Confucius

Category
People (Philosophy)
Begin
-551
End
-479
Region
East Asia
Reference
Excerpts from Books and Wikipedia
"Thus, for Confucius, the family, with its brotherly and sisterly love and respect for parents, was the most important thing of all. He called it ‘the root of humanity’." [A Little History of the World, p. 60] Confucianism is a ""Classical Chinese philosophical doctrine holding that society is best regulated via internalized moral precepts of virtue and benevolence, rather than compulsion." [Fall and Rise of China Guidebook, p. 186]
"The main point of this theory of government by good example was the idea of the virtue that was attached to right conduct. . . . 'When a prince's personal conduct is correct, his government is effective without the issuing of orders. If his personal conduct is not correct, he may issue orders but they will not be followed.' As a code of personal conduct, Confucianism tried to make each individual a moral being, ready to act on ideal grounds, to uphold virtue against human error, even including evil rulers." [Fairbank: China, p. 52-53] [Note: Confucius (551-479 BC) was contemporaneous with the divine revelation of the Buddha (563-483 BC)]