Mencius: “The heart of compassion…”

Source and attribution

The archive attributes this English wording to Mencius, Gaozi I and files it under Confucianism. That locator distinguishes the passage from loose internet attributions: readers can return to the named work or section to check translation, surrounding argument, and edition-specific wording.

About Mencius

Mencius (Meng Ke, c. 371–c.

Interpretation

Mencius holds that human nature tends toward good in the way water tends downward — as an inclination that can be redirected but not as a finished state. His evidence is the spontaneous reaction people have to another's suffering, which he treats as a beginning rather than as virtue itself. The work of cultivation is to extend that beginning rather than to acquire something new. His position is contested by Xunzi, who argues the opposite reading of the same evidence.

Why it matters

The practical claim is that the raw material is present and needs development, which makes moral education cultivation rather than installation.

Concepts in this quote

Human Nature: Human Nature appears in this archive as a live philosophical concern—not a slogan. These verified English passages show how thinkers treat human nature as a problem of judgment, practice, or explanation.

How to cite this quotation

APA: Mencius. (n.d.). The heart of compassion is possessed by all; so too the hearts of shame, of respect, and of right and wrong. In Philosophy Blind Box. https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0282

MLA: Mencius. “The heart of compassion is possessed by all;….” Philosophy Blind Box, https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0282.

Chicago: Mencius. “The heart of compassion is possessed by all;….” Philosophy Blind Box. Accessed 2026. https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0282.

Frequently asked questions

What is the source of the quotation “The heart of compassion is possessed by all;…”?

The passage is attributed to Mencius, Mencius, Gaozi I. The archive attributes this English wording to Mencius, Gaozi I and files it under Confucianism. That locator distinguishes the passage from loose internet attributions: readers can return to the named work or section to check translation, surrounding argument, and edition-specific wording.

What does Mencius mean by human nature?

Across 4 recurring voices here (notably Aristotle and Blaise Pascal), human nature is framed through Peripatetic School and Christian Existential Precursor. Some passages define human nature; others warn how it fails; still others relocate it inside habit, community, or language. This passage enters that discussion through human nature.