Ancient Chinese Philosophy: How to Live Life Essay

How do I get going my breeding? Since the early obtainnings of clubhouse people have forever and a day been pertain with our behavior in public and conduct towards others how should I behave towards my elicits, how should I treat my friends, and in what way peck I best bear witness my respect for the gods? Religion was the first form of moral mandate the writers would correspond their ideas about truth and morality, and reinforce their opinions with omnipotent deities who would, in a way, jade believers into acting accordingly.As society began to develop and powerful empires began to expand religion was no longer a priority. Many of the rituals necessary to appease the conf employ gods were impractical. Further more than, skeptics and other logical thinkers began to question their existence. However, moral code still necessitate to be maintainedespeci solelyy in the growing empiresand people began search for other forms of guidance. Moral philosophy most apparent de veloped for this former to ration solelyy investigate the truths and principles of knowledge, behavior and conduct. Around the fifth century B.C. in China (which at present is known for strict guidelines regarding respect and obedience) two commodious philosophers, Confucius and Lao Tzu emerged who devoted their lives to explaining how to live life virtuously, and righteously. Though the two philosophers discord extremely in the presentations of their ideas, and the ideas themselves, together they create a full and expand moral code. Confucius, the earlier of the two philosophers, (died in 497 B. C. ) analyzes various daily situations and suggests how wholeness should behave in them in The Analects.The Master, as his pupils call him, repeatedly mentions the brilliance of behaving like a gentle military soulfulnessnelness. further what exactly does this entail? What does superstar pauperization to do to be considered a gentleman? There ar just about virtues that Confuci us finds essential to existence a gentleman, the most critical angiotensin-converting enzyme being unselfishness, which he discusses primarily in the first four books. Benevolence in the eyes of The Master, however, is in truth different from our current perception we see it as kindness and sympathy while Confucius evidently sees it as something much greater.For us today benevolence dejection be seen in simple acts of compassion. For example, a common act of benevolence is putting your extra change into the elastic cup of a homeless individual in Washington pastra Park. I see a benevolent professor as one who is respectful of his students other responsibilities and gives them ample time to prepargon their assignments. To Confucius, this would non be enough he describes benevolence as a quality that is very difficult to chance on apparently, it is something that does not crimson seem appealing to many an(prenominal). break to The Master, it encompasses our values, loyal ty, pride, and honesty, and it manifests itself in our relationships with friends, parents, and superiors except one who is thoroughgoing(a) in all these categories nookie be considered benevolent, and therefore a gentlemen. The idea that Confucius describes as most full of life to achieving the status of gentlemen is filial theology, the reverence for ones parents. The virtuous child would give their parents no other cause for anxiety than illness, The Master says.He essential neer stray to a fault far from their fields, and if he does, he essential al slipway make his whereabouts known. To serve ones parents to the fullest, he must in any case follow their instructions (or advice) exactly, even if they might not be safe or even thoroughly for his well-being. This must be done without wondering(a) them. He enkindle try to dissuade his parents on to a more righteous path if it is done subtly and respectfully, further cannot blatantly aim out mis controls in his paren ts soupcons. It does not stop there the child must cover up any blunders the parents make from the eyes of the world.Whether Confucius puts filial piety on a higher level than law is unclear, and he whitethorn not have considered extreme examples. But I am. If your give, for example, would murder someone, should you take the Euthyphro approach of bringing him to saveice, or should you go bad an accomplice in his iniquity by tampering with evidence, or perhaps burying the body? I doubt that any fair gentleman would ever involve himself in a crime so grave under any circumstances. When the parents begin to age the child should take note of it. The quondam(a) age of your parents should bring you anxiety, The Master suggests.It is obvious that at some file the responsibilities of the parents and children reverse during childhood it is children who bring stress to their parents (or in the case of perfect children, dont), and during adulthood it is parents, and their health, who s hould bring stress to the children. Confucius never completely mentions solely implies that as the parents age advances the child must make changes in his life to accommodate his parents. Perhaps, in todays society that would mean to set down more time with them when they retire and monitor their health more lots than before.The childs obligations do not end during the lifetime of the parents to be a good son you must live with reverence towards your parents even after their deaths. One way to do this is to not change his fathers ways for three years. Another is to present their spirits with offerings and sacrifices. close to of these ideas, however, leave the boundaries of respect and move towards expressions of grapple. You are expected to feel intent when they are not in good health, but that can only be felt if you truly love them. And how can anyone oversee whether you are presenting their spirits with offerings?You must be truly devoted and love them to spread over resp ecting them even after they are dead (or just very horrible of their spirits). It appears that Confucius never draws a clear line between respect and love maybe in his view one cannot exist without the other. The respect and veneration of parents from an early age shapes the child into a polite and well-rounded adult, one who is not too arrogant and knows his place in society. Whatever filial piety is, it is clear that it is only a small aspect of benevolence an insufficient virtue on the road to becoming a gentleman.But before we can even explore what qualities you need to be a gentleman, we must ask what The Master means when he says gentleman. There is sure some exampleism and imagination involved in his construction of the gentleman. In a way, the gentleman is a perfect and unattainable feat that everyone should distort for. Confucius advocated for respect of tradition, culture and knowledge without showing interest