- "Shall I teach you about knowledge? What you know, you know, what you don't know, you don't know. This is true knowledge."
Kong Qiu (c. 551 – c. 479 BC), better known as Confucius, the latinization of his epithet Kong Fuzi ("Master Kong"), was a Chinese philosopher of the Spring and Autumn period. Considered the paragon of Chinese sages, his teachings, emphasizing personal morality, societal harmony, and virtuous governance, have had an immeasurable influence in the shared intellectual, political and cultural heritage of the Sinosphere. He is a leader in Civilization VII.
Intro[]
Master Kong, you gave guidance to rulers when they were lost. Now, wise one, the world is again in need of your guidance. Help us to temper duty with benevolence; help us to see with wisdom and propriety. Where the darkness of ignorance falls, lead us in the righteous path.
In-Game[]
Confucius has the 
Expansionist and 
Scientific 
Attributes. His default colors are light yellow and red.
His leader ability is Keju. It grants +25% Growth Rate in all 
Cities and +2 
Science from 
Specialists.
His agenda is Guanxi. His relationship increases by a Medium Amount with the leader that has the most Specialists in their empire, and decreases by a Small Amount for the leader with the least.
Strategy[]
|
Share your wisdom!
How do you use Confucius? |
Lines[]
Confucius is voiced by Xiucheng Zhang. He speaks antiquated-sounding modern Mandarin.
| Line | Quote (English translation) | Quote (Mandarin) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quote | Shall I teach you about knowledge? What you know, you know, what you don't know, you don't know. This is true knowledge. (lit. "Zhongyou, do you truly understand what I teach? To know is to know, and to not know is to not know. This is wisdom.") | 由，诲汝知之乎？知之为知之，不知为不知。是知也。
Yóu, huì rǔ zhīzhī hū? Zhīzhī wéi zhīzhī, bùzhī wéi bùzhī. Shì zhìyě. |
This line is from Analects (Saying of Confucius, 论语), Chapter 2 (为政), line 17. |
| Greeting | Have you come to me, Kong Fu Zi, seeking knowledge? That already is knowledge. (lit. "Now you ask me about wisdom, this is wisdom!") | 今子问智于余，斯为智矣！
Jīn zǐ wèn zhì yú yú, sī wèi zhì yǐ! |
|
| Attacked | Heaven is against you; you shall see. (lit. "If you go against the will of Heaven, you will suffer disaster in the future!") | 违天之意，后必有殃！
Wéi tiān zhī yì, hòu bì yǒu yāng! |
|
| Declares War | One must know when one can fight. And now we can. (lit. "A man needs to know about war. Now, it's time to start a war!") | 人当知战，今则战矣！
Rén dāng zhī zhàn, jīn zé zhàn yǐ! |
|
| Accepts Player's Deal | Yes, this is wise. | 是也，斯为智矣。
Shì yě, sī wéi zhì yǐ. |
|
| Rejects Player's Deal | This is unadvised. Reconsider. (lit. "This is not wise. You can think about it again.") | 此非智也，再思可也。
Cǐ fēi zhì yě, zài sī kě yě. |
|
| Defeated | Death! What a blessing! The righteous man can rest, and villains' tricks end. (lit. "How great is death! The gentleman finds rest in it. The petty man comes to an end in it.") | 大哉！死乎！君子息焉，小人休焉。
Dà zāi! Sǐ hū! Jūnzǐ xī yān, xiǎo rén xiū yān. |
This line is from Kongzi Jiayu (Family saying of Confucius, 孔子家语), Chapter 22 (困誓篇), line 1. |
Leader Path[]
| Level | Unlocks |
|---|---|
| 2 |  Brush & Scroll
|
| 3 | Expansionist Attribute Node |
| 4 | Exploration Expansionist Legacy Card |
| Exploration Scientific Legacy Card | |
| 5 |  Altar Set
|
| 6 | Confucius Badge 1
|
Confucius Banner
| |
| 7 | Scientific Attribute Node
|
| 8 | Modern Expansionist Legacy Card |
| Modern Scientific Legacy Card | |
| 9 |  The Analects
|
| 10 | Confucius Badge 2
|
Great Sage
|
Civilopedia entry[]
Kongzi, Master Kong, is better known by his Hellenized name of “Confucius.” He was a government official and philosopher from an early period in Chinese history, the 500s BCE, slightly before the Han Dynasty and the very dawn of China. His writings emphasized rational, benevolent behavior, devotion to one’s duty, and respect for tradition. Importantly, Confucius trusted the system – if individuals strove to educate themselves and adopted a sense of good faith and loyalty to others (especially their families), they would serve as a check on greedy and power-hungry leaders.
