Confucius

by Meher McArthur

  It was during this period also that Confucianism began to take on a cosmic character. Although Confucius himself likely believed in the concept that rulers require a Heavenly Mandate to govern, his teachings did not emphasise the relationship between human behaviour and natural occurrences. His follower Xunzi was the first Confucianist to stress the connection between human virtue and cosmic stability, claiming, ‘Heaven operates with constant regularity … respond to it with good government and blessings will result; respond to it with misgovernment and misfortune will result.’9 A century after him, under the Han dynasty, many Confucianists embraced Xunzi’s theory that correct moral behaviour was related to the workings of the universe. At this time, much attention was paid by philosophers to the problems of evil, which they believed to be a matter of the natural order rather than theology, ethics or psychology.10 They sought to understand the cause of calamities such as earthquakes or floods that wrought havoc on all people, good or bad. Han Confucianists joined in the debate, proposing that humans played a part.11 They believed that Heaven watched over them like a beneficent father, but when it noticed that its servant or son, namely the emperor, was mismanaging human affairs and disturbing the social order on earth it would cause a disruption of the natural, cosmic order, with an earthquake or other catastrophe. Such a theory afforded a legitimate basis for imperial government, reminiscent of the Shang and Zhou dynasty belief that kings were Sons of Heaven. At the same time, it required the emperor to be morally responsible to his people or suffer the punishment of Heaven.12

  Although state support during the Han dynasty established the Confucian classics as the basis of the government examination system and the core of the educational curriculum, Confucianism could not maintain the same level of popularity after the collapse of the Han. During the centuries of chaos that followed the Han, and even under the Tang dynasty (AD 618–906), which united China and restored peace and great prosperity, Confucianism was in many ways eclipsed by Daoism and Buddhism, which received considerable royal patronage and won a significant following among the general populace. Under the Tang, Confucianism remained the accepted political philosophy, and the civil service examination system, which was based on Confucius’ teachings, became even more highly organised and well administered than before. The doctrines of Confucius also served as a general code of ethics, and most people followed them at home within the family structure and at work, especially in the imperial government. Confucian scholars continued to study and transmit his teachings, and many Confucian temples were erected throughout the empire as places to revere his principles. However, there were few Confucianists, that is, people who followed Confucius as a distinct creed that set them apart from others,13 and much of the population turned to Buddhism or Daoism to satisfy many of their spiritual needs. Towards the end of the period, in the ninth century, some scholars, including Han Yu (786–824), challenged Daoism and Buddhism and championed Confucianism, but their voices were not heard until later.

  It was during the Song dynasty (960–1279) that Confucianism again experienced a major revival. The main figure in this renaissance was the philosopher Zhu Xi (1130–1200), a follower of Confucius who was also well versed in Buddhist and Daoist philosophy. He and other Song Confucianists examined the nature of the soul and the relation of the individual to the cosmos, concepts that were important in Buddhism and Daoism but had not yet been explored within Confucianism. Under these philosophers, Confucianism evolved into a more metaphysical philosophy, in which every individual’s morality was connected to a universal principle known as li (written with the character , and not to be confused with li, meaning ritual, which is written with the character ). Zhu Xi maintained that ‘The Way [li] is identical with the nature of man and things and their nature is identical with the Way.’14 He taught that all things in the universe, including objects and people, are brought into being by the union of two aspects of reality: li, which can be translated as rational principle (or law), and qi, vital (or physical, material) force. According to Zhu Xi, the source and sum of all li is the Great Ultimate, or Taiji, a supreme creative principle similar to, though not exactly the same as, the Dao of Daoism. Every physical object and every person has its own li (something like the soul, mind, or spirit) and is therefore metaphysically connected with the Taiji. This li is pure, meaning that human nature is essentially good, but it is sheathed in matter or qi, so action is needed to restore its purity. For Zhu Xi, because li is all around us, the most effective way to purify one’s li was to study the li in the world using a form of observational science known in Chinese as gewu, literally the ‘investigation of things’. This rational study of the world was to be given precedence over any sort of emotional approach to questions of right and wrong.

