Isagani V.

Deslate
Asian Religions
PhD in Religious Studies
Dr. Gervais Karumathy

CONFUCIANISM

Jesus said, “Therefore whatever you desire for men to do to you, you shall also do to them.”

(Matthew 7:12)

Interestingly, around five centuries before Jesus was born Confucius already said almost the

same thing, although stated in a negative or prohibitive form:1

“Do not do to others what you do not want done to yourself." (Analects 15:23, 6:28)

Confucius is the man behind Confucianism. Confucianism was developed from his teachings and

philosophy. It is considered one of the major historical religions (Tu Weiming, 2019).

Confucianism is described more as a tradition, a philosophy, a humanistic or rationalistic

religion, a way of governing, or simply a way of life (Yao, 2000, 38–47) rather than a religion in

the traditional sense.

Strictly speaking, "Confucianism" is a Western term and there is no term in Chinese which

directly corresponds to it (Tu Weiming, 2019).

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It is also found in Hinduism (Mahabarata, 13th cent. BC), Zoroastrianism (12th cent. BC), Buddhism (6th cent. BC),
Jainism (c. 6th century BC)

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CONFUCIUS AND HIS TIMES (Berling, Fall 1982, 5)

The founder of Confucianism is Master Kong (551-479 B.C.) (Wright, 2011, 767). The

name "Confucius" is a Latinized form of the Mandarin Chinese "Kǒng Fūzǐ" meaning "Master

Kǒng", and was coined in the late 16th century by the early Jesuit missionaries to China.

He was born in the district of Zou. The area was controlled by the kings of Zhou dynasty but

effectively independent under the local dukes of Lu. In Confucius’ time the Zhou royal authority

over the various feudal states started to decline, as more and more dukes and noblemen

obtained de facto regional autonomy, defying the king's court in Luoyi, the eastern capital, and

waging wars among themselves. It was a period of successive social upheavals.

Many people thought the ancient system of religious rule was bankrupt; why couldn't the gods

prevent the social upheavals? The burning issue of the day was: if it is not the ancestral and

nature spirits, what then is the basis of a stable, unified, and enduring social order?

The dominant view of the day, espoused by “Realists” and “Legalists”, was that strict law and

statecraft, that is, the skilful management of state affairs, were the bases of sound policy.

Confucius’ teachings ran against the grain of the mind set of his day. Confucius believed that

the basis lay in the unnamed religion of the Zhou dynasty, in its rituals. He interpreted these not

as sacrifices asking for the blessings of the gods, but as ceremonies performed by human agents

and embodying the civilized and cultured patterns of behaviour developed through generations

of human wisdom. They embodied, for him, the ethical core of Chinese society.

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Moreover, Confucius applied the term "ritual" to actions beyond the formal sacrifices and

religious ceremonies to include social rituals: courtesies and accepted standards of behaviour -

what we today call social mores. He saw these time-honoured and traditional rituals as the

basis of human civilization, and he felt that only a civilized society could have a stable, unified,

and enduring social order (Berling, Fall 1982, 5).

PHILOSOPHY OF CONFUCIUS/CONFUCIANISM

The Chinese world view is expressed in the Yin-Yang principle. The principle is present in

all two religious traditions: Confucianism and Taoism. The Yin-Yang principle is based on the

idea that opposites which may appear to be against each other actually belong to and

complement each other: heaven-earth, male-female, hot-cold, good-evil, light-dark, dry-moist,

the living-the dead, personal- social, and the like.

The general meaning is that the circle represents a whole, while the halves and dots depict

opposites, interactions, or balance.

The philosophy of Confucius, also known as Confucianism, emphasized personal and

governmental morality, familial and social relationships, obligations to kings and fathers.

One of the keys, if not the key, to understanding Confucianism is to grasp the existential point

of Confucius’ teaching. Confucianism transcends the dichotomy between religion and

humanism, considering the ordinary activities of human life—and especially human

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relationships—as a manifestation of the sacred (Confucianism, 2019). He sees the holiness of

human existence, the sacredness of the secular. He sees the humanity as a holy rite (Fingarette,

1972, 1-7).

