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When Confucianism Meet the Challenge of Environmental Sustainable Development Abstract: Confucian culture has long been the backbone of Chinese traditional culture and also has a strong impact on the ideology of the world. With the development of human beings, Confucianism met with various new challenges in the 21th century. One of the most serious problems is how to keep an environmental sustainable development. To solve this problem, finding a root from traditional culture to arouse people’s consciousness is the key. Key words: Confucianism, environmental sustainable development, consciousness
When we look back on the history of our human beings, it is hard to deny that ourselves, as well as all the other living creatures in the world, are born of nature. However, up to now, human beings destroy the environment arbitrarily for their own interest, hunting animals, felling forest, without thinking about the consequences. On the other hand, nature becomes more and more unsuitable for people to live in. The balance between human beings and the nature is in the process of disappearing. Environmental condition refers to the objective reality of the situation in the environment, with its problems and its impact on human beings.
In the first place, due to the destruction made by human beings, the relationship between human and nature becomes strained. With the degradation of the environment, the quality of life for people has dramatically declined. The problem of global warming, acid rain, and ozone depletion become serious. Industrialization, urbanization, and social high consumption call for more energy than it used to be. 95% of world commercial energy is fossil fuel. However, the burning of this fuel produces carbon dioxide —- one of the main green house gases. Then the “greenhouse effect” increases.
Furthermore, the emission of carbon dioxide causes serious pollutions in the atmosphere, forming acid rain. The use of compound, such as solvent and freezing medium, deplete almost 60% of the ozone layer. The ozone hole appears in the Antarctic. Forest and wetland area are rapidly shrinking. Biodiversity reduces. One third of the tropical forest has already lost. According the prediction given by FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United States), at the beginning of 21 century, there will be 2. 4 billion people who cannot obtain basic energy needs from forest. Like the forest, wetland suffers the same fate.
The wetland in the developed countries has already disappeared. The destruction of forest and wetland directly leads to nearly 300 species extinguish every day. Soil degradation and erosion intensifies. According to World Resources 1994-1995 released by UNDP (United Nations Development Program) and World Insurance Fund, there are about 1. 2 billion hectares of land (approximate to 11% of global vegetation area) eroded by human beings’ activities. The level of freshwater shortage and pollution increases. Up to now, there are over 80 countries (about 2 billion people) suffer water shortage.
Based on World Development Report 1992 issued by World Bank, there are over 2 million people died for water pollution every year since 1980s, hundreds of millions of people sick. Excessive consumption of non-renewable resources and marine living resources faces a serious threat. According to World Resources 1994-1995, 9 main metallic minerals and 3 main fossil fuels may be exhausted within 100 years if its consumption rate still keeps. Because of the excessive fishing and pollution, 13 major marine fish is already extinct, and the number of other 4 major fish has reduced to the limits required to survive.
The solid waste increases. Stench has become a serious hazard in the city. Stench comes from the mixture of polluted air, water, and all kinds of solid waste. Population expansion deteriorates. After WWII, the population expansion has beyond of capacity of natural environment. The world population is 6 million now, and will be reached to 10 million in 2050. The most directly problem is food crises. “When Heaven sends down calamities, there is hope of weathering them; when man brings them upon himself, there is no hope of escape” (Shangshu.
Taijia) Chinese ancient scholars warn people that man should be responsible for his own behavior, otherwise “give a thief enough rope and he’ll hang himself. ” Environmental degradation causes the crisis of human existence. Reflecting on the causes of the crisis, although Heaven send down many calamities, such as earthquake, volcanic eruption, and meteor shock, more are caused by human activities like overgrazing, reclaim wasteland, deforestation, hunting, exploitation, and emission of toxic substances. Whoever starts the trouble ends the trouble.
Since the crisis of human existence is the consequence of human activities, people should reflect on themselves and take responsibilities for their own behaviors. In the process of seeking the causes and solutions to the global ecological environmental crisis, “the club of Rome” puts forward the idea that the crisis today is connected with some cultural values which formed during the period of industrialization. The values include that: Value One: Man and nature are dimidiate and opposite. After entering into the industrialization, nature world became a mechanical world and separated from the relationship between human beings.
