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Confucius
Confucius (born Kong Qiu, styled Zhong Ni) was born in the village of Zou in the country of Lu in 551 B.C., a
poor descendant of a deposed noble family. As a child, he held make-believe temple rituals; as a young adult, he quickly
earned a reputation for fairness, politeness and love of learning, and he was reputed to be quite tall. He traveled
extensively and studied at the imperial capital, Zhou, where he is said to have met and spoke with Lao Zi, the founder of
Daoism.
Upon his return to Lu, he gained renown as a teacher, but when he was 35, Duke Zhao of Lu led his country to war, was
routed and fled to the neighboring country of Qi; in the disorder following the battle, Confucius followed. Duke
Zhao frequently came to him for advice, but upon counsel of one of his ministers, he decided against granting land to
Confucius and gradually stopped seeking his counsel. When other nobles began plotting against Confucius' position,
Duke Zhao refused to intervene, and Confucius returned to Lu. But conditions there were no better than before, and
Confucius retired from public life to concentrate on teaching and studying.
At age 50, he was approached by the Baron of Qi to help defend against a rebellion, but he declined. He was later made
a city magistrate by the new Duke of Lu, and under his administration the city flourished; he was promoted several
times, eventually becoming Grand Secretary of Justice and, at age 56, Chief Minister of Lu. Neighboring countries
began to worry that Lu would become too powerful, and they sent messengers with gifts and dancers to distract the
duke during a sacrifice holiday. When the duke abandoned his duties to receive the messengers, Confucius resigned and
left the country.
Silence is a true friend who never betrays.
Confucius spent the next five years wandering China with his disciples, finding that his presence at royal courts was
rarely tolerated for long before nobles would begin plotting to drive him out or have him killed. He was arrested
once and jailed for five days, and at 62 he was pursued, along with his disciples, into the countryside by a band of
soldiers sent by jealous nobles, until he was able to send a messenger to the sympathetic king of a nearby country,
who sent his own soldiers to rescue them. Once again, Confucius was to be given land but was denied it upon counsel of
another high minister. After further wanderings, he eventually returned to Lu at age 67. Although he was welcomed
there and chose to remain, he was not offered public office again, nor did he seek it. Instead he spent the rest of his
years teaching and, finally, writing. He died at 72.
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