6A.1.  Gaozi² said: Human nature is like the willow tree, and righteousness is like a cup or a bowl. To turn human nature into humanity and righteousness is like turning the willow into cups and bowls.

Mengzi said: Sir, can you follow the nature of the willow tree and make the cups and bowls, or must you violate the nature of the willow tree before you can make the cups and bowls? If you are going to violate the nature of the willow tree in order to make cups and bowls, then must you also violate human nature in order to make it into humanity and righteousness? Your words, alas! would lead all people in the world to consider humanity and righteousness as calamity [because they required the violation of human nature]!

告子曰：「性，猶杞柳也；義，猶桮棬也。以人性為仁義，猶以杞柳為桮棬。」孟子曰：「子能順杞柳之性而以為桮棬乎？將戕賊杞柳而後以為桮棬也？如將戕賊杞柳而以為桮棬，則亦將戕賊人以為仁義與？率天下之人而禍仁義者，必子之言夫！」

6A.2.  Gaozi said: Man’s nature is like whirling water. If a breach in the pool is made to the east it will flow to the east. If a breach is made to the west it will flow to the west. Man’s nature is indifferent to good and evil, just as water is indifferent to east and west.

Mengzi said: Water, indeed, is indifferent to the east and west, but is it indifferent to high and low? Man’s nature is naturally good just as water naturally flows downward. There is no man without this good nature; neither is there water that does not flow downward. Now you can strike water and cause it to splash upward over your forehead, and by damming and leading it, you can force it uphill. Is this the nature of water? It is the forced circumstance that makes it do so. Man can be made to do evil, for his nature can be treated in the same way.

告子曰：「性猶湍水也，決諸東方則東流，決諸西方則西流。人性之無分於善不善也，猶水之無分於東西也。」孟子曰：「水信無分於東西。無分於上下乎？人性之善也，猶水之就下也。人無有不善，水無有不下。今夫水，搏而躍之，可使過顙；激而行之，可使在山。是豈水之性哉？其勢則然也。人之可使為不善，其性亦猶是也。」

6A.3.  Gaozi said: What is inborn is called nature (xing 性).

Mengzi said: When you say that what is inborn is called nature, is that like saying that white is white?

Yes.

Then is the whiteness of the white feather the same as the whiteness of snow? Or, again, is the whiteness of snow the same as the whiteness of white jade?

Yes.

Then is the nature of a dog the same as the nature of an ox, and is the nature of an ox the same as the nature of a man?

告子曰：「生之謂性。」孟子曰：「生之謂性也，猶白之謂白與？」曰：「然。」「白羽之白也，猶白雪之白；白雪之白，猶白玉之白與？」曰：「然。」「然則犬之性，猶牛之性；牛之性，猶人之性與？」

6A.4.  Gaozi said: By nature we desire food and sex. Humanity is internal and not external, whereas righteousness is external and not internal.

Mengzi said: Why do you say that humanity is internal and righteousness external?

告子曰：「食色，性也。仁，內也，非外也；義，外也，非內也。」孟子曰：「何以謂仁內義外也？」

When I see an old man and respect him for his age, it is not that the oldness is within me, just as, when something is white and I call it white, I am merely observing its external appearance. I therefore say that righteousness is external.

Mengzi said: There is no difference between our considering a white horse to be white and a white man to be white. But is there no difference between acknowledging the age of an old horse and the age of an old man? And what is it that we call righteousness, the fact that a man is old or the fact that we honor his old age?

曰：「彼長而我長之，非有長於我也；猶彼白而我白之，從其白於外也，故謂之外也。」曰：「異於白馬之白也，無以異於白人之白也；不識長馬之長也，無以異於長人之長與？且謂長者義乎？長之者義乎？」

Gaozi said: I love my own younger brother but do not love the younger brother of, say, a man from the state of Qin. This is because I am the one to determine that pleasant feeling. I therefore say that humanity comes from within. On the other hand, I respect the old men of the state of Chu as well as my own elders. What determines my pleasant feeling is age itself. Therefore I say that righteousness is external.

Mengzi said: We love the roast meat of Qin as much as we love our own. This is even so with respect to material things. Then are you going to say that our love of roast meat is also external?

曰：「吾弟則愛之，秦人之弟則不愛也，是以我為悅者也，故謂之內。長楚人之長，亦長吾之長，是以長為悅者也，故謂之外也。」曰：「耆秦人之炙，無以異於耆吾炙。夫物則亦有然者也，然則耆炙亦有外與？」

6A.5.  Meng Jizi³ asked Gongduzi:⁴ What does it mean to say that righteousness is internal?

