The Chinese character for benevolence is 仁 (ren), which is a symbol of two people standing together in a friendly way. Confucius said, “a person with benevolence loves others.” To be benevolent is to care for others. If everyone loves others, and also feels the love of others, the world will be a much better place.
Confucianism emphasizes rites, but at the same time, it expects a person to do more than just to observe rites, law and order. The Confucians are required to practice benevolence. Rites are the external part of benevolence, and benevolence is the inner essence of rites. The Confucians understand that if only rites are emphasized, but not benevolence, the order represented by rites would be like a rope that restrains the people, which would make them uncomfortable. A society in good order but without benevolence is a cold world which would never be harmonious, nor would it last long, and it would eventually lead to conflicts and chaos. To achieve social harmony, there should be love and care among people. With benevolence, one could truly consciously and voluntarily do things in accordance with rites, rather than regarding rites as a constraint.
How could benevolence be achieved? How can one care for others, know what others want and don’t want? How can one avoid offending others? Confucius thinks it’s not difficult. When one thinks about doing something, one should consider it from the perspective of others. He said, “Don’t do onto others what you don’t want others do onto you.”
“If you want to be established and be successful, help others to achieve these, too”, because others would also have the same wish. Imagine at a crossroad without traffic lights. Everyone wants to get through first. If all could take turns to go through the crossroad, all cars could get through in an orderly manner. On the contrary, if everyone wants to rush through, all will be stuck there, and no one could go through. That was why Confucius had said, “To be benevolent is to treat others like treating yourself.”
Secondly, Confucius had said, “a person with benevolence loves others.” The object for such love is not the abstract world, but individuals. It is said in The Doctrine of the Mean that “loving one’s family is the biggest benevolence.” A benevolent person firstly loves his family, and then, he extends his love to his friends, neighbours, the community and the whole country. Mencius said, “Take care of my parents and then extend the care to all the elderly in the world. Take care of my children, and then extend the care to all children in the world.” It is hard to imagine a man who does not love his own family would love his friends, his neighbours, and the world.
When a ruler runs his country with benevolence, he is a benevolent ruler. According to Confucius, a benevolent ruler cares and loves his people and regards the people as the foundation of his country. Mencius put it more explicitly – “The common people are the most valuable; next are the national altars of the soil and grain; the ruler is insignificant.” In other words, for a country, the people are the most important, followed by the country, and lastly, the ruler. Mencius even believed that if a ruler was at fault, his ministers and people could voice their opinions. If the ruler repeatedly refuses to listen to advices, evolt could be justified.
In formulating policies, a benevolent ruler would have to learn to think from the perspectives of his people. Therefore, Confucius’s student You Ruo suggested to the King of Lu that the tax should be reduced from 20% to 10%. Mencius asserts that a ruler should ensure his people’s living standards, and guarantee basic food and clothing for them, to instill confidence in his people, and 10 lay a solid foundation for his country.