Mozi put forward the principle of economy from the standpoint of "the great interests of the people of the country", and as for the idea of non-happiness, non-life and funeral, it is essentially the application of the principle of "economy" and a specific measure to prevent the waste of nobles.
Mozi believed that the greatest waste was war, so he advocated "non-offensive" and promoted "love".
However, the princes and nobles at that time added more suffering to the people than the war of aggression. Although wars were frequent, there were days of cessation, and the oppression of the laborers and small producers by the aristocracy was endless, and was the greatest cause of the suffering of the common people.
In order to alleviate the economic burden of small producers and laborers, and to improve their minimum material life, Mozi demanded on the one hand to increase production and increase production capacity, and on the other hand, asked the aristocracy to limit their luxurious life. This is the actual meaning of Mozi's non-happiness, non-life, thrift, and funeral.
Mozi himself once said:
Whoever enters the country must choose a task ("business" is a problem that needs to be solved urgently) and engage in it. If the country is in turmoil, the words are "Shangxian" and "Shangtong"; If the country is poor, the words "thrift" and "thrift"; The national 憙 (喜) sound Zhan 湎 [mian exempt] (indulged in wine), then the language of "non-music", "non-life"; If the country is obscene and rude, it is said that "respect heaven" and "ghost"; If the state wants to seize and invade, the words are "love" and "non-attack". (Lu Wen)
Although Mozi's claims are divided into ten points, these ten claims are not isolated, but related. Mozi's basic idea is to "prosper the world and eliminate the harm of the world". What is the "harm of the world"? That is, as Mozi said, "the hungry are not allowed to eat, the cold are not clothed, and the laborers are not allowed to rest" ("Fei Le Shang"), and Mozi sometimes added that "those who are in chaos cannot be cured." Taken together, it requires all the people of the world to live a well-fed, warm and happy life, and realize "the rule of the country, the people, and the rule of criminal government" ("Shang Xian Shang"). His ten propositions are still one thing.
Mozi said that moving music is good, but it cannot solve the most pressing problems of the people's life, and listening to music cannot be used as food or clothing, so it should be opposed:
There are three plagues for the people: those who are hungry are not allowed to eat, those who are cold are not clothed, and those who work are not allowed to rest. Then, when we hit the giant bell, beat the drum, play the piano, and play the flute, we should be able to get the wealth of food and clothing? ("On the Fun")
Mozi pointed out the harm of the prince's appreciation of music. In order to play music, a set of equipment is required, and the equipment fee is borne by the people. With equipment, it is still not possible to have no one to play, for example, a large bell is no different from a pot with a buckle if no one strikes it. And the performance still needs to be played by the musicians. The old and weak are not qualified for the work of the happy people, and they must be young and strong men and women, and the men delay farming, and the women delay the spinning, which wastes labor. Just by playing music, production has been lost. But that's not all, the performers and singers must not wear coarse cloth jackets, and the singers and dancers must not eat poor food, otherwise they will be malnourished, yellow-faced, hungry and thin, and they will look cold. These people who could have been engaged in production are now dependent on others to feed them. Therefore, Mozi believed that the prince's appreciation of music, singing and dancing was "a loss of the people's food and clothing".
Mozi further analyzed the losses caused by the pleasure of music and art to the country's politics and production: if the prince likes to listen to music, he will ignore the government and cause the country to be in a coma; If a gentleman likes to listen to music, he cannot fulfill the duties of a minister; If the farmer listens to music, he can't go out early and return to the twilight and farm well, resulting in a shortage of millet [shushu]; Women who are good at listening to music cannot sleep at night and are diligent in weaving, resulting in a shortage of cloth and silk (see "Fei Le Shang"). In the end, Mozi came to this conclusion:
Therefore, the upper one is the heavenly ghost Buddha ring, and the lower one is the people of Fuli. It was the old son Mozi who said: "Today, the corporal gentleman, please want to seek the benefits of the world and eliminate the harm of the world, and you should be happy as a thing, and you can't help but stop." ("On the Fun")
Based on the above materials, we can see that it is completely understandable that Mozi protested against the decadent and hedonistic life of the princes in order to reduce the burden on small producers and laborers. In fact, the fact that the princes have fewer musical and artistic activities can indeed reduce the burden of some laborers. However, Mozi did not point the finger of criticism at the princes and nobles who used music and art to increase the burden on the people, but blamed music and art itself, which turned the cart before the horse. According to Mozi's inference, if the princes gave up their enjoyment of music and art, they would have more time to govern the country well, which is unfounded.
