Mencius (Mengzi)

Mencius, whose personal name was Ke and courtesy name Ziyu, was a native of the State of Zou (present-day Zoucheng, Shandong) during the Warring States period. A major representative of Confucianism, he was later honored as the "Second Sage" and is often mentioned together with Confucius as "Confucius and Mencius." He advocated the theory that human nature is good, holding that people are innately inclined toward goodness, and proposed the political ideas of benevolent governance and that "the people are the most important, the ruler the least." Mencius traveled among the states to promote his teachings but was not put in important office by the rulers of his time. In his later years he taught and wrote with his disciples, and his sayings and deeds were compiled into the seven chapters of the Mencius, which was included in the Four Books during the Southern Song dynasty and became one of the Confucian classics. This site holds seven related works, covering categories such as Eastern philosophy, culture, examinations, and classic works; among them, the Mencius and compilations of Chinese classics are the most common, reflecting the enduring influence of his thought on later cultural education and the reading of classics.