What We Learn

Here we see Confucius talking about learning. This is truly, the most important thing to him. The reason for this is that there will always be something new to learn and even when we discover something new, to learn is still more important because what you discover will only be a small part of that huge universal knowledge. Like showed here “The master said “I once engaged in thought for an entire day without eating and an entire night with outs sleeping, but it did no good. It would have been better for me to have spent that time learning.” (p.45)

 

I believe this is one of the most important part of a Confucian life style. I say this because there is always something new to learn and since all the other things we create on earth are forgotten, what truly matters is the things we learn here. Although through our life we are able to learn very little compared tom all the knowledge and wisdom there is to know it is important to know that even we have limits and that we will only be able to learn so much. Whatsoever, the experience gained, the more important it is, we are to remember it and that knowledge is the only thing we are likely to be able to remember after death.

 

Why is death so important when it comes to all of this? Simple, we are used to the idea that death is the end of the road and that all that we can expect on the other side is nothing for we will be unable to even take the memories of what we had here. Someday we will be able to learn a better way from what we are doing which is causing suffering not only to us but to thing. We destroy nature, our only life support system. We kill ourselves and we continue to do so knowingly. The only power great enough to stop us is death.