Gongduzi said: We practice reverence, and therefore it is called internal.

Suppose a fellow villager is one year older than your older brother. Whom are you going to serve with reverence?

I shall serve my brother with reverence.

In offering wine at a feast, to whom will you offer first?

I shall offer wine to the villager first.

Meng Jizi said: Now you show reverence to one but honor for age to the other. What determines your actions certainly lies without and not within.

孟季子問公都子曰：「何以謂義內也？」曰：「行吾敬，故謂之內也。」「鄉人長於伯兄一歲，則誰敬？」曰：「敬兄。」「酌則誰先？」曰：「先酌鄉人。」「所敬在此，所長在彼，果在外，非由內
也。」

Gongduzi could not reply and told Mengzi about it.

Mengzi said: If you ask him whether he will serve with reverence his uncle or his younger brother, he will say that he will serve with reverence his uncle. Then you ask him, in case his younger brother is acting at a sacrifice as the representative of the deceased, then to whom is he going to serve with reverence? He will say he will serve the younger brother with reverence. Then you ask him “Where is your reverence for your uncle?” He will then say, “[I show reverence to my younger brother] because he represents the ancestral spirit in an official capacity.” You can then likewise say, “[I show reverence to the villager] because of his position.” Ordinarily, the reverence is due the elder brother, but on special occasions it is due the villager.

公都子不能答，以告孟子。孟子曰：「敬叔父乎？敬弟乎？彼將曰『敬叔父』。曰：『弟為尸，則誰敬？』彼將曰『敬弟。』子曰：『惡在其敬叔父也？』彼將曰『在位故也。』子亦曰：『在位故也。庸敬在兄，斯須之敬在鄉人。』」

When Jizi heard this, he said: We show reverence to uncle when reverence is due him, and we show reverence to the younger brother when reverence is due him. Certainly what determines it lies without and does not come from within.

Gongduzi said: In the winter we drink things hot. In the summer we drink things cold. Does it mean that what determines eating and drinking also lies outside?

季子聞之曰：「敬叔父則敬，敬弟則敬，果在外，非由內也。」公都子曰：「冬日則飲湯，夏日則飲水，然則飲食亦在外也？」

6A.6.  Gongduzi  said: Gaozi said that man’s nature is neither good nor evil. Some say that man’s nature may be made good or evil, therefore when King Wen and King Wu⁵ were in power the people loved virtue, and when Kings You and Li⁶ were in power people loved violence. Some say that some men’s nature is good and some men’s nature is evil. Therefore even under (sage-emperor) Yao⁷ there was Xiang [who daily plotted to kill his brother], and even with a bad father Gu Sou, there was [a most filial] Shun⁸ (Xiang’s brother who succeeded Yao), and even with (wicked king) Zhou⁹ as nephew and ruler, there were Viscount Qi of Wei and Prince Bigan.¹⁰ Now you say that human nature is good. Then are those people wrong?

公都子曰：「告子曰：『性無善無不善也。』或曰：『性可以為善，可以為不善；是故文武興，則民好善；幽厲興，則民好暴。』或曰：『有性善，有性不善；是故以堯為君而有象，以瞽瞍為父而有舜；以紂為兄之子且以為君，而有微子啟、王子比干。』今曰『性善』，然則彼皆非與？」

Mengzi said: If you let people follow their feelings (xing 情, original nature),¹¹ they will be able to do good. This is what is meant by saying that human nature is good. If man does evil, it is not the fault of his natural endowment. The feeling of commiseration is found in all men; the feeling of shame and dislike is found in all men; the feeling of respect and reverence is found in all men; and the feeling of right and wrong is found in all men. The feeling of commiseration is what we call “humanity” (ren 仁); the feeling of shame and dislike is what we call “righteousness” (yi 義); the feeling of respect and reverence is what we call “propriety” (li 禮);¹² and the feeling of right and wrong is what we call “wisdom” (zhi 智). Humanity, righteousness, propriety, and wisdom are not drilled into us from outside. We originally have them with us. Only we do not think [to find them].

