Li, or rites, has played an integral part in shaping early Chinese philosophy, though not all philosophers have agreed on its meaning or reason for application. Some will argue that human nature requires us to us Li to be ethical beings, while others believe that Li will teach and mold us into beings that will follow the norms of our society. The three major Confucian philosophers whom used the idea of Li to shape their theories were Confucius, Mencius, and Xunzi. All three of these philosophers used Li to shape their ideal government, but it was Xunzi who would have the most applicable form of an ideal government.
Confucius was alive and teaching during the Spring and Autumn period. The power of the Zhou king was on the decline and the rulers of the varying kingdoms were beginning to search for more power. Confucius sought to create a more stable and “good” way of governing the lands of ancient China. Li, said Confucius, were the rituals that men would practice and adhere by to become a gentlemen. Li was not a universal term, one man's Li would be different from another man's Li depending on their social status and role in society. These actions could range anywhere from “presents of jade and silk”(The Analects, 38), to “ err on the side of frugality than on the side of extravagance”(The Analects, 35). This makes Li very similar to the social norms that we look at today. For example, a Li in our society would be a man holding open a door for a women. The following and understandings of these different rituals would create a sound and stable society for people to live in. Confucius found that if a sound society is to be built, it is not just a few people in the ruling class that needed to follow these rites, but everyone in socie...
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...nature. Li was a natural part of humans as Mencius states “Thus we see no man is without a sense of compassion, or a sense of shame”(Mencius, Pg.105). Xunzi saw it differently. Li was not a innate part of humans, but a set of observed actions that humans have the capacity to learn and understand to build a society around.
Xunzi has been compared to Thomas Hobbes on many occasions, while it is safe to compare Mencius to Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Xunzi found that because of humans innate bad nature, a structured and just government must rule people by promoting righteous behavior with not only Li, but also law. Mencius and Confucius instead took the idea of Li and gave it far too much importance. If adherence and understanding of Li were all that was needed to keep a society in check, their well-field system and precious Zhou sage king model were pointless if applied.
Confucius was a philosopher, political intellect and an educator whose philosophies have significantly prejudiced not only the Chinese principles but the entire world evolution. He lived through the “Spring” and “Autumn” epoch of Chinese history, when east central China was separated over a dozen fighting states. The inordinate ailment and grief he saw swayed his political thoughts, which highlighted command, grading and the rule of a compassionate self-governing state.
To begin, Confucianism is a system of philosophical and ethical teachings founded by Confucius. Confucianism was the code of ethics accepted as the certified religion of most of the immense empires in the territory since the Han Dynasty. Confucianism provided an outline of ethical and religious beliefs that most of the Chinese expanded to make other religions such as Daoism and Legalism. To expand, Confucianism was founded by Confucius and his beliefs on the political and social order of China. Confucius believed that everything would fall into place if children had respect for their parents and if the rulers were honest. In Confucianism, specific roles were followed by each person in the family. The head of the family, the father, was the one primarily in control and then it was the oldest son that was next in line. Confucius had the belief that a ruler has to be everything he wants
Amidst the chaos of political instability and constant warring of the Zhou era, arose many intellectual thinkers that brought such profound impact in the field of politics, religion and philosophy. Even to the day, their influence can be cited in the many matters of China. Confucianism became the paramount school of thinking and later significant philosophies such as Daoism and Legalism gained immense recognition as well. Each party had their own proposals for creating an idealistic political society where the many problems they faced in their everyday lives could be eliminated. All three approaches were very distinct, but at the same time, they contained certain similarities as well.
It has been proven that knowledge is an essential element every community should master. The more information and culture people have, the better they can work and subsidize to their commonality. People would be tutored in every single area, from how to cultivate to the different philosophies. In addition, with their new understanding and their own opinions, they can find other ways to improve these thoughts. Also, Confucianists believed that castigation would not get a society anywhere. As Confucius, the founder of this concept, said that with strict laws people “will avoid wrongdoing but will not be good people”. This means that though they will not break the law, they will still be bad. Also, he thought that “lead[ing] them with virtue and sett[ing] a good example” will make people differ from what is good and what is wrong. Adding onto this, Confucius created a test that would determine if people had what they needed in order to be a leader. This examination was called the Civil Service Exam, and it was open to the public so everyone would be able to take it, since now everyone would have an education and could apply the concepts grasped to make the Empire they lived in a better place. This gave the citizens an opportunity to
(Qian 26) Through his support of who he thought was the best man to lead China, Li portrayed another Confucian virtue; "'What should I do to win the hearts of the people?'
After the fall of the Qin Dynasty, the Han dynasty drew from the teachings of Confucius to create the Han Synthesis. This formed the traditional belief in China that history repeats itself and directly contributed to the Dynastic Cycle. This is demonstrated by the use of Confucius teachings, the Dynastic Cycle and the Han Synthesis when addressing the Good Life, Good Society and Good State respectively. Each of these philosophies highlight that Chinese history repeats itself by casting light on this theme of repetition through the three different areas. This makes the state accountable for its actions to its people. Confucius was a Chinese philosopher whose ideas greatly affect China in every aspect of its culture. In The Analects, he preached how to be a good man through living a life of filial piety, being a gentleman, and the way a ruler should govern his empire. The Han Synthesis used many of Confucius’ ideas to be the guiding force in China’s political ideology which contributed to the Dynastic Cycle of an empire, which stated that empires go through periods of success and decline. All of these highlight the cyclical nature of history in China, and its importance in the development of the state.
