On The Confucian Thought Of The People

As the mainstream of Chinese traditional political ideology and culture, "The people-as-foundation"of Confucianism holds the premise of common people's submission to the monarch. It deals with the means of the sovereign's domination of a state and its civilian, with the ultimate purpose to achieve the prosperity of a nation, the majesty of the sovereign, and the stabilization of the civilians through the standardization of the monarch's political conducts. Confucian scholars in different period of time made intelligent relevant illustrations for "The people-as- foundation", forming a rich system of Confucian theories, which emphasize the public view in politics, the people's life in economy, and education in ideology. "The people-as-foundation"of Confucianism had been playing a significant role in affecting both the Chinese traditional ideology and the political ruling practice of sovereigns, and served as a standpoint for the Chinese people to accept the ideas of modern democracy.With the premise of the protection of the sovereign rights, "The people-as-foundation"of Confucianism focused on moderating the relationship between the monarch and common people, but was not supposed to endow common people political rights or to deny the superiority of the majesty. In Confucianism, there was not any sign of exceeding feudal limitation, or negating feudalism, so it had not entered the phase of democracy. But its historical value and immediate significance cannot be denied."The people-as-foundation"of Confucianism is the national cultural foundation for the Chinese people to accept western Democracy, for it was the starting point of most Chinese early radical democratic personages. In the construction of the Chinese modern democracy, "The people-as-foundation"of Confucianism has great consultation significance.