Mencius was born in Zhou State (present Zhoucheng of Shangdong Province) during the Warring States Period. His father died when he was quite young, so he lived with his mother. Living close to a cemetery when he was a kid, Mencius often staged the rites which he saw in funeral processions or burial services for amusement. Seeing about this, Mother Meng decided that the place was no good for her son's education, so they moved their house.

Later, they moved to a place neighboring a boisterous street. Mencius, seeing the merchants and vendors hawking their goods, began to imitate their behavior. "This is not the right place to raise my son either," sighed his mother.

In the end, they moved next to a school. Inspired by what he saw and heard, Mencius naturally started to imitate the courtesy behavior and study habits of the students. Observing the change of Mencius, Mother Meng decided not to move again and settled down at this place.