CONFUCIAN CORNER

THE SAGE SAID, "AT FIFTEEN, I BENT MY WILL TO LEARNING WISDOM AND KNOWLEDGE

AT THIRTY, I STOOD FIRM

AT FORTY, I HAD NO DOUBTS

AT FIFTY, I KNOW THE DECREES OF THE HEAVENS

AT SIXTY, MY EAR WAS AN OBEDIENT ORGAN RECEPIENT FOR TRUTH

AT SEVENTY, I COULD FOLLOW MY HEART DESIRE TRANSGRESSING WHAT IS RIGHT AND REASONABLE." 

-Confucius

A person should have a direction in life and it is one of the aims of Confucianism. Confucius knows that human life has its start and its end. Before the end comes near in old age, we must be someone who has behaved well, Well cultivated, and lived a life of moral integrity without any regrets.

Like many of us, At fifteen years old and below that is the time when we are mostly taken care of by our parents. They are our first teachers. So our moral character, our social identity, are one of the best inheritance our forefathers could have given us. 'Learning Wisdom and Knowledge' means lessons, and wisdom which could assist and support our moral character as a Chinese wherever we maybe, or what generation we are born. It is timeless. This includes moral values Confucuis is teaching us, how to live with morally upright way of life and with integrity, and the most of important science and technology as part of our daily lives.

At our twenties and thirties, we must become a highly objective person who knows which direction we are going. We should stand firm and nurture it to our benefit. Whether it would be a career in life, a business you wanted to do, and something we wanted to become until we die in old age. This is what we are as one person in our entire life. 

At the age of forty, we should have no doubts that roads we chose when we are in our 20s and 30s are right and we do not doubt it of being a road which will lead us to our failure and regrets. Some say Life starts at 40 but some started at 20. Whatever it is the most important by 40 years of age we should never doubt the road we chose cause that is the road that could eat us alive or lead to fame and glory. 

At the age of fifty, We must learn to accept we are not getting any younger. Our age and our body is no longer as active as we are 20s and in our 30s. So in this point of time in our lives we must learn to accept the decree of the heavens and start having a healthy habit. Longer life means longer blessings from the heavens.     

With the age of sixty and seventy, it is in this point of time we can hear from others the hard earned harvest we are waiting for. The Hard work we had done through our previous 5 decades of proving ourselves worthy to become align with those of history and those everyone around us. Some lived their lives in simple ways but some lived an exemplatory life like being successful in our fields, or some had done great things people cannot attain their lifetime. 

To Understand death, then you must understand fully life itself. That is the standard of a person living in the human world. We have our time too in old age so while we still have the opportunity and the energy to do it. Live life to fullest do live it with regrets.

This is the Chinese way of living a life without any biases from any religion.