Confucius's Teaching and Philosophy pdf

Confucius’s Philosophy and Teaching By- Aye Kein Kham Introduction Confucius (K’ung-fu-Tze, Kong Fuzi, “Master Kong”, l. 551-479 BCE) was a Chinese philosopher of the spring and Autumn Period (c. 772-476 BCE) was and he was the one founded Confucianism. Confucianism is often characterized as a system of social, ethical and political philosophy even sometimes characterized as are religion. The philosophy is based on the belief that human being are essential good that they engage in immoral behavior through lack of a strong moral standard. Almost of Chinese unknown the word “Confucianism”, because in China the school is referred to as “ru jia 儒家” – the school of ru, and “ru” doesn’t refer to Confucius, but to the practices and the way of life most distinctively represented by him. There is neither dependency on deity worship nor priesthood in Confucianism, and Confucius himself is considered as a model human being rather than a god. Today Confucius is widely considered one of the most influential teachers in Chinese history. The philosophies of Confucius are still followed by many people like who living in China today and has influenced thinking in Japan, Korea and Vietnam either. Education is the foundation for the entire political, social, economic and cultural life of the nation. The perfection of man depends on the ideal moral and social order, which is the ultimate goal of education. As Governing and educating have almost undifferentiated functions, they were to be so integrated. Government was by education rather than by strict and corrective legal processes. . Indeed, the teaching of jen would be the one consistently defining characteristic of the tradition that can prove that across the centuries of the history of Confucianism. Jen has always played a central part, whenever and whatever the thought of school and individual Confucian. For Confucius, he served as both a transmitter and a creator in terms of ritual. He made importantly the details of ancient rites, and a critically element of Confucian understanding of ritual as well. Biography of Confucius

Confucius, also called Kong Qui or K’ung Fu-tzu, was a Chinese philosopher, teacher and political figure. He was born probably in 551 B.C. in present-day Qufu, Shandong Province, China. The childhood of Confucius is known not so popular. His father was a soldier named Kong and he died when Confucius was three years old. Confucius’s childhood was spent by his mother. Confucius was an ancestor of a family of the royal house of Shang, the dynasty (a family of rulers) that ruled China prior to the Chou, and a dynasty considered which ruled China from around 1122 B.C.E. to 221 B.C.E Philosophy of Confucius During the sixth century B.C., competing Chinese states undermined the authority of the Chou Empire, which had held supreme rule for over 500 years. Traditional Chinese principles began to deteriorate, resulting in a period of moral decline. Confucius recognized an opportunity — and an obligation — to reinforce the societal values of compassion and tradition. Confucius viewed himself as a “transmitter” rather than a creator. On account of his taught, the wisdom that he taught was already entailed in the ancient traditional rituals, the history, music, poetry, and the limited written works. People believed that Confucius have edited some of the most basic Chinese classic books, such as the Book of Rites , the Book of History , the Classics of Odes , the Classics of Music , and the Classics of Changes .According to these traditional works and his teaching are inseparable. Actually Confucius is an innovative and even revolutionary thinker of the time. All these works, his own major teachings, including the book known as Lunyu 論語 (the Analects) recorded and collected by his students and became the most sacred canon of all in traditional China. Confucius has a strong sense of mission and ambition to bring the world into a harmonious order; he also spent a considerable amount of his life traveling around, trying to implement his humanistic ideas in political affairs. The Golden Rule Confucius’ social philosophy was based primarily on the principle of \"ren\" or \"loving others\" while exercising self-discipline. He believed that ren could be put into action using the Golden Rule, \"What you do not wish for yourself, do not do to others.\" (Lunyu 12.2, 6.30). The Golden Rule is the principle of treating other people as you want to be treated. There is some that is found in most religions and cultures. An ethic of reciprocity in some religions can consider it,