The world is composed of some undynamic, passive, and inert particles. This kind of value treats the nature world as a dead physical world. Due to the initiative of human beings, people can do whatever to this dead world. Value Two: Human beings are the center of the world. As industrial civilization treats the nature world as a mechanical world which exists outside of the human beings, human beings are the center of the world. Human beings are the purpose of natural evolution. Everything in the nature exists for human and is driven for people freely. The universe is arranged in accordance with people’s subjective needs.
Value Three: Natural resources are unlimited, worthless, and ownerless. Based on the human-centered theory, nature only owns the external value for the use of human interest. In dealing with the issue of nature value, it tends to pursue the economic value and ignore the ecological value. Value Four: Human beings are omnipotent. All the three attitudes above include a reason that human beings can do whatever they want. This reason can qualify the nature as a mechanical world, while break the relationship between human and nature, making them dimidiate and opposite.
This reason puts human to stay out of nature, judging the value of nature based on their interest. This reason asserts that people can use scientific technology to exploit and make use of nature resources unlimitedly, and can also use scientific technology to solve the problems like the shortage of resources, environmental degradation, and ecological destruction. This reason bestows human the omnipotent ability, making them believe that they can not only control themselves, but also control the world around them. Facing with this misconception towards nature, Chinese Confucianism gives its own understanding on this issue.
Being an ideology formed before industrialization, it contains many dynamic particles which combine human with nature as a harmonious family, making it sounds like environmental ethnics. This thought first proposed by Zhuangzi, and then formed into an ideology by Dong Zhongshu in his book, the Luxuriant Gems of the Spring and Autumn Annals. Confucianism holds the concept of harmony between man and nature. It is the fundamental concept of Chinese traditional culture. This world view as well as a way of thinking, represents a pursuit of the spiritual realm of life.
Being an ideology, it is different from the theory prevalent during the period of industrialization that divides the relationship between human and nature. This thought treats man and nature as an indivisible entirety, believing that the world is dynamic, vital, and organic. Man and nature are closely linked. On the issue of how to realize environmental sustainable development, and also how to correct people’s attitude towards the relationship between nature, Confucianism teaches that, The term person (shen) is derived from Heaven (tian).
Heaven has its dual operations of yin and yang, and one’s person has its dual nature of greed and humanity. Heaven sometimes restricts yin. Likewise, a person sometimes weakens the emotions and desires, becoming one with the Way of Heaven. [1] It indicates that man and nature are interconnected with each other. “What Heaven restricts, one’s person restricts. Therefore it is said that one’s person resembles Heaven. ” (Chinese Tradition in Contemporary World 169) By this means, people should treat the nature as their own, hiding their selfish desire, not to pursue the economic interest based on the environmental destruction.
Confucianism holds the concept of fully growing self and substance. It teaches people to cherish the natural resources, keep a virtuous cycle of natural resources. When mentioning how to realize the sustainable development, Confucianism raises an idea of equilibrium. Zhongyong says, This equilibrium is the great root from which grow all the human actings in the world, and this harmony is the universal path which they all should pursue. Let the states of equilibrium and harmony exist in perfection, and a happy order will prevail throughout heaven and earth, and all things will be nourished and flourish. 2] This equilibrium theory guides people to keep neutral in everything. Confucius once said that “going too far is as bad as not going far enough” (Analects) It is unimportant whether nature resources should be made use of by human, the attitude is the key. We should not let the economic development going too far while allow the environmental protection going not far enough. We should deal with both sides in daily life, obtaining the goal that “the superior men always maintain the Mean. (Zhongyong) In brief, by teaching people to be kind and submit to the Heaven, Confucianism also makes some achievements in modern issue about how to realize the environmental sustainable development. Old ideology offers new advantage in the modern life. Works Cited: Liu Haiping, Zhang Chong, Zhu Gang. Chinese Tradition in Contemporary World. Nanjing University: School of Foreign Studies, 2004. http://www. ebigear. com/news-490-62737. html ———————– [1] Chinese Tradition in Contemporary World, P169. [2] http://www. ebigear. com/news-490-62737. html