孟子曰：「乃若其情，則可以為善矣，乃所謂善也。若夫為不善，非才之罪也。惻隱之心，人皆有之；羞惡之心，人皆有之；恭敬之心，人皆有之；是非之心，人皆有之。惻隱之心，仁也；羞惡之心，義也；恭敬之心，禮也；是非之心，智也。仁義禮智，非由外鑠我也，我固有之也，弗思耳矣。

Therefore it is said, “Seek and you will find it, neglect and you will lose it.”¹³ [Men differ in the development of their endowments], some twice as much as others, some five times, and some to an incalculable degree, because no one can develop his original endowment to the fullest extent. The Book of Odes says:

Heaven produces the teeming multitude.
As there are things there are their specific principles.
When the people keep their normal nature
they will love excellent virtue.¹⁴

Master Kong said, “The writer of this poem indeed knew the Way (Dao 道). Therefore as there are things, there must be their specific principles, and since people keep to their normal nature, therefore they love excellent virtue.”

故曰：『求則得之，舍則失之。』或相倍蓰而無算者，不能盡其才者也。《詩》曰：『天生蒸民，有物有則。民之秉夷，好是懿德。』孔子曰：『為此詩者，其知道乎！故有物必有則，民之秉夷也，故好是懿德。』」

6A.7.  Mengzi said: In good years most of the young people behave well. In bad years most of them abandon themselves to evil. This is not due to any difference in the natural capacity endowed by Heaven. The abandonment is due to the fact that the mind is allowed to fall into evil. Take for instance the growing of wheat. You sow the seeds and cover them with soil. The land is the same and the time of sowing is also the same. In time they all grow up luxuriantly. When the time of harvest comes, they are all ripe. Although there may be a difference between the different stalks of wheat, it is due to differences in the soil, as rich or poor, to the unequal nourishment obtained from the rain and the dew, and to differences in human effort. Therefore all things of the same kind are similar to one another.

孟子曰：「富歲，子弟多賴；凶歲，子弟多暴，非天之降才爾殊也，其所以陷溺其心者然也。今夫麰麥，播種而耰之，其地同，樹之時又同，浡然而生，至於日至之時，皆熟矣。雖有不同，則地有肥磽，雨露之養，人事之不齊也。故凡同類者，舉相似也，

Why should there be any doubt about men? The sage and I are the same in kind. Therefore Longzi¹⁵ said, “If a man makes shoes without knowing the size of people’s feet, I know that he will at least not make them to be like baskets.” Shoes are alike because people’s feet are alike. There is a common taste for flavor in our mouths. Yi Ya¹⁶ was the first to know our common taste for food. Suppose one man’s taste for flavor is different from that of others, as dogs and horses differ from us in belonging to different species, then why should the world follow Yi Ya in regard to flavor? Since in the matter of flavor the whole world regards Yi Ya as the standard, it shows that our tastes for flavor are alike. The same is true of our ears. Since in the matter of sounds the whole world regards Shi Kuang¹⁷ as the standard, it shows that our ears are alike. The same is true of our eyes. With regard to Zidu,¹⁸ none in the world did not know that he was handsome. Any one who did not recognize his handsomeness must have no eyes.

何獨至於人而疑之？聖人與我同類者。故龍子曰：『不知足而為屨，我知其不為蕢也。』屨之相似，天下之足同也。口之於味，有同耆也。易牙先得我口之所耆者也。如使口之於味也，其性與人殊，若犬馬之與我不同類也，則天下何耆皆從易牙之於味也？至於味，天下期於易牙，是天下之口相似也惟耳亦然。至於聲，天下期於師曠，是天下之耳相似也。惟目亦然。至於子都，天下莫不知其姣也。不知子都之姣者，無目者也。

Therefore I say there is a common taste for flavor in our mouths, a common sense for sound in our ears, and a common sense for beauty in our eyes. Can it be that in our minds alone we are not alike? What is it that we have in common in our minds? It is the sense of principle and righteousness (yili 義理, moral principles).¹⁹ The sage is the first to possess what is common in our minds. Therefore moral principles please our minds as beef and mutton and pork please our mouths.

故曰：口之於味也，有同耆焉；耳之於聲也，有同聽焉；目之於色也，有同美焉。至於心，獨無所同然乎？心之所同然者何也？謂理也，義也。聖人先得我心之所同然耳。故理義之悅我心，猶芻豢之悅我口。」

6A.8.  Mengzi said: The trees of the Niu Mountain²⁰ were once beautiful. But can the mountain be regarded any longer as beautiful since, being in the borders of a big state, the trees have been hewed down with axes and hatchets? Still with the rest given them by the days and nights and the nourishment provided them by the rains and the dew, they were not without buds and sprouts springing forth. But then the cattle and the sheep pastured upon them once and again. That is why the mountain looks so bald. When people see that it is so bald, they think that there was never any timber on the mountain. Is this the true nature of the mountain?

