Confucius: Thinking Deeply

10 Confucius: Thinking Deeply Every culture produces men and women with sharp minds who spend their days thinking about the world and how to live a good and happy life. They are the philosophers. One famous philosopher, Kong Zi, lived and worked in China from 551 BC to 479 BC. In English, this great philosopher is called Confucius. He gave China and the world some deep insights into life and how to live it well. His philosophical ideas are known far and wide. His work is studied in philosophy departments at major world universities. Philosophers have opinions about almost everything. Confucius identified three main truths about how to live a good life. First, he said we should respect the king. Next, we should do everything possible to respect each other. Finally, he believed that we can have a really good and happy life if we learn to live in harmony. This means that we should try to find a way to live peacefully both with each other, and with the natural world.

During his lifetime, Confucius travelled throughout China, working as a teacher and a government administrator. Wherever possible, he tried to put his ideas into action. None of his wise sayings were written down while he was alive. His friends and followers collected them after his death. Slowly, people everywhere were exposed to his wisdom. His ideas took root. People could see that Confucius knew what he was talking about. It is interesting to note that many of his sayings are quite similar to those of other great philosophers. For example, his Golden Rule says: “ What you do not want others to do to you do not do to others. " Hundreds of years after the death of Confucius, the religious philosopher, Jesus, said nearly the same thing with his Golden Rule. It advises us to: “ Do unto others as we want others to do unto us. " The two men lived in different eras and grew up in different cultures. However, they both came to many similar conclusions. That's how it is with philosophers. They think deeply about life. Much of their advice is true no matter where you are in the world.