英语 Confucian Thought on Heaven and Humanity

Unit 1 Confucian Thought on Heaven and Humanity 国学12道:1、孔子:为人之道;2、老子:处事之道;3、庄子:养性之道;4、孟子:君臣之道;5、荀子:学习之道;6、孙子:韬略之道;7、管子:教练之道;8、韩非子:统驭之道;9、鬼谷子:权谋之道;10、大学:修身之道;11、易经:天地之道;12、禅宗:死生之道。为人之道:与人平等,不强求别人,包容别人的错误,人无完人,不能太过于完美的去 要求 对教师党员的评价套管和固井爆破片与爆破装置仓库管理基本要求三甲医院都需要复审吗 别人处事之道:以人为本,让别人感到受益,你才会有益受养性之道:是前两个的结合君臣之道:上下级关系,如何处理 “To learn and then have occasion to practice what you have learned—is this not satisfying? To have friends arrive from afar—is this not a joy? To be patient even when others do not understand—is this not the mark of the gentlemen?” 学而时习之,不亦乐乎?有朋至远方来,不亦乐乎?人不知而不愠,不亦君子乎? 孔子简介:Confucius (551-479 BC), known in China as Kongzi, given name Qiu and alias Zhongni. He was a native of Zouyi (present-day Qufu in Shandong Province) of the State of Lu during the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BC). Why does our Kongzi become Confucius in the west? Confucius is a Latinized name bestowed upon Kongzi by Jesuit missionaries in the 18th century, which is a critical time when missionaries introduced Chinese culture to the West. 论语:The Analects, or Lunyu, purports to be a record of the teaching of Confucius and hisdisciples. It is an enduring classic of Chinese culture and has influenced all thinkers, writers and politicians in the over-2,000-year-long history of China after Confucius. No scholar could truly understand the long-standing culture or the inner world of the ancient Chinese without this book. The Analects is not a “book” in the sense that most modern Westerners usual ly understand a book—that is, a coherent argument or story presented by a single author, to be digested alone in the quiet of study. It is instead a record—somewhat haphazardly collected and edited together at an unknown point in history—of a dynamic process of teaching, and most likely was only committed to writing many years after the Master Confucius had passed away. What is Confucius’ view on Heaven according to these lines? “Heaven does not speak in words. It speaks through the rotation of the four seasons and the growth of all living things (天何言哉?四时行焉,百物生焉,天何言哉?) .”—Selected from The Analects Confucius regarded “Heaven” as nature。Confucius believes that nature is not a lifeless mechanism separate from human; instead, it is a great world full of life and the process of creating life. Human is part of nature. The “way of Heaven” Confucius’ equation of Heaven with the creation of life was an innovative idea in his time.The natural process of life creation was the “way of Heaven”.This idea was later developed in The Book of Changes (Yijing). The “virtue of Heaven” As the natural process of creation of life, Heaven was the source of all living things and the source of all values. This was the “virtue of Heaven”. “Heavenly mission”天命 In the natural process of creation of life, Heaven had its inner purpose in creating all things as well as protecting and improving life。Heaven had originated humanity, and humans were obliged to accomplish this purpose.In other words, humans are born with a sense of “heavenly mission”, and this is the meaning of human life. 子曰:吾,十有五,而志于学,三十而立,四十而不惑,五十而知天命,六十而耳顺,七十而 从心所欲不逾矩。 The Master said, At fifteen I set my heart upon learning. At thirty, I had planted my feet firm upon the ground. At forty, I no longer suffered from perplexities. At fifty, I knew what were the biddings of Heaven. At sixty, I heard them with docile ear. At seventy, I could follow the dictates of my own heart; for what I desired no longer overstepped the boundaries of right. The sense of awe and belief in Heaven Confucius required people to hold Heaven in awe and claimed that a person of virtue must “respect his heavenly mission”, listen to and live out the purpose of Heaven by caring for and improving life.Under the influence of Confucius, the ancient Chinese developed a sense of awe and belief in Heaven. How do you understand this line? “He who offends against Heaven has none to whom he can pray (获罪于天,无所祷也。).”—Selected from The Analects Heaven, as the world of ever-generating life, was the highest sacred being, with its profound mystery never to be fully understood by mortals. Human beings should take to heart the purpose of Heaven by cherishing life. If one remained “ignorant and disrespectful of one’s heavenly mission” by killing or maiming life, one would be punished by Heaven。 How is Confucian concept of Heaven related to the modern ecological civilization? Confucius regarded “Heaven” as nature and the source of life, and required people to hold Heaven in awe. This is the source of the modern ecological civilization. Ren (仁) and li (礼) are the two core concepts of Confucius’ doctrine about people. Ren (仁) Confucius interpreted ren in various ways, and the most important interpretation is “love people”.Love for the people is universal love. This kind of love should “begin with the love for one’s parents”.The essence of ren: “filial piety and fraternal duty”. Confucius taught for many years and trained 3,000 disciple, of whom 72 excelled in the “six arts (六艺)”, i.e., ritual, music, archery, (carriage) driving, calligraphy, and mathematics. l. Skimming and Scanning(Go through the passage quickly and answer the following questions briefly.) 1) What is The Analects mainly about? The Analects is mainly about Confucius’ words and life story. 2) What is Confucius’ view on Heaven? Confucius regarded Heaven as nature. 3) What is Confucius’ innovative idea about Heaven? Confucius’ innovative idea about Heaven is that Heaven (or nature) is the process of life creation. 