孟子曰：「牛山之木嘗美矣，以其郊於大國也，斧斤伐之，可以為美乎？是其日夜之所息，雨露之所潤，非無萌櫱之生焉，牛羊又從而牧之，是以若彼濯濯也。人見其濯濯也，以為未嘗有材焉，此豈山之性也哉？

Is there not [also] a heart of humanity and righteousness originally existing in man? The way in which he loses his originally good mind is like the way in which the trees are hewed down with axes and hatchets. As trees are cut down day after day, can a mountain retain its beauty? To be sure, the days and nights do the healing, and there is the nourishing air of the calm morning which keeps him normal in his likes and dislikes. But the effect is slight, and is disturbed and destroyed by what he does during the day. When there is repeated disturbance, the restorative influence of the night will not be sufficient to preserve (the proper goodness of the mind). When the influence of the night is not sufficient to preserve it, man becomes not much different from the beast. People see that he acts like an animal, and think that he never had the original endowment (for goodness). But is that his true character?

雖存乎人者，豈無仁義之心哉？其所以放其良心者，亦猶斧斤之於木也，旦旦而伐之，可以為美乎？其日夜之所息，平旦之氣，其好惡與人相近也者幾希，則其旦晝之所為，有梏亡之矣。梏之反覆，則其夜氣不足以存；夜氣不足以存，則其違禽獸不遠矣。人見其禽獸也，而以為未嘗有才焉者，是豈人之情也哉？

Therefore with proper nourishment and care, everything grows, whereas without proper nourishment and care, everything decays. Master Kong said, “Hold it fast and you preserve it. Let it go and you lose it. It comes in and goes out at no definite time and without anyone's knowing its direction.” He was talking about the human mind.

故苟得其養，無物不長；苟失其養，無物不消。孔子曰：『操則存，舍則亡；出入無時，莫知其鄉。』惟心之謂與？」

6A.9.  Mengzi said: Don’t suspect that the king²¹ lacks wisdom. Even in the case of the things that grow most easily in the world, they would never grow up if they were exposed to sunshine for one day and then to cold for ten days. It is seldom that I have an audience with him, and when I leave, others who expose him to cold arrive. Even if what I say to him is taking root, what good does it do?

孟子曰：「無或乎王之不智也，雖有天下易生之物也，一日暴之、十日寒之，未有能生者也。吾見亦罕矣，吾退而寒之者至矣，吾如有萌焉何哉？

Now chess playing is but a minor art. One cannot learn it unless he concentrates his mind and devotes his whole heart to it. Chess Expert Qiu is the best chess player in the whole country. Suppose he is teaching two men to play. One man will concentrate his mind and devote his whole heart to it, doing nothing but listening to Chess Expert Qiu’s instructions. Although the other man listens to him, his whole mind is thinking that a wild goose is about to pass by and he wants to bend his bow, adjust the string to the arrow, and shoot it. Although he is learning along with the other man, he will never be equal to him. Is that because his intelligence is inferior? No, it is not.

今夫弈之為數，小數也；不專心致志，則不得也。弈秋，通國之善弈者也。使弈秋誨二人弈，其一人專心致志，惟弈秋之為聽。一人雖聽之，一心以為有鴻鵠將至，思援弓繳而射之，雖與之俱學，弗若之矣。為是其智弗若與？曰非然也。」

6A.10.  Mengzi said: I like fish and I also like bear’s paw. If I cannot have both of them, I shall give up the fish and choose the bear’s paw. I like life and I also like righteousness. If I cannot have both of them, I shall give up life and choose righteousness. I love life, but there is something I love more than life, and therefore I will not do anything improper to have it. I also hate death, but there is something I hate more than death, and therefore there are occasions when I will not avoid danger.

孟子曰：「魚，我所欲也；熊掌，亦我所欲也，二者不可得兼，舍魚而取熊掌者也。生，亦我所欲也；義，亦我所欲也，二者不可得兼，舍生而取義者也。生亦我所欲，所欲有甚於生者，故不為苟得也；死亦我所惡，所惡有甚於死者，故患有所不辟也。

If there is nothing that man loves more than life, then why should he not employ every means to preserve it? And if there is nothing that man hates more than death, then why does he not do anything to avoid danger? There are cases when a man does not take the course even if by taking it he can preserve his life, and he does not do anything even if by doing it he can avoid danger.²² Therefore there is something men love more than life and there is something men hate more than death. It is not only the worthies alone who have this moral sense. All men have it, but only the worthies have been able to preserve it.

