Although briefly forbidden during the Qin (Ch’in) dynasty, Han Wudi (Han Wu-ti), the sixth emperor of the Han dynasty embraced Confucianism He adopted the principles of Confucian thought as the basis for his government, laws, and ethics In order to promote it he started a university to teach the Confucian Classics to new generations Confucianism remained the most influential and mainstream school of thought in the China until the Chinese Communists led by Mao Zedong (Mao Tse-tung) stamped it out Zhu Xi (Chu Hsi) undertook further elaboration of Confucianism as a state ideology, and he was indentified as one of the first Neo-Confucians Neo-Confucianism, which was more appealing not only to China but also to Korea and Japan, incorporated Daoism (Taoism) and Buddhist ideas to create a more all-encompassing philosphy and ideology The two most fundamental principles of Confucian governmental thought are virtue and merit In order to govern one must first be able to successfully govern himself As a result, the king or leader of a government must act as a “calm center” around which society is able to develop and prosper under his direction Confucian thought stresses learning as an integral component of not only better governing oneself but also improving one’s chances for success within society When later dynasties began to implement Confucian governmental principles, they established civil services exams for government positions, based upon the study of the Confucian Classics In addition, they also incorporated traditional values of ritual, filial piety, loyalty, community, and humaneness Confucianism still influences many Asian nations Further reading: Berthrong, John H., Evelyn Nagai Berthrong, and E Nagai-Berthrong Confucianism Oneworld Publications, 2000; Elman, Benjamin A., John B Duncan, and Herman Ooms, eds Rethinking Confucianism: Past and Present in China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam Los Angeles: UCLA, 2002 Arthur Holst Confucius (551–479 b.c.e.) Chinese philosopher Confucius is the Latinized form for Kong Fuzi (K’ungfu-tzu) which means Master Kong in Chinese He came from a minor noble family from the state of Lu in modern Shandong (Shantung) Province, which had been founded by the Duke of Zhou (Chou) Confucius 93 His father died when he was young, and his mother brought him up under humble circumstances Confucius founded a school of philosophy called Confucianism, which stressed ethics in personal and political life and which contended for acceptance during the era called the Hundred Schools of Philosophy in China that lasted between approximately 600 and 300 b.c.e By 100 b.c.e Confucianism had become China’s state ideology, and Confucius was acknowledged as the Supreme Sage and Ultimate Teacher Few people have had a greater impact on more people for two millennia Although many legends have grown around Confucius in later centuries, it is nevertheless possible to reconstruct a fairly accurate biography of him Confucius had an education fitting for a gentleman His hobbies were music and archery, but he had to make a living He sought government service, but with a mission, which was to reform morals and bring peace China was in an unstable state The Zhou dynasty was in decline, and the feudal lords who were contending for supremacy paid little attention to moral leadership Thus, he had little luck finding acceptance for his ideas and turned to teaching as an instrument for reform He was China’s first professional teacher, charging tuition, but only accepting students of integrity Whereas traditional schools for nobles turned out educated men who did their lords’ bidding, Confucius expected his students to play a dynamic role in reforming the government and serving the people He taught more than 3,000 students, among them 72 were counted disciples Most of his students went on to teach and further his legacy, spreading his ideals and debating followers of other philosophies Confucius wrote a book titled the Annals of Spring and Autumn (Qunqiu), which was a chronicle of his state of Lu The book’s title gave its name to the era it covered Its importance was his choice of words to describe people and events, called the “rectification of names,” that conveyed censure or praise According to the famous Confucian Mencius: “Confucius wrote the Spring and Autumn and rebellious sons and disloyal ministers were overwhelmed with consternation.” This book, together with the Yi Jing (I Ching), or Book of Change; Shu Jing (Shu Ching), or Book of History; Shi Jing (Shih Ching), or Book of Poetry; and Li Jing (Li Ching), or Book of Rites, constitute the Five Classics of the Confucian Classics and are the most revered texts of the Chinese culture Confucius and his disciples are credited with compiling and editing the other Four Books of the canon and also writing appendices to them One of these, Lunyu (Lun-yu), or the Analects, which means “selected sayings,” was a