Confucius on "Filial Piety" Translation

Yu Zi said, "It is rare to find a person who is filial to his parents and obedient to his elder brother, but prefers to offend the higher rulers. There is no such person who does not prefer to offend the higher rulers, but prefers to rebel. When a ruler concentrates on fundamental matters, and when the fundamentals are established, the principles for governing the country and being a human being will also be in place. To be filial to one's parents and obedient to one's elder brother, this is the root of benevolence!"

Originally

Yu Zi(1) said, "He who is filial and brotherly(2), but good at offending his superiors(3), is seldom(4); he who is not good at offending his superiors, but good at committing rebellion, is not yet there(5). The gentleman is the original (6), the original stand and the road is born (7). Is filial piety and brotherhood the essence of a man (8)?"

Notes

(1) Youzi: a student of Confucius, surnamed You, first name Ruo, 13 years younger than Confucius, or 33 years younger. The latter statement is more credible. In the book of the Analects of Confucius, the students of Confucius are generally referred to as words, and only Zeng Sen and You Ruo are referred to as "Zi". Therefore, many people believe that the Analects of Confucius was written by Zeng Sen and Youruo.

(2) Filial piety and brotherhood: Filial piety is the correct attitude of children towards their parents, as recognized during the period of the slave society; brotherhood is the same as "brotherly love" (悌), i.e., the correct attitude of a younger brother towards his elder brother. Filial piety and brotherhood are two basic moral norms especially advocated by Confucius and Confucianism. The old note says: "To serve one's parents well is called filial piety, and to serve one's elder brother well is called brotherhood.

(3) Offense: Offense, offense, interference. On, refers to the person in the upper position.

(4)Fresh: sound xiǎn, the meaning of less. This is how the word "fresh" is used in the book of the Analects.

(5) Not yet: This is an inverted form of the phrase "not yet". There is a rule in the syntax of ancient Chinese that if the object of a negative sentence is a pronoun, it is usually placed before the verb.

(6) The service: the service is dedicated and committed. The root of the matter is the root of the matter.

(7) Dao: In ancient Chinese thought, Dao has many meanings. The Tao here refers to the benevolent way advocated by Confucius, that is, the entire moral thought system centered on benevolence and its embodiment in practical life. Simply put, it is the basic principle of governing and being a human being.

(8) The basis of benevolence: benevolence is the highest category of Confucius' philosophical thought, and an ethical and moral code. To be the root of benevolence means to take filial piety and fraternal duty as the root of benevolence. There is also another interpretation that the ancient word "ren" means "human being", and that the root of ren is to be a human being.

Analysis

You may think that if people can be filial to their parents at home and obedient to their brothers and sisters, then they can be loyal to the state outside, and loyalty is premised on filial piety and brotherhood, and filial piety and brotherhood is aimed at loyalty. Confucianism believes that if filial piety is practiced at home, there will be no rebellion within the ruler, and if filial piety is extended to the working people, the people will be absolutely obedient and will not rise up in rebellion, thus maintaining the stability of the state and society.

The filial piety and fraternal duty mentioned here is the root of benevolence, which is very important for readers to understand Confucius' philosophical and ethical thoughts centered on benevolence. During the Spring and Autumn Period, the Zhou Son of Heaven practiced the system of succession of the first-born son, while the rest of the sons of the common people were divided into vassals, and the same was true for the vassals below. The political structure of the whole society, from the Son of Heaven, to the vassals, to the great doctors, was based on the feudal patriarchal blood relations, and the saying of filial piety and fraternal duty reflected the moral requirements of the patriarchal society at that time.

Filial piety and fraternal duty are directly related to social stability. Confucius saw this, so all of his ideas are from this point of view, from filial piety and fraternal duty will not occur, explaining that filial piety and fraternal duty is the root of benevolence this truth. Since the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, the feudal rulers and literati inherited Confucius' filial piety and fraternal duty and advocated "ruling the world with filial piety", the Han Dynasty being a notable example. They took moral education as an important means of feudal rule, confining the people to the shackles of rules, ethics and morals, which had a great impact on the people's moral concepts and behaviors, and also had a profound influence on the whole Chinese traditional culture. Filial piety and fraternal duty is to serve the feudal rule and patriarchal family system, which should be soberly recognized and analyzed, discard the feudal toxins, inherit its reasonable content, and give full play to the role of morality in social stability.