Mencius 4B.8
Mencius (孟子), Book 4, Part II: Li Lou II 離婁下
孟子曰：「人有不為也，而後可以有為。」
Mencius said, 'Men must be decided on what they will NOT do, and then they are able to act with vigour in what they ought to do.'
James Legge (1861), The Works of Mencius, The Chinese Classics vol. 2 (1861; 2nd ed. 1895); romanization modernized on Wikisource — public domain.
Character glossary
- 孟mèngfirst in a series; great, eminent
- 子zison, child; seed, egg; fruit; small thin
- 曰yuēto speak; to say
- 人rénman, person; people
- 有yǒuto have, to own, to possess; to exist
- 不bùno, not, un-; negative prefix
- 為wèito do, to act; to handle, to govern; to
- 也yěalso, too
- 而érand, and then, and yet; but
- 後hòuafter; behind, rear; descendants
- 可kěmay, can, -able; possibly
- 以yǐaccording to; so as to; because of; then
Passages with shared wording
Data: English Wikisource (Public domain texts; transcription CC BY-SA 4.0); Chinese Wikisource (Public domain texts; transcription CC BY-SA 4.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.