During the Warring States period, society was in turmoil and thought was vibrant, giving rise to various schools of philosophy that wrote books, established doctrines, and debated with one another, creating a scene of a hundred schools of thought contending.Confucius、LaoziConfucius founded the Confucian school, Laozi founded the Taoist school, and Mozi founded the Mohist school.
Mozi, whose personal name was Di, came from a lineage that had once been part of the ducal clan of the Song State, but had long fallen into obscurity before his time. Born a commoner, he referred to himself throughout his life as a "lowly person," meaning a humble or ordinary individual. In his early years, he traveled widely to study the principles of governance, once taking a Confucian teacher to learn classic texts such as the Book of Songs, the Book of Documents, and the Spring and Autumn Annals. During his studies, Mozi found Confucian theories flashy but impractical, with overly elaborate rituals, which gradually led to his dissatisfaction. He eventually abandoned Confucianism, established his own school of thought, and founded Mohism. Mozi is the only philosopher in history who rose from a common background and left a profound and lasting influence.
The core of Mozi's philosophical thought is "universal love": "universal" means seeing others as oneself; "universal love" means loving others as oneself, eliminating distinctions between close and distant, noble and humble, and loving all people equally. From this, principles such as opposing offensive warfare, practicing frugality in funerals and daily life, rejecting elaborate music, and valuing merit-based governance were derived. Mozi opposed aggressive wars while emphasizing self-defense; condemned exploitation and championed labor; criticized Confucian rituals, music, and extravagance, advocating simple funerals and thrift; and rejected hereditary privileges, insisting that officials should be selected based on talent and virtue.
To promote his ideas, Mozi gathered followers and lectured widely, recruiting many disciples and forming the Mohist school of thought. His philosophy represented the interests of common people, reflecting the desires of small producers like artisans for a stable life, resistance against oppression, and a yearning for freedom, thus attracting a large number of craftsmen and lower-level scholars. Mozi's followers numbered in the hundreds, making his movement influential. Members of the Mohist school mostly came from the lower social strata, wearing coarse clothes and straw sandals, engaging in labor, and motivating themselves through hardship. They had a highly organized structure with strict discipline; the supreme leader was called the "Grand Master," while other members were known as "Mohists." Mohists had to obey the Grand Master's commands without hesitation, even if it meant facing fire or water.
Mozi was highly skilled in craftsmanship and excelled at defending cities. Opposing wars of aggression, he often organized his disciples to help besieged states defend and resist attacks. He also personally intervened to stop the State of Chu from attacking the State of Song, averting an impending conflict.
In 488 BCE, King Hui of Chu ascended the throne, implementing political reforms and boosting production to lift the state of Chu from the shadow of near-annihilation by the state of Wu, gradually restoring its strength. Seeing the recovery of national power, King Hui sought to reclaim dominance over the Central Plains. He specially summoned the master craftsman Lu Ban to forge siege weapons, aiming to enhance the army's offensive capabilities. Lu Ban designed and built for Chu a collapsible scaling ladder that could extend to great heights.
King Hui of Chu was very pleased and planned to first attack the State of Song using cloud ladders. When Mozi, who was in the State of Lu, heard this news, he traveled day and night for ten days and ten nights to reach Chu, and had previously sent his disciple Qin Guli along with three hundred others carrying defensive equipment to Song to help them defend the city.
After arriving in Ying, the capital of the Chu state, Mozi first went to see Lu Ban, arguing that the Song state was innocent and that Chu's plan to attack it was unjust, urging him not to assist in the invasion. Lu Ban was persuaded by Mozi's reasoning but was troubled because he had already promised the King of Chu and could not go back on his word. So Mozi asked Lu Ban to take him to meet the King of Chu.
Mozi met with King Hui of Chu and said sincerely, "The state of Chu covers five thousand square li, with vast lands and abundant resources, like splendid clothes and ornate carriages; while the state of Song has only five hundred square li, with barren soil and impoverished people, like tattered clothes and crude carts. Great King, why would you abandon your fine garments and luxurious chariots to covet someone else's rags and broken-down wagons?"
King Hui of Chu felt that what he said was reasonable, but since he had already made preparations and possessed cloud ladders, he was confident of an immediate victory, so he remained unwilling to abandon his plan to attack the State of Song.
Mozi then said to the King of Chu, "Where there is attack, there is defense, and the cloud ladder is not invincible—I have already thought of a way to counter it." He untied the belt from his waist, laid it on the ground in a circle to serve as a city wall, and used a few wooden boards as cloud ladders, then rehearsed the tactics of siege and defense with Lu Ban.
Whenever Lu Ban tried a new siege tactic, Mozi immediately devised a corresponding defense. After using nine different attack strategies, Lu Ban was left with no further options, yet Mozi still had plenty of countermeasures in reserve.
Finally, Lu Ban had exhausted all his tricks and said with a smile, "I know how to deal with you, but I won't say it." Mozi also smiled and replied, "I know your way of dealing with me, but I won't say it either."
King Hui of Chu, confused by what these two said, couldn't help asking Mozi, "What are you talking about?"
Mozi said: "Lu Ban thinks that if he kills me, no one will know how to defend against the cloud ladder attack, but he is mistaken. Before coming to Chu, I had already taught the defense methods to my disciples and sent three hundred of them, including Qin Guli, to help defend the Song state. Even if I die, Chu may not be able to capture Song."
King Hui of Chu personally witnessed Mozi's ability to defend against the assault of scaling ladders and, upon hearing his words, realized that attacking the State of Song would yield no advantage, ultimately abandoning the plan to invade Song.
Later, Lu Ban invented the "hook" and "shield" for the Chu navy. The hook could latch onto enemy ships to prevent them from escaping, while the shield could block enemy vessels from getting close. With these two weapons, the Chu army won many battles.
One day, Lu Ban proudly said to Mozi, "I can install hooks and rams on warships—can your philosophy of righteousness also be equipped with hooks and rams?" Mozi replied, "Love is my hook, and respect is my ram. When you use hooks and rams against others, sooner or later someone will use hooks and rams against you. In comparison, aren't the hooks and rams of righteousness stronger than those of ships?" Lu Ban had nothing to say.
Mozi traveled extensively, reaching Qi and Lu in the east, Chu and Yue in the south, and Zheng and Wei in the north, attracting many disciples. The Mohist school wielded great influence at the time, standing as one of the major schools of thought in the early Warring States period, opposing Confucianism and even becoming a prominent doctrine of the era, with the saying "either Confucian or Mohist" prevailing. Later, his followers compiled Mozi's thoughts and teachings, distilling the essence of Mohism into the book Mozi, which has been passed down through the ages.