Mencius. Book IV: Lî Lâu. Part II. Chapter I.
Legge's summary: The agreement of sages not affected by place or time.
1. Mencius said, 'Shun was born in Chû-fang, removed to Fû-hsiâ, and died in Ming-t'iâo;-- a man near the wild tribes on the east.
2. 'King Wan was born in Châu by mount Ch'î, and died in Pî-ying;-- a man near the wild tribes on the west.
3. 'Those regions were distant from one another more than a thousand lî, and the age of the one sage was posterior to that of the other more than a thousand years. But when they got their wish, and carried their principles into practice throughout the Middle Kingdom, it was like uniting the two halves of a seal.
4. 'When we examine those sages, both the earlier and the later, their principles are found to be the same.'
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Translated by
James Legge, published in 1861 and revised for publication in 1895. Prepared as etext by Stephen R. McIntyre. Noded by
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