Although the Confucian scholars were already erudite, they still continued to learn; Although the conduct is sincere, he still does not slack off. Don't do bad things when you're in seclusion and alone, and do the right thing when you're soaring. The use of etiquette is precious, and harmony is precious. Virtue of faithfulness and imitation of gentleness. It can not only promote sages and gentlemen, but also accommodate ordinary people; It is both principled and flexible. Confucianism is broad-minded, and there are such people.

There are two kinds of Confucian scholars, and when he promotes meritocracy to the imperial court, he only considers whether the person being recommended has real talent and learning, regardless of whether he is his own relative or his enemy. After fully considering the pheasant and talent of the person being promoted, he recommended him to the imperial court to be appointed, but this was not to get a reward from the other party. As long as the monarch can achieve his will, as long as he can benefit the country, he does not want to receive any reward. The promotion of Confucianism can have such a person.

There is a kind of Confucian who tells his friend when he hears something beneficial, and points it out to him when he sees something beneficial. When there is a vacancy in the title, first of all, consider friends; When disaster strikes, consider one's own dedication first. Friends have been unwilling for a long time, so they will come out alone to be an official; If a friend is in a distant country, he must try to recruit him to join him. Confucianism treats friends like this.

There is such a kind of Confucian, who cleans himself and attaches great importance to moral cultivation. Declare your words, listen to the king's orders, and quietly understand the way of the ministers. If the king does not pay attention to his kind words, he should remind them tactfully at the appropriate time, but not in a hurry. Don't be arrogant in front of those who are in a lower position, and don't boast about your achievements in front of those who have less merit. When encountering the prosperous age, the cloth is ashamed of itself; When encountering troubled times, he does not give up his faith. Don't brag about people with the same views, and criticize people with different views. The difference in the moral character of Confucianism is generally like this.

There is such a kind of Confucian, he does not serve the Son of Heaven at the top, and does not serve the princes at the bottom; Prudent and generous, resolute and able to follow the flow, knowledgeable and able to keep in mind the truths that are beneficial to oneself. Read more books of sages to sharpen your conduct. Even if he wanted to give him the whole country, it would be just a trivial matter like a sesame seed in his opinion, and he would not come out to be a minister and an official because of this. The behavior of Confucianism is exactly like this.

There is such a kind of Confucian, who is like-minded with his friends, and has the same way of learning; If each other has achievements, they are all happy, and they do not dislike each other when they have a gap; If you haven't seen each other for a long time, if you hear gossip about each other, you will never believe it. The foundation of friendship is based on righteousness and morality, and if it conforms to this, it is a friend, and if it violates this, it will be respectfully distant. There are such friends among Confucians.

Gentleness and kindness are the foundation of benevolence, respect and prudence are the foothold of benevolence, broad-mindedness is the development of benevolence, humility is the ability of benevolence, etiquette is the appearance of benevolence, speech is benevolence's literary brilliance, singing and dancing is the harmony of benevolence, and sharing happiness is the implementation of benevolence. Confucianism possesses all the virtues mentioned above, but he does not dare to say that he is benevolent. Confucianism attaches great importance to humility and has such a person.

Confucianism is not discouraged because of poverty, not arrogant and extravagant because of wealth, and does not change its temperament because of the insult of the king, the obstruction of the minister, or the difficulty of the officials, so it is called Confucianism. Nowadays, many people claim to be Confucian but have no real name, so they are often talked about as a joke.

Confucius returned to Lu from abroad, Lu Aigong met him in the mansion, listened to Confucius's words, believed in the words of Confucianism more, paid more attention to the behavior of Confucianism, and said: In my life, I will never dare to joke with Confucianism again.

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(42) University

According to legend, the University was written by Zeng Shen, a disciple of Confucius, and is a theoretical work on ideological and political education in ancient times. The "University" gives a brief overview of the objectives, tasks, specific contents, main measures, main principles, and methods of ideological and political education.

The purpose of the university is to demonstrate its own virtues, to love the people, and to bring itself to the highest state of goodness. Only when we know that we have reached the state of perfection can we determine our ambition, and only when we have determined our ambition can we have no distractions, and only when we have no distracting thoughts can we concentrate, and only when we concentrate on our minds can we be thoughtful, and only when we are careful can we achieve perfection. Everything has its beginning and end, and everything has its beginning. Knowing what to do first and what to do later is close to the purpose of the university.

In ancient times, people who wanted to spread their bright virtues to the world had to govern their own country well; If you want to govern your country well, you must first manage your own family; If you want to manage your family well, you must first cultivate your own morality; If you want to cultivate your own morality, you must first correct your heart; To straighten your heart, you must first be sincere in your thoughts; To be sincere, we must first know what good and evil are, and if you do good, you will be rewarded with good, and if you do evil, you will be rewarded with evil. Only by being unhappy with retribution can they distinguish between good and evil, can they distinguish between good and evil, can they be sincere in their thoughts, and only when they are sincere in their hearts can they correct their hearts, and only when they are upright in their hearts can they cultivate their moral character, and only when they cultivate their moral character can they manage their families well, and only when they manage their families well can they govern the country, and only when they are governed can they make the world peaceful.

From the Son of Heaven down to the common people, we must grasp the problem of cultivating our own moral character as a fundamental problem, and if we fail to grasp this fundamental problem, it is impossible to solve the problems of the family, the country, and the world well. It is not possible to put effort where you should not put your strength, and to put effort where you should not be doing it, and to hope for good results in doing so. This is called knowing the root, and this is called the highest wisdom.

The so-called sincerity of thought means not to deceive yourself. It's like hating a foul smell and not talking about it, or like liking a beautiful woman and pretending to hate it, which is called self-cover-up. Therefore, a gentleman must be careful about his solitude. The villain does bad things when he is alone, does all bad things, and hides only when he sees the gentleman, covering up the bad things he has done, and showing off the good things he has done.