Abstract

Ancient Confucianism and Daoism are distinct streams of thought, their differences stark at times. But they emerge from and flow through a shared cultural context and historical time. Certain common assumptions are to be found in each, and distinguish both from Western ways of thinking. This chapter considers the particulars of these two ancient Chinese perspectives, and the ways in which they differ from one another. The three key concepts of Confucianism include: humanity, duty, ritual. The Confucian worldview includes many ideas and principles but these offer a starting point. The chapter recognizes Daoism's playful ambiguity and discusses the three concepts: Way (Dao), integrity (de), and non‐action (wuwei).