There are four mainstream Chinese traditional culture, including the concept of destiny; ethical thought; the idea of unity and the doctrine of the mean. Today I want to recommend Mr. He Ziquan 's "Six Lectures on Chinese Culture" to you. This book discusses the core concept of Chinese traditional culture.
He Ziquan (1911-2011), a famous historian. The main research areas are Chinese social history, ancient Chinese economic history, Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties history, etc. He is one of the earliest scholars in China to advocate the feudal theory of Wei and Jin dynasties. As early as his student days, he published papers such as "The Form of the Manor System in the Wei and Jin Dynasties", "Three Types of Leaders of the Country in the Three Kingdoms", and "Research on the Leaders of the Households of the Grand Tribes in the Middle Ages", discussing the emergence and prevalence of feudal dependence relations in the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties. Later, he systematically elaborated the feudal theory of the Wei and Jin dynasties in papers such as "Several Issues on Ancient Chinese Society" and "Social and Economic Changes between the Han and Wei Dynasties".
This book "Six Lectures on Chinese Culture" is a collection of academic speeches made by Mr. He at the invitation of the Ideological and Cultural History Research Office of Tsinghua University in Hsinchu and served as a collection of academic speeches by the "Bamboo Enterprise Ideological and Cultural Lectures". The book discusses the origin, background, development and future prospects of Chinese culture, and has a good review, analysis and reflection on Chinese traditional culture and contemporary issues.
Mr. He believes that there are four mainstreams in Chinese traditional culture, including the concept of destiny; ethical thought; the idea of unity and the doctrine of the mean. In the following excerpts, Mr. He explains the meaning and evolution of China's ethical relations and the doctrine of the mean.
"Six Lectures on Chinese Culture", written by He Ziquan, Beijing Publishing House July 2008 edition
Ethical Thoughts
Ethics refers to the relationship between people. In the Chinese concept, there are five main relationships between people, namely the relationship between monarch and subject, the relationship between father and son, the relationship between husband and wife, the relationship between brothers, and the relationship between friends. The most important part of these five relationships is family relationship. Among these five relationships, family relationships account for three, and the relationship between monarch and subject is the expansion of father and son, and the relationship between friend is the expansion of brotherhood. The old saying "Everyone in the world is brotherhood" reflects the relationship between friend and brotherhood.
The ethical thoughts in China and the West are different. The biggest difference is that the ethical thoughts of Westerners are based on the individual as the foundation, and the ethical thoughts of Chinese people are based on the family as the foundation... Individuals are just an integral part of the family and do not have an independent personality.
Pre-Qin talks about the relationship between the five ties, which talks about mutual relations. The principles that both the monarch and the minister, father and son, husband and wife, brothers and friends must abide by together. As Mencius said in Mencius , "Father and son have relatives, the monarch and minister have righteousness, the husband and wife have different relationships, the elders and the young are orderly, and the friends have faith." Both parties must abide by the relatives, righteousness, separation, order and trust. Even if the obligations of both parties have different standards, the standards are still mutually equal relations and have no meaning of inequality.
During the Warring States Period, the idea of equality between the monarch and the minister was even more developed. Only when the king and the ministers are polite can the ministers serve the king with loyalty. If the king and the minister do not take courtesy, the minister can be disloyal to the king.
The Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period may be added with the Western Zhou Dynasty, the relationship between people, and the five main types of relationship between people in society... The relationship is mutual, basically based on harmony.
The inequality of relations among the five relationships, the so-called king is the main force of ministers, the father is the main force of sons, and the husband is the main force of wife, which is the change of descendants.
"The king is the main body of the minister, the father is the main body of the son, and the husband is the main body of the wife." This is the so-called "three pillars" in Chinese history. This statement began in the Han Dynasty.
The first person to propose the name "Three Bonds" is Han Dong Zhongshu . The Three Bonds became the spiritual shackles of subjects, the king, father, and husband were dominant, and the minister, son and wife were obedient, and they were established from then on.
After the Song and Ming dynasties, the power of the monarch developed into autocracy, and the connotation of the Three Bonds also changed, and the idea that ministers must absolutely obey the king, sons, fathers, and wifes and husbands appeared.
The Doctrine of the Mean
The Doctrine of the Mean in Confucianism is the essence of Chinese traditional culture. In my understanding, there are at least two points in the doctrine of the mean that are very prominent. One is that they are impartial and have no exaggeration; the other is that harmony is the most important. There must be harmony between heaven and man, and there must be harmony between man and man.
"Doctor of the Mean": "Zhongni said: 'A gentleman is doctrine of the mean, but a villain is against the mean.A gentleman is the doctrine of the mean, a gentleman is the right time; a villain is the right doctrine of the mean, a villain is the right without restraint. ’”
In today’s words, the doctrine of the mean is the correct truth, not biased, not left or right. Reflecting on modern Chinese history, the doctrine of the mean is too profound.
"Doctrine of the mean": "Happiness, anger, sorrow, and happiness are not released, which is called the middle; when it is released, it is called harmony. The middle is the foundation of the world; the harmony is the great way of the world. "
This is the harmony of the doctrine of the mean. Joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness are all the middle and the middle, and they are all the middle and the middle, and they are just right. Joy, not ecstasy, not happy, not happy; angry, not angry, not angry, not crazy, not angry, not angry, not angry, not angry, not angry, not angry, not angry, not angry, not angry, not angry. If this is possible, harmony is "to achieve harmony".
Confucius and Mencius both talk about "benevolence", talk about benevolent politics ... benevolent politics, simply put, is the government of loving others.
The ideal of benevolent politics is to make the people harmonious and peaceful, and not go to extremes.
Confucian Talk about etiquette. Etiquette has two functions: one is to be too late, but limiting excessive.
Etiquette and benevolence are both important. There is no grudge in the country and no grudge at home. No grudge is harmony.
Therefore, all Confucian thoughts, loyalty, filial piety, benevolence, love, faith, righteousness, etiquette, etc. can all be attributed to the doctrine of the mean. This is the essence of Chinese traditional culture.
(abridged)
Author
: He Ziquan
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: Qin Dansi
