Han Feizi put forward a famous point in "Five Beetles", namely:
"Confucianism uses literary to chaos law, chivalry is forbidden by martial arts."
But the original meaning of this sentence It is somewhat different from the later derivative meaning, and there has been a change in the middle.
"Han Feizi": used to tell the truth about the rule of the emperor
Although Han Feizi also thinks that the two groups of "Confucianism" and "chivalrous men" are hidden dangers in society, But it is the kings, not themselves, that cause such hidden dangers.
Of course, the "Confucianism" mentioned here is not just Confucianism, but literati. At that time, there was no exclusive respect for Confucianism, so in the eyes of Han Feizi and other legalists, Confucianism, famous scholars, Taoism, Yinyang school, political strategists, etc. who only rely on ideas and tongues to compete for profit are considered "Confucianism", which is the same as Qin Shihuang. "Burning books and pitting Confucianism" is a truth.
And the "Xia" here is not the later knights, but some individual travelers who like to fight bravely, such as some sects and dead men who are supported by the ministers, and even some with strong bodies but simple minds. Rough people, such as farmers who often fight for profit.
Han Feizi believes that the reason why these people can cause harm to society lies not in their existence, but in the indulgence of the emperor, which caused unhealthy trends.
Han Feizi used the two countries of Lu and Chu to compare and demonstrate the different ways of handling violations of law and discipline.
said that a soldier in Lu State fought with the monarch, every time he was a "desert" and did not go desperately. The reason was that there was an old father in his family who needed to support him. If he died in battle, the old father would not. People feed. Confucius thought that this person knew "filial piety" well, so he praised him.
What is the result of doing this? Followed filial piety, but betrayed loyalty and violated the law, which led to the formation of a weak atmosphere in Lu.
But there was a strict and impartial Ling Yin in the State of Chu. His father was arrested for stealing sheep, and Ling Yin executed his father according to the law.
The result of this is that Yin is loyal to the king, upholding the law, but violating filial piety. But this kind of behavior made the Chu country treacherous and frightened, and evil spirits did not dare to breed.
Han Feizi used these two deeds to illustrate that the governance of the country is different from other things, and many things cannot be rectified from the source, so the process of spreading needs to be interrupted.
This is the responsibility of the king.
Therefore, Han Feizi said, the reason why "Confucianism" can break the law and the reason why "Xia" can break the ban is not because of their own characteristics, but the king gave them the opportunity to indulge.
The law clearly stipulates that those who "disrupt the law" shall be punished, and those who “break the prohibition” shall be punished, but in fact, as the owner, respect the Confucianism of the “law disorder”, Raising "prohibition" heroes, so that the country will be eccentric, how can it be stable?
Han Fei explained that the law protects the highest interests of the country. If the behavior of Confucianism, chivalry and others violates the law, even if it is forgivable, for example, for filial piety, they should not bend the law and scorn the law. The law.
Because the former is righteous, the latter is just a small profit, there is no reason to sacrifice the overall interests to favor personal negligence.
"Historical Records" and other historical books: used to remind the king of hidden dangers in the rule of the country
Sima Qian opened in the "Historical Records · Ranger Biography" with this sentence:
韩 Zi Yue : "Confucianism uses literature to chaos law, while knights use martial arts to commit crimes."
However, Sima Qian and later quotations actually extend the original intent, and no longer attribute the responsibility to the rule of the king, but focus on Tells how "Confucianism" and "chivalrous man" break the law and violate the ban and their harm.
At this time, "Confucianism" basically refers to "Confucianism", and "xia" is not only a ranger, but also a hero. It is not a concept with the knights of later generations who do good and accumulate virtue.
Let me first talk about how "Confucianism" messes with the law.
Still going back to the two stories in "Han Feizi", the Lu people and Chu people treat their relatives differently. According to Confucianism, it is natural that family affection is greater than the law.
Because the "rule of virtue" is greater than the "rule of law", the law uses the law of death to establish rules, while the Confucian uses the silent moralization to frame society.
Confucianism believes that the laws of Legalists are too strict and have produced a lot of cruel officials, such as Zhangtang and Zhidu in the Han Dynasty. To instill the law with high pressure, it is better to let the people know how to do it right. How to do it is wrong.
If the people can agree with these measures in their hearts, then the natural society will be stable.
To be honest, the Confucian approach is indeed better and more effective than the Legalist approach, so it can dominate in the end because it is highly recognized.
The law is not the so-called law today. The law is the will of all citizens and is used to protect the legitimate rights and interests of all people, but the ancient law is a tool to maintain rule and is mainly used to protect the interests of the privileged class. The main example is that the law can be modified by the supreme ruler or group without considering the underlying interests.
Laws like this are generally strict, so Confucianism tends to oppose it.
The method that Confucianism opposed is to "make the past different from the present".
is to use the good times before as an example to satirize the current society in order to achieve the purpose of obeying the wishes of Confucianism.
And these Confucianists are very good at reasoning. After all, the main means to achieve one's own goals is to "lobby". Naturally, the ability of verbal debate is extremely strong. This is the ability to eat.
Let’s talk about how "Xia" breaks the ban.
The "man" here is clearly stated in the set commentary:
"To stand up together, to be powerful, to make personal relationships, to be stronger than the world, is called a ranger."
These people are powerful, oppress the village, refuse to obey the government's discipline, and even rely on the government behind them.
For example, Guo Jie, a hero of the Han Dynasty, even has Wei Qing behind him. How can he put the local government in his eyes? Even if Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty ordered him to move to Maoling, he dared to ask Wei Qing to intercede for him, and even deceive Emperor Wu of the Han.
These people are extremely unstable existences in society. Exploitation of the people and clever plundering are commonplace. Land mergers and other things that shake the state are often done.
Especially the latter, will greatly reduce the country's taxation, leaving many people with no land to grow, land, money and other materials will flow into the pockets of these powerful rangers.
This is "Striving for Profit with the Country"!
Personal force is not worth mentioning to the dynasty, and its harm is minimal, but when these powerful people gather together and collude with the power, the harm is enough to shake the foundation of the dynasty's rule.
Because Confucianism had not yet gained a dominant position in the Han Feizi era, and the contention of a hundred schools of thought had not yet ended, it was a common practice for many scholars to blame the monarch for the ills.
After Confucianism has achieved the dominant position, for the establishment of "rules", internal factional struggles and the stability of the people at the bottom of society, naturally no longer accuse Chen Junwang of such unhealthy practices. The bad example played in the spread is directly aimed at the problem itself.
Therefore, later generations generally quoted "Confucianism" and "Xia" for banning the law. They all used the explanation of Sima Qian and others, and gradually ignored Han Feizi's original intention.
