In 1957, Zhou Enlai accompanied soviet leader Voroshilov on a visit to Hangzhou, specially visited Ma Yifu in Jiang Zhuang, and introduced: "Mr. Ma Yifu is a famous scholar in China and the only theoretician in china. ”
Voroshilov asked Ma Yifu, "What are you studying?" ”
Ma Yifu said, "Read." He asked, "What now?" ”
The horse replied, "Read." ”
Ma Yifu is a modern master of traditional Chinese studies, a theologian, and a Buddhist scholar, and together with Liang Shuming and Xiong Shili, he is known as the "Three Saints of Modernity". Liang Shuming called it "the essence of a thousand years of state, a generation of Confucianism."
Ma Yifu was born smart, composing poetry at the age of 8, reciting literature and Chu Ci at the age of 9, and Xiucai at the age of 16, studying in Europe, america and Japan, proficient in English, German, Japanese, Spanish, Latin and other languages. Ma Yifu is a pure scholar who enjoys reading, painstakingly exploring the revival of Chinese culture, and is known as the real master among the scholars of the 20th century.
How good is Ma Yifu's reading? Master Li Shutong once said to his disciple Feng Zikai, "Mr. Ma was born to know him. Suppose there is a person who is born to read, and reads two books a day, and when he reads it, he will recite it, and when he reads Mr. Ma's age, he will not read as many books as Mr. Ma. ”
It is said that Ma Yifu floated in the Wenlan Pavilion of the West Lake, spent three years, and read the "Four Libraries complete book". How much is this reading? There are more than 36,000 copies of the Siku Quanshu and nearly one billion texts. For most people, they can't finish it in their lifetime. Ma Yifu spent three years, and the average daily reading volume was 900,000 words, which was amazing. Many people doubt its authenticity, and no one knows how Ma Yifu read the Siku Quanshu. But one thing is certain, Ma Yifu's knowledge is broad and profound, and Feng Zikai found that Ma Yifu "recites the original text no matter what book he is."
Ma Yifu was a pure scholar who "hid himself in the dark alleys, was in the company of the ancients, and disdained the affairs of the world", and immersed himself in the study of traditional Chinese culture such as Confucianism and Taoism. Ma Yifu only liked to read, did not want to be an official, and after serving as secretary general for two weeks for Cai Yuanpei, he hung up his crown and left on the grounds that "I will not be an official, I will only read, it is better to let me go back to the West Lake".
After Cai Yuanpei became the president of Peking University, he wanted Ma Yifu to be the head of the liberal arts, and Ma Yifu refused with the excuse of "ancient news to learn, but not to hear about teaching".
During the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Chiang Kai-shek often met with some famous scholars, and Ma Yifu was one of them. Ma Yifu hoped that Chiang Kai-shek would "forgive people, be sincere in opening up affairs, cherish the rejuvenation of the country, and think of the happiness of all the people", emphasizing that "sincerity is the foundation of the inner saint and the outer king".
The famous scholar Ren Jiyue recorded Ma Yifu's appraisal of Chiang Kai-shek in his memoirs, "Remembering the Old Enterprises and The New ——— Ren Jiyu's Self-Description", "This man is heroic and superior, but his instruments are narrow and narrow, and he lacks a broad atmosphere; his demeanor is solemn and full of mannerisms; he is a talented person who is partial to hegemony, partial to peace, and insufficient ZTE; and the ancient people of Fang are among the figures of Liu Yu and Chen Baxian. ”
In Ma Yifu's view, Chiang Kai-shek was no more than a "partial hegemonic talent", but a figure such as Liu Yu chen baxian of the short-lived dynasty, and lacked the courage to unify the world.
Ma Yifu did not leave his home at will, but he was famous all over the world, and he was The guest of Chiang Kai-shek in the Republic of China, and after liberation, he was even more valued by New China. Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai invited Ma Yifu to banquets many times, and the general Su Yu also laid out tableware for him.
