The Analects of Confucious
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The Analects of Confucius is a brief look into the life of a man who was a politician and an advisor to government, but was not glorified during his lifetime. His life is said to be between 551 and 479 B.C.1. It was not until many years after he died that his disciples compiled what has become known as The Analects of Confucius.
The Analects of Confucius is a compilation of his beliefs made in brief statements, captured in conversations, and in stories that he told. The followers of Confucius believed his teachings were important enough that they needed to be collected, written down and shared with as many as would read them. Their hope was the same as that of the disciples of Jesus; spread the word and hope that those who hear it will believe and further the teachings. The evidence is clear that the Analects is a compilation of several authors due to some degree of repetition, and even some contradiction of thought. Even with that, it is through this slim volume that we can catch a glimpse of the man he was and the order he sought to bring to his world.
Confucius was a man who was concerned with government2 and his definition of education. He felt that the two went hand-in-hand. We are introduced to his philosophy of how a government should be run and to the character of those who should govern in Chapter 1. The chapter begins with four quotes that help define a gentleman and then goes into politics. In 1.5 Confucius states his belief on the proper way to govern a middle-sized state. His thoughts on what constitutes education appear just after in 1.7.
Government should be run with dignity and good faith, with thriftiness and love and by carefully selecting the times to mobilize the people3. Those who govern ought to be educated,
though not through a traditional education. To Confucius, an educated person was one who respected their elders and took in all the teaching that they could impart. If there was still energy after all that, intellectual learning should be allowed4. This sort of education is what made a gentleman and is it gentlemen who should govern. Chapter 15.7 describes two grand officers from Wei and what it was that made them great; their honesty and their integrity5.
The Analects do have a spiritual aspect to them, though not in a “religious” manner. The “Way” is mentioned throughout the Analects as Confucius tells his followers to serve countries where the Way is upheld and to speak and act boldly when the Way succeeds but to be careful in a state where the Way is lost6. This teaching is repeated throughout the Analects. The Way is a philosophy that states how men should act, with virtue, becoming gentlemen as they do. And since he believed that gentlemen should run government, the governments themselves should be virtuous.
In all, The Analects of Confucius is a collection of teachings that the once politician turned advisor turned teacher left with his students.