Pre-chin Confucianism I: The Analects 論語

Pre-chin Confucianism I:The Analects論語

Lecture Outline • Confucius the Sage • Attitude on Traditional Heritage • Attitude on Afterlife • Political Ideas • Important Ideas in Confucius’Analects e.g. xue/learning學, ren仁, junzi君子

Confucius孔子: the Sage • “The Teacher of the Ten Thousand Generations”萬世師表/ a sage聖人 • Born in Spring-Autumn春秋 period

The Life of Confucius (551-479 B.C.) • At a very early age: orphaned • Young mother married as a concubine to his old father, who died soon. • He said, “I was of humble station when young. That is why I am skilled in many menial things” (Analects 9.6)

The Life of Confucius (551-479 B.C.) • Born in the state of Lu (魯): small, weak • Became the police commissioner for a short period of time in the time of Duke Ting (r. 509-494 B.C.) • Two events took place: • Accompanied Duke Ting to meet with Duke Ching of Chi(齊): a diplomatic victory. • An abortive plan to demolish 3 powerful nobles in Lu.

The Life of Confucius (551-479 B.C.) • 497 B.C. (probably): left Lu & return after 13 years • Why? • “The men of Chi [a noble of Lu] made a present of singing and dancing girls. Chi Huanzi [Duke of Lu] accepted them and stayed away from court for three days” (A 18.4)

The Life of Confucius (551-479 B.C.) • The Mencius孟子: • “Confucius was the police commissioner of Lu, but his advice was not followed. He took part in a sacrifice, but afterwards, was not given a share of the meat of the sacrificial animal. He left the state without waiting to take off his ceremonial cap. • Mencius’ comment was: “Those who did not understand him thought he acted in this way because of the meat, but those who understand him realized that he left because Lu failed to observe the proper rites (li)” (Mencius 12.6)

The Life of Confucius (551-479 B.C.) • Travel to various states • Failed, old: back to Lu魯. • Aprofessional teacher: 3000 students. • Last years: saddened by the death of • his son • his favorite disciple, Yan Hui顏回 • both at an early age.

Confucius’s Analects • Everyday conservations between Confucius and his disciples or others • NOT systematic/logical. • Scattered passages: condense, short • commonly in text of similar period

How to read the Analects ? • Look for all passages containing the particular important words/terms. • Synthesizing the passages together for a better understanding of that words/terms • D.C. Lau & Chen Fong Ching:The ICS Ancient Chinese Texts Concordance Series, The Commercial Press (Hong Kong): 1995

Confucius’ Attitude on Traditional Heritage • Tradition heritage: foundation in Confucius’ self-cultivation/to be a “full”/ “complete” person (junzi君子) • The Shijing 詩經, The Shujing 書經, The Book of Rites/Lijing 禮記, The Book of Change 易經,The Book ofMusic 樂 • Confucius “uses the correct pronunciation for the Book of Songs (Shijing), the Book of History (Shujing) and the performance of the rites, li 禮”(A 7.18).

Confucius’ Attitude on Traditional Heritage • Set the model for later generations. • Chinese philosophers re-construct rather than revolutionize philosophies before them. • Mencius孟子 & Xunzi荀子 agree with The Analects • Add new ideas/elements Confucius • Aristotle negates Platonic teachings • proposes his new philosophy

Text: Confucius’ Attitude on Traditional Heritage • Those who learn from the tradition: “Having ascended the hall, though they may not have gained entrance to the inner chamber” (升堂矣, 未入室) (A 11.15) • i.e. achieved some progress in self-cultivation/ becoming a junzi 君子.

Shijing for Confucius • “Be stimulated by the Shijing, take one’s stand through with the help of the li, and be perfected by music” (興於詩,立於禮,成於樂) (A 8.8). • The Shijing can stimulate the imagination, endow one with breeding, enable one to live in a community, and give expression to grievances (詩,可以興,可以觀,可以群,可以怨) (A 17.9). • Quotes from the Shijing (A 1.15, 8.3, 3.8, 16.13, 17.9).

