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The Way lies at hand yet it is sought afar off; the thing lies in the easy yet it is sought in the difficult.

Mencius

The sole concern of learning is to seek one’s original heart.
MENCIUS

Heart Learning Seek
The way of learning is none other than finding the lost mind.
MENCIUS

Lost Mindset Way
A man must not be without shame, for the shame of being without shame is shamelessness indeed.
MENCIUS

Character Existence Men Shame
To lay hold of the mean without taking into account the occasion is like grasping one thing only.
MENCIUS

Oneself Understand
Friends are the siblings God never gave us.
MENCIUS

Friendship God
Friendship with a man is friendship with his virtue, and does not admit of assumptions of superiority.
MENCIUS

Character Friendship Men
Evil exists to glorify the good. Evil is negative good. It is a relative term. Evil can be transmuted into good. What is evil to one at one time, becomes good at another time to somebody else.
MENCIUS

Deep Evil Goodness Negative Perspective Philosophy Spiritual
If the King loves music, it is well with the land.
MENCIUS

King Land Music Rule
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.
MENCIUS

Greatness Heaven Suffering
The way is near, but men seek it afar. It is in easy things, but men seek for it in difficult things.
MENCIUS

Easy Men Philosophy Seek Way
Virtue alone is not sufficient for the exercise of government; laws alone cannot carry themselves into practice.
MENCIUS

Alone Enough Exercise Government Law Practice Virtue
He who loves others is always loved by them, and he who respects others is always respected by them.
MENCIUS

Love Reaction Respect Treat
The disease of men is that they neglect their own fields and go to weed the fields of others.
MENCIUS

Avoid Destroy Hate Man
By exhaustively examining one’s own mind,one may understand his nature. One who understands his own nature understands Heaven.
MENCIUS

Heaven Mind Nature Understand
A small country cannot contend with a great; the few cannot contend with the many; the weak cannot contend with the strong.
MENCIUS

Country Greatness Strong Weakness
When one by force subdues men, they do not submit to him in heart. They submit because their strength is not adequate to resist.
MENCIUS

Force Heart Men Power Resistance

The Way lies at hand yet it is sought afar off; the thing lies in the easy yet it is sought in the difficult.

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The Way lies at hand yet it is sought afar off; the thing lies in the easy yet it is sought in the difficult.

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