The word junzi (Chinese:
Junzi | |||||||||||||||||
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Chinese name | |||||||||||||||||
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Literal meaning | "Son of a Vassal. Later used to indicate someone who acts morally." | ||||||||||||||||
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Vietnamese name | |||||||||||||||||
Vietnamese alphabet | quân tử | ||||||||||||||||
Chữ Hán | |||||||||||||||||
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Hangul | 군자 | ||||||||||||||||
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Japanese name | |||||||||||||||||
Kanji | |||||||||||||||||
Kana | くんし | ||||||||||||||||
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Confucianism
editIn Confucianism, the ideal personality is the
Zhu Xi defined a junzi as second only to the sage.
Junzi has many characteristics. A junzi can live with poverty; a junzi does more and speaks less. A junzi is loyal, obedient and knowledgeable. A junzi disciplines himself. Among these,
仁 ren is at the core of a junzi.[9](in Chinese)
Leadership
editAs the potential leader of a nation and country, the son of the ruler is raised to express superior ethical and moral positions while gaining inner peace through virtue. To Confucius, the junzi sustained the functions of government and social stratification through his ethical values. Despite its literal meaning, any righteous man willing to improve himself can become a junzi.
By contrast the xiaoren (
The junzi rules by acting virtuously himself. It is thought that his pure virtue would lead others to follow his example. The ultimate goal is that government behaves much like family. Thus at all levels filial piety promotes harmony and the junzi acts as a beacon for this piety.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Sometimes "exemplary person".Ames, Roger T.; Roesmonet, Jr., Henry (24 November 2010). The Analects of Confucius: A Philosophical Translation. Random House Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-307-77571-9. Paul R. Goldin translates it "noble man" in an attempt to capture both its early political and later moral meaning. Cf. "Confucian Key Terms: Junzi Archived 2014-05-20 at the Wayback Machine".
- ^ Goldin, Paul (2020). The Art Of Chinese Philosophy. Princeton University Press. ISBN 9780691200811.
- ^ Yi Jing "Qian" quote: "
天 行 健 ,君子 以自強 不 息 。" Bernado's translation: "Heaven action is strong and dynamic. Thus the noble never ceases to strengthen himself." - ^ a b Matthews, Warren (2008). World Religions, Sixth edition. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning. pp. 184. ISBN 9780495603856.
- ^ a b Sen, Tan Ta (2003-08-01). Cheng Ho and Islam in Southeast Asia. Flipside Digital Content Company Inc. ISBN 9789814515436.
- ^ Analects "Yan Yuan" quote: "
子 曰:「君子 成人 之 美 ,不 成人 之 惡 。小人 反 是 。」" Translation based on Eno (2015): "The Master said: ′The noble person perfects what is beautiful in people; and does not perfect what is ugly. The petty person does just the opposite.′" - ^ Rohsenow, John S. (2003). ABC Dictionary of Chinese Proverbs (Yanyu). Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press. p. 76. ISBN 0824822218.
- ^ Gardner, Daniel K. (2014-06-26), "Confucianism in practice", Confucianism: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University PressNew York, pp. 87–111, ISBN 0-19-539891-2, retrieved 2023-11-26
- ^ "
君子 ——儒學 的 理想 人格 (A respectable person - The Ideal personal qualities as viewed by Confucius and through Confucianism)". Archived from the original on 2015-04-18. Retrieved 2012-11-29. - ^ Analects, Zi Lu translation based on Eno (2015)
See also
editLunyu