When we practice filial piety and do good deeds in a timely manner, our sincerity will bring blessings to the world and free it from disasters. Stories about exemplary filial conduct abound in Chinese history. The Chinese character for filial piety, xiao (孝), illustrates the term's meaning. The book that resulted from his work was called The Twenty-four Paragons of Filial Devotion.The Twenty-four Paragons of Filial Devotion helps students understand the following about Confucianism: 1. The familial virtues are not only the root of ren but also the basis of a stable social and political order. What do stories from a particular culture tell us about that culture’s value system? Filial piety (孝, xiào) is arguably China 's most important moral tenet. The ideogram is a combination of the characters lao (老), which means old, and er zi (儿子 ), which means son. (25 min.). This […], This lesson uses a poem by well-known Chinese poet Du Fu to illustrate the aesthetic principles of regulated verse and parallelism in Chinese poetry that […], In this lesson, students will learn about 1940s Shanghai by reading and analyzing Eileen Chang’s short story “Sealed Off”. After Confucius, the classic text about filial piety is The Twenty-Four Paragons of Filial Piety, written by the scholar Guo Jujing during the Yuan dynasty (between 1260–1368). Younger members of the family have a duty to care for the aging members of the family. The original meaning appears to have meant "providing food offerings to one's ancestors," and ancestors meant both living parents and those long dead. The admittedly gruesome set of Twenty-Four Paragons highlights long-running philosophical issues with xiao. ON FILIAL PIETY Introduction Confucius (the Latinized version of Kong Fuzi, “master Kong”) or, to call him by his proper name, Kong Qiu (551-479 BCE) lived during the time when the Zhou kingdom had disintegrated into many de facto independent feudal states … The Analects, Book of Songs, Mencius, etc. In Confucian philosophy, filial piety (Chinese: 孝, xiào) is a virtue of respect for one's parents and ancestors. 2. The Halakhic practice of piety was augmented by folk customs. Among the three, Confucianism, with its well documented social hierarchy, supported the ideals of filial piety the most. These tales were more widely known than the Confucian classics (i.e. Paragon – a model of perfection; someone who embodies a principle (such as filial piety), Exemplar – one that serves as a model or an ideal example, Inculcate – to teach or impress by frequent repetitions or admonitions. As a class, discuss quotes from Confucian classics (Appendix A) to get an understanding of the concept of filial piety and the five human relations promoted in the Confucian tradition. The son should conceal his father's wrongdoing, but he should do so passively only. The xiao ideogram is used in both Korean and Japanese, although with a different pronunciation. (4) Filial Piety and Loyalty In the Confucian account of the concealment case, two primary moral duties—filial piety and loyalty—are in play and are resolved, in effect, by assigning primary, though not exclusive, weight to the duty of filial piety. You can download full translations of the stories The Twenty-Four Paragons of Filial Piety at the following websites: The Confucian classic Xiao Jing or Classic of Xiào, thought to be written around the Qin-Han period, has historically been the authoritative source on the Confucian tenet of xiào / "filial piety". Ren manifested in the parent-child relationship is filial piety, and in the sibling relationship, brotherhood (Lecture). Husband – Wife The idea follows from the fact that parents give life to their children, and support them throughout their developing years, providing food, education, and material needs. http://www2.kenyon.edu/Depts/Religion/Fac/Adler/Reln270/24-filial2.htm Understanding the Confucian Principle of Filial Piety . Robert Oxnam :: Filial piety derives from that most fundamental human bond: parent and child. Acts of filial piety include obeying one's parent's wishes, taking care of them when they are old, and working hard to provide them with material comforts, such as food, money, or pampering. Others in the movement condemned xiao as the source of all evil, "turning China into a big factory for the production of obedient subjects." In order to acknowledge this eternal debt, children must respect and serve their parents all their lives. The family is the building block of society, and as such the hierarchical system of respect also applies to one's rulers and one's country. The principle of filial piety Made the needs and desires of patriarchal head of the family the main concern of the entire family Metalworking in Ancient China showed Chinese skill in using which of the following metals? By the conclusion of this lesson, students will be able to (1) describe […], This hands-on activity is designed to be an inexpensive way for students to learn and appreciate the cultural significance of select symbols as they appear […]. One such issue is the relationship between xiao and another Confucian tenet, ren (love, benevolence, humanity); another asks what is to be done when honor to the family contrasts with honor to the laws of society? operas, puppet shows, sculpture, etc.). Every generation implicitly controls the next. According to the Buddhist sutras, all Buddhas attained Buddhahood in the human realm. Now filial piety is the root of all virtue, and the stem out of which grows all moral teaching. What is to be done if the ritual requirement demands that a son must avenge the murder of his father, but it is a crime to commit murder, or, as in the story above, infanticide? The tenet of filial piety also applies to all elders—teachers, professional superiors, or anyone who is older in age—and even the state. This lesson will explore the Chinese value of xiao, or filial piety, through a discussion of selections from the Analects and Mencius and an activity based on The Twenty-four Paragons of Filial Devotion. Filial piety – an important principle in the Confucian tradition that expresses righteous conduct on the part of a child towards his or her parent Paragon – a model of perfection; someone who embodies a principle (such as filial piety) Grades 6-8, 9-12 Arts & Literature, Beliefs/Religion, History, Society Lesson or Unit Plan, https://china360online.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/xiao-150x100.jpg, https://china360online.org/?property=understanding-filial-piety, https://china360online.org/wp-content/themes/real-spaces/images/map-marker.png, http://afe.easia.columbia.edu/main_pop/ps/ps_china.htm, http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~asia/24ParagonsFilialPiety.html, http://www2.kenyon.edu/Depts/Religion/Fac/Adler/Reln270/24-filial2.htm, weber.ucsd.edu/~dkjordan/scriptorium/shiaw/xiao00.html, Understanding Decorative Motifs on Chinese Porcelain. Filial piety - This is respect and veneration that the junior members of society must exercise toward the senior ones. 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