Shandong sets up 150 learning centers for Confucianism

East China's Shandong province has established 150 centers in both rural and urban areas to promote fine traditional culture since 2014, said the provincial culture department.

The centers in libraries, officially called Nishan Academies, have lecture halls and reading rooms for Confucian classics. The centers aim to pass on traditional culture as there is a social need for learning the classics, said Liu Xianshi, an official with the Department of Culture of the provincial government.

Special textbooks for the learning centers will be compiled to cater to different groups of people, according to the department.

Confucius (551-479 BC), an educator and philosopher, founded Confucianism, a school of thought that deeply influenced later generations. He was also the first Chinese person to set up private schools and enroll students from all walks of life. Nishan in Qufu city, Shandong, is the birthplace of Confucius.

The ideas of Confucius, including rule by virtue, self-discipline in appeasing others and harmony in diversity, have been central to personal, family and social life in China.

Confucianism is seeing a revival as China draws on its traditional culture and develops its vision, concepts, values and ethics to make them keep pace with the times.

Shandong has multiple Confucianism research institutes. Nearly 10,000 villages have a teacher of Confucianism in the province.