"The people are more valuable than the king" is now an idiom, which comes from "Mencius` Dedicate Your Heart". The original text and translation are as follows:

Original text: Mencius said: "The people are the most noble, the country is second, and the king is the least. Therefore, it is from the people of Qiu that he becomes the emperor, from the emperor he becomes the princes, and from the princes he becomes the princes. Doctor, when the princes are in danger of the state, they will change the state. After the sacrifices are made and the rice is abundant, the sacrifices are timely. However, when there is drought and water overflows, the state will be changed."

Translation: Mencius said: "The people are the most important. , the god of earth and grain is second, and the ruler is the least important. Therefore, if you win the favor of the people, you will be the emperor. If it is fat and strong, and the sacrifices are clean, and the sacrifices are made at a certain time, but there are still droughts and floods, then the god of earth and grain should be changed."

"The people are more valuable than the king" is the social politics proposed by Mencius. Thought is the core of his theory on benevolent government. It is said in "Mencius. Try Your Heart": "The people are the most valuable, the country is second, and the king is the least." The key points are:

First, the support of the people determines the rise and fall of the monarch's regime. Ever since mankind entered civilized society and established a country, how to deal with the relationship between the people, the country, and the king has become a crucial issue. The Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period were an era of great differentiation and transformation in our country's society. It was also an era of great ideological emancipation. "A hundred schools of thought contended" was one of the most significant features of this era. It is under this historical environment that the people-centered thought of "people-oriented" has achieved great development. There is a famous saying in "Shangshu" that "the people are the foundation of the country, and the foundation is solid and the country is peaceful"; Guan Zhong, a famous statesman of Qi State, put forward: "The beginning of the hegemony is to put people first, the basic governance will strengthen the country, and the basic chaos will cause the country to be in danger"; "Laozi" advocates "loving the people and governing the country" and "the sage has an impermanent heart and takes the people as his heart"; Confucius profoundly elaborated on the people-oriented thinking from the two levels of mind and society, and put forward the ethical principle of "the benevolent loves others" and The political proposition of "governing with virtue" and benefiting the people. Mencius inherited and developed the thoughts of Confucius and put forward the theory of "benevolent government" with "the people are valued and the monarch is valued" as the core content, which became the peak of the people-centered ideological trend in the pre-Qin period. At the level of mind, he proposed that "benevolence, justice, etiquette, and wisdom are rooted in the heart" and believed that the source of human moral behavior lies in the human heart, thereby deepening and expanding the concept of "benevolence" and strengthening and highlighting Confucian self-reflection, self-cultivation, and self-improvement. The moral practice method is the theoretical basis of his theory of "benevolent government". At the social level, he proposed that "benevolent government is invincible" and "the king is benevolent and the world is invincible". He believed that the key to the rise and fall of society and the control of chaos lies in whether the king can implement "benevolent government". Mencius said: "The ancient kings had a heart that could not tolerate others, and they had an intolerable government. With a heart that could not tolerate others, they carried out an intolerable government, and the world was governed by the palm of their hands." The so-called "heart intolerance" refers to "the heart of compassion", "the heart of shame", "the heart of resignation", and "the heart of right and wrong". Mencius believed that the "four virtues" of human beings' benevolence, justice, etiquette and wisdom are derived from this " "Four Ends" sprouted and expanded. The so-called "intolerant government" is "benevolent government". Mencius believed that "there is no such thing as a king if the world is not convinced." The fundamental reason for "the invincibility of benevolent government" is that it can win the hearts of the people. If benevolent government is implemented, the people will love their superiors and be willing to sacrifice for them. He used the history of the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties to prove that "the three dynasties gained the world with benevolence, and lost the world with unbenevolence", and then revealed an important historical law: "the reason why a country is destroyed, prospered and survived". This means that the fundamental reason for the rise and decline, survival and destruction of a country is its ability to implement benevolent government and win the support of the people. "The emperor is unkind and cannot protect the world; the princes are unkind and cannot protect the country."

