The Future of Confucianism
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Source: Bahá'í Library Online (bahai-library.com), curated by Jonah Winters. Used by permission of the curator. Original citation: Yeo Yew Hock, The Future of Confucianism, bahai-library.com.
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The Future of Confucianism

Yeo Yew Hock

1. Historical development

For the last 2,500 years, the teachings of Confucius have had a great and
enduring influence on Chinese society and its people. This article will
discuss briefly the history of Confucianism, its teachings, followed by a
critique of its place in the modern world. It will then discuss the future of
Confucianism and its survival into the 21 st century.

Historically, the mam periods of development for Confucianism took
place as follows:

Confucius 551-479 BC
Mencius371-289BC
HsunTzu298-238BC
Western Han Dynasty 206 BC - 8 AD
Early 3rd to 6th Century - Decline of Confucianism
Tang Dynasty 618-907 AD
Sung Dynasty Confucian revival
Yuan Dynasty 1271-1368 AD
Korean Dynasty 13 92 - 1910 AD
19th Century - Encounter with Foreign Ideas

Confucius (551-479 BC)
Confucius was an ardent admirer of the King of Chou, who lived in 1094
BC, in the Age of Yao and Shun, known to be an Age of great harmony m
ancient China. In his lifetime, Confucius had about 3000 disciples. He
started the "Scholar tradition." Scholars were men of action as well as of
ideas. Confucius tried to reanimate the old Order so as to attain a new one.
He believed it was possible to retrieve the meanings of the past by
breathing vitality and life into outmoded rituals. Among these were the
ancestral cult, reverence for Heaven and mourning ceremonies, all of
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which had survived for centuries in China before his lifetime. He regarded
the everyday human world as profoundly spiritual. He tried to found
human unity on the unity of Heaven. The period from 550 to 200 BC was
known as the Age of the hundred philosophers - a golden age in classical
Chinese thought. Flourishing during this epoch together with the thoughts
of Confucius were Taoist and Moist philosophies. Of these schools, only
Confucianism managed to penetrate virtually all aspects of life in ancient
China.

Mencius (371 - 289 BC)
Mencius, the most famous Confucian philosopher after Confucius, was a
native of the state of Tchou. Like Confucius, he travelled widely to get an
audience for his ideas with the various rulers of the time. He was not
successful. Finally he retired and together with his disciples he compiled
the Mencius in seven books. Mencius later became one of the famous Four
Books. In it are recorded the conversations between Mencius and the
warlords and Mencius and his disciples. Mencius taught that human
nature is basically good and proposed the cultivation of a class of scholar
officials who were not to be involved in agriculture, industry and
commerce in ancient China.

HsunTzu ( 2 9 8 - 2 3 8 BC)
Unlike Mencius, who believed in the goodness of human nature (the latter
also requires rituals and authority to be good), Hsun Tzu teaches that
human nature is basically evil. A person's passions and desires have to be
controlled so that he can act within social norms. Hsun Tzu outlined the
process of Confucian education, from nobleman to sage. He said that this
is a ceaseless endeavour by man to accumulate knowledge, skills, insight
and wisdom.

Western Han Dynasty (206 BC - 8 AD)
The Han Dynasty was significant as the Emperors adopted Confucianism
as a model to base the Chinese state on. In 124 BC, during the reign of the
Martial Emperor, Emperor Han Wu Ti, he appointed five Confucian
Scholars (called Erudites) in his Court. They became the Masters of the
five Classics, in effect, creating the first University in China. Fifty official
students were assigned to support their work. By 1 AD, 100 men were
entering the Imperial government service via entrance exams conducted
The Future of Confucianism                         89

by the state. By 50 AD, there were 3,000 students m the Imperial
University at the Court. In 58 AD, all government schools were required
to conduct sacrificial rites to Confucius. By this time, Confucianism had
come of age. In 175 AD, the Imperial Court approved the official first
version of the five Classics. These were as follows:

The Book of Documents,
The Book of Poetry,
The Book of Rites,
The Book of Change
The Spring and Autumn Annals.

From the Early 3 r d to Late 6th Century AD
When the Han Dynasty ended, China went through a turbulent period and
non-Chinese invaders captured large parts of North China. For the next
four hundred years no one ruler was able to rule all of China. As the
Chinese State declined, so did the influence of Confucianism. During this
same period, Buddhism flourished and made a significant impact in many
parts of China. Although many Buddhist schools arose and were
established, neither Taoism nor Confucianism disappeared.

