Confucius

Confucius

Confucius Confucianism was the most important thing in Chinese life, but who was Confucius the person? Before the respected philosopher Confucius was born, China was constantly in a state of war. The teachings of Confucius helped to reform China. Confucius lived a long and prosperous life, he was self-taught but spread his wisdom to many, and he was very influential in politics even though he never held a major government position. Confucius was born in 551 B.C., in the state of Lu (modern day Shadong or Shantung Province), into a low aristocratic family. His parents died when he was very young and left him to take care of his older brother who was crippled. He was given the birth name Kong Qui. Confucius comes from the Latin word Kongfuzi, which means Great Master Kong. He married at age nineteen and had two children, a son and a daughter. He was very much a family man though he did travel a lot. Confucius loved music, and when he traveled to a neighboring state of Lu, he became so absorbed in it that he forgot to eat. Confucius was a large man of great physical strength. His last couple years of life were probably bitter due to a number of deaths of his close associates. He died in 479 B.C. at the age of 72. Confucius was for the most part self-taught, although he was not too proud to learn from people inferior to him. At age 15 he set his mind on learning. He derived his learning from the first Chou kings Wen and Wu. He claimed that he wasn’t born with his knowledge, which exemplifies his pursuit of wisdom. At age 20, he became a teacher. He traveled widely, gaining disciples who are responsible for writing down his sayings and ideas in the analects. His teaching stressed the importance of traditional relations of filial piety and brotherly respect. He was for the most part supported by his students though he may have received some form of pay from the government. He never refused to teach anyone, no matter how poor they were. Confucius is the first known professional teacher in Chinese history. He spent his life not only preparing himself for government positions, but also preparing his students. Several of his disciples went on to hold key positions in the government. In addition to teaching, Confucius spent much of his time on classics such as poetry and music.

Confucius was a large believer that things should be based on virtue, and not on blood. Confucius’ dream was to have a position as advisor to a wise ruler, but never accomplished this. He held several minor governments positions throughout his life. He held these positions only for short periods of time due to conflicts with his superiors. He went to place to place offering advice to many Chinese rulers. If they didn’t take his advice, he would move on to the next place saying that he was not going to force anyone to take his advice. At age sixty-seven, Confucius returned to his native state, but his advice was not regarded there. Jan Ch’iu (a former disciple of Confucius) asked him his opinion about raising taxes, and he said to do what was in favor of the people. When Jan Ch’iu went ahead and raised the taxes anyway, Confucius denied him as one of his disciples. Confucius was often asked war advice, and he would say that though he had some knowledge of sacrificial vessels, he had not studied warfare, and therefore he could not help. At old age, Confucius was disappointed because he never got to participate fully in government, and he said, “As far as taking trouble goes, I do not think I compare badly with other people. But as regards carrying out the duties of a gentleman in actual life, I have never yet had a chance to show what I could do.” Confucius was one of the most influential people in Chinese and world history. His knowledge is still regarded to this very day. Confucius changed everything in China, including education, government, and attitudes toward behavior in public and private life. If Confucius had never lived, the modern world of today may have been completely different.

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