  The importance of li in this new form of Confucianism gave the movement its Chinese name, lixue, literally ‘the study of li’. In the West we know it as Neo-Confucianism. It is the form of Confucianism that was most widely embraced both in China and in other parts of East Asia following the Song dynasty. Zhu Xi further increased the influence of Confucianism both in China and beyond by compiling the Confucian canon as it exists today. He selected what he considered to be the most important texts of Confucianism and codified the canon of Four Books (The Great Learning, Doctrine of the Mean, The Analects of Confucius and Mencius) which, in the subsequent Ming and Qing dynasties, were made the core of the official curriculum for the civil service examinations and which were adopted as the key texts of Confucianism when the philosophy spread to Korea, Japan and Vietnam.15

  During the Ming dynasty (1368–1644), Neo-Confucianism was adopted by the government as the state ideology and generally followed by Confucian scholars of the period. However, although Con-fucianists largely agreed with Zhu Xi about the importance of li, some disagreed on how to purify it. One important Confucianist thinker of the era, Wang Yangming (1472–1529), suggested that since li is present in everything, it is also within our own hearts, so we should look inward by meditating in order to understand the difference between good and evil. Because of his emphasis on the cultivation of the mind-heart, Wang’s teaching was referred to as xinxue, or ‘teaching of the mind-heart’, as opposed to Zhu’s lixue, or ‘teaching of principle’. Wang also believed that anyone, regardless of socio-economic status or background, had the potential to become as wise as the ancient sages, and that a peasant who had learned from his many experiences in the natural world could become wiser than a court official who had studied Confucian texts but not experienced real life.16 He and other like-minded Confucians reached out to the lower classes and even encouraged women to become educated. Such thinking was considered dangerous by conservative Confucianists within the government, who pushed for a return to orthodox Confucian ethics.

  Although the Qing dynasty (1644–1911) was established by the non-Chinese Manchu, many of the Ming governmental and cultural institutions were preserved, including the Confucian-based legislative and educational systems. Despite the continued support for Confucianism, there was a movement among Confucian scholars of the seventeenth to the nineteenth centuries away from the metaphysical Neo-Confucianism of Zhu Xi and Wang Yangming and back to the earlier Confucianism of the Han dynasty. Certain Qing Confucianists, including Gu Yanwu (1613–82) and Dai Zhen (1724–77), argued that the Neo-Confucianists had distorted the original teachings of Confucius, tainting them with Buddhist and Daoist ideas. They also believed that human emotions such as desire were not obstacles to rational investigation, as the Neo-Confucians had taught, but an integral part of the human experience. Adopting an approach that was known as hanxue, or ‘Han Teaching’, or kaozhengxue, ‘Evidential Research Learning’, these scholars closely examined the writings of Han Confucians, who they believed were closer both in time and thinking to Confucius, and they painstakingly dissected the language of Confucian classics and other ancient texts in an attempt to trace the true words of Confucius.17

  In the late nineteenth century, pressure by Western c
ultures to open up to trade and diplomacy contributed to the collapse of the last dynasty. Despite the efforts of activists such as Kang Youwei (1858–1927) a Confucian scholar and political thinker who inspired the 1898 reform movement that aimed to preserve Chinese values in the face of Westernization, Western influence permeated Chinese culture, and the Chinese increasingly perceived their own traditions as backward. In mainland China during the twentieth century, particularly under Mao during the Cultural Revolution, Confucius was declared a symbol of China’s imperial and feudal past and thus an enemy of the people and their Revolution. Mao criticised Confucius’ belief in the importance of a hierarchical social structure as particularly counter-revolutionary, even though he himself borrowed the Confucian concept of loyalty to one’s ruler to garner popular support and further his own political goals. One important step that he took to challenge the traditional Confucian social hierarchy was to change the terms that the Chinese used to address each other, such as jiejie (meaning ‘older sister’ but also used for a slightly older woman) and meimei (‘younger sister’ or a younger woman), thus eliminating, or at least lessening, social inequality. Under Mao, everyone was to be addressed simply as tongzhi, or ‘comrade’. Mao also banned texts such as The Analects, which contained Confucius’ principal teachings, and Confucian scholars were punished and often tortured. Confucian temples were either turned into museums and libraries or were destroyed, and statues of Confucius inside them were defaced.

