Ritual (礼), way (道) and principle (理) were core concepts of traditional Confucianism, from which the system of Confucian behavioral philosophy could be constituted. Ritual, as a concept, described a concrete performance, which was a behavior. Based on the experience of that behavior, Universal Ways (普遍之道) were abstracted and concluded. Way, as a concept, described a formless, abstract and universal idea, which was the criterion of the concrete behavioral rituals. The occurrence of the concept of Heavenly Principle (天理) led to deeper questioning. Heavenly Principle was, not only the objective ground of Universal Ways, but also the ultimate law of realistic rituals, which provided an ontological proof for rituals and proved that rituals were in conformity with principles. With the support of the absolute principles and Universal Ways, rituals became proper behaviors. This was universal transcendence. In the process from universal ideas to concrete behaviors, traditional Confucianism missed an important link.