The First Ten Books

by Confucius

Belki de tüm zamanların en çok okunan düşünürü olan Konfüçyüs, hayattaki en büyük gayenin "Yol"u takip etmek olduğu yönündeki inancıyla Çin felsefesini büyük bir dönüşümden geçirdi: "Yol"a göre, bu ya da öteki dünyada vaat edilen ödüller için değil, insan varoluşunun doruk noktası olarak erdemin peşinden koşulmalıydı.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction, Classics, Religion, Eastern Philosophy, China, Literature

59 pages, Mass Market Paperback

Published November 1, 2005

About the author

Chinese philosopher Confucius, originally Kong Fuzi and born circa 551 BC, promoted a system of social and political ethics, emphasizing order, moderation, and reciprocity between superiors and subordinates; after his death in 479 BC, disciples compiled the Analects , which contains a collection of his sayings and dialogues.

Teachings of this social thinker deeply influenced Korean, Japanese, and Vietnamese life.

孔子 - Kong Zi
孔夫子 - Kong Fuzi (Kung Fu-Tzu)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confucius

Reviews

[Laala Kashef Alghata · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s fascinating to read books that are so infused with knowledge. It’s also fascinating to me to finally read things that I feel like I should have already read.

I’ve posted a lot of quotes from this book. I really enjoyed reading it. But when I read The Art of War last month, I felt like reading it gave me a clearer view of some things. The language was also very concise, and because it was so laden with meaning, hard-hitting. I didn’t feel that as much with Confucius.

I think I also needed to know more about Confucius before I read this, more about his companions. Because the way it’s written includes other characters who I don’t know at all. I did like it. I just should’ve been a little more knowledgeable about the matter. It didn’t detract from my understanding, but it did affect my appreciation.

[Ana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Composed from the first ten books of The Analects, these sayings hope to cultivate an all-encompassing sense of virtue by teaching that desires do not need to be suppressed, but that people should be educated to reconcile their desires via rituals and forms of propriety.

[Sander de Haan]

Very hard to rate a book this old without proper context

[Rupertt Wind · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is intense and concentrated, Frankly I did not undesr=rstand half of it.

This is not your cofee table book, but one that requires greater effort and higher concentration in its study

[Hülya Can · Rating 2 out of 5]

This needs some serious reading as you will have difficulty making sense out of the names and the places. I advise using side resources to get a grasp of the philosophy.
The Analects by Conficius are comprised of 20 books focusing on Conficius’ ideology of a True Prince, ‘junzi’ and the best way to govern a state, ‘dao’. The book does not seem to follow a chronological or semantic order. There are extracts taken from his speeches or dialogues with his disciples. I am not dying to read the other ten books but I am glad to have got a taste of a text as ancient as this one.
Alsı, I did not find the translation to be very helpful since I referred to another resource to cross-check.

[Francisco · Rating 4 out of 5]

Collecting the first 10 books of Confucius' Analects, probably one of the most influential and widely read texts in the history of humanity, this 60 page booklet is an pretty interesting read and introduction to the thought of Confucius and there are characteristics of his thought that would go on to form and influence East Asian culture down to our days which are easily recognizable here.

Ideas of filial piety, correct behavior, proper etiquette and moral behavior as well as the foundational importance of ritual are all here. Often spoken in the same breath as religion, the majority of the writings consist of rules for living giving examples of character who act admirably and others badly, Confucius himself is often a character in the books, exemplifying behavior in sections most likely written by his students. Little of what we can recognize as "religious" is here at all, except for the fact that he enjoins people to perform rituals to the ancestors and so forth as a part of a more general view of society respectful of the elderly, living or dead.

While a lot of the texts here demand some previous knowledge of Chinese history (and truly ancient history at that), there are plenty of pithy sayings that still resound with readers thousands of years later. My favorite: "The gentleman knows what is right, the small man knows what is profitable", Confucius: anti-capitalist icon.

[Gareth Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a wonder to be able to read wisdom from 2500 years in the past. Among the oddities of ancient custom are scattered many pearls that hold up to scrutiny today.
A short collection of the first ten books - as the title makes clear! If you are interested in the roots of Chinese culture, then this is a good place to start, although I would have appreciated a foreword, despite the excellent footnotes.

[Stephane · Rating 2 out of 5]

While I am sure there is much more to his writing, this book by Confucius lacks context, especially when meant as an introduction to his thinking/writing.
Not knowing Confucius or very much about the time period he wrote in, this book was deeply disappointing since I had a hard time making heads or tails of it and for this I blame the editors, not the writer.

[Alan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am slowly becoming a big fan of Eastern philosophy. While vague at some points, Confucius' writing is beautiful and full of wisdom. I wish I understood all the references, but not knowing them did not really hamper the reading experience. Worth the read!

[Eva · Rating 3 out of 5]

really enjoyed getting to know a completely new area of philosophy, found it quite hard to approach as a casual read because there are so many political and cultural references I don't know about! one to revisit after a little research

[Mark · Rating 1 out of 5]

Accept your station in life, whether is be high, mid or lower class. Respect those above you and demean those below you. There is no such thing as equality in relationships. Don't wish for more than you have.
That's the book.

[Jared Tobin · Rating 3 out of 5]

DC Lau's translation here is far superior to the one found in the Penguin Classics edition of the Analects.

[Szymon Bialkowski · Rating 3 out of 5]

Luke-warm ethics.

[Sunny · Rating 2 out of 5]

some interesting snippets of information. this small book is a colletion of a few of confucious's sayings. the main thing i noticed here is his insistence of a focus on humanity and what we have before our eyes on earth as apposed to something ethereal and mor esoteric in heaven. almost akin to saying that a day devoted to mankind and the enhancement of society is more important than a month in devotion to God. i liked that idea in many ways actually.

[Jon · Rating 1 out of 5]

Parts are interesting (mostly the anecdotes, and bit which give insight into Confucius the man. It's a grab bag of anecdote, one liners, and cryptic statements. All offered without much organisation or obvious progression. As a result it could really have done with an introduction to put it all in context.

Interesting as an artefact, but I don't think I would recommend.

[Gareth Pretty · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hard work. I probably needed to know more than I do to understand most of this. That's not say it's not a good read. I picked a few useful gems from it.

[Ian Vollbracht · Rating 5 out of 5]

A collection of short phrases that a merit long meditation.