Tang Dynasty (618 - 907 AD)
The Tang Dynasty was the next significant period of Chinese history.
China was again a unified state, and under the rule of the Tang Empire it
rose to new heights of power, prestige and prosperity. This gave a boost to
Confucianism as it had done in the Han Dynasty, and the Tang Dynasty
based its political structure on Confucian principles. The Emperors
recruited
their staff through the Civil Service Examinations System with the
syllabus based mostly on Confucian Classics and publications. A newer
and more definitive official edition of the five Classics was published
during the Tang Dynasty.

Sung Dynasty (960 - 1279 AD)
The Sung Dynasty saw the revival of Confucianism. During this period
the Imperial Examination system was fully implemented by the Emperors.
Chu Hsi (1130 - 1200 AD) the eminent Sung scholar of the epoch placed
the Four Confucian Books (namely The Doctrine of the Mean, The Great
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Learning, The Analects and Mencius) above the five original Classics. His
major contribution was in restructuring the priority of Confucian
scriptural traditions.

Yuan Dynasty (1271 - 1368 AD)
In 1279 AD, the foreign Mongolians conquered and united all of China.
Although they generally treated the Confucian scholars badly, it was
during the Mongol Dynasty that the Yuan Court officially adopted the
Four Books as the basis of the Civil Service Examinations. This system of
examinations was religiously observed till 1905, a period of about 600
years. Hsu Heng the eminent Confucian scholar of this period educated
the sons of Mongol nobility to be teachers of the Confucian classics.

Korean Dynasty (1392 - 1910 AD)
Among all the dynasties in China (both Chinese and foreign) the Korean
Choson Dynasty (1392 to 1910) is considered to be the most thoroughly
Confucianised. The Korean Confucian scholar, Yi T'oegye (1501 to
1570), re-interpreted Chu Hsi's teachings for the Koreans. To this date,
the vitality of the Confucian tradition is still felt throughout both North
and South Korea. We note that the late North Korean communist leader,
Mr Kim II Sung, passed over the leadership of the country to his son, Kim
Jong II, a practice which is very much part of Confucian tradition.

The Encounter with Foreign Ideas in 19th Century China
Ever since the Yuan Dynasty (1271 to 1368 AD) both Chinese creativity
and originality in China had slowed down, as people were more content to
repeat old social customs and forms. This was probably due to enforced
conformity brought about by Confucianism and the lack of stirring and
stimulating contacts with external cultures.

As China was steeped in Confucian traditions for a long time, a traumatic
and revolutionary clash of cultures happened in the 19th century between
the Chinese people and foreigners who brought new ways of thinking and
advanced technology. The people who were imbued with Confucianist
teachings for many centuries could not understand nor withstand the tests
and challenges of more progressive European ideas and way of life.
The Future of Confucianism                           91

Coincidentally at the time, 19th century China was also faced with an
incompetent, decadent and weak leadership under the Ching Emperors.
During this period, social and political changes were slow. The Chinese
concept of a State was that of an Empire embracing all civilisation (with
China as The Central Kingdom). To them, all states owed allegiance to
the one sovereign Son of Heaven, the Emperor. China was governed by
trained Confucian scholars schooled only in Confucian principles. China
was also primarily an agricultural and rural country.

On the other hand, the foreigners from the New World were educated
differently. They had an industrial and urban background. Their
experience was shaped by the Industrial Revolution and they were very
much part of the machine age. Applied science had made profound social
changes that had transformed every aspect of human life. The western
conception of the nation and international order was driven by a vision of
a commonwealth of nations, with each nation being a sovereign state. The
latter was also guided in international relations by international law.
As opposed to these new ideas and concepts brought by foreigners, social
relations in China were based on the family. China was a patriarchal
society. The individual and the state were subordinated to the family.
These differences in social and scientific experiences caused conflict and
mutual suspicion between Chinese people and foreigners in 19th century
China.

In many ways, clashes of ideas also occurred in the late 20th century in
China, as it emerges from obscurity into a more technologically advanced
world. Although the clash of cultures is less severe, there is still a lack of
understanding between Chinese people and Western people, and when
they meet, it is often with a feeling of mutual suspicion.

2. The Teachings of Confucianism

Confucius described himself in the following way:

"At 15 I set my heart on learning; at 30 I firmly took my stand; at 40 I had
no delusions; at 50 I knew the Mandate of Heaven; at 60 my ear was
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attuned; at 70 I followed my heart's desire without overstepping the
boundaries of right."1

When one of his students had difficulty describing him, he said:

"Why do you not simply say something to this effect: he is the sort of man
who forgets to eat when he engages himself in the pursuit of learning,
who is so full of joy that he forgets his worries and who does not notice
that old age is coming on."2

