Analects Book 18: a fond farewell
Time to bid a fond farewell for Book 18 of the Analects, at least for now. This is one of my favorite books in the entire text — and not just because it is among the shortest. Even if they are allegorical rather than historically accurate, the depictions of Confucius tramping around the wilderness in his fruitless quest for a high-level position in 18.5 to 18.7 are deeply moving. Even though knows he has no chance of succeeding, the sage resists the entreaties of the recluses to abandon his mission. Because of the strength of his devotion to what he sees as his duty, he has no choice but to keep on going — no matter what the cost is.
In a very real sense, Book 18 marks the end of the Analects. In Book 19, Confucius is already dead, and it is left to his younger followers Zizhang, Zixia, Ziyou, and Zengzi to battle it our for control of legacy by putting their own spin on his teachings. Confucius had originally hoped that his favorite follower Yan Hui would be his successor, but after his untimely death the sage could not bring himself to choose anyone else to carry his mantle.
After Confucius died, his followers selected a follower called Youzi as his heir — largely, it seems, because he bore a remarkable physical resemblance to the sage. However, while Youzi may have looked similar to Confucius, his talents came nowhere near to matching those of the sage, and he soon lost the confidence of the other followers.
This left a huge leadership gap that was never filled, and the likes of Zizhang, Zixia, Ziyou, and Zengzi went on to establish their own schools to promote and develop the teachings of Confucius. Book 19 provides a fascinating glimpse of their different approaches.
Book 19 closes with the ever-loyal Zigong stepping up to defend Confucius against his critics and deliver a cringeworthy panegyric lauding the greatness of the sage in the final chapter. Now that he has departed this mortal coil, the mythification of Confucius has already started!
I shot this image in a hillside temple on the Four Beasts near to Taipei.
