《孟子·告子上》
惻隱之心，人皆有之。
Every person possesses a heart that cannot bear the suffering of others.
For Mencius, compassion is not a finished virtue but a beginning. It must be noticed, protected, and extended through repeated action.
Mencius · Original, translation, context
Five Mencius quotes
on courage and humanity.
Mencius asks what human beings can become when compassion, moral courage, and responsibility are practiced rather than merely admired. These passages return familiar sayings to their chapters and philosophical setting.
《孟子·告子上》
生，亦我所欲也；義，亦我所欲也。二者不可得兼，捨生而取義者也。
Life is what I desire; righteousness is also what I desire. If both cannot be kept, I choose righteousness over life.
The passage is not a celebration of sacrifice for its own sake. It tests whether a value still guides us when keeping it carries a real cost.
《孟子·公孫丑下》
得道者多助，失道者寡助。
Those who follow the right way receive abundant support; those who abandon it receive little.
Mencius connects durable authority with justice rather than force. Support becomes a moral measure of how power is exercised.
《孟子·盡心上》
窮則獨善其身，達則兼善天下。
When constrained, cultivate yourself; when able to act, extend that good to the world.
Circumstance changes the scale of responsibility, not its direction. Inner cultivation and public action belong to one ethical path.
《孟子·滕文公下》
富貴不能淫，貧賤不能移，威武不能屈，此之謂大丈夫。
Neither wealth corrupts, nor poverty displaces, nor force bends such a person: this is one of true moral stature.
Strength here is steadiness under three different pressures: comfort, deprivation, and intimidation. Integrity is tested by each in a different way.
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