Jin Xin I · Passage 45 / 46 · 孟子 7A.45

Mencius 7A.45: ordered love begins with kin

Mencius orders love by depth: affection for kin, benevolence toward the people, and care for things. Order makes universal concern real rather than abstract.

孟子曰：「君子之於物也，愛之而弗仁；於民也，仁之而弗親。親親而仁民，仁民而愛物。」

mèng zǐ yuē：「jūn zǐ zhī wū wù yě， ài zhī ér fú rén； wū mín yě， rén zhī ér fú qīn。 qīn qīn ér rén mín， rén mín ér ài wù。」

Mencius said, 'In regard to inferior creatures, the superior man is kind to them, but not loving. In regard to people generally, he is loving to them, but not affectionate. He is affectionate to his parents, and lovingly disposed to people generally. He is lovingly disposed to people generally, and kind to creatures.'

Priority note

A human-edited reading layer

Central question

Why does Mencius separate loving things, being benevolent to people, and being affectionate to kin?

Direct answer

Because if every relation is flattened, care loses its real point of growth. Love becomes expansive only by rooting first where obligation is thickest and then extending outward.

First principle

Universal concern without near roots easily becomes slogan. Order does not limit love; it gives love a real path of growth.

Why it matters

This passage serves searches around ordered love, kinship, benevolence, and why Mencius links family depth to public care.

What this passage is doing

This is passage 45 of 46 in Jin Xin I. The cleanest entry point is "In regard to inferior creatures, the superior man…". 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.

Broader search routes