Confucianism became popular during the Han Dynasty as it was the state religion and had a great impact on East Asia (Confucianism 1, pg. 7). Born in 551 BCE in the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, Confucius himself absorbed the teachings of Mahavira and the Buddha (Confucianism 1, pg. 2) He had a set of virtues that he believed a functioning society should stand by such as benevolence, love and rites. Confucius wanted China to return to the old days when people were loyal to their rulers and rulers were polite and caring towards their people. He believed rulers s...
Proper Order in Confucianism and as taught primarily by Mencius, the Chinese philosopher, is the conceptual theory that instructs how people can reach their highest potential of moral and material well being embodied in Mencius' conception of human nature. The theory of proper order is the primary and philosophical means to that end. Although proper order may seem in many ways philosophically abstract, Mencius' teachings of proper order in history have had lasting and tangible effects on modern East Asian politics and its relationship between the state and society, and even on a narrower level of the individual and community. In fact, the theory of proper order starts first at the individual level and from there flourishes to create a positive rippling effect throughout all of society. This profound theory and its ideals is credited with developing a social society in East Asia which acknowledges the great potential of each of its citizens, but still aspires to consider the effects of individual actions on the common good and not to just ignore the interests of society as a whole. This has helped guide East Asia through its long and colorful history and has helped to shape it into the political and economic powerhouse that it is today. But where exactly did such a significant theory which has helped to define an entire society come from? What exactly is proper order, how can we create it, and why is it needed to achieve Mencius' human nature? Most of these questions can be answered in explaining the fundamental virtue that all humans have according to Mencius, our humaneness defined in human nature.
Confucius argues that children are born neutral and over time their minds will be refined to bring out the goodness in them. The humanitarian philosopher Mencius believed that human nature was essentially good. The philosopher Xunzi argued something completely opposite from Mencius. He stated that evil was built in human nature and that humans needed training severely by a trained instructor to be able to eliminate the evil that dwells inside human nature.
The teachings according to Confucius refer to Confucianism. Confucianism is the multifarious classification of ethical, collective, political and pious philosophy developed by Confucius and the old Chinese practices (Bertrand, 1999). Confucianism aim is actually making an individual honorable but also making such an individual the character of learning and of proper manners. The ideal and faultless man has to combine the characters of a saint, an intellectual and gentleman. Confucianism is a religious conviction whose adulation is focused on offerings to the dead. The idea of responsibility is extensive beyond the precincts of morals and holds close to the minutiae of daily living.
There are several common themes running through the primary work of compiled sayings attributed to Confucius: emphasis on gentlemanly conduct, pursuit of humbleness among fellow man, and a search for a proper ruler who is in accordance with “the Way.” Running throughout the entire book of “The Analects”, Confucius makes reference to many characteristics that a gentleman should possess. Even beginning in the first chapter of Book One, Confucius is attributed with saying, “Is it not gentlemanly not to take offence when others fail to appreciate your abilities?” Other characteristics Confucius attributed to gentlemanly conduct include studying the rites and “The Odes”, humbleness, lack of desire for places of position, unbending in moral conduct, and many other factors. By laying out a basis upon which a gentleman should act, Confucius establishes a standard to measure the quality of all men. Setting a standard implies that there are men above and below this set, desired point, and the word standard also indicates a measure of quantitative or qualitative value. By creating such a standard, Confucius is immediately able to begin causing social reform and progress. However, this progress, though achieved through concentration on social values, never reaches the capacity to which Confucius desires it to reach. Several sayings within The Analects indicate that Confucius is unable to see an accumulation of all desire...
Confucianism is a moral and religious system of China. Its origins go back to the Analects, the sayings attributed to Confucius, and to ancient writings, including that of Mencius. Confucius was born a mandarin under the name Kongzi. It was developed around 550 B.C. In its earliest form Confucianism was primarily a system of ethical concepts for the control of society. It saw man as a social creature that is bound to his fellow men by jen, or “humanity.” Jen is expressed through the five relationships—sovereign and subject, parent and child, elder and younger brother, husband and wife, and friend and friend. Of these, the filial relation is most important.
In order to understand one's ideology, it is essential to understand not only what one's ideology entails but also how government is enmeshed with the ideology. Outside influences as well as life experiences, can shape a person; thus shaping their views on government.
Legge, James, Trans. Confucius — Confucian Analects, The Great Learning, and the Doctrine of the Mean. New York: Dover Publications, 1971.
For many centuries, Confucianism has been widely revered by the Chinese for its emphasis on morality. Confucius, who lived from 551 to 479 BCE, is different to most philosophers in that he showed no interest questioning his existence, the possibility of a God, or the reality that he seemed to live in; instead he focused on the human relations side of philosophy as it was his belief that people should “give (themselves) earnestly to the duties due to men … (and) keep aloof from (spiritual beings)” (Confucius 195). By negating the metaphysical side of philosophy, he was able to devote himself to mold his disciples into ideal gentleman who were morally righteous, and were able to benefit society. He believed in the importance of individuals who knew their roles in an well-structured society, that was a feudal system. In his opinion, the ideal gentleman should be obedient to his elders, have humanness and be morally righteous. Through his teachings, he was able to reform an entire country; the Chinese found Confucianism to embody practices of humaneness that they could apply in their daily lives through his religion.