Few has ever achieved the status of Confucius, the ancient Chinese thinker who shaped much of Eastern thoughts. His words are still frequently quoted, although some may not realize.
Do we ever quote anything from western philosophers such as Aristotle or Plato?
I am poorly educated, I can't quote any statement from any western philosopher, other than the now laughable 4 (or 5) element theory and the tale of Galileo's ball dropping experiment that marked the dawn of modern science. Math and computer graphics students may have heard of the Platonic solids.
It seems like the influence of ancient philosophers has diminished in Western culture, or that we are already practicing the society put forth by ancient philosophers without realizing? Democracy is probably rooted in ancient thoughts of some Greek philosophers but I am sure only a few elites can tell you the details.
Some of Confucius's idea are still interesting to read about. Confucius did not attempt to explain natural phenomenon like Aristotle, rather, he focus on building character, interpersonal communication, and how to run a country!
See this wiki article, the Chinese edition of course gives much more details.
Some famous quotes, with my rough translation:
"(Confucius's Student) Mr. Chung remind himself with questions 3 times a day: Am I loyal (to my king) or am I always planning to take advantage? Do I communicate with my friends but not trust them? Do I preach but not exercise what I preach?"曾子曰: 吾日三省吾身：為人謀而不忠乎？與朋友交而不信乎？傳不習乎？
This are such great questions! Mr. Chung strive so hard to be a great man.
"If there are 3 people, there must be a teacher for me within, choose his good stuff to learn, change the bad stuff of him" 三人行，必有我師焉。擇其善者而從之，其不善者而改之。
It is good to learn from friends and help friends grow isn't it?
"If you want to be quick, then you won't reach there" 欲速則不達。
This is so frequently quoted! How many times are you on a rush project without resources you need?
"If you want your work sharpened, you must first sharpen your tool" 工欲善其事，必先利其器。
This is quoted often too. Are you given a lowly computer to run that memory hog software development tool? Invest in good equipments.
"Be patient or you may ruin big plans" 小不忍則亂大謀
"See no evil, hear no evil, say no evil" 子曰：「非禮勿視，非禮勿聽，非禮勿言」
This is a very small sampler of wisdom statements as Confucius revealed in the Analects in his discussion with his students (that I copied off from that Wiki article). Although some of these may sound "common sense". Confucius collect them all.
Confucius is focusing on being the kind gentleman (Ok, it is very hard to exactly translate "仁") that practices rituals 禮.
Confucius became the role model that eventually got promoted to a "saint" level. Chinese history does not have religious saints like St. Paul or St. John. In fact, Confucius stay away from religious talk though he does have many worshippers! 子不語怪，力，亂，神.
Confucius is required reading for generations of students until modern times. Language has evolved so much that Confucius become hard to access for today's students. It needs a modern translation! (ok, there are probably a lot, but the original text is such classics).
Confucius text are not HUGE like Aristotle or Plato. It would be a great 1-semester college or even high school course.
Chinese students are trained to read and follow those in authority, and not encouraged to question authority.
Today's students should read philosophy with an open mind. Know what the ancient greats say, be able to agree or disagree with their views. It trains thinking and writing! Just what is preventing YOU to become the next great philosopher?
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