The Analects of Confucius

"Real knowledge is to know the extent of one's ignorance." China's first and greatest teacher, Confucius travelled from state to state as an itinerant philosopher. The Analects preserves his major teachings, as compiled by his pupils after his death in 497 BCE, and these conversations explore essential themes such as righteousness, self-cultivation, and the moral foundations of society, expressing a philosophy, or a moral code, by which Confucius believed everyone should live. Sometimes pithy, sometimes conversational, occasionally enigmatic, often profoundly searching, the book contains memorable sayings about the moral health of the individual, the family and the body politic, and continues to be a source of inexhaustible wisdom after more than two and a half millennia. Confucius (Kong Fuzi) was a Chinese philosopher and educator, born in 551 BCE in the state of Lu (modern-day Shandong Province). He is best known for founding Confucianism, a philosophical system that emphasises morality, social relationships, and justice. His ideas have influenced countless generations and his emphasis on morality, education, and governance continues to resonate, making him one of history's most significant philosophical figures.