Confucius, a great ancient Chinese thinker, was again thrown into the spotlight when a range of memorial activities were held worldwide to commemorate the 2,556th anniversary of his birth. And the Confucianism maxims could help make people vigilant, and as a matter of fact, some valuable Confucian concepts have been integrated into mainstream world culture.
Confucianism dominated Chinese society for a long time, and started to spread to Europe in late 16th century. Confucius was placed at the top of 10 key thinkers in the world by a guidebook of world celebrities published in the United States in 1984.
Confucianism, which was thrown out of fashion early last century, has regained popularity and has been given proper attention in present-day China. Its overseas influence has also been increasing.
So far, 26 institutes have been set up for Confucian studies all over the world. California of the United States named Confucius's birthday anniversary in 2000 as "Confucian Day in California".
Chinese and foreign entrepreneurs have also been enlightened by Confucianism. It is a common practice that Japanese companies are following a corporate culture that combines Confucianism and western business concepts.
While advocating the people-first work style, the Chinese government has put forward an idea of seeking harmony while keeping disparity in dealing with a multi-polar culture in the world in recent years.
Confucianism has ready solutions to many problems that wreak havoc in the contemporary world, such as regional conflicts and a worsening ecology. In this sense, Confucius not only belongs to China, but also to the whole world.
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