The fashion for everything Chinese appears in Europe from time to time, starting from the 17th century. This is especially true for philosophical views. It seems to some that it was in the Celestial Empire that all the best was born than human culture is rich, others overthrow these views, arguing that a country isolated from the outside world was not able to create anything of value.
The sayings of Confucius are often quoted as an argument during debates, not always philosophical ones. They are concise, concise, easy to remember, really suitable for many cases as an illustration of a wide variety of situations: everyday, political, and even economic.
Who was Confucius? His sayings are collected in the only book "Conversations and Judgments" (or "Lun Yu"), written by his students. Therefore, the sage was a teacher.
Kung Fu Tzu (something like the name of Confucius in the original sounds, there are other transcription options Kung Qiu, Kung Tzu, Kung Fu Tzu) was born a very long time ago (about 551 BC) and very far away, in the ancient Chinese kingdom of Lu (Shandong province in the east of modern China).
The word "Zi" means "teacher". Such a prefix at the age of twenty was not easy to earn, but Confucius succeeded. An illegitimate descendant of a noble official and his concubine, he lived his childhood carefree, but after the death of his father he had to think about his daily bread. At first, Kong Qiu tried the path of an official, but he did not like it. The sayings of Confucius concerning matters of government appear to be based on his personal experience. So, he explained the successful implementation of government orders by their reasonableness, and the disobedience of subjects - by the lack thereof.
Kun Qiu's desire for self-improvement and education came to light at a young age. Some sayings of Confucius are autobiographical. So, the philosopher recalls that when he was 15 years old, he wanted to learn, at 30 he established himself in his aspiration, at 40 he got rid of doubts, at 50 he realized that such was the will of heaven, at 60 he learned to listen, and only at 70 he knew measure when following the dictates of the heart.
Catholic researchers have repeatedly tried to draw parallels between the teachings of the ancient Chinese sage and religious dogmas. The sayings of Confucius really echo the Old Testament rules. So, to the student’s question about the expediency of responding good to evil deeds, he answered: “And then how to respond to good?” But Kung Fu Tzu did not create his own religion, although theosophical attributes were attributed to his teaching, and even the name was invented - "Confucianism".
Knowing yourself and the world around you,man understands his place. One should not seek glory, one should strive to comprehend people. Only an uncorrected error remains an error. In order to rightfully be called a teacher, one must cherish the old, but also look for the new. "Three years follow the father's path after his death, this is the honoring of the parents." These and other sayings of Confucius about life seemed too simple-hearted to the inhabitants of his village, they obviously wanted to hear something more ornate, worthy of a teacher and philosopher, and he reserved phrases that were more complex in perception for the imperial ears.
Kung Fu Tzu introduced special concepts into the philosophical vocabulary, each of which denoted a whole spectrum expressing the essence of relations with the outside world. He considered the search for an unshakable middle to be the most important task facing a person throughout life.
