ConfuciusConfucius, Chinese Kongfuzi or K'ung-fu-Tzu, (551 BC-479 Lu), was an Ancient Chinese teacher, political theorist, and philosopher. He was born into a poor family. He maintained stables and worked as a bookkeeper while teaching himself about mastery o the six arts. Music, ritual, charioteering, calligraphy, arithmetic, and familiarity with poetry and history empowered him to start a brilliant teaching career in his thirties. Confucius saw education as a process of consistent personal growth and held that its primary function was the preparation of noblemen. He considered public service to be the normal outcome of education and tried to rejuvenate Chinese social institutions, including the family, school, community, state, and kingdom. He held government positions, eventually becoming a minister of justice in Lu, but his methods drew little attention. Following a 12-year self-inflicted exile during which his circle of students extended, he got back to Lu at age 67 to teach and write. His life and thoughts are kept in the Lunyu (Analects). Read More Read Less