Jin Xin I · Passage 16 / 46 · 孟子 7A.16
Mencius 7A.16: hearing one good word, seeing one
Through Shun, Mencius shows that greatness lies not first in environment but in radical responsiveness to goodness.
孟子曰：「舜之居深山之中，與木石居，與鹿豕游，其所以異於深山之野人者幾希。及其聞一善言，見一善行，若決江河，沛然莫之能御也。」
Mencius said, 'When Shun was living amid the deep retired mountains, dwelling with the trees and rocks, and wandering among the deer and swine, the difference between him and the rude inhabitants of those remote hills appeared very small. But when he heard a single good word, or saw a single good action, he was like a stream or a river bursting its banks, and flowing out in an irresistible flood.'
Priority note
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Central question
Why does Mencius describe Shun's response to goodness as like a river bursting its banks?
Direct answer
Because true greatness does not begin with living in a purified environment. It begins with extraordinary openness to the good, so that once the good is encountered, the whole person is powerfully moved.
First principle
The key to growth lies not only in where one is placed, but in whether one possesses an almost irresistible responsiveness to what is genuinely good.
Why it matters
This passage serves searches around Shun, growth, and responsiveness to goodness, strengthening the site's case for moral possibility.
Further reading
What this passage is doing
This is passage 16 of 46 in Jin Xin I. The cleanest entry point is "When Shun was living amid the deep retired…". In context, it works as part of Mencius's argument about exhausting the heart, sincerity, and preserving the original heart and can be read alongside Human nature.
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Related principles
Citation note
Do not read the line as mere emotional excitability. Mencius is naming a deep teachability and mobilization toward the good, not simple impulsiveness.