"The Rise and Fall of the Mo Family" During the Warring States Period, various schools of thought emerged on the mainland, and it became an era of great explosion of ideas. Confucianism, Taoism, and Mohism were the most influential representatives of the time. The Mo family, in particular, had a prominent position at the time, but eventually disappeared without a trace.
At the same time, Confucius and Mencius still have an impact on future generations, and the charm of traditional culture is also deeply shocked. However, why did Mohist thought disappear without a trace, but Confucius and Mencius thought have survived to this day?
If the Mohist ideology has survived to this day, what impact will it have on the mainland's science and technology and national defense capabilities? Next, let's explore the story of the Mohists. Mozi was born into a prominent family, but the decline of the family caused Mozi to become a low-level worker.
Despite the hardships of life, it gave him a deep understanding of the plight of the people at the bottom and the suffering caused by the war. He realized that only by eliminating the war could the people live a happy and stable life. Despite being at the bottom, Mozi knew that access to education was the key to changing the situation.
He uses tools to improve lives and excels in mechanics, optics, architecture, and more. However, he was not satisfied with this and had a desire to "change the troubled times". The poverty of the people who were deeply affected by the war strengthened Mozi's determination.
He studied at Confucianism and hoped to fulfill his wishes, but found that there were contradictions in it, so he did not really become a Confucian believer. The rise of the Mohist school began with a controversy within Confucianism over the pursuit of truth.
Confucian scholars had a negative attitude towards Mozi's pursuit of truth, which led Mozi to leave Confucianism and decide to create his own ideological system, the Mohist school. In its infancy, the Mohist school was little known, and its core ideas had not yet been established.
In order to expand the influence of Mohist thought, Mozi began to debate with highly respected Confucian scholars. Because of his grasp of the truth of practice, Mozi was often able to win a landslide victory in debates. However, these controversies also led to a deep Confucian hostility towards him.
Despite Mozi's enmity with Confucianism, the Mohist school became famous, and from then on, the Mohist school began to be known and learned by more and more people. In the controversy with Confucianism, Mozi gradually revealed the true meaning of Mohist thought, that is, both love and non-aggression.
Mozi's love and non-aggression is not like Confucius's "benevolence", but builds a strict and righteous army. Everyone is self-disciplined, and even when living in a difficult environment, the soldiers consciously obey it.
In addition, the Mohists also have strict rules that do not allow individualization or specialization, and must live according to a uniform standard of living. The Mohist theories were still very popular at the time. As the prestige of the Mohist school continued to expand, more and more low-level working people joined the Mohists.
Mozi's advocacy of "clear rewards and punishments" has also been recognized by everyone. Many of Mozi's theories are closely related to the life of the bottom, providing hope for more life for the people at the bottom, and also winning the love of many people.
Mohist thought was not only close to the life of the lower strata of society, but also Mozi led by example, consistent with words and deeds, and took the lead in setting an example, and it was precisely because of this that Mohist thought was extraordinary at that time. It is almost on par with the doctrines of Confucius and others. However, why did the Mo family disappear later?
Although the Mo family is popular with the people at the bottom, it is slightly strict and rigid to a certain extent. The Mo family has clear rules of life, extreme poverty and hardship, even health standards. As a result, very few people can fully embrace the Mohist beliefs, and few can adhere to the Mohist ideas.
Mohist thought was incompatible with its emphasis on class character in the social order of the feudal period, so it was ostracized and suppressed by the rulers. In addition, the Mohists also had their own army, and although they did not advocate active attack, their presence already posed a certain threat to the rulers.
As a result, the rulers saw the complete elimination of Mohist thought as a priority, even more important than military force. The demise of the Mo family is an inevitable result. Although the Mohists were ostracized at the time, their technological innovations left an important legacy.
In practice, Mozi invented the rushing chariot, a huge combat tool consisting of a horse and a cart, and even put armor on it to enhance its attack power. With the sturdy armor that could not damage the enemy no matter how much it attacked, it was a massive combat tool comparable to today's tanks.
If the Mohists had not disappeared, the mainland might have become the first country to have "tanks". It is conceivable that this will greatly enhance the mainland's military strength and make the mainland's science and technology famous.
Although the Mohist culture eventually disappeared, this does not mean that their appearance was wrong, but it was not applicable at the time, so it was excluded and disappeared into the long river of mainland history. But they have left a strong mark on the history of the mainland.
What we need to do is to "take the essence and remove the dross", so that their excellent parts can be passed on.
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