Story of 孔子[KongZi](2)

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孔子's youth life subsided in hardship. Early years' suffering due to poverty had brought him up not only a strong will to learn and to move upward, but also an opportunity for him see the reality of the real world. This life experience of hardship laid down a strong foundation for his ability to be undaunted by repeated setbacks, to face the cruel reality that was unkind to him, at the same time provided him a foundation of founding Confucianism, the philosophy aiming at universal beneficiary of common people.

孔子's ancestor was aristocracy from feudal State of 宋 [Song4]. His remote ancestors were descendants of 殷商[YinShang] (Note: because 商 [Shang] dynasty's capital was located in 殷 [Yin], therefore the 商 [Shang] Dynasty was costumed to be called 殷商 [YinShang]). The founding father of State 宋 was 微子启 [WeiZi2Qi3], the first son of Emperor 乙 [Yi4] of 商 [Shang] dynasty. Emperor 周武王 [ZhouWu3Wang2] attacked Emperor 纣 [Zhou], exterminated the 商 dynasty, and conferred 武庚 [Wu3Geng], the son of Emperor 纣, to a place called 朝歌 [Chao2Ge], so that 武庚 could continue to offer sacrifices to his ancestors. But 武庚 was vengeful. He staged a rebellion when 成相王 [Cheng2XiangWang2] was the emperor of 周 dynasty. The rebellion was crashed and 武庚 was killed. Later, 微子启 [WeiZi2Qi3], was conferred to it, by Emperor 周, the former capital of 商 dynasty. 微子启 started to settle down there as a substitution for the posterity of 殷 offering sacrifices to the ancestors. Hence the feudal state of 宋 was established; and 微子启 became the first ruler. After he passed away, his younger brother 微仲 [WeiZhong4] resumed the throne. 微仲 was KongZi's remote ancestors. After three generations, the throne passed to 宋闵公 [Song4Min3Gong]. 宋闵公 gave birth to two sons, 弗夫何 [Fu2FuHe2] and 鲋祀 [Fu2Si]. 弗夫何 was 孔子's grandfather going back ten generations. He abdicate the throne to his brother, 鲋祀 [Fu4Si4], and won himself a good reputation. He later went on to become a high ranking official in State 宋. 弗夫何's great-grandson was 正考父 [Zheng4Kao2Fu], who assisted rulers from three generations (i.e. 宋戴公 [Song4Dai4Gong], 宋武公 [Song4Wu2Gong], 宋宣公 [Song4XuanGong]) of State 宋. He administered the State of 宋 with modesty and parsimony, and was an official of popular acclaim. Therefore the inscriptions engraved on the wall of a giant ancient cooking vessel in his memorial temple reads: "一命而偻, 再命而伛, 三命而俯, 循墙而走, 亦莫余敢侮. 澶于是, 鬻于是, 以糊余口." [I served the first ruler with my back slightly hunched (to show respect), I served the second ruler with my body stoop, and I served the third ruler with my body bow, was always in and out of the palace along the corner of the tall wall, was afraid of neglecting the young ruler's needs. I ate anything I could get, be it thin porridge, or thick porridge]. Coming to the time of 孔父嘉 [Kong3FuJia] (正考父 [Zheng4Kao3Fu]'s son), the 孔 clan had fallen from the rank of 卿 [Qing] (highest ranking senior official) to the rank of 大夫 [Da4Fu - senior official ranked below 卿 Qing]. Before, all of KongZi's ancestors used the surname 子 [Zi]; and later, all of their posterity would use their styled name as their surname. That was the beginning use of the surname 孔 for the Kong family clan. 孔父嘉, in State 宋, had been holding the position of 大司马 [Da4SiMa3 - An official position in charge of military administration and supply] for two rulers (i.e. 宋穆公 [Song4Mu4Gong] and 宋殇公 [Song4ShangGong]), and his wife was a beauty. Prime minister of State 宋, 华督 [Hua2Du2] staged out a coup, he killed the ruler 宋殇公 [Song4ShangGong], killed 孔父嘉 [Kong3FuJia], and took his wife. The son of 孔父嘉, 木金父 [Mu4JinFu4], fled to State of 鲁 [Lu3] to avoid the slaughter. Since then, the 孔 family clan had settled down in 陬 [Zou], the feudal State 鲁 [Lu3], from where their aristocratic status quickly evaporated.

