There are currently two interpretations of the word "庸" in "Zhongyong": one is that it is "used" and the other is "Changdao". These are the conclusions that the learners have drawn in the context of the book "The Mean". The commentary on "moderation" in the Three Character Classic is "neutral and not easy." Here, the meaning of "not easy" is not "not easy", but the meaning of "unchanged". The ancient word "easy" is the appearance of pouring wine from one wine glass into another wine glass, which is the original word for "gift" of "reward", and then extends the meaning of "exchange" and "change".
So what is the original meaning of this "mediocre" word? The original meaning of the word 庸 is "镛", that is, the ancient bell, which is a musical instrument. (Another saying is the same as "Geng", but the glyph is only the same as the upper part, and the pronunciation is not the same) From the gold text and seal text of the "Yong" character, it can be seen that the lower part is the shape of the bell, which looks like the word "use", which is actually the "Yong" character I talked about in the Chinese character search activity of the Shanghai Museum! That is, "chimes", and this "chimes" is exactly the "palace popular instrument" from the beginning of the Western Zhou Dynasty to the Spring and Autumn Warring States period!
So what does the upper half of the word "mediocre" represent? On the left and right are two hands, and the middle part should be a rope or hook that hangs the chimes on a wooden shelf. The whole composition of the word "Yong" is: the meaning of tying the chimes to a wooden frame with both hands. That is, it shows that this "yong bell" is a "chime bell"! In the picture below, the "Xueyong Bell" in Shanghai County (I explained it at the Shanghai History Museum), the "thorn" raised outside is the biggest difference and feature between the "chime bell" and other "bells".
Learn to chime the clock
Now let's popularize the knowledge of chimes: large-scale percussion instruments in ancient China, chimes arose in the Shang Dynasty, flourished in the Spring and Autumn Warring States until the Qin and Han Dynasties. China was the first country to manufacture and use music clocks. It is cast in bronze, arranged in the order of pitch by flat round bells of different sizes, hanging on a huge bell stand, and striking the bell with a T-shaped wooden hammer and a long rod, which can produce different musical sounds. According to documentary records and excavated cultural relics, it was found that China had chimes in the Western Zhou Dynasty, and the chimes at that time were generally composed of 3 large and small chimes. From the end of the Spring and Autumn Period to the Warring States period, the number of chimes gradually increased, with 9 in groups and 13 in groups. The chimes unearthed from the tomb of Marquis Yi of Zeng in the Warring States Period (about 433 BC) in the drum dun on the southern outskirts of Suizhou, Hubei Province, are the most striking set of chimes ever found, which is large enough to occupy the entire stage of a modern concert hall. The chimes of the tomb of Marquis Yi of Zeng consist of 19 button bells, 45 Yong bells, plus a large bell sent by King Hui of Chu, for a total of 65 pieces.
The tomb of Marquis Yi of Zeng chimes
3, 9, 13, 65, from the earliest 3 for a group to the most 65 sets, have you found that they are singular? Including the tomb chimes of Marquis Yi of Zeng, "19 button bells" and "45 Yong bells", they are also singular. This means that all chime combinations must have a "yong bell" in the "middle position", and as an "instrument", this "yong bell" is like the "central C" of the piano key!
Therefore, the so-called "middle way" is likely to be the "middle way"! Confucius borrowed this "Zhongyong" to expound "moral standards and the way of governing the country." Taking this "midrange" as a benchmark, it is possible to distinguish what is a high note and what is a bass, so the "yong" of the "middle way" is "standard", thus extending the meaning of "chang dao". And this "middle" means "impartial", and the whole meaning of "moderation" is "the middle standard of impartiality" (the theorem of the world). Of course, this standard cannot be "changed" at will (it is not easy to be mediocrity)! In other words, the "Middle Way" was the "universal values" and "basic moral standards" of the time, not the "highest moral standards"!