Confucius: His Life And Teaching

Abstract

The third of October, 1949, was the 2,500th anniversary of Confucius’ birth. This date has been under dispute for more than 2,000 years. Early and reliable accounts state that the birth was on a certain day of the Chinese sixty-day cycle and that it was fifty days after an eclipse of the sun. But those same accounts list eclipses of the sun in two successive months, something that is impossible in China. Only recently has any one bothered to calculate which eclipse actually occurred and discover that, in a period of twenty years before and after the birth, only one eclipse of the sun occurred on that day of the cycle and was visible at Confucius’ birthplace. So this date can be fixed accurately by modern scientific methods.1

“Age of Ethos”: Exploring Rhetorical Practices in Early Chinese Society

“…It is well established, and documented, that "collective workmanship" (Wei 2015) was behind the production of almost all of the pre-Qin 21 texts in ancient China. 22 Classical texts, like the Dao De Jing, Zhuangzi and Four Books and Five Classics, 23 were collectively written, often over a span of centuries, by-mostly-the anonymous disciples, and disciples of disciples, 24 of Laozi, Zhuangzi, 25 21 Refers to the period up to the first imperial dynasty of China, the Qin dynasty (221-206 B.C.). 22 Suppose a text can be attributed to one single author; however, to quote W.Y.…”

“…22 Classical texts, like the Dao De Jing, Zhuangzi and Four Books and Five Classics, 23 were collectively written, often over a span of centuries, by-mostly-the anonymous disciples, and disciples of disciples, 24 of Laozi, Zhuangzi, 25 21 Refers to the period up to the first imperial dynasty of China, the Qin dynasty (221-206 B.C.). 22 Suppose a text can be attributed to one single author; however, to quote W.Y. Li, the "inevitable changes and emendations introduced" in the process of transmission still "warrant the notion of collective authorship" (Li 2017, p. 363).…”

“…Dubs, for instance, has this to say about Confucius: "Then each Confucian philosopher, and some Daoists too, read into Confucius' teaching the beliefs that this philosopher wanted to be accepted, because by putting them into the mouth of the great authority, these teachings also became authoritative (1951, p. 30). He adds, "Many sayings were put into his mouth which he never could have uttered" (Dubs 1951. P. 30).…”