K'ung Fu Tzu (commonly pronounced Confucius in English) was born in 551
BCE in the
state of Lu (modern day Shantung Province). He lived during the Chou dynasty, an era
known for its moral laxity. Later in life, he wandered through many states of China,
giving advice to their rulers. He accumulated a small band of students during this time.
The last years of his life were spent back in Lu, where he devoted himself to teaching.
He died about 479 BCE at the approximate age of 72.
His writings deal primarily with individual morality and ethics, and the proper
exercise of political power by the rulers.
In China, and some other areas in Asia, the social ethics and moral teachings of
Confucius are blended with the Taoist communion with nature and Buddhist concepts of the afterlife, to form a set of
complementary, peacefully co-existent and ecumenical religions.
There are approximately 6 million Confucians in the world. About 26,000 live in North
America; almost all of the remainder are found throughout China and the rest of Asia.
Beliefs:
Confucian ethical teachings include the following values:
Li: includes ritual, propriety, etiquette, etc.
Hsiao: love within the family: love of parents for their children and of children
for their parents
Yi: righteousness
Xin: honesty and trustworthiness
Jen: benevolence, humaneness towards others; the highest Confucian virtue
Chung: loyalty to the state, etc.
Practices:
Confucianism does not contain all of the elements of some other religions, like
Christianity and Islam. It is primarily an ethical system to which rituals at important
times during one's lifetime have been added.
Since the time of the Han dynasty (206 CE) four life passages have been recognized and
regulated by Confucian tradition:
birth: The T'ai-shen (spirit of the fetus) protects the expectant woman
and deals harshly with anyone who harasses the mother to be. A special procedure is
followed when the placenta is disposed of. The mother is given a special diet and is
allowed rest for a month after delivery. The mother's family of origin supplies all the
items required by the baby on the first, fourth and twelfth monthly anniversary of the
birth.
reaching maturity: This life passage is no longer being celebrated, except in
traditional families. It takes the form of a group meal in which the young adult is served
chicken.
marriage: This is performed in six stages:
Proposal: the couple exchange the eight characters: the year, month, day and hour
of each of their births. If any unpropitious event occurs within the bride-to-be's family
during the next three days, then the woman is believed to have rejected the proposal.
Engagement: after the wedding day is chosen, the bride announces the wedding with
invitations and a gift of cookies made in the shape of the moon.
Dowry: This is carried to the groom's home in a solemn procession. The bride-price is
then sent to the bride by the groom's parents. Gifts by the groom to the bride, equal in
value to the dowry, are sent to her.
Procession: The groom visits the bride's home and brings her back to his place, with
much fanfare.
Marriage and Reception: The couple recite their vows, toast each other with wine, and
then take center stage at a banquet.
Morning after: The bride serves breakfast to the groom's parents, who then reciprocate.
death: At death, the relatives cry out aloud to inform the neighbors. The family
starts mourning and puts on clothes made of a coarse material. The corpse is washed and
placed in a coffin. Mourners bring incense and money to offset the cost of the funeral.
Food and significant objects of the deceased are placed into the coffin. A Buddhist or
Taoist priest (or even a Christian minister) performs the burial ritual. Friends and
family follow the coffin to the cemetery, along with a willow branch which symbolizes the
soul of the person who has died. The latter is carried back to the family altar where it
is used to "install" the spirit of the deceased. Liturgies are performed on the
7th, 9th, 49th day after the burial and on the first and third anniversaries of the death.
Schools of Confucianism
There are six schools: Han Confucianism, Neo-Confucianism, Contemporary
Neo-Confucianism, Korean Confucianism, Japanese Confucianism and Singapore Confucianism.
Sacred Texts
These were assembled by Chu Hsi (1130-1200 CE) during the Sung dynasty. They
include:
The Si Shu or Four Books:
The Lun Yu the Analects of Confucius
The Chung Yung or the Doctrine of the Mean
The Ta Hsueh or the Great Learning
The Meng Tzu the writings of Meng Tzu (371-289 BCE) a philosopher who, like
Confucius, traveled from state to state conversing with the government rulers
The Wu Jing or Five Classics:
Shu Ching or Classic of History: writings and speeches from ancient Chinese
rulers
The Shih Ching or Classic of Odes: 300 poems and songs
The I Ching or Classic of Changes: the description of a divinitory system
involving 64 hexagrams. The hexagrams are symbols composed of broken and continuous lines;
one is selected to foretell the future based on the casting of 49 sticks.
The Ch'un Ch'iu or Spring and Autumn Annals: a history of the state of Lu from
722 to 484 BCE.
The Li Ching or Classic of Rites: a group of three books on the LI the
rites of propriety
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References:
H.G. Creel, "Confucius and the Chinese Way", Harper, New York
P.J. Ivanhoe, "Confucian Moral Self Cultivation", Peter Lang, New York
(1993).
J.R. Hinnells, "The Penguin Dictionary of Religions", Penguin Books,
New York (1984), P. 94-96
J.R. Hinnells, "A Handbook of Living Religions", Penguin Books, New
York (1985), P. 344-364
The Confucius Publishing Company has published the full text of the
Lun Yu (499 sayings) and other quotations from Confucius. See:
http://www.confucius.org/main01.htm
