The Analects of Confucius - Holly Harlayne Roberts

Two thousand and five hundred years ago, a Chinese scholar, presently known throughout the world as "Confucius," spent a lifetime wandering and spreading words of wisdom amongst all he met. He was not just a legend, he was a real man. He was K'ung fu-tsze of Lu, a state in eastern China. He was a husband, a father, a Minister of Justice, a devoted teacher, and a loyal friend. He was a man who spoke up to the monarchy, who fled from enemies, who sought tenderness for the elderly and the orphans, and who, at times, cried. His life's mission was not merely to disseminate brief aphorisms. It was to teach others to develop their character gradually, carefully, and solidly. He taught people to uphold that character at all times and during all situations, and to strengthen their own commitment to what was right. He strove to assist people in cultivating the inner fortitude to live as honorable, devoted, respectful, sincere, honest, knowledgeable, humble, careful, intelligent, concerned, compassionate, fair, and wise human beings, at all times and in all situations. He sought to awaken human consciousness to recognize that the ability to enact change and to make ours a more just and kind world lay not within an external deity, but within the will of each human being. K'ung fu-tsze strove to inspire people that each person must live a life of sincerity, concern, and respect for all others for society to sustain itself. K'ung fu-tsze was not just advising people on how to act during specific situations. He was advising them on how to act for a lifetime. The Analects of Confucius have laid the foundation upon which Chinese civilization has endured for over 2,500 years. I hope that by creating this illustrated version of the Analects, I will have helped you to gain as much from the wisdom of K'ung fu-tsze as I have.