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Bamboo Slips Change China's History
Bamboo slips discovered in the 1990s have changed the very way we look at Confucianism in China, according to experts.
Pang Pu, a senior researcher with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, made public his latest research results on the bamboo slips recently.
In 1993 more than 800 bamboo slips were unearthed in Guodian in central China's Hubei Province, containing 13,000 ancient Chinese characters. Studies on these slips were published in 1995 creating enormous interest among academics and scholars.
"We have gained new perceptions of Confucianism in its early stages through the research on the Guodian bamboo slips, said Pang.
Confucius' philosophy has provided the building blocks of Chinese culture and its political system. Confucianism gradually spread through parts of Asia.
The bamboo slips were used to record many ancient Chinese characters, which perished later in history.
"Early Confucianism was pure and simple. These simple teachings faded away as Confucianism was used for political rule in later dynasties," Pang said.
Since the early 1980s, Pang Pu has been a Chinese delegate at the Editing Committee of Human History under the UN Educational, Science and Cultural Organization. He is also the member of China National Program of Ancient Books and editor-in-chief of Historical Research.
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