A Study Of Kang Youwei's Benevolent Thought

Kang Youwei' thought of benevolence is on the "basis of the Heaven and Parents" to expound his own view.It is a succession on Confucius' love for relatives?love for others and love for things;Mencius' policy of Benevolence and so on;And it is also influenced by Xuncius' "basis of courtesy"(the birth basis of heaven and earth,the class basis of forbears and the governing basis of the emperor' ");Meanwhile it is also enlightened by Dong Zhongshu'" concept of natural law " :human beings " get a heavenly mandate and gain benevolence from the heaven and other views.Kang Youwei got the conclusions: "human beings have three pedigrees of the heaven,the ancestors and the human,heaven and earth are the birth basis;ancestors are the class basis.He developed Benevolence as a new thought system: " getting the Benevolence from the heaven,getting the benevolence from parents."He added the universality to Benevolence through the Western theory of geometric axiom.That is" Benevolence is generally acknowledged truth which makes it modern significant.Kang Youwei's Heaven has the meanings of Benevolence?the Promordial Qi? Yin and Yang ?One ?Pure Virtue and generally acknowledged truth and so on.Kang Youwei added the characteristic of Benevolence to his Promordial Qi Ontology,making it Ontology of Yuanqi-Benevolence as the heart of his philosophy.His thought of Benevolence not only includes the meaning of love for the relatives?love for human beings?love for things,but also includes the meaning of philanthropism?equality?democracy?freedom "and other modern elements.It both contains meta physic ontological understanding and foundation of material ethical principle.Meanwhile is is an indisputable truth.First,Under the theory of benevolence out of the Heaven,Kang Youwei got the conclusions:(1).Human's character is out of the heaven'.Human's character is out of the heaven' nature.Under the Ontology of Yuan Qi-Beveloence,Kang Youwei put forward the Natural humanity.It is an emancipation of humanity to the people who suffered enslave under the feudal system.,(2)Morality is out of the pure virtue of the heaven'.The pure virtue is the prettiest virtue of the heaven,which is the foundation of human' morality.(3)Humanity is out of the natural law.The nature law is therule that all the matters of the world go by.Humanity refers to the rules and principles the human obeying the society.Humanity is built on the nature law.Second,Through the theory of Benevolence out of parents,he could get the understandings of love for relatives,love for others and love for things?philanthropism and so on.Kang Youwei brought the generality of acknowledged truth in the Benevolence through his acknowledge and understanding of Western society and culture.Last,Kang Youwei discussed the relationship between Benevolence and Righteousness?Ritual?Wisdom to illustrate the meaning of Benevolence from various aspects.“Righteousness is the proper of Benevolence,Ritual is its ceremonious embodiment and Wisdom goes with it consistently.Kang Youwei's thought of Benevolence is full of meaning,perfect system built,modern elements and finally goes to the Great World Unity which is the ultimate concern of humanity.Kang Youwei' thought of Benevolence is "on the basis of the Heaven and Parents" to expound his own view.It is a succession on Confucius 'love for relatives?love for others and love for things;Mencius' policy of Benevolence and so on;And it is also influenced by Xuncius' "basis of courtesy"(the birth basis of heaven and earth,the class basis of forbears);Meanwhile it is also enlightened by Dong Zhongshu'"concept of natural law" :human beings"get a heavenly mandate and gain Benevolence from the heaven and other views.Kang Youwei got the conclusions:"human beings have three pedigrees of the heaven,the ancestors and the human,heaven and earth are the birth basis;ancestors are the class basis.He developed Benevolence as a new thought system: "get the Benevolence from the heaven,get the benevolence from parents."He added the universality to Benevolence through the Western theory of geometric axiom.That is "Benevolence is generally acknowledged truth.And making it modern significance.During the old and new political transformation and the conflicts between Western and eastern thought,Kang Youwei put forward his Benevolent thought.He melted the philanthropy?bliss of Buddhism and the democracy?equality and freedom of western thought to his benevolent thought.It broke through traditional feudal benevolent restrictions to human nature and made Benevolence adapt to the modern development.Though his BenevolentThought is not so perfect,study it helps further understanding of Kang Youwei's academic contribution,the change,effect and value of Benevolence and how to keep?inherit and carry forward the essence of Benevolence.