Because Mozi did not understand the value and role of music art, and did not understand that the production and creation of music art was due to labor and life experience, his view of music art was one-sided. In order to oppose the extravagant life of the princes, he even canceled the legitimate artistic life of the common people, which was inevitably abandoned due to choking. Xunzi once said: "Mozi is hidden from use but does not know the text" ("Xunzi Unmasking"), which really said that Mozi is one-sided, that is, he only sees the practical benefits in front of him, but does not see the great role of culture and art in people's lives.
It must be pointed out, however, that Mozi was right in opposing the extravagant and corrupt hedonistic life of the aristocracy at that time, and pointed out that their pleasures were based on the hunger, cold, and suffering of the vast number of laborers.
Mozi proposed that since the vast number of laborers could not enjoy it, then the aristocracy should not enjoy it either. In this sense, Mozi pointed out that the art of music is not unbeautiful, but that the urgent need to solve the problem of people's livelihood is hungry and cold. His protest reflected the aspirations of the people and cried out the people's cries of injustice. His criticism of the Maharaja should be affirmed for its progressive nature.
Mozi's proposition of "non-fate" is mainly intended to teach people not to sit back and wait for fate to dominate. The theory of "non-fate" also opposes the Confucian doctrine of "life and death have fate, and wealth is in heaven".
Mozi believed that a person is not born to be rich or poor, but is the result of hard work or non-effort; The chaos of the country is not predestined, but the result of the efforts or inefforts of the monarch. Therefore, Mozi believed that what can really determine the fate of a country or an individual is the subjective "force". At the time, to a certain extent, this view was positive. He begins by pointing out that it is wrong to believe in the claim that there is a fate:
The words of those who hold on to life say: If you are rich, you will be rich, and if you are poor, you will be poor; If you live in the crowd, you will be in the crowd, and if you are outnumbered, you will be outnumbered; If you are in trouble, you will be in trouble; Life is longevity, and life is death. ("Fate")
Oppose those who believe in destiny to attribute all the consequences to their fate, and do not take any responsibility for themselves. Mozi Says:
In the past, the poor people in the past world were greedy for food and drink, and they were lazy in their work, because they were not rich in food and clothing, and they were worried about hunger, cold, and hunger. I don't know how to say: I don't know how to do it ("let's go" is read "tired", the meaning of incompetence) is not good, and I am not sick ("sickness" is the meaning of hard work), and I will say: My life is solid and poor.
In the past, the tyrannical king of the previous world could not bear the lust of his ears and eyes, the disobedience of his heart (mind), and disobedience to his relatives, so he lost the country and overthrew the society. I don't know how to say: I don't do it, and if I don't do it well, I will say: My life will be lost. ("Fate")
From Mozi's proposition of "non-fate", it can be seen that when the small producers in the late Spring and Autumn period initially formed a social force, they already had a certain understanding of their own power, although these understandings were very vague. They could not understand the origin of the world and the composition of society, so they regarded "God" and "ghosts" as the final decisive force, but to a certain extent, they also began to understand the tremendous power generated by human labor, so they believed that the rise and fall of the state and the wealth and poverty of individuals were not entirely arranged by fate, but mainly by subjective efforts. Mozi Says:
The chaos of the past is governed by soup; The chaos of the war, the king of Wu ruled it. At this time, the world is unswerving ("Chongqing" is the meaning of change) and the people are not easy, and the government changes and the people change customs. The world is chaotic and the world is chaotic, and the world is governed by soup and martial arts. The rule of the world is also, and the power of soup and martial arts is also; The chaos in the world is also, and the crime of the sin is also. If you look at it from this point of view, the husband's safety and chaos are also in the government, how can the husband be said to have a fate? ("Unfatned")
Here Mozi argues that the subjective efforts of the rulers play a decisive role in the governance of the world, and deal a heavy blow to those who are predestined. But Mozi's view of history, like that of other ancient philosophers, was still highly subjective. He transferred the power that moved society forward from an unknowable "fate" to a few genius saints. It is believed that the "rule of the world" is also "the power of soup and force". However, we must not erase the progressive significance of Mozi's "non-fate" theory at that time.
