CONFUCIANISM CONTRIBUTIONS TO A GLOBAL ETHICS

 

By Dr. Chandra Setiawan

 

A. INTRODUCTION

     What is Confucianism? Hundreds of hundreds of (Chinese) wise-men have tried to answer to it. All of their answers put together still can not make a complete answer, just like the Indian fable that the six blind-men could not compose an elephant by guessing each own part.       According to Thomas Hosuck Kang, Ph.D (1999) Confucianism is a universal system of human behavior. It includes religion, philosophy, psychology, sociology, anthropology, ethics, science, and all others.       Tu Weiming, himself come down solidly on the side of saying that Confucianism is a religion, or at least has important religious dimension. He emphasizes existential commitment to the way of the sage and understands personal transformation as a kind of immanent transcendence guided by principle (2000:57).       D. Howard Smith (1974:63), explains, “men says, Confucius was a great thinker, politician, educator, outstanding world-famous cultural giant in China, but he wasn’t a teacher or founder of religion. But, it is my conviction that he was a deeply religious man. The assurance that his own “power of virtue” (De) was born of Heaven and that he had a Heaven-Sent task to perform, gave him strength to triumph over his disappointments and face with equanimity both hostility and neglect. One Chinese scholar has suggested that Confucius’s thought begin with human life and reaches up to the Way of Heaven (Tian Dao). I would suggest, rather, that the Way of Heaven is fundamental of Confucius’s ethical thought and the foundation of his ethical system in which he works out the basic principles for his Way of Man (Ren Dao). He (Confucius) always spoke of Tian, with profound reverence. He claimed that he prayed to Tian, enjoyed Tian’s protection, and was himself commissioned to his task by Tian”.        Duncan Greenlees (1949:xii) in the preface of his book, ”The Gospel of China”, wrote: “Men have called it a philosophy, stressed its teacher’s indifference to the personal aspect of Divinity; yet it is now, as it has always been, a religion in the truest and highest sense. It is a way of life, it points to the Straight Path of Goodness, which brings us back to the Divinity where by our very nature belong, it tells us how to live and how to act towards one another. Lastly, it holds out to us the Way of self-perfection, so that may learn how to live in the Eternal, to abide in that undying Poise, which is the final secret that Nature has for us to learn. What more than this can any Religion do for us?”       My position as a Confucian religion follower in Indonesia, Confucians should have faith on the truth bestowed by Tian (God) as shown in the main part of the Zhong Yong (The Doctrine of Mean, Main Chapter:1),”The Decree of Tian (God) is what we call the True Human Nature; To follow our Human Nature is called the Way (Dao). Cultivating the Way (Dao) is called Religion (Jiao) or the Great Teaching. This clarifies that Confucius’ teachings are based on Heaven, or Tian or God.  Than at (Daxue/ The Great Learning, Main Chapter:1),”What the Great Learning (Religion) teaches, is to shine the Illustrious Virtue; to love (ren) the people (of Tian/God); and to attain/ to rest in the highest excellence”. That is why a Confucian eminently accomplished Virtue in his life as the embodiment of his devotion to Tian/God; expressed by the Shu Jing, The Book of Holy Historical Documents. “It is only Virtue which pleases Tian/God” (Shu Jing II.II.III.21); “Let us posses together the One, the Pure Virtue”(Sujing IV.VI.III.3).     So  I believe, the Confucian’s ethics based on faith in Tian/God. Tian (Heaven) as a source for moral creativity, meaning of life, and ultimate self-transformation features prominently… (Tu Weiming, 145) In Indonesia, as Confucians we must have a sincerity of the Eight Principles of Faith:
  1. Faithfully believing in One Supreme God/Tian
  2. Faithfully upholding Virtue
  3. Faithfully establishing the Bright Decree.
  4. Faithfully realizing the existence of Spirit and Soul.
  5. Faithfully fostering the Ideal of Filial Piety.
  6. Faithfully following the Prophet Kongzi (Confucius), the Spiritual Call (Mu’Tu’) of Tian.
  7. Faithfully honoring the Holy Four Books (Si Shu) and Five Classics (Wu Jing).
  8. Faithfully following the Great Holy Way (DAO)
As a matter of fact, if the ethics is based on without faith in Tian/God and religious services, it’s like a building, though as splendid as it is, it’s like to be built on sand that can suddenly collapses when the storms blow.       Prophet Kongzi (Confucius) said, ”I do not know how a man without faith is to get on. How can a large carriage be made to go without the crossbar for yoking the oxen to, or a small carriage without the arrangement for yoking the horses?” (Lunyu II:22).  B. WHAT IS HUMAN NATURE?       For Prophet Kongzi (Confucius), a single person can not live alone. Men are plural, more than two who are living together. Thus, men are by nature ‘organization men’. Men are among men who live in the web of human relationships, e.g. parents and children, husband and wife, older and younger persons, friend and friend, and ruler and the people. What are the rules which regulate human relationships for harmony and peace to commence a happy life? They are virtues, that is ren (benevolence/humaneness), yi (righteousness), zhi (wisdom), li (propriety), yong (courage) and xin (mutual trust). Among them:  ren, yi, zhi, yong and xin are all invisible; li is the only visible virtue. Another important characteristics of the Confucian virtues is their orientations: inward (ren) to the family, and outward (yi) to the society or nation. It should be understood that according to Confucius these orientations can not be vertical or horizontal, but reciprocal.       