Although this may come as a surprise to people who have experienced or even just heard about the rigors of China’s so-called “Confucian” education system, Confucius himself believed that learning should involve much more than simply imbibing and regurgitating the ancient classics. Rather, it should be focused on the practical application of the timeless principles found in the texts to your daily life so that you can make a positive contribution to your family, your community, and ultimately the whole society you live in.
In short, Confucius saw the goal of learning as the cultivation of the self rather than the relentless pursuit of knowledge for its own sake. What would be the value of filling your head with the wisdom of the ancients if you didn’t apply it to your life? As he points out in the first chapter of Book 1 of The Analects: “Isn’t it a pleasure to study and repeatedly apply the lessons you’ve learned? ”
In Chapter 6, Confucius goes on to explicitly favor the cultivation of behavioral values over academic study. The goal of learning is to translate the knowledge you already possess into meaningful actions such as showing respect to your parents, relatives, and elders rather than just trying to keep on expanding it: “A young man should be filial at home and fraternal outside it. He should be cautious and truthful, love everyone, but only develop close relationships with good people. If he still has energy to spare after all this, he should study the classics.”
In Chapter 7, his follower Zixia builds on this theme by saying that a man who conducts himself correctly towards his wife, parents, ruler, and friends is “learned” even if others may see him as lacking in culture and sophistication: “If a man values character over beauty, devotes himself to serving his parents, dedicates his life to his ruler, and is true to his word with his friends, I’ll insist he’s learned even if others think otherwise.”
Confucius thus saw learning as a lifelong iterative process that, to use a quotation that his disciple Zigong draws from the Book Songs in Chapter 15 of Book 1, is ‘like carving and polishing stones, like cutting and grinding gems’.
In Chapter 4, Zengzi, one of his later followers, describes exactly how he applies this process in his daily life. Note how he examines his actions in terms of how they impact other people and how he keeps on asking himself if he is living up to the principles he has been taught: “I examine myself three times every day. Have I been true to other people’s interests when acting on their behalf? Have I been sincere in my interactions with friends? Have I practiced what I have been taught?”
Progress in learning should not therefore be measured in terms of external recognition and rewards, but in how well you apply and share your knowledge in a social context. Some interesting food for thought in our own paper-qualification-obsessed times!