551 BCE – 479 BCE

Confucius teaches in Lu

Philosophy · East Asia · China

Kongzi taught that social order grows from cultivated relationships, ritual propriety and moral example rather than coercion.

Why it matters

Confucianism became East Asia's default framework for family, education and statecraft for over two millennia: rule by virtue, examined officials, and the deep assumption that society can be improved by self-cultivation.

People

Confucius

Related events

Sources

  • Encyclopædia Britannica — Confucius