Wan Zhang II · Passage 09 / 09 · 孟子 5B.9
Mencius 5B.9: kin ministers may replace the ruler
Mencius distinguishes levels of ministerial duty, arguing that those nearest the ruler bear the heaviest obligation to correct great error rather than merely.
齊宣王問卿。孟子曰：「王何卿之問也？」王曰：「卿不同乎？」曰：「不同，有貴戚之卿，有異姓之卿。」王曰：「請問貴戚之卿。」曰：「君有大過則諫，反覆之而不聽，則易位。」王勃然變乎色。曰：「王勿異也。王問臣，臣不敢不以正對。」王色定，然後請問異姓之卿。曰：「君有過則諫，反覆之而不聽，則去。」
The king Xuan of Qi asked about the office of high ministers. Mencius said, 'Which high ministers is your Majesty asking about?' 'Are there differences among them?' inquired the king. 'There are' was the reply. 'There are the high ministers who are noble and relatives of the prince, and there are those who are of a different surname.' The king said, 'I beg to ask about the high ministers who are noble and relatives of the prince.' Mencius answered, 'If the prince have great faults, they ought to remonstrate with him, and if he do not listen to them after they have done so again and again, they ought to dethrone him.' The king on this looked moved, and changed countenance. Mencius said, 'Let not your Majesty be offended. You asked me, and I dare not answer but according to truth.' The king's countenance became composed, and he then begged to ask about high ministers who were of a different surname from the prince. Mencius said, 'When the prince has faults, they ought to remonstrate with him; and if he do not listen to them after they have done this again and again, they ought to leave the State.'
Priority note
A human-edited reading layer
Central question
Why does Mencius say that a kin minister, when the ruler has a great fault and refuses repeated remonstrance, may even replace him?
Direct answer
Because those nearest the center of power must not treat nearness as shelter alone. If the ruler has fallen into grave error and repeatedly refuses correction, then the kin minister who merely remains as ornament has betrayed the highest duty attached to nearness.
First principle
The closer one stands to the center of power, the heavier—not lighter—the responsibility to correct it. Nearness is not an exemption card, but a higher corrective obligation.
Why it matters
This passage serves searches around remonstrance, replacing the ruler, and Mencius on ministerial responsibility. It is one of his strongest texts on institutional correction.
Further reading
What this passage is doing
This is passage 9 of 9 in Wan Zhang II. The cleanest entry point is "Which high ministers is your Majesty asking about". In context, it works as part of Mencius's argument about recognizing worth, learning, and the relation between name and reality and can be read alongside Humane government / kingly way.
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Related principles
Citation note
Do not read it as casual authorization for coups. Mencius first requires repeated remonstrance, and only after grave fault and persistent refusal does he name the harsher responsibility.