“The Way of Family Unification” - a Test of the Philosophical Thoughts on Family Governance in the Jinsi Lu

Abstract

As a classic textbook of Cheng-Zhu philosophy, the book has a wide range of historical and regional influences. Historically, scholars have mostly focused on “cultivating one’s own body”, but less on “unifying one’s family”. The way of family unification constructed in The Jinsi Lu, with the general objectives of “firstly strictness of one’s own body” and “correct ethics and righteousness”, and with the sub-divisions of “obedience to parents, friendship to brothers, and honour to husband and wife”, still has a vivid vitality in today’s world. It is still alive and well today. At a time when family problems are becoming more and more prominent, the interpretation and promotion of the “way of unifying the family” in the outstanding traditional culture can help promote the harmonious and healthy development of society.