More than three generations are virtuous, but less than three generations are not. What does it mean?

The phrase "three generations" refers to the three generations of Yao, Shun and Yu. The meaning of this saying is that the rulers of Yao, Shun and Yu and their predecessors had the virtues of sages, so the world was well governed; but after the three generations, the virtues were lost, and there was a chaotic situation in which the world was in a state of lawlessness.

This quote is from Confucius, who, during the Warring States period, tried to preach to the lords, but they were all so eager to attack and kill that no one listened to him, and he was unwilling to change the morality of Yao and Shun, so all the rulers he met could not be in harmony with him.

Expanded Information

Confucius constructed a complete ideological system of the "Way of Virtue": at the individual level, he advocated the virtues and behaviors of benevolence and propriety. It is a complete system of thought based on the theory of the goodness of nature, with the establishment of the human pole (the "Three Poles of the Way") as the ultimate goal, and with the methodology of integrating humanism with the way of heaven and the way of the earth, and of making humanism mediocre and timely.

Confucius's ren said, embodies the spirit of humanism. Confucius's doctrine of propriety embodies the spirit of propriety, i.e., order and system in the modern sense of the word. Humanitarianism, which is the eternal theme of mankind, is applicable to any society, any era, and any government, while order and institutional society is the basic requirement for the establishment of a civilized human society. This humanitarianism and spirit of order of Confucius is the essence of ancient Chinese socio-political thought.