Confucius’ Attitude on Afterlife • Great impact for Chinese • Did not care/talk about life after death/ spiritual beings. • “It is man who is capable of broadening dao (the Way). It is not dao that is capable of broadening man.” (人能弘道,非道弘人)(A 15.29) • the Way (Dao) does not pre-determine human being

Confucius’ Attitude on Afterlife • Zilu子路 [a close disciple of Confucius] asked about the spirits of the dead and the gods should be served. The Master said, “You are not able even to serve man. How can you serve the spirits”(未能事人,焉能事鬼) • “May I ask about death?” (敢問死) • “You do not understand even life. How can you understand death?”(未知生,焉知死) (A 11.12)

Confucius’ Attitude on Afterlife • Fanzhi樊遲 [a disciple of Confucius] asked about zhi/wisdom. • The Master said, “To work for things the common people have a right to and to keep one’s distance from the gods and spirits of the dead while showing them reverence can be called wisdom.”(務民之義,敬鬼神而遠之,可謂知矣) (A 6.22)

Confucius’ Philosophy • 1. philosophy of life, how to become a full human being/ junzi (by self-cultivation) • 2. To have a good government and harmonious human relations.

Virtue vs. Punishment • The Master said, “Guide them by edicts, keep them in line with punishments, and the common people will stay out of trouble but will have no sense of shame. Guide them by virtue (de), keep them in line with the rites (li), they will, besides having a sense of shame, reform themselves.”(道之以政,齊之以刑,民免而無恥;道之以德,齊之以禮,有恥且格) (A 2.3) - punishment/modern law & order: what one should not do (negative aspect). • Confucius’ teachings: what one should do (positive aspect)

Confucius:Philosophy of Life • Nobility: of moral character, not a matter of blood, but of moral character. • Yan Hui (his favorite disciple): • poor • the only one: “does not lapse from ren for three months” (三月不違仁) • a junzi/full human: not for reward/success • Morality: for its own sake. • The process of self-cultivation • by learning (xue學) & reflection (think思).

Important Terms/Ideas: Cannot be translated • 1.xue學 (to “learn,” to “study by heart,” to “understand,”always includes to “act according to what you have learn”) • 2. ren仁 (“benevolent”, “authoritative”, “love”, “kindness”, “altruism”) • 3. li禮 (“rites”, “propriety”, “ceremony”, “manners”) • 4. junzi 君子 (“gentleman”, “good person”, “moral person”)

1. xue • xue 學: 65 times • e.g.: xue shi can be translated as • 1. “to study the Shijing” • * a practical application to something theoretical. • 2. “learning the Shijing by heart” • * part of the meaning but not the whole.

1. xue • xue shi學詩 • to improve one’s sensibility • to enable one to use lines from the Shijing to convey a meaning capable of a subtle interpretation. • Xue ???????? • Zixia子夏 (a disciple of Confucius) says: • “he would grant those who act and behave appropriately as schooled, even though they never received formal education (xue)” (賢賢易色;事父母,能竭其力;事君,能致其身;與朋友交,言而有信. 雖曰未學,吾必謂之學矣) (A 1.7).

1. xue • xue: long, arduous process • VERY few • Confucius- a lot of students (A 11.7) • ONLY Yan Hui truly loves learning (haoxue好學). • “After his [Hui’s] death, there is no one”(有顏回者好學,不幸短命死矣,今也則亡) (A 11.7, 6.3).

1. xue • Xue : • the process of human becoming/ self-cultivation • the development of character: the promotion of the way (dao 道) • BUT opposed to craftsmenship for specific skills/ master a trade(百工居肆以成其事,君子學以致其道) (A 19.7). • Xue :book-learning &life-learning. • Confucius: once reproved by a villager for not having mastered any specialty although he was broad in learning (博學而無所成名) (A 9.2).

1. xue • a junzi is not a “mere vessel,”(君子不器) (A 2.12) • a junzi :not a person of instrumental skills. • xue for self-cultivation vs. skills to earn a living).

