Mencius notes thinkers shift from Mohism to Yang Zhu’s egoism, then to Confucianism. He urges warm acceptance of returning converts, mocking scholars who harshly restrict them like hobbling pigs safely back in their pen.
Mencius advocates critical reading: blind faith in classics equals having no books. He doubts the Book of Documents’ bloody battle record, arguing the supremely benevolent King Wu would face little resistance against tyrant Zhou, so only a small part of the chapter holds truth.
Mencius claims no truly just wars occurred in the Spring and Autumn age, though some rulers acted less brutally. Only the Son of Heaven held the right to launch punitive campaigns; equal states had no authority to attack one another.
Mencius condemns King Hui of Liang as cruel. Benevolent rulers spread love outward, yet this king sacrificed common folk for land wars, then forced his beloved kin to die in battles, letting cruelty toward strangers ruin his own loved ones.
Mencius differentiates two mourning cases. Those who voluntarily cut mourning deserve rebuke; those blocked by rules to observe full rites merit praise for any mourning they can manage, embodying flexible moral judgment.
Prince Dian asks scholars’ core pursuit. Mencius answers elevating aspirations, rooted in benevolence and righteousness. Never kill innocents or seize others’ goods; dwell in benevolence and walk righteously to fulfill a noble person’s mission.
Mencius divides moral levels: Yao and Shun hold virtue naturally; Tang and Wu attain it via self-cultivation; Five Hegemons only borrow morality for power. Yet long-term virtuous practice may turn borrowed goodness into genuine inner virtue.
Mencius uses digging a well as a metaphor: even after digging nine ren deep, quitting before striking spring water renders all labor futile. It stresses perseverance to the very end, warning against half-finished efforts in self-cultivation and undertakings.