Confucianism Is An Eastern Asia Religion / Philosophy

Confucius, (551-479 B.C.E.) the Chinese social philosopher was best known for creating one of the

Confucianism is based upon the teaching of the Chinese philosopher Confucius. This idea focuses on bettering people and the society, educating people to be

Ever since the Han Dynasty, Confucianism has been a cornerstone in Chinese culture. Established by the scholar Confucius, this belief system focused on achieving a "…perfect society in which all people devoted themselves to fulfilling their roles… (and) all wholeheartedly did what was expected of them." (PMEA, 32) This included all individuals knowing and enacting their responsibilities in order to create a world of harmony. During the Song, Ming, and Qing Dynasties, Confucian principles, were intertwined throughout the Chinese government, culture and everyday lives of subjects. Advancements made during this timeframe allowed Confucianism to develop and grow with the Chinese population, making this belief system a mainstay in Chinese society.

Confucian philosophy is an ethical and philosophical thinking system thought to have been developed from the teachings of Kong Fuzi, known as Confucius who lived between 551–478 BC in China. [1]The essence of Confucianism is that the human mind can be cultivated through virtue and moral perfection. Confucianism has had tremendous influence on Chinese history and culture as well as other East Asian

The religion of Confucianism begins, of course, with Confucius whose Chinese name was Kong Qui and who lived from 551 B.C. to 479 B.C. Surprisingly Confucius was merely a low level government worker. He did not exactly view himself as the founder of a school of thought. Regardless, Confucianism is the most influential belief system in Chinese culture. It provides the rules which govern the social behavior of the individual. The basic teachings of Confucius are grounded in the Five Constant Virtues: humanity, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and faithfulness. Confucius went on to define five basic human relations and

Confucianism can be regarded as a religion, a belief, a way of ruling and a basis for laying the ground rules for the East Asian countries. Confucianism had gone through so many transformations and has been affected by many religions and dynasties. Many dynasties have adapted the ways of Confucianism, which state that there is a connection between humans and heaven. However, as time progressed, religions such as Buddhism and Daoism also adapted the ways of Confucianism, but they changed some of its ways, leading to new form of this learning. The Buddhists and the Daoists changed and adapted their philosophies based on Confucian views towards the universe and the society, as well as stripping their own belief from superstitions and myths. These lead to a new learning of Confucianism, called the Neo-Confucianism, referred to as Dao Xue (the Learning of the Way) or Li Xue (the Learning of the Principle/Reason) (Yau 8).

Buddhism is a religion that is practiced by millions of people across the world. It is a religion that heavily focuses on a variety of traditions, beliefs, and spiritual practices that are based on the teachings of the Buddha, also known as Siddhartha Gautama. Periodically viewed as a philosophy or a religion, the teaching of Confucius also known as Confucianism, is concerned with primarily ethnical principles; the way of life. Buddhism and Confucianism are both spiritual beliefs that sought ways to end peoples suffering across the world. For those that practice the Buddhist faith or that of Confucius can see many of the similarities and differences that both these practices share. To understand the similarities and differences one needs to be exposed to the pathways of Confucianism and Buddhism.

Confucianism is a religion which was first taught by a man named Confucius who was born in 500 BC. Some think that Confucianism shouldn't be thought of as a religion, since it doesn't teach to believe in a god, but instead to focus on human behavior. He also taught five basic ideas about how to act: to be thoughtful of others, to respect your elders, to stay calm, and to live in peace and harmony.

Confucianism has its roots in the life of the average Chinese, be it subtle or pronounced. This philosophy can be defined as a system of ethics, education, and statesmanship taught by Confucius and his disciples, stressing love for humanity, ancestor worship, reverence for parents, and harmony in thought and conduct. It is important to clarify that for the purpose of this paper Confucianism will be viewed as a philosophy and not as a Religion. A close glance at the current Chinese communities and how Chinese operate will give the impression that Confucianism has died and is no longer relevant to the way of life in China. However, a changing society has given rise to a change in the way of life; and so Confucianism has taken on a new form. In

Living in the State of Lu (Qufu City in Shandong Province) during the Spring and Warring Period (770 BC - 476 BC), Confucius was a great educationalist, ideologist and the founder of Confucianism and private schools in China. He was born on September, 8th, 551 BC. Through his righteousness, optimism and enterprising spirit he has influenced greatly the character of the Chinese people from generation to

Confucianism originated in Ancient China. It was devised by Confucius (A.K.A Kongzi) an ancient Chinese Philosopher born in 551 BC. His father was a military officer and died when Confucius was just 3 years old and was raised primarily by his Mother. He was married at 19 and had a kid, his second one was believed to have died in labor. He would collect the history of ancient china and write it down in what is called the Analects, which is where much of our knowledge of ancient china comes from. His teachings were based on the belief that humans behave ethically and had a seed of virtue. He believe all humans were naturally good until coerced and persuaded

It is amazing that after many centuries, Confucius still holds a very influential position in society and that his teachings are still being practiced within a countries culture to the extent that it has adapted to the society. Confucius is an influential Chinese philosopher and his teachings have become a guideline for people in East Asia to live their life in a certain way. Confucius beliefs focus strongly on morality and ethics for one self, but his practices have proved to become universal and this can be seen in social and political situations in East Asian countries. These ideals hold great power in political thought and the government because the practices are oftentimes used to determine how to govern the country. He had disciples

Confucius was born in an impoverished family. Throughout his childhood he was very eager to learn so his mother fostered that. He had several small positions in government in his home state, Lu. He was the first ever teacher/educationalist in the history of China. His teachings found in the Analects, discusses ethical modules family, politics, economy, and more. In his teachings he promotes humanness (ren), ritual propriety (li), and the developing of exemplary persons (Junzi). (Li pg. 87)

What is the ideal person supposed to be or do? In any religious system, this is always the paramount question. Confucianism itself is not a religion, per se, but a set of first principles of social organization and behavior, so there are no larger otherworldly implications to the Confucian plan for humanity. For Confucius, life consists of ethical principles: the central problem with humanity is anything which exacerbates human tendencies towards social disharmony. The Confucian system is one in which social order is paramount: Douglas Soccio defines Confucius not as a religious figure or philosopher per se, but as "the social sage" (Soccio 33). Confucius offers no prescriptions about deities or the afterlife, but instead gives rules of conduct in essence a manual of etiquette, which manages to raise etiquette to the level of a Kantian moral imperative which results in the larger set of ethical precepts that comprise the teachings of Confucius.

Confucianism is unique in the fact that unlike other religions, it doesn’t have a divine ruler that is worshiped by its followers. Instead, followers of Confucianism adhere to the ideas and values spread in the teachings of Confucius, a philosopher. According to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Confucius was a thinker, political figure, educator, and founder of the Ru School of Chinese Thought (Reigel, para. 1). Other than that, however, not much is known for certain about the life of Confucius, as most of his works were not widespread until after his death. It is thought that he was born, possibly out of wedlock, to a poor family in the state of Lu in 551 BCE. It was there that he endured a poverty-stricken youth, and was forced