  However, despite the demonisation of Confucius under Mao, the philosopher and his teachings have endured in the People’s Republic of China and now, at the start of the twenty-first century, Confucius has again become an icon considered by many to be the source of much of their cultural heritage. Even under Mao, his influence was tangible, as Mao portrayed himself as the benevolent leader and the Chinese people generally showed him remarkable loyalty. Today, although Communism is still the official state ideology, certain Confucian values continue to be upheld, often in new, slightly modified ways. The government expects loyalty and respect from the people, and in return it is the role of the state to provide for, enrich and educate them – a concept that Communism and Confucianism share. Education is still highly valued, and scholars are generally well respected socially, though watched carefully by the authorities. The scholarly artistic pursuits of painting and calligraphy – which have long been important in China as a means of cultivating the spirit, expressing Confucian ideals and displaying cultural sophistication – are still highly revered and are the most respected art forms in China even today. Confucian temples are visited by many who wish to pay their respects to the Great Sage but also those hoping for academic success. The structure of the Chinese family has changed dramatically as a result of the Single Child Policy begun in 1979 by Deng Xiaoping, so one of the five basic relationships that Confucius emphasised – that of older and younger sibling – rarely exists in a whole generation, and the burden of caring for parents, the elderly and the deceased falls heavily on one child. Nonetheless, it is still expected.

  It is worth noting here that the status of Confucianism in Taiwan over the last decades has been different. Under the Kuomintang, the Taiwanese government made a break from institutional Confucianism, in which the emperor oversaw an elaborate bureaucracy, which largely comprised scholar-gentlemen trained in the teachings of Confucianism.18 However, because Taiwan regarded itself as the true custodian of Chinese culture as mainland Communists rejected their cultural past, it did not demonise Confucius and continued to revere him as an important cultural figure. Nor has the basic structure of family relationships changed there, so despite its dramatic political shifts over the past half-century or so, the presence of Confucianism in the lives of Taiwanese Chinese has been more openly acknowledged than on the mainland.

  Confucianism in Korea

  Korea is generally considered to be the most Confucian country in all of East Asia at present – even more so than mainland China, Taiwan or Japan.19 Confucianism first entered the Korean peninsula along with Buddhism from China during the Three Kingdoms period (c. 57 BC–AD 668). From the late fourth century onwards, first in Koguryo (Goguryeo) in the north, then Paekche (Baekje) in the south-west, and finally Silla in the south-east, the governments of each kingdom promoted Confucian values as a means of maintaining and strengthening their aristocratic social orders. To this end, the kingdoms each established Confucian educational institutions and promoted the Chinese classics. Enthusiasm for both Buddhist and Confucian teachings was so great in Paekche that royal representatives from there took texts from both traditions to Japan to introduce them to the Japanese emperor. Silla was the last of the three kingdoms to receive Confucianism, and in particular it embraced the Confucian ideal of loyalty in order to bolster the authority of its rulers.20

  In AD 668, when Silla united much of the region, although it turned to Tang China for cultural inspiration it chose as its official philosophy Buddhism, which was currently in ascendance in China, rather than the native Chinese philosophy. However, Confucianism increasingly came to rival Buddhism as an alternative system of thought, and in 682 a National Confucian College was founded which, from the mid-eighth century onwards, had a curriculum that consisted of The Analects and other Confucian texts. The establishment of this national educational institution led to the inauguration of the state examination system for the selection of government officials in 788, a system which stood in opposition to the traditional Silla aristocratic order. Towards the end of the Unified Silla period, Confucianism emerged as an ideology of political reform, with its proponents hoping to establish at its core a different kind of centralised aristocratic state staffed with men of talent who possessed a Confucian training.21

