CONFUCIUS, IcOn-fii'shi-ils (Latinized form of Chinese K'ung-futze, the Master Kung), Chinese philosopher: b. province of Shan-tung, about 551 a.c.; d. in Lu, 478 a.c. His father, Kung Shuh-liang-heh, who was of royal descent, died three years later, and the boy was reared in comparative poverty by his mother, Ching-tsai. At the age of 17 he was made inspector of corn-markets, keeper of granaries and overseer of public fields. Here he made such a good record that he gained the favor of the governor. At 19 he married, and some four years later he began his career as a teacher. By 520 he had worked out the general direction of his philosophy from which he departed very little thereafter. The disregard for the moral law then prevalent in the province of Lu induced him to make a study of the ancient writings of China. At the age of 22 he had already become a well-known teacher and expounder of the ancient writings, and many noted persons gathered at his house to gain instruction from him. He had no inten tion of teaching a new religion or philosophy. He aimed to bring men to a realization of the utility, beauty and truth of the old. He bent all his energies to reviving old customs; and in this he set a fashion still strong in China to-day. In 517 a.c. he was induced, by two members of one of the principal houses in Lu who had joined his band of disciples, to visit the capital with them, where he had interviews with Lao-tze, the founder of Taoism. Though temporarily driven from Lu to Tsi by a revolu tion, he soon returned thither with an increas ing following; and there he remained for 15 years, during which he kept constantly in view his mission as a philosophical teacher. At the age of 52 he was made chief magistrate of the city of Chung-too. So striking a reformation was effected by him that he was chosen for higher posts, became minister of crime, and with the aid of two powerful disciples, elevated the state of Lu to a leading position in the kingdom. Through the political intrigues of the governors of neighboring states Confucius was removed from office (496 ts.c.), and became a wanderer in many parts of China for 13 years.
In 485 he returned to Lu, but would not take office. The death of his favorite disciples, Yen Hwin and Tze-lu, in 481 and 478, did much to further his own, which took place in the latter year. Confucius left no work detailing
his moral and social system. His five canonical books (Yih-king' ; the (Shu-king' ; the