A Probe Into Xunzi 's Thought Of "Governing The King"

"Learning from the later kings" is an important theory proposed by Xunzi(Xuncius), which is based on the concept "ancient kings". The theory is just fit the Warring States period, and it makes Confucianism complete. Because of it, the confucianists can do much more things about politics for their countries. The kings and the confucianists can finally hold each other’s hands after hundreds of years’arguments. For the reason, we can see how important the theory "learning from the later kings" are for not only the confusianists but also the leaders of China.To understand the theory we are going to study, we’d better to learn something about the concept:"the ancient kings". What we can learn from<The Book of History> is that during the "Shang" dynasty, the ancient kings are mostly about the ancestors of the kings of "Shang". The concept changed when another dynasty "Zhou" replaced "Shang". Those new kings tried to find out the reason why "Shang" ended, and they finally got it on the leaders themselves. And so "the ancient kings" changed to the ancient kings who had great morality and ordered the country well. After that, thinkers later put even more good personality and ability on "the ancient kings".In fact, "the ancient kings" are the symbol of the philosophers in China, to made the theory about "learning from the later kings" much more reasonable, Xunzi(Xuncius) did two things. First step is to release human being from the gods, and then he said that people can be good if only the king using rites, music, and laws to governed them, though he also believed that people are birthed bad. These two things made it important for the rulers to learn from the "later kings".People nowadays arguing about who the "later kings" really are. Some believes they are the same with those "ancient kings", others thinks they are the kings living between the "ancient kings" and the kings today, there are also people say that the "later kings" are Confucius and Mencius. As it to me, I agree with the idea that the "later kings" are the rulers who have good personalities nowadays."learning from the later kings" is important even today, it influences not only the Confucianism but also China. And it still need to be study.