Confucius was concerned with self-improvement and acquiring virtues:"It
is these things that cause me concern: failure to cultivate virtue, failure to
go deeply into what I have learned, inability to move up to what I have
heard to be right, and inability to reform myself when I have defects."3 He
believed education to be a ceaseless process of self-realisation and self-
teaching. He told his students that they must be willing to learn: "I do not
enlighten anyone who is not eager to learn, nor encourage anyone who is
not anxious to put his ideas into words."4

Mencius thought virtues were innate to human character, and that
education was required for their full development:

"All men have a mind which cannot bear (to see the suffering of) others...
If now men suddenly see a child about to fall into a well, they will without
exception experience a feeling of alarm and distress... From this case we
may perceive that he who lacks the feeling of commiseration is not a man;
that he who lacks a feeling of shame and dislike is not a man; that he who
lacks a feeling of modesty and yielding is not a man; and that he who
lacks a sense of right and wrong is not a man. The feeling of
commiseration is the beginning of human-heartedness. The feeling of
shame and dislike is the beginning of righteousness. The feeling of
modesty and yielding is the beginning of propriety. The sense of right
and wrong is the beginning of wisdom. Man has these four beginnings,
just as he has four limbs... Since all men have these four beginnings in
themselves, let them know how to give them full development and

S. Leys, The Analects of Confucius, 1997, 2.4, p 6.
ibid., 7A9, p. 31.
ibid., 7.3, p. 29.
ibid., 7.8, p. 30.
The Future of Confucianism                     93

completion. The result will be like fire that begins to burn, or a spring
which has begun to find vent. Let them have their complete development,
and they will suffice to protect all within the four seas. If they are denied
that development, they will not suffice even to serve one's parents."5

A Transmitter of Traditions
Confucius considered himself to be a transmitter of traditions rather than a
creator of something new. In China, he is known as the "First Teacher"
and the 16* September of each year is still being celebrated in Taiwan as
Teacher's Day m his honour. Confucius was keen to learn from history
and he said:

"A transmitter and not a maker, believing in and loving the ancients, I
venture to compare myself with our old Pang."6
"I am one who is fond of antiquity and earnest in seeking it there."7

His aim was to put into practice the political ideas that he learnt from the
ancient sage kings (in particular the Duke of Chou). He did not realise this
dream during his lifetime, but later, his philosophy of moral persuasion
was influential and became an indivisible and enduring part of Chinese
society.

The Five Obligations
According to Confucius, people's readiness to be governed arose from
five Universal Obligations. These obligations are between individuals of
different social status. They are reciprocal duties and are considered to be
appointments of Heaven. If all these duties are faithfully discharged, a
state of "happy tranquillity" will prevail for all people under Heaven. The
five universal obligations are those between:

The Sovereign and the minister
The Father and his son
The Husband and his wife
The Elder brother and younger brother
Friends

D.C. Lau, Mencius, II, A.6.
S. Leys, Analects, 7.1, p. 29.
ibid., 7.20, p. 31.
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Within the family the two important obligations are those between the
father and son and between elder and younger brothers. Master You said:
"A man who respects his parents and his elders would hardly be inclined
to defy his superiors. A man who is not inclined to defy his superiors will
never foment a rebellion. A gentleman works at the root. Once the root is
secured, the Way unfolds. To respect parents and elders is the root of
humanity."8

A human being is connected to humanity through various degrees of
kinship One should love one's parents more than the other members of the
family, other members of the family more than members of the same
village and so on until one reaches humanity at large. As love for
humanity is only an extension of the love for parents or for son, it is not
considered to be as important as family relations. Mencius elaborated on
these obligations:

"... love between father and son, duty between ruler and subject,
distinction between husband and wife, precedence of the old over the
young, and faith between friends.. ."9

Kung-sun Chou asked, "Why does a gentleman not take on the teaching of
his own sons?"

"Because in the nature of things," said Mencius, "it will not work. A
teacher necessarily resorts to correction, and if correction produces no
effect, it will end by losing his temper. When this happens, father and son
will hurt each other instead. 'You teach me by correcting me, but you
yourself are not correct.' So father and son hurt each other, and it is bad
that such a thing should happen. In antiquity people taught one another's
sons. Father and son should demand goodness from each other. Not to do
so will estrange them, and there is nothing more inauspicious than
estrangement between father and son...10 The content of benevolence is
the serving of one's parents...11

ibid., 1.2, p. 3.
D.C. Lau, Mencius, IIIA, p. 102.
xo
ibid., IVA. 18, p. 125.
ibid., IVA.27,p. 127.
The Future of Confucianism                        95

A benevolent man extends his love from those he loves to those he. does
not love."12

Between the old and the young, he said:

"There are three things which are acknowledged by the world to be
exalted: rank, age, and virtue. At court, rank is supreme; in the village,
age; but for assisting the world and ruling over people, it is virtue."13

Between Ruler and the Minister:

"If a prince treats his ministers as his hands and feet, they will treat him as
their belly and heart. If he treats them as his horses and hounds, they will
treat him as a mere fellow countryman. If he treats them as mud and
weeds, they will treat him as an enemy.14

There is a common expression, "The Empire, the state, the family." The
Empire has its basis in the state, the state in the family, and the family in
one's own self."15

Benevolent Rulership
Confucius preached that men can and should adapt to the ruler and that
there is within them a readiness to be governed. He said that this human
quality could be harnessed effectively by the ruler if he goes about it in
the right way. He said if this were done, the response of the people would
be like them following a true "shepherd of men."