Second, when the king implements "benevolent government", he must put the people first. Among many thinkers in the pre-Qin period, Mencius used the famous saying "the people are most important, the country is second, and the king is despised" to clearly put forward his proposition on the relationship between the people, the country, and the king, which became the most important thought of nationalism in China. Representative point of view. First of all, the idea of ??"people are more important than the king" highlights the importance of "people". Confucius talked about "benevolence" and valued human life. Mencius went a step further on this basis. He focused on people's living conditions and rights. Mencius said: "Civil affairs cannot be postponed." He sharply exposed and criticized the suffering caused by harsh governance to the people, called on rulers to "save the people from fire and water", "be generous to the people and help everyone", and asked the rulers to restrain their selfish desires, implement "benevolent government" and be cautious in punishment. Use small amounts of endowment and restrain it, but extend favor widely so that people can live and work in peace and contentment. Secondly, the idea of ??"the people are more important than the monarch" requires rulers to exercise self-moral restraint. Mencius said: "It is better for a benevolent person to be in a high position, but to be unbenevolent and to be in a high position is to spread evil among others." He believes that the moral cultivation of "benevolence" is a quality that the emperor and the king must possess. It emphasizes that rulers should put themselves in the people's shoes with the "benevolence" of "intolerance", care about the people's worries, and enjoy the people's happiness. This sublimates people-oriented thinking to a conscious political and moral realm. Third, the idea of ??"the people are more important than the king" proposes a two-way obligation relationship between people of different social statuses. Regarding the relationship between "king" and "people", Mencius emphasized that the king should "take pleasure in the world and worry about the world." He believes that it is wrong for the leader of a country to fail to "rejoice with the people." "Those who enjoy the happiness of the people will also enjoy the happiness of the people; those who worry about the worries of the people will also worry about the worries of the people." Regarding the relationship between "king" and "minister", Confucius required that "the king should treat his ministers with courtesy, and the ministers should be loyal to the king."

Mencius went a step further and said: "If the king treats his ministers like his hands and feet, then his ministers will regard him as his heart; if the king regards his ministers as dogs and horses, then his ministers will regard him as a fellow countryman; if his ministers regard his ministers as earth and mustard, then his ministers will regard him as such. foe". These views with a democratic flavor are extremely valuable ideological sparks that have burst out in the process of the Chinese nation moving toward civilization. Regrettably, in the feudal society of more than two thousand years after the Qin Dynasty, the power of the monarchs became increasingly strengthened. By the Song Dynasty, the "Confucianists" put forward the so-called foolish loyalty thought of "the king wants his ministers to die, and they have to die", and the ideological spark of democracy also disappeared. Suffocated

Third, the emperor and princes who have lost the support of the people can be "conquered" and "replaced". Although Mencius also believed that the king's status and authority were granted by "Heaven", he only talked about "Heaven of righteousness" and not "Heaven of rulers". The so-called "Heaven does not speak, it is only expressed through actions and things", that is to say, God does not speak, it is expressed through actions and things. Mencius said that the emperor cannot grant the world to others. Therefore, Shun's victory in the world was not granted by Yao, but by "Heaven". Yao recommended Shun to "Heaven", and "Heaven" cannot directly express its opinions. This depends on whether the people support him. The people were very satisfied and expressed their submission to him. This is called "Heaven sees itself and the people see it, and Heaven listens" "Listen to the people." That is to say, the eyes of the people are the eyes of heaven, and the ears of the people are the ears of heaven. In other words, "public opinion" is "God's will", which is the shining point of Mencius' understanding of "Heaven". In his opinion, the reason why the emperor is the emperor is because he has the support of the people. Mencius pointed out when discussing that "the people are the most noble, the country is the second most important, and the king is the least important": "For this reason, the people are the emperor, the emperor is the princes, and the princes are the officials. When the princes endanger the country, they change their positions." "Qiu Min" refers to the people. Mencius believed that only those who are liked by the people can be the emperor, those who are liked by the emperor can only be princes, and those who are liked by the princes can only be officials. If a prince harms the country, he must be replaced. When Mencius answered King Xuan of Qi's question about whether "King Wu's attack on Zhou" meant "the ministers killed his king", he said: "Those who thieve benevolence are called thieves, those who thieve righteousness are called cripples, and those who cripple thieves are called husbands. I heard that Zhou punished one man, I have never heard of regicide. "Zhou was the tyrant of the Shang Dynasty. King Wu of Zhou destroyed the Shang Dynasty and killed Zhou. In Mencius' view, this cannot be regarded as regicide. He believes that those who destroy benevolence are called "thieves" and those who destroy morality are called "crime". Such people are "lonely husbands". Zhou did not conform to the "way of being a king" and was a "lone man". King Wu of Zhou attacked and conquered Zhou, an independent man, in order to "save the people from water and fire."

