Confucian Global Leadership in Chinese Tradition: Classical and Contemporary

Description: This paper reviews traditional classical and contemporary models of Confucian global leadership. Building on the traditional, a global leadership model under the New Confucian model is still a matter of ethical development of man-writ, but it has been playing a more important role during this open world which is independent and interactive.

Abstract:

In the long history of Chinese society, four models of political leadership have been both philosophically argued and politically practiced or implemented: the Daoist model of non-action, the Confucian model of virtuous action, the Mohist model of divine will and universal utilitarianism and the Legalist model of strong regulation. The Daoist model has been practiced in a distant past for a small population. The Legalist model has been imposed for a short period of time during the reign of the Qin. The Mohist model was embraced for a closed community of Mohists which did not last. Only the Confucian model has been adopted and adapted over 2000 years of imperial rule after the Qin. At large, the Confucian model has served to perform two main functions for rule of the people: 1) to soften and constrain the imperial power so that it would not go absolutist and excessive in consideration of overall well-being of people; 2) to shape ways of popular participation in government by civil examination, and hence to channel social development in direction of social harmonization by establishing a virtue-and-duty ethics of human relations. In both one sees desirable effects of political leadership in a complex system of social and administrative organizations and institutions.

The overall goal of Confucian leadership is harmony for interaction, harmony for growth and harmony for lasting peace.

Due to its rich background in philosophical and moral thinking, this ideal form of Confucian model of political leadership has not been fully implemented, and yet this does not mean that it is not implementable nor that it may not serve as an end and guide for development of national and global leadership today, apart from being treatable as a methodology of conflict resolution and peaceful co-development. For developing such an ideal form of Confucian modal of leadership, I wish to single out three regulative principles for reaching the ideal end. First, the principle of total harmonization which aims at evaluation and solution in achieving total and long term end as harmony ; the principle of timeliness which aims at seeking or creating proper times for making proper action possible; the principle of transformation which aims to achieve interactions which would lead to positive rather than negative results. This will lead to a formulation of modernized New Confucian Model of Global Leadership.

For developing such a model, I shall first deal with the Classical Confucian Model of Global Leadership with focus on cultivation and extension of virtues and duties. Then I shall suggest a New Confucian Model based on incorporation of ethics of utilities and ethics of justice and righteousness. The New Model would incorporate the Classical Model as a core part. It does not change the original insight of Classical Confucian Model regarding human nature and human vision on globalization of humanity as mutual consideration, mutual respect and mutual benefiting. But the essential transformation is toward more realistic application and practice in a global world in light of both Chinese and Western historical lessons. Such a New Confucian approach is founded on viewing individuals, nations and world as open and holistic entities capable of being advanced in relationships of interdependence and mutual complementation instead of domination and imposition. Human rights, societal rights and national rights will be integrated in such a New Confucian approach.

This New Confucian model of global leadership is first of all an ethical development of man writ at large as in the classical sense of Confucianism. But as a new ethical system it will take into consideration of virtue ethics of relationships, deontology of obligations, calculus of utilities and consequences of common actions, and assertions and proclamations of human rights as against different cultural and religious backgrounds. This new ethics is not just any convenient combination of different types of ethics, but grows from careful and deep considerations of human conditions. It can be described as an integrative ethics for the whole humankind which takes good intentions and good planning as inceptive points for striving for a foreseeable future result by going through considerations of necessary obligations and rights. It is an ethics which aims at reciprocity of benevolence and justice, part and whole, self and the other, the human and the environmental.

With this ethics as a base, we can develop a New Confucian political system model for national, international and global leadership as informed and enhanced by comprehensive considerations of dignities or intrinsic human values, securities, obligations and rights, benefits, and future development of humanity. In view of contemporary issues of world politics, it is clear that both globalization and localization of traditions and values call for proportionate advancement toward a more cooperative, more adjustable and more equitable world of nations and communities in order to sustain everlasting peace and harmony.

As a political model this integrative ethics is incorporated in the leadership performance and competence of a person or group of persons for managing a community, a state and the global world. If we can make right effort to achieve right action toward bringing up a good, capable, trustful and enlightened leader as a person, we can do the same for establishing a likewise family, a likewise community, and a likewise state and a likewise world. At each stage the leader must take consideration of both the new scope and the new depth of the challenge of human relationships and human needs while not forgetting basic principles of knowledge, understanding, responsibility and care for well-being of others and people. In such a development what is required is an open spirit of mutual consideration, deep reflective understanding and devotion to work toward a holistic vision.

In conclusion, I shall formulate and elaborate on 10 points regarding the implementation of such a global leadership under the New Confucian Model for an ideal and desirable global leadership.