Lin Yutang once said:
Su Shi is dead, and his name is just a memory.
But what he left us is the joy of his heart and the joy of his mind, which is immortal.
Some people also say that in the heart of every Chinese, there is a Su Dongpo.
As a well-known figure in the history of Chinese literature, Su Shi has had a life of ups and downs, passing by clouds and clouds, and doing his own thing.
Calmly, he took what others saw as reluctant and lived his own chic life.
His life is wonderful, thanks to the fact that he can afford to take it and put it down.
If you can afford it, you can take responsibility
Mr. Lu Xun once said:
Since ancient times, we have had people who worked hard, people who worked hard, people who asked for their lives for the people, and people who sacrificed their lives to seek the law......
Su Shi belongs to the people who "ask for life for the people".
Su Shi, the word Zizhan, the number Dongpo layman, also known as Su Dongpo.
At the age of 21, he entered Beijing to take the exam, passed five passes and killed six generals, and won the Jinshi in one fell swoop, and entered the court as an official as he wished.
When Su Shi was an official, it was just in time for the then Prime Minister Wang Anshi to change the law.
When he learned that Wang Anshi's original intention of changing the law was to change the poor situation of the Northern Song Dynasty, but he excessively sought to open up a way to make money, he raised objections.
Because he knows that such a strategy will lead to a situation where "the country is rich and the people are poor", and as a parent official of the people, it is his duty to be diligent and love the people.
As a result, it was because he offended Wang Anshi that he was sent to Hangzhou wearing "small shoes".
During his stay in Hangzhou, he still served the people diligently and established the earliest public hospital in China, named "Anle Fang". ”
He also led the masses and officials to catch locusts, build water conservancy, and bring water into the city, and these tangible achievements made the common people love him even more.
No matter where Su Shi goes or what kind of official position he holds, he strives to know the people's feelings, help the people in need, always have the courage to take responsibility, and firmly believe in his bones the idea of "serving the people." ”
俗话说：“吃一堑长一智。 ”
But Su Shi did another "stupid thing", and the person who offended this time was actually the emperor.
During the Lantern Festival in the third year of Xining, the emperor ordered Kaifeng to buy lanterns from Zhejiang, "and the price was lost", which obviously harmed the interests of the people.
Officials who understood the intentions of this, even if they were dissatisfied, would do so, and did not dare to rebel against the emperor's will.
But Su Shi, who cared about the people, spoke bluntly to the emperor and implored the emperor to retract his order:
Your Majesty is not pleased with the lamp, and in order to satisfy the pleasures of the ears and eyes, but to take away the survival of the people?
As the "Ninth Five-Year Emperor", if anyone has the slightest objection, he may lose his life, but Su Shi still did not hesitate to ask for his life for the people, and truly achieved "seeking his own government in his position."
Because he always firmly believes that as long as he is in an official position, he must wholeheartedly do practical things for the people and solve problems.
What kind of person to become is everyone's choice, and Su Shi made his own choice.
This spirit of no hesitation also made him a good official who asked for the people's lives.
If you can let go, it is wisdom
Feng Zikai said:
If you love, life is lovely everywhere;
If you hate, you can hate everywhere in life;
If you are grateful, you can be thankful everywhere;
If you grow, you can grow in all things.
It is very appropriate to use this sentence to describe Su Shi after being demoted.
At the age of 45, implicated in the "Wutai Poetry Case", Su Shi was relegated to Huangzhou, Hubei (that is, Huanggang, Hubei).
Although he retained his official position, he did not have any real power.
At first, Su Shi was disheartened, but he dared to let go of the past and find the joy of life.
In his spare time, he took his family to the east of Huangzhou to reclaim wasteland and farm to help make a living.
The fulfilling farming life made Su Shi more hopeful for the future, so he gave himself the nickname "Dongpo Layman".
He also made his own Dongpo meat, honey wine and two red rice, creating another way for the people of Huangzhou to make a living.
At the same time, he did not forget to do good deeds and opened a welfare home, so that many abandoned babies have a warm home.
His optimism, strength and carefulness highlight his humanistic feelings.
It was also during this period that Su Shi's literary career reached a new peak.
The famous "Chibi Fu", "Later Chibi Fu" and "Nian Nujiao Chibi Nostalgia" were all created in Huangzhou.
The ease and ease in the works have infected generations of frustrated people.
At about that time, he could already proudly say to those little people:
"Thank you for your contempt and courage enough for me to stand up. ”
At the age of 59, Su Shi was relegated to Huizhou (that is, the area of Huizhou, Guangdong) again.
Su Shi, who has gone through hardships, although he is worried about the future, smells the fragrance of osmanthus in the air, looks at the lychees full of trees after the rain, and the yellow citrus all over the mountains, his heart suddenly brightens.
As he wrote in "Eating Lychees":
"I eat 300 lychees a day, and I don't want to be a Lingnan person. ”
Compared with when he was demoted to Huangzhou, Su Shi had already seen through the gains and losses of honor and disgrace, and the warmth and warmth of people, and calmly accepted everything now.
Seeing the peasants bending over and working hard to plant seedlings, he invented a horse that could float on the rice field to plant rice, so that the people would not have to work so hard.
The days were poor, but he lived a good life, developed the dish of barbecue "lamb backbone", strongly recommended it, and said self-deprecatingly:
"If you say this, the dogs will be displeased!"
Romain Rolland said:
There is only one true heroism in the world, and that is to recognize the truth of life and still love life.
Because he knows how to let go, Su Shi has developed a broad character, not only made a lot of friends, but also won everyone's admiration, and was willing to accompany him to the mountains and rivers.
Peace of mind is my hometown
At the age of 62, Su Shi was demoted again, this time in the more remote area of Danzhou (now Hainan Island).
At that time, the living conditions of Hainan Island were extremely harsh, a wilderness, hot and humid in summer, and rainy in winter.
Even under such conditions, Su Shi was still able to overcome difficulties and always maintain an optimistic attitude.
He found oysters and even wrote a letter to his son Sumai:
"I found a delicious one here, called oysters by the locals, and it tasted so good that I told you to keep it secret and not to tell the northerners. ”
Many people encounter this situation and either rise up and rebel or disappear.
But Su Shi chose "once it comes, it will be safe".
even wrote: "I am a Dan'er person, parasitic in Xishu Prefecture".
During this period, Su Shi created more than 160 articles and more than 170 poems, and also completed three classic works: "Yi Chuan", "Shu Biography" and "Analects".
This prodigy became more and more courageous in the failures and misfortunes of the second half of his life, and with a strong and unshakable heart, he endured the unbearable weight of life.
He can enjoy the gift of fate and can afford it;
can also withstand the blow of fate and let go.
Such a philosophy and attitude to life are worth learning from everyone.
As Mr. Lu Xun said:
It is a kind of courage to be able to take it, and it is a kind of open-mindedness to be able to put it down.
May we all be like that.
Pampered and humiliated, watching the flowers bloom and fall in front of the court;
In a short life, life is wonderful enough.