Confucius Confucius was the greatest thinker in Chinese history; his philosophy dominated Chinese society and intellectual development for 23 centuries. Confucius left no written works of his own. Instead, nearly all that is known of his ideas were written down after his death by his disciples. Confucius was concerned mostly with how to achieve an orderly society, based on individual morality and proper relationships. Probably born in 551 BC, Confucius was part of an impoverished noble family from the feudal state of Lu (modern-day Shandong). The name "Confucius" is the Latinized version of Kongzi or Kongfuzi (Master Kong), as interpreted by the Jesuit missionaries who first made Chinese culture known to Europeans. His father died when he was young, leaving the family impoverished. According to the Analects, conversations between Confucius and his disciples,during his childhood, Confucius was forced to learn many different skills. Despite the family's poverty, Confucius managed to educate himself. During Confucius' life, China was divided into many feudal warring states. Although the Zhou dynasty supposedly ruled over all, they were without power. Known as the Era of Warring States, each small state attempted to win control over its neighbors, causing nearly continuous warfare. In Lu, the nominal ruler was a duke, but power was actually held by three powerful clans: the Chi, Meng, and Shu. Ambitious noblemen allied themselves with one of the clans if they wished to advance. Despite his poverty, Confucius belonged to a class known as the shi, which provided most officials for the various state governments. Confucius' first positions with the Lu government were as a supervisor of the public granary and later as an overseer of the fields. Both were low-level government positions but common to someone of Confucius' rank. When he was 19, Confucius married a woman of similar social rank. When he was around 30 years old, the Meng clan hired Confucius to tutor their sons in traditional Chinese rituals. However, when the duke of Lu attacked the Chi clan in 517 BC, he was forced to flee Lu. Accompanied by Confucius, he went to a neighboring state, where the two men remained for two years. When Confucius returned to Lu in 515 BC, he began to earn his living as a teacher. He became one of the first teachers in Chinese history to instruct commoners as well as nobles. As a result, he attracted a devoted group of disciples who probably studied rituals, music, history, and poetry. During that time, Confucius apparently developed his ideas on good government and how a ruler could bring about an orderly and moral society. In 501 BC, Confucius was offered a position by Kongshan Furao, a military warlord who seized power in the city of Pi. He was tempted to accept, indicating his intense desire for a position where he could make a difference in society, but Confucius declined the position. Later that year, the legitimate duke of Lu offered Confucius the position of magistrate of the city of Zhangdu. Several years later, Confucius became the minister of justice, an important position, for Lu. Thereafter, Confucius was named prime minister of Lu. Although he owed his position to the support of the Chi clan, Confucius worked to reduce the clans' power in Lu. In 498 BC, he got the clan leaders to agree to start dismantling the fortified cities that were the basis of their power. When one clan reneged on its promise, the other two refused to follow through. In 497 BC, Confucius resigned his position and left Lu. Between 497 and 484 BC, Confucius and his disciples wandered through China. He was received respectfully in various states, whose rulers gave him money. However, Confucius was disappointed that no ruler would accept his ideas on government. In 484 BC, he was invited to return to Lu. That period may have been the unhappiest in his life as his only son died and two of his closest disciples also died. Many Chinese authorities credited Confucius with writing a number of classical works, including The Book of Odes; The Book of Documents; The Book of Changes (I Ching); and the Spring and Autumn Annals, a chronological record of the 12 dukes of Lu. However, his authorship of those works has largely been discredited. Instead, his teachings were contained in a collection of works, known as the Analects, written down by his disciples after his death. Although the Analects was not a systematic rendering of his philosophy, it remains the authoritative source on Confucianism. Confucius looked back to the golden age of the Zhou dynasty, when he believed rulers were benevolent and people lived harmoniously in society. According to Confucius, an individual was born with a moral nature. Evil was the result of bad things to which a person was exposed. For Confucius, the ideal human was a cultured gentleman who knew what to do in different situations. The gentleman developed the five virtues of humanity: benevolence (jen), righteousness (yi), proper conduct (li), wisdom (zhi), and trustworthiness (xin). A moral ruler who practiced those virtues would encourage that same development among his people. Filial piety—a reverence shown to fathers or father figures—undergirded Confucian beliefs. The model for relationships in society was that between fathers and sons. When family relations were in order, Confucius believed that society would be orderly. Confucius did not consider his teachings original but called himself a transmitter of traditional knowledge to his contemporaries. Confucius died in 479 BC in Lu. His disciples spread his teachings, and by the second century BC, Confucianism was declared the official philosophy of China. Temples to Confucius were constructed in every province by imperial law. The classics of Confucianism became required reading for potential bureaucrats taking the civil exams to get a government position. Thinkers seeking to expand and clarify Confucius' ideas included Mencius, who lived 200 years later, and Xun-zi, who lived in the late third century BC. A lengthy biography of Confucius was included in the Historical Records, written by Sima Qian about 100 BC. Spread The Word!
This man was very important, and everyone should follow his teachings. (Be nice to everyone. Nuff' said)