Be born in sorrow and die in happiness - Mencius

Happiness is with the world, worry is with the world - Mencius

Fish is what I want; bear's paw, It's also what I want. You can't have both, it's like giving up the fish for the bear's paw. Life is what I want; righteousness is what I want. You can't have both, you have to sacrifice your life for righteousness. ——Mencius

Mencius' "Fish, I Want It" is a famous article that best reflects Mencius's view of life:

Original text

Fish, I Want It Yes; Bear's paw is also what I want. You can't have both, it's like giving up the fish for the bear's paw. Life is what I want; righteousness is what I want. You can't have both, you have to sacrifice your life for righteousness. Life is what I want, and what I want is more than the living, so I don’t want to get it; death is also what I hate, and what I hate is worse than the dead, so I suffer from it. Not to open up (bì). If there is nothing more that people want than life, then why not use anything that can lead to life? There is nothing more evil than the dead, so why not do whatever can be done to the patients (bì)? Because of this, there is no need to do it, and because of this, you can avoid (bì) troubles but do not do anything (wéi). Therefore, what you want is more than the living, and what you hate is more than the dead. Not only sages have this mind, but everyone has it. A sage will not lose his ears. A basket (dān) of food, a basket of beans (gēng), if you get it, you will live, if you get it, you will die. If you call and give it, a person who practices the Tao will not accept it; if you give it a kick, a beggar will look down upon it. Wan Zhong accepts it without arguing about propriety and righteousness. What does Wan Zhong do to me? For (wèi) the beauty of the palace, the support of wives and concubines, and the poor people I know (dé) get (dé) me and (yú)? The township (xiàng) is (wèi) and the beauty of the palace is (wéi). The township is (wèi) and the body is dead but it is not accepted. Now it is the wives and concubines. The township is (wèi). ) The body died without receiving it, but now the poor people who know me get (dé) me and (wéi) do it for me: Is this not possible? This is called losing one's original intention.

I like fish, and I also like bear paws. (If) these two things cannot be obtained at the same time, I would rather give up the fish and choose the bear paws. Life is also what I like, and morality is also what I like. (If) I cannot have these two things at the same time, I would rather give up life and choose morality. Life is what I love, (however) there are things that I love more than life, so I don’t do things that only seek benefits without resorting to means; death is what I hate, but there are things that I hate more than death, Therefore, I will not avoid certain disasters. If there is nothing that people love more than life, then what means cannot be used that can be used to preserve life? If there is nothing more terrible that people hate than death, then all the means that can be used to avoid disasters, which one can't be used? You can survive through a certain method, but some people don't use it; you can avoid disaster by doing it, but some people don't adopt it. (Thus it can be seen) There are things that people love more precious than life, and there are things that people hate that are more serious than death. Not only virtuous people have this kind of thinking, everyone has this kind of thinking, but virtuous people can not lose it. A bowl of rice and a cup of broth. If you get these, you can live. If you don't get them, you will starve to death. (But) if you shout it to him without politeness, (even) the hungry man passing by will not accept it; if you give it to him with a kick, the beggar will not bother to look at it. Some people accept a generous salary without distinguishing whether it is in line with etiquette and justice. What good will that generous salary do to me? (Just) for the splendor of my house, the service of my wives and concubines, and the poverty of the people I know, are they grateful to me? In the past, people would rather die than accept it, but today (someone) would do it for the splendor of their house; in the past, they would rather die than accept it, but today (someone) would do it for the sake of the service of their wives and concubines; in the past, they would rather die than accept it. I don’t want to accept it, but today (someone) does this kind of thing to thank themselves for the poor people they know: Can’t this kind of unethical practice stop? (If someone still does this) it is called losing his nature.