00:00 Confucius, a revered teacher, continued to teach throughout his life despite the lack of interest in his teachings, emphasizing the pursuit of virtue and the importance of honoring parents, performing rituals, and pursuing learning.

04:39 Confucius is one of the most influential moral and political philosophers in human history, with his ideas shaping the way people in Asia and beyond have thought and acted for over 2,500 years.

08:42 Confucianism is a complex tradition that combines history, philosophy, and religious ritual, making it difficult to understand and define; Confucius himself is a figure whose ideas and teachings have evolved and been interpreted differently over time, and understanding his life and the context in which he lived is important for understanding the tradition that developed from his teachings.

12:53 Confucius was not a particularly important figure during his lifetime, as his ideas failed to gain much traction outside of his immediate circle of admirers and students, but his teachings and wisdom are preserved in the Analects, a collection of sayings and anecdotes attributed to him and his close associates.

17:05 Confucius believed that self-governance and cultivating the correct mode of behavior were necessary foundations for governing a state, and that adhering to the hierarchy of social status and proper rituals was crucial for maintaining order and societal harmony.

21:12 Confucius believed that the only way for things to be better was to constantly strive after and cultivate virtue, which encompassed values such as loyalty, respect, trustworthiness, frugality, and above all, filial piety.

25:18 Confucius believed that people don't have to be perfect to be useful, and that the core of living the Confucian ideal is being able to judge the virtues of oneself and others, while also emphasizing the importance of cultivating virtue through proper behavior.

29:48 Confucius' closest followers came from various social backgrounds, including aristocrats, merchants, and farmers, but they all belonged to the lowest rung of the nobility and were not particularly wealthy, yet they received an education and pursued careers as administrators or soldiers.

33:41 Confucius likely left Lu due to the political unrest and instability in the state, where he had played a role in previous disturbances, and his departure was a result of that.

37:36 Confucius' vision of politics was not utopian, but rather practical and based on the understanding that people will do wicked things in pursuit of selfish goals, and his suggested reforms and ideals were built around taking people as they really were in a harsh and violent environment.