Confucian Military Thinking To Explore

When it came to the Spring and Autumn period and Warring States period, the Norm of Li (rites, rituals and manners) was destroyed tremendously and the state kings got rid of the control of the emperor of the Zhou Dynasty. In order to satisfy their personal desire, the ruling class of the subordinate states constantly commenced wars of invasion to expand their own territory and plunder others' property. In other words, the war predominated over the political life of that time.The Confucianism, advocating Li and Yi (right, conducts, morality, and duty to one's neighbors), covers many aspects of the social life. In this era fraught with wars, the Confucianism, as a large school of philosophy, expressed its opinion about wars. Though the military thought is only a small portion of the Confucianism, yet it is a dispensable component of the integral Confucian ideological system. The research into it will help us interpret the Pre-Qin Confucianism more comprehensively.Some studies have been done concerning the Pre-Qin Confucian' military thought, however, they are just one-sided interpretation of it. There's still more to talk about. The author here will commit discussions about Thinking of "Ren" (mercy, benevolence, charity, humanity and love) in War, the dominant role of "Min" (the army) in the Pre-Qin Confucian military thought, Thinking of "Shen" (Being Cautious) in War as well as their influence in the subsequent generations, in expectation of presenting a fairly integral image of the Pre-Qin Confucian military thought.