Confucius (Founder of Confucianism) Editor

Confucius (September 28, 551 BC - April 11, 479 BC) [1-2], surnamed Zi , Kong, whose surname was Qiu and styled Zhongni, was born in Zou Yi of the state of Lu (now Qufu, Shandong Province), and his ancestral home was Li Yi of the state of Song (now Xiayi of Henan Province). He was a famous great thinker and educator in China. Confucius created the culture of private lectures and was the founder of Confucianism. Creating a new educational concept, Confucius' thought of "education without distinction" has epoch-making significance in the history of educational development. It advocated that regardless of national boundaries, anyone with a desire to learn could enroll in school and receive education, pioneering the popularization of education.

Confucius’ famous sayings:

Confucius said: “Isn’t it right to learn and practice it over time? Isn’t it nice to have friends coming from afar? Isn’t it nice to have friends who don’t know and not be surprised? Are you a gentleman?" Confucius said: "Knowing one's words makes one look more benevolent."

Confucius said: "A gentleman has no food to eat and no need to live in peace. Yan, it can be said that he is eager to learn."

Confucius said: "Don't worry about what others don't know, but worry about not knowing others."

Confucius said: "Three hundred poems, To sum it up in one sentence, he said: 'Thinking is innocent.'"

Confucius said: "When I was fifteen, I was determined to learn; At sixty, one's ears are attuned; at seventy, one can follow the heart's desires without exceeding the rules."

Confucius said: "Those who review the past and learn new things can become teachers."

Confucius said: "The gentleman Zhou If you don’t compare, a villain compares without being thoughtful.”

Confucius said: “Learning without thinking is a waste, thinking without learning is dangerous.”

Confucius said: “Because, Taught the girl to know! To know is to know, not to know is to know, that is knowledge."

Confucius said: "If a person has no faith, he does not know what he can do."

Confucius called Ji's family : "Eight people dancing in the court are tolerable, which one is intolerable?"

Confucius said: ""Guan Ju" is joyful but not obscene, sad but not sad."

Confucius said: "Don't talk about things when they are done, don't admonish when things are done, and don't blame the past."

Confucius said: "If you hear the Tao in the morning, you will die in the evening."

Confucius said: "A gentleman is a metaphor for righteousness, and a villain is a metaphor for profit."

Confucius said: "When you see a virtuous person, you should think about it. When you see a virtuous person, you should introspect yourself."

Confucius said: "Rotten wood cannot be used. A carving, a wall of dung and earth cannot be leveled, so why should I be punished?"

Political thought

The core of it is "propriety" and "benevolence". In terms of the strategy of governing the country, He advocated "governing with virtue" and using morality and etiquette to govern the country is the noblest way to govern the country. This kind of governance strategy is also called "Government by virtue" or "Government by etiquette". This strategy applies virtues and etiquette to the people. , in fact, it has broken the traditional creed that etiquette should not be inferior to common people, and has broken an important original boundary between nobles and common people. Confucius' theory of benevolence embodies the spirit of humanity, and Confucius' theory of etiquette embodies the spirit of etiquette. That is, order and system in the modern sense. Humanism is an eternal theme of mankind. It is applicable to any society, any era, and any government, and order and system society are the basic requirements for establishing a human civilized society. Confucius's This spirit of humanitarianism and order is the essence of ancient Chinese social and political thought.

Economic Thought

The most important economic thought of Confucius is to value justice over profit, and "think of justice when you see benefit." "The concept of righteousness and benefit and the idea of ??"enriching the people". This is also the main content of Confucian economic thought. It has a great influence on future generations. Confucius' so-called "righteousness" is a social moral norm, and "profit" refers to people's material interests. Seek. In the relationship between "righteousness" and "profit", Confucius placed "righteousness" in the first place. He said: "See benefit and think of righteousness." ① It requires people to first consider how to meet material interests. "righteousness". He believed that "righteousness should be taken first", that is, only if it conforms to "righteousness" can it be obtained. Confucius even advocated "rare words about benefit" in "The Analects of Confucius Zihan", that is, "benefit" should be spoken less, but it is not Don't be "profitable". "Zuo Zhuan: The Second Year of Chenggong" records that Confucius believed: "Righteousness generates benefit." That is, "righteousness" must first be present before benefit can be generated. "Yizhuan·Wenyan" says: "Benefits, "The harmony of righteousness." This unifies the opposing "righteousness" and "benefit". This idea is very consistent with Confucius's ideas. "Zuo Zhuan·The Tenth Year of Zhaogong" records that Yan Ying said: "Righteousness, benefit." Ben Ye. "Righteousness is the foundation of benefit. It is consistent with Confucius's proposition. Confucius opposed the one-sided pursuit of utilitarianism. He believed that in the face of "profit", "righteousness" must always be used to measure whether it should be taken. He said that it is in line with morality. Then get it, so that people will not hate what he gets. On the contrary, "acting with interests in mind and complaining too much". ① That is, one-sided pursuit of personal self-interest and using it as the guiding ideology for action will produce a lot of resentment. . Therefore, Confucius believed that obtaining wealth by doing things that are not in line with morality is like floating clouds. ② He disdained using unjust means to obtain wealth. Confucius also believed that the treatment of "righteousness" and "