Ma Yifu later specially wrote a poem entitled "Make a poppy like water and fire, and be able to take the world as a family", and gave it to Mao Zedong as a token of gratitude. The upper paragraph of this poem is "Chairman Mao Guanzheng" and the lower paragraph is "The Gift of wild old horses and horses". The upper link is taken from the sentence "The saints rule the world, so that there are millets like water and fire" in Mencius, and the lower link is taken from the sentence "Therefore the saint Nai ("nai" is the ancient "energy" word) takes the world as a family" in the "Li Ji Li Yun".
Apparently, Ma Yifu compared Mao Zedong to a "saint" in his eyes. Ma Yifu also wrote an ancient man's name for Mao Zedong: "The sea has a real capacity, and the bright moon is not always full."
Later, Ma Yifu wrote a couplet to Mao Zedong: "Spin dry and turn kun, and start with the people 6; open things into business, show me zhou xing." The falling paragraph is: "Collect sentences from "Yi", "Poetry", "Book of Han", and "History of Song", and give them to Mao Zedong." Horse Salut's Message".
In Ma Yifu's eyes, Chiang Kai-shek and Mao Zedong are not the same, Chiang Kai-shek is just a "partial hegemonic talent", but Mao Zedong is a "spinning qiankun", a talent that has passed through the heavens and the earth.
Ma Yifu maintained his bookish nature all his life, did not teach, did not write current texts, and the greatest pleasure was to read, translate, and write books, not to seek to be heard outside, but to be worthy of my heart. Get Rousseau's "Theory of the Civil Covenant" and "win 100,000 gold", and see that Marx's "Capital" is "ten doses of immortal medicine, and give the disease if it is lost".
Ma Yifu believes that the purpose of reading is to cultivate virtue in mingli; the purpose of mingli is to cultivate morality in the end. During the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Ma Yifu quoted four sentences by Zhang Zai, a great philosopher of the Song Dynasty, "Establish a heart for heaven and earth, establish a destiny for the people, continue to learn from the saints, and open up peace for all the worlds" -- to teach everyone to aspire, hoping that everyone would "erect a backbone and be wonderful" and "cultivate strong assets, but you can help overcome difficulties."
Ma Yifu emphasized that the ultimate purpose of reading is to cultivate oneself and improve one's cultivation, and put forward the practice proposition that "only one's own way is the true bloodline". Mr. Sha Menghai commented on Ma Yifu: "His scholarly character, according to the history of the country in the old era, should be included in Rulin, Taoism, Wenyuan, but also seclusion and art, and is a multifaceted learned figure. ”
As a neo-Confucian, Ma Yifu has a special love for traditional culture, and Ma Yifu believes: "A scholar of the state, the study of the six arts." (i.e., the Six Classics of Poetry, Books, Rituals, Music, Yi, and Spring and Autumn).) The "Six Arts" can also dominate all scholarship in the West. "Natural sciences can be unified in ease, social sciences (humanities) can be unified in the Spring and Autumn Period", "literature and art can be unified in poetry, and politics, law and economy can be unified in calligraphy".
Ma Yifu's views may not be correct, but he has practiced his beliefs with practical actions all his life, and he is a pure Confucian scholar. Ma Yifu's profound education was not only admired by contemporary Confucians such as Liang Shuming and Xiong Shili, but even Chen Lifu, an important member of the Kuomintang, took the books he had written to let him advise.
Zhu Huiqing said that Ma Yifu was "the seed of reading in modern China." Ma Yifu has his own views on reading: "I don't have my life, let alone books." It is like a temptation to be left behind, and this confusion is innate. The book is also exhausted, and now there is no one left. ”
Ma Yifu has been determined to learn all his life, immersed in reading, and is a mirror of the reader, which is admired by the world. The Neo-Confucian Xu Fuguan said he was "a scholar of Chinese history, after Wang Yangming, who served as Mr. Tuima." ”