Confucius

See also Wikipedia's article about "Confucius".

Confucius was a Chinese philosopher, and one of the few non-Western Major Cultures thinkers who can claim the similar world historical importance as the Western Lit Hum/CC pantheon (Plato, Aristotle, Kant, Marx, Freud, etc.)

Confucius is actually a Latinisation concocted by a Jesuit mission led by Matteo Ricci which visited China in the 16th century. His actual name, in modern Mandarin, is pronounced "Kong Fu Zi", which literally translates to "Kong, the Venerable Old Sage".

Confucius lived around the 5th century B.C. in the state of Lu, which was one of the patchwork kingdoms that sprung up following the dissolution of the Zhou dynasty. He initially sought appointment as a governmental official, but was never terribly successful at that, so instead he traveled around, offering advice and counsel, and winning adherents and disciples.

There is disputation as to what Confucius actually wrote. The Analects, the work most closely associated with Confucius, is actually a collection of his comments and sayings collected by his disciples. He probably was the editor and compiler of the Classic of Songs, and he probably had a hand in the Spring and Autumn Annals as well. He most certainly wrote "The Great Learning". Nobody really knows.

The span of his influence is matched only by the diversity thereof. By the time of the Qin dynasty (220 B.C.), the Legalist philosopher Han Fei could already complain that there were eight competing Confucian schools of thought. From his death until the Cultural Revolution and arguably beyond, every Chinese political leader of note has, consciously or not, cast himself either as a Confucian or opposed to Confucianism. The Han emperor Wu Di ordered a compilation and state-sanctioned canonisation of Confucian ideology into the Discourses of the White Tiger Hall, where they stayed put until the advent of Neo-Confucianism under Zhu Xi in the Song Dynasty, almost a thousand years later.

Basic precepts of Confucian philosophy

• Religious beliefs such as reincarnation or the existence of god(s) are beyond human power to verify. However, the practice of religious rites are sacred and to be upheld in their own right. Example: if a son serves meals to his dead parents, he has no way of knowing if his parents' spirits are able to receive those meals, but it imbues in him a sense of responsibility and piety.
• Relationships are hierarchical. Example: if a father steals a sheep, the son's duty is to not report him to the authorities, as his relationship with his father is above his relationship with the state. That being said, it is his duty to remonstrate with his father and make it clear that stealing is wrong.
• The loyal subordinate is expected to remonstrate when his superior is wrong. See above.
• Human life and human existence is to be prized above material things.
• Modesty is preferred to ostentatiousness.
• Virtue cannot be imposed from without; it can only be practised and cultivated from within.
• The root of self-cultivation is education, or "the extension of knowledge to all boundaries" through the "investigation of things".
• Moderation is key.
• Confucius himself invented nothing and offered no new ideologies. He was merely a transmitter of ancient wisdom dating from the time of the semi-mythical sage-kings.
• Man does not exist by himself, but rather as an extension of his ancestors and forebears.

Excerpts from the Analects

• On the basic precepts of Confucianism: "The master said 'Is it not a pleasure, having learned something, to practise it at due intervals? Is it not a delight when friends come to visit from afar? Is it not gentlemanly to not take offence when others fail to appreciate one's abilities?'"
• On the supreme worth of human life: "When the master returned from his trip, he saw that the stables had burned down. 'Was anyone hurt?" he asked. He did not inquire into the horses."
• On public service: "A disciple asked, 'Why do you not enter public service?' The master replied, 'I am a teacher. Is not the propagation of virtue and the transmission of ancient wisdom not a form of public service?'"
• On booze: "Only with wine do I not set a limit."
• On consistency: "He who governs by virtue can be likened to the northern star, around which all others revolve and pay tribute thereunto."