There are no societies that have persisted as long and as cohesively as Chinese society. And a hallmark of that society is it's Confucianism philosophy along with Buddhism. But it is really Confucianism that should be thanked in terms of how this society still has a sense of community, of family values, of respect for elders, and honor.
In his lifetime, Confucius played many roles such as a Chinese politician, teacher, editor, and social philosopher, but what people are most indebted to him for and what he is remember most for is his philosophy.
First, what Confucianism is not. Though many temples were built in his honor,
-Confucianism is not a religion in the Western sense.
-There is no belief in the supernatural or a personal God,
-there is no belief in an afterlife,
-there are no priests, shrines or churches.
-You won’t find people running around calling themselves a "Confucianist."
But didn't Confucianism have a religious element to it? Not exactly, and here's a way to look at it:
It was what sociologist Robert Bellah called a "civil religion,"1 the sense of religious identity and common moral understanding at the foundation of a society's central institutions. It is also what a Chinese sociologist called a "diffused religion";3 its institutions were not a separate church, but those of society, family, school, and state; its "priests" were not separate liturgical specialists, but parents, teachers, and officials. Confucianism was part of the Chinese social fabric and way of life; to those who practice the philosophy, everyday life was the arena of religion and had special meaning.
And this approach, in my opinion, is rather ingenious. In the same way that religious rituals take on special meanings for those who practice them, everyday routines took on a certain special meaning for the individual who was mindful of Confucian principles.
Another way to help you differentiate Confucianism from the concept of a traditional religion is that it is often characterized as a system of social and ethical philosophy and that at the core of Confucianism is humanism: the belief that human beings are teachable, improvable and perfectible through personal and communal endeavors especially including self-cultivation and self-creation.
THERE ARE 3 THEMES IN CONFUCIAN THOUGHT, THAT I CONSIDER IMPORTANT TO HOW CONFUCIANISM HAS LEFT A DEEP IMPACT IN CHINESE SOCIETY:
REN:
Ren is one of the basic virtues promoted by Confucius, and is an obligation of altruism and humaneness for other individuals within a community. Confucius' concept of humaneness Ren is probably best expressed in the Confucian version of the ethic of reciprocity, or the Golden Rule:
"Do not do unto others what you would not have them do unto you."
Ren relies heavily on the relationships between two people, but at the same time encompasses much more than that. It represents an inner development towards an altruistic goal, while simultaneously realizing that one is never alone, and that everyone has these relationships to fall back on, being a member of a family, the state, and the world.
The Five Relationships that utilize Ren are:
1) Father to Son - There should be kindness in the father, and filial piety in the son.
2) Elder Brother to Younger Brother - There should be gentility (politeness) in the elder brother, and humility in the younger.
3) Husband to Wife - The husband should be benevolent, and the wife should understanding and listen.
4) Elder to Junior - There should be consideration among the elders and deference among the juniors.
5) Ruler to Subject - There should be benevolence among the rulers and loyalty among the subjects.
All of these practices are the physical, or outward, expression of Confucian ideals. These are the observable behaviors of the members of society. Confucius; however, believed that in order for society to truly follow Li (Li, which I will talk about later), one must also adhere to and internalize these practices. The mentality involved in performing these rituals in society must not exist only there, it must be a part of the private life of the person. This is known as Ren.
Rén also has a political dimension. Confucianism says that if the ruler lacks Ren, it will be difficult if not impossible for his subjects to behave humanely. Ren is the basis of Confucian political theory; it presupposes an autocratic ruler, exhorted to refrain from acting inhumanely towards his subjects. An inhumane ruler runs the risk of losing the Mandate of Heaven or, in other words, the right to rule. A ruler lacking such a mandate need not be obeyed, but a ruler who reigns humanely and takes care of the people is to be obeyed strictly, for the benevolence of his dominion shows that he has been mandated by heaven.
THE NATURE OF LI:
In Confucianism, the term Li, is sometimes translated into English as rituals, customs, rites, etiquette, or morals, refers to any of the secular social functions of daily life, akin to the Western term for culture.
To emphasize again, the rites of li are not rites in the Western conception of religious custom. Rather, Li embodies the entire spectrum of interaction with humans, nature, and even material objects. Confucius includes in his discussions of li such diverse topics as learning, tea drinking, titles, mourning, and governance.
