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Confucius himself lived and taught during the Spring and Autumn period of Chinese history, and just before the Warring States period. The Warring States period itself was a time when various schools of thought, incluidng Confucianism, vied for ascendancy.

However during the Qin dyntasty the emperor adopted the school of thought of Legalism, one of Confucianism’s main competitors. This then led to a period of severe persecution where Confucian texts were outlawed and burnt, and Confucian scholars were killed. Some Confucian texts, such as the Book of Music, seem to have been lost forever during this period of official persecution.

Confucianism however, did not die an easy death. Once persecution relented, Confucian books previously hidden behind walls were recovered, scholars put their minds to recalling passages from memory, and the influence of Confucianism grew.

And its influence grew to such an extent that in the early stages of the Han dynasty, Confucianism took over as the official school of thought. A grand academy was established, and Confucian learning became the cornerstone of public service examinations. If you wanted to enter the public service at any level and get ahead, you had to be well versed in Confucianism!

When Buddhism and Daoism came to China, what we see during the Song dynasty is that Confucianism adapted and survived by incorporating aspects of both Buddhism and Daoism. This formed what scholars now call Neo-Confucianism – a Confucianism that now had a metaphysical element borrowed from these religions.