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Mohism -> Mozi -> Book 3 -> Identification with the Superior III -> 2

But how can the desires of the people (being so many and various) be met?
墨子:「Therefore Mozi said: It can be done only by adopting the principle of Identification with the Superior in government.
天下How do we know the principle of Identification with the Superior can govern the empire?
Why not then examine the administration and the theory of government of the ancient times?
In the beginning there was no ruler and everybody was independent.
Since every one was independent, there would be one purpose when there was one man, ten purposes when there were ten men, a hundred purposes when there were a hundred men, a thousand purposes when there were a thousand men and so on until the number of men became innumerable and the number of different purposes became innumerable with it.
And all of them approved their own ideas
and disapproved those of others.
And there was strife among the strong
and struggle among the weak.
天下天下 Thereupon Heaven wished to unify the standards in the world.
The virtuous was selected
天子 and made emperor.
天子天下 Conscious of the insufficiency of his power alone to govern the empire,
the emperor chose the next best (in virtue and wisdom) and honoured them to be the three ministers.
天子諸侯Conscious of the insufficiency of their powers alone to assist the emperor, the three ministers in turn divided the empire into feudal states and assigned them to feudal lords.
諸侯Conscious of the insufficiency of his power alone to govern all that were within his four borders, the feudal lord in turn selected his next best and commissioned them ministers and secretaries.
Conscious of the insufficiency of their power alone to assist their feudal lord, the ministers and secretaries again selected their next best and appointed them district heads and clan patriarchs.
天子諸侯Therefore, in appointing the three ministers, the feudal lords, the ministers and secretaries, and the district heads and clan patriarchs,
the emperor was not selecting them for wealth and honour, leisure and ease.
使 It was to employ them to help in administration and jurisdiction.
Hence, when Heaven established the empire and located the capital
and commissioned the sovereign, kings, lords, and dukes,
and appointed secretaries, scholars, professors, and elders
- it was not to give them ease,
使
1
but only to divide up the task and let them help carry out the light of Heaven.

1. 助 : Deleted. 孫詒讓《墨子閒詁》


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