Although Confucius' greatest ambition was in politics, his greatest achievement was in education. He was a pioneer in several aspects in the history of education in our country. No matter which one of these aspects is taken out, it is enough for him to be admired by later generations:
First, before Confucius, education was the exclusive preserve of the aristocracy, and Confucianism was a parasite of the aristocracy. Confucius first put forward the idea of ??"teaching without distinction", that is to say, regardless of whether he is rich or poor, high or low, all students should be taught according to their aptitude. He himself said that he never failed to teach anyone who came to study with a "shuxiu". We may think this is a very common thing now, but it was indeed a pioneering move at the time. This was the beginning of the civilianization of academics.
Second, Confucius relied on his personal strength to cultivate and recruit a large number of talents. His disciples became a gathering of talents from at least the state of Lu. After returning to Lu from Wei, whenever Duke Ai of Lu and Ji Kangzi wanted to recruit talents, they would look for them among his disciples. This is a very terrible thing, and it is extremely rare even in later generations.
It is said that he had more than 3,000 disciples, and 77 of them were famous, of which 25 were recorded in the Middle Ages. These people were either good at virtue, good at politics, good at literature, or good at language, and they all played a great role in the society at that time.
Third, Confucius first integrated memory education and personality education, and first taught students with systematic moral doctrines and meticulous life ideals. His words were recorded by his disciples and subsequent disciples, and became my country's first collection of quotations - "The Analects of Confucius".
The skills taught by Confucius were nothing more than "Li", "Music", "Poetry" and "Books" that ordinary aristocratic children at that time learned. Among them, "Rites" and "Poetry" were often taught by Confucius and required by his disciples. But it doesn't just describe the meaning of these books, he often reinterprets or makes them invisible.
After Confucius returned to Lu from Wei, he concentrated on writing books. At this time, Confucius had become a senior figure in the country. The ministers and officials at that time expressed condolences from time to time, and Confucius was also qualified to intervene in state affairs. This is a significant improvement in his life situation. When eating, he "does not eat from time to time, does not eat if he is not cut straight, and does not eat if he cannot eat the sauce." It can be seen that Confucius was relatively happy in his later years.
But he did not enjoy much of this late blessing. In the 16th year of Duke Ai, Confucius lay ill for seven days and died at the age of 74.