Abstract
A prospective convert asked Hillel to teach him the entire Torahwhile standing on one foot. Hillel replied, “What is hateful to yourself, do not do to your fellow man. That isthe whole of Torah and the remainder is but commentary. Go and study it.” (Hillel:Shab. 31; emphasis added)
Zigong: “Is there asingle word that can serve as a guide to conduct throughout one’s life?” Confucius said: “Perhaps the word ‘shu’, ‘reciprocity’: ‘Do not do to others what you would not want others to do to you’.” (Analects: 15.24; see alsoAnalects. 12 andZhongyong. 13.3; emphasis added)1
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When asked what isren (humanity), on one occasion Confucius said, “Do not impose on others what you yourself do not desire” (Analects. 12.2). Sinceren arguably the most important ethical notion of Confucius and the above statement is considered to be a formulation ofren, then this statement of the Golden Rule can also be taken as the most important ethical principle of Confucius.Analects 15.24 is of special interest because Confucius, when asked for a single word, choseshu rather than evenren. Perhaps this is becauseshu is the procedural rule whereby we can becomeren and thus of the two notions the one we need the most. It is important to note here that the words are attributed to Confucius himself. See alsoAnalects 6.30 whereshu is defined as an analogy to take what is near at hand as the method ofren. To see how a similar argument can be constructed (Analects: 15:3), see Allinson 1991: 300–301
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Allinson, R.E. Hillel and Confucius: The prescriptive formulation of the golden rule in the Jewish and Chinese Confucian ethical traditions. Dao 3, 29–41 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02910339
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02910339