Thus, although Confucianism is often followed in a religious manner by the Chinese,

Confucianism is often characterized as a system of social and ethical philosophy rather than a

religion. It was what sociologist Robert Bellah called a "civil religion," (Bella, 1975) the sense of

religious identity and common moral understanding at the foundation of a society's central

institutions. It is also what a Chinese sociologist called a "diffused religion". Its institutions were

not a separate church, but those of society, family, school, and state. Its priests were not

separate liturgical specialists, but parents, teachers, and officials. Confucianism was part of the

Chinese social fabric and way of life. To Confucians, everyday life was the arena of religion

(Berling, Fall 1982, 5).

Confucians believe that starting from individual and family, people acting rightly could reform

and perfect the society. This is expressed in The Great Learning, one of the “scriptures” of

Confucianism:

Only when things are investigated is knowledge extended; only when knowledge is
extended are thoughts sincere; only when thoughts are sincere are minds rectified; only
when minds are rectified are the characters of persons cultivated; only when character
is cultivated are our families regulated; only when families are regulated are states well
governed; only when states are well governed is there peace in the world. (Berling,
1992, 5-7)

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The Analects, a collection of Confucius’ wise sayings and teachings, 2 in certain respects, does

indeed represent the world of a humanist but one who is, at the same time, sufficiently

traditional to render a pragmatic homage to the spirits, when necessary.

“Devote yourself to man’s duties,” says the Master, “respect spiritual beings but keep distance”

(6:20). He matched his precept with his practice, as he himself “never talked of wonders or

sensations, feats of strength, disorders, or spirits” (7:20). In direct answer to a question about

the transcendental and supernatural, he replied, “Until you are able to serve men, how can you

serve a spiritual being? Until you know about life, how can you know about death?” (11:11)

THE TEACHINGS OF CONFUCIUS ABOUT LIFE

The main teachings of Confucius about life may be summed up in three virtues.

1. Benevolence

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THE SCRIPTURES OF CONFUCIANISM (Brown, 1991, 90-91)
Confucius and his disciples collected and interpreted the writings of Chinese philosophers and teachers before them. Later,
the disciples of Confucius compiled the sayings of the great teacher himself. These two constitute the Scriptures of
Confucianism.
1. The Five Classics
a. The Book of Changes (Yi Ching). A manual of divination.
b. The Book of History (Shu Ching). A moral and religious narrative which teaches that Heaven blesses only virtuous
rulers with peace and prosperity.
c. The Book of Songs (Shih Ching). A collection of short poems from the Chou period in which Confucius lived.
d. The Book of Rites (Li Ki). A code of rules about worship and social and family relationships.
e. The Annals of Spring and Autumn. A record of events in the state of Lu over 100 yers
2. The Four Books
a. The Analects. Sayings of Confucius compiled by his disciples.
b. The Mencius. Sayings of his most prominent successor, Mencius, who made commentaries of Confucius’ sayings.
c. The Doctrine of the Mean and
d. The Great Learning. Parts of the treatises of the Book of Rites.

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The central idea of Confucian ethic is found in one sentence found in The Great Learning. It

describes the goal of life as the discovery of “the way of cultivating the self, managing one’s

household, governing the nation, and establishing world peace.”

Confucianism teaches that there are five virtues: Benevolence, Righteousness, Propriety,

Wisdom, and Trustworthiness (Confucianism, 2019). The greatest is Benevolence (Jen).

Confucius did not give a definition of the virtues. He merely described the virtue in action.

Chung Kung, a disciple, asked, “What is Benevolence?”

The Master replied, “…to treat people as though we were attending a high sacrifice; not to

do unto others what we would not that they should do unto us; to breed no wrongs in the

state and breed no wrongs in the home.” (Analects XII, 2)

Fan Chih asked: “What is Benevolence?”

The Master replied, “To love mankind.” (Analects XII, 22)

Tzu-chang asked Confucius about benevolence. Confucius said, 'There are five things and

whoever is capable of putting them into practice in the Empire is certainly "benevolent".'

'May I ask what they are?' 'They are respectfulness, tolerance, trustworthiness in word,

quickness and generosity. If a man is respectful he will not be treated with disrespect. If he

is tolerant he will win the multitude. If he is trustworthy in word his fellow men will entrust

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 him with responsibility. If he is quick he will achieve results. If he is generous he will be good

enough to be put in a position over his fellow men.' (Brown, 1975, 91)

2. Filial Piety (The respect of a son to his father)

In Confucianism the family is given importance as the basic unit of society. It is recognized

as the foundation of the entire political and social structure of society.