  During the Koryo (Goryeo) period (918–1392), Buddhism continued to have a significant impact on the broader culture of Korea, but Confucianism grew in strength as an ideology of political reform. The fourth Koryo king, Kwangjong (Gwangjong) (949–75), and his grandson, the sixth Koryo king, Songjong (Seongjong) (960–97; r. 981–97), both attempted to strengthen the central government by adopting a Chinese-style imperial bureaucracy based on Confucian teachings and opening government positions up to more members of the hereditary aristocracy than had been possible under the Silla. They gave new life to the civil service examinations that had first been established under the Silla. Known in Korean as kwago (gwageo), these examinations tested students not only on their technical knowledge but also on their mastery of Chinese classics, including the teachings of Confucius. In 992 Songjong founded an academy, or National University, in the Koryo capital of Kaesong to provide advanced training in the Chinese classics. This academy, or Gukjagam, became the country’s highest educational institution of the era and provided tuition for a higher number of young aristocrats than had previously been possible. Partly in an attempt to integrate the country aristocracy into the new bureaucratic system, Seongjong also established the twelve administrative divisions throughout the country, dispatched scholars to each of the local divisions to oversee local education, and brought local youths to study in the capital.22

  It was under the Choson (Joseon) dynasty (1392–1910) that Confucianism had the most profound impact on Korean culture. Buddhism fell out of favour with the ruling elite and the Neo-Confucian philosophy of Song China, known in Korean as songnihak (seong-nihak), was adopted as the official Choson ideology. The Confu-cianisation of the government administration that had begun centuries earlier was strengthened in the first century of Choson rule. The ruling class, or yangban, which comprised both the scholarly and military elite, were fully educated in Confucian ideals, and during this period the sons of the yangban class took the civil service examinations and attained prized government positions. At this time, Confucian beliefs and attitudes permeated nearly all areas of society, not only dictating how government was run and the type of education the country’s young received, but also the ways in which people interacted socially. Social interaction at all levels was ba
sed on Confucian ideas and ideals such as chung (loyalty); hyo (filial piety); in (benevolence); and sin (trust). Confucian schools were built throughout the country equipped with a curriculum based on these principles. Their large libraries were stocked with Confucian texts both in Korean and Chinese, and classes were taught by foreign and local teachers trained in the Chinese classics. Korean literature of the period featured Confucian themes of loyalty and filial piety and much of the finest art was influenced by the literati themes of the yangban class and the restrained aesthetics associated with Confucian ideals of austerity and humility.

  The Neo-Confucian ideals adopted by the Choson regime had a particularly profound impact on women. In early Korean history women had enjoyed many rights and freedoms. There were several Silla queens and women often exerted a powerful influence in the court. Although their status significantly diminished by the Koryo period, women still had property and inheritance entitlements and they were able to participate in rituals for the family ancestors. During the early Choson period, however, in an attempt to control the country’s morality, the government issued regulations forcing women to remain secluded in their homes, and women of all classes were required to wear veils whenever they did leave home. Only close family members were allowed to see their faces. Women were required to be obedient and loyal towards the male members of their families – first their fathers, then their husbands, then their sons. In fact, their whole identity was based on their relationship to men, as they were not addressed by their own names; instead they were called ‘wife of Younghi’ or ‘mother of Byung Hyo’. Their names were not recorded in their family registries, they had no inheritance rights and they were excluded from rituals in honour of the family ancestors. Although marriage offered women some social security, a man could divorce his wife for a number of ‘evils,’ including loquaciousness and jealousy or for failing to bear a son. This oppression of women in the name of Confucian values continued until the early twentieth century, and remnants of it are still visible in modern Korea.23