孔子's great grand father 孔防叔 [KongFangShu] was once a 大夫 [Da4Fu - ranking senior official] of 防 [Fang] feudal estates in State of 鲁. 孔子's father 叔梁纥 [ShuLiang2He2] was a warrior. He served as a governor in 陬 [Zou] feudal estates. He was renown for his bravery among seigneurs, a recipient for decoration for battle achievements. One of his most heroic acts happened in the Battle of 富阳 [Fu4Yang2 - a place in today's southern 枣庄 of ShangDong province ], in the tenth ruling year of ruler 鲁襄公 [Lu3XiangGong]. At the time, the State of 晋 [Jin4] led the coalition force of all other feudal states attacking 富阳 [Fu4Yang] county. 叔梁纥 [ShuLiang2He2] as a warrior had joined the battle. Soon the attacking army of the join-forces captured the 富阳 [Fu4Yang] county. At the moment of army entering the citadel, suddenly the heavy hanging gate dropped down by the enemy force, intending to cut off the procession of the incoming soldiers, and then to destroy them separately. At this critical moment, 叔梁纥 [ShuLiang2He2] rose with force; and supported the gate with his hands raising up overhead. Because of this heroic act, all of his comrades got out safely without incurring a loss.

叔梁纥 [ShuLiang2He2] had a wife called 施氏 [ShiShi4]. She gave birth to nine girls without a son. Although his concubine gave birth to a son named 孟皮 [Meng4Pi2], styled 伯尼 [Bo2Ni], but this son was a cripple. 叔梁纥 felt that 孟皮's foot was a problem, that he probably could not produce a healthy offspring, the important matter of having a heir. Thinking about that he was getting old, 叔梁纥 really desired to have a healthy son who could carry forward his family heritage. Therefore he proposed marriage to the 颜 [Yan2] family who had three daughters. The older and the second daughter of the 颜 [Yan2] family rejected his proposal except the youngest one, who hadn't even reached twenty years old. Thus, 叔梁纥 and 颜徵在 [Yan2ZhengZai4] became husband and wife. But there's a huge difference in age, for the groom was more than forty years the bride's senior; and therefore such act of marriage was against the tradition of the time. As the history book 史记 [Shi3Ji4 - a history record book written by 司马迁 in Han dynasty] recorded as quote: "纥与颜氏女野合而生孔子 - [叔梁纥 copulated with the daughter of Yan family in the wildness and gave birth to 孔子]." That was so because 叔梁纥 felt that he might be too old to be a father, worrying about whether or not that he could have a healthy son, he brought her up to the top of the 尼丘 [Ni2Qiu] Mountain. They prayed together for a son up there.

When 孔子 was three, his father 叔梁纥 died. Soon, 孔子 followed his mother moving back to 曲阜 [Qu3Fu4], the capital city of State of 鲁. Because the family financial situation fell into a reduced circumstances when his father 叔梁纥 died, the young 孔子 and his mother had led an impoverished life. But the mother still attached importance to 孔子's education. The capital city 曲阜 [Qu3Fu4] of State 鲁, as one of the feudal states of 周 [Zhou] dynasty, had been still maintained a good tradition of practicing rituals and ceremonies inherited from the early glory days. This social cultural environment of respecting ritual formality and decorums had left a deep impression in young 孔子's mind. Hence 孔子 "为儿嬉戏, 常陈俎豆, 设礼容" [when he played, the young 孔子 used beans to be displayed as objects of sacrifice, practicing the rites]. Under the tutorage of his mother, 孔子 learned and self-improved himself diligently, life's vicissitudes notwithstanding.

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