Confucianism teaches that there are five basic human relationships: ruler and subject;

father and son; husband and wife; elder and younger; and friend and friend. Out of these

five, three have to do with the family. In the family the father-son relationship is the

foundation of all others and depends upon the sons’ proper respect for his father. This sort

of respect is the keystone of the Confucian teaching about behaviour. In China, even the

loyalty to the ruler is understood in this way (Brown, 1975, 92).

It is believed that a country would be well governed when all the parties performed their

parts aright in these relationships. (Confucianism, 2019)

The duties of a son have two dimensions: physical and spiritual. To fulfil his physical duties,

a son should pay due attention to the physical needs of his parents, care for his own body as

a legacy from received form his ancestors, and should rear his children to provide for the

family continuity. To fulfil his spiritual obligations, son should obey his parents, remember

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 them after death by annual sacrifices (food, incense, flowers, candles)3, and win success and

honour to bring glory to the family name (Brown, 1975, 92).

3. Optimism

It is attitude to life which believes that everything is basically good and that things will

become better in the future, not worse. Mencius believes that evil is due to environment or

to education. This was the basis of Confucian optimism in ethics.

Chu-Hsi, the founder of Neo-Confucianism, taught that people’s appearances differ but the

basic nature of all people is the same. They all possess a good nature. Unenlightened people

are those who fail to allow their basic nature to be revealed. That is why, according to Chu-

His, Great Learning is important. (Brown, 1975, 92).

THE CULT OF CONFUCIUS

Confucius never intended to found a religion. However, he became more famous after

his death. In the 5th century A.D. a temple was erected at the site of Confucius’ tomb. This was

the beginning of Confucianism as a religion in China. In 630 the emperor of the Tang dynasty

made a decree that all districts in the empire build temples to Confucius. Thus spread the cult

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The tablet, upon which the names of the dead ancestors are written, occupies the most important place of the
house for four generations. The manner and time of offering may vary but a basic pattern can be observed: the
head of the house lights three sticks of incense and places them in the incense burner; he then blows three times
and asks for a blessing. Formal offerings are made on the birth and death anniversary of the departed. The most
important offerings are on the last day and first day of the year, when the whole family gathers together. This is
the reunion of the living and the dead.

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of Confucius in China. Confucianism was established as a state religion of China in the 2nd

century BC and held this position until 1912 when the dynastic rule of China came to an end.

From the time it became a state religion people gave Confucius the title of Supreme Saint, and

worshipped him at annual ceremonies (Brown, 1975, 94).

The custom of building temples in his honour continued up until now. The Chinese never made

him a god, but respected him as their great teacher and sage. In due time, however, the

Chinese gave such reverence and devotion to the memory of Confucius that it gradually

became like a religion. (Brown, 1975, 90) 4

SYMBOLS OF CONFUCIANISM

There are four main symbols that represent the beliefs and views of Confucianism. These

include: "Confucius", the Chinese character for water, the Chinese character for scholar, and Yin

Yang.

1. The symbol for Confucius represents the man who was behind the religion, as he is one of, if

not the most important person to come from this religion.

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"Neo-Confucianism" is the name commonly applied to the revival of the various strands of Confucian philosophy
and political culture that began in the middle of the 9th century and reached new levels of intellectual and social
creativity in the 11th century in the Northern Song Dynasty. The first phase of the revival of the Confucian tradition
was completed by the great philosopher Zhu Xi (1130-1200) and became the benchmark for all future Confucian
intellectual discourse and social theory. Especially after the Song, the Neo-Confucian movement included
speculative philosophers, painters, poets, doctors, social ethicists, political theorists, historians, local reformers
and government civil servants. By the 14th Century Zhu's version of Confucian thought, known as daoxue or the
teaching of the way or lixue or the teaching of principle, became the standard curriculum for the imperial civil
service examination system. The Neo-Confucian dominance of the civil service continued until the whole
system was abolished in 1905.

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2. The second symbol is the Chinese character for water, for water is one of the five elements

of Chinese philosophy. Water is viewed as a life source, which most likely comes from its

importance in the natural world in sustaining life.

3. The third symbol, the Chinese character for scholar, is made for the importance of

knowledge and self-awareness. In the Chinese language, the character rú 儒 meaning

"scholar" or "learned" or "refined man" is generally used both in the past and the present to

refer to things related to Confucianism. It is composed of 人 rén ("man"), 雨 yǔ ("rain",

"instruction") and 而 ér ("sky"). Its full meaning is "man receiving instruction from Heaven"

(Yao, 2000, 19). Thus, Confucianism is also known as Ruism (Confucianism, 2019). Confucius

believed one could never have too much knowledge, and the idea of an education has

become very important in Chinese culture today.

