Among benevolence, filial piety, friendship and courtesy, China ancient thinkers paid special attention to filial piety and regarded it as "the first of a hundred lines". Filial piety is an obligation as a child, and its fundamental requirement is respect, that is, loving and attaching to parents from the heart, showing a gentle, cheerful and respectful attitude, serving parents wholeheartedly, and striving to bring more happiness, happiness and even glory to parents. For example, "filial piety today is called nurturing." As for dogs and horses, both can be kept; Disrespect, why not? "("The Analects of Confucius governs ")" What a dutiful son loves must be kind; With goodwill, there will be joy; Those who enjoy color must have grace. " (Ji Feng Sacrifice Ceremony) "People's filial piety is rooted in sincerity. Although the details are not enough, it can also touch the world and feel ghosts and gods. " (Yuan Cai: Leyuan Fan Shi, Volume I, Qin Mu) Filial piety is a very important norm in China's traditional moral norms, which has a special position and role in all traditional moral norms. Confucianism regards filial piety as the foundation of benevolence and righteousness and the "axiom of human relations", and many thinkers and rulers in past dynasties also regard it as an important means to maintain ethical relations and political rule. They associate filial piety with loyalty to the monarch and patriotism, and regard filial piety as the starting point of "self-cultivation, keeping the family in order, governing the country and leveling the world", which makes filial piety, a moral norm regulating parent-child relationship, rise and expand into a code of conduct with universal social significance.

First,' filial piety' causes and social basis

The concept of filial piety came into being at the end of primitive clan society, that is, the transition period from matriarchal system to paternal system. Due to the emergence of private ownership and the rule of male parents, children can directly inherit the property of their ancestors. In order to express gratitude, reverence and grief for parents, the concept of filial piety came into being over time. Filial piety first appeared as a family ethical norm, and its function was to adjust the relationship between parents and children. At first, there was no social norm. As far away as the Western Zhou Dynasty, filial piety, as a moral concept, has been seen in writing. "Shangshu Jiugao" said: "Zhao introduces cattle. Serve Jia far away and be filial to your adoptive parents. " There is a saying in Er Ya Shi Xun that "being kind to parents is filial piety", which means loving and caring for parents.

The concept of filial piety is based on two basic facts of China's ancient social structure. First, the existence of patriarchal clan system linked by blood ties constitutes the "natural" form of interpersonal relationship in China's occupied society. Kinship based on consanguinity is an ancient feeling of human beings, and clan society depends on it to maintain; In the slave society of the Western Zhou Dynasty, it was embodied in the form of a vertical pyramid from the Emperor of Zhou to princes, officials and scholars. After the changes in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, in the feudal society after the Qin Dynasty, it was embodied in the horizontal network form with the family as the unit. Second, the high dispersion of natural economy as the foundation of social existence and the high concentration of absolute monarchy as the whole country were the basic social structures of ancient China. The formation of individual family economy and the emergence of rights and obligations in related families make it a matter for all clan members to support the elderly in clan society, and children have no special responsibilities and obligations to their parents. After the emergence of individual families in slave society, husband and wife and their children formed independent economic units and depended on each other economically. Parents have the obligation to raise their children and the right to ask them to support them, and children have the obligation to take care of their parents. In connection with this, parents, as parents, enjoy absolute authority and have the right to dominate their children, while children have the obligation to respect and obey. The concept of "filial piety" came into being.