Mencius said:
“The compass and square are the ultimate standards for drawing circles and squares;
the sage is the ultimate model for human relationships.”
“If one wishes to be a ruler, one must fully fulfill the Way of a ruler;
if one wishes to be a minister, one must fully fulfill the Way of a minister.
To achieve both, one need only emulate Yao and Shun.
If you do not serve your ruler with the same reverence that Shun served Yao,
you are disrespecting your ruler;
if you do not govern the people as Yao governed them,
you are harming your people.Confucius said:
‘There are only two paths in governance:
benevolence or the lack of it – that is all.’If you tyrannize the people severely, you will be assassinated and your state destroyed;
if less severely, you will still face personal peril and territorial loss.
Such rulers are branded with infamous names like King You and King Li of Zhou.
Even if they have filial sons and loving grandchildren,
their disgrace cannot be erased for a hundred generations!The Book of Poetry (The Book of Songs) says:
‘The mirror of Yin is not far off – it lies in the late Xia dynasty.’
This is exactly what is meant!”
孟子曰：「規矩，方員之至也；聖人，人倫之至也。欲為君盡君道，欲為臣盡臣道，二者皆法堯舜而已矣。不以舜之所以事堯事君，不敬其君者也；不以堯之所以治民治民，賊其民者也。孔子曰：『道二：仁與不仁而已矣。』暴其民甚，則身弒國亡；不甚，則身危國削。名之曰『幽厲』，雖孝子慈孫，百世不能改也。《詩》云『殷鑒不遠，在夏后之世』，此之謂也。」
Note
This passage from Mencius: Li Lou I distills the essence of Confucian political ethics: governance must be modeled on sage-kings, grounded in benevolence, and judged by history.
The Sage as the archetype of human relations
Yao and Shun embody perfect ruler-minister dynamics: Yao ruled with compassion; Shun served with utmost reverence. For Mencius, these are not mythical ideals but practical templates for ethical conduct.
Standardized moral roles in politics
Political roles carry non-negotiable duties. A minister who fails to emulate Shun’s loyalty is disloyal; a ruler who ignores Yao’s benevolence is a tyrant. Governance is thus a moral performance, not mere power exercise.
The binary ethics of rule: Benevolence or Barbarism
Citing Confucius, Mencius reduces all politics to a stark choice: benevolence rule or its absence. This rejects realpolitik – no amount of military success can compensate for moral failure.
Irreversible historical judgment
Infamous rulers like King You and King Li bear eternal shame. Not even virtuous descendants can redeem them. This establishes history as a court of moral accountability, empowering scholars as guardians of truth.
History as Warning: The Mirror of Yin
Quoting the Book of Poetry, Mencius stresses that dynastic collapse follows predictable patterns: cruelty > loss of popular support > loss of Heaven’s Mandate. History is not fate but moral causality made visible.
Contrast with Legalism and Daoism
Unlike Legalists who prioritize control over virtue, or Daoists who reject human norms, Mencius insists: politics without benevolence is violence disguised as order.
In few lines, Mencius articulates a vision where legitimacy flows from ethical action, leadership is measured against sage-kings, and history serves as the final judge – a cornerstone of Confucian resistance to tyranny.
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