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Mozi and Mohism: impartial care
c. 470–391 BC· Philosopher· Asian traditions
Mostly agreedGood evidence; some details uncertain.
A Chinese thinker (墨子) who taught impartial care for everyone and judged every practice by its benefit to society.
See it on the Philosophy map →The idea
Probably of humble, craftsman origins, he led a disciplined group that also worked as defensive engineers for besieged cities. Idea: jian ai (兼愛), 'impartial care': treat other families and states as your own. Reasoning: war and theft come from partiality, so if everyone cared impartially, all would benefit. He judged practices by results, condemning aggressive war, lavish funerals and costly court music. Main objection: Mencius said loving everyone equally denies your special duty to your father.
Why it matters
Mohism was a leading school for two centuries and one of the earliest results-based ethics, long before Western utilitarianism.
Legacy and sources
The Mozi, compiled by followers, survives in 53 of 71 chapters, including several on fortification and siege defense. Forgotten after 221 BC, it was revived by Qing-dynasty scholars.
Still debated
Why Mohism vanished so completely after China's unification is debated: suppression, absorption into other schools, or loss of patrons.
Connections (3)
▸The Hundred Schools of Thought included Mozi and Mohism: impartial careWell documented
The connection
Mozi founded the first organized rival to Confucianism. His followers formed a disciplined group under a leader (juzi), debated other schools, and developed early Chinese logic. For two centuries Confucians and Mohists were described as the two leading schools.
When and how
China, from the late 5th to the 3rd century BC, probably beginning in or near the state of Lu.
How we know
The Han Feizi (3rd century BC) calls Confucianism and Mohism the most prominent teachings of the age; the Mozi itself survives.
Debates and open questions
Mozi's birthplace and social class are uncertain; some argue he was a craftsman, and one theory reads his name as a convict's tattoo.
▸Mozi and Mohism: impartial care criticized the rituals of Confucius (Kongzi)Well documented
The connection
Mozi attacked Confucian rituals as wasteful: elaborate funerals and three years of mourning drained families and halted work, and court music consumed labor and grain while feeding no one. He also rejected Confucian graded love, which put family first, in favor of impartial care.
When and how
China, late 5th century BC, a few generations after Confucius, aimed at the Confucians (Ru) of his day.
How we know
The Mozi contains chapters titled 'Moderation in Funerals', 'Against Music' and 'Against the Confucians'.
Debates and open questions
The later Huainanzi says Mozi first trained as a Confucian before breaking away; that claim is unconfirmed.
▸Mozi and Mohism: impartial care anticipated the consequentialism of Utilitarianism: the greatest happiness principleDebated
The connection
Mozi judged every practice by whether it brought benefit (li 利, not the ritual li 禮): feeding the poor, growing the population, keeping order. He urged impartial care (jian ai 兼愛) and condemned lavish funerals and aggressive war as waste. Bentham's test, total happiness counted impartially, echoes this over two thousand years later, without any contact.
When and how
Warring States China, 5th–4th century BC, in the book Mozi; Bentham's parallel came in London in 1789. Modern scholars drew the comparison.
How sure are we?
Only by comparing texts; there was no historical link. Mohist writings were barely read even in China for two millennia and were unknown to Bentham.
Debates and open questions
Whether Mozi was a consequentialist at all; he measured wealth, population and order rather than happiness, and also appealed to Heaven's will (tian zhi 天志).