Confucianism: standing up for what’s right

Lately I’ve been mulling over this quotation from the Analects of Confucius (trans. by Prof. Charles A. Muller):

[15:7] Confucius said: “The Historiographer Yu was truly of straight character. When the government was just, he was like an arrow. When the government was unjust, he was like an arrow.”

“Ju Boyu is definitely a Gentleman. When the government is just, he will have a position in it. When the government is unjust he can roll up his principles and keep them in his breast.”

Loyalty to one’s superiors and elders is something Confucius taught over and over again, but he also balanced this with a need for virtue in a situation. Loyalty in the Confucian context is not a blind loyalty, but rather a matter of proper conduct rather than selfish ambition. If a ruler is just, or at least sincere, then it’s only natural that they deserve loyalty. But Confucius and later masters like Mencius insisted that loyalty and proper conduct also mean pointing out the mistakes of one’s elders and superiors in order to correct them.

Professor Yao, in his overview of Confucianism, shows how Confucian masters throughout East Asian history served the government when possible, but also often existed as a “watchdog group” on the outside of government when necessary.

The quotation above shows two examples in Chinese history that Confucius felt were paragons of virtue. Historian Yu was straight as an arrow, and not afraid to criticize his superiors if he felt they were out of line (e.g. virtuous), but he also carried out his tasks straight as an arrow (e.g. loyal). Ju Boyu was virtuous and a man of principle, not ambitious, so he would only take a position with a just government. If the government wasn’t just, he was not afraid to just leave, rather than hang on to a lucrative position.

Historian Yu and Ju Boyu approached things differently, but their balance of virtue and loyalty were both admirable to Confucius even if their methods differ.