Mozi (book)

The Mozi (Chinese: 墨子), also called the Mojing (Chinese: 墨經) or the Mohist canon, is an ancient Chinese text from the Warring States period (476–221 BC). It shares the ideas of Mohism, a way of thinking started by a person named Mozi. This book talks about important ideas like treating everyone fairly, choosing leaders based on how well they do their jobs, helping the economy grow, and not spending too much on showy things. The words in the book are simple and easy to understand.

The book has many parts. There are 31 chapters that explain the main ideas of Mohism. Some chapters are very old and talk about logic, which means they help us understand how to think clearly and make good arguments. There are also stories about Mozi, the people who followed his ideas, and information about how to build strong defenses and use tools for protection. These parts give us a look at how people lived and fought long ago in China.

Even though the Mohist school of thinking didn’t stay popular after the 3rd century BC, the Mozi book is still important today. Sadly, many parts of the original book were lost over time. Out of the 71 chapters that were first written, 18 are missing, and some others are hard to read because pieces are missing. Still, the book helps us learn about ancient Chinese thoughts and ways of life.

Authorship

Main article: Mozi

The Mozi and the school of Mohism are named after Mo Di, called "Mozi" (Mandarin Chinese: Mòzǐ 墨子), meaning "Master Mo". Mozi lived in the 5th century BC. Not much is known about him for sure. He may have come from the State of Lu, but some think the State of Song. He traveled among the Warring States to ask rulers to choose peace.

Mozi may have come from a simple family. Some parts of the book suggest he might have been a skilled worker, like a carpenter. Scholars say the early chapters of the Mozi share big ideas such as "Rejecting Fatalism", "Heaven's Will", and "Universal Love". Later parts of the book talk about logic, showing that Mozi liked clear thinking and understanding.

Content

The Mozi is an ancient Chinese book with 71 chapters, but many have been lost or damaged. It has six main parts.

The first part, chapters 1–7, has essays and talks added later that don’t fit with the rest of the book.

The second part, chapters 8–37, is the main part of the book. It explains the main ideas of Mozi’s philosophy. The third part, chapters 38–39, talks about ideas that are different from Confucianism. The fourth part, chapters 40–45, is called the "Dialectical Chapters." It talks about logic, epistemology, ethics, geometry, optics, and mechanics. These parts are hard to understand because the text is damaged. The fifth part, chapters 46–51, shares stories about Mozi and his followers. The last part, chapters 52–71, is the "Military Chapters." It gives advice on defending cities and is also damaged.

Selected translations

Translating the Mozi has been hard because some parts of the book are damaged. The first translation into a Western language was done by Alfred Forke in German in 1922, but it had many mistakes. Good translations of these parts only came out in the late 1900s.

Some important translations include:

• Burton Watson (1963), Mo Tzu: Basic Writings
• A. C. Graham (1978), Later Mohist Logic, Ethics, and Science
• Ian Johnston (2010), The Mozi: A Complete Translation
• Chris Fraser (2020), The Essential Mòzǐ: Ethical, Political, and Dialectical Writings

There are also many translations of the Mozi in modern Chinese and Japanese.