Confucius (551–479 B.C.E.) was one of several intellectuals who started questioning the meaning of life, and the role of the gods and the spirits. During the Warring States Period, Confucius developed a system of ethics and politics that stressed five virtues: charity, justice, propriety, wisdom, and loyalty. His teachings were recorded by his followers in a book called Analects, and formed the code of ethics called Confucianism that has been the cornerstone of Chinese thought for many centuries.