This section explores Taoism and Confucianism. Pen ~ fun ~ pavilion www.biquge.info

Taoists call themselves Huang Lao Taoists, which literally means to respect the Tao of Lao Tzu, but implement the ruling strategy of the Yellow Emperor. In fact, the core idea of Taoism is to respect the Tao of Lao Tzu and respect the obedience of society to the laws of nature.

Lao Tzu said that the laws of nature are mysterious and capricious, so their philosophy of governing the country is to follow the changes of nature, judge the situation, and solve problems according to the actual and objective situation. The word seeking truth from facts comes from the Taoist classic "Huainanzi".

So why talk about implementing the strategy of the Yellow Emperor? This is only because the Yellow Emperor is very far away, and no one knows what his strategy is, and this statement is easy to knead. So what the Taoists say is what, just playing the sign of the Yellow Emperor.

The Taoists were social reformers, and the reform from the well field system to private ownership, and the hereditary princely feudal system was changed to the county system, all from their hands.

China's cultural heritage is a fusion of Confucianism and Taoism.

Taoism is the worldview of social obedience, which refers to how to adapt to and use nature. The so-called person who knows the times is a hero, and the person who changes the machine is a hero. It is not okay not to acknowledge reality. When Confucianism was no longer suitable for this society for the time being, China clung to "Taoism" and completed its revival. (Seeking truth from facts, black cats and white cats, crossing the river by feeling the stones, and keeping pace with the times are all Taoist theories.) ）

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Confucianism follows the law of the subordination of the individual to society. The social law summarized by Confucianism is the system of benevolence and righteousness. (Religion also follows the subordination of the individual to society, but the social law it summarizes is not benevolence)

The Confucian Confucius advocated the concept of governing the country of the Duke of Zhou, and the concept of governing the country of the Duke of Zhou was the set of Jingtian system and hereditary Shilu of the Western Zhou Dynasty. Therefore, the Taoists who seem to be chasing the past are reformers, and the Confucius and Mencius, who seem to be chasing the present, are conservatives.

In the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, Taoism took the lead in rising, even including Legalism, which also belonged to a part of Taoism and belonged to the ultra-left of Taoism.

Confucianism, on the other hand, shifted from a conservative to a reformist after the Xunzi reform. In the history of Confucianism, there have been two directional reforms. The first time came from Xunzi, he first affirmed that the way of heaven is constant, and it has not survived and died; A saint can not know the heavens. Further emphasis was placed on the obedience of people to society, the introduction of the Queen of Law, and the introduction of Law into Confucianism, which changed the direction of Confucianism's support in a completely different way. It changed from direct support for local princes and indirect support for the central government to direct support for central autocracy.

Society is moving eastward, and the political theory held by Confucianism is to maintain the political system of the Western Zhou Dynasty. This led to a big mistake of 'directionality' and brought about an irreversible decline in Confucianism. In theory, it was Xunzi who changed this decline, and Xunzi was based on benevolence and righteousness, and raised etiquette. In particular, the theory of "the queen of the law" is that "the king of the law is respected by the virtuous, and the law is respected and the people are hegemonic". "Don't admire, don't come", "At that time, it moved, things should respond, things should be distinguished, and whether chaos can be controlled is obvious!" 'To bring about a directional change in the final thought of Confucianism. Confucianism went from being an opponent of reformers to being the vanguard of reform in one fell swoop.

"Heaven and man are separated" Xunzi believes that nature and human beings have their own laws and duties. Heaven cannot interfere with humanity, heaven returns to heaven, and man returns to man, so it is not uncommon to say that heaven and man are separated. The control of chaos and evil is in the people, not in the sky. And heaven and man have different functions, "heaven can be creatures, can not distinguish things, the earth can carry people, can not govern people" ("Treatise on Etiquette") "Heaven has its time, the earth has its talent, and man has its rule" ("Treatise on Heaven")

Xunzi's introduction of law into Confucianism is not a plagiarism of Taoism, but to give "law" a real meaning.

