If you have a broad mind, you can see the big road!
The power of Mencius' 58 sayings that fill fifty years of insight and wisdom

Fifty, how much have you reflected on your own heart over the years? I thought I'd become more generous and easygoing as I got older, but as I've been working toward my goals, my perspective and my heart have narrowed.
With half of my life behind me, I am vague about what I should live for in the future, but I am bound by the stubbornness that has accumulated with age.
Mencius says that people in their fifties need a 'magnanimous spirit'.
The more you open your mind and eat big, the more you can walk the great path even after you turn fifty.

Reading the Mencius broadens your perspective and vision, and reveals a greater path.
The proverb 'fifty is as good as a hundred' is a representative example.
King Hui of Liang asked Mencius why the people did not increase when there was no king who devoted his whole heart to the country as much as he did.
Mencius asked the king, "What if a soldier who ran fifty paces during a war laughs at a soldier who ran a hundred paces?"
The king said that both of them were the same, since they were both fugitives.
Mencius then pointed out that the king thought he was doing well, but because he liked war, many people were starving in the streets, and that if he had been good, the people of neighboring countries would have migrated.
The same is true for us now.
When you find yourself blaming situations and people, if you try to put yourself in their shoes, you will be able to let go of your stubbornness and avoid getting hurt or hurting them.

『Reading Mencius at Fifty』 is a book that selects 58 stories necessary for people in their fifties from 『Mencius』, which contains Mencius' words and actions, conversations between Mencius and the king, and between Mencius and his disciples, and contains them together with stories of our times.
We can learn from Mencius, who advised the kings of the Warring States period about the mindset and attitude a gentleman should have about 2,300 years ago, how to make sound judgments, be impartial in thinking, be respected, and live generously.
Mencius was a philosopher who possessed a 'steadfast mind' (不動心) and a 'mental and physical energy that is free from obstacles in the world' (호연지기).
These two things that a gentleman should have are also necessary for people in their 50s today.

This book guides you through the values ​​of Mencius that you need to cultivate in order to live as a middle-aged person with discernment and dignity.
Mencius suggested 'compassion', 'a heart of shame', 'a heart of respect for others', 'a heart of right and wrong', and 'a heart of kindness'.
These five were reconstructed to fit the realistic situation and the state of mind of a fifty-year-old.
Through this, you will be able to have a broad mind that is not caught up in small things, and a belief that allows you to look at difficult things wisely, and you will be able to avoid stress in your interpersonal relationships.
Fifty, I hope to solve the difficult problems of the heart with the clues left by Mencius.
Mencius's story will provide advice for those in their fifties and beyond to live as wise people, like a comfortable home, and as upright people, like a wide road.
In this way, you will become a more relaxed adult who lives without wavering, developing your intentions with dignity and a broad perspective.

I thought I would become more generous and easy-going as I got older, but sometimes I find it difficult to even empty my heart, let alone embrace others.
In times like these, you can't find the answer on social media, where you only see what you want to see.
It's just a tranquilizer that makes you forget your worries and pain for a while.
While modern conveniences cannot be denied, they become problematic when relied upon entirely.
At the age of fifty, when your vision and mind seem narrow, if you are wondering how to broaden your perspective and what to fill your heart with, I would like to find the answer in Mencius, a philosopher and sage from China's Warring States Period.
--- From "Fifty, Asking Mencius the Way of the Heart"

After his fame became widely known, Mencius led dozens of chariots and hundreds of men.
Mencius was not only exceptionally intelligent, but also seemed to have a generous and warm personality.
There is a famous dialogue that gives us a glimpse into Mencius's character.
The disciple Gongsun Chu asked Mencius a question.
“What are your strengths, teacher?”
Mencius answered.
“I am good at understanding others and cultivating a good sense of humor.”
When Gongsun Chu asked what Hoyeonjigi was, Mencius answered as follows:
“It is difficult to explain, but Hoyeonjigi is a broad, strong, and straight energy that fills the sky and the earth.”
Mencius said that a gentleman must have an unwavering mind and a firm heart.
And in order to have a stable mind, he said that we must cultivate the spirit of hoyeonjigi (浩然之氣), which is ‘a mental and physical energy that is not hindered by the world.’
If your mind is not agitated, you will not be able to regard worries as worries even when they come.
--- From "Fifty, Asking Mencius the Way of the Heart"

If you have a complaint about someone, you need to develop the habit of thinking from their perspective, not your own.
It is said that the expression “易地思之” (imagining the situation from another person’s perspective) originated from the phrase “易地則皆然” (imagining the situation from another’s perspective) in the Mencius.
The importance of considering others' perspectives remains unchanged, whether it was 2,000 years ago or now.
If we had a heart of empathy, there would be fewer unfortunate incidents in this world.
Because I do not pursue only my own interests, but also consider the interests of others.
--- "It's just a little better and a little worse, but there's not much difference between them."

