China and Her Civilization

CHINA AND HER CIVILIZATION
Author(s): V. K. WELLINGTON KOO

Source: Proceedings of the New York State Historical Association, Vol. 17 (1919), pp. 154-163
Published by: New York State Historical Association
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CHINA
AND
HER
CIVILIZATION
D. C.
BY V. K. WELLINGTON
WASHINGTON,
KOO,CHINESEAMBASSADOR,
In the study of Chinese history every student comes upon a
question which has been asked over and over again, and it is one
which furnishesthe key to a right understanding of the history
of China .The question is : What has enabled China to live through
all ages with a continuityof life that is unparalleled in history?
How is it that China still exists, when Eigyptand Assyria, Greece
and Rome, all her ancient contemporaries,once rose in power,
reached their zenith and then fell in decadence,? What accounts
for the fact that the Chinese national life has remained virile
and vigorous, continuously for four thousand years, To these
questions differentminds may suggest differentreplies, but in my
opinion no answer can be satisfactory without taking into account the following factors.
The firstfactor with which this paper will deal is China's
geographical position. With her back leaning against the highlands of central Asia, she faces the waters of the eastern seas.
In days gone by, her geographical position effectuallybrought
about her isolation. The mountain masses that form the land
nucleus of the Asiatic continentwith the lofty Himayala ranges
on the south and the Kuenlun ranges on the north inclosing the
Plateau of Tibet with an elevation of about 15,000 feet above the
level of the sea, blocked the way on the west. The immenseMongolian desert with its thousands of square miles of driftingsand
renders approach from the north difficult and arduous. For
centuries, therefore,the only practical route from the west to
China passed throughSungaria across the interveningDesert of
Gobi and enters the country at its northwesterncorner. It was
these physical obstacles that separated China fromthe rest of the
world for so long a time,and enabled her to develop a civilization
of her own. Even Alexander the Great could not force his way
over the snows of Pamir with his Macedonian phalanxes. The
155
Roman legions refused to go beyond the Indus and the Hydaspes.

Only the indomitable Arabian and Persian traders, actuated by
hopes of gain, succeeded in making theirpeacful way to the trade
marts and political centers of China. Occasionally missionaries
braved the hardships of the long journey in carryingtheir faiths
to the outskirtsof China. It was reserved for Marco Polo to make
China a little better known to the West, but his accounts of the
cities he had visited and the wonders he had seen were for a long
time considered to be a work of the imagination. It is true, too,
that China, on her part, was also anxious to know somethingof
the West and expeditions and missions were sent out periodically
to open up communications,but the physical difficultieswere so
great as to render organized effortsin this direction futile. The
net result of China's effortsto get in touch with the West was
the introductionof Buddhism into the country.
Thus were the obstacles presented by land. The sea also had
its perils. Before the age of steam, only daring and restless
spirits ventured out into the unknown waters of the sea in search
of adventures. Rare indeed were the visits of foreign vessels to
China in ancient times, with the exception of those driven to
shore by the force of the typhoon.
It will thus be seen that, shut in on all sides by natural
barriers,China was forced to secrete herselffromthe rest of the
world, not from choice but from necessity,and obliged to work
out her course of development in her own way, without outside
assistance as well as without outside interference.
The second factor which explains the power and ability of
China as a nation to survive throughliterally thousands of years,
is the stability of her political and social institutions.It is well
known that her governmentalsystems have been handed down
from dynasty to dynasty practically unchanged ever since the
third century B. C. The structure of Chinese society has undergone even fewer changes. Probably no countryhas escaped to the
same degree as China has fromthe horrorsof Political disturbances and the rude shocks of social cataclysms. The revolutionsand
civil wars that are recorded in Chinese historycan be counted on
the fingers.An unsuccessfid experimentwith socialism in China
in the eleventh century,made by Wang Anshih when he sought
to break the control and manipulation of food prices by the rich
156
NEW YORK STATE HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION
and reduce the cost of living of the poor by enforcinggovernment