4) What does the “heavenly mission” in Paragraph 7 refer to? The “heavenly mission” in Paragraph 7 refers to accomplishing Heaven’s purpose of protecting and improving life. 5) How is Confucius’ concept of Heaven related to the modern ecological civilization? Confucius advocated “standing in awe of the ordinances of Heaven” and warned against offending Heaven. This is, in essence, equivalent to the modern idea of staying in harmony with nature. So in this way Confucius’ concept of Heaven is similar to the modern ecological civilization. 6) What is Confuc ius’ interpretation of ren? Confucius interpreted ren as “love of people”, which begins with the “love for one’s parents”. 7) According to Confucius, what is the most important part of li? According to Confucius, the most important part of li is the burial and ancestral worship rituals. 8) What qualities are “persons of virtue” supposed to have? “Persons of virtue” are supposed to have sound character and uplifted minds and they can shoulder important social responsibilities and make contributions to society. 9) Why do people need to study music according to Confucius? According to Confucius, studying music can lift one’s spirit and help one appreciate beauty. 10) What did Confucius think of Zeng Dian’s (曾点) aspiration? Confucius thought highly of Zeng Dian’s aspiration and regarded harmony among people and harmony between people and nature as the highest state of life. II. Careful Reading 1. Read the passage carefully and choose the best answer to each of the following questions. 1) All the following are the titles of Confucius EXCEPT _______? an educator B. a biologist C. a scholar D. a philosopher 2) The expression “filial piety” most probably means being ______. A. loyal to the state B. obedient to sister(s) C. responsible for the family D. dutiful to parents 3) Which of the following can best describe Confucius’ view on the relationship between man and nature/Heaven? A. Brothers B. Husband and wife C. Doctor and patient D. Mother and son 4) Through burial and ancestral worship rituals, people can learn that ______. A. nature is lifeless so it will never die B. individual’s life can be everlasting by joining nature C. they should be grateful to their parents for giving them lives D. individual’s lifespan is short, so they should enjoy life as much as possible 5) Which of the following is the most important part of Confucius’ curriculum? Music B. Calligraphy C. Virtue D. Mathematics 6) Zi Lu, Ran You and Gongxi Chi’s aspirations represent _____,while Zeng Dian’s reflects A. personal ambition; selfishness B. lofty ideals; meaningless pursuit C. personal struggle; generous contribution D. individual contribution to society; harmony 1) God bless上帝保佑(用于向某人表示关爱) 2) thank God谢天谢地,感谢上帝 3) please God但愿(用于表示非常强烈的愿望) 4) for God's sake看在上帝的份上,行行好吧[表示某事很重要] 5) God forbid但愿(某事)不会发生 6) Man proposes, God disposes.谋事在人,成事在天。 7) God helps those who help themselves自助者天助之。 Just as the above English sayings show Westerners’ belief in and awe for God, the following Chinese idioms indicate the supreme position of Heaven (天) in Chinese people's eyes: 谢天谢地;天作之合;天不作美;天赐良机;天道酬勤;天网恢恢,疏而不漏;天时地利人和;顺天从人。 Things being investigated, knowledge became complete. 物格而後知至 Their knowledge being complete, their thoughts were sincere. 知至而後意誠 Their thoughts being sincere, their hearts were then rectified. 意誠而後心正 Their hearts being rectified, their persons were cultivated. 心正而後身修 Their persons being cultivated, their families were regulated. 身修而後家齊 Their families being regulated, their States were rightly governed. 家齊而後國治 Their States being rightly governed, the entire world was at peace. 國治而後天下平 Unit2 Laozi’s Philosophy of Non-action Laozi (about 571-471 BC), also called Laodan, surname Li, given name Ran and alias Boyang.He was a recluse (隐居者) who lived during the Spring and Autumn Period.He was said to have once held a low civil position in the royal court, in charge of archival records of the Zhou Dynasty。 Laozi was a man of great learning. Even Confucius was said to have traveled miles to consult him. Laozi (《老子》), also known as Classic of the Way and Virtue (Dao De Jing.)The author is generally believed to be Laozi. l. Skimming and Scanning Go through the passage quickly and judge whether the following statements are true (T) or false (F) according to the passage. F- 1) Laozi is a lengthy book on the Way and Virtue, which has played an important role in Chinese culture. T-2) According to Laozi's philosophy of naturalness, man should not attempt to manipulate nature. T-3) Laozi's philosophy of non-action advocates humans act following the laws of nature . T-4) According to Laozi, when it comes to breaking the strong, the strength of water is superior to anything else. F-5) The basic way to prosperity is to keep superior in every way. F-6) Laozi would rather remain a “newborn baby”, because it has nothing to worry about. T-7) According to Laozi, the process of a man's growing up is that of losing his true ego. II. Careful Reading 1. Read the first two paragraphs and fill in the following table with the information about the book Laozi. Other name(s):Classic of the Way and Virtue (Dao De Jing) Time of writing:Around the 6th century BC Length:About 5,000 Chinese characters in 81 chapters Significance:A direct impact on the characteristics, trends of thought, and aesthetic sensibilities of the Chinese nation International influence:First introduced into Europe as early as the 15th century and one of the most translated philosophical works of ancient China 2. Read the passage carefully and fill in the following blanks with the missing information. 1) Laozi’s thought has a great influence on the (characteristics), (trends of thought)and(aesthetic sensibilities)of the Chinese people. 2) The examples of birds, fish, clouds and flowers are used to illustrate that(everything in the worldhas its own way of being and development) 3) The difference between great ingenuity and ordinary ingenuity lies in the fact that(the latter can be achieved through human effort, but the former is superior to the latter)