Confucianism Philosophical System - Coursework Example

Confucianism Introduction Confucianism is an ethical and philosophical system that has significantly influenced the structure of East Asian society.It is originally developed by Confucius in approximately the 5th century B.C.in China and since has spread throughout Korea, Taiwan, and Vietnam. It continues to have contemporary relevance throughout these East Asian countries, functioning as a significant philosophical system most prominently within South Korea. There is a debate, nevertheless, on whether Confucianism should be considered one of the worlds religions. Confucianism lacks significant explanation of either death or an afterlife and is behaviorally hard to distinguish from a mere ethical institution. It is possible that some of these shortcomings in the Confucian viewpoint can be explained, and perhaps a better understanding of religion may be gained in the process. In gaining a more thorough understanding of this philosophical system, this essay considers the fundamental concepts of Confucianism, specifically ultimate reality, the nature of the self, death, and ethics. Ultimate Reality In determining the ultimate reality of Confucian philosophy, one must grasp the Confucian concept of the Way. In this regards, it’s necessary to distinguish between the popular Taoist understanding of the Way and the Confucian version. Indeed, while Confucianism and Taoism share many traits in common, they differ on the fundamental way in which they understand how one accesses the Way. While Confucians require us to discriminate the Way in human affairs and follow it, Lao Tzu tells us to forget the way, and then we will be following it. Both Confucianism and Taoism demonstrate a fundamental concern with giving one’s life to self-cultivation rather than abstract theological ideals, yet they differ in the means that they understand how this is best accomplished. (Makeham 2003) The Taoist believed that the ultimate reality was attained through an intuitive understanding of the Way of the universe. In this formulation they excluded man made forms of morality and ethics, and other human created structures. For Confucianism, the goal was to develop a more objective structure of how one should live their lives. In this sense they were directly opposite philosophies on how best to structure one’s existence. While Taoism believed in giving way to the flow of existence, Confucianism sought to engage directly and tamper with life. Confucianism believed in developing objective standards of how one should progress with their existence. They worked towards educating others with specific elements or signposts of how one should structure their life. For instance, Confucius writes, “Do not look at, do not listen to, do not speak of, do not do whatever is contrary to ritual propriety.” (12.1) In this regards, Confucianism, while developing its own belief system, is greatly in-line with developing proscriptive forms of morality. They believe in working directly with established orders of morality and attempting to engage and shape them. With its proscriptive formulations on morality, filial respect, and strong family relations, Confucianism has become greatly embraced by state governments, and continues to be a prominent belief system in South Korea. Conversely, Taoism would never be co-opted by such a government structure as forgetting the Way to grasp it means that one should forget the proscriptive moral and ethical emphases of these institutions and instead find virtue and morality within the intuitive understanding the Tao. "The Way" then, is the term for the general pattern or order in the universe. One who lives his life according to "the Way" is said to be a gentleman, or the normative ideal for a human being. Humans, according to Neo-Confucian philosopher Mencius, are also born with latent inclinations on how to behave and act. When these inclinations, or "seeds/sprouts", are properly "cultivated" the individual is said to be living according to the Way. (Makeham 2003) While this concept of the Way is removed from heavy handed theistic god entities, there are elements of Confucian philosophy that are interrelated with traditional Chinese concept of theism. Confucianism has evolved significantly since its emergence in 5th century China. As it reemerged within Enlightenment thought, writers tended to deemphasize the original theistic concepts for the philosophy’s more humanistic morality concerns. In reality, Confucius’ original understanding of the ultimate reality was closely related to his belief in a theodicy. (Creel 1935) During Confucius’ time the Chinese believed in an ultimate god figure referred to as the Shangdi, later referred to as Tian. Indeed, throughout the Analects there is a significant concern shown to the proper ways to integrate the Confucian moral philosophy with the theistic understanding of Tian. Confucius states, “There is no one who recognizes me…. I neither resent Heaven nor blame humanity. In learning about the lower I have understood the higher. The one who recognizes me – wouldn’t that be Heaven?” (Confucius 14.35) In this regards, the ultimate reality of traditional Confucianism must be understood in terms of this Tian god concept. The Nature of Self One of the main tenants of Confucian philosophy is