monoply of surplus crops and food stuffs,and establishing a
direct income tax, is the only radical social reform attempted.
These occurrences are only exceptions; a continued state of
peace, order and contentmentis the rule.
If you want to know why the political and social institutions
of China have been so stable, the answer is to be found in the
Chinese philosophy of life as taught by Confucius and Lao-tze,
the two schools of thoughtwhich have had the most far-reaching
and abiding influenceon the Chinese people. Let me take up the
philosophy of the Confucian school first.The teachings of this
most renownedChinese philosopher,as embodied in his own works
and in those of his disciples, center around the principles of
harmony and orderliness. To his mind it is apparent that that
form of political state is most desirable which is best ordered.
According to his ideal, a political state should be as neatly constructed as the Egyptian pyramid, with the people as its broad
base ana with the emperorover them as its crowning apex. His
ideals of harmony and orderliness are applicable not only to
state life, but also to individual and family life. Therefore,he
definedrules of propriety,prudence and truthfulnessas the five
cardinal principles of conduct. He emphasized the wisdom of
regulating state, family and individual life by the example of
nature, which reveals harmony even in the unending changes.
His hope was "to bring all human actions whatsoever into practical harmonywith supposed natural laws ; that is to say, to make
them as regular, as comprehensible,as beneficent,and as workable, as the perfectlymanifest but totally unexplained celestial
movementswere; as were the rotation of seasons, the balancing
of forces, the growth and waning of matter, male and female
reproduction,light and darkness; and, in short, to make human
actions as harmonious as were all the forces of nature, which
never fail or go wrong except under presumed provocation,
human or other."1 Influencedby his thought,the people of China,
particularly the educated classes, have become accustomed to
regard harmony and order as the proper state of life in which
to live, in their political as well as individual and family relations.
1AncientChinaSimplified,
p. 104.
157
As an outcome of the teachings of Confucius, there have

developed several characteristics in Chinese civilization which
have, in turn, contributednot a little to the preservation of the
solidarity of the Chinese nation. One of these characteristics is
the nation-wideworship of letters in China. The ideal man, in the
estimation of Chinese, is invariably one of superior learning as
well as of superior morals. Confucious himself was a profound
scholar as well as a great moral teacher, and he spent the prime
years of his life in writingbooks and acquiring knowledge. Indeed,
by his work as a teacher, he aroused a general interestin learning and opened up a new vista in the field of knowledge to the
scholars of his day. Since his time, the respect for learning has
been so widespread and so deeply implanted in the minds of the
people that even the desperate effortof the firstaugust emperor
of China to put an end to it by ordering the destruction of all
copies of the histories and books of Odes and Bites in 213 B. C.,
failed even to check its growth.In a momentof ecstasy this new
emperor boldly said: "The world begins afresh with me. No
posthumous condemnatory titles for me! My successor will be
'August Emperor Number Two' and so on forever." But his joy
did not last long, for his act of vandalism aroused such an indignation among the people of all classes, particularly the
scholars, that in less than ten years he lost his empire; and his
name has been uniformlycondemned in history through all the
years that have elapsed since his time. From that time down to
the present literary proficiencyhas been, until recently, the
principal qualification for entering the public service and success in passing the literaryexaminations,the recognized steppingstone to a successful political career In fact the children of today are still taught that of all walks of life, that of the scholar
is the highestand noblest.
Filial piety is another characteristic in our civilization.
"Honor thy parents" is one of the ten commandmentsof the
Christian faith. With us, it is the cornerstoneof Chinese civilization and the foundation for all other virtues. The "Book of
Filial Piety" is taught to the Chinese children,and in this wellknown classical work, this doctrine of filial piety is carefully expounded and illustrated by examples and precedents. Confucius
sums up this doctrine with the remark that filial piety is the
158
NEW YORK SIATE HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION
constant requirementof Heaven, the righteousnessof earth and

