Confucius Quotes on Politics
Confucius taught that government is fundamentally a matter of moral character, and the quotes gathered here, drawn largely from the Analects, set out that conviction. For Confucius the ruler governs best by virtue rather than by force: a ruler who exercises government by means of his virtue is like the polar star, which keeps its place while the other stars turn toward it. He drew a sharp contrast between two methods of order, guiding people by law and subduing them by punishment, which produces obedience without shame, and guiding them by example and courtesy, which forms a genuine moral sense. He also insisted that legitimacy rests on trust, for if the people have no faith in their rulers there is no standing for the state. These passages present politics as the extension of personal cultivation into public life.
Quotes
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“The superior man thinks of virtue ; the small man thinks of comfort . The superior man thinks of the sanctions of law ; the small man thinks of favors which he may receive.”
Analects | James Legge , translation (1893) -
“The superior man, extensively studying all learning, and keeping himself under the restraint of the rules of propriety, may thus likewise not overstep what is right.”
Analects -
“If the people have no faith in their rulers, there is no standing for the state.”
Analects | VII -
“The Master said, "He who exercises government by means of his virtue may be compared to the north polar star , which keeps its place and all the stars turn towards it."”
Analects -
“Guide the people by law, subdue them by punishment; they may shun crime, but will be void of shame. Guide them by example, subdue them by courtesy; they will learn shame, and come to be good.”
Analects -
“By the ruler's cultivation of his own character, the duties of universal obligation are set forth. By honoring men of virtue and talents, he is preserved from errors of judgment.”
The Doctrine of the Mean -
“Follow the seasons of Ha, Ride in the state carriage of Yau, Wear the ceremonial cap of Chan, Let the music be the Shiu with its pantomimes.”
Quoted by T. W. Pearce , "Western Civilisation in Relation to Protestant Mission Work" , The Chronicle of the London Missionary Society (August 1890), p. 237