完成图表 · 2020 · 孔子生平与思想（Confucius' life & thought）

Confucius (551—479 BC) was a great thinker and teacher in the Spring and Autumn Period of China. He was born in Qufu, capital of the state of Lu (part of Shandong). He acted as an official there. But he was perhaps a better thinker than he was an official and he ended up having to leave the state of Lu. He spent 13 years travelling around the other states, spreading his ideas. And he tried to teach people that peace was very important for a healthy society. However, it was not until the rule of Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty (156-87 BC) that his ideas were finally put into practice. In his last few years, he returned to Qufu where he spent the rest of his life teaching. His teachings were recorded by his followers in a book called Lunyu.

Confucius' teachings formed the base of Chinese thought. Confucius thought everyone should develop virtues and always do the right thing. Confucius' thought is considered to have been the necessity of Eastern thought.

To help people understand how to behave towards others, he taught five virtues accepted by all Chinese. They are ren (kindness, charity), yi (fairness), li (ceremony, tradition), zhi (knowledge), and xin (trust). Another virtue is xiao. Xiao is the duties a person has to their parents. It means loving, respecting, obeying, and taking care of one's parents in their old age. Xiao forms the base of a peaceful society. And he is the final goal according to his thought. It means social peace.

Here's one of Confucius' famous sayings, "Do not do to others as you do not wish to be done to you." Another saying of his is "In the company of two others, I can always find one worthy of being my teacher."

It is clear that Confucius' thought will continue to be a necessary part of Chinese culture. And it will continue to do something good to the development of China and even the whole world.