He taught that the Emperors needed to practise benevolent rulership:
"The growth of government would be rapid, just as vegetation is rapid in
the earth: yea, their government would display itself like an easily
growing rush."16

This principle was called "benevolent government" by Mencius, who
expounded it in greater depth. Mencius said that the Emperor has to be

ibid., VIIB.l,p. 194.
ibid., IIB.2,p. 87.
D.C. Lau, Mencius, 1970, IVB.3, p. 128.
xs
ibid., IVA.5,p. 120.
J. Legge, The Doctrine of the Mean, chap. 20.3, p. 405.
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seen by the people to have the Mandate of Heaven or he will be
considered unfit to rule China. The virtues of the Emperors were essential
for their remaining in power and retaining their authority over people.
Their mandate to rule was also believed to be linked to their ancestral
lineage. They had to practise filial piety towards their ancestors and to
Heaven.

To the people, the Emperor was akin to the Father of China:

"The people of are supreme importance; the altars to the gods of earth and
grain come next; last comes the ruler. When a feudal lord endangers the
altars to the gods of earth and grain he should be replaced. When the
sacrificial animals are sleek, the offerings are clean and the sacrifices are
observed at due times, and yet floods and droughts come, then the altars
should be replaced.17 ... It was through losing the people that Chieh and
Tchou lost the Empire, and through losing the people's hearts that they
lost the people. There is a way to win the Empire; win the people and you
will win the Empire. There is a way to win the people; win their hearts
and you will win the people.18 The kingdom, the world, (can be) brought
to a state of tranquillity."19

Mencius proposed the cultivation of a class of scholar officials who were
not to be involved in agriculture, industry and commerce in ancient China.
This implies a form of division of labour and puts scholars on an equal
footing with other governmental concerns, such as economic progress:

"No man is devoid of a heart sensitive to the suffering of others. Such a
sensitive heart was possessed by the former kings and this manifested
itself in humane government. With such a sensitive heart behind humane
government, it was easy to rule the world as rolling it in your palm."20

The Golden Rule
Confucius' teachings focus on The Way, ethics, rites, education and
improving the duties of the individual. He teaches that the individual must
learn to be human. His purpose in life is to be a good man (a gentleman).

D.C. Lau, Mencius, 1970, VII, B.14, p. 196.
x
* ibid., IV, A.9,p. 121.
J. Legge, The Great Learning, paras. 4 and 5, p. 357 - 359.
D.C. Lau, Mencius, II, A.6.
The Future of Confucianism                   97

However, Confucius did not hold out any rewards in this world or the next
for being a gentleman or for achieving good morals and goodne s s . He
said that one's life should be based on the Golden Rule:

"Do not impose on others what you yourself do not desire."21
According to Confucius, the gentleman (chun tzu) must have the virtues
of wisdom and courage. For instance:

"The man of wisdom is never in two minds; the man of benevolence never
worries; the man of courage is never afraid."22

His objective was to reformulate and revitalise social institutions that are
necessary for political stability and social order, namely, the family,
school, local community and the state. He said that virtue is a personal
quality that must be possessed by the Emperor. His virtues are needed for
individual dignity, communal peace and political order.

On Women
According to Confucian writings, women were subject to the three
obediences. When young, she must obey her father and elder brother
when married she must obey her husband. When her husband is dead, she
must obey her son. She may not think of marrying a second time. A
women's duty lies in the preparation of drinks and food. There is a strict
injunction that no instructions or orders must issue from the harerp. She
must not be known beyond the threshold of her apartment. She may take
no step on her own volition, and may come to no conclusion through her
own deliberation.

Women were supposed to follow the instructions of men, and help carry
out their principles. The following five types of women were not to be
taken into marriage:

The daughter of a rebellious house
The daughter of a disorderly house
The daughter of a house that had produced criminals for more than one
generation

ibid., 12.2, p. 55.
D.C. Lau, Mencius, 9.29, p. 43.
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The daughter of a leprous house
The daughter who has lost her father and elder brother.

