The Ideology of "Moral Education" Viewed from the Perspective of the Confucian Theory of Mind-Nature:A Side Study on the "Argument between Zhu Xi and Lu Jiuzhou"

The Confucian ideology of Moral Education has been misunderstood.As a matter of fact,the in Confucianism is supposed be understood as a kind of cultivation,which is,fundamentally,about how we can realize conscience-oriented consciousness.Confucianism believes that there are mainly two ways realize consciousness: one is self-cultivation and the other is education,which are based on the unique Mind-Nature Theory in Confucianism.With regard self-cultivation,we are still facing the time-honored argument between Zhu Xi and Lu Jiuzhou: each with its own strong and weak points,they actually differ only in that the former emphasizes achieving moral consciousness through studying objects,reading classics,etc,but the latter emphasizes the so-called Ni Jue Ti Zheng(i.e.to cognize by intuition and know by practice) in the specific moral practice in daily life.Similarly,the primary method of education is to provide enlightenment,the human relationship reflected by which is not the one formed by the oppression of power but by a sense of moral responsibility that we should treat others as one's family members and show due concern for the whole world.It is this sense of responsibility that reflects the positive view of human relations embedded in Confucianism.Without this view of human relations,we will end up homeless.