梁惠王曰：“晉國［1］，天下莫強焉，叟之所知也。及寡人之身，東敗于齊，長子死焉；西喪地于秦七百里；南辱于楚。寡人恥之，愿比死者一灑之［2］，如之何則可？”
孟子對曰：“地方百里而可以王。王如施仁政于民，省刑罰，薄稅斂，深耕易耨［3］，壯者以暇日修其孝悌忠信，入以事其父兄，出以事其長上，可使制梃以撻秦、楚之堅甲利兵矣。“彼奪其民時，使不得耕耨以養(yǎng)其父母，父母凍餓，兄弟妻子離散。彼陷溺其民，王往而征之，夫誰王敵？故曰：‘仁者無敵?！跽埼鹨桑 ?/span>King Hui of Liang said,?“There was not in the nation a stronger state than Jin, as you, venerable sir, know. But since it descended to me, on the?east we have been defeated by Qi, and then my eldest son perished; on the west we have lost seven hundred li of territory to Qin; and on the south we have sustained disgrace at the hands of Chu. I have brought shame on my departed predecessors, and wish on their account to wipe it away, once for all. What course is to be pursued to accomplish this?”Mencius replied,?“With a territory which is only a hundred li square, it is possible to attain to the royal dignity. If Your Majesty will indeed dispense a benevolent government to the people, being sparing in the use of punishments and fines, and making the taxes and levies light, so causing that the fields shall be ploughed deep, and the weeding of them be carefully attended to, and that the strong-bodied, during their days of leisure, shall cultivate their filial piety, fraternal respectfulness, sincerity, and truthfulness, serving thereby, at home, their fathers and elder brothers, and, abroad, their elders and?superiors,?—you will then have a people who can be employed, with sticks which they have prepared, to oppose the strong mail and sharp weapons of the troops of Qin and Chu.The rulers of those states rob their people of their time, so that they cannot plough and weed their fields, in order to support their parents. Their parents suffer from cold and hunger. Brothers, wives, and children are separated and scattered abroad. Those rulers, as it were, drive their people into pitfalls, or drown them. Your Majesty will go to punish them. In such a case, who will oppose Your Majesty? In accordance with this is the saying,?‘The benevolent has no enemy.’?I beg Your Majesty not to doubt what I say.”【注釋】［1］晉國：指魏國。三家分晉而有魏國。［2］比：替，代。一：副詞，全，都。灑：洗。［3］易：疾速。耨：一種碎土、平整土地的農(nóng)具，相當于“耢”（荊條編的整平土地的農(nóng)具）。土地耕起后，馬上用耨碎土、平整。【譯文】梁惠王說：“晉國的強大，當時天下沒有哪個國家能趕得上，這是老先生您知道的?？墒堑搅宋疫@時候，東邊被齊國打敗，連我的大兒子都死了；西邊喪失了七百里的土地給秦國；南邊又受楚國的凌辱。我為這些事感到非常羞恥，希望替所有的死難者報仇雪恨，我要怎樣做才可以呢？”孟子回答說：“只要有方圓一百里的土地就可以使天下歸服。大王如果對老百姓施行仁政，減免刑罰，少收賦稅，深耕細作，及時平整土地；讓身強力壯的人抽出時間修養(yǎng)孝順、尊敬、忠誠、守信的品德，在家侍奉父母兄長，出門尊敬長輩上級，這樣就是讓他們制作木棒也可以打擊那些擁有堅實盔甲和銳利刀槍的秦、楚軍隊了。“他們（秦國、楚國）的執(zhí)政者剝奪了老百姓的生產(chǎn)時間，使百姓不能夠靠深耕細作來贍養(yǎng)父母，父母受凍挨餓，兄、弟、妻、子?xùn)|離西散。他們使老百姓陷入深淵之中，大王去征伐他們，有誰來和您抵抗呢？所以說：‘施行仁政的人是無敵的?！笸跽埐灰獞岩?！”【解讀】本章響亮地提出光耀千古的思想“仁者無敵”。梁惠王對自己所受的恥辱耿耿于懷，所以虛心求教孟子，以求能夠洗刷恥辱。孟子則因勢利導(dǎo)，使梁惠王認識到，只有施行仁政，教化百姓懂禮法，明是非，心懷仁，使國人皆有正義感；之后再去討伐暴虐的諸侯國，則無往而不勝，故“仁者無敵”。當然，孟子的這種樸素的仁政思想，帶有理想化的色彩，在靠武力征伐來贏得勝利、兼并諸侯的戰(zhàn)國時代，甚至顯得有些迂腐，卻如洪鐘大呂般道出了國家強大的真正秘密：民心向背決定了國家的興衰。只有心想百姓，“省刑罰，薄稅斂，深耕易耨”，使百姓過上美好的生活，并且對百姓進行教育，使百姓知禮節(jié)，才能得到百姓的擁護，國家才會有自信，這就是“仁者無敵”的力量。真正的力量來自人民的擁護。