A wife may be divorced by the husband for the following six reasons:
Disobeying her husband's parents
Not giving birth to a son
Dissolute conduct
Jealousy
Talkativeness
Theft

However, there are three humane considerations for not divorcing a wife:
She has no home to go to
She has gone through three years of mourning for her husband's parents
If the husband has become rich from being poor.

3. Modern Day Criticisms of Confucianism

Criticisms of China's Confucianist past have been made by many people
ever since China was successively defeated by different foreign powers in
the 19th century. Some of the severest criticisms have come from the
Chinese themselves. The humiliation of defeat gave rise to many reform
movements within China. Under intense pressure from many reform
groups, the Chinese Emperor just before the close of the 19th century
issued the following declaration

"... Those who claim to be Conservative patriots consider that all the old
should be upheld and the new ideas repudiated without compromise. Such
querulous opinions are worthless. Consider the needs of the times and the
weakness of our Empire! If we continue to drift with an army untrained,
our revenues disorganised, our scholars ignorant, and our artisans without
technical training, how can we possibly hope to hold our own among the
nations       The virtuous rulers of remote antiquity did not cling
obstinately to existing needs, but were ready to accept change, even as
one wears grass-cloth garments in summer, and furs in winters. We now
The Future of Confucianism                                    99

issue this special Decree so that all our subjects, from the Imperial family
downwards, may hereafter exert themselves in the cause of reform..: "23

The numerous 19 century Chinese reform movements are too many to
describe here. The reader is referred to works such as Vohra's China's
Path to Modernization2* A classic book illustrating Western criticisms of
modern Confucianism is Joseph Levenson's, Confucian China and its
Modern Fate, written around the middle of the 20th century. Levenson
summarises the fate of Confucianism in the 19th century amongst the
intellectual elite in the following way:

"What was the 'new world' in China? Not the Confucian intellectual
world with technical interests pasted on, but the Confucian world
transformed by the western interests, the Classics paling into functional
insignificance... the rise of business (historically associated with the rise
of fung-ian' science), under western aegis, to a point of possible rivalry
with Confucian-official status. Western yung, embraced by literati,
corrupted the literati's way of thought, ultimately sapping the fullness of
their conviction of the Confucian learning's indispensability; and western
yung, wielded by westerners, put a challenge to the literati's way of life,
by encouraging a social alternative, the commercial-industrial way of life,
which likewise made the Confucian learning seem more and more
irrelevant - and Confucian sanctions (like those behind the family-system)
more and more impossible."25

Much has of course changed since the 19th century. Just when the Chinese
were following through their reforms, communism in China rose to
power. At the threshold of the 21 st century it is timely to take stock and re-
evaluate the influence and relevance of Confucianism in our modern
technology centred world. In the present context, only a brief summary of
the more obvious problems with Confucianism today will be mentioned. It
will be assumed that communist rule in China does not substantially
change the issue of whether Confucianism will survive in the future.

R. Vohra, China 's Path to Modernization, p. 85.
See particularly chap. 3, "The Decline of the Old Order, Beginning of the New", p. 52-
79.
J. Levenson, "Confucian China and its Modern Fate", p. 64.
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Parochial regional outlook
Confucius' teachings were meant for a feudal, traditional and family-
centred society and obviously did not address international relations
among independent nation states. In a globally interdependent world, it is
necessary to have an open and close contact with people of different
cultures. The context of society has changed - during Confucius' time,
Chinese society was agrarian and isolated, families were the mam social
units, and there were many small principalities. Now the world is more
urban, industrial and integrated. Individuals have much greater power than
they ever had before, and their family heritage no longer seems to play the
same important social role as it did in the past.

Elitist and narrow form of education
It is now a more democratic world. The modern world is less hierarchical,
and has an egalitarian outlook. Such an approach is not in sync with elitist
Confucianist principles. It is also a rapidly changing world in which
traditional values have been undermined.

The focus of Confucian education was extremely narrow and rigid. The
examination syllabus was based only on the four Confucian classics and
this system had operated in China for twelve centuries. The students'
examination technique was based on rote learning. There was a restricted
range of subjects, as the students were occupied only with Confucian
writings.

For the scholars, to pass the Civil Service Examinations was a practical
necessity for success in life. It was a means to an end, as the aim was to
obtain a job with the Imperial Bureaucracy. The Civil Service Exams
created an elitist and exclusive culture that was perpetuated by scholars.
The Confucian educational system was geared towards training a class of
scholars to be bureaucrats to serve as advisers to the Emperor and there
was a tendency to reserve education for the upper classes.