如使人之所欲莫甚於生，則凡可以得生者，何不用也？使人之所惡莫甚於死者，則凡可以辟患者，何不為也？由是則生而有不用也，由是則可以辟患而有不為也。是故所欲有甚於生者，所惡有甚於死者，非獨賢者有是心也，人皆有之，賢者能勿喪耳。

Suppose here are a small basket of rice and a platter of soup. With them one will survive and without them one will die. If you offer them in a loud and angry voice, even an ordinary passer-by will not accept them, or if you first tread on them and then offer them, even a beggar will not stoop to take them. What good does a salary of ten thousand bushels do me if I accept them without any consideration of the principles of propriety and righteousness? Shall I take it because it gives me beautiful mansions, the service of a wife and concubines, and the chance gratitude of my needy acquaintances who receive my help? If formerly I refused to accept the offer (of rice and soup) in the face of death and now I accept for the sake of beautiful mansions, if formerly I refused the offer in the face of death and now accept for the sake of the service of a wife and concubines, if formerly I refused the offer and now accept for the sake of the gratitude of my needy acquaintances, is that not the limit? This is called casting the original mind away.

一簞食，一豆羹，得之則生，弗得則死。嘑爾而與之，行道之人弗受；蹴爾而與之，乞人不屑也。萬鍾則不辨禮義而受之。萬鍾於我何加焉？為宮室之美、妻妾之奉、所識窮乏者得我與？鄉為身死而不受，今為宮室之美為之；鄉為身死而不受，今為妻妾之奉為之；鄉為身死而不受，今為所識窮乏者得我而為之，是亦不可以已乎？此之謂失其本心。」

6A.11.  Mengzi said: Humanity is man’s mind and righteousness is man’s path. Pity the man who abandons the path and does not follow it, and who has lost his heart and does not know how to recover it. When people’s dogs and fowls are lost, they go to look for them, and yet, when they have lost their hearts, they do not go to look for them. The way of learning is none other than finding the lost mind.

孟子曰：「仁，人心也；義，人路也。舍其路而弗由，放其心而不知求，哀哉！人有雞犬放，則知求之；有放心，而不知求。學問之道無他，求其放心而已矣。」

6A.12.  Mengzi said: Suppose there is a man whose fourth finger is crooked and cannot stretch out straight. It is not painful and it does not interfere with his work. And yet if there were someone who could straighten out the finger for him, he would not mind going as far as to the states of Qin and Chu because his finger is not like those of others, yet he does not hate the fact that his mind is not like those of others. This is called ignorance of the relative importance of things.

孟子曰：「今有無名之指，屈而不信，非疾痛害事也，如有能信之者，則不遠秦楚之路，為指之不若人也。指不若人，則知惡之；心不若人，則不知惡，此之謂不知類也。」

6A.13.  Mengzi said: Anybody who wishes to cultivate the tong and zi trees, which may be grasped by one or both hands, knows how to nourish them. In the case of their own persons, men do not know how to nourish them. Do they love their persons less than the tong and zi trees? Their lack of thought is extreme.

孟子曰：「拱把之桐梓，人苟欲生之，皆知所以養之者。至於身，而不知所以養之者，豈愛身不若桐梓哉？弗思甚也。」

6A.14.  Mengzi said: There is not a part of the body that a man does not love. And because there is no part of the body that he does not love, there is not a part of it that he does not nourish. Because there is not an inch of his skin that he does not love, there is not an inch of his skin that he does not nourish. To determine whether his nourishing is good or not, there is no other way except to see the choice he makes for himself. Now, some parts of the body are noble and some are ignoble; some great and some small. We must not allow the ignoble to injure the noble, or the smaller to injure the greater. Those who nourish the smaller parts will become small men. Those who nourish the greater parts will become great men.

孟子曰：「人之於身也，兼所愛。兼所愛，則兼所養也。無尺寸之膚不愛焉，則無尺寸之膚不養也。所以考其善不善者，豈有他哉？於己取之而已矣。體有貴賤，有小大。無以小害大，無以賤害貴。養其小者為小人，養其大者為大人。

A gardener who neglects his tong and zi trees and cultivates thorns and bramble becomes a bad gardener. A man who takes good care of his finger and, without knowing it, neglects his back and shoulders, resembles a hurried wolf.²³ A man who only eats and drinks is looked down upon by others, because he nourishes the smaller parts of his body to the injury of the greater parts. If he eats and drinks but makes no mistake [of injuring the greater parts of his body], how should his mouth and belly be considered merely as so many inches of his body?

