By K. Keene
The politically turbulent Spring & Autumn Annals and period of the Warring States were times of intense social unrest in early China. These periods were responsible for the degradation of the standard ethical practices of the time and imposed extreme hardships on the common people of China. However, this era also contributed directly to the birth of great works in Chinese literature such as Confucius’ Analects and the Tao Te Ching. Both of these important works sought to restore social order in China by establishing frameworks for society with emphasis on the subject of ruling—and what it means to be a good ruler.
At around 700 B.C., after the Chou capital moved eastward as a result of a nomadic invasion, the emperor’s power began to dwindle. His lords controlled their own lands and armies, and were loyal to the
emperor only in name. “As a result of the Jung invasion, royal power swiftly declined. In the age that is now called that of the Spring and Autumn Annals, the Chou king in Lo- yang became an almost powerless figure, investing feudal lords and carrying out ancient ceremonies, but exercising little real influence. The great feudatories began to lord it over the lesser ones; later they suppressed them and annexed their territory” (Fitzgerald 47). Up until this time, wars between feudal lords had been fought largely for sport, with many rules of conduct. However these cultural practices began to break down as power struggles become fiercer between individual states. “By the time of Confucius, around 500 B.C., this decorous mode of behavior was yielding to sterner and more cruel conduct” (Fitzgerald 48). Nobles began to disregard the standards of conduct for war, forming cavalries and conducting sneak attacks on other states. This made life very difficult for the common people of China. They became subject to a number of atrocities during this time such as execution, pillaging, and starvation. “Contests between charioteers gave way to cavalry, with its surprise attacks and sudden raids. Instead of nobly holding their prisoners for ransom, conquerors put them to death in mass executions. Whole populations unlucky enough to be captured were beheaded, including women, children, and the aged” (Smith 160). While these changes in warfare had a devastating effect on the quality of life of the Chinese peasantry, they were also representative of an equally damaging breakdown of cultural practices. “The conduct of the nobility was regulated by the Li, a term that has usually been translated as the “rules of propriety,” but that would be better explained as a mixture of courtesy and chivalry sanctified by religion” (Fitzgerald 48). The loss of these cultural, ethical, and even religious values created a vacuum that needed to be filled in order to reunify China.
The great Chinese thinker, Confucius, sought to fill that void by changing the way people interacted with one another. “His whole effort was directed towards trying to arrest a swift decline in political practice and public morality” (Fitzgerald 67). The only work directly attributed to him, known as the Analects, provided guidelines on how one should act towards others, based upon how that person would like to be treated themselves: “There are four things in the Way of the profound person, none of which I have been able to do. To serve my father as I would expect my son to serve me. To serve my ruler as I would expect my ministers to serve me. To serve my elder brother as I would expect my younger brothers to serve me. To be the first to treat friends as I would expect them to treat me—These I have not been able to do” (Confucius qtd. in Smith 157). This philosophy is applied to nearly every social situation and relationship in the Analects, from how to treat one’s elders, to approaching two people engaged in conversation. Perhaps the most important of these examples is the relationship between ruler and subject. Confucius believed that a good ruler should provide for his people and thusly earn their respect. His work, the Analects, provide a multitude of examples of how a good ruler should behave. “Govern the people by regulations, keep order among them by chastisements, and they will flee from you, and lose all respect. Govern them by morality, keep order among them by ritual, and they will respect and come to you of their own accord” (Confucius qtd. in Novak 130). Having simply written these ideas was not enough for Confucius. He wasn’t convinced that his ideas would take if not proven in practice. With this in mind, Confucius traveled from court to court offering unsolicited advice to the nobility. While his ideas held considerable merit and were supported by many Chinese, the ruling class feared his influence and obstructed him from attaining positions of any real power. “The truth is that contemporary rulers were much too afraid of Confucius’s exceptional candor and integrity to appoint him to any position involving power” (Smith 155).
While the Analects focuses primarily on person-to-person interaction and one’s role within society, The Tao
Te Ching concerns itself with one’s interactions and place within nature. This text seeks to enrich and enlighten the reader with a romantic view of the world around them through poetry: “The Tao is like a well: used but never used up. It is like the eternal void: filled with infinite possibilities” (Lao Tzu 2). In a time when nobles were constantly turning on one another for personal gain and villages and villagers alike were destroyed by the thousands, the Tao Te Ching preached the concept of Wu Wei, or non-action. “It is not a counsel of passivity or torpor; rather it warns against ego-laden action that seeks to shape life in one’s own image” (Novak 152).
The Tao Te Ching condemns the desire-fueled actions of the Chinese nobility and offers comfort to those whose lives are seemingly out of their own control. “Fill your bowl to the brim and it will spill. Keep sharpening your knife and it will blunt. Chase after money and security and your heart will never unclench. Care about people’s approval and you will be their prisoner. Do your work, and then step back. The only path to serenity.” (Lao Tzu 9). Like its ethical peer, the Analects, the Tao Te Ching also offers advice on how to rule; applying its unique philosophical views and the concept of Wu Wei: “When the Master governs, the people are hardly aware that he exists. Next best is a leader who is loved. Next is the one who is feared. The worst is one who is despised. If you don’t trust the people, you make them untrustworthy. The master doesn’t talk, but he acts. When his work is done, the people say, “Amazing: we did it, all by ourselves!” (Lao Tzu 17).
In conclusion, the Spring and Autumn Annals and the Warring states period were chaotic times for China and saw to the destruction of many cultural and ethical ideals. However, like a phoenix rising from the ashes, it was also responsible for a period of rapid growth in Chinese thought and literature. The most significant works that emerged from this period established the framework for Chinese society and have been deeply engrained in Chinese culture for millennia.
Works Cited
Confucius. The Analects. Sacred Text Archive, n.d. Web. 10 Oct. 2014.
Fitzgerald, C.P. History of China. New York: American Heritage Publishing Co., Inc., 1969. Print.
Lao Tzu. “The Tao Te Ching.” Sacred Text Archive. n.d. Web. 10 Oct. 2014.
Novak, Philip. The World’s Wisdom. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1994. Print.
Smith, Huston. The World’s Religions. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 2008. Print.
Image of the Great Wall of China (detail) via National Geographic