Mencius (about 372 BC-289 BC) was born in Zou (now southeast of Zou County, Shandong Province) in the middle of the Warring States Period, not far from Confucius' hometown Qufu. He is a famous thinker, politician, educator, the successor of Confucius' theory and an important representative of Confucianism.
According to legend, Mencius is a descendant of Lu nobles. He lost his father when he was a child, and his family was poor. He was a student of Zisi. After finishing his studies, he lobbied the governors as scholars in an attempt to promote his own political views, and successively went to Liang (Wei), Qi, Song, Teng and Lu.
At that time, several great powers devoted themselves to strengthening this rich country and striving for reunification through violent means. He inherited Confucius' thought of benevolence and developed it into the thought of benevolent government, which was called "elegance and sage".
Extended data
Benevolent policy theory
Mencius inherited and developed Confucius' thought of ruling by virtue, and developed it into the theory of benevolent governance, which became the core of his political thought. He applied the principles of "pro" and "long" to politics, eased class contradictions and safeguarded the long-term interests of the feudal ruling class.
On the one hand, Mencius strictly distinguished the class status of the ruler and the ruled, and thought that "the industrious govern others, and the industrious govern others", and imitated the Zhou system to draw up a hierarchy from the emperor to the ruler.
On the other hand, the relationship between the ruler and the ruled is compared to the relationship between parents and children, and it is advocated that the ruler should care about the sufferings of the people like parents, and the people should be close to and serve the ruler like parents.
Mencius believes that this is the most ideal politics, and the rulers can win the heartfelt support of the people if they implement benevolent policies; On the other hand, if people's lives are ignored, they will lose people's hearts, become solitary thieves and be overthrown by the people.
The specific content of benevolent government is very extensive, including economy, politics, education and ways to unify the world, among which there is a clue of people-oriented thought. Moreover, this thought was developed from the idea of valuing the people over the gods in the Spring and Autumn Period.
Baidu encyclopedia-Mencius