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S. Zhao
“benevolence,” as the crystallization of Confucius’ ecological thoughts, appears in
The Analects of Confucius more than 100 times. On the one hand, Confucius told
a person’s character and integrity through his attitude toward nature, which was
why he said “the benevolent find pleasure in hills; the wise in water.” On the other
hand, he took achievements in natural preservation as the indicator of “benevolent
governance.” Confucius went to inspect the performance of Zilu, his top disciple
who had been serving as an official in Pu, State of Wei, for three years. On his way
there, Confucius couldn’t help exclaiming “bravo” three times because of what he
saw – firm houses and lush trees along the way, which implied the people there were
hard-working without loafing around. He also hailed the “benevolence” in trees,
forests and nature. “Of things that follow laws of earth, it is only pine and cypress
that are brightly green in winter as in summer. Of people who follow the rule of
Heaven, only Yao and Shun, as the head of all creatures, are the greatest.” Zhu Xi
also wrote in his On Benevolence, “Heaven and earth takes creatures as the center,
Human beings with benevolence is the center of all creatures.” ecological progress
in contemporary times is the maximal manifestation of “benevolence.” The report
of the 19th CPC National Congress states, “The modernization that we pursue is
one characterized by harmonious coexistence between man and nature. In addition
to creating more material and cultural wealth to meet people’s ever-increasing needs
for a better life, we need also to provide more quality ecological goods to meet
people’s ever-growing demands for a beautiful environment. We should, acting on
the principles of prioritizing resource conservation and environmental protection and
letting nature restore itself, develop spatial layouts, industrial structures, and ways of
work and life that help conserve resources and protect the environment. With this, we
can restore the serenity, harmony, and beauty of nature.” As long as we adhere to these
principles, the grand goal of building a prosperous, strong, democratic, harmonious
and beautiful socialist modern country will definitely become reality.
S. Zhao
“benevolence,” as the crystallization of Confucius’ ecological thoughts, appears in
The Analects of Confucius more than 100 times. On the one hand, Confucius told
a person’s character and integrity through his attitude toward nature, which was
why he said “the benevolent find pleasure in hills; the wise in water.” On the other
hand, he took achievements in natural preservation as the indicator of “benevolent
governance.” Confucius went to inspect the performance of Zilu, his top disciple
who had been serving as an official in Pu, State of Wei, for three years. On his way
there, Confucius couldn’t help exclaiming “bravo” three times because of what he
saw – firm houses and lush trees along the way, which implied the people there were
hard-working without loafing around. He also hailed the “benevolence” in trees,
forests and nature. “Of things that follow laws of earth, it is only pine and cypress
that are brightly green in winter as in summer. Of people who follow the rule of
Heaven, only Yao and Shun, as the head of all creatures, are the greatest.” Zhu Xi
also wrote in his On Benevolence, “Heaven and earth takes creatures as the center,
Human beings with benevolence is the center of all creatures.” ecological progress
in contemporary times is the maximal manifestation of “benevolence.” The report
of the 19th CPC National Congress states, “The modernization that we pursue is
one characterized by harmonious coexistence between man and nature. In addition
to creating more material and cultural wealth to meet people’s ever-increasing needs
for a better life, we need also to provide more quality ecological goods to meet
people’s ever-growing demands for a beautiful environment. We should, acting on
the principles of prioritizing resource conservation and environmental protection and
letting nature restore itself, develop spatial layouts, industrial structures, and ways of
work and life that help conserve resources and protect the environment. With this, we
can restore the serenity, harmony, and beauty of nature.” As long as we adhere to these
principles, the grand goal of building a prosperous, strong, democratic, harmonious
and beautiful socialist modern country will definitely become reality.