As the Confucian scholars were a relatively small group in the country,
the great majority of Chinese people did not participate in public affairs.
Although Confucius' teachings were for the masses, in subsequent
periods, scholars were unwilling to share literacy and learning with the
masses.
The Future of Confucianism                          101

Ironically Confucius' intention was to share learning as widely as possible
with the people. Chu Hsi in 12th century in Great Learning stated that
there was a need for schools in every town and village. Confucian
scholars also said similar things in the 13th century (in the court of Kublai
Khan) and in 17th century (Huang Tung Hsi and Lu Liu Liang). Nothing
much came of such suggestions to introduce education to the masses.
Even when an imperial decree was issued to this effect it did not succeed.
One possible reason was that China was an agrarian society. In each
family every able-bodied man was needed in the field and the families
were loath to release them to school. The Imperial Bureaucracy was also
not big enough to manage the large numbers of candidates. There was no
large middle class with surplus wealth and leisure to provide attractive
alternative careers or cultural pursuits that were independent of the
bureaucracy and the official establishment.

Problems abounded because the scholars were mainly interested in
securing a career within the Civil Service Bureaucracy. As a result, they
failed to address social changes, new needs and fundamental human
issues. China failed to industrialise, as education based on Confucian
classics did not promote science and technology. Students took exams to
obtain magistracy and for a better life, and not for the sake of learning and
enlightenment.

A hierarchical and paternalistic community
A major characteristic of Confucian society is its hierarchical and
paternalistic nature. The Chinese people have often been considered to be
submissive. It is also thought that Confucius' teachings inculcate
subordination and subservience. Among the Chinese people, there is a
certain love of order and peace, a certain willingness to submit to "the
powers that be."

Foreign writers attribute this to Confucianism, but that is not a fair
comment, since the Chinese were like that before the lifetime of
Confucius. It is more likely that Confucius was moulded by the character
of the Chinese people and not the converse.

Not much elaboration on the five obligations
Confucius's own teachings did not explain much about how a happy well
governed state depends on the five relations: he spoke more about the first
102             THE SINGAPORE BAHAT STUDIES REVIEW

two (relations between the sovereign and the minister, between the father
and his son) - but not much about the other three (relationship between
the husband and wife, elder brother and younger brother, and between
friends).

Ancestral worship
Confucius encouraged the practice of ancestral worship, which required
that children carried out elaborate rites and ceremonies for the dead. Large
sums of money and energy were often spent by many families (even by
poor families) to ensure that the traditional rites for their dead ancestors
were carried out dutifully. Generally speaking, the practice of ancestral
worship with its elaborate rites, rituals and funerals is not popular among
the young generation today.

Unfavourable teachings on women
Traditional Confucian teachings are not favourable with respect to the role
and status of women in society. The subordinate position they give to
women is generally not acceptable in today's society where women and
men have equal rights. Traditionally, the system of civil service
examinations did not allow women to participate.

Lack of teachings about Life After Death
Confucius did not provide teachings about the purpose and the meaning of
life, human destiny or human origins. He also did not discuss the subject
of life after death. Confucianism therefore, cannot claim to be a complete
philosophy of life. Historically, it tended to focus on this world. Chi Lu
asked about serving the spirits of the dead, and Confucius said:
"While you are not able to serve men, how can you serve their spirits? "
The
disciple continued, "I venture to ask about death," and he answered,
"While you do not know life, how can you know death?"

Teachings Lack Scientific Content
There was little scientific content in Confucius' teachings. Confucian
teachings did not lead to the development of the physical sciences in
China. Unlike the situation in Europe, no Industrial Revolution took place

J. Legge, Analects, 11.9.
The Future of Confucianism                      103

in China. Any philosophy or system of thought that ignores science
cannot hope to survive in today's world.

Suspicion of Foreigners
Traditionally, Confucianism has had a conservative view of foreigners.
China was considered to be the Central Kingdom and people outside it
were considered to be rude barbarians. Once when Confucius expressed
his disgust of China and expressed his intention to go and live among
foreigners, his disciple asked him as follows:

"They are rude. How can you do such a thing?" He replied, "If a superior
man dwelt among them, what rudeness would there be?"27

Confucius had no knowledge of distant foreign nations. Confucianism
was ethnocentric and China-centred. Unlike Buddhism it did not allow the
absorption of other races and cultures and new knowledge from outside
China.

