Mozi, personal name Mo Di, was a Chinese philosopher, logician, and the founder of the Mohist school of thought, making him one of the most important figures of the Warring States period (c. 475 – 221 BCE). Alongside Confucianism, Mohism became the most prominent organized school of the Hundred Schools of Thought throughout the period. The Mozi is an anthology of writings traditionally attributed Mozi, personal name Mo Di, was a Chinese philosopher, logician, and the founder of the Mohist school of thought, making him one of the most important figures of the Warring States period (c. 475 – 221 BCE). Alongside Confucianism, Mohism became the most prominent organized school of the Hundred Schools of Thought throughout the period. The Mozi is an anthology of writings traditionally attributed to Mozi and to his followers. Mohism is considered to be the oldest form of Monotheistic thought developed indigenously in Historical China. Born in what is now Tengzhou, Shandong, Mozi and his followers argued strongly against both Confucianism and Taoism, with a philosophy emphasizing universal love, social order, the will of Heaven, sharing, and honoring the worthy. Mohism was actively developed and practiced across the Warring States–era in China. Mohism fell out of favor following the establishment of the Qin dynasty in 221 BCE. While there is no reference to living Mohists from the Han dynasty (202 BCE – 220 CE), and tradition assumes the destruction of many Mohist texts in 213 BCE as part of Emperor Qin Shi Huang's burning of books and burying of scholars, traces of Mohism can still be seen late in the early Han (from 202 BCE) in syncretic texts like the Huainanzi of c. 139 BCE. As Confucianism became the dominant school of thought over the fading legalism system during the Han, Mohism disappeared almost entirely by the middle of the Western Han period of 202 BCE to 9 CE. Mozi is referenced in the 6th-century CE Thousand Character Classic, which records that he was saddene Mozi, personal name Mo Di, was a Chinese philosopher, logician, and the founder of the Mohist school of thought, making him one of the most important figures of the Warring States period (c. 475 – 221 BCE). Alongside Confucianism, Mohism became the most prominent organized school of the Hundred Schools of Thought throughout the period. The Mozi is an anthology of writings traditionally attributed to Mozi and to his followers. Mohism is considered to be the oldest form of Monotheistic thought developed indigenously in Historical China. Born in what is now Tengzhou, Shandong, Mozi and his followers argued strongly against both Confucianism and Taoism, with a philosophy emphasizing universal love, social order, the will of Heaven, sharing, and honoring the worthy. Mohism was actively developed and practiced across the Warring States–era in China. Mohism fell out of favor following the establishment of the Qin dynasty in 221 BCE. In ancient China, grand musical ceremonies established by rulers would place enormous financial and human strains on populations, and so Mozi condemned such ceremonies for this reason. Mozi did not object to music in principle—"It's not that I don't like the sound of the drum" ("Against Music")—but only because of the heavy tax burden such activities placed on commoners and also due to the fact that officials tended to indulge in them at the expense of their duties. Finally, the Mohists rejected the idea of fatalism, or the idea that there is fate. The Mohists reject this idea on the grounds that it encourages lazy and irresponsible behavior. The text frequently cites ancient classics, such as the Shang Shu, and at times departs from the received version, giving scholars insight into the textual development of such classics as well. The texts portray Mozi as a mouthpiece for Mohist philosophy and not much else. This picture contrasts that of Confucius and Mencius found in the Lunyu (Analects) and Mengzi respectively, wherein the thinkers in question are portrayed as expressing emotions, chiding students, and even making mistakes. The Mohist tradition is also highly unusual in Chinese thought in that it devoted time to developing principles of logic. He is the first to describe the physical principle behind the camera, also known as the camera obscura. == See also == A Battle of Wits – a historical film based around Mohism History of geometry List of people on stamps of the People's Republic of China Fa, an influential concept elaborated by Mozi == Notes == == References == === Citations === === Sources === == Further reading == Bertolt Brecht. Me-ti. Buch der Wendungen. Suhrkamp, Frankfurt 1971. Wing-tsit Chan, ed. A Source Book in Chinese Philosophy. Princeton University Press, Princeton 1969, ISBN 0-691-01964-9. Angus C. Graham, Disputers of the TAO: Philosophical Argument in Ancient China (Open Court 1993). ISBN 0-8126-9087-7 —. Later Mohist Logic, Ethics and Science by A. C. Graham, (1978, reprinted 2004) The Chinese University Press, Hong Kong. 700 pages. Hansen, Chad (1989). "Mozi: Language Utilitarianism: The Structure of Ethics in Classical China". The Journal of Chinese Philosophy. 16 (3–4): 355–380. doi:10.1111/j.1540-6253.1989.tb00443.x. —. A Daoist Theory of Chinese Thought. (New York: Oxford University Press, 1992) Kung-chuan Hsiao. A History of Chinese Political Thought. In: Volume One: From the Beginnings to the Sixth Century A.D.. Diederichs, Düsseldorf/Köln 1975, ISBN 3-424-00509-6. Aronovich Rubin Vitaly, Individual and State in Ancient China: Essays on Four Chinese Philosophers. Columbia University Press, New York 1976, ISBN 0-231-04064-4. Robin D. S. Yates, "The Mohists on Warfare: Technology, Technique, and Justification", Journal of the American Academy of Religion, 47, mo. 3 (1980, Thematic Issue S), pp. 549–603. Ian Johnston, The Mozi: A Complete Translation, New York: Columbia University Press, 2010.