The Sage of War Prevention

In the turbulent Warring States period of ancient China, when feudal lords clashed in endless conflicts and common people suffered the devastating consequences of perpetual warfare, one philosopher traveled between states advocating an radical idea: that war itself represented the ultimate failure of human civilization. This was Mozi, founder of Mohism, whose practical philosophy emphasized universal love, mutual benefit, and the preservation of life through rational governance. The collection of dialogues known as “Lu Wen” preserves crucial conversations between Mozi and various rulers, particularly those of the Lu state, capturing not only his core teachings but the very personality of this remarkable thinker who walked from court to court trying to prevent bloodshed through reason alone.

Historical Context: China’s Age of Conflict

The era in which Mozi lived represented one of the most violent chapters in human history. The Zhou dynasty’s central authority had collapsed, leaving seven major states and numerous smaller ones in constant competition. Warfare had evolved from aristocratic rituals to total war involving massive conscript armies, with battles regularly claiming tens of thousands of lives. States measured their strength not by the welfare of their people but by their capacity to conquer neighbors and absorb their territories.

Into this world of realpolitik stepped Mozi and his followers, who formed highly organized communities dedicated to implementing their master’s teachings. Unlike Confucians who sought to reform society through ritual and moral example, Mohists took a more pragmatic approach, developing expertise in defensive warfare and logical argumentation. They became known as skilled engineers who could design fortifications, while simultaneously serving as diplomats who could dissuade rulers from launching aggressive campaigns.

Core Principles: The Ten Mohist Doctrines

Throughout the dialogues with rulers, Mozi consistently returns to what scholars would later identify as his ten fundamental doctrines. These include exalting the worthy .

What makes the dialogues remarkable is how Mozi adapts these principles to specific political contexts. When speaking with military commanders, he emphasizes the practical costs of warfare. When addressing rulers concerned about supernatural consequences, he frames arguments in terms of heaven’s displeasure. His approach is always pragmatic rather than dogmatic, designed to achieve specific ethical outcomes rather than score philosophical points.

The Art of Dissuasion: Conversations with Rulers

The dialogues reveal Mozi as a master rhetorician who employs various persuasive techniques depending on his audience. With the Duke of Lu, who fears an invasion from the powerful state of Qi, Mozi offers practical political advice alongside moral instruction. He suggests that the duke prepare financially, use humble diplomacy with neighboring states, and most importantly, focus on governing benevolently to earn heaven’s favor and his people’s loyalty. The implication is clear: a well-governed state respected by its neighbors is less likely to be attacked.

Perhaps the most famous exchange occurs with the King of Qi, where Mozi employs a brilliant analogy using a sword. He asks whether a blade that cleanly severs heads should be considered excellent. When the king agrees, Mozi then asks who bears the misfortune for such deadly efficiency. The king recognizes that while the sword may be well-made, the user bears moral responsibility. Mozi then applies this to warfare: when states conquer others and slaughter populations, who bears the responsibility? The king, after reflection, acknowledges that he would. This simple but powerful analogy demonstrates Mozi’s ability to lead rulers to ethical conclusions through their own reasoning.

Psychological Insight: The Character of a Philosopher

Beyond the philosophical content, the dialogues reveal fascinating aspects of Mozi’s character. When offered five hundred li of territory by the King of Yue—an enormous temptation for any traveling scholar—Mozi responds with principled refusal, demonstrating his immunity to corruption and commitment to his ideals. Another exchange with Peng Qingsheng shows Mozi’s confidence in human agency against fatalistic thinking, revealing his belief that through effort and wisdom, humans can shape their destiny.

These personal glimpses show us not just a philosopher but a man of extraordinary integrity and conviction. While other thinkers of his era sought comfortable positions as advisors, Mozi traveled constantly, often in danger, to advocate for peace. His followers apparently lived simply, practiced what they preached, and were willing to defend weaker states against aggression—not for pay but on principle.