In LunYu 17:8 Prophet Kongzi (Confucius) said:·         To love humanness (ren) without loving learning is liable to foolishness.·         To love intelligence (zhi) without loving learning is liable to deviation from the right path.·         To love faithfullness/sincerity (xin) without loving learning is liable to harmful behavior.·         To love forthrightness/honesty (zhi) without loving learning is liable to intolerance.·         To love courage (yong) without loving learning is liable to insubordination.·         To love unbending strength (gang) without loving learning is liable to lead to indisciplin.  At the heart of Confucian ethics is the li, the guiding principle of all things great and small. (Lunyu, 1:12), which is held to be the behavior of the sages of antiquity as recorded in the classic text.  Li has a range of meanings: rituals, propriety, etiquette, and ceremony; it denotes ideal behavior, and moral and righteous action, and is the means by which one works to “cut, carve, file and polish”, in order to become a superior person and cultivate ethical behavior. Kongzi said,”If you do not learn the li, rules propriety, your character cannot be established” (Lunyu, 16:13). Ren is the central doctrine in Confucian ethics. Ren is defined as goodness, humaneness, love, benevolence, human-heartedness, and humanity. The word is rendered with two component parts that denote “person” and  “two”, indicating the relationship between two people. Other forms of cultivation also contribute to ethical development. Refinement is the arts, or wen, follows the example of the sages who created poetry, music, and ritual. According to Kongzi, those who study literature extensively and who are restrained by the li, are truly superior, and will not violate the “Confucian Way”. Thus, Confucians strive to master the fine arts---such refinement is the mark not only of aesthetic taste, but also of moral training.  The li provides a template for appropriate action which, once internalized, is expressed in human inter-action. The actions of the self-cultivated person are ren, the ethical term referred to most frequently by Kongzi in the Lunyu (the Analects). Together li and ren form the basis of ethical behavior which is balanced between self-cultivation and learning and the effortless extension of learning into human interaction. Action in accordance with ren is manifest in attitude and external expression in two other virtues---reciprocity (shu) and sincerity (zhong). Reciprocity forms the basis of the Confucian golden rule----“What you do not want done to you, do not do to others” (Lunyu 15:24).  Rather than assuming that others will like what one likes, one must consider actions from the other person’s point of view. The ethic of zhong provides a basis for the action of reciprocity---sincerity is a feeling, an internal orientation, that manifess itself in proper action.  An ordered, harmonious society is dependent on self-education and on each person playing his or her part appropriately with good intent. Confucians hold that actions are creative transformation---to become an ethical person, one must be self-cultivated through study and practice of appropriate behavior.  In Confucian Religion perspective demands that all people be treated with humanity (ren).  All interaction must be based in ren, but specific actions are delineated within a clearly defined hierarchy (hierarchy is considered to be natural and essential to the creation of harmony). Key roles and corresponding virtues are outlined in the “Five Relationships”, namely, those between parent and child, elder brother and younger brother, husband and wife, friend and friend,  and ruler and subject. Each relationship has its specific roles and responsibilities: a parent owes a child education, care, and moral formation; a child owes a parent obedience, respect, and care in old age and after death. The parent/child relationship establishes the basic pattern for other relationships---thus, the virtue of filiality (xiao) is the basis for social structure. A husband and wife are to care for each other. The elder brother has responsibility for younger siblings who owe him deference (birth order is very clearly delineated in East Asian kinship terms). The relationship between ruler and subject parallels that of parent and child, for the ruler is to provide care and guidance, and the subject is to be obedient as well as loyal. Friends are to be loyal---this is the only relationship that has the potential of being between people of equal rank, but even here, a hierarchy of age is often reflected.  Although obedience and defense are demanded from subordinates within this structure of relationships, a good son, worthy wife, and loyal minister have a duty to remonstrate unethical behavior. All five relationships (as well as others, such as those between teacher and student, and employer and employee) have serious mutual responsibilities, and both familial and non-familial bonds are presumed to last a lifetime.  Ethical action includes the “rectification of names,” which means knowing one’s roles in the web of relationships that create community, and behaving accordingly so as to insure social harmony.         Prophet Confucius said, ”Without recognizing the Decree of Tian (God) it is impossible to be a true men (gentlemen). Without knowing the li (the rites/the rules of propriety), it is impossible for the character to be established. Without knowing the meaning of words, it is impossible to know people” (Lunyu XX:3).        Mengzi (Mencius) said, “Love (ren) is man’s mind, and righteousness is man’s path. How lamentable is it to neglect the path and not pursue it, to lose this mind and not know to seek it again!” (Mengzi/Mencius VI A:11) 

