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To lay hold of the mean without taking into account the occasion is like grasping one thing only.

Mencius

All people have the common desire to be elevated in honour, but all people have something still more elevated in themselves without knowing it.
MENCIUS

Deep Desire People Philosophy
The gap between enthusiasm and indifference is filled with failures. The great man is he that does not lose his child’s heart.
MENCIUS

Children Failure Heart Men
Those who follow the part of themselves which is great are great men; those who follow the part which is little are little men.
MENCIUS

Greatness Men
If the King loves music, it is well with the land.
MENCIUS

King Land Music Rule
Human nature is disposed to do good.
MENCIUS

Goodness Human Nature One Liner Spirituality
The people turn in allegiance to Humanity, as surely as water flows downward or as a wild animal takes cover in the wilderness.
MENCIUS

Animal Humanity People Water Wild
Never has there been one possessed of complete sincerity who did not move others. Never has there been one who had not sincerity who was able to move others.
MENCIUS

Ability Change Sincere
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
To act without clear understanding, to form habits without investigation, to follow a path all one’s life without knowing where it really leads; such is the behavior of the multitude.
MENCIUS

Act Ignorance Leadership Life Understand
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
Try your best to treat others as you would wish to be treated yourself, and you will find that this is the shortest way to benevolence.
MENCIUS

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

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

Oneself Understand
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
It is not difficult to govern. All one has to do is not to offend the noble families.
MENCIUS

Authority Difficult Family Government
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

To lay hold of the mean without taking into account the occasion is like grasping one thing only.

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To lay hold of the mean without taking into account the occasion is like grasping one thing only.

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