ABSTRACT
Confucius was alarmed by what he perceived to be the moral and spiritual decline of his society. Confucius's teachings can contribute to the discussion about meaningful lives, especially with regard to the kinds of practices and values that can contribute to life's meaning. As a fundamental aspect of Confucius's teachings, rituals provide, to use Chengyang Li's phrase, the "cultural grammar" for navigating the social world. Relatedly, rituals can contribute to meaning by transforming fundamental human experiences in ways that bind members of a community. For Confucius, the values and character that initially arise within the context of family through the teachings of parents play a foundational role in the development as moral agents. What both rituals and families have in common when reflecting on them from the perspective of meaningfulness in human life is the way that they help build, strengthen, and sustain human relationships and communities.