the practical duty of man.
What is filial piety? One of Confucius's disciples (Tseng
Tsze) gave the following statement: "The body is that which
has been transmittedto us by our parents; dare anyone allow himself to be irreverentin the employmentof his legacy? If a man in
his own house and privacy be not grave, he is not filial; if in discharging the duties of officehe is not reverent,he is not filial; if
with friends he be not sincere, he is not filial; if on the field of
battle he be not brave,he is not filial/' Thus filialpiety is not only
requires reverence and devotion to parents but also extends to
all human relations.
The same famous disciple of Confucius furthersaid: "There
are three degrees of filial piety. The highest is being a credit to
our parents; the next is not disgracing them; and the lowest is
merelybeing able to support them."
Reverence for parents when living and pious observances
after their death are the essentials in the every-daypractice of
this doctrine. In this practice the past is constantlyremembered
and made a part of the present; and the great men of antiquity
and illustrious ancestors are always regarded as examples to be
followed. Thus, the soldidarity of the family is preserved which
in turn preservesthe soldidarityof the nation.
Still another characteristicof Chinese civilization is the respect for public opinion. The whole system of governmentfrom
time immemorialhas been built on the broad base of the will of
the people. "The welfare of the people," says a noted scholar on
Chinese civilization,"is throughoutlaid down as the main aim
and purpose of government,and upon the manner in which a
ruler can hold the public confidenceand finda place in the hearts
of the people depends the permanence and usefulness of his
rule." Even Confucius, a confirmedimperialist, emphasized the
importanceof placing the public weal of the state above the interestsof the imperial household. It is stated in his writings: "He
who gains the hearts of the people secures the throne; and he who
loses their hearts loses also the throne." Mencius, a noted disciple of the Confucian school, gave us this characteristicexpression: "Heaven sees according as my people see; Heaven hears
159
according as my people hear." This principle is laid down not

only for the throne to observe, but also for the provincial and
local authorities to follow. In villages in China, from time immemorial, there has been a large measure of self-government.
No magistrate can long remain in his officewithout taking into
due considerationthe feelings and sentimentsof the people in his
district. It is not an uncommon sight to see a magistrate, who
deliberately disregards public opinion, dragged from his official
seat, and his officialboots pulled off; and the popular magistrates
presented with many pairs of boots. As the late Charles Denby,
for many years the United States Minister to China, observed,
"If a magistrate complains to the Throne of the conduct of the
people, he is simply told that if he can not get along with the
people, he had better retire." And he does retire. We see then
how Confucian philosophy and its corollaries have helped to
stabilize Chinese political and social institutions.
But, as was mentioneda momentago, there is another school
of philosophywhich has profoundlyinfluencedChinese life. Confucianism is really the philosophy of the cultured class. For the
common masses, there is the philosophy of Lao Tsze. The dominant note of this philosophy,which has lent as much to the stability of the Chinese national life, is the doctrine of nonassertion.He
did not encourage striving among the people, but would rather
''
keep themin quiet satisfaction. Lao Tsze himselfsought in Reason the essence of life, and the guidance in human affairs. He
discouraged,above all, the assertivenessby which any individual
would attempt to magnify his importance and to interferewith
the normal,quiet and rational developmentof things/n It is due
to his teaching that the more humble people of China reveal such
a pronounced note of resignation and contentment.This distinguished philosopher himself thus stated: "Not exalting worth
keeps people fromrivalry. Not prizing what is difficultto obtain
keeps people from committingtheft. Not contemplating what
kindles desire keeps the heart unconfused. The holy man, when
he governs,suppresses the people's passions, but fills their souls.
Always he keeps the people unsophisticatedand without desire.
"Whenhe acts with nonassertion,there is nothing ungoverned.M2
and PoliticalCurrentsin the Far East, p. 122.
Untellectual
2Ibid.,p. 123.
160
NEW YORK SIATE HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION
The exaltation of reason naturally leads to the growth of

