It is possible the various words of advice that Confucius offered may not have sat well with the Duke or his Counsellor. Aside from these few exchanges with the leaders of Lu, Confucius seems to have had very little to do with the men in power after his return, and he was never actually offered an official post in the government. Nor was his counsel heeded on the rare occasion when he was consulted about government issues. At one point in 484 BC, when he was consulted about taxation, his opinion was ignored quite blatantly and, to his great dismay and outrage, the person who ignored it was Ran Qiu, his former student. That year the leaders of the Jisun family were considering imposing a land tax on their tenants, and Ran Qiu was dispatched to ask Confucius for his views on the subject. Confucius, who was passionately opposed to such a tax, knew that the Jisun family would not like his response so he refused to give it in an official capacity to Ran Qiu. Later, however, he privately advised Ran Qiu that the Jisun clan should not tax the people in addition to the grain that they had already produced and given to the government, since it was more than they could afford. He suggested that the Jisun follow the example of the early Zhou kings, who instituted the fengjian system of land distribution, in which land was shared and worked in a way that benefited both the ruler and his subjects.
We do not know what Ran Qiu himself thought of the proposed land tax, but it is clear from historical accounts of the period that he did not take his Master’s advice. According to The Spring and Autumn Annals, in the spring of 483 BC the tax was imposed on the people and caused great hardship, made all the more devastating when the region was hit by three locust plagues over the next year and a half,6 which were probably regarded as an indication of Heaven’s displeasure at the suffering inflicted on the people. Not surprisingly, Confucius was furious at his former student for his lack of moral backbone. Did Ran Qiu not care about the plight of the farmers, or did he indeed care about them but was too cowardly to stand up to his employers and advise them to behave in a good and just manner? Either way, the steward demonstrated a lack of morality and was a failure in Confucius’ eyes. In his anger Confucius proclaimed that Ran Qiu ‘is no disciple of mine’ and encouraged his other students to ‘attack him openly to the beating of the drums’.7 It was not typical of Confucius to endorse violence and he was probably speaking metaphorically here, but his response to Ran Qiu’s lack of consideration for the struggling poor indicates the depth of his own compassion for their predicament.
Disappointed by the Duke and Chief Counsellor’s lack of interest in his advice and in Ran Qiu’s inability to question his employer’s judgement, Confucius appears to have spent his last years just as he had spent many before, being largely ignored by the men in power who made the big decisions. Just as previously, he seems to have retreated into the realm of education, occupying himself again with teaching, research, writing and editing. More than ever, his reputation as a gentleman of great wisdom and worldly experience drew many young men to him, and he continued to educate them with undying enthusiasm. He had declared once while still in Chen that he wished to return to Lu to help ‘our young men back home to shape their material’,8 and once back in Lu he posed the optimistic question, ‘How do we know that the generations to come will not be the equal of the present?’9 It seems that although he may have given up trying to teach current rulers and administrators how to be virtuous leaders, he still held great hope for the younger generations. If, by teaching them about history, rituals and music, he could show them how to be good moral rulers and administrators, he might succeed in having a positive influence on future governments.
A new student, Zizhang (503–447 BC), was one of the smartest and most inquisitive of Confucius’ followers, and was surely a joy for Confucius to teach in his later years. He bombarded his Master with challenging questions about virtue, moral judgement and self-cultivation, pushing Confucius in turn to form some of his most astute observations about human nature, education and morality. For instance, when Zizhang requested Confucius’ definition of discernment or clear-sightedness, the Master responded, ‘He who is soaked in slander and deafened with denunciations, and still does not waver, may be called clear-sighted. Actually he may also be called farsighted.’10 He also asked Confucius how to acquire moral power and how to know when one’s judgement is clouded or incoherent. His Master explained, ‘Put loyalty and faith above everything, and follow justice. That is how one accumulates moral power. When you love someone, you wish him to live; when you hate someone, you wish him to die. Now, if you simultaneously wish him to live and die, this is an instance of incoherence.’11
However, Zizhang apparently made no secret of his ambition to attain a high-level government position, and his intensity as a student was motivated more by ambition than an urge to cultivate his moral character. Surprisingly, this does not seem to have bothered his teacher, and in fact Confucius gave him very specific advice about how to succeed in government: ‘Collect much information, put aside what is doubtful, repeat cautiously the rest; then you will seldom say something wrong. Make many observations, leave aside what is suspect, apply cautiously the rest; then you will seldom have cause for regret. With few mistakes in what you say and few regrets for what you do, your career is made.’12 It seems that Confucius had decided that if his clever student was indeed destined to become a government official, it was his job to make sure that Zizhang went into government armed with the finest moral equipment possible. This is no doubt what he was referring to as ‘shaping the material’ of the young men of Lu. Zizhang apparently appreciated Confucius’ wisdom and went so far as to write down his teacher’s words on his sash, as if to ensure that his Master’s teachings accompanied him wherever he went to keep him in check.13
