Confucius and Socrates: The Courage to Stand on the Side of Truth (Part 1)
 
In the Analects of Confucius, Chapter Xianwen, Confucius made the famous remark: "A benevolent man worries not, a learned man is not perplexed, and a brave man fears not." Courage is an essential virtue for establishing a perfect realm. Historical records speak of many courageous people in both Western and Chinese cultures.
 
According to historical records, there were 180 Mohist disciples, all of whom would sacrifice their lives for the truth without hesitation. There was the warrior, Jing Ke, in the Warring States Period (475 – 221 BC). He was on a quest to assassinate the king of the Qin Dynasty, singing the song, “The wind swirls, chilling the waters of the Yi River, the brave soldier leaves on a quest of no return.” Xiang Yu (232 – 202 BC), the King of Western Chu, had unrivaled strength and a reputation that was known throughout the world. When he was defeated, he was grief-stricken and ashamed to face his people back home such that he committed suicide at the bank of the Wu River. These men are all brave and fearless. However, Confucius appreciated a different kind of great courage.
 
Mencius said, “Do you want to be brave? I have heard from Confucius about being brave: 'If you look inward, and find justice is not on this side, then I would be fearful even if the other party is a lowly person. If after examination, I feel that justice is indeed on my side, then I will forge ahead even if the other side is a mighty army.'” (The First Volume of Gongsun Chou of the Works of Mencius)
 
Confucius guided his students by demonstrating such principles during his entire life. According to legend, Confucius was tall and muscular, with enough strength to wrestle an ox. Nevertheless, he was always kind to everyone. He was very patient with his students and very modest and prudent. If he made a mistake, he would apologize sincerely even to his students.
 
When the Zhou Dynasty began weakening, propriety and music deteriorated. Confucius had the lofty goal to promote benevolence and persuade the king to educate the people by promoting etiquette and music.
 
When Confucius lived in the State of Lu, he tried to resurrect it but failed. He then traveled throughout the land to promote his political views. Confucius went to the states of Zhou, Qi, Wei, Cao, Chen, Cai, Song, Ye, and Chu, but over the fourteen years of his travels, the authorities rejected his views and others ridiculed him. He experienced hardships such as being surrounded by soldiers, being subject to scare tactics, deprived of food and other supplies, starvation and being trapped. Even Jie Yu, the maniac of the State of Chu, lamented to Confucius that he was born in the wrong era and that he should stop pursuing his ideals given the lack of morality in the world.
 
However, the downward spiral of the deteriorating moral standard could not affect him. Slander and cold reception could not change the aspirations of saints. He always put the spreading of the culture of etiquette and music as his destiny and took the implementation of righteousness as his responsibility. He told his student Zilu, “If virtue existed nowadays, I would not try to change it.”
 
In order to spread his ideas and educate the people, Confucius opened the first private school. No matter if a student was poor or rich, intelligent or slow, filial or not, all could attend his school. When he was in his 70s, he concentrated on finishing and revising ancient books. From Emperors Yao, Shun, to the Zhou Dynasty to the Spring and Autumn Period, he established the foundation for Chinese history and literature. From then on, the wisdom of ancient Chinese saints and wise men returned to China. His Through the endless promotion from Confucius’ students, Confucianism became widespread after the Han Dynasty (202 BC – 220 AD). It had a far-reaching impact on China’s history, culture, character, thought, and much more.



道之所在，虽千万人吾往矣 (上)

 
《论语﹒宪问》中有“仁者不忧，知者不惑，勇者无惧”的名句，可见要达到完美的人生境界，勇是不可或缺的美德。
 
古今中外确也不乏勇者。相传墨子门徒中，服役百八十人，皆可使赴火蹈刃，死不旋踵。刺秦的荆轲在“风萧萧兮易水寒，壮士一去兮不复回”的悲歌中，慷慨赴死。西楚霸王项羽，力拔山兮气盖世，只因无颜见江东父老，不肯苟且偷生而自刎江边，他们都堪称无惧的勇者。而孔子最为推崇的其实是另外一种“大勇”。
 
《孟子﹒公孙丑上》说：昔者曾子谓子襄曰：“子好勇乎？吾尝闻大勇于夫子矣：自反而不缩，虽褐宽博，吾不惴焉。自反而缩，虽千万人吾往矣。”从前，曾子对子襄说：“你希望能勇敢吗？我曾从孔子那里听到关于大勇的：如果反躬自省，觉得正义不在我这一边，那么，即使对方是一个卑贱的人，我也会害怕。如果反躬自省，觉得正义的确在我这一边，那么，对方纵然有千军万马，我也会勇往直前。”
 
夫子这样教导他的学生，也是这样终生践行的。相传孔子身材魁梧，力能搏牛，但是“望之俨然，即之也温”，对学生循循善诱，且非常谦虚谨慎。如果有过失，即使是自己的学生也诚恳的向他承认错误。
 
在周王室衰弱、礼崩乐坏之际，他胸怀大志，一心推行“仁政”，以“礼与乐”来教化百姓，济世救弊。
 
孔子居鲁期间，曾想振兴鲁国，却遭致失败，于是他周游列国，风尘仆仆地四处奔波，宣扬他的政治主张，孔子曾到“周、齐、卫、曹、陈、蔡、宋、叶、楚”等国游说。但是十四年间，他治鲁不遂，见逐于齐，不用于卫，遇围于匡，困于陈、蔡，处处碰壁。当权者不接受他的思想，隐逸者讥讽他不识时务，还遭受“包围、惊吓、断粮、饥饿、受困”等灾难，最狼狈的时候惶惶然如丧家之犬。就连楚国的狂人接舆也劝说孔子，既然生不逢时，道德都如此衰败，还是不必再劳心费神了。
 
但是滔滔日下的世风潮流不能使他动摇，毁谤和冷遇都无法改变圣者的志向，始终把传承礼乐文化视为天命，以推行仁义为自己不可推卸的责任，他对子路说，如果天下有道，我就不来改变它了。
 
为传播思想、教化百姓，孔子首开私人兴学之风，不问其出身是贫富贵贱，智愚，贤或不肖，一律可以当孔子的学生，广开平等受教的大门。除此之外，孔子在年近古稀之时，集中精力整理旧有的古籍。他祖述尧舜，宪章文武，删诗书、订礼乐、赞周易、著春秋，使文教大宣于世，奠定了中华道统的基石，自此，在神州大地上回归的众多圣贤的智慧集成于孔门，再经其弟子们坚持不懈的弘扬，儒学在汉朝以后大放光芒，对中国的历史、文化、人格、思想，都产生了深远的影响。