even different religions treat it differently. The principle may appear as a positive or negative injunction governing conduct: Treat others as you would like others to treat you (positive or directive form) Do not treat others in ways that you would not like to be treated (negative or prohibitive form) What you wish upon others, you wish upon yourself (empathetic or responsive form) Philosophy on Politics The political beliefs of Confucius were likewise based on the concept of self-discipline. He believed that a leader needed to exercise self-discipline in order to remain humble and treat his followers with compassion. In doing so, leaders would lead by positive example. According to Confucius, to follow the law by teaching them virtue and the unifying force of ritual propriety, leaders could motivate their subjects. The political participation that was Confucius thought would unleash energies that would contribute to collective welfare. China's problem in modernizing stemmed from the systematic overconcentration of power; they did not put forward the autonomy ground for rights and some philosophers following Liang's lead argued about that. Political authority and legitimacy do not for Confucianism, in the last analysis, rest on the agreement of the people or make possible widespread participation in the election of leaders on democratic institutions or policies and laws in the formulation. Sooner, they rest on the moral values of social harmony, ren, and more particular ideals of social relationship such as filial piety. Thus, democratic institutions and the rights they embody might have instrumental value for the promotion of these values, the reasons of cited earlier. Therefore, some thinkers who are deeply supported to Confucian values might hold that Confucian meritocracy and democratic institutions could appropriately be combined in contemporary. One possibility for combination is to have the members of one house selected on the basis of their qualifications for office and the members of the other house democratically elected in free and fair elections as a two-house legislature. This idea is for the “democratic” house to deliver the kind of accountability that is the hoped-for effect of being elected to office and for the “meritocratic” house to contribute the kind of good judgment that is often compromised when one needs to think about getting elected or re-elected. Viable democracies in

complex societies need some element of meritocracy, and on the other side, truly meritocratic elites will often see the need to set up channels of communication with and some degree of accountability to those whose welfare they are charged with protecting and promoting. The most important virtue for Confucius, many other virtues is also essential to the cultivation of a gentleman who is benevolence and a benevolent leader. Confucius thinks that the following political virtues are indispensable: trustworthiness, reverence, generosity, frugality, honesty, decisiveness, magnanimity, resoluteness, thoughtfulness, forgiveness, and so on for those who want to serve in government. The providing of Confucianism is that being a virtuous leader can influence the behaviors of his subjects by making himself as an example. “When the prince is benevolent, everyone else is benevolent; when the prince is righteous, everyone else is righteous,” says Mencius, his people follow automatically, Confucianism holds that a good political leader, and governance becomes a matter of behaving oneself if the people are morally affected by the leader's virtuous deeds. The leaders do not need much except demonstrate their own virtues. Power Transferring The question of how to transfer political power from one ruler to the next must be answered by every political. Confucianism has two options, according to this tough issue, abdication as the ideal system and hereditary increasing as the practical. Emperors Yao and Shun were admired by Confucius in the time of the legendary system of abdication. It is said that Emperor Yao passed political power to Shun instead of his own son, and Emperor Shun transferred power to Yu when he became old. The benevolent king, both Yao and Shun who worked hard for the people and they never considered the kingdom their property, this’s the reason that Confucius repeatedly eulogizes them in the Analects and it is the most desirable and practical system for power transition. Whether the eldest son is excellent or not, a monarch inherits the monarchical power. There are both advantage and disadvantages here, the system is that it secures political stability and the reverence for the senior as an advantage, but mediocrity of rule for most of the time and injustice when the kings happen to be tyrannical as disadvantages. On Education Confucius’ philosophy of education focused on the \"Six Arts\": archery, calligraphy, computation, music, chariot-driving and ritual. To Confucius, the main objective of being an educator was to