that the individual should strive to self-cultivation. "Kung-tu Tzu asked, Though equally human, why are some men greater than others? He who is guided by the interests of the parts of his person that are of greater importance is a great man; he who is guided by the interests of the parts of his person that are of smaller importance is a small man." (Mencius 168) Confucianism, shown in these instances, undoubtedly accounts for some possible level of human perfection attained through effort. This notion seems compatible with the common religious goal of a full and virtuous life. In these regards, the Confucian nature of the self is closely related to ethics and moral standards. When considering the overarching nature of the Confucian understanding of the self the understanding of the importance of ethical standards is closely related. Western philosophy as most prominently evident in Descartes’ cogito ergo sum (I think, therefore I am) roots the self concept within introspection; conversely, Confucian philosophy understands the nature of the self as externally established. Within Confucian philosophy the concept of self is not so directly related to the establishment of reason, but is an entity that is established through one’s relation to the family and society. In discussing this relation between Western and Confucian concepts of self, Ames (Ammes 1994, pg. 187) (a seminal Confucian writer) states, "It is often said that the western conception of self is "individualistic", perhaps excessively so. But insofar as this refers to the obvious, namely the physical discernibly of individual human beings and some rudimentary awareness that "I feel this and you don’t" (and vice versa), it is hard to understand what all the fuzz is about. How could people not be individualistic?" In any regards, it’s clear that the Confucian concept of self is greatly deemphasized when compared to the Western conceptions. Although the Confucian concept of self is greatly deemphasized when compared to the Western concept, there is still an understanding of ego and other self like formulations. This is a greatly misunderstood concept in regards to Confucian philosophy, as many believe that within Confucian philosophy there is no belief in the self concept. What seems to be more closely accurate, however, is that although Confucianism believes that the self concept is deleterious to moral living, it is nonetheless a necessary element of human existence. It is this self-concept that individuals, through adherence to Confucian moral virtues, should strive to eliminate. The individual that is in adherence with the supreme moral virtues then lives a life with a reduced ego or concept of self. (Ames 1994) Even as Confucianism understands the self, in terms of ego, as deleterious to the moral life, there is still the acknowledgement that the self exists. Rather than a permanently fixed concept of self, as one might find in some Western psychological theory, the Confucian concept of self is more closely aligned with self as understood through personality. This personality then is not a static element of the universe, but an entity that must be constantly shaped and formed through adherence to Confucian moral standards. Even speaking of the Confucian self in terms of an ego concept, or soul, is a slightly erroneous understanding; Confucianism believes that there is no such entity. (Makeham 2003) The closest Confucian philosophy comes to such a Western concept of ego is through the concept of the four beginnings. The four beginnings include: heart of compassion which leads to Jen, the heart of righteousness which leads to Yi, the heart of propriety which leads to Li, and the heart of wisdom which leads to Chih. These self-concepts are not directly parallel to the Western understanding of ego, but are better understood as a sort of pre-self. In this regards, one can envision the four beginnings as impure and transitory elements of existence that the individual must strive to overcome through adhere to the Confucian moral virtues. Ultimately, then it seems that the Confucian concept of self cannot be understood in terms of any Western conceptions but must be grasped as an entirely new concept that is closely related to a sort of transitory becoming. That is, the Confucian self is merely a transitory element of personality that the individual must strive, through adherence to Confucian virtues, ultimately strive eliminate within the external communion with the family and society. Death The Confucian account of death may appear to be of no great concern, but this account underscores an important element of Confucian philosophy. Confucianism, unlike most religions, is not as concerned with death, and instead is focused on how individuals lead their lives. "Whether he is going to die young or to live to a ripe old age makes no difference to his steadfastness of purpose. It is through awaiting whatever is to befall him with a perfected character that he stands firm on his proper destiny." (Mencius 182) This passage epitomizes the relation between life and death in Confucianism. This passage does not indicate, however, that death has no meaning or purpose. Death is used in more than one example as a form of extreme punishment, which leads one to believe that it is undesirable to some extent. Within a Confucian