Nature and Sincerity: Reflections on Cultural Risks by Taoism and Confucianism

The "truth" of nature is not only the natural truth, but also the unrestrained reality of sociality. The richness of the concept of "nature" shows that the traditional understanding tends to weaken its function of cultural reflection, ignoring its intrinsic connotation as the origin of value and the basis of existence. On this issue, Confucianism has absorbed Taoism. The concepts of nature, sincerity, heaven, and moral cultivation all express the pursuit of authenticity from different perspectives, as well as the retrospect of the origin of ritual and music, which shows the significance of cultural reflection, that is, the elimination of cultural risks. Today, with the development of science and technology, it is of great significance to re-examine the reflection of Confucianism and Taoism on cultural risks.