New China Institute to Study Confucius
China formally established a national research institute Monday that will examine the philosophy of Confucius, the ancient sage-scholar whose teachings permeate Chinese life.
Confucius (551-479 BC) preached that the educated few should rule the illiterate many, women should obey men, and children must support parents.
Imperial dynasties exalted Confucius and turned his home into a sacred estate. But Confucius was criticized after the Communists came to power in 1949, and during the 1966-76 Cultural Revolution, radical Red Guards desecrated Confucian monuments.
The Cultural Revolution has since been repudiated, and Confucius has been restored to his former prominence.
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