On Thursday, February 26, at 6:00 pm in the Harkin Institute (2800 University Ave), Dr. Baolin Wu, Assistant Professor of Religion at Minzu University of China, will lecture on “Reverence, Humility, and Friendship: On Confucius’s Interactive Interpretation of Disability Care.”
For those wishing to attend the lecture virtually, please sign on here at least five minutes in advance: https://drake-edu.zoom.us/j/83878184761.
The “interactivity” inherent in Confucius’s care for people with disabilities is first grounded in sincere human communication, which serves as the prerequisite for interaction between the disabled individual and society. For Confucius, the holistic interconnectedness of body and mind, along with self-awareness, is equally endowed to both persons with disabilities and non-disabled individuals. Concurrently, every person should conscientiously recognize their own limitations and maintain genuine humility when engaging with people with disabilities. The specific principles of Confucius’s disability care include upholding human dignity and equality, providing appropriately tailored substantive assistance premised on self-awareness and empathy, and prioritizing the well-being of the recipient to facilitate their social integration and acceptance. When caregivers perceive disability care as a responsibility in the pursuit of life’s true essence, giving care becomes a form of self-help. Behind such an attitude lies a stance rooted in metaphysical foundations: reverence for Heaven and a profound recognition of Heaven’s noble qualities. Heaven creates and sustains all things in silent stillness; by emulating this celestial virtue in human relations, Confucius naturally embodied universal compassion, respect, and empathy for others—transcending distinctions of social status. Blind musicians, too, deeply grasped the “Way of Heaven,” “alignment with celestial timing,” and the sacred wisdom of nurturing all beings, playing a unique and profound role in the institution of remonstration. Such mutual understanding enabled Confucius and the blind musicians to transcend the one-way care model. Therefore, individuals with disabilities and non-disabled individuals can serve as mutual helpers and beneficiaries, and form sincere companions in the journey of learning from Heaven.
