Confucian Harmony Thought

Thoughts of harmoniousness are of ancient origin and long development in China and it's the substance of Confucian's thoughts in the Pre-Qin Dynasties. From human being's point of view, the thoughts of harmoniousness consist of four respects as following: harmoniousness between human and nature, harmoniousness between individual and society, harmoniousness between ourselves each other, and harmoniousness between our body and heart. This article expounded Confucian's thoughts of harmoniousness in the Pre-Qin Dynasties in the four respects above.Firstly, it's the relationship between human and nature. The article introduced the harmoniousness by elucidating the topic of the unity of heaven and human. The Constant Mean said: "to be harmoniousness, heaven and earth develop normally, everything grows healthily", which was emphasizing the harmonious development among heaven, earth and human. Mencius hunted for an ideal in the way of "self-examination, morality accomplishment and knowing the God", which was put forward in the words:" examine yourself till you can accomplish your morality, then you would have known the God." It was an ideal of "the unity of heaven and human". Mencius also advanced other opinions such as "love relatives", "love others", and "love things", that is to say, he wanted to extend love from ourselves to others, from others to things, and from things to everything in the world. According to the concept of unity of heaven and human, Confucian adopted a warm and friendly attitude to everything, and formed a thought of human and nature's harmonious coexistence.Secondly, it's the relationship between individual and society. Confucian wanted all the individuals make up of a society full of love through spreading "benevolence" among them. They regarded individual and society as a systematic entirety, which is of a healthy and reciprocal relationship between them. Individual's value is determined by his relationship with groups, society and the world. Although he is only part of the entirety, he can affect the society by promoting his morality, and even make the harmonious entirety for a further step. Meanwhile, the individual's influence will continue indirectly because of the entirety's continuity. So according to Confucian's opinion, individual and society are coexisting, reciprocally and harmoniously.Thirdly, it's the relationship between ourselves each other. Confucius said that"...