[2] It is a neo-conservative movement of various Chinese traditions and has been regarded as containing religious overtones; it advocates for certain Confucianist elements of society – such as social, ecological, and political harmony[1] – to be applied in a contemporary context in synthesis with Western philosophies such as rationalism and humanism.
[2] Its philosophies have emerged as a focal point of discussion between Confucian scholars in mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and the United States.
One notable figure during this time was Xiong Shili, who studied Buddhism in depth in his youth but later sought a reformation of the Confucian philosophical framework.
With the start of the communist regime in China in 1949, many of the leading intellectuals left the mainland to Taiwan, Hong Kong, and the United States.
Notable figures of this second-generation (1950–1979) include individuals like Tang Junyi, Mou Zongsan, and Xu Fuguan; all three are students of Xiong Shili.
Mou, in particular, was grounded in classic Chinese philosophical traditions and argued that Immanuel Kant was, in many ways, a Western Confucius.
Together with Zhang Junmai, in 1958 they issued "New Confucian Manifesto" consolidating their beliefs and drawing attention to their philosophical movement.
In the early 21st century, the most prominent representatives of the new Confucian movement outside of China have been the students of Mou Zongsan.
[6] Chen wrote that Confucianism faced the task of providing solutions to three major problems of contemporary Chinese society: political reconstruction, cultural identity, and religious faith.
The second generation consists of Xiong's students, Mou Zongsan, Tang Junyi, and Xu Fuguan.
For this reason, he rejected the Buddhist learning of "daily decrease" which dictated that the practice to suppress one's dark nature was necessary.
Xiong understood the basis behind "daily decrease" to be Buddhism's metaphysical belief of the "unbridgeable split between an absolute unchanging reality (Dharma-nature or fa-xing), and a constantly changing and conditional phenomenal world (Dharma-characters or fa-xing) (Xiong, 1994, pp.
Meanwhile, Xiong's theory behind correcting the "daily decrease" rested heavily upon what Yu describes as the "Sameness Thesis".
Being that our mind, i.e., form, is still manifested and exists within this physical world, we should not let these limitations prevent us from practicing philosophical reasoning.
Mou's political philosophy is more clearly showed as he discusses the historical necessity that follows the particularity of human beings.
New Confucianism is often associated with the essay, "A Manifesto on Chinese Culture to the World," which was published in 1958 by Tang Junyi, Mou Zongsan, Xu Fuguan and Zhang Junmai.
[3] The Manifesto presents a vision of Chinese culture as having a fundamental unity throughout history, of which Confucianism is the highest expression.
[17] Along with a moderately prosperous society, it was set to be one of the national goals for the ruling communist party.
The promotion of "Harmonious Society" demonstrated that Hu Jintao's ruling philosophy had departed from that of his predecessors.
Others (e.g., Jana S. Rošker) emphasize that Confucianism is by no means a monolithic or static scope of traditional thought, but rather implies different currents that can be used quite arbitrarily and selectively by modern ideologies, which are marked by their function of legitimizing the state power.