Mencius is the author of Mencius. Mencius has been handed down for seven times, which is one of the Confucian classics. Mencius inherited and developed Confucius' thoughts and became a generation of Confucian masters second only to Confucius. He was known as the "Asian sage" and was also called "Confucius and Mencius" with Confucius. The theory of good nature is the starting point of Mencius' theory, and its main propositions are "benevolent government" and "king" Sima Qian believed that Mencius was written by Monk. "Monk didn't agree, so he retired Zhang Wan's disciples to preface poetry books, state Zhong Ni's meaning and write seven pieces of Mencius." (Historical Records Biography of Mencius and Xunzi) However, some people think that from the language of the book, its editor is most likely a disciple of Mencius, and this book was written in the middle of the Warring States Period.
There are seven articles in Mencius, entitled: the first and second parts of Liang; "Gongsun Ugly" up and down; "Teng Wengong" up and down; Li Lou; "Zhang Wan" up and down; ) "Gao Zi" up and down; Up and down "dedication". In the Southern Song Dynasty, Zhu regarded Mencius, The Analects of Confucius, Daxue and The Doctrine of the Mean as four books. Until the end of the Qing Dynasty, "Four Books" had been a compulsory part of the imperial examination.
Mencius' ancestors were aristocrats in the state of Lu, but later his family fortune declined and he moved from the state of Lu to the state of Zou. He lost his father when he was three years old, and Meng Mu brought him up. Meng Mu's godson was very strict. His godson stories, such as "moving the son to teach the son" and "breaking the loom", have become eternal stories. There is a saying in Saint Amethyst that "Meng Mu used to choose a neighbor".
Mencius learned from Confucius, but praised Confucius, thinking that "the life of the people is not prosperous in Confucius."
Mencius traveled around Qi, Jin, Song, Xue, Lu, Teng and Liang countries to lobby his thoughts of "benevolent governance" and "kingliness". However, because the vassal States were busy with the war at that time, almost no one adopted his thought of governing the country.
Mencius is one of the most important representatives of Confucianism in China, and his thoughts have a great influence on later generations.
But his position was not very high before the Song Dynasty. Since Han Yu listed Mencius as the only figure in pre-Qin Confucianism who inherited Confucius' "Taoist orthodoxy", there has been a "promotion movement" of Mencius, and his status has gradually improved. In the fourth year of Xining in northern Song Shenzong (107 1), Mencius was first listed as one of the subjects in the imperial examination, and was later promoted to a Confucian classic. Zhu in the Southern Song Dynasty combined it with The Analects of Confucius, Daxue and The Doctrine of the Mean into four books. From the Yuan Dynasty to the first year of Shun Dynasty (1330), Mencius was named "Yashenggong" and later called "Yashenggong", ranking second only to Confucius. His thoughts and Confucius' thoughts are collectively called "The Way of Confucius and Mencius".