Mencius said, “In the Spring and Autumn period, there were no righteous wars. However, there were cases where one ruler was somewhat better than another. ‘Zheng’ (punitive expedition) refers to the Son of Heaven (the King) punishing a subordinate feudal lord; equal states do not launch punitive expeditions against one another.”
Note
This passage from the Jin Xin II chapter of the Mencius is a profound characterization of the nature of the wars of annexation among feudal lords during the Spring and Autumn period, concentrating Mencius’ views on war and political ethics. Drawing on historical context and Confucian classics, we can understand its underlying thought through the following dimensions:
- The Overall Characterization of the Chaotic Era: “There Were No Righteous Wars in the Spring and Autumn Period”
During the Spring and Autumn period, the Zhou King lost his power, and feudal lords frequently waged wars for hegemony and territory. Mencius hit the nail on the head, pointing out that these wars were essentially driven by the rulers’ selfish desires (for power and land), rather than to save the people from suffering or uphold justice. Therefore, they were all “unrighteous wars.” This verdict demonstrates Mencius’ clear-headed awareness that transcended the limitations of his era, as well as his distinct anti-war and pro-people stance. - A Realistic Relative Evaluation: “There Were Cases Where One Ruler Was Somewhat Better Than Another”
Although Mencius denied the righteousness of all Spring and Autumn wars by an absolute standard, he did not fall into mechanical absolutism. He acknowledged that under the premise of “all being unrighteous,” there was still a “relative good and bad” among the feudal lords. For example, although the “honoring the King and repelling the barbarians” campaigns by Duke Huan of Qi and Duke Wen of Jin also contained selfish motives, they objectively maintained the Huaxia (Chinese) order, making them better than those brutal monarchs who purely sought to annihilate states and swallow territories. This reflects the Confucian pragmatic attitude toward complex historical realities while adhering to a moral bottom line. - Defending the Legitimacy of the Ritual and Music System: “‘Zheng’ Refers to the Superior Punishing the Inferior”
Here, Mencius clarified the concept of “Zheng” from the perspectives of jurisprudence and the ritual system. Under the patriarchal enfeoffment system of the Western Zhou Dynasty, “Zheng” was a power exclusively belonging to the Son of Heaven; only the King had the right to punish subordinate feudal lords who defied royal decrees and harmed the people. Since feudal states were equal in status (“equal states”), none had the right to punish the other. Mencius used this to reaffirm the political ethics of “rectifying names” (ensuring that names/titles correspond to reality), criticized the usurpation of bullying the weak by the strong and subordinates rebelling against superiors, and called for the restoration of a political order based on “benevolence, righteousness,” and the “ritual system.”
孟子曰：“春秋无义战。彼善于此，则有之矣。征者上伐下也，敌国不相征也。”
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