Takashi - Kou

A child's morality towards their parents. Filial piety. It is based on respecting and loving one's parents, but in China it had a unique content as a fundamental norm that supported society. In China before the 19th century, under the idea of ​​ancestor worship, the patriarchal family, in which blood relatives lived together and shared the household finances, formed the unit of society, and members of this family were obligated to absolutely obey their parents and serve in ancestral rituals as filial piety. Another characteristic of old China was that this filial piety was thought to take precedence over the norms of the social state that transcended the family. Confucius (Kōshi) taught that one should respect one's parents, put their hearts at ease, and perform religious services in accordance with the rites, and stated that "fathers should hide their crimes for their children, and children should hide their crimes for their fathers" (The Analects, Zilu chapter). Filial piety was eventually metaphysicalized as the source of morality and a universal principle in the Book of Filial Piety, and absolute obedience and mutual secrecy between father and son were codified into law. Buddhists who translated Buddhist scriptures into Chinese tried to adapt to Chinese society by adding and inserting many words for filial piety that did not exist in the original text, while Christians cited the existence of filial piety as the biggest obstacle to spreading their faith.

In ancient times, the Japanese "family" had a structure that included non-blood relatives, such as the relationship between the "oya" and "oyakata" as leaders of the community and the "ko" and "yatsuko" as members of that community, and the norm there was loyalty. Filial piety, which was accepted as "kou" without any Japanese reading, was easily absorbed into this idea of ​​loyalty, and there are examples where filial piety is generally used to refer to treating people and things with care.

[The World of the Ordinary]

"The Chinese Way of Filial Piety, Especially the Chinese Way of Filial Piety from a Legal Perspective" (included in the Collected Works of Kuwahara Jitzo, Vol. 3, 1968, Iwanami Shoten)" ▽ "Chinese Culture Series 10: Japanese Culture and China, edited by Bito Masahide (1968, Taishukan Shoten)" ▽ "The Book of Filial Piety, by Hayashi Shuichi (1979, Meitoku Publishing, Chinese Classics New Books)"

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

子の親に対する道徳。孝行。親を敬愛することを基本とするが、中国においては、その社会を支える根本的規範として独特の内容をもつものであった。19世紀以前の中国では、祖先崇拝の観念のもとに、血族が同居連帯し家計をともにする家父長制家族が社会の構成単位をなし、この家族の構成員たちは、親に絶対服従すること、祖先の祭祀(さいし)に奉仕することを孝として義務づけられた。この孝が、家族を超えた社会国家の規範より優先すると考えられたことも旧中国の特質である。孔子(こうし)（孔丘）が、親を敬し、親の心を安んじ、礼に従って奉養祭祀すべきことを説き、社会的犯罪については「父は子の為(ため)に隠し、子は父の為に隠す」（『論語』子路篇(しろへん)）と述べた孝は、やがて『孝経(こうきょう)』において、道徳の根源、宇宙の原理として形而上(けいじじょう)化され、絶対服従と父子相隠は法律にも明文化された。仏典を漢訳した仏教徒は、原典にその語のない孝を多数付加挿入して中国社会への適応を図り、キリスト教徒は、布教の最大の障害として孝道の存在をあげた。

　わが国の「家」には、古く、共同体の指揮者としての「おや」「おやかた」とその一員としての「こ」「やつこ」という関係のごとく、非血縁者をも含む構造があり、そこでの規範は忠(まこと)であった。和訓のない「こう」として受け入れられた孝は、この忠の観念に吸収されやすく、一般に人や物事をたいせつにすることまでも孝とよぶ用例がみえる。

［廣常人世］

『「支那の孝道　殊に法律上より観たる支那の孝道」（『桑原隲蔵全集　第3巻』所収・1968・岩波書店）』▽『尾藤正英編『中国文化叢書10　日本文化と中国』（1968・大修館書店）』▽『林秀一著『孝経』（1979・明徳出版社・中国古典新書）』

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