FILIAL PIETY has always been a hallmark of Confucian ideals. Confucius considered filial piety an imperative moral conduct, and to care, love and respect for parents is the one virtue to be held above all else. To the Chinese, along with other Asian cultures that were influenced by Confucianism such as Korea, Japan and Vietnam, it is the central ideology, and moreover, provides the foundation for all other attitudes.

It is also the main theme of a large number of Chinese stories. At the entrance before the main hall of the temple, the Khoo Kongsi propagates the values of filial piety among its clan members by having the Twenty-four Examples of Filial Piety anthology carved into four panels of stone. The anthology is one of the most famous collections of tales depicting how children exercised their filial piety with stories dating from circa 4,000 BC and spanning 2,350 years, complementing the teachings of Confucius.

The following are six stories (abridged) from the anthology which has been published by Khoo Kongsi in a booklet:

• Amusing parents with childish pranks (Lao Lai Tsu, BC1121–255, of Chou Dynasty): It is about a 70-year-old man who would never deny his parents what they desired. He would even entertain them by performing childish antics while dressed up in colourful clothes.
• Taking up the experiment (Yu Chien-lo of Jin Dynasty, circa AD 500): The story revolves around a government official Yu who, shortly after his appointment, had a bad feeling that his father was badly ill. Acting upon medical advice, he tasted his father’s faeces only to discover that the latter’s condition was severe. Yu then “prostrated towards Heaven and offered his life for the sake of his father’s recovery.”
• Food for parents (Chung Yu alias Tzu Lu, a disciple of Confucius): Chung’s poverty-stricken family had subsisted on wild vegetables and very little rice. When he later became a government officer with good pay and ample access to rice, his parents had passed away. He was often heard lamenting, “I regret not being able to take care of my parents with all I have now.”
• To cloy mosquitoes with his own blood (Hu Meng alias Sze Yin of Jin Dynasty, AD 265–420):
  This is about eight-year-old Hu who lived in a mosquito-infested area and whose family could not afford mosquito nets. To protect his parents, he would selflessly allow the mosquitoes “to feast on him until they were gorged with blood and could feed no more”.
• Madam Tang breastfeeding her mother-in-law (Chui Nan Shan of Tang Dynasty, AD 618-906): Ailing and toothless, an old lady was breastfed by her daughter-in-law, Madam Tang. On her deathbed surrounded by family members, she said, “I attribute my ability to live a few more years to the tender care provided by my good daughter-in-law. I have nothing to pay her but hope that she would receive the same treatment.” According to the story, “The family members were so touched by her dying words that 'filial piety' was adopted as the family motto.”
• The forebearance of a filial son (Min Zi-qian, a disciple of Confucius): A young man, Min, suffered in silence at the hands of his stepmother. When his father discovered this, he wanted to chase his wife out. Min, who was exposed to the cold while her stepmother had thick clothes, pleaded: “Father, I don’t mind the cold at all. If you chase mother away, she and my brothers will suffer from the cold.” Taking Min’s action into consideration, the father changed his mind and the stepmother, ashamed, stopped mistreating Min.

Reference

• Twenty-four Examples of Filial Piety, a booklet published by the Khoo Kongsi

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