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Who was Confucius?

His Chinese name was: K'ung-fu-tzu [孔夫子]. The philosophy of Confucius emphasized personal and governmental morality, correctness of social relationships, justice and sincerity. These values gained prominence in China over other doctrines, such as Legalism (法家) or Taoism (道家) during the Han Dynasty (206 BC – AD 220). Confucius' thoughts have been developed into a system of philosophy known as Confucianism (儒家).

Confucius' principles had a basis in common Chinese tradition and belief. He championed strong familial loyalty, ancestor worship, respect of elders by their children (and, according to later interpreters, of husbands by their wives), and the family as a basis for an ideal government. He expressed the well-known principle, "Do not do to others what you do not want done to yourself", one of the earlier versions of the Ethic of reciprocity.

Although Confucianism is often followed in a religious manner by the Chinese, arguments continue over whether it is a religion. Confucianism discusses elements of the afterlife and views concerning tian (Heaven), but it is relatively unconcerned with some spiritual matters often considered essential to religious thought, such as the nature of the soul.

One of the deepest teachings of Confucius may have been the superiority of personal exemplification over explicit rules of behavior. His moral teachings emphasized self-cultivation, emulation of moral exemplars, and the attainment of skilled judgment rather than knowledge of rules, Confucius's ethics may be considered a type of virtue ethics. His teachings rarely rely on reasoned argument, and ethical ideals and methods are conveyed more indirectly, through allusions, innuendo, and even tautology. This is why his teachings need to be examined and put into proper context in order to be understood.

One of his most famous teaching was the Golden Rule (in the positive form) and Silver Rule (in the negative form):

        己所不欲，勿施於人。
        "What you do not wish for yourself, do not do to others."

        子貢問曰：“有一言而可以終身行之者乎”？子曰：“其恕乎！己所不欲、勿施於人。”
        Zi gong (a disciple of Confucius) asked: "Is there any one word that could guide a person throughout life?"
        The Master replied: "How about 'shu' [reciprocity]: never impose on others what you would not choose for yourself?"



Reference: Wikipedia



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Lǐ, yì and rén

1.  The Confucian theory of ethics as exemplified in Lǐ (禮) is based on three important conceptual aspects of life: ceremonies associated with sacrifice to ancestors and deities of various types, social and political institutions, and the etiquette of daily behavior. It was believed by some that lǐ originated from the heavens, but Confucius stressed the development of lǐ through the actions of sage leaders in human history. His discussions of lǐ seem to redefine the term to refer to all actions committed by a person to build the ideal society, rather than those simply conforming with canonical standards of ceremony.

In the early Confucian tradition, lǐ was doing the proper thing at the proper time, balancing between maintaining existing norms to perpetuate an ethical social fabric, and violating them in order to accomplish ethical good. Training in the lǐ of past sages cultivates in people virtues that include ethical judgment about when lǐ must be adapted in light of situational contexts.


2.   In early Confucianism, the concept of li is closely related to yì (義), which is based upon the idea of reciprocity. Yì can be translated as righteousness, though it may simply mean what is ethically best to do in a certain context. The term contrasts with action done out of self-interest. While pursuing one's own self-interest is not necessarily bad, one would be a better, more righteous person if one's life was based upon following a path designed to enhance the greater good. Thus an outcome of yì is doing the right thing for the right reason.


3.   (仁) Rén consists of 5 basic virtues: seriousness, generosity, sincerity, diligence and kindness. [28] Rén is the virtue of perfectly fulfilling one's responsibilities toward others, most often translated as "benevolence" or "humaneness"; translator Arthur Waley calls it "Goodness" (with a capital G), and other translations that have been put forth include "authoritativeness" and "selflessness." Confucius's moral system was based upon empathy and understanding others, rather than divinely ordained rules. To develop one's spontaneous responses of rén so that these could guide action intuitively was even better than living by the rules of yì. Confucius asserts that virtue is a means between extremes. For example, the properly generous person gives the right amount—not too much and not too little.



Reference: Wikipedia

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The Dichotomy Between the Superior Man and The Mean Man


51  “The superior man cannot be known in little matters; but he may be entrusted with great
concerns. The small man may not be entrusted with great concerns but he may be known in little
matters.
      “The superior man thinks of virtue; the small man thinks of comfort. The superior man
thinks of the enactions of law; the small man thinks of favors that he may receive.
      “The mind of the superior man is conversant with righteousness; the mind of the mean man
is con­versant with gain.
      “The superior man seeks to perfect the admirable qualities of men, and does not seek to
perfect their bad qualities. The mean man does the opposite of this.
      “What the superior man seeks, is in himself. What the mean man seeks, is in others.”


52  “Respectfulness, without the rules of propriety, becomes laborious bustle; carefulness,
without the rules of propriety, becomes timidity; boldness, without the rules of propriety,
becomes insubordination; straight-forwardness, without the rules of propriety, becomes rudeness.” 




Reference:
A Source Book in Chinese Philosophy translated and compiled by Wing-Tsit Chan.
Princeton University Press, New Jersey, 1963.

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