What is the origin of filial piety?
The concept of filial piety is detailed in the Classic of Filial Piety, a text believed to have been written in the 300s b.c. At this time, China was a feudal, patriarchal, clan-based society, and filial piety helped maintain social harmony.
Who wrote the classic of filial piety?
It is attributed to a conversation between Confucius and his disciple Zengzi. A 12th-century author named He Yin claimed: "The Classic of Filial Piety was not made by Zengzi himself.
What are the twenty-four cases of filial piety?
One of the most famous collections of such stories is The Twenty-four Cases of Filial Piety ( Chinese: 二十四孝; pinyin: Èrshí-sì xiào ). These stories depict how children exercised their filial piety customs in the past.
Who created the filial piety?
philosopher ConfuciusThe Chinese philosopher Confucius (551–479 BCE) is most responsible for making xiao a pivotal part of society. He described filial piety and argued for its importance in creating a peaceful family and society in his book, "Xiao Jing," also known as the "Classic of Xiao" and written in the 4th century BCE.
Where does filial piety come from?
Filial piety remains a central tenet of Confucianism, based on the teachings of the Chinese sage Confucius (probably 552—479 BCE). It involves taking care of and being good to one's parents, and exhibiting respect, love, courtesy, support, reverence and loyalty to them.
What led to the development of filial piety?
The motivation underlying the practice of filial piety shifted from the principle of favoring the intimate to the principle of respecting the superior during the Han dynasty (206 BCE–220 AD), and retained this emphasis through the end of the Qing dynasty (1911) (Hsu, 1975).
What is filial piety in Chinese?
According to Chinese tradition, filial piety (hsiao) was the primary duty of all Chinese. Being a filial son meant complete obedience to one's parents during their lifetime and--as they grew older--taking the best possible care of them.
What does the Bible say about filial piety?
Biblical filial piety is the first commandment with a promise that it may go well with us and that we may enjoy a long life on earth (Eph 6:2).
Does filial piety still exist in China?
Observing Filial Piety in China. Filial piety is a concept that has been passed down from generation to generation in China for thousands of years. Most Chinese people agree that children should show filial piety to parents and other family elders, such as grandparents.
How did filial piety spread?
The spread means of The Classic of Filial Piety in China and Japan are strikingly similar. The government in the period of Emperor Xuanzong strengthened the spread of The Classic of Filial Piety, ordering every people collect The Classic of Filial Piety for study and observance.
Does filial piety exist in the United States?
Filial piety is thriving in the United States, and it's of the enlightened variety—of loving reciprocity. Jackson Wong, an American-born attorney in his 50s who retired after striking it rich during the dot-com boom, bought a larger house so he could take care of his mother during her last years.
What does filial piety symbolize?
(in Confucianism) the important virtue and primary duty of respect, obedience, and care for one's parents and elderly family members.
What religion is filial piety?
xiao, Wade-Giles romanization hsiao (Chinese: “filial piety”), Japanese kō, in Confucianism, the attitude of obedience, devotion, and care toward one's parents and elder family members that is the basis of individual moral conduct and social harmony.
Is filial piety a good thing?
According to Confucian philosophy, filial piety is considered to be the greatest of all virtues and should be demonstrated to both the living and the dead. At its core, filial piety deals with the level of respect and obedience a child must show their parents.
What is the Confucius golden rule?
The Golden Rule: "Do to others as you would want done to you." Key Ideas. • Confucius believed that there was a fundamental order in the universe and that man, nature, and the cosmos (heaven) were liked by a natural harmony. This natural order and harmony should also be the basis for all human relationships.
How does filial piety relate to Confucianism?
xiao, Wade-Giles romanization hsiao (Chinese: “filial piety”), Japanese kō, in Confucianism, the attitude of obedience, devotion, and care toward one's parents and elder family members that is the basis of individual moral conduct and social harmony.
What language is filial piety?
Filial piety is the Confucian virtue of honoring the elders in your family. In English, we use an older, Latin-based expression to name this social principle of parental respect.
Does filial piety exist in the United States?
Filial piety is thriving in the United States, and it's of the enlightened variety—of loving reciprocity. Jackson Wong, an American-born attorney in his 50s who retired after striking it rich during the dot-com boom, bought a larger house so he could take care of his mother during her last years.
What is filial piety and why is it important?
Filial piety not only specifies norms within the family, it also provides the social and ethical foundations for maintaining social order, and thus a stable society. It has provided the moral underpinning for Chinese patterns of parent–child relations and socialization for millennia.
What is the purpose of Filial Piety?
Filial piety motivates people to be respectful of family hierarchy and duties in the private sphere, and loyal to the ruler, peaceful, industrious in the public sphere.
What is Xiao piety?
Xiao, or filial piety, is an attitude of respect for parents and ancestors in societies influenced by Confucian thought. Filial piety is demonstrated, in part, through service to one’s parents. It has shaped family care giving, intergenerational equity, old age income support, living arrangements, and other aspects of individual, family, social, ...
What was the first method of resolving disputes between merchants and consumers?
One of the first methods of resolving conflict was mediation . Some merchants formed merchant or craft guilds that could act as quasi-judicial bodies. Elders also often served as arbitrators or mediators for commercial conflicts.
How has family structure changed in China?
Since the early 1980s, research demonstrates that family structure has undergone major changes in China, most noticeably in urban families as a result of socioeconomic developments, among them, the single child policy that has impacted family structure and family dynamics ( Tsui, 1989; Xu et al., 2007 ). The establishment of China’s one-child policy in 1979 placed the burden of improving family status and wealth, looking after elderly parents and continuing the family lineage on the sole child. These expectations placed heightened pressures on the individual child to succeed. Hence the shame and stigma are ever enhanced when a child is unable to live up to these expectations ( Yang, & Pearson, 2002 ).
