This page interprets Robber Zhi from Zhuangzi. Through Robber Zhi refuting Confucius, it denounces the hypocrisy of Confucian benevolence and righteousness. Two additional dialogues examine harms of fame and wealth, advocating following nature and preserving one’s true self in this highly subversive chapter.
Li Hong’s moral conduct harmonized his neighborhood. Summoned as magistrate, he delayed departure for a month then fled to avoid office. Scholar Yang Xiong admired his balanced stance, neither extreme reclusiveness like Boyi nor over-accommodation like Liuxia Hui.
Mencius regards Boyi and Liuxia Hui as timeless sage-teachers. Boyi’s integrity purifies greedy, cowardly souls; Liuxia Hui’s tolerance softens petty, narrow minds. Their moral spirit inspires people hundreds of generations later.
Confucius assesses three types of ancient recluses with distinct moral stances. Unlike them, he holds no rigid fixed choices – he acts flexibly according to righteousness, embodying the supreme Confucian wisdom of timely adaptation and the Doctrine of the Mean.
Mencius said: “Bo Yi would not serve a ruler he did not approve of, nor befriend anyone he deemed unworthy.”