Filial Piety and Kinship
103. Both filial piety and respectfulness, as well as benevolence and righteousness are the pinnacles of moral conduct and the basic guidelines in our daily life. Filial piety and respectfulness bring stability to the family and the entire clan. With benevolence and righteousness, we gain respect from people in the neighbourhood. As we cultivate virtues, our good reputation will be attained as time goes by.
Scroll 26: Wei Zhi, Vol. 2
104. In our role as sons and daughters, nothing is more important than taking good care of our physical well-being and maintaining a moral conduct that will glorify our parents.
Scroll 26: Wei Zhi, Vol. 2
105. Zengzi said: “When a filial son serves his parents, he would let them enjoy listening to melodious music, provide them with comfortable living facilities and serve them caringly with appropriate food and drinks. In addition, he would love what his parents love and revere what they revere.”
Scroll 7: Li Ji
106. As children we should serve our parents and never leave them alone. Do not get bored with laborious chores. Respectfully listen to our parents’ advice and do not dishonor them. Understand their needs and try our best to fulfill them. When our parents are ill, we should not sleep soundly, and when they have not finished taking their meal, we should not enjoy our meal before them. Observe these duties diligently and put them into practice for the rest of our lives.
Scroll 45: Chang Yan
107. When attending to our parents, we should be respectful and sincere in performing our filial duties. Shi Jing said: “Rising early and retiring late for you have worked hard, so as not to disgrace your parents who gave you life and nourishment.” This denotes that a filial child is well- disciplined, hardworking, and will never bring disgrace to his parents. This is the filial piety shown by Junzi, a man of noble character.
Scroll 35: Zeng Zi
108. Zengzi said: “Teacher, I have attended your lectures on kindness, respectfulness, caring for our parents, and glorifying their names. May I know whether sheer obedience to our parents is considered filial piety?” Confucius said: “What nonsense is this! What nonsense is this! In the ancient times, if the Son of Heaven [the ruler] had seven ministers who would remonstrate with him, although he did not abide by the Dao, he would not lose his kingdom. If the lord of a state had five such ministers, although he did not abide by the Dao, he would not lose his state. If a bureaucrat had three such ministers, although he did not abide by the Dao, he would not lose the headship of his clan. If an officer had friends who would remonstrate with him, he would not lose his good name. Parents whose children used to remonstrate with them to correct their faults would not ruin the reputation of the family. Therefore, as far as the inappropriate conducts of parents, leaders or friends are concerned, we should by all means remonstrate with them in order to rectify their shortcomings. So, how could listening blindly to our parents’ instructions be considered filial piety?”
Scroll 9: Xiao Jing
109. Siblings are like the left and right hands of a man. For instance, if a man about to engage in a fight were to cut off his right hand and claim that he can win the fight, does this make sense? Will a man who abandons and distances himself from his siblings be able to befriend anyone?
Scroll 25: Wei Zhi, Vol. 1