in these aspects of society, all hope of becoming a gentl eman is lost. A gentleman must respect and live by the traditions, but at the same time distinguish himself from everyone around him.Though Confucius advises against questioning what has already been explained and accomplished. So how does he propose to become better? His analects are somewhat at odds(p) how do you have any voice if you cannot speak out against old tradition, or create new ones? At the same time, the ideal man should learn from the people around him and be open to criticism. In a society which was so concerned with accordance and conformity, however, his ideas seem actorable. By avocation these traditions, you are being polite and respectful, obviously, important qualities.Perhaps his greatest score of the qualities necessary to be a gentleman comes in Book V, where he describes the qualities that make Tzu-chan a gentleman, He was respectful in the manner he conducted himself he was reverent in the service of his lord in compassionate for the common people, he was generous and, in employing their services, he was just. To be a gentleman, you must have compassion and generosity, qualities that I believe every human has innately therefore, it would be possible for anyone to be a gentleman if they can harness those traits.In his description of Tzu-chan it appears that he had some form of authority over others, possibly a duke or a nobleman in China. It is quite possible that his descriptions of a gentleman aim to describe the ideal formula. Indeed, all of the qualities he portrays throughout The Analects are vital in a successful ruler leading by action, not by word (avoidance of hypocrisy), fairness and justice to subordinates, acting reasonably, and using good judgment. Confucius teachings are very practical not only to the common man, but to the ruler as well.It is no surprise that this ancient text is still used by todays societies as guidelines for good leaders. Though it is unclear what exactly a gentleman is, there is an explicit m oral code that Confucius believes we should live by. The philosophy recounted in Lao Tzus Tao Te Ching, on the other hand, is far less practical, in my opinion. His teachings are more sacred and are harder to live by because of their vagueness and ambiguity. He created the idea of Tao, which is more than just a way of life, its even more than life itselfit is everything heaven and Earth, Yin and Yang, and all other complementary opposites are Tao. It is likely that by Tao, Lao Tzu is referring to the Universe and everything it engulfs, as he is known to have theorized about the take to the woods of nature. Lao Tzu explains how Tao should be embraced. His philosophy creates a smell out of unity among humans, and encourages them to become one with their surroundings. But there are a few ideas which he must not have fully thought through. Is Tao really everything? Everything includes the good and the bad, and Tao is described as all good.Furthermore, there should be no lust to stra y from Tao because of its idealism. But is it even possible to stray from Tao if it is everything? Evidently, Tao itself is an idea too complex and difficult for most people to understand, at least for me it is. For this reason (and maybe others as well), Lao Tzu created Te, which is more concrete than Taoit is the manifestation of Tao, the person walking on the path, rather than the actual path. Through his use of Te, Lao Tzu is still able to create some moral code.By todays standards, Lao Tzus philosophy is in some ways outdated and obsolete. He values inaction, and feels that everyone should be satisfied with what they know and have. To some this may seem like deprivation of ambition how can a philosopher possibly be advising against ambition? But I find his advice to be pointing out the faults of over-ambition, and possibly greed. As with everything, there should be harmony, and an equal counterbalance between ambition and satisfaction with the status quo.This is a sound sugge stion because through out history we have seen overachievers fall repeatedly horse parsley the Great and his empire, the Roman Empire, the infamous Hitler and his empire as well. Maybe this is not what he intended at all maybe he meant that lack of action is better than the wrong action. If the action we make pass on lede us further from the end of Tao, then it may be wiser to not act at all. Or perhaps, through inaction one can reflect and further his spirituality, and by doing so take one meter closer to Tao.Maybe, it is for this reason that Lao Tzu chose to leave Taoism so open-endedso that the reader could interpret Tao in his own wayone persons path may be radically different from another(prenominal)s. Though his value of inaction may not make sense to the modern eye, his idea of simplicity and potentiality resonate strongly with us. He compares potentiality to an uncut piece of wood. There are so many possible directions we can take with that single piece of woodit can beco me anything He suggests that a person remain this way, maintaining innocence and bareness to new experiences.No matter what we may have seen or felt in the past, we should not be biased towards what the future holds. This is not easy, but is a desirable trait, and probably must be attained to achieve Tao. He also stresses the values of simplicity, which is completely necessary to follow the path. How can one possibly see the path, if he is distracted by what he does not need? Often, it is our embrace of personal possessions and wealth that hinder us from true reflection and meditation. Maybe, it is for this reason that Lao Tzu speaks out against ambition because you will never see truth if you are blinded by desires.It is likely that Lao Tzu was in some way associated with Confucius, as there is seeable influence Lao Tzu in Analects and influence of Confucius in Tao Te Ching. Confucius mentions the Way numerous times, but never explains what it means. Lao Tzu mentions benevolence and vaguely describes what a good ruler is, a shadowy presence to his subjects. both(prenominal) place high importance on remaining within societys norms, Confucius through his awe of traditions, and Lao Tzu through his inaction. Both agree that one should live by their word, and that honesty, integrity, and consideration for others desires are important.On their own, uncomplete of the texts adequately describes a fulfilling way of life together, with Confucius addressing practical matters and Lao Tzu focus on the spiritual ones, a complete and detailed moral code is constructed. The way of life that these two ancient philosophers described so centuries ago still holds strong today. Though they are difficult to follow with all the temptations of modern society, and the vices of modern man, every one of us still strives to be a gentleman on the path of Tao.