What Mencius clearly opposed was nothing more than "unjust" wars, which were feudal princes fighting each other for their own selfish interests. . Mencius denounced such war initiators who "take advantage of the land and cannibalize human flesh" as "not benevolent" and "the crime cannot be punished by death", but for those who "condemn the people to attack crimes" and "save the people from fire and water" The Master of the King greatly praised and praised it, believing that this kind of war was for the purpose of "pacifying the people of the world", and it could get the enthusiastic support and support of the people, and the people looked up to it like a cloud. According to "Mencius. According to "The Second King of Liang Hui", in the fifth year of King Xuan of Qi, civil strife broke out in the Yan State in the north. King Xuan of Qi took the opportunity to launch a war to attack the State of Yan. Although he was victorious, he was worried that the various vassal states would join forces to obstruct Qi State. , so hesitating in his heart.

Mencius then encouraged King Xuan of Qi. First of all, he affirmed that there was no moral problem with the war against Yan. "If the people of Yan are happy with it, then take it. The ancients practiced it, and King Wu did the same." Encourage King Xuan by following King Wu's example of defeating Zhou.

Secondly, in view of King Xuan's lack of confidence, timidity and hesitation, and fear of interference from other countries, he pointed out that "I have heard that a person with a distance of seventy miles is a politician, and Tang is right. I have never heard of a person who fears others with a distance of a thousand miles." Then the example of Shang Tang's conquest of Xia was used to illustrate that a king who was popular with the people would win in the end because of the support of the people, even if the country was weak.

Mencius’ argument is that when this kind of army marches to the east, the people of Western countries will complain why he did not attack the west first; when he marches to the south, The people in the northern countries will complain about why he didn't attack the north first. Because the people who are in dire straits long for the rescue of their army, just like the farmers who have been dry for a long time long for dark clouds and hauni. How can such an army not win the war? It has to be said that as a great Confucian of his generation, Mencius's view of war, which is based on Confucian thoughts of benevolence and righteousness, still has great merits. "The right way will help you more, but the wrong way will help you less." Even in any kind of society, this almost regular creed will have its market and soil for survival. However, Mencius’ thought overemphasizes the function of benevolence and righteousness and ignores other objective conditions in war. There must be a certain degree of subjectivism and limitations of the times. This is also an undoubted fact.

For example, Mencius believed that as long as we talk about benevolence, we can "defeat Qin and Chu's strong armor and powerful soldiers." This is to overly underestimate the army's equipment and necessary military technology in war, and use bamboo poles and wooden sticks to defeat the enemy. Strong armor and powerful soldiers may still be possible in the era of cold weapons, but in today's world where military science and technology are advancing by leaps and bounds, modern weapons are emerging one after another, and the power and effects of weapons have become more and more powerful and prominent. If the functions of equipment and weapons are still ignored, Then the painful lessons of "Boxing Boxing" and foreign guns and cannons may still be repeated.

Therefore, while we absorb Mencius’s views on rational war, we should also treat its limitations rationally, and we must not ignore or underestimate the development of weapons and equipment and the technical construction of the army.

Extended information

Thoughts

"Historical Records" says that Mencius has seven writings passed down through generations, and "Hanshu·Yiwenzhi" says that there are eleven. At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Zhao Qi said that Mencius had four foreign books: "Xing Shan Debian", "Wen Shuo", "The Classic of Filial Piety" and "Wei Zheng", so the eleven chapters should be added to the seven chapters and four foreign books. Zhao Qi believed that the contents of the four outer chapters were superficial and inconsistent with the inner chapters, and should be written by later generations. The "Mencius" that has been handed down to this day is what Zhao Qi calls the inner chapter.

Although the whole book was not written by Mencius, it was recorded by Mencius’ disciples, and there is no doubt that it is Mencius’ words and deeds. From the book, we can see that Mencius had the following remarks and thoughts: In terms of human nature, he advocated the theory of good nature. It is believed that people are born with the four qualities of benevolence, righteousness, propriety and wisdom. Man can preserve and expand it through introspection, otherwise he will lose these good qualities. Therefore, he asked people to pay attention to the role of introspection.

In terms of social and political views, Mencius highlighted the theories of benevolent government and kingly law. Benevolent government is to "spare punishments, reduce taxes and reduce taxes" for the people. He concluded from historical experience that "if the people are violently abused, they will kill the country with their own lives." He also said that the three generations gained the world because of benevolence, and lost the world because of unbenevolence.

Emphasizing the development of agriculture, caring for the people, and paying attention to people's livelihood, he said in "A Few People in the Country": "A person in his seventies eats clothes and meat, and the people are neither hungry nor cold. However, there is no one who is not a king."?

He also put forward the idea that the people should be valued more than the monarch, and he believed that the monarch must pay attention to the people. "The three treasures of princes are land, people, and political affairs." If the monarch makes a serious mistake, his subordinates will admonish him. If he refuses to listen to the admonition, it is okay. Change its position. As for tyrants like Jie and Zhou, the subjects can rise up and kill them. He opposed the practice of hegemony, that is, using annexation wars to conquer other countries; instead, he should implement benevolent government, win the support of the people, and submit without fighting, which is what he said "the benevolent are invincible." If you practice the king's way, you can be invincible in the world.

In terms of values, he emphasized sacrificing one's life for righteousness, "Life is what I want; righteousness is what I want. You cannot have both, and one who sacrifices one's life for righteousness is the same." emphasized. We must use "propriety and righteousness" to restrain our every word and deed, and we must not give up etiquette and righteousness for superior material conditions. "If you accept ten thousand bells without discerning etiquette and righteousness, how can ten thousand bells do anything to me!"

Baidu Encyclopedia-Mencius