Ran Yong (; born 522 BC), also known by his

courtesy name A courtesy name (), also known as a style name, is a name bestowed upon one at adulthood in addition to one's given name. This practice is a tradition in the East Asian cultural sphere, including China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.Ulrich Theo ...

Zhonggong (), was one of the prominent

disciples of Confucius According to Sima Qian, Confucius said: "The disciples who received my instructions, and could themselves comprehend them, were seventy-seven individuals. They were all scholars of extraordinary ability." It was traditionally believed that Confuciu ...

Confucius Confucius ( ; zh, s=, p=Kǒng Fūzǐ, "Master Kǒng"; or commonly zh, s=, p=Kǒngzǐ, labels=no; – ) was a Chinese philosopher and politician of the Spring and Autumn period who is traditionally considered the paragon of Chinese sages. C ...

thought highly of his excellent moral conduct, and considered him fit to be the ruler of a state. After completing school, he served as chief officer of Jisun, the noble clan that dominated the politics of Lu. Ran Yong was a native of the

State of Lu Lu (, c. 1042–249 BC) was a vassal state during the Zhou dynasty of ancient China located around modern Shandong province. Founded in the 11th century BC, its rulers were from a cadet branch of the House of Ji (姬) that ruled the Zhou dy ...

. He was 29 years younger than Confucius, and was from the same clan as

Ran Geng Ran Geng (born 544BC), also known by his courtesy name Boniu, was one of the most prominent disciples of Confucius. Confucius considered him his third best disciple, after Yan Hui and Min Sun, in terms of moral conduct. Life Ran Geng was a n ...

and Ran Qiu, two other prominent disciples of Confucius. He was of the same age as Ran Qiu. He was known for his moral integrity, despite being born to a father of lowly status, and Confucius declared that his background would not detract from his excellence. He was said to be not an eloquent speaker. In

Confucian temple A temple of Confucius or Confucian temple is a temple for the veneration of Confucius and the sages and philosophers of Confucianism in Chinese folk religion and other East Asian religions. They were formerly the site of the administration ...

s, Ran Yong's

spirit tablet A spirit tablet, memorial tablet, or ancestral tablet, is a placard used to designate the seat of a deity or past ancestor as well as to enclose it. The name of the deity or past ancestor is usually inscribed onto the tablet. With origins in tr ...

is placed the second among the

Twelve Wise Ones The Twelve Philosophers or Wise Ones ( Chinese: , ''Shí'èr Zhé'') are 12 eminent philosophers in the Chinese Confucian tradition. They are traditionally accounted a kind of sainthood and their spirit tablets are prominently placed in Confucian ...

, on the east. Ran Yong's offspring held the title of Wujing Boshi ( 五經博士; Wǔjīng Bóshì).

Notes

Bibliography

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ran, Yong 522 BC births Disciples of Confucius 6th-century BC Chinese philosophers Philosophers from Lu (state) Year of death unknown 5th-century BC Chinese philosophers 6th-century BC Chinese people 5th-century BC Chinese people