“To be able under all circumstances to practice five things constitutes perfect virtue; these five things are gravity, generosity of soul, sincerity, earnestness and kindness.”
-Confucius

Known worldly for his philosophical quotations and motives, wise Confucius is remembered for his phrases and theories about life, love, virtue and integrity. Born in ancient China in the year 551 B.C. in the small village of Zou, located in the state of Lu, Confucius, at the time born as K’ung Ch’iu, later also became known as Kong Qiu and Kong Zi. At the time of his birth, Confucius’ father was the commander of the district in Lu; three years later he died. Upon his death, Confucius and his family were left in poverty; however, Confucius was nonetheless fortunate enough to receive a fine education.
“As a child, Confucius would hold make-believe temple rituals; as a young adult, he quickly earned a reputation for fairness, politeness and love of learning (Crystal, 1).” For nearly twenty years, Confucius lived with his family and continued his studies. At the age of nineteen, he was married and was blessed with a son and two daughters. He worked hard as a keeper in a market and a farm worker. By the age of twenty, he soon became the governor of his district. Unfortunately, in the year 527 B.C., he learned of the death of his mother, leaving him in great distress, which led him to a time of mourning. Although Confucius experienced much agony by his loss, it did not stop him from moving forward in life.
Soon after his mother’s death, Confucius began his career as a teacher. He would travel and teach lessons to the small body of disciples who would gather around him. “His fame as a man of learning and character and reverence for Chinese ideals and

“If you enjoy what you do, you will never work another day in your life.”-Confucius

customs soon spread through the principality of Lu (Crystal, 1).” During the time period 1027-256 B.C., Confucius became very critical towards the becoming lifestyle in China.

The time period 1027-256 B.C. was not only the second half of the Zhou Dynasty, but it was when feudalism degenerated in China. The lack of moral standards and contemporary disorder repulsed Confucius. He realized that the only way for his people to regress from this horrid nature was to convert them once more to the principles and teachings of ancient times. Thus, he lectured his pupils on the ancient Chinese classics.

Confucius’ theories and principles were spread throughout China by his disciples. With this, many learned from his wise sayings. One rule stated, “If you govern your province well and treat your people kindly, your kingdom shall not lose any war. If you govern selfishly to your people, your kingdom will not only lose a war, but your people will break away from your kingdom (Confucius).” As this rule was one way of teaching people to adhere to morals of life, one specific rule as well contributed to these customs. The well-known Golden Rule, of which is still used today states, “A man should practice what he preaches, but a man should also preach what he practices (Confucius).”

Confucius often lectured to his students on the theme of "benevolence", preaching the importance of loving others. One day, he and his students happened to be journeying past the foot of the Mount Tai and saw a woman weeping mournfully at the

“Virtue is not left to stand alone. He who practices it will have.”-Confucius

side of a grave. When asked why she was weeping in such a way, she said to Confucius,
“My father-in-law, my husband and my son had all been eaten up by tigers at this place. “Why not moving away from here as soon as you can?” asked Confucius. She replied, “But the government here is not that tyrannous!” On hearing this, Confucius turned to his students and said, "So you see, a tyrannous government is even more to be feared than fierce tigers, even harsher. "
Once Confucius went on a speaking tour in the state of Wei, accompanied by his students. On the way, they came to discussing such topics as poetry, ethics, and government. The students had much respect for Confucius' learning and were curious as to how his style came about. To this, Confucius responded:

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