As for the role of the intellectual, the key was to determine the Way (dao). When the Way is lost, the sage has a moral duty, above all else, to reform society, to set the Way back on track, to define the tradition and advise the prince. Politics, then, was Confucius’ first and foremost concern, which is also true of Chinese philosophy as a whole. Chinese thought, it might be said, has revolved around two central questions: the harmony of the universe and the harmony of society, cosmology and politics.
