Abstract
Confucianism is well known for its emphasis on “inner sageliness and outer kingliness” 內聖外王 (nei sheng wai wang) .
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Notes
- 1.
There is a great disparity between the early Confucian understanding of politics and our modern one. However, early Confucian understandings of politics are not monolithic, and they can hardly be differentiated from the primitive religion and clanship morality from which they emerged, but we should not explain their understandings of politics simply in terms of their attachment to morality.
- 2.
The Shisan Jing Zhu Shu (十三经注疏, Notes to Commentaries of 13 Classic Books) explained these lines as “Politics does not presuppose criminal punishments; if only the superiors behave themselves, the people will be edified.” This explanation seems to have put politics into a too close relation to morality, and hence it neglects the transition therein.
Reference
Li, Z. (1998). Lunyu Jin Du (Modern Explanation of Analects of Confucius). Hefei: Anhui Literature and Art Publishing House.
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Dongfang, S., Li, H. (2017). The Distinction Between Politics and Morality: An Analysis of What Confucius Actually Said. In: Yao, X. (eds) Reconceptualizing Confucian Philosophy in the 21st Century. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-4000-9_23
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-4000-9_23
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