context, death is not undesirable because of what one may experience afterward, instead it is undesirable because one wants to fulfill ones destiny. "Life is what I want; dutifulness is also what I want. If I cannot have both, I would rather take dutifulness than life. On the one hand, though life is what I want, there is something I want more than life. That is why I do not cling to life at all costs." (Mencius 166) Mencius reveals that what he desires more than death is rather to exist as a "perfected character" and within his "proper destiny." These Confucian "values" are similar to many world religions, and their attainment is a goal for many, also. The distinction between the Confucian model for behavior and an ethical one is a counterexample to the criticism that Confucianism is merely a moral view, as it indicates there is significant attention paid to the question of death. Mencius spends little time on the issue of pain and suffering, but nevertheless, has an opinion on the subject. "There is neither good nor bad fortune which man does not bring upon himself. The Book of Odes says, Long may he be worthy of Heavens Mandate And seek for himself much good fortune. The Tai Chia says, When Heaven sends down calamities, There is hope of weathering them; When man brings them upon himself, There is no hope of escape. This describes what [Mencius has] said." (Mencius 81) Mencius states clearly that the individual is at fault for the suffering that he incurs, and that Heaven, though not the western sense of heaven, is the deliverer of suffering. Heaven in this sense is not similar to a god issuing a punishment, but instead Heaven is part of the cosmos that includes the individual, and the suffering is an indirect result of not following the Way. Ethics One of the most central and fundamental concerns of Confucianism is the question of ethics. As a result, for Confucianism there is a well established and highly structured vision of ethical conduct. In the case of Confucianism, actions are right/good for behavior because of the relation to "the Way" discovered by the sage kings, Yau and Shun. Yau and Shun were said to have a complete cosmic understanding. Confucianism uses the example of the "village honest man" to draw this particular distinction between the religious (Confucian) man and the man whose outward behavior may be ethical. “If a man is praised for his honesty in his village,” said Wan Tzu, “then he is an honest man wherever he goes. Why did Confucius consider such a man an enemy of virtue? If you want to censure him, you cannot find anything; if you want to find fault with him, you cannot find anything either.” This shows the strong emphasis Confucian ethics places on one’s relation with society. (Ames 1994) Also, familial and interpersonal relations are an important part of ones character and, in turn, part of the Way. An individual who chooses to have nothing to do with society must be deficient in his relations to other individuals, and thus, not following the Way. Not following the Way, as previously shown, can have consequences. Similarly, one’s relation to the family is an extremely important entity within Confucian thought. Not only is one’s familial duty and involvement understood as essential ethical characteristics, but filial piety is also understood as a central element of the philosophical system. Indeed, filial piety is considered to be one of the most important virtues within Confucian thought, and even necessitates that piety be shown towards deceased relatives. (Makeham 2003) Conclusion In conclusion, it’s clear that Confucianism is a complex philosophical system with religious elements. The principle points of Confucian philosophy center on striving for perfection individually, within the family, within the larger society, and in government. These were so called moral values relating to the state of man. When Confucius was still under the age of 50, he was conscious of "ordinary" moral values and realized the importance of constructing an entirely unique moral and ethical system. Confucianism has provided many problems for individuals attempting to find concrete answers in religion. What is hard to see is that religion is somewhat of a pluralism, different answers for different people in different situations, yet the core of Confucianism is understood as strict adherence to Confucian virtues. While Confucianism provided a basis for behavior and thought that fit that particular time and place, as shown in the length of time that Confucianism was one of the prominent religions in China, it’s clear that its moral precepts are still important to the structure of society as the philosophical system remains prevalent throughout much of East Asia. References Ames, Roger T. “The Focus-Field Self in Classical Confucianism,” in Self as Person in Asian Theory and Practice, ed. Roger T. Ames (Albany: State University of New York Press, 1994), 187-212. Creel, Herrlee G. “Was Confucius Agnostic?” T’oung Pao 29 (1935). Legge, James, trans. Confucius — Confucian Analects, The Great Learning, and the Doctrine of the Mean. New York: Dover Publications, 1971. Legge, James, trans. The Works of Mencius. New York: Dover Publications, 1970. Makeham, John, ed. New Confucianism: A Critical Examination. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2003. Read More