Mozi: Dual-Color Illustrative and Textual Edition

Author: Shi Ming
Translator's Notes:
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-01-01
Features: Mozi (468–378 BC), surnamed Mo, named Zhi, was a native of Lu (or said to be from Saye). He served as a minister in Song and traveled among the various feudal states, spreading his doctrines. The Yao Lüo of the Huainanzi states: "Mozi studied the teachings of the Confucians and received the doctrines of Confucius." This shows that Mozi had Confucian origins but later, in terms of theoretical thought, he challenged Confucianism and established the Mohist school. The Mohist school is primarily reflected in the Mozi, a book compiled by Mozi's disciples based on his teachings. The Book of Han·Bibliography records that the Mozi originally had seventy-one chapters, but only fifty-three remain today. These chapters can be broadly divided into five categories. The first category includes seven chapters such as Qin Shi (Loving the People), Xiu Shen (Self-Cultivation), and Su Ran (Influences), which are unrelated in content and inconsistent in style. The second category consists of ten treatises such as Shang Xian (Veneration of the Worthy), Shang Tong (Promoting Unity), Jian Ai (Universal Love), Fei Gong (Non-Aggression), Jie Yong (Frugality in Use), Jie Zang (Frugality in Funerals), Tian Zhi (Heavenly Will), Ming Gui (Understanding Ghosts), and Fei Ming (Non-Destiny), which form a complete system and represent the essence of Mozi's thought. The third category includes ten chapters such as Jing Shang (Upper Canon), Jing Xia (Lower Canon), Jing Shuo Shang (Upper Commentary on the Canons), Jing Shuo Xia (Lower Commentary on the Canons), Da Qu (Major Taking), and Xiao Qu (Minor Taking), which cover a wide range of topics related to logic, ethics, politics, economics, philosophy, mathematics, mechanics, and optics, holding high academic value. The fourth category includes five chapters such as Geng Zhu (Cultivating the Pillar), Gui Yi (Veneration of Righteousness), Gong Meng (Public Master), Lu Wen (Lu's Questions), and Gong Shu (Gong Shu's Teachings), mostly recording Mozi's travels and sayings. The fifth category includes eleven chapters such as Bei Cheng Men (Preparing for City Gates), which are about defensive military strategies. During Mozi's time, many states rose in power, and the Hundred Schools of Thought flourished, while the common people suffered greatly from wars and chaos, yearning for peace and stability. Mozi, standing on the side of the common people, advocated "universal love" and "non-aggression" to protect the survival of the people and weaker states. He believed that mutual love and kindness were in line with the will of Heaven, while mutual harm was contrary to it. He also argued that the wars between feudal lords were the root cause of chaos in the world. Against the traditional hereditary system of official ranks and salaries, Mozi, ahead of his time, proposed the political ideas of "veneration of the worthy" (Shang Xian) and "promoting unity" (Shang Tong) to achieve a unified and well-governed world. "Veneration of the worthy" meant that anyone who understood the principles of governance and possessed talent, regardless of status, could participate in politics. "Promoting unity" aimed to achieve ideological consensus in society based on "veneration of the worthy," transforming chaos into order. To attract attention to his ideas and realize his social ideals, Mozi, on one hand, used the authority of Heaven and ghosts to propose the theories of "Heavenly Will" (Tian Zhi) and "Understanding Ghosts" (Ming Gui), and on the other hand, emphasized the spirit of self-improvement and relentless effort, proposing the theory of "non-destiny" (Fei Ming). In an era of underdeveloped productivity and limited material wealth, Mozi believed that "frugality leads to prosperity, while extravagance leads to ruin," and thus advocated "frugality in use" (Jie Yong) and "frugality in funerals" (Jie Zang), opposing luxury and encouraging thrift. The essence of the Mohist school is universal love, non-aggression, ensuring people's livelihood, developing the economy, reforming politics, and achieving a utopian society. In fact, the Mozi covers a vast range of topics, including politics, military strategy, economics, science and technology, philosophy, ethics, and logic, making it a prominent school of thought that challenged Confucianism. The Xian Xue chapter of the Han Feizi states: "The prominent schools of thought in the world are Confucianism and Mohism." In the early Warring States period, Mohism even surpassed Confucianism in popularity, to the extent that Mencius exclaimed, "Mozi's teachings filled the world," and Xunzi lamented, "Rites and music faded away, sages hid, and Mohism flourished." The rise of Mohism lay in its proposal of social theories and political solutions that Confucianism did not offer, such as "ruling the world," "rectifying feudal lords," "veneration of the worthy," and "equality of status," as well as the "legalist" and "technique" ideas based on utilitarianism and realism, which attracted strong interest from all social strata, from emperors to commoners. Especially in opposing greedy and plundering wars and extravagant lifestyles, Mohism reflected the voices of the lower classes. For a long time, under the dominance of Confucianism, autocratic centralism, and the ultra-leftist ideology after the founding of the People's Republic, Mozi's thought has been neglected, which is highly inconsistent with the historical prominence of Mohism and the value of its ideas. In 1997, China Bookstore published the "Mozi and the World Today Series" (ten volumes), edited by Fei Xiaotong, Ren Jiyou, Zhang Dainian, Cai Shangsi, and others, which systematically elaborated the modern applicability of Mohism in ten aspects: thinking methods, new cultural construction, new ethics, contemporary politics, education, modern science and technology, world peace, contemporary values, economy, and military strategy. Mr. Cai Shangsi even believed: "Mozi's value in the history of Chinese thought and culture surpasses any other school or sect." This is no exaggeration. Today, aspects of Mozi's thought—such as his rejection of patriarchal and kinship-based systems, equality before the law, emphasis on human effort over fate, advocacy of economic development and the elimination of unnecessary waste, and emphasis on practical action—along with his contributions to science, are particularly in need of rediscovery and emphasis.