Another of Confucius’ later students, Zixia (506–443 BC), was also exceptional, and in The Analects he is noted for his cultural abilities.14 Like Zizhang, Zixia pursued a government career and became the warden of Jufu. He too asked Confucius for political advice, to which the Master replied, ‘Do not try to hurry things. Ignore petty advantages. If you hurry things, you will not reach your goal. If you pursue petty advantages, larger enterprises will not come to fruition.’15 It appears that Zixia was also a devoted scholar with a particular interest in literature. On one occasion he asked Confucius about a stanza in a poem in The Book of Songs, and his incisive interpretation of a line of the poem earned from Confucius the exclamation, ‘Ah, you really opened my eyes! It is only with you that one can discuss the Poems!’16 What seems more important to note about Zixia, however, is that, according to The Analects, Zixia was one of the students who attempted to preserve and interpret Confucius’ teachings after his Master died. Several references are made in The Analects to Zixia’s disciples and followers and many of the sayings quoted in the final chapters about correct moral behaviour and attitudes may seem very similar to words of Confucius, but are attributed to Zixia.17
Even in his final years as a teacher, it seems that Confucius was no less strict with Zizhang and Zixia than he was with his earlier students, and he held them to extremely high standards. On one occasion his older follower Zigong is said to have asked him about these two, ‘Which is better: Zizhang or Zixia?’ When Confucius replied ‘Zizhang overshoots and Zixia falls short,’ Zigong then said, ‘Then Zizhang must be better?’, to which Confucius said, ‘Both miss the mark.’18 Zizhang was brilliant but not morally focused, while Zixia was a hard-working and meticulous scholar but perhaps did not reflect adequately on what he had learned. Nonetheless, Confucius undoubtedly appreciated both students for the intellectual stimulation they provided him with in his late sixties and early seventies, as well as for the hope they gave him for the future of the state of Lu.
Alongside teaching, Confucius is often said to have spent his final years working on the major texts that have long been attributed to him. According to early historians, because of the decline in Zhou power in Confucius’ time, the rites and music of the kingdom had been neglected and its historical recor
ds were in disarray, and to remedy this Confucius compiled both The Book of History and The Book of Rites. They also claimed that he compiled The Book of Songs by reviewing over three thousand ancient songs; he ‘rejected those which were repetitious and retained those which had moral value’ and then ‘set right the music and arranged the odes and hymns in the proper order’.19 It is likely that Confucius did indeed spend his last years studying history, ritual and song, as he had throughout his life, but his exact role in the compilation of The Book of History, Book of Rites and Book of Songs has not yet been determined; and although many of his teachings were based on these three great texts, it is more probable that he was a proponent of and commentator on these works than their actual author, compiler or editor.20
A fourth text that Confucius is traditionally said to have worked on at this time is The Spring and Autumn Annals, the official chronicle of the state of Lu covering the period from 722 to 481 BC. This text is the earliest surviving Chinese historical text to be arranged in a year-by-year format. It is short and concisely written, but is only really understandable via the various commentaries that have been appended to it, including most famously the Zuo Commentary (Zuo Zhuan), said to be the work of the court writer Zuo Qiuming around the late fourth century BC. Confucius is said to have based The Annals on the existing historical records of the reigns of twelve rulers of Lu, from that of Duke Yin down to the fourteenth year of the reign of the current Duke Ai. The text focuses on the state of Lu, but it supposedly has as its guiding principle the spirit of the Three Dynasties (the Xia, Shang and Zhou); and, according to Sima Qian, when this principle is carried out, ‘all traitors and evil-doers in the world must tremble’.21 Confucius supposedly chose to record certain events and omit others and prophesied that ‘It is these annals by which later men will know me and it is these annals which will make men condemn me.’22
It would certainly have made sense for Duke Ai of Lu to commission Confucius, with his great knowledge of the past, both ancient and recent, to document the history of the state, and since both Sima Qian and Mencius (372–289 BC), a later philosopher and follower of Confucius, claimed that Confucius was the author of this work, he has for many centuries been thus accredited. However, as with the three other books, there is no evidence that this is so. Few modern scholars believe that he had anything to do with the text and they generally attribute its composition to a number of state chroniclers. Yet, as a historian himself, he was surely aware that such a work was being compiled. It is not hard to imagine though, that Duke Ai, who had chosen not to use Confucius as a political adviser, also overlooked the senior scholar when he appointed an official court historian.
