Mencius (372–289 BCE), surnamed Ji, of the Meng clan, was given the personal name Ke and the courtesy name Ziyu (though this is uncertain; some say his courtesy name was Ziche or Zijü). He is known alongside Confucius as one of the "Two Sages of Confucianism." He was from Zou in the state of Lu, in what is now Zoucheng, Shandong. He was one of the leading Confucian thinkers of the Warring States period, as well as an ancient Chinese thinker, philosopher, statesman, and educator.
26
Mencius's father died when he was young, leaving him and his mother to depend on each other. To create a good environment for him to grow up in, his mother moved house three times, a story that became famous. 30
After completing his studies, Mencius began traveling among the states. 28
Throughout his life, Mencius sought to persuade the feudal lords. He traveled through Qi, Liang, Song, Teng, and Lu, but none of them gave him a position. 29
In his later years, Mencius returned to his hometown, where he taught and passed on his ideas. Together with his disciples, he put his thinking into writing, eventually producing the book Mencius. 30
He died in the twenty-sixth year of King Nan of Zhou (289 BCE). 31
Mencius's ideas had a profound and far-reaching influence on China after the Tang and Song dynasties. The philosophical reasoning and ethical insights behind many of his arguments continue to subtly influence China and East Asia as a whole. 29
Mencius ranks just below Confucius, and his inheritance and development of Confucian thought also had a far-reaching impact. 30
Though Mencius contains only seven chapters and a little over 34,000 characters, it has long been part of the world's cultural heritage. Mencius not only developed Confucius's ideas in philosophical reasoning, but also established a political system of thought founded on the people as its basis. 32
Mencius's influence was especially important in the process through which Confucian thought and Buddhist teachings encountered and blended with each other.
I like this form of quoting the original text + explanation, but the explanation related to the reality part is a bit redundant. Overall, it is worth recommending.
It's great how this book connects with life.