What is Filial Piety?
Lauren Mack. Updated August 15, 2019. Filial piety (孝, xiào) is arguably China 's most important moral tenet. A concept of Chinese philosophy for more than 3,000 years, xiào today entails a strong loyalty and deference to one's parents, to one's ancestors, by extension, to one's country and its leaders.
Who wrote the book of filial piety?
After Confucius, the classic text about filial piety is The Twenty-Four Paragons of Filial Piety, written by the scholar Guo Jujing during the Yuan dynasty (between 1260–1368). The text includes several fairly astonishing stories, such as " He Buried His Son for His Mother ." That story, translated into English by U.S. anthropologist David K. Jordan, reads:
Why is filial piety important?
Thus, filial piety is an important value when it comes to treating one's immediate family, elders and superiors in general, and the state at large.
What religions use filial piety?
Beyond Confucianism, the concept of filial piety is also found in Taoism, Buddhism, Korean Confucianism, Japanese culture, and Vietnamese culture. The xiao ideogram is used in both Korean and Japanese, although with a different pronunciation.
Who wrote the classic of Filial Piety?
It is not known who actually wrote the document. It is attributed to a conversation between Confucius and his disciple Zengzi. A 12th-century author named He Yin claimed: "The Classic of Filial Piety was not made by Zengzi himself. When he retired from his conversation (or conversations) with Kung-ne on the subject of Filial Piety, he repeated to the disciples of his own school what (the master) had said, and they classified the sayings, and formed the treatise."
What is the meaning of filial piety?
The text argues that if a person loves and serves their parents then they will do the same for their rulers, leading to a harmonious society . For example,
Meaning
Beyond The Family
Chinese Character Xiao
- The Chinese character for filial piety, xiao (孝), illustrates the term's meaning. The ideogram is a combination of the characters lao (老), which means old, and er zi (儿子 ), which means son. Lao is the top half of the character xiao, and er zi, representing the son,forms the bottom half of the character. The son below the father is a symbol of what filial piety means. The character x…
Origins
- The character xiao is one of the oldest examples of the written Chinese language, painted onto oracle bones—oxen scapulae used in divination—at the end of the Shang Dynasty and the beginning of the Western Zhou dynasty, about 1000 BCE. The original meaning appears to have meant "providing food offerings to one's ancestors," and ancestors meant both living parents an…
Interpreting Filial Piety
- After Confucius, the classic text about filial piety is The Twenty-Four Paragons of Filial Piety, written by the scholar Guo Jujing during the Yuan dynasty (between 1260–1368). The text includes several fairly astonishing stories, such as "He Buried His Son for His Mother." That story, translated into English by U.S. anthropologist David K. Jordan,...
Challenges to Philosophy
- The admittedly gruesome set of Twenty-Four Paragons highlights long-running philosophical issues with xiao. One such issue is the relationship between xiao and another Confucian tenet, ren(love, benevolence, humanity); another asks what is to be done when honor to the family contrasts with honor to the laws of society? What is to be done if the ritual requirement demand…
Filial Piety in Other Religions and Regions
- Beyond Confucianism, the concept of filial piety is also found in Taoism, Buddhism, Korean Confucianism, Japanese culture, and Vietnamese culture. The xiao ideogram is used in both Korean and Japanese, although with a different pronunciation. Sources and Further Reading 1. Chan, Alan K.L., and Sor-Hoon Tan, eds. "Filial Piety in Chinese Thought and History." London: Ro…
Overview
The Classic of Filial Piety, also known by its Chinese name as the Xiaojing, is a Confucian classic treatise giving advice on filial piety: that is, how to behave towards a senior such as a father, an elder brother, or a ruler.
The text was most likely written during the late Warring States period and early Han dynasty and claims to be a conversation between Confucius and his stude…
Translations
Many Japanese translations of the Xiaojing exist. The following are the primary Western language translations.
• Legge, James (1879). The Hsiâo King, in Sacred Books of the East, vol. III. Oxford University Press.
• (in French) de Rosny, Leon (1889). Le Hiao-king. Paris: Maisonneuve et Ch. Leclerc. Republished (1893) as Le morale de Confucius: le livre sacré de la piété filiale. Paris: J. Maisonn…
Authorship
The text dates from the 4th century BC to 3rd century BC. It is not known who actually wrote the document. It is attributed to a conversation between Confucius and his disciple Zengzi. A 12th-century author named He Yin claimed: "The Classic of Filial Piety was not made by Zengzi himself. When he retired from his conversation (or conversations) with Kung-ne on the subject of Filial Piety, he repeated to the disciples of his own school what (the master) had said, and they classif…
Content
As the title suggests, the text elaborates on filial piety, which is a core Confucian value. The text argues that people who love and serve their parents will do the same for their rulers, leading to a harmonious society. For example,
資於事父以事母，而愛同；資於事父以事君，而敬同。 As they serve their fathers, so they serve their mothers, and they love them equally. As they serve their fathers, so they serve their rulers, a…
Influence
The Classic of Filial Piety occupied an important position in classical education as one of the most popular foundational texts through to late imperial China. The text was used in elementary and moral education together with the Analects, Elementary Learning, and the Biographies of Exemplary Women. Study of the text was also mentioned in epitaphs as an indication of a person's good character. It was a practice to read aloud the text when mourning one's parents. T…
See also
• Family as a model for the state
• Role ethics
• Ma Rong (79-166) and the Classic of Loyalty.
External links
• Xiaojing
• Xiao Jing (Full text in Chinese with English translation)
• Xiao Jing (Full text in Chinese with Explanatory Commentary)
• The Classic of Filial Piety 《孝經》 (Full text in Chinese and English with matching vocabulary)