Law & Natural Order: Dun Dun

Confucius vs. Lao Tzu - The School of Life

      In reading Bresnan's Awakening: An Introduction to the History of Eastern Thought, chapters thirteen and fourteen, I learned about two major schools of thought that originated in ancient China. These are Confucianism and Daoism. Though they share a few similarities, as you can see from the videos above, followers of each go about life from a different point of view. "The Dao De Jing is, to a large degree, concerned with the same problem that Confucius addressed... what sort of person is best suited to govern, and how should he go about doing it" (Bresnan 337). Below, I will answer some questions found in Bresnan's Awakening that will go into detail about the differing ideals found in each school.

How To Become Junzi

    Junzi is referred to as "the heart and soul of the Confucian system." What would a man (or woman) of junzi really be like? Do you feel that this ideal has any application in the modern world? Before jumping straight into the concept of Junzi, let's take a moment to introduce the concept of li. "Li... in the Confucian system became a refined system of manners designed to regulate the personal interactions arising in the various social relationships... li supported and upheld this system of relationships that Confucius believed to be the essence of a healthy social structure." (Bresnan 313) In other words, li was a code of conduct to be upheld along with his Five Cardinal Relationships as a sort of bedrock to social order. The person to be able to do this properly is Junzi or Superior Man who, "was to be a well-rounded human being, conversant and skilled in all areas of life... the finest expression of his culture... did not live to serve his own self-centered ends... his reason for being was to serve the common good." (Bresnan 315) This concept of junzi was cultivated, you had to work to become it and at the core of wanting to become junzi, enters the concept of ren. "A Superior Man was the embodiment of ren. Ren is sincere feeling and caring for others; ren is gladly putting others first; ren is compassion; ren is good-natured; ren is human-heartedness." (Bresnan 315) Confucius believed that at our core, we all contain ren,  and that it's only a matter of extending it outward to encompass others that we must work on, overcoming our fears. In modern times this person would be considered a gentlemen and in that regard, the Daoist Superior Person is completely different.

    How does the Daoist Superior Person differ from the Confucian Superior Man? Do they have anything at all in common? Which one do you find more appealing? Why? Let's take a moment to introduce the concepts of Dao and wu wei from which this person springs. "Dao itself is the first principle. The ongoing expression of Dao is called wu wei... the way nature acts - perfectly, spontaneously, not forcing or trying to control" (Bresnan 340) A Daoist Superior Person is "the man or woman whose life is perfectly in harmony with Dao, whose life is an embodiment of wu wei, who cares nothing about fame and fortune-such is the one whom the Daoists consider to be a Superior Person" (Bresnan 341). This differs from Confucian's Superior Man in that the Daoists do not try to control, they simply are. "Like the Confucians, the Daoists believed that the solution depended on the fashioning of a 'new person'" (Bresnan 342) Confucians fashioned themselves in order to achieve law and order whereas Daoists fashioned themselves to embody the natural order. Though both schools of thought promote being good people, Daoists are more appealing as they are the more laidback of the two, they go with the flow unlike Confucians who are more rigid and structured. In modern times a Daoist could be seen as a better version of a 'hippy'. 

Works Cited

Bresnan, Robert S. Awakening: An Introduction to the History of Eastern Thought. 6th Edition 2018 Routledge, New York

Gärtner, Christian. Model of Confucian Practical Wisdom Exemplified via Junzi Practice. 2011. researchgate.net PNG

The School of Life. "Eastern Philosophy: Confucius." Youtube, 6th Feb. 2015, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tUhGRh4vdb8

The School of Life. "Eastern Philosophy: Lao Tzu." Youtube, 24th Nov. 2014, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFb7Hxva5rg&list=PLwxNMb28XmpeUL1vz9Su7OmeghBDgmj7X&index=8&t=1s