In the Western Han Dynasty, an official once said to the Empress Dowager Dou that he admired Legalism and should govern the country with Legalist concepts. Empress Dowager Dou immediately gave him a dagger and ordered someone to throw him into a wild boar pen and fight with a ferocious wild boar. When the minister crawled out of the wild boar pen covered in injuries, the Empress Dowager Dou told him that I had stipulated that the law of the Han Dynasty was to let those who admired Legalism fight the wild boars. If the Empress Dowager Dou sets this practice as a law, this does not hinder the principle of Legalism, and this incident profoundly exposes the defects of Legalism, the law must have a heart, and the law must have a law. If Hitler stipulated that whoever scolded him should be pulled out and shot, do you think such a law is appropriate?

Therefore, Xunzi's introduction of law into Confucianism and obedience to social laws as the heart of law is a major reform of Confucianism and has nothing to do with Taoism. Taoism emphasizes the "Tao Method". If a small boat with five people on board will sink into the water, the fifth person is not legally allowed to get on board.

Xunzi reformed Confucianism because the period in which he lived was already the second half of the reform, and people saw that the replacement of the Jingtian system and hereditary Shilu was irreversible. Confucianism must undergo directional changes in order to be more adaptable to the new social environment.

Before the Sui Dynasty, Xunzi's Confucianism was regarded as the core of Confucianism, and among the articles of literati, politicians and scholars, Confucius was the most quoted celebrity, and Xunzi was the second.

The core of Xunzi's Confucianism is the application of scripture and learning, because the study of Confucianism in that period was to govern the country or the manor, so Confucianism reflects a strong color of application of scripture and learning.

From Xunzi's own words, we can also see what Confucianism is for. Xunzi said that with vulgar Confucianism, the country of ten thousand times will exist; With Yaru, the country of a thousand times is safe; With Confucianism, the land of a hundred miles, after three years, the world is one, and the princes are ministers; With the country of ten thousand times, it will be determined by mistakes, and it will be destroyed in one day.

Xunzi said that just a very ordinary Confucian scholar can govern a large country very easily. And a very high-level Confucian can govern a weak country, so that the big powers do not dare to be easily hostile to him. And if a super-first-class Confucian scholar governs a small country, then within three years the big countries around him will have to submit to him. Of course, Xunzi is more fond of bragging, and the last point is relatively big, but we can see that the color of the early Confucianism is very strong.

Confucianism's personal obedience to society has its flaws, just like letting Confucius and Xunzi work together to govern Korea before Qin Shi Huang unified the Six Kingdoms, this Korea is also going to be destroyed. Failure to respect the objective laws of nature is a defect of Confucianism.

Society has its own laws of society, and Taoism loses its denial of society.

Early Confucianism had a deep principle of applying scriptures and learning, so the Confucian scholars who pursued self-cultivation and career were a little vulgar compared with the metaphysical scholars who pursued self-cultivation and self-cultivation. The metaphysical people seek everything in their hearts, showing a little lightness.

The second reform of Confucianism was after the Sui and Tang dynasties, with the popularization of "steel", the decline of the manor economy, people learned Confucianism, and could no longer easily become officials or govern people, and Confucianism developed to self-cultivation and peace. After the Sui and Tang dynasties, Xunzi's Confucianism gradually changed to Simeng Confucianism. Mencius's "righteousness" was profoundly introduced into society, and the Tang people started a movement to expel Xunzi and elevate Mencius with Han Yu as the first step.

Confucianism slowly evolved into a philosophy that focused on "virtue". The primary function of learning Confucianism is to learn self-cultivation and establish one's life. After this period, the philosophy of Simeng was deeply excavated.

The Song and Ming Dynasty mainly discussed "virtue", starting from Mencius's goodness, and deduced the goodness of nature, the knowledge of things, conscience, and the unity of knowledge and action. Assuming that 'nature is good' as the starting point, we can reason out that we can learn from things and conscience. Knowledge and action are one.

It is said that human nature is virtuous, and it is necessary to excavate all the virtuous side (exhaustive reason); Recognize these virtues (to the conscience) and revolve one's actions around one's goodness (unity of knowledge and action).

