In all of history, there have been a handful of individuals whose effect on human affairs was so great that it can truly be said the world would be a different place if they had not lived. Jesus Christ was one of those people, as was the Buddha. In fact, many of these central figures in history have been religious teachers or philosophers—not political leaders or conquerors—who, with few exceptions, led quiet lives.
Such was Confucius (551-479 b. c.), a scholar who earned his living as a tutor to young princes. He lived at the same time as Buddha and died not long before another worldchanging individual, the Greek philosopher Socrates. He was also a contemporary of Lao-tzu (low-DZU; c. 500s b. c.) Lao-tzu was also a Chinese philosopher, but beyond that—and the fact that he too apparently led a quiet life—the two men had little in common.
The schools of thought that Confucius and Lao-tzu founded differed greatly, yet during the Spring and Autumn Period, and later the Warring States Period, China enjoyed a
Sort of golden age in philosophy. This happened in spite of, or perhaps even because of, the turmoil that characterized those eras. Such was also true of the golden age in Greek philosophy, which likewise occurred against a backdrop of war and upheaval less than a century later.
Like Socrates (pictured), Confucius did not produce any known written works.
Corbis-Bettmann. Reproduced by permission.
Though a religion would later develop around Confucius's philosophy, his was not a spiritual teaching; instead, he taught principles of social harmony. Confucius believed that in order to achieve a stable and happy society, certain things were necessary: respect for one's elders, loyalty to family, and obedience to rulers. He praised the virtue of kings who treated their people kindly and wisely. He taught that education was the key to all improvement.
Like Socrates, Confucius did not produce any known written works, but his ideas are contained in a book called the Analects (AN-uh-lektz). Confucius died in disappointment, unaware that his ideas, which received little attention in his lifetime, would later become the basis for Chinese social organization over thousands of years. The success of Confucian thought owes much to his disciple Mencius (MIN-see-uhs; c. 370-290 B. C.), who nonetheless differed from his teacher in some significant ways.
Confucius once said, “I believe in the past and love it,” but Mencius was not such a great lover of stability and tradition. Mencius taught that people are basically good and created equal—ideas that sound remarkably like those that fueled the American Revolution in 1776 a. d. The American Declaration of Independence states that when a political system becomes too oppressive, the people are justified in revolting against it. This, too, was a principle taught by Mencius, who wrote that it was appropriate for the populace to rise up against a king who had lost the Mandate of Heaven.
In spite of the differences between the two, the ideas of Confucius and Mencius would in time come together as a philosophy that promoted ideas of mutual respect and harmony between people. Confucius's belief in a stable social order would prevail, and along the way, a religion would develop around his ideas. However, Confucianism, which is still practiced by millions of Chinese, is not a “religion” in the traditional sense. It allows followers to worship the gods of their choice. Its primary emphasis is on the Confucian principle of respect for one's elders, including ancestors.
The Chinese believed that the combination of yin and yang produced everything that existed. Archive Photos. Reproduced by permission.
A religion, Taoism (DOW-izm), would develop around the ideas of Lao-tzu. Whereas Confucius had assumed that it was essential for people to be actively engaged in the political life around them, Lao-tzu taught just the opposite. To Lao-tzu, whose name means “Master Lao,” true harmony lay within the soul, not in the social order. He believed that it was important to be at one with Nature, and this required pulling back from social affairs in order to live a life of quiet meditation. With regard to government, Lao-tzu taught that it should be small and weak and should leave its citizens alone.
Obviously, there was a great deal of difference between Confucianism and Taoism, whose principles are contained in a book, probably not written entirely by Lao-tzu, called the Tao te Ching (dow-day-KEENG) or Way of Virtue. But the two schools of thought were not at war with one another; instead, the Chinese—particularly students of yet another school, Naturalism—believed that for every force in one direction, it was right and necessary that there should be a force in the opposite direction. On the one side, there was an active, masculine force called yang; on the other, an inactive, feminine quality known as yin. The combination of yin and yang, it was believed, produced everything that existed. This concept would become central to Chinese thought.
"Invasion Tatare," battle between the Mongols and the Tatars on horseback.
Archive Photos. Reproduced by permission.
As China underwent the Warring States Period, Chinese philosophy entered what was called the “Hundred Schools” era. As its name suggests, many schools of thought flourished during that time—not only the ideas of Mencius and other followers of Confucius, but the early Taoists and many others. Among these was Mo-tzu (moh-DZU; c. 479-438 B. c.) Mo-tzu and his followers, known as Moists, urged rulers to treat their subjects kindly and encouraged the people of the warring states to look upon their enemies as their brothers.
In contrast to this gentle view of humankind was the school of thought known as Legalism, which had its origins in the teachings of the Ch'in advisor Shang Yang (fl. 350-338 B. C.; see sidebar). Whereas most of the other prominent schools of thought in China at the time held that humankind was good at heart, the Legalists believed that human nature was essentially bad. That being the case, people needed strong, harsh rulers who would keep them in line. Chief among the
Shih-huang-ti was the name Prince Cheng ruled under from 221-210 B. C.
Legalists was Han Fei-tzu (hahn fay-SOO; c. 280-233 b. c.), who wrote that “the ruler alone should possess all power.” Soon such a ruler would appear.
World History
