King Hui of Liang II · Passage 13 / 16 · 孟子 1B.13

Mencius 1B.13: a small state survives only with its people

Asked how a small state can survive between great powers, Mencius answers not with alignment strategy first but with a people willing to stand and die with it.

滕文公問曰：「滕，小國也，間於齊、楚。事齊乎？事楚乎？」孟子對曰：「是謀非吾所能及也。無已，則有一焉：鑿斯池也，築斯城也，與民守之，效死而民弗去，則是可為也。」

téng wén gōng wèn yuē：「téng， xiǎo guó yě， jiàn wū qí、 chǔ。 shì qí hū？ shì chǔ hū？」 mèng zǐ duì yuē：「shì móu fēi wú suǒ néng jí yě。 wú yǐ， zé yǒu yì yān： záo sī chí yě， zhù sī chéng yě， yǔ mín shǒu zhī， xiào sǐ ér mín fú qù， zé shì kě wéi yě。」

The duke Wen of Teng asked Mencius, saying, 'Teng is a small kingdom, and lies between Qi and Chu. Shall I serve Qi? Or shall I serve Chu?' Mencius replied, 'This plan which you propose is beyond me. If you will have me counsel you, there is one thing I can suggest. Dig deeper your moats; build higher your walls; guard them as well as your people. In case of attack, be prepared to die in your defence, and have the people so that they will not leave you - this is a proper course.'

Priority note

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Central question

Why does Mencius answer the survival of a small state by saying it must defend itself together with its people?

Direct answer

Because when a state is trapped between larger powers, external maneuvering is never enough. What finally lets it stand is whether rule has made the polity something the people themselves are willing to defend.

First principle

The weaker the position, the less survival can rest on clever alignment alone, and the more it depends on whether internal order truly binds the people together.

Why it matters

This passage serves searches around small-state survival, political community, and why humane rule matters even at the level of strategic endurance.

What this passage is doing

This is passage 13 of 16 in King Hui of Liang II. The cleanest entry point is "Teng is a small kingdom, and lies between…". In context, it works as part of Mencius's argument about shared joy with the people, judgments about war, and political responsibility and can be read alongside Humane government / kingly way.

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