Friday, January 18, 2008

Economics and Confucianism

I've been thinking about the application of Confucianism to economics.

Here's what the Confucian scholar Yan Yuan (a.k.a. Yan Xizhai, 1635 - 1704) wrote:

"...culture is not just the Odes, History, and the Six Arts; an impressive personal presence, clear speech, the military,farming, hydraulics, the use of fire, finance, grain, labor, and risk -- anything that can refine who I am and embellish
the fundamental forces in the universe -- all are part of culture."

Finance, labor, and risk are part of economics!

There is definitely a connection between economics and Confucianism.

Robert

The quote is from page 79, "Confucian Moral Self Cultivation,
2nd Ed." by Philip J. Ivanhoe (2000)

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