In terms of social governance, the righteousness of Mencius was further excavated, and the natural villages and clans were governed around righteousness, and the rule of non-action was still adopted, while Confucianism only took filial piety and 'righteousness' as a constraint on the villagers.

The Confucianism we know today is the Confucianism of Confucius and Mencius after the Song Dynasty. Before the Song Dynasty, Mencius's status was very low, and it was not until the Yuan Dynasty that Mencius became the last of the Thirteen Classics to be selected. And Xunzi's status before the Tang Dynasty was very high. Starting from Han Yu, Confucianism set off a movement to expel Xunzi.

We are surprised to find that the process of Mencius's rise was the era of the final and complete decline of the scholars. Why? Why?!

Mencius was erected in the Song Dynasty, not because he himself became profound, nor because people suddenly understood him, but because society needed him. After the aristocracy was completely abandoned by Chinese society, both the upper and lowest levels of society lost their original 'order'. In this way, 'righteousness' is profoundly introduced into society. 'Righteousness' is extended to 'loyalty' in the upper echelons of society.

And 'righteousness' blooms the flower of justice at the bottom of society. We know that feudal society is powerless to control the countryside. It has always been the road of rural self-production. With the demise of the Shi clan in society, in the rural areas of the small peasant society after the Song Dynasty, the clan elders had neither the legal privileges of the Shi clan, nor the financial, manpower, and prestige to control the villagers. 'Righteousness' became the ethical basis for its control over the villagers. 'Righteousness' served as the basis of 'law' at this time. A higher level of justice has emerged in society. Calmly, we cannot measure him by today's psychological criteria for 'justice'.

The Tao of Taoism focuses on nature, and the Tao of Confucianism focuses on society. Although the two are conflicting, they are more complementary to each other. Therefore, China's 2,000-year-old ideology has been Confucianism, Taoism, and peace.

Why do you still use such ugly words. The author says that Western civilization is a liberal religion of peace. Because although the two parties know that they can't do without each other, whoever gains power will criticize the other party.

Confucianism and Taoism coexisted for 2,000 years, and as early as the Western Han Dynasty, Confucianism was ridiculed by Taoists as 'rotten Confucianism'. Confucianism, on the other hand, simply classifies Taoism as Legalism. Because the Legalists who refer to the deer as horses have long been stinky, they are classified as Legalists so that they do not approve themselves.

In general, Taoism stands out a little, and society is more liberal and rough; Confucianism is a little more prominent and a little more just.

In general, the two Confucianists and Taoists have to go on together. If you want to build a submarine, you can't use the benevolence and righteousness of society as a guide. My child is always taking the duck egg test, and it may become a burden to myself in the future, and we can't throw him in the garbage.

Confucianism follows the law of the subordination of the individual to society. Form a social outlook with benevolence and righteousness as the moral system. Morality is the compromise of individual interests with collective interests, and the compromise between people and society. Therefore, morality does not exist naturally, but is determined by people's cognitive level. Thus Confucianism is only a school of morality.

Historically, the moral standards of success include Confucian morality, Buddhism, Christianity, Islamic morality, and so on. It seems that there is no capitalist morality...

We discussed the metaphysical worldview in the previous chapter, and this chapter should have been devoted to the metaphysical social view. Since the core of metaphysics is the obedience of the individual to the laws of nature, this is missing the social outlook. But there is no way to do it without a social outlook. Metaphysics demanded that people be free to be free, but the slaves and tribes in the manor were also free to do so, so that the nobles would go and drink the northwest wind. Therefore, metaphysics urgently needs a social outlook to guide manor production.

In the era of the rise of metaphysics, there were no successful examples of Taoism and Buddhist morality, and the only mature social outlook that can be seen is Confucianism, so metaphysics can only rely on Confucianism.

How to incorporate the Confucian social outlook into the metaphysics system has become the first major topic after the opening of metaphysics. In the next chapter, we will continue our discussion of the metaphysical view of society.