The Logic of Peace: Strategic Arguments Against War

Mozi’s arguments against warfare operate on multiple levels simultaneously. He appeals to rulers’ self-interest by demonstrating how military aggression typically backfires. In his conversation with the Qi general Xiang Ziniu, he cites historical examples of powerful states that overextended themselves through conquests only to collapse when attacked by a coalition of enemies they had created. The pattern is clear: aggression creates resentment, resentment creates alliances against the aggressor, and eventually the mighty fall.

He also appeals to economic rationality, pointing out the enormous costs of raising armies, equipping soldiers, and supplying campaigns—resources that could otherwise improve the lives of people. Unlike some moralists who simply declare war wrong, Mozi calculates its impracticality, showing rulers that even successful wars often weaken rather than strengthen their states.

Most innovatively, Mozi develops what we might call a theory of moral reciprocity in international relations. He asks the ruler of Lu Yangwen whether he would tolerate similar violence within his own domain—if major cities attacked minor ones or great families plundered smaller ones. When the ruler says he would punish such actions severely, Mozi draws the analogy to the heavenly realm, suggesting that just as the ruler maintains order within his borders, heaven expects order between states. This represents an early form of what would later be called just war theory, though Mozi’s emphasis is always on preventing conflict rather than regulating it.

Cultural Impact: Mohism and Chinese Thought

Although Mohism eventually declined as an independent school, its influence permeated Chinese thought in profound ways. The dialogues demonstrate early Chinese logical argumentation at its most sophisticated, with careful definitions, analogical reasoning, and empirical evidence. Mohists developed China’s first systematic epistemology and logic, which although later overshadowed by Confucianism, established important philosophical precedents.

The emphasis on universal love challenged the graded, relationship-specific ethics of Confucianism, proposing a more radical form of moral equality. While Confucius emphasized different obligations to family, friends, and rulers, Mozi argued for equal concern for all humans—a revolutionary idea in a hierarchical society. Although the Confucian model ultimately prevailed in Chinese culture, Mohist ideas about impartial care resurfaced periodically, particularly in Buddhist teachings about compassion.

Mohists also made crucial contributions to the development of scientific thinking in China. Their interest in defensive warfare led to engineering innovations, while their philosophical methods emphasized empirical verification and logical consistency. The dialogues show Mozi frequently appealing to historical examples and observable consequences rather than tradition or authority alone.

Legacy and Modern Relevance

Today, Mozi’s dialogues speak with surprising immediacy to contemporary concerns about conflict resolution, ethical leadership, and international relations. His method of persuasion—finding common ground with powerful figures and leading them to ethical conclusions through rational argument—offers a model for modern diplomacy. In an age of renewed great power competition, his warnings about the self-defeating nature of aggression remain disturbingly relevant.

The psychological insights revealed in these conversations—how leaders rationalize destructive policies, how temptations of power corrupt judgment, how analogies can break through defensive thinking—anticipate modern studies of political psychology. Mozi understood that changing policy required changing how rulers perceived their self-interest, not just delivering moral lectures.

Perhaps most importantly, Mozi represents an alternative tradition in Chinese thought that valued peace not as weakness but as the highest form of strategic wisdom. In contemporary discussions about China’s rise, commentators often reference the Confucian tradition or Legalist realpolitik, but Mozi offers a different model: a strong state that exercises restraint, leads through moral example, and recognizes that true security comes from mutual benefit rather than domination.

The Enduring Voice of Reason

The dialogues between Mozi and the rulers of his time transcend their historical context to address perennial questions of power, ethics, and human conflict. They show us a philosopher who believed that reason could prevail over violence, that moral arguments could influence even the most powerful, and that the relentless pursuit of peace represented humanity’s highest calling. In an world still plagued by warfare and the threat of catastrophic conflict, Mozi’s voice—practical, principled, and profoundly humane—remains as necessary as ever.

His approach combined moral clarity with psychological insight, philosophical rigor with practical politics. He understood that to prevent war, one must understand why rulers start them—and speak to those motivations in terms they could understand. The dialogues thus stand not only as historical documents but as masterclasses in ethical persuasion, reminding us that changing the world requires both unwavering principles and flexible methods. Twenty-four centuries later, as nations still struggle to resolve conflicts without violence, we would do well to listen to this ancient sage who walked between warring states, armed only with reason and the courage of his convictions.