"Barbarians who have rulers are inferior to the various nations of China
who are without."28

The aforementioned limitations of Confucianism are not by themselves
enough to discard it. True, its teachings on women are clearly sexist, but
then again, Confucius lived a long time ago. Moreover, Confucius drew
his inspiration from ancient tradition, and did not seek to start something
new. Just because Confucius did not mention science or say much about
how Chinese people should relate to foreigners does not mean that
Confucianists need reject modern science or harbour feelings of racial
superiority. But historically, particularly during the last seven centuries or
so, that was what happened. The problem is that Confucianism, in the
garb of Neo-Confucianism, became a philosophy of everything and
rejected anything that was not specifically mentioned in the Confucian
classics. It monopolised everything, and this was a mistake. It is this
mentality that does not have a future. This aspect of Neo-Confucianism
resulted in China not being able to make progress while Europe was
experiencing its industrial revolution.

ibid., 9.13, p. 107.
ibid., 3.5.
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4. The Future

Having pointed out aspects of Confucianism that are not likely to survive,
this section describes Confucian values that are enduring and are likely to
remain.

The concept of social order and the governing of a state being ultimately
rooted in individual self-cultivation and family unity is an important part
of the Confucian heritage. The aims of being a “gentleman” through self­
transformation, of striving to create harmony within the family, are
Confucian teachings that are relevant to the modem world. In an
interdependent world, where relationships between people can all too
easily be undermined by technology and individualism, these ethical
teachings of Confucianism are an invaluable human resource.

The Confucian scholar, Tu Wei-ming, emphasises the continuity between
Confucian self-cultivation and the concept of the fiduciary community in
the modem world:

“The logic of taking the cultivation of the self and the regulation of the
family as “roots” and the ordering of the community, the governance of
the state, and universal peace as “branches,” may give the impression that
complex political processes are reduced to simple relationships
explainable in personable familial terms. Yet the dichotomy of root and
branch conveys the sense of a dynamic transformation from self to family,
to community, to state, and to the world as whole. Self-cultivation is the
root, and harmony attained in the family is a natural outgrowth, like the
branch, of our cultivated selves. Family is the root, and harmony attained
in the community, the state, and the world is a natural outgrowth of the
well-regulated families. In this sense what we do in the privacy of our
own homes profoundly shapes the quality of life in the state as a whole.

Nevertheless, it is important to note that the Confucians do not, by
stressing the centrality of self-cultivation, undermine the corporate effort
that is required for the family, the community, the state, and the world to
become humane or fully human. Just as the self must overcome egoism to
become authentically human, the family must overcome nepotism to
become authentically human. By analogy, the community must'overcome
parochialism, the state must overcome ethnocentrism, and the world must
The Future o f Confucianism                                     105

overcome anthropocentrism to become authentically human. In light of
Confucian inclusive humanism, the transformed self individually and
corporately transcends egoism, nepotism, parochialism, ethnocentrism,
and anthropocentrism to “form one body with Heaven, Earth, and the
myriad things.”29

This passage has much in common with Bahá'í teachings. It encourages a
global perspective, where each person in the world is looked upon as a
member of the human family. Bahá'u'lláh stated, “We desire but the good
of the world and the happiness of the nations... That all nations should
become one in faith and all men as brothers; that the bonds of affection
and unity between the sons of men should be strengthened... Let not a
man glory in this, that he loves his country; but let him rather glory in this,
that he loves his kind.”30

Tu Wei-ming argues for a “third epoch” in Confucianism, where it
becomes a “common creed for humanity as a whole”, and where “concern
for the survival of the Confucian tradition and for the continuity of
traditional Chinese culture must be subsumed under a broader concern for
the future of humankind”. In the context of the challenge facing modem
Confucianist scholars, Tu Wei-ming writes:

“The real challenge to them is how a revived Confucian humanism might
answer questions that science and democracy have raised. In a deeper
sense, these scholars perceive the challenge to be the formulation of a
Confucian approach to the perennial human problems of the world: the
creation of a new philosophical anthropology, a common creed for
humanity as a whole. They are fully aware that concern for the survival of
the Confucian tradition and for the continuity of traditional Chinese
culture must be subsumed under a broader concern for the future of
humankind.”31

This is of course, very close to Bahd'u'Mh’s words on placing love for
humanity above love for one’s country.

29 W.M. Tu, Confucius and Confucianism, p. 115-116.
30 J. E. Esslemont, Bahd'u'lldh and the New Era, Bahá’u’lláh’s words to E. G. Brown, p.
40.
31 W.M. Tu, Quoted by R. L. Taylor, The Religious Dimension o f Confucianism, p. 138.
106          THE SINGAPORE BAHÁ1 STUDIES REVIEW

Another important contribution of Confucianism to the modem world is
its positive approach to education. According to Confucius, learning is a
process that can never be completed. In a world where the boundaries of
knowledge are rapidly growing, a deep respect for learning is an ethic that
is much needed.

