If you’ve ever heard someone mention the doctrine of the Mean, you’ve brushed up against Confucian wisdom.
Confucius, known in Chinese as Kongzi, lived more than 2,500 years ago (551–479 B.C.). He was born in the state of Lu—today’s Shandong Province—at a time when China was fragmented by rival kingdoms and plagued by political corruption. Against that backdrop, he became one of history’s most influential teachers.
