A Reseach On The Traditional Righteousness Thought

The thought of righteousness and benefit（R-B thought） is put forward with thebackground that people should follow in their economic activities. It can regulate andrestrict people’ economic activities. More than two thousand years, generations ofthinkers consider characteristics of the times, expand from different perspectives andfrom the abundant R-B thought. At the same time, the R-B thought, with the criticism ofMarxism, is used to enlighten nowadays, to establish the view that is suitable forChina’s actual conditions and to regulate and restrict people’ economic activities. Bydoing so, we can complete the constitution of socialist market economy reformsuccessfully.This paper analyses the connotations of both R-B thought and its traditional one,and divides it into three periods. The first is from the pre-Qin period to initial stage offeudal society. It mainly explains the R-B thought from its main contents and features ofthe big four schools: Confucianism, Mohism, Taoism and legalism. The next stage is tothe two Song dynasty period. This time tells that some knowledgeable people putforward some progressive thoughts of R-B, which aiming at after-Confucianismbecoming rigescence. What’s more, there are features of traditional thoughts of R-B andtheir developing changes. The third stage introduces the traditional R-B thoughts havean effect on transforming of socialist market economy,and reform and opening-up.There are also statements of the necessaries and methods of establish socialist thoughtof R-B.