Confucianism was founded by K’ung Futze (Latinized as Confucius)-511-479 B.C., who was born in the present Province of Shantung, China. The dates are uncertain. Also, exact figures on the number of Confucians today cannot be ascertained because many of them also practice Buddhism, Taoism and even Christianity Along With Confucianism. It is, However,estimated that between 300,000,000 and 400,000,000 Confucians live in the Orient, mostly in China – about 165,000 live in the United States.
Confucianism is not based upon divine revelations given to Confucius. He was not a religious teacher, nor did he introduce new religious ideas. Confucius studied and complied ancient Chinese writings dealing with morality, ethics, political and social economy, and with strict observance of decorum and all proper rites, from statecraft to individual family life. Some source materials was over 2,000 years old by the time Confucius came into contact with it. After his death his pupils gathered together what he had written. Known as the Analects of Confucius, these writings have become the sacred literature of the Confucians.