The attitude of "profit" can distinguish a "gentleman" from a "villain". A moral "gentleman" can easily understand the importance of "righteousness", while a "villain" who lacks moral cultivation only knows "profit" but not Know "righteousness". This is what Confucius said in "The Analects of Confucius: Li Ren", "A gentleman is likened to righteousness, and a villain is likened to profit." Since Confucius valued "righteousness", he must despise physical labor. He told his disciple Fan Chi who wanted to learn agriculture He was very dissatisfied and called him a "little man". Confucius also believed that those who farmed would inevitably go hungry, while those who studied could become officials and enjoy salaries. Due to Confucius's conservative political attitude, the reform of the economic system also reflected For example, in the fifteenth year of Lu Xuangong (594 BC), the "initial taxation of acres" was implemented, which legally recognized the legal status of private land, which was a major economic reform in the Spring and Autumn Period; but according to "Zuo Zhuan" When Confucius compiled "Spring and Autumn Annals", he recorded the "initial tax on acres" in order to criticize it as "irregular". In the twelfth year of Duke Ai of Lu (483 BC), the State of Lu also "used land tax", that is, levied military tax on an acre basis. Confucius also expressed opposition. ① However, Confucius advocated "enriching the people". From the perspective of the long-term interests of the ruling class, he believed that the exploitation of the people should not be done by exploiting all the benefits. In "The Analects of Confucius Yang Huo", he advocated that government should be lenient, saying : "Tolerance will win the masses." When he was discussing politics with his disciple Ran You in Weiguo, he proposed that the people should be "rich". ② That is, the idea of ??enriching the people. In Confucius' view, when the people are rich, there will be no monarch who is not rich; If the people are not rich, the king will not be rich. It is also recorded in "The Analects of Confucius: Yao" that Confucius advocated "benefiting the people for their own benefit", that is, doing things that are beneficial to the people. On the other hand, he also advocated taxation. It should be lighter, and the apportionment of corvees should not delay the farming season. "The Analects of Confucius Shuer" records that Confucius also preached to the politicians at that time, asking them not to be too extravagant and to pay attention to frugality. He said: "Luxury is not inferior, frugality is "Zegu. Rather than being inferior, it is better to be solid." At the same time, it also advocates "frugal use and love for others." This includes the application of Confucius's "benevolence" thought in the economic field.

Educational Thought

Confucius first proposed that "there is no distinction between education and distinction" and believed that everyone in the world has the right to education. In terms of educational practice, Confucius in his aesthetics

put forward very good suggestions: In the process of teaching and educating people, teachers should be "teaching tirelessly", "following instructions" and "teaching students in accordance with their aptitude". He believes that students should have good learning methods such as "drawing inferences from one example" and "reviewing the past to learn the new"; learning should also be combined with thinking "learning and If you don’t think, you will lose sight; if you think without learning, you will be in danger.” If you are eager to learn, “there must be a teacher among us”; you must have a correct attitude towards learning. Confucius’s educational thoughts still have important significance in inspiration and education.

Aesthetic Thought

The core of Confucius' aesthetic thought is the unity of "beauty" and "goodness", as well as the unity of form and content. Confucius advocated "poetry", that is, combining literature and art with political morality, Literature and art are used as a means to change society and politics, and an important way to cultivate sentiment. Moreover, Confucius believed that a perfect person should cultivate his character in poetry, etiquette, and music. Confucius's aesthetic thoughts had a huge influence on the literary and artistic theories of later generations.