A fifth text that is also associated with Confucius’ final years is The Book of Changes, a mystical work which contains commentaries on sixty-four magical hexagrams that are used in divination to provide answers to all aspects of life. Even though The Book of Changes has traditionally been more closely associated with Daoism, with its emphasis on the forces that animate the universe and our relationship with them, from the time of Confucius onwards the work has also been grouped with the four books mentioned to make up the Five Classics, a corpus of texts that are considered to form the basis of Confucian teachings. This is because, in the final years of his life, Confucius apparently ‘loved to study The Book of Changes, the order of the hexagrams, definitions, appendices, interpretations, explanations and commentaries’. In fact, he supposedly spent so much time reading it that ‘the leather thongs binding the wooden strips wore out three times’, and his fascination with it drove him to proclaim, ‘Give me a few more years and I shall become quite proficient!’23 Over the centuries some biographers have credited Confucius with editing and writing commentaries on this work, but such claims do not seem to be supported by any historical evidence.24
Nonetheless, even if he did not contribute edits or commentaries to the book itself, it may well be true that Confucius was intrigued by this mystical work in his old age. His students apparently found this puzzling, as it seemed to contradict his teachings. From early records it appears that ‘the subjects on which he did not talk were: extraordinary things, feats of strength, political disorders, and the supernatural’,25 and it is noted in The Analects that Confucius taught his students to ‘respect ghosts and gods, but keep them at a distance’.26 In addition, Zigong once remarked, ‘We can hear the master’s views concerning culture, but he does not tell us anything about Nature and Fate.’27 When he observed Confucius poring over The Book of Changes, Zigong is said to have reminded him that he had taught his students that an interest in spiritualism displayed a loss of virtue and that a desire to know the future led to divination. He asked his teacher why he was now so drawn to such things. Confucius argued that the appeal of The Book of Changes was merely academic. He was not trying to see the future but to read the words of wisdom in the text.28
Although traditional accounts have Confucius denying any interest in the supernatural, when he was seventy he is said to have had an encounter with a creature that does not exist in this world and he recognised it too well for a practical person who dwells only in the secular realm. In 481 BC, the fourteenth year of the reign of Duke Ai, Confucius was summoned by representatives of the Duke to the western part of Lu to give his advice on an unusual discovery. Some nobles had been hunting in the area and had captured a mysterious animal which they considered to be somewhat inauspicious. Confucius, who was respected for his broad knowledge, was asked what it might be and, on seeing it, he exclaimed, ‘This is a qilin! … All is over with me! … My way has come to an end!’29 It will be remembered that before she bore him, Confucius’ mother had had a dream in which she was visited by five gods who brought with them a qilin. In her dream she tied a ribbon around the horn of the beast. The appearance of this creature was said to portend the arrival of a truly great and virtuous individual. The beast that Confucius encountered, according to some accounts, also had a ribbon tied around its horn, suggesting that it was bringing a message specifically to Confucius. Whether or not this beast wore a ribbon, Confucius was shocked to see it, as it was to him a sign that he was soon to die. With the realisation that his end was near, he lamented to the students who were with him that his Way had not gained popularity because no one but Heaven understood him. He confided to them that, ‘What a gentleman dreads is to die before his name is known … How shall I make myself known to later ages?’30
Shortly after this incident Confucius became seriously ill, and it seemed that the omen of the qilin might be true. He was so sick that Duke Ai decided to pay him a visit. Despite his weak state, Confucius chose to dress in his finest court robes and, even though he appeared to be close to death, he made sure to follow protocol by lying on his bed with his head facing east to greet his lord.31 Confucius recovered from this illness, but in the last couple of years of his life, he witnessed the deaths of some of his closest friends and family members. At some time around 483 BC his son Boyu and his wife had a son, Zisi, who grew up to be a philosopher who closely followed his grandfather’s teachings. However, Boyu died shortly after the birth of his son, meaning that Zisi, like Confucius, grew up not knowing his own father, a fact that was no doubt very sad for his grandfather, though there may have been some consolation that his son had had a son who could continue to honour the family ancestors. Confucius made sure that Boyu was buried according to protocol, with a very humble coffin and rites that befitted his status.
Very soon after his son’s death, Confucius received word that his old friend Zilu was dead. He had been employed as a minister in Wei, and the court of Wei had again become embroiled in scandal. The Duke of Wei’s widowed sister had taken a servant as a lover and had urged the man to organise a coup in order to reinstate a banished heir. Zilu was loyal to his lord, the Duke, and tried to take him to safety in Lu, but was killed while attempting to defend him in a fight at the palace.32 Although Confucius had predicted that Zilu, who was impetuous and staunchly loyal, would die a
violent death, he was nonetheless shocked and saddened to lose one of his oldest and most loyal disciples – one who had always been there to help him from straying from his own noble path.
Around the same time, Confucius was devastated by the death of his favourite pupil, Yan Hui, who had not yet reached his fortieth birthday. To Confucius, Yan Hui had always seemed the closest to truly understanding his teachings, since he listened and absorbed his Master’s words very carefully and was of a moral character that was purer than that of anyone else he knew.33 On hearing of Yan Hui’s death, Confucius cried out, ‘Alas! Heaven is destroying me! Heaven is destroying me!’34 He had witnessed the qilin who portended his own death, and now the one student who he believed could carry his teachings to the next generation was dead. He was now convinced that his Way would not survive after his own death.35
Confucius Page 15