About Confucius

Confucius, also called Kongzi, was a famous philosopher, educator, and politician of the Spring and Autumn Period (B.C 770-B.C 476).He is the founder of the Ru School of Chinese thought and is considered the first teacher in China.

Life Experience of Confucius

• The ancestors of Confucius were of the royal family of Song. But his great grandfather had moved to Lu State, where the family became impoverished. Confucius did not receive much formal education and had no regular teacher. At fifteen he had his mind bent on learning. From that time on, he studied very hard, generally by himself, sometimes in consultation with more elderly and experienced scholars. At thirty, he stood firm. At sixty, his ear was obedient organ. At seventy, he could follow what his heart desired without transgressing what was right. He studied extensively and was familiar with the traditional literature of all times. And was an inspiring teacher who taught tirelessly.
  

Aim of the Teaching of Confucius

• The aim of the teaching of Confucius was to bring about social reforms through education, the individuals of society; to put forth an ideal social order through cultivating ideal ways of life and a full development of the personality of the individual. Confucius put the importance of education on the same level as that of population and wealth, and regarded these as the three essentials of any nation.
  Confucius was fully aware of the importance of social institutions to ensure the stability and safety of individuals. Society must adjust itself to the individual to escape stagnation, and the individual must also adjust himself to society to become human, no one can live or develop as a human without the help of society. Therefore, Confucius did not teach people, as the pessimists of his time did, to flee from the world and to become irresponsible hermits or political nihilists. Confucius thought what was needed was work in society to bring about social reforms through education.
  

Favourite Subjects of Confucius

• The two favorite subjects in the teaching of Confucius, as recorded in The Analects, are love (Ren), and the rules of proper conduct (Li).
  Love (Ren) is another favorite theme of the teaching of Confucius. It presupposes and ensures the importance and uniqueness of every individual. The full development of the personality of the individual is very much emphasized in the teaching of Confucius, and Love (Ren) is closely to the notice of humanness, compassion and compassionate service in a social setting as an expression of full human potential.
  proper conduct or Li may mean propriety or ceremony or rite in its narrower sense; in its broader sense it may mean the rules of proper conduct in general. Such rules of proper conduct (Li) are really knowable in a deeply internal matter and represent a sort of unwritten law, outwardly expressed as norms and regulations deeply recognized by a society. They are the most important social product to ensure the solidarity of society according to universal human principles.