1. xue • one should be concerned with how to live our lives with dao but not preoccupied with making a living • “Go and till the land and you will not end up by being hungry as a matter of course; study, and you will end up with the salary of an official as a matter of course.”(君子謀道不謀食. 耕也,餒在其中矣;學也,祿在其中矣.君子憂道不憂貧) (A 15.32). • Most: xue for fame/power/wealth

1. xue • a disciple asks: xue for an official post. • Confucius says, “if one focused on self-cultivation, an official post would come therein”(言寡尤,行寡悔,祿在其中矣) (A 2.18). • “Very difficult to find one who would study (xue) for three years without concentrating on the matter of salary” (三年學,不至於穀,不易得也)(A 8.12). • only one Yan Hui: focused on xue for the sake of self- cultivation

1. Passages on xue in the Analects • The Master says, “If one learns from others but does not think, one will be bewildered. If, on the other hand, one thinks but does not learn from others, one will be in danger.” (學而不思則罔,思而不學則殆) (A 2.15) • Zihsia [a disciple of Confucius] says, “When a man in office finds that he can more than cope with his duties, then he studies; when a student finds that he can more than cope with his studies, then he takes office.”(仕而優則學,學而優則仕) (A 19.13)

1. Passages on xue in the Analects • (A 14.24) The Master says, “Men of antiquity studied to improved themselves; men today study to impress others.”(古之學為己,今之學為人) • (A 16.9) Confucius says, “Those who born with knowledge are the highest. Next come those who attain knowledge through study/xue. Next again come those who turn to study/xue after having been vexed by difficulties. The common people, in so far as they make no effort to study/xue even after having been vexed by difficulties, are the lowest.” (生而知之者上也;學而知之者次之;困而學之,又其次也;困而不學,民斯為下矣)

2. ren 仁 • 109 times • The most important moral quality • Ren: the moral quality a junzi 君子must possess • The word was used before Confucius • but he adds complexity & moral quality to the term. • Confucius answered 6 direct questions on ren

2. ren 仁 • “If the junzi forsakes ren, wherein can he make a name for himself? The junzi never deserts ren, not even for as long as it takes to eat a meal. If he hurries and stumbles one may be sure that it is in ren that he does so.” (君子去仁,惡乎成名?君子無終食之間違仁,造次必於是,顛沛必於是) (A 4.5) • Some passages: • “the junzi” and “the renzhe”仁者(person of ren) are almost interchangeable terms. • “The junzi is free from worries and fears不憂”(A 12.4) • The renzhe is not to have worries不憂(A 9.29, 14.28).

2. ren 仁 • Confucius’ answer on ren • “Do not impose on others what you yourself do not desire” (己所不欲,勿施於人) (A 12.2). • “A renzhe helps others to take their stand [become a junzi] in that he himself wishes to take his stand, and gets others there in that he himself wishes to get there. The ability to take as analogy what is near at hand can be called the method of ren” (己欲立而立人,己欲達而達人.能近取譬,可謂仁之方也已)(A 6.30) • His answers: close to a German philosopher, Immanuel Kant’s morality and duty.

2. ren 仁 • Kant’s central notion of duty: • “universal conformity to law” • a generalized version of the Golden Rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” • “What if everyone were to do that?”

2. ren 仁 • Confucius: -“Do not impose on others what you yourself do not desire” (A 12.2). • Immanuel Kant: • - “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

2. ren 仁 • ren: “Love your fellow men”(愛人) (A 12.22)– very brief • “In guiding a state of thousand chariots…keep expenditure under proper regulation and love your fellow men; employ the labor of the common people in the right seasons”(道千乘之國,敬事而信,節用而愛人,使民以時) (A 1.5).

2. How to become ren仁? • (A 14.4) The Master says, “…A renzhe is sure to possess courage, but a courageous man does not necessarily possess ren.”(仁者必有勇,勇者不必有仁) ---a renzhe : a courageous person • (A 13.27) The Master says, “Unbending strength, resoluteness, simplicity and slowness of speech are close to be ren.”(剛,毅,木,訥近仁) ---characters close to being ren

Pre-chin Confucianism I: The Analects 論語