Mozi believes that not only the rule of chaos in the world depends on the subjective efforts of the king who governs the world, but also the wealth and poverty of individuals are also related to the efforts of each person:
The reason why the prince and the prince of today retreated from the court (early), listened to the prison and governed the government, and finally divided the dynasty equally, and did not dare to be tired, why not? If you are strong, you will be in danger, so you don't dare to be tired.
The reason why Dr. Jin Yeqing did his best to know his thoughts, to govern the government internally, and to collect the benefits of the city, mountains and forests, and Zeliang outside, and to use the real government to do not dare to be tired, why not? If you are strong, you will be honored, and if you are not strong, you will be humiliated, so you dare not be tired.
The reason why the farmer goes out (early) and goes in and out of the dusk is that he is stronger than cultivating and arboriculture, gathering more uncles, and not daring to be tired, why not? If you are strong, you will be full, and if you are not strong, you will be hungry, so you dare not be tired.
The reason why the woman dreams of sleeping at night is that she is strong in spinning and weaving, and she is more than a child who does not dare to be tired, and he thinks that if he is strong, he will be rich, and if he is not strong, he will be poor; If you are strong, you will be warm, and if you are not strong, you will be cold, so you dare not be tired. ("Unfatned")
Conversely, if one believes that everything is predestined, Mozi would have a completely different outcome:
Although I don't care about the princes and lords, if the word "Jiang" is misspelled as the word "nationality" according to Yu Yue's "Zhuzi Ping Yi") believes in the fate and does it, then he will be lazy to listen to the prison and govern, the doctor will be lazy to govern the government, the farmer will be lazy to cultivate the arboriculture, and the woman will be lazy to spin and weave...... Then I thought that the wealth of food and clothing in the world would be insufficient. ("Unfatned")
Mozi repeatedly talks about the importance of "strong", and "strong" means hard work. Finally, Mozi believes that the idea of destiny is extremely harmful:
The fateful person is the work of the tyrant king, the skill of the poor ("art" is "statement"), and the words of the unbenevolent. Those who are righteous today will not be able to ignore and strengthen those who are wrong, and this is also. ("Unfatned")
We can clearly see that in Mozi's theory of "non-fate", he emphasizes the importance of human power and opposes the negative thinking of sitting back and enjoying the results, and in this regard, Mozi's proposition is completely correct. Mozi's "non-fate" and his "Tianzhi" theory are in harmony with each other. Mozi believed that the will of "heaven" was to make people live in peace and work hard to produce, so Mozi believed that Confucianism believed in the theory of "destiny" and despised production, which was against the will of "heaven".
Mozi's theory of "non-fate" opposes laziness on the one hand, and on the other hand, it also opposes the Confucian "theory of fate". Mozi was very concerned about the development of production and the improvement of people's lives, and he repeatedly declared that the purpose of his "non-fate" was to "ensure that the hungry will be fed, the cold will be clothed, the laborers will be rested, and the disorderly will be cured" ("Under the Fate"). This is extremely precious. However, we cannot deny the weakness of Mozi's theory of "non-fate".
Mozi's compromising stance towards the aristocratic Shiqing made it impossible for him to distinguish the opposing interests of the laborers and the aristocratic Shiqing. He mistakenly regarded the "arboriculture" of the princes ruling over the people as equal to the peasants. In fact, only the labor of the latter can create wealth.
Mozi often juxtaposes the princes and laborers as a whole, as if they were two kinds of people who cooperate with each other and cooperate in the division of labor. It is true that within a socio-economic system, people's socio-economic status is different, but there is a dual relationship of interdependence and mutual confrontation between the ruler and the ruled, not simply a relationship of division of labor and cooperation. On the premise of not touching the exploitation system, Mozi simply demanded that the laborers "dare not be tired" to engage in production, and believed that the people's poverty, hunger and cold were the result of their lack of hard work. This view is clearly one-sided.
In the pre-Qin period, Mencius, Xunzi, and Han Fei all had similar statements. Lao Tzu before Mozi believed: "The hunger of the people is based on hunger with the amount of food tax." (Lao Tzu, Chapter 75) correctly points out the root cause of the people's poverty. Mozi subjectively defended the interests of the laborers, but because of his compromise, some views appeared one-sided, so he said such untruthful words.