teach people to live with integrity. Through his teachings, he strove to resurrect the traditional values of benevolence, propriety and ritual in Chinese society. The revealing that Confucius was perhaps the only thinker during the period of turmoil is the key concepts underlying the educational ideas of Confucius. Then human infliction of late Chou who had turned to positive and optimistic means to achieve human happiness, and in doing so, for Chinese education, his system of humanistic thought which proved to be of tremendous influence was found. Man faith motivate Confucius' educational philosophy, in comparison, was nothing else than humanism. The welfare, happiness and peace of the people were every branch of human knowledge and every sort of human activity that was a mean to an end and education was to achieve that end. On the love of man and knowledge of mankind centered Confucius humanistic education. While the knowledge of man was the objective of all knowledge, the love of man also consisted in understanding man. Confucius' humanism in education was both on the personal and the social level, ultimately uniting the two. In the concept of jen which formed, together with li, the greater concept of tao, this unity between the personal and the social was embodied. Education as an Individual Process Confucius' humanistic education became a process through which man realizes his basic characteristic value and dignity as an individual human being, on the personal level, and seeks to arrive at a state of harmony with humanity and nature. Jen and Li are realized in the product of the complete man or chun tze. He is the one who can best fulfill the duty of man, which is to think and act according to the way and who possesses peace of mind, magnificent autonomy and independence of character. Then, education is to educate, not to train men, “both to develop and cultivate mentally or morally, to expand, strengthen and discipline”. Chun tze, product of education, has respect for the settled order, accordance to moral duty and respect for intellectual eminence at the development of human nature and perfection of human character. His life functions within daily human relationship, yet transcends life's normal functions. Education as a Social Process

Confucius' humanism in education demonstrates itself distinctly in jen on the social level, the principle of mutual. The relation between man and man is jen, bound by the love of humanity and humanity itself that is man's nature. The quality of humaneness cultivated to achieve universal tranquility, peace and harmony, the ideal moral order of which Confucius conceived is call Jen. To enlighten and to socialize men, Confucius felt the need for some degree of universal education and he was the first man in the history of China who popularized education. From his humanistic belief, the stemmed is all men are educable. The educability of man is based on his conviction that human nature has a propensity for goodness and the evil was mostly wrought by practice and bad environment. Only education could provide the proper moral environment whereby men can perfect their nature. Moreover, Confucius recognizing the fact that men are backing with more or less the same qualities regardless of birth and all men are basically equal. Although men was convinced that education should not be the privilege of those of noble birth, the right of all those who desired it. This is the democratic nature of Confucius' education. Admittedly, as the road of human perfection is long and slow process, education becomes a life- long process of self-cultivation too. Confucius also realized that, very little during his lifetime that could be achieved toward attaining this goal. Confucius' realized that he lacked the authority to put his ideas into action on the top of that. Therefore he appealed to a higher authority by making education the first and foremost duty of the head of state. This was another aspect of education as a sociopolitical process therefore education became intertwined with government and education became a great social force to be controlled and directed by government. Another aspect of Confucian education is to serve a significant and distinct political end was education that it had a very practical yet idealistic nature. To train men of good qualities to bring about a different and better kind of government was the immediate goal of education. A truly educated man was not simply trained in some technique or practical expertise but would be liberally educated. Confucius views education as a vehicle to bring about the perfect society. Confucius wanted to make certain that the cultural influences of a society must be of a moral nature and to make sure that the society was composed of living examples of men who could provide the necessary moral environment. To become a cooperative member of a harmonious and peaceful society, it serves to achieve one thing to educate man. Teaching of Confucius

