"Righteousness" and "benevolence" - two important yardsticks for Confucius to evaluate wealth

Confucius never opposed the pursuit of wealth, but stressed that wealth must be obtained through the proper means, and after having wealth, it should be used as a means to realize the ideal of life rather than a tool to squander. Confucius's concept of wealth is rich in content, and it still shines with the light of wisdom and enlightens us.

Wealth is beautiful, and wealth is hidden for the people

Confucius was not exclusive of wealth. The Analects of Zilu records that When Wei Xiangong's son Gongzi Jingshan was wealthy, when he had a little wealth, Confucius commented that "Gou Heyi" meant that he was almost qualified; when wealth increased, Confucius said "Gou is complete", which means more complete; when he reached the level of wealth, Confucius said "Gou Meiyi", which means more perfect. It can be seen from this that Confucius not only did not oppose the creation and possession of wealth, but also gave praise.

Confucius did not despise wealth, but praised those who achieved wealth by virtue of their ability. Confucius's student Zigong Shan was in business, and had done business in the Cao kingdom and the Lu kingdom, "the family accumulated thousands of gold". The Chronicle of the Disciples of Zhongni records that Confucius had "disciples of the Seventy Sons", of which "giving is the most beneficial", and the "giving" here refers to the real name of Zigong Duanmushi. Sima Qian recorded the business activities of 17 people in the "Chronicle of the Chronicle of Cargo Breeding", and listed Zigong in the second place. Confucius attached great importance to Zigong and spoke highly of him. Zigong once asked Confucius "who to give to whom", and Confucius said " Ruqi also " . Zigong asked "He Qiye" again, and Confucius said "Hu Lianye". "Hu Lian" is a tool in the Zong Temple, from the prince to the qing dafu are placed above the high hall, in the Zong Temple is used in conjunction with ding, Confucius used the "Hu Lian Instrument" metaphor Zi Gong, indicating that Zi Gong in his eyes is not an extraordinary husband, but a talent for governing the country and the state.

In the idea of governing the country, Confucius advocated that the people can live a rich life, and if the people's life is poor, it is difficult for society to be stable. Confucius put forward in the "Analects of the Constitution" that "there is no complaint about poverty, and there is no arrogance in being rich", believing that it is not difficult for people to pursue the civilization of liturgy after solving the problem of food and clothing, but if they always live in poverty, it is difficult to maintain a peaceful state of mind. The Duke of Lu ai once asked Confucius about the government, and Confucius believed that the most important thing was to make the people rich. Confucius's idea of "hiding rich from the people" had a great influence on his disciples. The Analects of Yan Yuan records that the state of Lu was once in famine and the country was in financial difficulties, and Lu Aigong asked Confucius's disciples what to do, and If you said, "The people are enough, and the king is insufficient?" The people are insufficient, and the king is full? "Meaning, if the people are rich, how can you not be rich?" If the people are not rich, how can you be rich?

There is a way to get rich, and righteousness comes first

Confucius did not oppose the pursuit of wealth, but emphasized that the pursuit of wealth requires legitimate ways and means. In the Analects of Li Ren, Confucius said, "Wealth and nobility are what people desire; they do not receive what they do, nor do they do." Poverty and lowliness are the evils of man; he does not receive them by his word, nor does he go. This means that wealth is to which everyone aspires, but which is obtained by improper means, will not be enjoyed by gentlemen; poverty and lowliness are hated by men, but by improper means a gentleman will not do it.

Confucius did not emphasize the path of poverty and happiness, but emphasized that wealth, if it comes from improper sources, would rather not. What kind of wealth belongs to the "way"? Confucius believed that it must conform to "righteousness", which was the point he emphasized the most. In Confucius's view, "righteousness" is the foundation of the social value system and the fundamental need of human intrinsic morality. Confucius emphasized in the Analects of Li Ren that "a gentleman is also in the world, and there is no adaptation, no mo also." Righteousness is better than comparison", and also emphasizes that "a gentleman is a righteous person, and a villain is a profit", and in the "Analects of Yang Goods", it is emphasized that "a gentleman's righteousness is supreme." A gentleman has courage but no righteousness is chaos, and a villain has courage but no righteousness is a thief." All of this highlights the importance of "righteousness."

Confucius believed that "etiquette is to do righteousness, righteousness is to generate profit, benefit is to the common people, and the great festival of government is also", emphasizing that righteousness comes first, seeing profit and righteousness, and emphasizing that there is a way to make money. The reason for this emphasis is that Confucius realized that if people only pursue profit and only do things according to their own interests, there will be serious consequences, that is, the Analects of LiRen said, "Let go of the interests and complain a lot." Ji Kangzi, the secretary of state of Lu, was incomparably rich, and Confucius's student Ran Qiu was still helping Ji Kangzi to accumulate wealth by increasing the people's taxes, confucius was very angry about this, claiming to sever the teacher-student relationship with Ran Qiu, and calling for "beating the drum and attacking it".

To be rich and to be rich and benevolent

For wealth, "University" proposed: "There is a road to wealth. Those who are born are many, those who eat are few, those who are sick, and those who use them are comfortable, then wealth is enough. The benevolent make their fortunes, and the unkind make their fortunes. It is generally believed that "University" was written by Zengzi, who was a disciple of Confucius, and the idea of "making money and having a great way" was directly inherited from Confucius. Although "University" is not written by Confucius, the concept of wealth in it is in line with Confucius. In evaluating wealth, Confucius used "benevolence" as another important yardstick. "Benevolence", like "righteousness" and "etiquette", are the core concepts of Confucius's political ethics and are Confucius's summary of various good qualities. In Confucius's view, the realm of "benevolence" is very high, even difficult to reach, and a gentleman still has to work hard all the time, and it is even more difficult for a villain to achieve.

In Confucius's view of wealth, if "righteousness" emphasizes how to obtain wealth, then "benevolence" emphasizes the attitude and practice after possession of wealth. Zigong had a dialogue with Confucius, which is recorded in the Analects of Learning. Zigong asked, "Poor and unscrupulous, rich but not proud, how can it be?" Confucius replied, "But also, if you are not poor, you are happy, and you are rich and courteous." The realm of life proposed by Zigong is not low, but Confucius believes that it can be higher, that is, although poor, he can still enjoy the Tao, and although he is rich, he still knows the etiquette. According to this exposition of Confucius, the "Book of Rites and Rites" further put forward that "if you are rich and rich and know good manners, you are not arrogant or obscene; if you are poor and know good manners, you will not be intimidated", believing that after getting rich, you must be "not arrogant and not obscene", you cannot "be rich and unkind", and use wealth to repay society, which is also an important content of Confucius's concept of wealth.

Confucianism, represented by Confucius, advocated the combination of doing business and being a person, thus forming a Confucian culture. Confucian culture believes that the pursuit of wealth should be affirmed, but it is necessary to make money in a way, not to make ill-gotten gains, and after having wealth, it is even more necessary to put "morality" before "wealth", use wealth to realize life ideals, and use wealth to repay society, rather than arbitrarily squandering or being unkind to the rich. The values and moral norms advocated by Confucian and Shang culture reflect the grace of the sages and the demeanor of the strong, and profoundly affect the commercial activities of future generations.

(The author is a scholar of literature and history)