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4. The final symbol, Yin Yang, is common in other forms of Chinese religion, and has different

meanings. The general meaning is that the circle represents a whole, while the halves and

dots depict opposites, interactions, or balance.

CONFUCIANISM TODAY

Unlike Taoism, Communists have severely criticized Confucianism. Mao Tze-Tung, the

leader of Communist party considered that honouring Confucius and reading the Confucian Five

Classics are parts of the feudal culture which must be overthrown (Brown, 1975, 96)

While China has seen many changes in its government, Confucianism has remained the ruling

religion in China for more than 2,000 years. It is difficult to remove Confucianism from Chinese

culture and the Chinese way of life. Although transformed over time, it is still the substance of

learning, the source of values, and the social code of the Chinese (Tu Weiming, 2019). In

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contemporary China Confucianism is combined with patriotism and nationalism, making it a

“civil religion” (Dessein, 2014, 39)

Its influence has also extended outside of China to other countries, particularly Korea, Japan,

Vietnam (Tu Weiming, 2019) and Taiwan. It is practiced by the Chinese diaspora. It is very

difficult to get an accurate figure of how many people practice Confucianism. Nevertheless,

there are an estimated 6.3 million followers of Confucianism worldwide, mostly located in

China and Korea (Wright, 2011, 767).

ASSESSMENT AND REFLECTION

In my personal assessment Confucianism has both strength and a weakness. Let me cite and

explain each one.

In comparison to Confucianism, Filipino spirituality is largely sef-centered and dichotomized. It

is self-centered because it mostly focused on one’s relationship to God and sees no relationship

between his faith and transformation of society. As Redemptorist theologian Karl Gaspar

observed, it is not yet “transformative”. Filipino spirituality is also largely dichotomized

because one’s religious behaviour is not consistent with one’s social behaviour. Eminent Jesuit

psychologist and priest, Fr. Jaime Bulatao SJ calls this “split-level Christianity”. This is where we

can learn from Confucianism. Confucius’ philosophy was formulated to address a pressing social

reality during his time- successive wars between contending dynasties. No wonder it is

considered as a worldview, a social ethic, a political ideology, a scholarly tradition, and a way of

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life. It does not have a truncated and fragmented view of life. One’s spirituality must impinge

upon and affect change on one’s social milieu.

In contrast to Confucianism, the Christian scriptures while human beings were created good,

they have fallen. Sin has tainted the very nature of human beings. Education will not be enough

to bring the good in them. History reminds us that even the most educated succumbed to the

lure of lust, greed and power. Man needs a redeemer beyond and more powerful than himself

to change him from the inside out.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bellah, R. N. (1975). The Broken Covenant: American Civil Religion in a Time of Trial. Seabury
Press, New York.

Berling, J. (Fall 1982). Asian Religions: Confucianism. Focus on Asian Studies, Vol. II, No. 1, 5-7.

Brown, D. A. (1975). A Guide to Religions. SPCK TEF Study Guide 12. New Day Publishers,
Manila.

Confucius. (2019). Confucius. Retrieved 22 May, 2019, from https ://en.wikipedia.org/

wiki/Confucius

Confucianism. (2019). Confucianism. Retrieved 15 May, 2019, from https://en.wikipedia.

org/wiki/Confucianism

Dessein, B. (2014). Faith and Politics: (New) Confucianism as Civil Religion. Asian Studies, 2(1),
39-64. Retrieved 3 March 2019, from https://doi.org/10.4312/as.2014.2.1. 39-64

Fingarette, H. (1972) Confucius - The Secular as Sacred, New York: Harper and Row.

Huang, Chun-Chieh (2014). Humanism in East Asian Confucian Contexts. Asian Studies II (XVIII),
1 pp. 195–197.

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Ivanhoe, Philip J., Sungmoon Kim, eds. (2016). Confucianism, A Habit of the Heart: Bellah, Civil
Religion, and East Asia. State University of New York Press, Albany.

Tu Weiming. (2019). Encyclopaedia Britannica. Retrieved 22 May, 2019, from

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Confucianism/Transformation-since-the-19th-century

Wright, J.. (2011). The New York Times Guide to Essential Knowledge. St. Martin’s Press. New
York.

Yao, Xinzhong (2000). An Introduction to Confucianism. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.

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