A reclusive Lu gatekeeper mocks Confucius via Zigong, calling him one who knows reform is hopeless yet still strives. The line reveals the core divide: Daoist detachment versus Confucian persistent moral devotion, and the guard was admired for his sharp insight.
Mencius distinguishes royal kinsmen ministers from unrelated ones. Kinsmen may replace a repeatedly unrepentant ruler after remonstrance, while outsider ministers resign if their earnest advice fails, stressing different political duties tied to blood bonds.
Confucius said, “When seeing goodness, one should feel as if unable to catch up with it; when seeing what is not good, one should recoil as if touching boiling water. I have seen such people and heard their words. As for those who retreat into seclusion to preserve their aspirations and act righteously to…
The Master said, “The determined scholar and the humane person will never seek to preserve their life at the expense of benevolence (humaneness); they would rather sacrifice their life to fulfill humaneness.”
Zilu asked how to serve a ruler. The Master said, “Do not deceive him, but dare to remonstrate with him openly – even if it offends him.”
The Master said, “If I cannot find someone who follows the middle way to associate with, I would surely choose the bold or the principled! The bold are eager to advance; the principled refuse to do certain things.”
Following in the footsteps of Confucius, Mencius (Mengzi, 372–289 BCE) stands as the second great sage of Confucianism, whose teachings solidified and expanded the philosophical system laid by his predecessor. His work, Mencius, a collection of dialogues, debates, and moral arguments, is not merely a supplement to The Analects – it is a foundational…
Mencius said: “A person must know what not to do, before they can truly accomplish anything meaningful.”