pacific sentimentsamong the Chinese people. As Lao-Tze put it:
"He who with reason assists the master of mankind will not
with arms conquer the empire.Where armies are quartered,briers
and thornsgrow. Even beautiful arms are unblessed among tools,
and people had better shun them. Therefore,he who has reason
does not rely upon them." "The compassionate will, in time of
attack, be victorious, and in defense, firm.,) "Thus, if matched
armies encounter one another, the tenderer one is sure to conquer." "In every respect,Lao-Tze puts forwardthe ideal of quiet
strength,rather than of blustering activity and self-assertion."
This philosophy gives expression to those elements in Chinese
popular character which have made it possible for that huge
empire to exist in rarely broken peace for thousands of years;
which have also caused the gradual assimilation of the conquerors who from time to time attempted to influencethe destiny of
China."
The doctrine of ultimate victory of the weak over the strong
accounts for the contempt with which the Chinese usually look
upon one who rejoices in the possession of brute force and explains the past failure of the Chinese nation to pay adequate attention to the question of military armaments. In the days of
warring states, a martial spirit seized the people, that is to say,
that in the sixth centuryB. C., the people were imbuedwith a martial spirit. The fiveleading principalitieswaged war one against the
other in support of their claims as the protector of the imperial
crown. History records that in 546 B. C. an international conference with a view to the reduction of armaments,very much
like the firstHague Conferencein 1899, was called by the principality of Chen (now modernHunan). The conferencewas a failure, and the differentprincipalities continued in their military
preparations. Seven years later, Shuh Hiang, envoy of Tsin, in
his conversationwith a representativeof Tsi, bemoaned the fact
that the "ruling house of Tsin has fallen in degenerate times.
Armies are no longer equipped, and our statesmen are not ready
for war. There is no one to lead the chariots, and our battalions
have no competentcommanders."
But with the teachingsof Lao-Tze, the sentimentsof militarism gradually waned and disappeared and those of peace and
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quiet satisfactionseized the minds of the people. Even Confucius,

who was responsible for the dictum, "To lead an uninstructed
people to war, is to throw them away," laid much emphasis upon
the improprietyof maintaining militaryforces in order to overawe the people. Mencius, too, a very practical man, condemned
much reliance upon the strengthof fortificationsand armaments
to overcome the enemy. He explained: "With walls of great
height,with moats of great depth, with arms of offenceand defence, trenchant and mightywith great stores of rice and other
food, the city is surrendered and abandoned. This is because
material advantages do not compensate for the absence of the
spiritual union of men."
As a result of these teachings,the people of China, until very
recently,used to look upon the soldiers as belonging to the
bottom rung of the social ladder. A characteristicproverb
says: "Just as good iron is not used to make nails, so good men
should not be used to make soldiers." Today, it is still the boast
of the Chinese scholar that 'the pen is mightierthan the sword."
The peaceful and rationalistic temperamentcultivated through
centuries of well-directed teaching and education explains the
fact that during the last 2000 years, far fewer wars were waged
in China than elsewhere to the disturbance of established institutions. It is still true today that when two rickshaw pullers have a
dispute, instead of fightingit out, either with their fistsor in the
court room, they would prefer to talk it out in a tea house.
Countless disputes are generally settled with a hearty sip of tea.
With the commencementof extensive intercourse with the
outeide world, however,there has arisen a feeling that adequate
as its own civilization was for all purposes in the years past, it
is not sufficient
to enable China to deal successfully with the
nations.
After centuries of isolation we have to admit
foreign
that we have a great deal to learn fromthe West. In religion, in
government,in literature,in industrial arts, we have something
to offer.But we are particularly backward in the sciences and
their application to the uses of mankind. It is true that we can
point to the invention of the mariner's compass, gunpowder,and
printing as our contributionto the advancement of science. But
we have to go abroad to findout the wonders of electricity,of the
telegraph and the telephone, which within the memory of men
162
NEW YORK STATE HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION
living have united the countries of the world together,into a

