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The
Chinese character for human being (人) has been imbued with Chinese humanistic spirit since
it was created. In its ancient form, it resembled a man standing with his body
slightly bending forward, his hands on his sides, looking modest and polite. Because
humans have the ability to think, they understand that an individual is too
weak to survive alone and, therefore, they need to cooperate with each other.
Ancient Chinese thinkers believed that human beings were one of the three elements of the universe, the other two being heaven and earth. Humanity was the
soul of the world; therefore, human beings were the most distinguished among
all things. Many ancient concepts, particularly in the political and ethical
spheres, were based on this humanistic spirit.
A complete man refers to a person of sound moral integrity who also has command of various skills that in ancient times were needed to deal with social life. In the view of the ancient Chinese, a complete man did not just mean that a man reached adulthood. It also meant that a person had acquired sound morals and the skills required to adapt to society. A complete man needed to have wisdom, courage, and self-restraint and also to have mastered the skills necessary to appropriately deal with all types of matters in life, so that his words and deeds met the requirements of moral principles and justice.
The term was originally used to indicate a person’s social status, usually referring to the rulers’ subjects or those low in social ranking. Later generations also used the term to indicate one’s moral standard in a disapproving way. Those of base character were called petty men as opposed to men of virtue. A petty man only pursues his personal interests or profits, even by violating morality and righteousness; and such people have no understanding of or regard for dao.
The way of man refers to the code of conduct that people must observe and also the relations and norms that keep human society on the right track. The way of man stands in contrast to the way of heaven. When Western culture was introduced to China in modern times, the term gained the meaning of respect and care for people’s lives, well-being, dignity, freedom, and individuality.
Renwen (人文) encompasses the cultural and ethical progress created by rites, music, education, codes, and systems as well as a social order which is hierarchical but harmonious. Renwen is in contrast to tianwen (天文), the study of celestial bodies including the sun, moon, and stars. Renwen also refers to human affairs in general, that is, behaviors, customs, and the human state. Under the influence of Western culture in the modern period, renwen came to mean cultural phenomena in human society as well as the humanities, which are academic disciplines that study human culture.
Rule by man, as opposed to rule by law, is the most important ruling concept in the Confucian political philosophy in ancient China. It calls for ruling a state and its people through orderly human relations, moral standards, and other value systems. Rule by man emphasizes the fundamental role and importance of people in conducting political affairs. It emphasizes that a ruler should have a lofty and noble character, select competent officials with integrity to run the state, and educate and influence the general public. In Chinese history, this concept of governance was designed to achieve a harmonious relationship between the sovereign, his officials, and his subjects, which meant “benevolent governance.”
Being friendly and caring for others is most important. Ancient Chinese believed that human beings are most precious things in the world, so benevolent people care for others. When it comes to governing a country, a ruler’s love for others should be transformed into love for the people. People are the most fundamental components of a state whose stability and security depend on its people. Therefore, a ruler should consider it his top priority to have love for his people, to be considerate to his people, to always make things easier for his people and follow his people’s will. Policies should be made in the interest of the people, and so should laws and institutions. This is not only what a benevolent government that Confucianism advocates is all about, it is also the basic concept on which ancient legalists made policies and laws for running a country. It epitomizes Chinese people’s humanitarian sentiments.
Love of others must follow the rules of moral conduct, and not be unprincipled, selfish or indulgent. De(德) here refers to moral behavior and consciousness, and is the foundation for upholding proper social order. Loving the people is on a personal emotional level, while morality is a set of commonly accepted rules of social conduct. If not grounded in morality, loving the people will go against the common social norms, and harm the integrity of both giver and receiver. The term expresses a spirit of respect for morality, social order, and common good.
People’s physical constitution, emotions and ethics should closely correspond with the structure and order of Nature. The theory that “Humanity should be aligned with Nature” was put forward by Dong Zhongshu(179-104BC). He believed that all things between heaven and earth and their operation had their own intrinsic structure and order. A person’s body, feelings, thinking, acts, and ethics are all in correspondence with the structure and order of Nature, particularly in numbers. According to this theory, humans are but a duplicate of Nature. Dong’s idea provided the basis for mutual interaction between people and Nature.
The benevolent person has a loving heart. Renzhe (仁者) refers to benevolent and virtuous people or people with loving hearts, who have tremendous courage, wisdom, perfect moral character, charm, and charisma, and who love and care about others. Confucianism holds ren (仁) as the highest moral value. The basic meaning of ren is loving others, and to love others, one should first show filial piety to one’s parents and respect one’s elder brothers, and then extend love and care to other family members, and eventually to everyone else in the world. Mencius （372？-289 BC） synthesized and upgraded this notion into a theory to be applied to the governance of a country. He proposed that a person of virtue should love and care about first his loved ones, then other people, and finally everything on earth. Confucianism believed that love could be extended to people in a certain order, but that benevolence has general value, which is both the foundation and the goal of building a harmonious and good-will society.
