Philosopher, Teacher, Reformer

To many people, Confucius is no more than the setup to a one-line joke. Such as, Confucius says, “War does not determine who’s right. War determines who’s left.” Or, Confucius says, “Man with one chopstick go hungry.” Few have actually heard or read any of his teachings. Yet the truth and importance of his words resonate today when they are heard, because Confucius’ teachings developed in reaction to the times in which he lived – and our times are very much like his. That’s why Confucianism is still significant.

Confucius was a philosopher not a religious leader. Nor did he claim any special divine status (nor was any divine status claimed for him). He was a relatively ordinary person; his family was from the lesser aristocracy that had fallen on extremely hard times when he was born in 551 B.C. in the province of Lu. He was

Confucius said: “Isn’t it a pleasure to study and practice what you have learned? Isn’t it also great when friends visit from distant places? If people do not recognize me and it doesn’t bother me, am I not a Superior Man? The Superior Man still makes mistakes. The difference between him and other people is that he rectifies his errors as soon as he becomes aware of them.

Confucius had many famous sayings. I found the following one to be the most pertinent:

Since he lived in a war-torn society, Confucius was largely concerned with improving government and society. He was convinced that the problem with government and society was a lack of virtue. The qualities Confucius considered virtuous are: sincerity and a willingness to learn, minimal desire for material things, and loyalty. Other factors important in being virtuous included self-cultivation, extensive knowledge of rituals and poetry, humility, and a good grasp on

Some topics in this essay:
Fu-tzu Latin, Superior English, That’s Confucianism, Teacher Reformer, Superior Superior, divine status, confucius philosopher, government society,