Confucius, Mencius, and Hsün Tzu represented principally classical Confucian ideas are the products of a group of early Confucians. Their teachings separately rather than considering , it is possible to talk Confucian Teachings in general terms about early Confucian thought, all Confucians shared largely idea that focusing on specific. The teachings that was important include jen, or “humaneness;” i, or “righteousness;” li, or “propriety/ritual;” and hsing, or “human nature” as well. Hsiao, or “filial piety,” in the Confucian tradition is also a vital concept that is central for young people growing up. The ultimate goal of the moral cultivation of the individual, the idea that becoming a chün tzu was come to characterize by these teaching. The understanding of the nature of the traits that compose moral character also is to understand the character of this noble person. Humaneness The single most important teaching of Confucianism is the most commonly mentioned Jen (humaneness) of Confucian virtues. In part reflecting the broad nature of the term, Confucian writings often are depicted as a very general virtue and have been translated in a wide variety of way, then the complexity of trying to be associated with the concept into another language. We can also see “Jen” translated as “goodness, human-heartedness, compassion, humanity, love, kindness and humaneness” the last that will be used. What does the jen actually mean is free- following two parts, each a meaningful element which one part means “person” and the other part signifies the number “2.” So, the word itself literally means something like “person ‘two- ed’ ” or “person doubled.” This definition suggests the relation of one person to another and the proper relation between two individuals. Here, jen begins to refer to the moral relation of one to another, and thus, a sense of humaneness. This also is the most center traditional teaching and it defines the relationship between people that respects each other with the moral integrity of the individual. Undoubtedly, there is two specific virtues are mentioned ways to define jen. These are the virtues of chung or “conscientiousness,” and shu, which means “sympathy” or “empathy.” These words mean a richer, deeper meaning for jen. Otherwise, jen refers that a person expresses conscientiousness toward others, a sense of being concerned about people’s well-being, then acts toward others with taking care and consideration. At the same time, jen also has a level of sympathy, or empathy—the capacity to share in the feelings of others and to demonstrate one’s

own concern for any unpleasant that might befall them. This richer meaning is captured in part by the translations of jen as “humaneness” or “compassion,” as opposed to simpler definitions like “goodness” or “love.” Mencius also mentions the characteristic of human beings, whose basic nature is goodness, not to be able to bear to see the suffering of another person. It is not mean that some people are not capable of hurting others. Rather, it suggests that human nature has the ability to demonstrate goodness and it can be turned to evil, goodness is the true state of human nature, goodness describe in terms of the virtue of jen. It is not easy to overestimate the importance of this virtue or teaching to the Confucian tradition as completely Righteousness The word of “righteousness” usually translated to I, and it can also be translated as something like “conscience.” It refers being able to describe between right and wrong; it is almost an inner judge with our own. In this sense, the word conscience applies very well to the idea of I. To say that someone act on the basis of an inner sense of right and wrong is to say that he or she has a conscience. Following popular opinion alone does not necessarily in the difference between right and wrong. In most cases when someone is described as acting based on conscience, it means that he or she uses a higher sense of making the decision of right and wrong. When Confucians talk righteousness or conscience, they often defined it by saying what it is not. In this case, righteousness or conscience is the saying of opposite of li, or “profit,” and yung, “utility.” Two reasons that a person might consider doing something were described by profit and utility. Someone might say, “If I take a certain action, I will profit;” or, he might say that the action will be useful to him, or to family or friends. These are the wrong motivations to use when judging if an action should be carried out in the view of Confucius. For Confucius and his followers, the teaching proved difficult. They were challenging to persuade the rulers of their day to adopt their beliefs. For political leaders, teachings that stressed doing only what was morally right with no thought of utility or profit were of little interest. For this, the Confucians met with little success in their challenges to turn the rulers of their day toward their line of thought.

Rites or Propriety A teaching found throughout the writings of the ancient sages is “Li” that translated as “rites” or “propriety”, particularly the several writings that make up the Classic or Book of Rites. The ritual performance dominates the sage rulers much of the world represented in the Chinese Classics. At one level, ritual was a way for the individual to show respect to Heaven itself for the organization of all things and at another level, the ritual was itself the way in which moral order was maintained. A particular importance in preserving the ritual culture that represented China at the time of the sage rulers were found by the Confucians as the transmitters of the ancient writings. Consequently, Confucian writings were paid much attention to the importance of the ancient rituals. The most important element in ritual as its accuracy might very well have been seen by the ancient culture that the Confucians sought to preserve and, in fact, in a ritual performance rendered the act ineffective might have concluded that any mistake. Accurate performance was important, but not the most critical element from the Confucian perspective. The understanding the larger moral implications of ritual performance is the feeling of the ritual that has experience. There is nothing to the ritual except a physical performance without this broader understanding. This kind of performance might be quite enough for some but not effective, it is the inner feelings that have no representing the real meaning for a Confucian. The meaning of ritual for the Confucian was provided as a wide sense by this extended sense of inner feelings. However in a real sense, propriety is, by definition, acting ritually. This connection is a demonstration of the degree for the Confucians and it is the moral structure in the world we live. Human Nature and Learning Confucians placed major significance with the ideal of the noble person on the ability of each individual to learn to become moral. At the development of the kind of teachings described to intend self-cultivation as humaneness, righteousness, and ritual and propriety. There are two qualities were inbuilt in the individual or were to be gotten from outside that was the question arose in the Confucian tradition. The Confucians faith that the sages of the distance past; there are no people doubted the sages’ ability to represent these virtues in their highest form. Whether all people shared the same nature as the sages was the question. For this question of human nature, Confucius did not address and he left this issue to be debated by the major teachers who

