Mencius
Mencius
Mencius /ˈmɛnʃiəs/ or Mengzi Chinese: 孟子;was a Chinese philosopher who is the most famous Confucian after Confucius himself...
NationalityChinese
ProfessionPhilosopher
CountryChina
heaven mind may
By exhaustively examining one's own mind,one may understand his nature.One who understands his own nature understands Heaven.
men firsts despise
A man must first despise himself, and then others will despise him.
children heart thoughtful
A great man is one who has not lost the child's heart.
kindness men reputation
Kindly words do not enter so deeply into men as a reputation for kindness.
heart learning sole
The sole concern of learning is to seek one's original heart.
money scarcity abundance
In abundance prepare for scarcity.
men water may
It is true that water will flow indifferently to east and west, but will it flow equally well up and down? Human nature is disposed toward goodness, just as water tends to flow downwards. There is no water but flows downwards, and no man but shows his tendency to be good. Now, by striking water hard, you may splash it higher than your forehead, and by damming it, you may make it go uphill. But, is that the nature of water? It is external force that causes it to do so. Likewise, if a man is made to do what is not good, his nature is being similarly forced.
friendship men doe
Friendship with a man is friendship with his virtue, and does not admit of assumptions of superiority.
exercise office heaven
When Heaven is about to confer a great office upon you, it first exercises your mind with suffering and your sinews and bones with toil.
reality men evil
Mankind fears an evil man but heaven does not.
country strong weak
A small country cannot contend with a great; the few cannot contend with the many; the weak cannot contend with the strong
freedom hands mind
Secure property in hand leads to peace in mind.
warrior samurai martial-arts
I dislike death, however, there are some things I dislike more than death. Therefore, there are times when I will not avoid danger.
hands world treats
Treat your elders as elders, and extend it to the elders of others; treat your young ones as young ones, and extend it to the young ones of others; then you can turn the whole world in the palm of your hand