Li: The Ritual Propriety That Indians Call "Giving Respect"
Confucius spent more time on li than almost any other concept in the Analects. Li is the system of ritual conduct, the precise way you bow, address a superior, enter a room, or pour tea for an elder. Strip away the Chinese ceremonial context and what remains is structurally identical to what Indians call "giving respect": touching the feet of elders, addressing a senior colleague as "sir" regardless of how long you've known them, waiting for the boss to sit before you do at a team lunch.