“He who by revising the old knows the new, is fit to be a teacher.32
Maybe there are people who can act without knowledge, but I am not one
of them. Hear much, pick the best and follow it; see much, and keep a
record of it: this is still the best substitute for innate knowledge.”33

Traditionally, Confucianism has always been directed to human ends, to
self-improvement in moral rectitude, to self-cultivation in virtues.
Confucian teachings have focussed on attaining better relationships
between people, whether it be in the family or in society at large. Some
critics have accused it of being too one-sided in this, claiming that it
emphasised the learning of human virtues at the expense of making
scientific or technological progress. Ironically, today’s modem society,
dominated as it is by science, is arguably suffering from the reverse
problem. Our society seems to give priority to scientific and technological
learning, and relatively little attention, in comparison, is given to
instruction in human ethics and morals. Confucianist teachings within this
context may play an important role in gaining a better balance. Okada
Tahehiko, a modem Confucianist scholar, points towards this being the
future contribution of Confucianism:

“The main purpose of Confucianism is to establish true humanity. No
matter how far science has developed, the Confucian never loses sight of
the development of humanity. Before any discussion of logic or rationality
the Confucian focuses upon the importance of subjectivity. In our day-to-
day lives we distinguish what goes on within us from the outside world,
but we become trapped by the outside world and in this way we lose our
humanity. Given this situation we should try to control that external
world, but in practice this is a very difficult thing to do. The important
issue is to establish one’s own inner subjectivity within the mind.”34

32 S. Leys, The Analects o f Confucius, 2.11, p. 7.
33 ibid., 7.28, p. 32.
34 Okada Tahehiko quoted by R. L. Taylor, The Religious Dimensions o f Confucianism,
Modernity and Religion, p. 143.
The Future o f Confucianism                      107

These views are close to the Bahá'í principle that “spiritual progress” must
develop alongside “material progress”. While in Paris in 1912, ‘Abdu’l-
Bahá stated:

“It is indeed a good and praiseworthy thing to progress materially, but in
so doing, let us not neglect the more important spiritual progress, and
close our eyes to the Divine light shining in our midst. Only by improving
spiritually as well as materially can we make any real progress, and
become perfect beings. It was in order to bring this spiritual life and light
into the world that all the great Teachers have appeared. They came so
that the Sun of Truth might be manifested, and shine in the hearts of men,
and that through its wondrous power men might attain unto Everlasting
Light.”35

From the Bahá'í point of view, Confucius is in the category of “great
Teachers”. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá referred to him as a “Blessed soul” who, among
others, was the “cause of illumination of the world of humanity”:

“Blessed souls - whether Moses, Jesus, Zoroaster, Krishna, Buddha,
Confucius or Muhammad - were the cause of the illumination of the world
of humanity.”36

The spiritual aspects to Confucius’s teachings, such as self-cultivation, of
acquiring moral virtues, family unity, are relevant to the modem world,
and can help it acquire a better balance between “material progress” and
“spiritual progress”. There is much common ground between Bahá’ís and
modem Confucianists on these points, and this may provide the basis by
which they can work together in the future.

Acknowledgements
This article was written in collaboration with Dr Anjam Khursheed, who
helped me both formulate the original ideas as well as revise several
versions of the paper.

35 ‘Abdu'1-Bahá, Paris Talks, p. 63.
36 ‘Abdu'1-Bahá, Promulgation o f Universal Peace, p. 346.
108         THE SINGAPORE BAHÁ1 STUDIES REVIEW

Works Cited

‘Abdiťl-Bahá
‘A bdu’l-Bahá in London, Bahá’í Publishing Trust, London, 4th ed.,
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Paris Talks, Bahd’i Publishing Trust, 11th ed., London, 1969.

The Promulgation o f Universal Peace, Baháh Publishing Trust,
Wilmette, Illinois, 2nd ed., 1982.

Esslemont, J.E., Bahd'u'lldh and the New Era, Bahá’í Publishing Trust,
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Lau D. C., Mencius, Penguin Books, 1970.

James Legge,
Confucius, Dover Publications Inc., New York, 1971.
The Doctrine o f the Mean, XXX New York, 1971.
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Levenson, Joseph R., Confucian China and Its Modern Fate, Routledge
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Leys, Simon, The Analects o f Confucius, W. W. Norton & Company,
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Taylor, R. L., The Religious Dimensions o f Confucianism, State
University of New York Press, New York, 1990.

Tu, Wei-Ming, Confucius and Confucianism, article in the book,
Confucianism and the Family, edited by Walter H. Slote and George A.
De Vos, State University of New York Press, 1998.

Vohra, Ranbir, China's Path to Modernization, A Historical Review
from 1800 to the Present, Prentice Hall, 2nd ed., New Jersey, USA, 1992.
-- The Future of Confucianism (Used by permission of the curator)