Confucius | China's Inspirational Philosopher | Three Minute Biographies from History Blast

Welcome to History Byte's 3-Minute Biographies. The subject of today's video is Confucius, a wise philosopher and author, and the founder of Confucianism during the Zhou period of Chinese history. We don't know a great deal about Confucius's childhood, but we know that he was born in the Chinese state of Lu in 1551. His father was a soldier who died when Confucius was three years old, so he spent the rest of his childhood in poverty, raised by his mother. Confucius's family was part of a growing middle class of people called the Shi, although nowhere near as wealthy as the nobility, they were considered above the common peasants. However, since most of the best jobs and government positions were given to the nobility, it shaped Confucius's belief that people should be promoted and rewarded based on their talents and skills. As a young man, he worked as a shepherd, a bookkeeper, and in various government jobs, using the proceeds to give his mother a proper burial after she had died when he was 23. Eventually, he worked his way up into a government position as governor of a small town, and was influential in statewide politics in his role as minister of crime. It was during this time that Confucius developed his own philosophy, which he taught to others. It emphasised morality of the person, and advocated for people to show kindness and sincerity to others, as well as reverence and respect for one's elders and ancestors. Confucius believed that daily rituals were important, that morals and ethics led people to becoming good citizens, and that moderation in all things was recommended. He taught the principle, Do not do unto others what you do not want done to yourself, which became known as the Golden Rule. Politically, he believed in a strong, organised central government, which was morally good to its people, free from corruption, and showing correctness in justice. Fun fact, Confucius taught more than 3,000 students in his life without charging tuition, and some of them even became philosophers in their own right. However, in later life, Confucius became disappointed with government policy, and he stepped down at the age of 51 to travel throughout China to teach his philosophy. Some of his followers wrote down his ideas in a book that would be later called The Analects of Confucius, and he was well known to have authored many classic Chinese texts, including the Five Classics. He spent his last few years in his hometown of Kyufu, teaching his disciples, and died of natural causes in 479 BC, at the age of 72. Today, his philosophy is known as Confucianism. It was after his death that his teachings grew in popularity, when the principles of Confucianism became the state philosophy of China during the Han Dynasty, and would remain so for 2,000 years. It was favoured because of its focus on morals of the people, but also the idea of a strong, centralised government fitted the agenda of later emperors. Confucianist teachings became tested on government civil service exams, and was taught in schools. Fun fact, in the deist religion, Confucius is worshipped as a deity. Confucianism has been credited for shaping East Asian societies and the Chinese communities, and to some extent other parts of Asia as well, like Korea and Japan. In 2005, the Holy Confucian Church was established to unify the teachings and ceremonies of Confucianism. The teachings of Confucius still remain an important guiding philosophy and religion for millions of people to this day.