Mencius's thought of "the people are more valuable than the king" focuses not on the majesty of the king, but on the will of the people; not on the rights and interests of the ruler, but on the fate of the people. It politically highlighted the necessity for rulers to implement "benevolent governance" and morally affirmed the justice of the people to resist and overthrow tyrants. This was a remarkable progress at the time. Although in the feudal society that lasted for more than two thousand years, the idea of ??"the people valued the monarch" could not be implemented in a true sense, it had a restrictive effect on the rulers to a certain extent.

The idea of ??"the people are more important than the monarch" is the product of the great ideological liberation during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. When history progressed to the First Opium War in 1840, due to the corruption and incompetence of the Qing government, which led to internal and external troubles, Chinese society began its second major transformation in history - a transformation into a semi-feudal and semi-colonial society. The rulers of the Qing Dynasty were in a precarious situation, and another great ideological liberation began. Many people with lofty ideals have taken up the ideological weapon of "the people are more valuable than the monarch". The most outstanding representative is undoubtedly the forerunner of the democratic revolution, Mr. Sun Yat-sen. He inherited the essence of ancient Chinese people-centered thought and absorbed the outstanding achievements of modern Western democratic political thought. In the practice of the old democratic revolution, he created the "Three People's Principles" theory with "the people" as the main body, and proposed the principles of "of the people, by the people, and by the people". The idea of ??people enjoying the rights of the people requires fundamental changes in the feudal monarchy and the establishment of a new political and political country. This completely negates the old relationship between "king" and "people" and realizes the transformation from the traditional people's This thought is a leap towards modern democracy.

Modern history has proved that the old democratic path is not feasible in China. After the Revolution of 1911, the attempt to copy the Western bourgeois political system resulted in warlords fighting and falling apart; Western powers did not allow China to achieve true independence and prosperity. The Communist Party of China is the true inheritor of the people-centered thought from Confucius to Sun Yat-sen. Since the "May 4th" movement, our party has combined Marxism-Leninism with China's reality and chosen to lead to socialism through new democracy. The correct path led the people to overthrow three mountains and establish an independent, free, democratic, and unified New China, paving the way for the realization of the true "people are the masters of the country." At present, under the guidance of the party, our people are moving forward unswervingly along this bright road to realize people's democracy, fully build a harmonious society for everyone, pay attention to people's livelihood, and create a new life where people can live and work in peace and contentment, and be happy and contented. Become the main theme of the times. In inheriting and carrying forward the traditional people-oriented thinking under the conditions of the new era, the most important thing is that our leading cadres at all levels must completely abandon the old thinking of "officials are the parents of the people" and truly establish the concept of "leading cadres are the parents of the people". The new concept of "servants of the people" respects the people's dominant position, gives full play to the people's initiative, protects the people's rights and interests, sincerely benefits the people, and truly achieves "power is used by the people, feelings are tied to the people, and benefits are sought by the people" .

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