今有場師，舍其梧檟，養其樲棘，則為賤場師焉。養其一指而失其肩背，而不知也，則為狼疾人也。飲食之人，則人賤之矣，為其養小以失大也。飲食之人無有失也，則口腹豈適為尺寸之膚哉？」

6A.15.  Gongduzi  asked: We are all human beings. Why is it that some men become great and others become small?

Mengzi said: Those who follow the greater qualities in their nature become great men and those who follow the smaller qualities in their nature become small men.

公都子問曰：「鈞是人也，或為大人，或為小人，何也？」孟子曰：「從其大體為大人，從其小體為小人。」

But we are all human beings. Why is it that some follow their greater qualities and others follow their smaller qualities?

Mengzi replied: When our senses of sight and hearing are used without thought and are thereby obscured by material things, the material things act on the material senses and lead them astray. That is all. The function of the mind is to think. If we think, we will get them (the principles of things). If we do not think, we will not get them. This is what Heaven has given to us. If we first build up the nobler part of our nature, then the inferior part cannot overcome it. It is simply this that makes a man great.

曰：「鈞是人也，或從其大體，或從其小體，何也？」曰：「耳目之官不思，而蔽於物，物交物，則引之而已矣。心之官則思，思則得之，不思則不得也。此天之所與我者，先立乎其大者，則其小者弗能奪也。此為大人而已矣。」

6A.16.  Mengzi said: There is nobility of Heaven and there is nobility of man. Humanity, righteousness, loyalty, faithfulness, and the love of the good without getting tired of it constitute the nobility of Heaven, and to be a grand official, a great official, and a high official—this constitutes the nobility of man. The ancient people cultivated the nobility of Heaven, and the nobility of man naturally came to them. People today cultivate the nobility of Heaven in order to seek for the nobility of man, and once they have obtained the nobility of man, they forsake the nobility of Heaven. Therefore their delusion is extreme. At the end they will surely lose [the nobility of man] also.

孟子曰：「有天爵者，有人爵者。仁義忠信，樂善不倦，此天爵也；公卿大夫，此人爵也。古之人修其天爵，而人爵從之。今之人修其天爵，以要人爵；既得人爵，而棄其天爵，則惑之甚者也，終亦必亡而已矣。」

6A.17.  Mengzi said: The desire to be honored is shared by the minds of all men. But all men have in themselves what is really honorable. Only they do not think of it. The honor conferred by men is not true honor. Whoever is made honorable by Zhao Meng²⁴ can be made humble by him again. The Book of Odes says, “I am drunk with wine, and I am satiated with virtue.”²⁵ It means that a man is satiated with humanity and righteousness, and therefore he does not wish for the flavor of fat meat and fine millet of men. A good reputation and far-reaching praise are heaped on him, and he does not desire the embroidered gowns of men.

孟子曰：「欲貴者，人之同心也。人人有貴於己者，弗思耳。人之所貴者，非良貴也。趙孟之所貴，趙孟能賤之。《詩》云：『既醉以酒，既飽以德。』言飽乎仁義也，所以不願人之膏粱之味也；令聞廣譽施於身，所以不願人之文繡也。」

6A.18.  Mengzi said: Humanity subdues inhumanity as water subdues fire. Nowadays those who practice humanity do so as if with one cup of water they could save a whole wagonload of fuel on fire. When the flames were not extinguished, they would say that water cannot subdue fire. This is as bad as those who are inhumane. At the end they will surely lose [what little humanity they have].

孟子曰：「仁之勝不仁也，猶水勝火。今之為仁者，猶以一杯水，救一車薪之火也；不熄，則謂之水不勝火，此又與於不仁之甚者也。亦終必亡而已矣。」

6A.19.  Mengzi said: The five kinds of grain are considered good plants, but if they are not ripe, they are worse than poor grains. So the value of humanity depends on its being brought to maturity.

孟子曰：「五穀者，種之美者也；苟為不熟，不如荑稗。夫仁亦在乎熟之而已矣。」

6A.20.  Mengzi said: When Master Yi²⁶ taught people to shoot, he always told them to draw the bow to the full. The man who wants to learn [the way] must likewise draw his bow (his will) to the full. When a great carpenter teaches people, he always tells them to use squares and compasses. The man who wants to learn must likewise use squares and compasses (or moral standards).

孟子曰：「羿之教人射，必志於彀；學者亦必志於彀。大匠誨人，必以規矩；學者亦必以規矩。」