One reason why Confucius compiled the Six Classics was that he regarded the survival of documents as his own duty, and another reason was that he wanted to use the Six Classics as a teaching material.
Confucius recognized the role of literature in understanding the past, learning from the past and learning from the past, so he attached importance to literature. He said, "Li Xia, I can say that it is not enough." Li Yin, what I can say is not enough in the Song Dynasty. Lack of literature. If it is enough, I can levy it. (Note: The Analects of Confucius and Eight Shu) He also said: "I still miss history." (Note: The Analects of Confucius Wei Linggong) also said: "I have nothing to do with people who don't know." (Note: The Analects of Confucius) The "documents" and "documents" mentioned by Confucius are both document archives and historical materials. He believes that the adequacy of literature is the key to a correct understanding of the past. When studying Xia, Shang and Zhou Dynasties, Confucius, who was loyal and loved the ancient times, felt deeply that there were many omissions or "ignorance" in the existing literature. This shows that Confucius is deeply worried about the lack of literature and the lack and confusion of literature. He also said: "Yin gains and loses, so you know; "Zhou, its gains and losses are also known; Its successor or successor, though immortal, is also known. " (Note: The Analects of Confucius governs politics) The "ceremony" mentioned by Confucius includes literature, which shows that literature can serve as a warning. He once commented on Dong Hu's book "Zhao Dun Killing the King" and praised "Dong Hu's ancient history is also good, and his calligraphy is not hidden" (note: Zuo Zhuan was publicized for two years, three years, four years, eleven years, Xiang Gong for twenty-nine, two years and Wen Gong for seven years). According to the Analects of Confucius and the Rural Party, Confucius is a negative version. It is said that when Confucius goes out by car, he will bend down to show his deep respect when he meets someone with a national map (map household registration). These are enough to show that Confucius attaches great importance to literature. However, Confucius coincided with the hegemony of princes, and the Eastern Zhou Dynasty was "seasonal in the world" (note: "Zuo Zhuan" proclaimed two years, three years, four years, eleven years, twenty-nine years of Xiang Gong, two years, seven years of Wen Gong, six years of Yin Gong, seventeen years, fourteen years of success (two articles) and six years of mourning. Moreover, the status of historians is not stable, some have lost their jobs, some have "done without knowing" and even been charged with exile in other countries.
Therefore, Confucius, who read a lot of books, proudly and confidently said, "The king without literature is not here?" (Note: The Analects of Confucius Zi Han) Faced with the fear of losing and making mistakes in various countries' documents, he had to shoulder the historical responsibility of preserving the documents, so he compiled poems and wrote books, set rituals and music, praised Zhouyi and wrote Chunqiu.