followed him. Essentially, the issue was two positions and developed on the question which one from Mencius and which one from Hsün Tzu. Hsün Tzu was the most known interpreter of Confucius in the early days of Confucianism. For Mencius, even though later, he was virtually unknown to his own generation, after the descent of Neo-Confucianism, he was recognized as the orthodox interpreter of Confucius. Mencius and Hsün Tzu appear to have had very different interpretations on the question of human nature. Mencius described human nature was originally good and this does not mean that there are not evil people, but he saw evil as a violation of the original good. Mencius means this human nature in terms of jen, I, li, and chih, or “wisdom.” Mencius pointed that human responsibility is with developing the inner moral nature since each person is born. Learning, though hard, was focused on manifesting essentially more fully what was already inherent in human nature. For Hsün Tzu, human nature was inadequate without thorough learning and education. He was the only Confucian philosopher to take this position and suggested that human nature in the raw was evil. Hsün Tzu represents a major develop within Confucian thought in the tradition although this suggestion was never taken very seriously. Human nature need of diligent effort in education under the very strict models of the sages of ordinary was believed. Though Mencius came to influence Confucian view, Hsün Tzu played a critical role in emphasizing the Confucian tradition’s belief in the importance of education in the process of the transformation of a person into a moral individual. Conclusion The teaching of jen is taken as a description is a popular passage in the Analects of Confucius. It reads simply: “Do not do to others what you would not have them do to you.” It is essentially the Golden Rule of the Christian Bible that has been often commented. It mentions that one must consider the others in every action and avoid doing something that he or she would not want done in return. This passage is a description of humaneness or goodness, and is a method of showing what should be the ideal moral relation between one person and another. The term li originally meant “ritual,” “rite,” or even “sacrifice.” For the word a symbol of a sacrificial vessel being presented to a spirit was the Chinese character. Confucius taught and emphasized the important of “correct behaviors” art known as Li. Moral teaching ethical humanism values and believed sociality should be like a family with everyone having Role & responsibilities. A good government is a humane government and the leader should guide by moral example. Factors of

government include confidence of people in ruler. The ethical thought in Confucians is inseparable from its virtuous guidance and embracement of Virtue Ethics. Political speaking: it is fair to say that Confucians search for political order but its attainments should be through moral principle than hard power and force. References Ni.P, (2014). The Philosophy of Confucius. Grand Valley State University, Michigan, USA Wan.H, (1980). The Educational Thought of Confucius. Loyola University Chicago Wong. D,(Ed) Klosko. G(2011). Confucian Political Philosophy. The oxford Handbook of the History of Political Philosophy Jiang. Yi-Huah, (2018). Confucian Political Theory in Contemporary China. Department of Public Policy, City University of Hong Kong .https://is.cuni.cz/studium/predmety/index.php?do=download&did=161464&kod=JPM323 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/316100503_The_Philosophy_of_Confucius https://www.notablebiographies.com/Co-Da/Confucius.html#ixzz6WcDlkeaS https://newprairiepress.org/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2941&context=aerc https://ecommons.luc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2874&context=luc_diss