Understanding Confucius: Key Concepts and Philosophical Ideals
Confucius, born during the Zhou Dynasty, emphasized virtue, social reform, and humanism in his teachings. He focused on values like Ren (human-heartedness) and key concepts such as De (virtue) and Li (propriety). By studying human practices, he sought to achieve goodness and harmony. Explore the philosophical legacy of Confucius and his profound impact on Asian philosophy.
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Asian Philosophy AP CHAPTER 16
Kong Zhongni is Confucius Born 551 BCE during the Zhou Dynasty He was part of a scholarly family and studied classics and ancient texts. He lived during the time period of warring factions between tribes. He came to be known as The Great Sage and Teacher.
On Virtue and Social Reform Confucius studied the work of other great sages: Yao, Shun, and Yu seen as embodiments of great virtue. They believed that Heaven had given them their mandate power to rule because of their virtue. But if they lost their virtue, they would also lose their mandate to rule. Thus, a central problem is: How can one maintain virtue? Because of Confucius s experiences with administrative and political institutions, he came to see the need for social reform. His question was: how can social reform be brought about?
Three Accounts of Value Humanism = the ultimate source of value is to be found in humans. Naturalism = the ultimate source of value is to be found in the non-human natural world. The principles for human action are to be found through observing how nature works. Supernaturalism = a being or power that is not human and not part of nature is the source of value. This being or power regulates both nature and humans, as subordinate. Confucius forwards humanism.
Confucius on Humanism Confucius is interested in the question: how can goodness and harmony be achieved? But this question for him requires looking at human practices. Humanism means that the answer to this question is not to be revealed by exploration of nature or something supernatural, such as God. Rather, it is to be found by studying and looking at the best human practices.
Key Philosophical Concepts De = virtue Ren = human goodness Li = propriety Xiao = filiality Yi = rightness.
Ren Ren is what makes humans unique. Ren = human-heartedness Ren as human-heartedness reveals the focus of Confucian thought on the idea that it is the heart rather than the head that is the core of what makes us human. Ren has to do with the ability to love other humans and creatures. Ren is not given a strict definition, since it is contextually dependent.
Ren As a principle of ultimate human action: Wealth and honor are what every man desires. But if they have been obtained in violation of moral principles, they must not be kept. Poverty and humble stations are what every man dislikes. But if they can be avoided only in violation of moral principles, they must not be avoided. If a superior person departs from humanity (ren), how can he fulfill that name? A superior man never abandons humanity (ren) even for the lapse of a single meal. In moments of haste, he acts according to it. In times of difficulty or confusion, he acts according to it. This principle reveals that a true human never departs from the way of ren. It has the consequence that a person would forgo their life rather than depart from or violate humanity. Because ren is what makes us human, to violate it, would mean one has moved beyond being human.
Ren As a principle that guides how we should live: One must develop their own human-heartedness. One must apply their own human-heartedness to others. It requires conscientiousness in the development of one own humanity. It requires altruism understood as placing oneself in another person s position. It holds to the golden rule: do not do to others what you would not want them to do to you.
Li Ren is the ultimate principle of humanity. Li is concerned with the practical guide to action that is found in governing customs, ceremonies, and relationships. Li refers to the ceremonial or ritual means by which ren is realized. Self-mastery is a key component. Self-mastery refers to the self- development that overcomes selfishness, while cultivating the inner qualities of humanity that include sincerity and personal rectitude. What makes li a standard of conduct is that it is in accord with ren.
Li Li is important to Confucius since one that has attained li lives, and he who has lost it dies. Although li is associated with propriety: doing what is appropriate. There are also other meanings that are important. Religion General principle of social order The entire body of social, moral, and religious practices of Confucius Ritual and Ceremony A system of well-defined relationships and definite attitudes towards one another such as: love in parents, filiality in children, respect in younger brothers, friendliness in elder brothers, loyalty among friends, respect for authority among subjects, and benevolence in rulers. It means moral discipline in personal conduct.