Confucius had plenty of examples of terrible leaders. As the Shang Dynasty fell apart, a new, loosely-assembled dynasty arose: the Zhou (1046-256 BCE). Under this dynasty, individual states led by particular generals held sway over a smaller, more centralized state ruled by the emperor. Imagine a popular person at school surrounded by a crowd of bullies constantly fighting for the claim to be their absolute best friend and protector. Oddly enough, fractured and contentious political situations are often fertile ground for writers and philosophers – just ask Machiavelli. Confucius lived on the eastern edge of China at some point during this war-torn period. As his political world broke down around him, Confucius spent his life advocating for sensible order and good governance. Confucian influence calls on would-be charismatic or forceful rulers to curb their power and work for the common good.
Born to a slightly upper (but not aristocratic) caste in the duchy of Lu, Confucius slowly rose through the ranks of local administration. He saw the problems inherent in the era and sought to appeal to central authority over the chaos. For instance, when he attained mayorship of a small town, he sought to dismantle its walls. Walls intended to defend against attacks from rival families; with the walls removed, Confucius thought the local duke would have to take a more direct role in defending the town.
But rulers often disappoint. Confucius was regularly stymied by those he sought to advise – those he counseled in moderation were led astray by his opponent's flattery and lavish gifts, while others fell victim to personal vices. Eventually, Confucius’ enemies engineered to have him exiled for a time. Upon his return to Lu, he settled down and spent most of his time writing.
His works include the Five Classics of Confucian philosophy. These texts contain poems, political speeches, historical records, and catalogs of rituals, rites, and magic. The latter discusses the divination system I Ching, still popular today. Confucius’ teachings have been distilled into collections by his disciples, including the Analects, his most famous work. The other Four Books of Confucianism include Great Learning, Doctrine of the Mean (a morality lesson for all, not just rulers), and a series of conversations with the scholar Mencius.
“Know your place, and do it well” might be one way to summarize Confucian philosophy, as well as “respect tradition,” and “act always with kindness.” Confucianism exists somewhere in between philosophy, religion, and moralism. It is a principle that is humanist at its core, emphasizing heaven's presence (tian) in interpersonal interaction, good government, and good ethics. Being loyal to one’s family and friends, being mindful of one’s duties, and being harmonious is the natural tendency of humankind.
In its early days, Confucianism clashed with Legalism. The latter saw top-down codes of conduct necessary to constrain human nature, which inclined towards sin. Later, Confucian codes began to synergize with Legalist codes. Confucian societies include China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam, as well as states that are heavily influenced by Chinese thought (e.g. Singapore). Its principles now include notions of benevolence, justice, observance of proper custom and decorum, knowledge, and integrity, as well as loyalty, filial piety (i.e. loyalty to one’s family and betters), and righteousness. While Confucianism does emphasize subjection to rulers, rulers must show themselves to be subject to tian – rulers who fail to live up to heaven’s standards face the disloyalty of their populace.
Trivia[]
- Confucius' leader ability is the name of the Imperial examination system (科舉) for the selection of candidates for the state bureaucracy, while his agenda is a Chinese term (關係) used to describe a social network of mutually beneficial personal and business relationships.
- Confucius was born and taught in the city of Qufu, which appears as a Han settlement in-game.
Gallery[]
.png "Confucius three-quarter length (Civ7).png (469 KB)")
.jpg "Confucius promo card (Civ7).jpg (225 KB)")
Videos[]
First Look- Confucius - Civilization VII
First Look: Confucius
Related achievements[]
|
Proverbial Wisdom.
Win the modern age as Confucius.
|
See also[]
- Confucius in other games