Li Lou II · Passage 22 / 33 · 孟子 4B.22
Mencius 4B.22: the influence of the superior person
Mencius argues that even the greatest influence does not continue automatically without renewed appropriation and practice by later people.
孟子曰：「君子之澤，五世而斬；小人之澤，五世而斬。予未得為孔子徒也，予私淑諸人也。」
Mencius said, 'The influence of a sovereign sage terminates in the fifth generation. The influence of a mere sage does the same. Although I could not be a disciple of Confucius himself, I have endeavoured to cultivate my virtue by means of others who were.'
Priority note
A human-edited reading layer
Central question
Why does Mencius say that the influence of the superior person is cut off after five generations?
Direct answer
Because moral influence is not a perpetual-motion machine. However great it once was, if later people do not actively receive, study, and renew it, it naturally attenuates. Respect for the sages cannot rest on inherited prestige alone; it must become present work.
First principle
What is truly valuable does not live forever by inertia. Every transmission must be re-enacted if it is to remain alive.
Why it matters
This passage serves searches around inheritance, influence, and Mencius on transmission. It is useful for explaining why classical learning must become active cultivation rather than ancestral residue.
Further reading
What this passage is doing
This is passage 22 of 33 in Li Lou II. The cleanest entry point is "The influence of a sovereign sage terminates in…". In context, it works as part of Mencius's argument about seeing people clearly, ritual restraint, and governing relationships and can be read alongside Human nature.
Broader search routes
If you came here with a wider question, start from the right hub page
Human nature is good: the starting point of moral growth
If your real query is broader than one citation, start from the theme page and use this passage as proof text.
Open human natureWho is Mencius?
If you first need the person, the aliases, and why he matters, start from the about page.
Open About MenciusMencius quotes and sayings
If you arrived through a famous line, start from the quotes hub and then return to the exact passage.
Open Mencius quotesMencius full text and works of Mencius
If you need the book structure, the works of Mencius, or where to read the text, start from the full-text hub.
Open the full-text hubBook context
Li Lou II offers concrete judgments about seeing people, handling relationships, and the discipline of ritual.
Related principles
Citation note
Do not read it as a pessimistic dismissal of influence. Mencius is not saying influence is futile, but refusing to mistake inherited prestige for present virtue.