familyof nations. We have to go abroad to see the achievement
wrought by modern medicine and surgery. The application of
these and other sciences to industries has enabled the countries
of the West to develop their resources,create new industries,and
increase the comfortsof life. To meet the educational rquirements
of the time we have remodeledour school system throughout the
country. In former days we devoted ourselves entirely to the
study of history and literature in the schools. Now we use in
Chinese schools textbooks translated from other languages.
English, French and German have been introduced into Chinese
schools. Mathematics and the sciences take their rightfulplaces
in the school curriculum. Promisingyouthsare being sent abroad
for the purpose of carryingon advanced courses of study which
they cannot do at home. We try to appropriate the best of everything of which we stand in need.
There is another lesson which we findwe have to learn from
the West. It is in the matter of national defence. Since the days
of Confucius, China has fashioned her swords into ploughshares
and spears into pruning hooks. She has turned steadfastly from
the arts of war to the arts of peace. But times have changed. She
now realizes that she needs an army and a navy adequate for her
own defence and not for aggression.
Not only in the field of education and national defence but
also in the philosophyof the people there has come a momentous
change. While strivingto go back to the older and purer teach*
ings of Confucius and Lao-Tze, they feel at the same time that in
this wWld of fearfulstrugglefor existencethey need a more active
philosophyto guide them both as a nation and as individuals. In
their quest for a new principle of life, they have fallen upon the
practical teachingsof Wang Yang-ming,one of the most notable
statesman of the Ming dynasty.As a general he commanded the
imperial forces in putting down rebellion and as a statesman he
governed the people wisely. His teachings,therefore,are not mere
theoriesderived frompure reasoning but are principles based upon his own varied experiences. Summarized in the words of a
noted scholar, "His philosophycontains two cardinal principlesone, the theorythat knowledge and practice mustnot be divorced,
and the other that every man with his individual mind should
163
strive to investigate the principles of things in themselves. His

practical philosophy is, therefore,a combination of what later
became known in the West as positivism and pragmatism. In
these practical implications of the philosopher's doctrine lies the
secret of his great importanceto the present age, when a philosophy of action is called for,and when the Far East is becoming
wearied of the crushing weight of authority.Wang Yang-ming
stands for individuality in reasoning, for the application of an
individual criterion to the phonomena of life. Each mind is to
work out its problems on the basis of its own nature; trueness to
life and to one's self is what he insists upon. But the knowledge thus acquired must be subjected to the test of action ; only
thus can it be proved to have more than a subjective validity.
The life of contemplationmust be supplemented by the life of
action. It is this call to action that is so stirringto the contemporary Oriental World." The works of this author are today being
learned not only by the learned, but, to use the words of a
distinguished scholar on the subject, "they are being multiplied
in thousands on thousands of copies and spread broadcast over
the land, so that every scholar is becoming familiar with the old
Ming general and philosopher."
The rediscoveryof this Ming philosopheris, in a large measure, responsible for the increasing symptons of strength and
activity in the Chinese national life, for a study of his works encourages one to act and inspires one with confidencein one's
action. The great mass of humanity,for a time fallen deep in
stupor, have been awakened, so to speak, with the touch of the
magic wand of Wang Yang-ming's philosophy.
The great problem of China today is how to keep this sudden outburst of energy within sound limits without in any way
impeding the progress which the nation needs to make and is
now rapidly making. The Chinese people want to take something
that is best in western civilization and still be able to keep what
is best in their own. It is the problem of blending the two civilizations in such a*way that they may live, each as an integral,living
part of the other. If this problem is solved, we shall then have a
civilization which will enable us to unite the East with the West
and possibly amalgamate the whole world into one great happy
family.

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CHINA AND HER CIVILIZATION

Author(s): V. K. WELLINGTON KOO