Jin Xin I · Passage 34 / 46 · 孟子 7A.34

Mencius 7A.34: small righteousness can hide larger ruin

Mencius warns that one admirable refusal does not prove a whole life is rightly ordered if larger human and political bonds are broken.

孟子曰：「仲子，不義與之齊國而弗受，人皆信之，是舍簞食豆羹之義也。人莫大焉亡親戚、君臣、上下。以其小者，信其大者，奚可哉？」

mèng zǐ yuē：「zhòng zǐ， bú yì yǔ zhī qí guó ér fú shòu， rén jiē xìn zhī， shì shè dān shí dòu gēng zhī yì yě。 rén mò dà yān wáng qīn qī、 jūn chén、 shàng xià。 yǐ qí xiǎo zhě， xìn qí dà zhě， xī kě zāi？」

Mencius said, 'Supposing that the kingdom of Qi were offered, contrary to righteousness, to Chen Zhong, he would not receive it, and all people believe in him, as a man of the highest worth. But this is only the righteousness which declines a dish of rice or a plate of soup. A man can have no greater crimes than to disown his parents and relatives, and the relations of sovereign and minister, superiors and inferiors. How can it be allowed to give a man credit for the great excellences because he possesses a small one?'

Priority note

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Central question

Why does Mencius say that refusing an unrighteous kingdom is still only a small righteousness?

Direct answer

Because he is resisting the illusion that one elegant moral posture certifies the whole person. A local excellence cannot automatically cover wider disorder.

First principle

Moral judgment must not be captured by isolated bright spots. A small virtue cannot simply underwrite a greater disintegration of relations.

Why it matters

This passage serves searches around partial righteousness, moral integrity, and the problem of using one virtue to mask larger failures.

What this passage is doing

This is passage 34 of 46 in Jin Xin I. The cleanest entry point is "Supposing that the kingdom of Qi were offered,…". 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 Humane government / kingly way, Flood-like qi.

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