The central ideas of "saving use" and "saving funeral" and "non-happiness" and "non-life" are the same. Mozi believed that clothes should only be "cold in winter and hot in summer", and all things needed for life, such as food, boats, and houses, should be practical. Oppose flashy, extravagant and wasteful. Mozi said: "Those who spend money and labor, and the people do not benefit, do not do it." He also said, "Wealth is not spent, and the people are not labored." The purpose of advocating thrift and frugal burials is to reduce the burden on the people and limit the extravagance and waste of the princes. He said: "The rich and noble are extravagant, and the lonely and widowed are frozen. "The aristocracy and the rich are extremely rich and luxurious, and they will inevitably be generous to the people, causing the people to fall into hunger and cold, leading to chaos in the world.
In the section "Under the Festival Burial", Mozi described the situation of the thick burial at that time:
The coffin must be heavy, the burial must be thick, the clothes must be many, the embroidery must be complicated, and the mound must be huge. …… The gold and jade beads are more than the body, the Lun group is economical, and the carriages and horses are hidden.
Mozi pointed out that those princes not only lived an arrogant and lascivious life during their lifetime, but also had to be buried after death, which greatly wasted social wealth.
For the sake of the interests of the laborers, Mozi put forward the idea of "saving money" and "saving burial" on the negative side, and put forward a plan to increase wealth and population on the positive side. Mozi advocated that no matter whether the noble or the low, all coffins should be made of three-inch thick wooden planks, and no funeral items, opposing the three-year-long funeral system, and opposing the heavy ritual of destroying the body during the funeral period, "the strong do not eat and are hungry, and the thin clothes are cold" to make the body thin and weak, and "can get up with the help and be able to walk with a cane". Mozi pointed out that a thick burial, burying useful wealth in the ground, will inevitably impoverish the people; A long period of mourning, destroying the body, and separating men and women, will inevitably lead to a decrease in population; During the period of mourning, the nobles could not intervene in political affairs, and the people could not engage in production, as a result, "the country must be poor, the people must be widowed, and the criminal government must be chaotic." ("Under the Festival Burial")
In Mozi's time, the aristocracy was extravagant and wasteful, hedonistic and corrupt, and at the same time, they also used the excesses of life to show the superiority of their social and political status. Mozi's exposure and criticism of this social reality at that time is undoubtedly of progressive significance. Mozi was the first to point out that people rely on labor to make a living. He came up with extremely valuable principles:
Those who rely on their strength will live, and those who do not rely on their strength will not live. ("On the Fun")
In Mozi's view, it is not right to live without relying on one's strength, and "not working hard to get something" is actually a crime, and "the more you lose, the more injustice you will be". Mozi did not explicitly say that parasitic life is shameful, but if Mozi's theory continues to develop, it is bound to come to the conclusion that not working is shameful. In fact, Mozi's later scholars had officially criticized the princes at that time for being "self-supporting".
In his ideas of "thrift" and "thrift", Mozi demanded that the living standards of both the ruler and the ruled be equal, and under the conditions of ancient production, Mozi could only adopt the method of reducing the living standards of the nobles. This kind of proposition is naturally beneficial to the broad masses of the people, and although it cannot be done in fact, it is undeniable that this kind of proposition objectively blurs the boundaries of the hierarchy and shortens the gap between the nobles and the laborers, and it is still of great significance. We only have to look at the attacks on him by some philosophers at that time, saying that he was "slow and waiting", saying that he did not know "the noble and the lowly have good manners", and even viciously cursing him as a "fatherless" "beast", we can imagine how this great philosopher touched their sore spots.
On the whole, Mozi's idea of moderation was of progressive significance, and he protested when he saw that extravagant musical and artistic pleasures were placing a heavy burden on the people. When the theory of predestination makes people lazy and do not work hard to produce, they put forward the idea of increasing production in order to save the people from hunger and cold; When the extravagance and waste of the aristocracy reached an astonishing degree and became unbearable, they put forward the idea of saving on food, clothing, housing, and finances; When the funeral ceremony developed to the point of red tape, which was expensive and time-consuming, he put forward the idea of thin burial and short funeral, and demanded that the distance between the life of the nobles and the people be reduced. These are all commendable.
The main spirit of Mozi is to first take care of the interests of the broad masses of the people, first to demand that the people's lives not be hungry or cold, and then to be improved. On these issues, Mozi did shout out the voice of the people at that time, and his greatness lies in this. As mentioned earlier, he has many subjective wishes that contradict objective facts, and there are also many contradictions and shortcomings in Mozi's philosophy, which are caused by many reasons.