C. BASIC FAITH IN CONFUCIANISM

       The Confucians are led to have faith in Tian or Shangti or God and have ceremonies to worship Tian, to uphold His Virtue; to honor our ancestors, and the Prophets and saints; to build temples for worshipping and praying to Tian/God, The Holy Spirit.       Some times people define a religion is based on their own points of view, from their own knowledge discipline, or from their points of view of their believes. So, it’s fair, a Confucian has his own understanding on what is meant by ‘the religion’ he holds, and shall be respected by other people.       For a Confucian, a religion or Jiao is the guidance blessed by Tian/God which is inherited through the Holy Books presented by the Prophets, especially Prophet Kongzi (Confucius). He is a man who lived happily in the Holy Way, i.e. to live according to his True Human Nature, which become the moral ethics as a man. Religion thus enables man to be loyal upholding Tian’s Decree in life. So the Doctrine of the Great Learning of religion makes a man keeps in cultivating himself to always upholding Virtue and receiving happiness in the Holy Way. Tian/ God is impartial—Tian/God protects only the one, the Pure Virtue (Shu Jing IV.VI.III. 3 & 4). In the Pure Virtue, the One only, “Tian/ God is with you, have no doubts in your heart”. (Shi Jing III.I.II.7) 

D. CLOSSING REMARKS

       As a teacher of humanity, Prophet Kongzi/Confucius stated his ambition in terms of human care: “To bring comfort to the old, to have trust in friends, and to cherish the young” (Lun-yu, 5:26).        Tu Weiming (204, 205) believe in the Confucian view, the human condition can be improved and society can be transformed because human nature is forever improvable. If we do not care for our home here, there is no other home to escape to. There is not even an afterlife to anticipate if we fail to live our lives morally, meaningfully, and fully on this earth here and now.  Confucius asks that we take ourselves, and our lives here and now, absolutely seriously. We learn to be human neither to please the world nor to meet the expectations of our parents, but for the sake of ourselves as improvable human beings. In Confucianism, the self is always understood as the center of relationships. A person’s growth and development should never be viewed as a lonely struggle, for it involves participation in a large context of human-relatedness. Moreover, this process of learning to be human is not simply the development of the self in relation to one’s family, neighborhood, community, or state; it is also a deepening process of self-knowledge and self-understanding.          To conclude the contribution of Confucianism to a Global Ethics, Tu Weiming remind us to accept that the globe is the center of our universe and the only home for us and that we are the guardians of the good earth, the trustees of the Mandate of Heaven (Tian) that enjoins us to make our bodies healthy, our hearths sensitive, our minds alert, our souls refined, and our spirits brilliant. We are here because embedded in our human nature is the secret code of Heaven’s (Tian’s) self-realization. Heaven is certainly omnipotent, may even be omniscient, but is most likely not omnipotent. It needs our active participation to realize its own truth. We are Heaven’s (Tian’s) partners, indeed co-creators. We serve Heaven (Tian) with common sense, the lack of which nowadays has brought us to the brink of self-destruction. Since we help Heaven (Tian) to realize itself through our self-discovery and self-understanding in day-to-day living, the ultimate meaning of life is found in our ordinary, human existence.      Confucian Religion as others, is a guidance for men to live well, successfully and happily in the Holy Way. Prophet Kongzi (Confucius) said, ”If a man in the morning hear the Holy Way, he may die in the evening without regret” (Lun-yu IV:8).       Great wisdom consists in fully perfecting intelligence, in restoring morale to the people, and in attaining the highest good. To know what is proper in order and natural in sequence is to approach the truth. Those ancients who desired to set an example of good character for everyone first established moral order in their states. ·         In order to establish such order in their states, they first guided their families.·         In order to guide their families, they first developed themselves.·         In order to develop themselves, they first had to acquire a right attitude.·         In order to acquire a right attitude, they first tried to become honest with themselves.·         In order to become honest with themselves, they first had to learn as much as possible.·         Learning as much as possible involved gaining insight into the nature of things.·         By gaining insight into the nature of things, they came to know the highest good.·         By apprehending the highest good, they became honest with themselves.·         By becoming honest with themselves, they acquired the right attitude.·         By acquiring the right attitude, they developed themselves.·         By developing themselves, they guided their families.·         By guiding their families, they established moral order in their states.·         By establishing moral order in their states, they brought harmony and peace and prosperity to the whole country. From the highest official to the ordinary people, all need to recognize that self-development is fundamental. When the fundamentals are neglected, what is developed from them cannot be sound. It is unreasonable to neglect the important and to devote oneself to the trivial. (The Great Learning/Da-xue: Main Ch.:4,5,6,7)  --------//----------  *) This paper is presented at The 2nd International Conference on Confucian Studies held by The Confucian Academy Hong Kong, 21-25 September,  2005.  

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