Confucianism, a set of ethical guidelines and a political philsophy, is named for the man who developed it, a Chinese man named Kong Fu Zi, or the Romanized, Confucius. He was born in about 550 B.C., to a poor but noble family. He became a small administrator in his home province of Lu and for many years was the chief advisor to the duke of Lu. He was promoted many times until he became the Chief Minister at the age of 56, but then he became tired of poilitics and retired. After that, he travleled all over China, teaching his followers to live by the Way, or dao, trying to influence political leaders to lead by moral example and bot by force, and then writing. He tried for many years to unite his country until he died at 72.
After his death, two of his followers Mencius and Xun Zi, organized his writings and what they remembered of his teachings into an actual doctrine. However, it wasn't until the Han Emperor Wu, who ruled from 141 B.C. to 87 B.C. and made Confucianism the official state philosophy of China, that it became widespread.
Confucius' simplest moral and political rules were "to love others; honor one's parents; to do what is right instead of what is advantageous; don't do to others what you would not done to yourself; and to rule by moral example instead of by force or violence." ( www.frieasian.com/confuci.htm )
There are four key virtues in Confucianism, these are the basic concepts of the moral system.
"Jen" or "ren" : the natural goodness or benevolence inside all humans that we should show to everyone regardless of race, age, social standing, or religion; it is the thing that makes us human and also the highest Confucian virtue.
"Li" : propiety, the system of order we should strive to make in our society, the rituals of everday life, and social order. The reasoning for the Five Main Relationships come from Li.
"Yi" : righteousness, loyalty, it is our ability to determine what is the right and wrong thing to do for each situation we are we in, and our moral duty to our neighbors. Confucius' version of the Golden Rule is derived from Li.
"Xiao" : filial piety, it is the respect and obedience that a child shows to their parents and elders. The Five Main Relationships are just variations of this basic relationship.
