Analects of Confucius revolves around the thoughts and teachings of Chinese philosopher Confucius and it is the foundation for Confucianism that is followed by millions of people in East Asia today. This important text was written around 500 BC by the pupils of Confucius and a good part of it was written within a period of 30 to 50 years after his death.
Confucius was born in the province of Lu at a time when the Chinese culture and way of life was at its nascent stages. He wanted to impact the Chinese way of life politically and intellectually through his philosophy and teachings. He tried to pass on to his students the guiding principles of ancient sage kings who worked to maintain harmony in the community and by emphasizing on spiritual well-being over material wealth (Confucius, Ames and Rosemont, 1998).
The Analects do not contain any prose, poem or argument. It is rather a set of statements said by Confucius to his disciples and it is upto the readers to tune into the voice of Confucius to understand his strong and complex style of teaching.
Contents and Teachings
This book is a compilation of speeches given by Confucius and the conversation he had with his disciples. It talks about different aspects of living like understanding one's responsibility, living a peaceful and meaningful life, forming and running a Government and living a life of self-cultivation so that the disciple can be a moral role-leader for others to follow in his path.
The book is divided into 20 chapters and they are: Xue Er, Wei Zheng, Ba Yi, Li Ren, Gong Ye Chang, Yong Ye, Shu Er, Tai Bo, Zi Han, Xiang Dang, Xian Jin, Yan Yuan, Zi Lu, Xian Wen, Wei Ling Gong, Ji Shi, Yang Huo, Wei Zi, Zi Zhang and Yao Yue (Confucius.org, no date).
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