Can One Hold DualCitizenship in Religion?
The Significance and Contribution of
Confucianism to World Religions
Tee Boon Chuan, PhD.
Malaysian Centre for Ethnic Studies,
New Era College,
Kajang-MALAYSIA.
Paper presented at
Global Congress on World’s Religions after September 11: An Asian
Perspective
New Delhi: Jamia Millia Islamia, Jan 17-20, 2009.
How to Understand Confucianism from
the Indian/Hindu’s Viewpoint?
 To understand Confucianism, for Indian/Hindu
scholar, is to understand the karma yoga-based
religion;
 Confucianism:
◆In contrast to bhakti yoga-based religion, ‘union
through devotion’, like Islam, Christianity, Hindu
Saivism and Vaisnavism, it is a no-God religion;
◆ In contrast to jnana yoga-based religion, ‘union
through wisdom’, like Buddhism and Hindu Advaita
Vedanta, it is a no-monastic life religion;
Confucianism as a Karma Yoga-based
Religion-1
 Confucianism is a karma yoga-based religion,
‘union through unselfish action’, believe in:
◆i. union with the ultimate moral realm of ‘all
within the Four Seas (that bound the
universe) are our brothers’, because ‘it is the
same sky overhead, and the same earth
underfoot that we share’;
Confucianism as a Karma Yoga-based
Religion-2
◆ ii. unite it through the unselfish process
of ‘it is only when… thought become sincere
that the mind is rectified; when the mind is
rectified that the person is cultivated; when
the person is cultivated that order is brought
to the family; when order is brought to the
family that the state is well governed; when
the state is well governed that peace is
brought to the world’, that cultivate ourselves
and bring peace and comfort to others;
Confucianism as a Karma Yoga-based
Religion-3
 ‘Learning to be Human’ or to become the
‘honourable person’, ‘jun-zi’, by virtue is the
Confucian goal of life:
‘Confucius focuses on the perfection of human
conduct, a cultivation that can only take place by
engaging and maintaining relationships with
other people in a social context…Honour, for
Confucius, is not ascribed by birth but achieved by
effort, through developing human relationships in
compliance with such virtues as humanity (ren),
consideration (shu), loyalty (zhong) and
understanding (zhi).’
The Significance of Confucianism as a
karma Yoga-based Religion-1
 It is a no-God religion:
◆i. there could be no battle between the One True
God and the many false gods;
◆ii. there could be no especially chosen people
to whom God has revealed himself;
◆iii. there could be no distinguish between the
secular and divine, this life and the next, or this
world and some other…etc
 Such conceptual apparatuses in religious studies
are inadequate in dealing with the Confucianism.
The Significance of Confucianism as a
karma Yoga-based Religion-2
 In the Confucianized East Asian cities and
countries, there could be no serious
religious riot or war in the past, present, and
hopefully in the future too.
 Should we re-examine or re-evaluate our
beliefs and conceptions of religion from
karma yoga-based Confucianism?
The Contribution of Confucianism as a
karma Yoga-based Religion-1
 It is a no-monastic life religion:
◆ i. on behalf of Confucius’ spirit of ‘am I not one
among the people of this world? If not them, with
whom should I associate?’
◆ ii. on behalf of Confucius’ spirit of ‘do not impose
upon others what you yourself do not want’;
◆ iii. on behalf of Confucius’ spirit of ‘as for
Goodness, you yourself desire rank and standing,
then help others to get rank and standing. You want
to turn your own merits to account, then help
others to turn theirs to account’:
 There could be practise only a diffuse, pluralistic
and inclusive religion;
The Contribution of Confucianism as a
karma Yoga-based Religion-2
 In the past East Asian practise, each
Confucian was also a Trinitanian
(Confucianism, Daoism and Buddhism); in
today North America’s Boston Confucianism,
John H. Berthrong, Robert C. Neville etc
believe that one can hold dual-religious
citizenship in Christianity and Confucianism;
 Should we re-examine or re-evaluate our
beliefs and conceptions of religion from
karma yoga-based Confucianism?
Thank You!