Hundred
Schools of Thought
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The Hundred Schools of Thought
(traditional Chinese: 諸子百家; simplified Chinese: 诸子百家; pinyin: zhūzǐ
bǎijiā; Wade-Giles: chu-tzu pai-chia; literally "all philosophers
hundred schools") were philosophers and schools that had flourished from
770 to 221 BC, an era of great cultural and intellectual expansion in
China. Even though this period, known in its earlier part as the Spring
and Autumn period and the Warring States period (春秋戰國時代/春秋战国时代) in its
latter part, was wrought with chaos and bloody battles, it is also known
as the Golden Age of Chinese philosophy because various thoughts and
ideas were developed and discussed freely. This phenomenon has been
called the Contention of a Hundred Schools of Thought (百家爭鳴/百家争鸣; bǎijiā
zhēngmíng; pai-chia cheng-ming; "hundred schools contend"). These
thoughts and ideas have profoundly influenced lifestyles and social
consciousness up to the present day in East Asian countries. The
intellectual society of this era was characterized by itinerant
scholars, who were often employed by various state rulers as advisers on
the methods of government, war, and diplomacy. This period ended with
the rise of the Qin dynasty and the subsequent purge of dissent.
Confucianism and its derivatives
Confucianism (儒家; Rújiā; Ju-chia; "School of scholars") is the
body of thought that arguably had the most enduring effects on Chinese
life. Its written legacy lies in the Confucian Classics, which later
became the foundation of traditional society. Confucius (551–479 BC), or
Kongzi "Master Kong", looked back to the early days of the Zhou dynasty
for an ideal socio-political order. He believed that the only effective
system of government necessitated prescribed relationships for each
individual: "Let the ruler be a ruler and the subject a subject".
Furthermore, he contended that a king must be virtuous in order to rule
properly. To Confucius, the functions of government and social
stratification were facts of life to be sustained by ethical values;
thus his ideal human was the junzi, which is translated as "gentleman"
or "superior person".
Mencius (371–289 BC), or Mengzi,
formulated his teachings directly in response to Confucius. -Mozi
accepted certain basic Confucian prescriptions, like the superiority of
the ancient sage kings who had attained righteousness, yet he felt that
Confucius overemphasized bonds with acquaintances and relatives. -Mozi
argued that each individual had an obligation toward all the other
people in human society -individuals simply had to consider how their
actions would affect everyone in society, not just the people they knew
personally.
The effect of the combined work of
Confucius, the codifier and interpreter of a system of relationships
based on ethical behavior, and Mencius, the synthesizer and developer of
applied Confucianist thought, was to provide traditional Chinese society
with a comprehensive framework by which to order virtually every aspect
of life.
There were many accretions to the body
of Confucian thought, both immediately and over the millennia, from
within and without the Confucian school. Interpretations adapted to
contemporary society allowed for flexibility within Confucianism, while
the fundamental system of modeled behavior from ancient texts formed its
philosophical core.
Diametrically opposed to Mencius, for
example, was the interpretation of Xunzi (c. 300–237 BC), another
Confucian follower. Xunzi preached that man is not innately good; he
asserted that goodness is attainable only through training one's desires
and conduct.
Legalism
The School of Law or Legalism
(法家; Fǎjiā; Fa-chia; "School of law") doctrine was formulated by Han
Feizi (d. 233 BC) and Li Si (d. 208 BC), who maintained that human
nature was incorrigibly selfish; accordingly, the only way to preserve
the social order was to impose discipline from above, and to see to a
strict enforcement of laws. The Legalists exalted the state above all,
seeking its prosperity and martial prowess over the welfare of the
common people.
Legalism greatly influenced the
philosophical basis for the imperial form of government. During the Han
Dynasty, the most practical elements of Confucianism and Legalism were
taken to form a sort of synthesis, marking the creation of a new form of
government that would remain largely intact until the late 19th century.
Daoism (Taoism)
Philosophical Taoism or Daoism (道家; Dàojiā; Tao-chia; "School of
the Way") developed into the second most significant stream of Chinese
thought. Its formulation is often attributed to the legendary sage Laozi
("Old Master"), who is said to predate Confucius, and Zhuangzi (369–286
BC). The focus of Taoism is on the individual within the natural realm
rather than the individual within society; accordingly, the goal of life
for each individual is seeking to adjust oneself and adapting to the
rhythm of the natural (and the supernatural) world, to follow the Way
(tao) of the universe, and to live in harmony. In many ways the opposite
of rigid Confucian morality, Taoism was for many of its adherents a
complement to their ordered daily lives. A scholar serving as an
official would usually follow Confucian teachings, but at leisure or in
retirement might seek harmony with nature as a Taoist recluse.
