Confucius: The Essential Analects, Books 15,17, and 18

I find the way that Confucius talked to the Music Master strange. He would point out everything to him clearly, and then when his disciple asked him if that was how you were supposed to talk to a Music Master, Confucius answered that yes (15.42). I would think that this is somehow a slur on musicians, and that they mustn't be very smart if that's the job they end up with, but Confucius repeatedly stresses the importance of music, and how great and wonderful it is, so I don't understand his behavior towards the Music Master.

15.24 also says that the word that should guide you throughout your whole life is understanding, and that you should do to others what you would like others to do to you. I find this interesting because it is also something that we read about in the Bible, "Do unto others as you would have done unto you," which is listed as one of the rules in Exodus. I found the connection curious.

"The Master said, 'Human beings can broaden the Way-it is not the Way that broadens human beings.'" (15.29)

I think that this means that it is human beings that add new thing unto he way, and that the Way is just something that teaches us how to achieve our goal of becoming Good. It's the humans that can add things and wisdom unto the Way, but the Way just helps people and shows them what they should do if they ant to become Good, the mere fact that they're interested in doing that proving they're already pretty impressive (The Master said, 'Is Goodness really so far away?If simply desire Goodness, I will find that it is already here.'" 7.30)

"The Master said, 'By nature people are similar, they diverge as the result of practice.'" (17.2)

I agree with this saying. Deep down, I think that all humans are pretty similar, some of them may be smarter, or kinder, or more willful, but everyone has ambitions and desires and hopes. The difference lies in what those beliefs support those desires and ambitions. If someone wants to join the Peace Corps and then become President so that they can help humanity, then that person has really the same ambitions than, say, Hitler,who, in hos won way, really believed that what he was doing would help his country and the world in general (please note that I am not a neo-nazi. I'm just using Hitler. In fact, I absolutely loathe/hate/despise/detest him, but I'm using him as an example because he's a good contrast for what I'm trying to say). Those two people have the same ambition, it's just their beliefs, and the way they go about supporting those beliefs (one becomes a President through fair means and helps people peacefully, the other becomes a cruel and ruthless dictator that slaughters millions of people for no good deed), that make them different people, and that makes one revered and the other hated.

I also found 17.25 to be true, although not just for women and servants, but for all people as well. If you get too close to people, they begin to pry a lot, and pay too much attention to you, and care to much about you (although that's not necessarily a bad things with friends and family, but it is with people you don't care for), and if you stay away, they think you're a snob and think you're better than them, or are way too self-absorbed, and so they grow resentful and start to dislike you, even though you never gave them any particular reason to do so, and probably always treated them right and were nice to them. They want more than that. They want you to be interested in them and like them and pay attention to them. It's a very strange human characteristic.

I did not really understand the two stories in Book 18. They basically talk about the fact that some people prefer to stay away from bad things rather than deal with them. I think that that's a mixture of laziness and cowardice. Laziness because you just look at them and think to yourself, "Why bother? They're all loser anyway, and nothing I can do will change that. I migh as well sit back and do my thing while feeling superior to the rest of humanity." It's a way to excuse the fact that they think it's too hard to work for bettering society, so they might as well do nothing. It's also cowardice because they're scared to mix with the crowd, get their hands dirty, and maybe even get hurt trying to make the world a better place. I hate people who look at problems, think that it's impossible to take care of so why bother, then go watch TV. It really shows a lot about your character, and not good things either.