Good Confucianism book (pdf) - Department of Physics

120 Confucians, “Confucian” Texts, the Qin DynastyThe Confucians of Confucius ’ home state of Lu were said to have takenthe study of ritual as their core; they were not as much interested in governmentas in rites and music. The Lu school was said to be less systematic inmethod, but was interested in morality, and later Confucian metaphysicswas based on their thinking; they were somewhat more involved in methodsof self - cultivation. It is not clear now what the differences were exactly, butdebate between Confucians of Qi and of Lu was vigorous, probably overthe interpretation of the classical tradition.Xunzi did not describe groups geographically, associated with states. Helisted groups of Confucians whom he described as “ vulgar. ” He describedlesser Confucians as claiming loyalty to the early kings, Confucius, and aConfucian lineage, but, he said, they were not “ proper ” Confucians: theyfollowed the teachings in a partial or distorted way. 4According to the Xunzi , among these lesser Confucians were followers ofConfucius ’ student, Zi Zhang. 5 Another group was made up of those whofollowed Zi Xia. He was a student of Confucius, a minister to the MarquisWen of Wei, and well known for his teaching. 6 A third group that Xunzidescribes are the followers of Confucius ’ student Zi You. Zi You held officein the time of Confucius; Confucius is said to have known that the areawas well governed by the sound of its music. Zi You often appears in theAnalects where he identified the Way with music and rites. The fourth groupof Confucians whom Xunzi disliked were those who claimed to follow ZiSi, the grandson of Confucius; Mencius was Zi Si ’ s student. 7Xunzi did approve of one of Confucius ’ students, Zigong, saying hetransmitted the Confucian teachings of Confucius and the Duke of Zhou. 8Other students of Confucius who were mentioned as the founding teachersof Confucian groups include Yan Hui from Lu; Yan Hui, as we haveseen, was praised and mourned by Confucius. His group is said to haveemphasized poetry. Another was Qi Diao. The Han Shu “ Yi Wen Zhi ” listsa book under his name, which is no longer extant. The Han Feizi says hisgroup emphasized ritual. Zhong Liang, also from the state of Lu, is seen inthe Book of Rites “ Tang Gong ” chapter discussing funeral ritual; his groupwas said to have emphasized music. 9It is not easy to trace all the Confucian groups or the points of debateamong them and I must ask the reader ’ s pardon for these partial descriptions.The difficulty of assigning the texts and traditions to any one of thegroups listed in the Xunzi , the Han Feizi , and elsewhere should by nowbe clear.Confucians, even though divided, were recognizable throughout theWarring States era. They were defined, and defined themselves, as loyalto Confucius ’ teachings. They followed Confucius, the ancient sage - kings,and their heroes, the early founders of the Zhou dynasty. They read andtaught versions of certain texts. They talked about morality, ritual, being