Six Classics
Confucius was the first to advocate moral education. Politically, he advocated the practice of the “rites of the Zhou Dynasty,” and in education he urged the re-adoption of the “six arts” formed in the heyday of the Western Zhou Dynasty. However, his “resumption of the Zhou rites” was by no means a simple retrogression to the Western Zhou period, but was intended as part of a reform needed by his own time. His fundamental idea of reform in education was to attain the goal of “recommending outstanding talents” by way of introducing “the best students to officialdom.” By “outstanding” and “best” he meant those who had perfected their morality, those who were truly benevolent or virtuous. Moral education was therefore given prime importance in his teaching. He devoted almost all his life to systematically editing and revising Shi (The Book of Songs), Shu (The Book of History), Li (The Book of Rites), Yue (The Book of Music), Yi (The Book of Changes), and Chun qiu (Spring and Autumn Annals), and compiling them into teaching materials known as the Six Classics.
Six Classics
The Book of Songs is a collection of poems and songs written from the Western Zhou period onwards. Of the original 3,000, Confucius selected only 305. The central idea of the poems and songs he selected conformed with the moral standards of the “rites.” Learning The Book of Songs was, for him, a matter of great significance. Studying the book could give voice to a person’s feelings and ambition, enable one to observe society and understand life, and also promote a consciousness of cooperation. The key was to learn the way and reason of “serving one’s father,” and “serving one’s sovereign.” A person who had learned the book, but could not apply the teachings in practice, had only touched the “skin and hair” of the book, not the essence and substance within it.
The Book of History (also Shang Shu), is a collection of political and historical events compiled by governments before the Spring and Autumn Period. It recorded the important historical events of the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties. The whole collection was said to have had one hundred sections, but only 28 have survived. Confucius believed that to learn the book would not only enrich one’s knowledge of history, but more importantly enable one to master the way earlier kings ruled their kingdoms through moral teachings. He said: “What does The Book of History say of filial piety? – ‘You are filial, you discharge your brotherly duties. These qualities are displayed in government.’ This then also constitutes the exercise of government. Why must there be that – making one be in the government?” From this, it is clear that what Confucius considered most important in The Book of History was its moral teachings on filial piety and love for one’s brothers.
The Book of Rites is also known as Shi Li or Yi Li. Confucius carefully studied the rites of the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties. Of these, it was the rites of the Zhou period that he chose for people to follow. The “Zhou rites” that he selected were those concerned with the spirit of “ren” or benevolence. He was strongly opposed to the use of the rites simply as a social veneer. For this purpose, he selected 17 works describing the “norms of etiquette” for scholars to learn. These were to be conscientiously learnt by students in order to understand the basis of how to be a good man – “If you do not study the rites, you cannot know how to conduct yourself.”
The Book of Music was unfortunately lost during the Qin Dynasty and no one knows what it contained. However, it is known that Confucius’ reason for compiling the book was his belief in the moral power of fine music. The best music, he said, should be a harmonious unification of beauty and virtue.
The Book of Changes is also known as Zhou Yi. Confucius studied the book relatively late in his life, but during that time he studied it so hard that the bamboo sheets (the leaves of the book at that time) fell out of their binding. While studying the book, Confucius and his disciples wrote annotations and commentaries, generally known as Yi Zhuan, explaining the Confucian doctrines of morality, politics and philosophy.
Spring and Autumn Annals is a chronicle of the State of Lu, the native place of Confucius. After Confucius revised the book, it became heavily endowed with political and ethical hues. Through his use of metaphor, he concealed the ideas of “rectification of names,” “judgment on people,” and “distinguishing virtue from wickedness.” It became a very important book for training personnel for the rule of virtue as advocated by Confucians.
With the exception of The Book of Music, the five classics became the basic courses for both government and private schools in feudal Chinese society.
Along with the progress of feudal society, Confucian educators over the ages made different annotations to the classics, which accordingly promote the development of diversified forms of Confucian educational ideology. The five classics were always maintained as the fundamental courses in schools, though the particular emphasis varied in different dynasties.
For example, when Wang Anshi of the Northern Song Dynasty reformed the national academy, he stressed that the newly annotated The Book of Songs, The Book of History, and The Book of Rites should be used as the fundamental courses in the academy.
