Confucian philosophy attaches great importance to social philosophy, because realizing an ideal human society in this world is the most primitive concern of Confucianism. In order to design and establish an ideal human society, Confucius, Mencius, Xun and others can be said to be thinkers who constantly put forward various social, political, economic or ethical views.
At the same time, it can also explain why social philosophy is the main focus of Confucianism, that is, as far as Confucian tradition is concerned, the approach of Confucian philosophy is social philosophy. The content of Confucian social philosophy is clear, and the eight items in Da Xue are the most concrete representatives, and The Book of Rites is also an important social philosophy work.
In addition, many political systems and administrative principles put forward by Duke Zhou, Confucius, Mencius, Xunzi, etc., such as benevolent government, ignoring gifts, making people happy, etc., are very representative views in the Confucian tradition. In addition, Confucianism in the thought of Confucian classics in Han Dynasty is the knowledge of social system designed on the basis of Confucian classics.
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1, Confucius
By sorting out the classics of Xia and Shang Dynasties and reflecting on Zhou Wenhua, Confucius opened up the broad ideological connotation of Confucian philosophy, and his discussions with his disciples were sorted into the most important classics of primitive Confucianism, such as The Analects of Confucius and Yi Zhuan.
Confucius founded the philosophy of "benevolence", exerting human virtue instinct in daily life such as politics, education and ethics, and establishing the concept of proper interpersonal relationship between people; Thinking and dealing with the relationship between heaven and man is basically to accept the existence of ghosts and gods and respect the instructions of destiny.
However, the role of heaven's ghosts and gods is fully recognized in a rational sense. Heaven itself can only show moral rationality, and ghosts and gods can only help saints in providing information, but can't interfere with the moral cause of saints. We can also get rid of the attitude of praising and criticizing the sky dominated by worldly gains and losses and emotions, and establish an appropriate relationship between heaven and man with rational cognition, which not only attaches importance to its sublimity, but also emphasizes its morality.
2. Mencius
The book Mencius compiled by Mencius and his disciples is one of the most vivid Confucian original works after The Analects. The book displays the value spirit of "benevolence, courtesy and knowledge" and emphasizes the ideal cause of the monarch's "benevolent government". He also has a unique view on the theory of man's spontaneous cultivation, and thinks that man can restore inner goodness through his own consciousness, that is, the theory of good nature.
Therefore, good and evil lie in people's own hearts, that is, subjective and conscious efforts to seek inner peace. This theoretical tradition was continuously developed and expanded by later Confucian thinkers. The spirit of benevolence and righteousness of the Chinese nation was established by Mencius, and the tradition of good nature influenced China's Mahayana Buddhism and accurately established the proposition that all living beings have Buddha nature.
Baidu encyclopedia-Confucian philosophy