand its philosophy through the following dimensions:
- The Progression of Friendship and the Elevation of Spiritual Realms
Mencius depicted a progressive process of making friends that expands from the near to the far, and from the present to the past. From the “excellent scholars of a village” to the “excellent scholars of the world,” this reflects the broad-mindedness of Confucianism in continuously breaking geographical boundaries within society to seek moral resonance. When the real-world circle of friends still cannot satisfy one’s spiritual pursuit, it naturally transitions to “tracing back to befriend the ancients(尚论古之人).” This friendship is no longer bound by physical space and time, but is entirely based on spiritual and moral alignment, showcasing the exceptionally high spiritual realm of Confucian intellectuals. - “Understanding the Person and Discussing the Era”
Mencius proposed, “By chanting their poems and reading their books, can one truly know them without understanding the person? Therefore, one must also study the era in which they lived.” This is the famous theory of “understanding the person and discussing the era” (论世知人) in Chinese literary history. Mencius astutely pointed out that literary works (poems and books) are the carriers of the author’s thoughts and emotions, which are deeply rooted in their historical environment. If one interprets the text in isolation without examining the author’s life and the era’s background (political, social, cultural, etc.), misinterpretations are inevitable. This theory broke the limitations of pure textualism and established a scientific methodology of placing literary works within a broad historical context, exerting a profound impact on Chinese classical literary criticism for over two millennia. - Cultural Transmission Across Time and Space
“尚友” (上友, befriending the ancients) means tracing back to befriend the sages of antiquity. In Mencius’ view, true reading is not merely about acquiring knowledge, but a life dialogue across time and space. Through “chanting poems, reading books,” and “discussing the era to understand the person,” later generations can spiritually resurrect the wisdom and character of the ancients, integrating individual lives into the endless cultural orthodoxy of the Chinese nation. This is not only an important way for Confucian scholars to settle their minds and draw strength, but also the core code that has allowed Chinese civilization to thrive for thousands of years.
孟子謂萬章曰：「一鄉之善士，斯友一鄉之善士；一國之善士，斯友一國之善士；天下之善士，斯友天下之善士。以友天下之善士為未足，又尚論古之人。頌其詩，讀其書，不知其人，可乎？是以論其世也。是尚友也。」
Leave a Reply