The Modern Value of Confucian Political Thought

The modern value of Confucian culture is mainly reflected in four aspects: moral value, educational value, science, economic value and political value.

I. Moral Value

As the founder of Confucian culture, Confucius first put forward the idea of "benevolence" and used it as the basic principle for governing the country and making people. As the basic principle of Confucian moral theory, "ren" is the basic starting point of all kinds of moral norms and requirements, and it occupies a central position in the system of all virtues. Confucius said, "If I am benevolent, I want to stand up for myself and others, and if I want to reach out to others, I want to reach out to others. To be able to draw analogies from the near, it can be said that the formula of benevolence has also been." (The Analects of Confucius - Yongya). It is also said, "Do not do unto others what you would not have them do unto you" (Lun Yu - Yong Yuan). This shows that "benevolence" is both a responsibility and an obligation, but also a kind of altruism and the spirit of helping others for good, requiring people to do "mutual benefit and reciprocity". On the one hand, we should be bold and good at pursuing personal legitimate interests, and strive for the legitimate rights and interests of individuals within the scope of law and policy; on the other hand, we should benefit others, and benefit others.

"Filial piety" is one of the important contents and characteristics of the traditional culture of the Chinese nation, and it is also the basic behavioral norms and an important moral category in Confucian ethical thinking. In the Confucian ethical system, filial piety and fraternal duty is the beginning and foundation of benevolence. "Filial piety is an important factor in family harmony and an important part of the culture of a nation or a country, and it is also the most basic ethical and moral code for a person. If a person is not filial, how can he or she be a human being, let alone a moral character? Confucianism's many discussions on "filial piety" is a valuable spiritual wealth of the Chinese nation, in today's society should be carried forward and passed on from generation to generation.

Meng Zi's theory of the goodness of nature puts forward four kinds of heart, namely, compassion, shame and evil, resignation, and the heart of right and wrong, and "faith and righteousness", as an important embodiment of it, is another important value of Confucian culture. Mencius said, "Life is what I desire, and righteousness is what I desire; if I cannot have both, I will give up my life for righteousness." ("Mencius -Sue Zi Shang"). Here, life and righteousness are reasonable, but when there is a conflict between the two, the pursuit of righteousness takes precedence over the pursuit of life, and when the only way to uphold righteousness is to sacrifice one's life, one should give up one's body for the way, and give up one's life for righteousness. Gu Yanwu's "the rise and fall of the world, the man has the responsibility" is to inspire generations of Chinese people to sacrifice their lives for the country. "If one does not have faith, one does not know what is possible." ("The Analects of Confucius - For the Government") In today's materialistic society, "faith" and "righteousness" will play an irreplaceable role as a single branch of excellence.

The moral and ethical doctrines of Confucianism are an important part of the Confucian system, and have had a profound impact on the formation and development of the traditional culture of the Chinese nation. In the last thousand years of historical evolution, Confucian moral and ethical doctrines have contributed to the unique quality of the Chinese nation, and its teaching ideology of "cultivating one's moral character, aligning one's family, ruling the country, and pacifying the world" has been advocated by successive dynasties. Critically inheriting its ideas has a fundamental role in guiding the cultivation of personal virtues.

The value of education

Confucius is undoubtedly China's greatest educator, who organized private schools to promote the development of education for the common people, and the idea of "teaching without class" can be said to be the earliest advocate of equal education. The ideas of "learning from time to time" and "knowing is knowing, not knowing is not knowing" have influenced countless participants in educational activities. Confucius's educational thinking is also very lifelong, that is, advocating "learning is not an option". Confucius said, "I am ten years old and determined to learn, thirty years old and established, forty years old and not confused, fifty years old and aware of heaven's destiny, sixty years old and obedient, seventy years old and follow my heart's desires without overstepping the bounds of propriety" (Confucius - The Way of Governance). ("Confucius - for political") This is his description of his own learning and thinking process, through this description, can be seen, in the life of Confucius, from the age of fifteen "ambition to learn" to the age of seventy to achieve "from the heart, not to exceed the distance" and stop, the realm of his life is constantly upgraded! The reason why he was able to do so was the result of his lifelong "learning without getting tired of it". Through his experiences and theories, Confucius opened up a new path for education for future generations.

The Song and Ming philosophies then developed the educational ideas of Confucianism, emphasizing not only the importance of learning but also its lifelong nature, such as Zhu Xi, who said, "How can a canal be clear like this? For there is a source of living water to come", but also put forward the idea of unity of knowledge and action, not only to recognize, but also should be practiced. This kind of thinking should be useful in solving the problem of the disconnection between school education and social needs today.

Confucian education is more of a moral education, and its value to contemporary people lies in the revision of ideological values. For example, Confucius "respect for ghosts and gods and stay away from them," the spirit of humanism, Zhang Zai "for heaven and earth to establish the heart, for the people to establish their lives, for the past generations to succeed the great learning, for the world to open up the peace of the world," the ambition of the lofty ...... These are all very positive for modern education. All of these have a great deal of positive significance for modern education.

Third, political value

The thinking of Confucianism is not only the philosophy of morality, the philosophy of life, of course, or political philosophy. One of the most important manifestations of Confucianism is Mencius's idea of "benevolent government" and people-oriented thinking, which advocates the "rule of virtue", "light punishment and thin taxes", "listening to the government of the country" and "working with the people". "and to be happy with the people". Confucianism also puts forward the idea of clean government, Mencius put forward to "benevolent people" of the idea of political ethics, "old as I am old, as well as the old man; young as I am young, as well as the young man," for the clean government is not only their own integrity, but also care about the people's plight, and for the people to promote the interests of the people, and so on. Modern clean government construction may also wish to learn from one or two. Confucius said: "his body is correct, not order and behavior, his body is not correct, although the order does not follow. Meaning that the ethical behavior of government officials, indicating the ethical orientation of society, is the moral example of the whole society, the official position is not for their own profit-making machine, but for the people's welfare means.

As we all know, the idea of "peace" is an important idea of pre-Qin Confucianism, "peace" is not only a political means, but also a political purpose, political value, that is, Confucian scholars ideal society is at least a harmonious, united and peaceful society. In other words, the ideal society of Confucian scholars is at least a society of harmony, solidarity and peace, which is similar to the construction of a harmonious society nowadays. This is similar to the construction of a harmonious society nowadays. For the times when hegemony is rampant, Confucianism's "cosmopolitanism" and the idea of "harmony" can play a role in resisting it and countering "hegemony" with "the way of the king", which is precisely what Confucian culture is all about.

Confucian political thought centered on "benevolence", glittering with the light of democracy and people's livelihood, has been integrated into the blood of the Chinese nation and influenced the political activities of the Chinese people in the course of historical changes. Despite its historical limitations, its ideas of "rule by ritual" and "rule by virtue" and "rule by man" are of great relevance to today's politics.

Fourth, scientific and economic value

Confucian culture, after the baptism of the long river of history, can no longer be fully summarized in a few words or a few books. From Confucian cultural classics to Confucian cultural sites, these material cultural categories are important tools for our modern study of Confucian culture, and their scientific value cannot be ignored. At the same time, the development of some cultural sites, such as the Confucian Mansion, the Confucian Temple and the Confucian Forest, has also brought about considerable economic gains and promoted the economic and social development of one side.

Confucian culture is a valuable heritage of the Chinese nation, and it is even more culturally superior. For China, the birthplace of Confucian culture, we can neither be presumptuous, the wholesale denial of Confucius and Mencius, nor can we be intoxicated by history, in the old piles of paper is bound, and should be critically inherited to be absorbed, and socialist practice, to play the Confucian culture of the modern value of the due.