The ancient Chinese believed that virtuous men followed the will of heaven in establishing a political regime and becoming its sovereigns; hence their success came from the mandate of heaven. This thought is similar to the Western notion of the divine right of kings; but it also emphasizes the wishes and will of the people, or people-centered thinking. In ancient China, this phrase was often used in praise of the founding of a new dynasty, and the implementation of major social reforms to justify its legitimacy.
The term represents a world outlook and a way of thinking which hold that heaven and earth and man are interconnected. This world outlook emphasizes the integration and inherent relationship between heaven, earth, and man. It highlights the fundamental significance of nature to man or human affairs, and describes the endeavor made by man to pursue life, order, and values through interaction with nature. The term has different ways of expression in history, such as heaven and man are of the same category, sharing the same vital energy, or sharing the same principles. Mencius（372？-289 BC）, for one, believed that through mental reflection one could gain understanding of human nature and heaven, emphasizing the unity of mind, human nature, and heaven. Confucian scholars of the Song Dynasty sought to connect the principles of heaven, human nature, and the human mind. Laozi maintained that “man’s law is earthly, earth’s law is natural, and heaven’s law is dao.” Depending on a different understanding of heaven and man, the term may have different meanings.
This term refers to a world outlook and a way of thinking which hold that heaven and man are different. This explanation was first put forward by Xunzi（313？-238 BC）, who did not believe that human morality and the order of human society emanated from heaven. He argued that heaven and man each had a different role and that they should not be mixed. Temporal changes of heaven and earth as well as the occurrence of seasonal changes in temperature and rainfall all belonged to the domain of heaven. They had their normal path, unrelated to human affairs, and were beyond the reach of human power. On the other hand, man’s morality and order in the world belonged to the realm of man. People should be responsible for moral development and social order. Only by making a clear distinction between heaven and man could one develop his abilities on the basis established by heaven, without overstepping into a domain where man was unable to exert his power.
This term means to infer others’ thoughts with one’s own. It is exactly what Confucianism advocates as tolerance toward others, which is an important principle or method of caring for the people and cherishing all things. In the first place, such thinking believes that people basically share a common spirit. On this basis, tolerance and benevolence need to be advanced. One should show consideration for others by putting oneself in their place, and understand others by walking in their shoes. We should never do unto others what we would not want others to do unto ourselves, and whatever we would wish for ourselves, we should also help others to achieve.
“Cultivating oneself” means taking pains to elevate one’s talent and virtue constantly to achieve perfection, thus inwardly becoming a sage. “Benefiting others” means displaying one’s own talent and virtue to make contributions to society and benefit others, thus outwardly becoming a person like a king. This was what Confucius（551-479 BC） meant by a “man of virtue” and is also a simple expression of the Confucian school’s notion of rule by virtue.
The term means that those who win the hearts of the people or get the service of the talented will rise while those who lose the hearts of the people or fail to get the talented people will perish. Ren (人) stands for people’s hearts as well as people’s talents. This saying, which comes from Records of the Historian, has two connotations. First, the rise and fall of a country or government depend on winning people’s hearts. Only by winning people’s hearts and responding to their wishes can a country or government continue to thrive. This is in accord with the philosophy that “people’s will is the foundation of the state” and “people are the foundation of the state.” Second, talents are critical to the rise and fall of a country or government. Only by identifying and recruiting the most capable and most upright people, and by suitably employing them can a great cause be completed and a country and its government remain stable and secure. Winning people’s hearts is closely related to attracting the talented. Winning people’s hearts will eventually draw in the talented, and recruiting the talented will eventually help win people’s hearts. All leaders, be they heads of states, groups or teams, should follow this notion of ruling.
Do not impose on others what you do not want yourself. That is the “way of being considerate” advocated by Confucius（551-479 BC）. It calls for using one’s own mind to infer and understand other people’s minds. In today’s words, it means to put oneself into others’ shoes or to think from their positions. Its philosophical basis lies in the similarity of people’s basic natures. It is an important principle put forth by Confucians to govern inter-personal relationships, and is now extended to international relationship management to counter power politics. Its essential elements are benevolence, equality, and tolerance.
This alludes to the long time it takes for a tree to grow, yet even longer time it takes to nurture talents. The implications are twofold: first, identifying and bring up talents has long-term significance for the development of a country and a society; second, nurturing talents should be an undertaking pursued with strategic vision, sustained efforts and according to a comprehensive plan .
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