Li One notion of li coincides with a set of rules and conventions, requiring strict observation for public activities. Another notion of li refers to a customary code of social behavior. In this sense, li is the common morality. It refers to a set of positive codes concerning what one should do, rather than what one should not do. An extended sense of li refers to anything that is proper in that it conforms to ren. These notions, though distinct, and all used by Confucius, are related. They refer to acts that are public and ceremonial constituting the important rituals of life.
Ren & Li We can think of ren as the seed of humanity present in all human beings and li as what provides the conditions and support needed for this seed to grow and flower.
Xiao Because family is the immediate environment for a child in which she develops there is an emphasis on how the family situation leads to the development of ren. Xiao is the virtue of reverence and respect for family. Xiao requires caring and protecting one s body from harm, since one s body comes from one s parents. Xiao requires providing parents with both physical and emotional care. Xiao requires not disgracing the family names, but rather attempting to bring honor to the family name.
Xiao But Xiao is not simply a family virtue. It is not just about how to act with respect to family. It extends beyond the family. It is also a moral and social virtue. When one learns to love and respect their parents, they can by extension learn to love and respect other family members. By extension slowly from the inner circle of the family outward towards more of humanity one can learn to love and respect others. The beginnings of ren are found in xiao.
Yi Yi is also necessary for developing ren. Yi means rightness. Yi informs us of the right way of acting in a specific situation so that we will be in accord with ren. Yi is both a moral disposition to do what is right and an ability to recognize what is right, an ability that functions like a kind of moral sense or intuition. Yi can be thought of as the character of a person. A person of strong moral character who sees opportunity will always ask: is it right to pursue this opportunity?
Yi Yi is morally right action. Some actions must be performed for the sole reason that they are right. A person ought to respect and obey his or her parents because it is morally right and obligatory to do so, and for no other reason. Other actions may be performed for the sake of something valuable they bring about, such as profit. These are to be contrasted with actions performed according to yi, which are performed only because they are right, and not because of what they produce. A person who acts for the sake of yi, because that action is the right thing to do, is not far from ren. To practice ren is to act out of love and respect for humanity for no other reason than that it is the right, or human, way to act.
Moral Cultivation Ren is a development out of Li, Xiao, and Yi and it leads to a superior person, whose opposite is the morally uncultivated person. Ren as a development out of Li, Xiao, and Yi will lead to a morally cultivated person, and a well-ordered moral society.
Moral Cultivation The right use of words is one method for cultivating basic human virtues. Right use means that the word should correspond to the reality it names. Right use of words applies most appropriately to human actions and relationships. Reciting names is not about describing things correctly. Reciting names is about bringing one s character and actions into agreement with the normative ideals built into the names of fundamental human relationships.
Governing by Virtue Confucius holds that virtue rather than law should be the basis of government. The goal of government is an orderly and peaceful society. The ultimate route to a well-ordered and peaceful society is through cultivation of ren. Since the goal of government is to provide for a orderly and peaceful society, the function of government is to promote ren. Government for Confucius comes through the creation of a moral community rather than through political statecraft.
Learning Education is the basic element of Confucian social philosophy. Confucianism emphasizes a certain philosophy of education, which stresses that the most important goal is to come to know humanity. It is both necessary to know what humanity is and what things are in the world. Only through education will we come to know ourselves and the world. The most important knowledge is self-knowledge. It comes through self-cultivation rather than through knowing external things and conditions.
Family Relationships Confucius maintains that filial love and brotherly respect are the root of ren. The family is where children begin moral development. If parents have cultivated ren, then they can teach the child ren. Proper family relationships are necessary for good government. A nation is basically a big family in which the good of the individual is tied to the good of the whole community. Xiao is basic to all development of virtues.
Human Nature and Human Goodness Is it Power or Virtue that is the basis of human nature? Confucius assume that humans have the potential for goodness. To be kept stable, society must have leaders who can be trusted; the only leaders to be trusted are men of character; character is to be developed through education acquired from others and through self- discipline; no man is a safe leader who goes to extremes; the right cultivation of his own character must be the chief concern of every leader; no parent, teacher, or public officer has the right to take lightly his responsibilities for guiding, through percept, rules and example, the conduct of those who are under him.
