Zeng Guofan Family Letter: Always having a humble and reverent heart is the way to carry blessings
The Family Letter of Zeng Guofan is a collection of letters by Zeng Guofan, written in the mid-19th century of the Qing Dynasty. The collection of letters records nearly 1,500 letters from Zeng Guofan's 30 years of Hanyuan and Convalescence in The 30th year of Qing Daoguang to the 10th year of Tongzhi. The Zeng family's writing is calm and calm, the form is free, the imagination is free, the pen is free, and the truth and conscience are cultivated in the ordinary family routine, which has a strong persuasiveness and appeal. As a famous theologian and literary scholar of the Qing Dynasty, Zeng Guofan was extremely particular about the format of letters, showing his respectful and rigorous style.
Confucius once said, "A gentleman has three fears: fear of the Mandate of Heaven, fear of adults, and fear of the words of saints." The villain does not know the destiny of heaven and is not afraid, and he insults the words of the saints. "Reverence is a prerequisite for a person to have conscience and integrity.
Zeng Guofan is well aware of the role of reverence, and in his family letter, Zeng Guofan warned his brothers to always have a reverential heart, which is the way to maintain a happy life:
"Brothers should always be in awe, and do not say that someone in the family is an official, but dare to insult others; do not say that they have literature, but dare to be proud of others." To always have this mind is the way to carry blessings. ”
Enjoying a hundred gold wealth must be a hundred gold figures; enjoying a thousand gold wealth must be a thousand gold figures. ”
"Modesty between heaven and earth is the way to carry blessings, and arrogance is full, and full is poured out."
What Zeng Guofan emphasized was not the prudence of "being alone", nor the rules and regulations that did not think of making progress, but a sober understanding of power. Zeng Guofan has been promoted many times in his life, what is different is that what he shows after each promotion is not the joy of the heart, but more of the inner anxiety and vigilance, which is the wisdom of Zeng Guofan, "Wood shows in the forest, the wind will destroy it", even if the line is higher than the person, he also acts in a low-key manner, interpreting the introverted beauty with actions.
Zeng Guofan once wrote a couplet: "Trembling and trembling, that is, not forgetting hell when you are born; frank and frank, even if you are adversity, you are also free from heaven." From this, it can also be seen that Zeng Guofan attaches great importance to the heart of awe, and he does not do anything about the heart of awe, and the "walking on thin ice like an abyss" is seen very thoroughly.
Always having a humble and reverent heart is not only the "way of carrying blessings" of the Zeng family, but also the foundation of our existence and the way to deal with the world in society.
To Brother Wen, Brother Yuan, Brother Ji
Four brothers under the feet:
On April 16th, Yu Sent No. 3 was exchanged for reading papers and receiving protégés, and a list of questions was attached. On the seventeenth day, Zhu Xiaoshan swirled south, Yu sent the fourth letter, one hundred and two foreign silver, one bag of books counted as nine letters, and one and a half pounds of Goryeo ginseng. On the twenty-fifth day, Feng Shutang spun south, Yu sent the fifth family letter, a rack of outer shouping, a package of deer glue, a couplet banner fan and a pen. I think these three letters can be received in June.
After Shutang left, Yu invited Mr. Li Zhuwu (named Ru Grate, a native of Longshan County, Yongshun Province, Ding Youbagong, and Gengzi Juren) to teach on the second day of may. His people are gentle and obedient, and they have the knowledge of aspiring nature, although they cannot be as sincere as the tree hall, they are already the most rare people of their peers.
In the morning of the second day of the first year, the emperor did business at the imperial gate. Yu MengTian'en, to the right son of the Right Chunfang of Zhan Shifu. The next day, he was summoned to the Qinzheng Hall and asked more than forty sentences in heaven. He was promoted to the rank of Li Hansheng (李菡升都察院左副都都御史), Luo Yansheng (羅惇延升) as deputy envoy of the General Political Department, and Yu a total of three.
Yu Meng's grandfather, Yu Ze, frequently nagged about non-division of glory. This promotion was especially unexpected. Day and night fear of repairing provinces, there is no virtue enough to deserve it. The brothers are thousands of miles away, and they must deny me what I am, and always send books to regulate my transgressions, so that the accumulated virtue of the past generations will not fall by myself. Shu Ji holds YingBaotai and can avoid speed and danger. If the brothers can always enter the proverbs, then the brothers are my good teachers and friends. And the disciples should always be in awe, and do not say that someone in the family is an official, but dare to insult others; do not say that they have literature, but dare to be proud of others. To always have this mind is the way to carry blessings.
This year, there are many new scholars who are good at writing, especially in Hunan. Xiao Shilou had both a title, while Zhou Jingnong (ShouChang) went to zhongnan yuan, and Sun Zhifang (Dingchen) took the chaoyuan, which can be described as extremely prosperous. At present, there are many scholars who pay attention to the words and chapters of the same village, and there are also many scholars who pay attention to sexual theory, and in the future, the province's fortunes will be great.
Yu's health is safe, but the socializing is too complicated, and the day is not enough, since march, it has been two months since the beginning of March, and he has not read a book. The inner person is extremely weak and has no pain. Healer Yun must take a large supplement, but can return to the Yuan. The medicine taken now is the same as the white art black ginger that the mother took fifteen years ago, and the difference is effective. All four sons and daughters were smooth, and the servants were as usual. Last year, the two silver coins sent to the family repeatedly wrote to me asking for the details of the number of shares distributed to the relatives, but so far there is not a word to be seen, which is inexplicable. In the future, I asked the fourth brother to send the accounts to Beijing to relieve my doubts. There are many things that Yu wants to ask about his hometown, so hereby open another list, and the troublesome brother prays to him one by one.
5th may Michimitsu 25
To Brother Cheng
The fourth brother of Marquis Chenghou:
Ladi sent a letter from the Ninth Brother to the Brother and to Kizawa on November 157, etc., knowing everything. The brother's experience in the world has gradually deepened, and there is inevitably a kind of arrogance in the letter, all who use their mouths and write, who are disgusted with people, who despise people, who are short in discussion, and who are overthrown. Whatever is meant may not be fruitful, even if everything is right, it has been forbidden by the Heavenly Dao. My children are full of pride, and when they open their mouths, they are short and long, and they laugh at people who are despicable, which is not a good weather. If the virtuous brother wants to abstain from the arrogance of his children and nephews, he must first change his habit of being short and easy to make people over, and then order the future generations to change everything. If you want to go to the proud word, you always take not to laugh at people as the first meaning; if you want to go to the lazy word, you always take not to rise up as the first meaning. If the brother can keep the eight characters of hoshioka Gongzhi (kao, treasure, morning, sweep, book, vegetable, fish, pig), three unbelief (do not believe in monks and witches, do not believe in medicine, do not believe in earth immortals), and remember that the foolish brother is arrogant and lazy, then the children in the family tend to be more and more respectful and unconscious.
The military here is business as usual. The Zuo and Bao armies had not yet started a battle in the area at the junction of Poyang and Jiande, and there were too many thieves to know whether they could succeed. Qimen, Yixian and Yuting are still safe. Yu's body was unharmed, but his teeth hurt. Hello by the way!