The Mythic Confucius
The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy opens with the observation that "The sources for Confucius' life are later and do not carefully separate fiction and fact. Thus it is wise to regard much of what is known of him as legendary. Many of the legends surrounding Confucius at the end of the 2nd century BCE were included by the Han dynasty court historian, Sima Qian (145-c.85 BCE), in his well-known and often-quoted Records of the Grand Historian (Shiji)."
There is an ancient saying that remarkable men have remarkable circumstances attending their births. Tradition has handed down many marvellous circumstances connected with the birth of Confucius. It is said that two dragons wound their bodies round the house where he was born; that five men, venerable with age, representing the five planets, descended unto the open court; that the air was filled with music; that a voice came out of the heavens, saying: 'This is a heaven-born, divine child, hence the sound of melodious music descends'; that a unicorn threw out of its mouth a book of jade, upon which was engraved this inscription: 'Sun of the essence of water, who shall succeed to the kingdom of the degenerate house of Chan.' It is also said that the Duke of Chan, who lived five hundred years before Confucius, on coming to the place where Confucius was to be born, said: 'Five hundred years hence, on this sacred spot, shall a divine character be born.' As Confucius appeared at the time predicted, the Duke of Chan is therefore considered to have had a previous knowledge of the coming of Confucius. The fact that Confucius, during his lifetime, often dreamed of the Duke of Chan is also attributed to this circumstance.
It is no disparagement to the pains-taking and conscientious authors of the Lun Yu, the Confucian Memorabilia, to say that they must share with writers of fiction the honor of propagating the fame of their Master. They have made the world familiar with the Sage, who always spoke with deliberation, and acted with dignity; who had such a weakness for ginger that he was "never tired of eating it;" and who was so scrupulous as to petty proprieties that he "never sat down if his mat was awry." To these trifling details they add that, at home, he wore a tunic with one sleeve shorter than the other, and slept in a night-gown fifty per cent longer than his body; that, on going to bed, he ceased to talk; and, not to cite other traits of aspect and carriage, the conviction is forced upon us that we have here glimpses of a real man.
In treating of the apocryphal literature relating to Confucius, it is important to distinguish that which originated before the "burning of the books" from that which belongs to a later date. Works that preceded that catastrophe have, of course, the better chance of containing genuine traditions,— especially if, as in the case of Leih-tsze and Chuang-tsze, they belong to the Taoist school, which was not proscribed, and therefore escaped the conflagration. In the writers last named, the reckless use of imagination vitiates their authority. In Chuang-tsze, there are more than fifty references to Confucius and his disciples, not one of which possesses any historical value.
The "Discourses" could not have been written by Confucius' immediate disciples, but it might have been compiled by the disciples of those disciples. There is no evidence of its existence prior to the Ch'in dynasty [BC 221-206]. There is a tradition that the books styled the "Great Learning" and the "Doctrine of the Mean" were written by the grandson of Confucius, but that there is no evidence to prove it. For at least two hundred and fifty years after the death of Confucius no particular honor is recorded as having been paid to the memory of the sage. It is said that the first Emperor of the Han dynasty, whose reign lasted from BC 206-194, sacrificed at his tomb on his journey through the kingdom of Lu, but this incident is entirely omitted in the chapter devoted to recording the events of that Emperor's reign, so that its authenticity may be suspected, and the more so as two hundred years paa before the next instance of the sort on record. In AD 1 Confucius was at last canonized as the "Illustrious Duke Ni, lord of completed praise," and his descendants were from that date ennobled.
Great efforts were made to obtain ancient books at the rise of the Han dynasty, when there is little doubt that the Buddhist classics were making way in China. It is very probable that the Han scholars, jealous of the Indian sage whose doctrines were no doubt being vigorously preached by missionaries, should have conceived the idea of inventing for themselves a Chinese sage, and finding old classics showing that he, like Buddha, was possessed of wisdom.
Confucius was no myth. He is so far historical that he, and not Sze-ma, is the Father of Chinese History. His words and acts were minutely noted by contemporary pens, hundreds of his pupils contributing to transmit his teachings and perpetuate his memory. The attempt to make him a mythical personage, may afford an agreeable exercise for the leisure hours of an ingenious student; but it can no more unsettle the received conviction than Archbishop Whately's "Historic Doubts concerning Napoleon" could relegate the Corsican Conqueror to the companionship of Hercules and Bacchus. But, in the double personality that goes under that venerated name, it is important to note the features in which the mythical Confucius differs from the historical.
The real Sage was noted for modesty; the fictitious is a prig, who assumes to know everything. The myth-makers, who have attempted to display the universality of his knowledge, have succeeded in exposing their own ignorance. The real Confucius was a man of few words; his style, laconic and grave. The mythical is loquacious, and often occupied with trifles. The real Sage was reverential towards the Supreme Power of the Universe, but agnostic in spirit and practice. The Confucius of these Apocryphal books is excessively superstitious, drawing omens of the future from birds, beasts, and the nonsensical ditties of children. The Apocryphal personage is cruel and unjust. The real Sage was humane, making humanity, or love, the first of the cardinal virtues in his moral system.
The myth of Confucius as a learned scholar may have only emerged after his death. This is a controversial interpretation. Bruce and Taeko Brooks convincingly argue that probably only a part of chapter 4 of the Analects contains Confucius' exact words. The remaining 19 chapters were gradually written over a period of around 230 years by his disciples and by much later successors. Their accretion theory argues that the text consists of a number of sections accumulated through time, and by different authors. In the Brookses' view, Confucius did not write any of the other classical texts attributed to him. They argue that the "historical" Confucius was a warrior whose skills were becoming obsolete. Though not a teacher in the formal sense, his personality attracted followers, who after his death organized themselves to perpetuate his ideas.
Lionel M. Jensen, an associate professor of history and the director of Chinese studies at the University of Colorado at Denver, does not believe that Kongzi even existed. "I think he's a literary trope... a figure who came to stand for certain things." Jensen has focused on possibility that Kongzi -- whose birth is the subject of many miraculous tales -- had his origins as a mythological figure of ancient Chinese fertility cults. Jensen has argued that 18th- and 17th-century Western missionaries used translations of the ancient traditions to construct the presumably historical figure who since becamee globally celebrated as philosopher, prophet, statesman, wise man, and saint.
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