Mohism
Mohism or Moism (墨家; Mòjiā; Mo-chia; "School of Mo") was
developed by followers of Mozi (also referred to as Mo Di; 470–c.391
BC). Though the school did not survive through the Qin Dynasty, Mohism
was seen as a major rival of Confucianism in the period of the Hundred
Schools of Thought. Its philosophy rested on the idea of universal love:
Mozi believed that "everyone is equal before heaven", and that people
should seek to imitate heaven by engaging in the practice of collective
love. His epistemology can be regarded as primitive materialist
empiricism; he believed that our cognition ought to be based on our
perceptions – our sensory experiences, such as sight and hearing –
instead of imagination or internal logic, elements founded on our
capacity for abstraction.
Mozi advocated frugality, condemning
the Confucian emphasis on ritual and music, which he denounced as
extravagant. He regarded warfare as wasteful and advocated pacifism. The
achievement of social goals, according to Mozi, necessitated the unity
of thought and action. His political philosophy bears a resemblance to
divine-rule monarchy: the population ought always to obey its leaders,
as its leaders ought always to follow the will of heaven. Mohism might
be argued to have elements of meritocracy: Mozi contended that rulers
should appoint officials by virtue of their ability instead of their
family connections. Although popular faith in Mohism had declined by the
end of the Qin Dynasty, its views are said to be strongly echoed in
Legalist thought.
School of Yin-yang
The School of Naturalists or
Yin-yang (陰陽家/阴阳家; Yīnyángjiā; Yin-yang-chia; "School of Yin-Yang")
was a Warring States era philosophy that synthesized the concepts of
yin-yang and the Five Elements. Zou Yan is considered the founder of
this school. Their theories attempted to explain the universe in terms
of basic forces in nature: the complementary agents of yin (dark, cold,
female, positive) and yang (light, hot, male, negative) and the Five
Elements or Five Phases (water, fire, wood, metal, and earth). In its
early days, these theories were most strongly associated with the states
of Yan and Qi. In later periods, these epistemological theories came to
hold significance in both philosophy and popular belief.
Logicians
The School of Names or Logicians (名家; Míngjiā; Ming-chia; "School
of names") grew out of Mohism, with a philosophy that focused on
definition and logic. It is said to have parallels with that of the
Ancient Greek sophists or dialecticians. The most notable Logician was
Gongsun Longzi.
Other Schools
The Taishigong Zixu (太史公自序) of Shiji (史記/史记) lists the above six
major philosophies within the Hundred Schools of Thought. The
Yiwenzhi(藝文志/艺文志) of Hanshu (漢書/汉书) adds four more into the Ten Schools
(十家; Shijia).
The School of Agriculture
(農家/农家; Nongjia) encouraged farming and agriculture and taught farming
and cultivation techniques, as they believed that agricultural
development was the way to have enough food for the country. For
example, Mencius once criticized Xu Xing (許行) for advocating that rulers
should work in the fields with their subjects.
The School of Diplomacy or
School of Vertical and Horizontal [Alliances] (縱橫家/纵横家; Zonghengjia)
specialized in diplomatic politics; Zhang Yi was a representative
thinker. This school focused on practical matters instead of any moral
principle, so it stressed political and diplomatic tactics, and debate
and lobbying skill. Scholars from this school were good orators,
debaters and tacticians.
The Miscellaneous School (雜家/杂家;
Zajia) integrated teachings from different schools; for instance, Lü
Buwei found scholars from different schools to write a book called Lüshi
Chunqiu (呂氏春秋) cooperatively. This school tried to integrate the merits
of various schools and avoid their perceived flaws. Thus, the thought of
this school lacked originality.
The School of "Minor-talks"
(小說家/小说家; Xiaoshuojia) was not a unique school of thought. Indeed, all
the thoughts which was discussed by and originated from non-famous
people on the street were included into this school. At that time, there
were some government officials responsible for collecting ideas from
non-famous people on the street and report to their senior. This was
where this school originated from. This also explains its Chinese name,
which literally means "school of minor-talks".
Another group is the School of the
Military (兵家; Bingjia) that studied warfare and strategy; Sunzi and Sun
Bin were influential leaders. However, this school was not one of the
"Ten Schools" defined by Hanshu.
History and origins
From the Taishigong Zixu of Shiji and
Yiwenzhi of Hanshu the schools are developed from Zhou Dynasty
officials. The Burning of books and burying of scholars banned people to
keep most of their texts. The texts officially kept might be burned with
the Qin Palace by Xiang Yu. From the Yiwenzhi, there are still many
officially kept texts in the Former Han Dynasty, and some are written by
Han dynasty people. The Wudi of Han ordered the study of the Confucian
classics the basis of the government examination system and the core of
the educational curriculum; there were little students to these schools
except a few and many texts were lost later. Their thoughts can only be
seen in the existing texts and newly discovered texts.