Mencius lamented, “People know how to find a lost chicken or dog, but once they lose their heart, they don’t know how to get it back.”
It means that people are concerned about losing material things, but they don't really care about losing themselves.
Mencius emphasized this:
“There is no other path to learning than to regain the lost mind.”
There is no need to think of academics as something grand.
Reading books, reflecting, and realizing what is truly precious to me.
Because, ultimately, learning is about learning and questioning.
--- From "Finding the center is finding the lost heart"

Mencius' disciple Wanzhang asked his teacher.
“Master, I dare to ask what the proper way to make friends is.”
Then Mencius said:
“It is to make friends without boasting about one’s age, without boasting about one’s high position, and without boasting about one’s brother’s wealth.”
Take a look around you now.
Do I have good friends? Is there anyone I can share knowledge and wisdom with, the joys and sorrows of life, for the rest of my life? If I don't have such a person, I need to take a moment to reflect on how I treat people.
Do I try to connect with people based on their age or status, or do I respect and value them as individuals?
--- From "Do I have good friends? Am I a good friend?"

Mencius said:
“A person who is kind is like an archer. An archer corrects himself before shooting.
“Even if the shot doesn’t hit the mark, he doesn’t blame the one who defeated him, but instead turns to himself and finds the cause of the problem.”
If your mind is full of other thoughts, you can't focus on the target.
Some people blame external factors, such as a misplaced target or a distraction from their focus, rather than their own problems.
That kind of attitude is not a natural one.
Every arrow you shoot will miss the target.
--- From "The reason the bow misses the target is because I am distracted"

Mencius said:
“If you hate dying and disappearing now, but love what you cannot do, it is like hating being drunk and forcing yourself to drink.”
If you have feelings of gratitude and love (the spirit of benevolence) right now, why not express them to someone else (in the form of a courtesy)? If we recognize the limited time we have and consider that we could die tomorrow, it won't be difficult.
Please do it now, not tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, next month, next year, or sometime in the future.
--- From "You Can't Live Carelessly When You Think About Death"

Mencius emphasized the importance of being generous.
How wonderful it would be if we could live with a broad and generous heart and firm convictions? A life where we embrace with a broad mind and possess the conviction to overcome even the most difficult challenges.
You will not be caught up in the little things of the world and you will be less stressed in your relationships with others.
But as long as we are human, we cannot help but be shaken.
Be deceived by the devil's whispers.
Mencius said:
“When cultivating a spirit of kindness, you should not always expect it, but you should not forget the heart, and you should not force it.”
In other words, we must live with the topic of hoyeonjigi, but we do not need to be tied down to it.
This does not mean that you should completely forget about Hoyeonjigi. Rather, I urge you to hold it as a topic of conversation and let it naturally permeate your life and put it into practice.
Mencius explained this easily using the example of a person from the Song Dynasty.
One day, a Song Dynasty man was worried that the rice sprouts were not growing well, so he forcibly pulled out the sprouts.
It was a good intention to make him grow, but what happened? He returned home tired and told his family.
“I’m very tired today.
“I helped the rice sprouts grow.”
The son was surprised and went to the field to see that the rice sprouts had dried up and died.
--- From "If you overdo anything, you're bound to get into trouble"

Mencius said:
“If you treat the elderly in your house as elderly and extend that love to the elderly in other houses, and if you love your children as children and extend that love to other houses’ children, you can control the world.”
Ultimately, Mencius argued, “If I bestow grace, I can sufficiently protect the Four Seas; if I do not, I cannot even protect my wife and children.”
I think that extending my virtues from my home and outside the home is the most important value for people in their 50s.
This is not only an act of peace and happiness for my family, but also an act of contribution to society.
The fragrance of these virtues spreads quickly and for a long time.
It's a way to live life more worthily.
If you feel helpless or tired right now, think about your virtues.
The size of the virtue doesn't matter.
You can adjust it to suit your circumstances.
The only difference is between doing it and not doing it.
--- From "The fragrance of virtue spreads quickly and lasts a long time"

Especially when you reach your 50s, you become thirsty for recognition.
Because as we get older, our self-esteem gradually declines.
This is especially true because their physical health is not what it used to be and their brains are not as sharp as those of the younger generation.
It's easy to feel sad when you work hard and don't get recognized at work, or when you do your best for your family but don't get recognized.
I'm starting to wonder what on earth I'm working so hard for.
What advice would Mencius give us today? Mencius said this to a man named Song Gou-cheon of the Song Dynasty:
“Do you like to campaign? Let me tell you a little about campaigning.
“Even if the other person recognizes you, you have to be relaxed yourself, and even if they don’t recognize you, you have to be relaxed yourself.”

--- From "Be relaxed even if you know, be relaxed even if you don't know"