Confucius Essay
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Who is Confucius? To some he may appear as a joke. However, Confucius,
in reality, was not a laughingstock. He was a man who strived to bring
peace and happiness to a world ravaged by crime and war. Confucius " did
not look for paradise in the next world " like other religions but
rather he was more concerned with achieving happiness in one's own
lifetime.
A respected Chinese philosopher, Confucius, or "Kung Fu Tzu," began as
a teacher, stressing the importance of self-discipline and generosity.
He thought the gentlemen, or "Chun Tzu" was the key to a good social
life. Although "Chun Tzu" was a title reserved for princes, Confucius
expanded its meaning to include anyone of "good moral character." He
believed that these people were rulers and that others would be
encouraged to follow in their example. He believed in treating others
with respect and in turn, they would reciprocate that respect. This
could be linked to what came to be referred to by Confucius as the
"golden rule" - Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
More philosophical than religious, his teachings act more as a guide
for self-improvement. It is based upon these teachings for a better self
and an improved government that led to the concept of Confucianism.
Confucius took an angle with his teachings that was moral, political
and ethical. He felt that if there was righteousness in the heart that
it would to beauty in the character, which would lead to harmony in the
home and then order in the nation. Finally, if there were total order in
the nation, order would create peace in the world. Confucius believed
that rule should be through morality and not violence or force.
He believed that the center of relationships was the self and it forms
from interactions with others. His goal was to become more human and
this served as the basis for forming strong relationships.
The teachings of Confucius contain many values. The most important
value is jen. This virtue deals with love and humaneness towards others.
This is the highest Confucian value. An early form of this is hsiao,
which is honoring your parents. Other staples of Confucian thinking
include Li and Yi.
Li is respect towards ritual practices. Confucius believed that
combining it with jen would help to improve social standards.
Yi is responsibility towards others. Yi represents the strong bonds and
commitments that are formed out of friendship.
The supreme deity of Confucianism is called T'ien. Although translated
to mean Heaven, T'ien appears to be more of a god in charge of
maintaining moral order. The path to T'ien is called the Tao, or way.
The Tao is composed of the struggle for balance of two opposite forces:
the yin and the yang. The yin and yang bring about change through
manipulating five material elements. The five material agents, water,
metal, fire, earth, and wood, alternate with each other through a cycle.
It is the yin and yang's control over these elements that brings about
change through the universe and make up the Tao.
Confucianism also extends its belief to certain ritualistic practices.
For instance, birth is a major event. While the woman is carrying the
child, she is prohibited from doing anything physically strenuous. From
the moment of conception to the day of birth the mother is believed to
be guarded by a spirit called the Tai'shen. After the child is born, she
continues her rest period for another month. After the first month of
the child's life, they are named in a special naming ceremony.
The act of marriage takes place in six stages. The first stage involves
matching the horoscopes of the bride and groom. The second stage is the
wedding announcement. The third stage is the exchange of the dowry. In
the fourth stage, the groom escorts the bride from her home. In the
fifth stage, vows are exchange. In the final stage of the marriage
ceremony, the bride makes breakfast for her in-laws.
In death, people must continue to be treated with honor and respect.
The death rites are usually performed by a priest of another religion.
Once the dead is laid to rest it is very important to maintain the
gravesite. If the spirit world is unhappy then this can have
repercussions on the physical world.
The beliefs and teachings of Confucianism were documented into
scripture. Confucian scripture consists of four books and five classics.
The four books are:
· The Lun Yu (Analects) -This book contains many saying of Confucius
· The Chung Yung
· The Ta Hsueh
· The Meng Tzu
The five classics of Confucianism are:
· Shu Ching - Classic of History
·...
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