Li is a principle of Confucian ideas. Contrary to the inward expression of Ren, Li was considered an outward practice, wherein one acts with propriety in society. Acting with Li and Ren led to what Confucius called the "superior human" or "the sage". Such a human would use Li to act with propriety in every social matter.
Confucius advocated a respectful manner, where one is aware of their superiors and inferiors. Confucius felt that knowing ones rank in a feudalistic society would lead to the greatest social order. 'Li' as described in Confucian classics (The Book of Rites and The Analects) gave clear instruction on the proper behaviors expected of individuals based on their roles and placement in feudalistic society. Confucius regarded the disorder of his era as the society's neglect of Li and its principles. In the Analects Confucius states "Unless a man has the spirit of the rites, in being respectful he will wear himself out, in being careful he will become timid, in having courage he will become unruly, and in being forthright he will become unrelenting." (Book VIII Chapter 2)
FILIAL PIETY:
"Filial piety" is considered among the greatest of virtues and must be shown towards
both the living and the dead (including even remote ancestors). The term
"filial" (meaning "of a child") characterizes the respect that a child,
originally a son, should show to his parents. This relationship was
extended by analogy to a series of five relationships utilize Ren, which I mentioned earlier.
Specific duties were prescribed to each of the participants in these
sets of relationships. Such duties were also extended to the dead, where
the living stood as sons to their deceased family. This led to the
veneration of ancestors.
The only relationship where respect for elders
wasn't stressed was the Friend to Friend relationship. In all other
relationships, high reverence was held for elders.
So as some gets older, they become more respected and appreciated and here in the U.S. they seem to become more invisible and less noticed.
In one sense, the Confucian ethic is egalitarian, though not in Western sense where everyone has equal standing and opportunity within society. Instead, there’s equality within a social rank. And when you think of human nature, a side of our human nature says, we want the freedom to choose the path we want to take and the roles that we want to play in society, you know, "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness", but there is the other side of our human nature where we want structure and to be told how we should live, to be given roles that make up our identity. So, as far as this side of our human nature is concerned, the concept of equality within a social rank is ingenuous.
"Every person has their place so everything is in it's place", is something I could hear Confucius saying...
A POSSIBLE DISADVANTAGE OF CONFUCIANISM:
Though modern China has moved past these narrowly defined roles, the Chinese today are still used to thinking in terms of hierarchy. They tend to respect hierarchy and differences in status much more than Westerners, who tend to be more egalitarian and open towards strangers. Americans in particular, tend to value people who treat everyone with equal respect, regardless of their relative socioeconomic statuses. For instance, you often hear stories of the “down to earth” big shot CEO who chats with the janitor every morning on a first-name basis. You won’t see this in China.
Confucius was mainly interested in how to bring about societal order and harmony. He believed that mankind would be in harmony with the universe if everyone understood their rank in society and were taught the proper behaviors of their rank. Similarly, he believed that the social order was threatened whenever people failed to act according to their prescribed roles.
WHAT CAN WE LEARN FROM THIS?
So are there any applications to U.S. society that Chinese society can impart to us?
Is there an advantage to having narrowly defined roles, to having this narrow social focus? To put it another way: That if we were focused on respecting and communicating with a specific group of people that we are associated with, wouldn't this enhance our interpersonal relationships with that group of people because we're mainly focused on them?
In the U.S., we're expected to be open to communication and civil with everyone, but it's also socially acceptable to communicate with no one in this name of independence we have. There's a standard expectation to be civil, but there is no expectation to communicate. There are a lot of lonely individuals out there, because they're not plugged into any community or have a category of people that they can say, "This is the society of people I associate with and with whom I am accepted."
Nevertheless, I find it very interesting that outside of religious communities, you will also find unaffiliated people dressing to fit certain subcultures, such as the world of music, sports, art, and numerous traditions in every geographic location in the U.S. And we do it not because we want to be religious and fit some particular mold, but because there is identity, community, and social cohesion in it. And we need some type of profound, intricate, satisfying social structure in our society if we are to survive even a fraction of time, which Chinese society has. It's the oldest and largest society on earth and look at her now! Indeed, it is a serious question that must be answered, "What is now to hold anarchy in check?"
So now I'll take any questions that people have..
SOURCES:
http://www.china-mike.com/chinese-culture/understanding-chinese-mind/confucius/
http://www2.kenyon.edu/Depts/Religion/Fac/Adler/Reln270/Berling-Confucianism.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confucianism
