The reason why Chinese culture has a long history and is endless, is that there are a series of unique ideological elements and spiritual codes hidden in Chinese culture. Here from the classic system of Chinese culture, we can find some core ideas that can represent the genes of Chinese culture.
Chapter 1, Raw.
The Chinese classics do not have a belief in God's creation and God's creation of man, and Chinese thinkers have realized from the process of nature's incarnation that all things and human beings are the result of natural generation, that is, the so-called "life". "The Book of Songs: Hao Min" cloud: "Born Hao Min, there are things and rules." "The Book of Rites: Mourning Gongwen" records the words of Confucius: "Doing nothing and making things come into being is the way of heaven." The Chinese sages regarded the universe as a dynamic natural process of "birth", and the "way of life" became the starting point, process and result of Chinese thinking about the world of heaven and earth, and both Chinese and foreign philosophers agreed that the Chinese way was "becoming" rather than "being".
As the origin of traditional Chinese thought, "Shengsheng" has two meanings: first, all things in heaven and earth are an endless and eternal process, that is, "the meaning of life is easy" proposed in "Yi Chuan", and the value concept of "the great virtue of heaven and earth" has been born from the cosmic concept of "life and life". Secondly, "shengsheng" refers to people's life, survival, and life, which gives rise to the unique concept of "shengmin" in Chinese political culture. "Virtue is only good governance, and government is to support the people." Water, fire, gold, wood, and earth valley are only cultivated, and morality, utilization, and health are maintained. The Chinese sages implemented the value pursuit of righteousness and utilization in the material life of the people. The virtue of all things and the use of all things are ultimately for the livelihood of the people. From the way of life in the universe to the virtue of life, the Chinese will always cherish life and the value belief of unremitting self-improvement, relying on the virtue of life of all things and the way of life in the universe.
Second, nature.
Who is the subject of "Shengsheng"? Since the mainstream of Chinese thought is not the creation of the world and the creation of man, the so-called "natural" can be understood as "natural" generation. Confucius said, "What is heaven? At four o'clock, all things are born. "Heaven" is "nature", that is, everything in heaven and earth is its own. Whether it is the birth of the universe or the birth of human beings, there is no external purpose to make it happen, but an infinite process of self-generation of heaven and earth, all things, and human beings. Although people are born with the purpose of "artificiality", "man-made" must respect "nature", and "nature" is higher than "man-made". "Nature" is the law of the universe, Lao Tzu said that "man is the law of the earth, the earth is the law of the sky, the heaven is the law, and the Tao is the law of nature", and it is also the highest state of human beings.
Third, etiquette and righteousness.
Human life is inevitably embodied in the "feelings" and "desires" related to "life", so the "Shangshu" cloud: "But the people are born with desires." However, Chinese thinkers not only fully affirm the "natural" emotions and desires of life, but also worry that the "artificial" emotions and desires will cause harm to the community, the family and the country. Therefore, the Chinese ancestors created a system of etiquette and righteousness, and incorporated people's "feelings" and "desires" into a set of etiquette and righteousness norms: "Therefore, the reason why the sage governs people's seven feelings, cultivates ten righteousness, stresses faith and harmony, and gives in to fight for it, how can the sacrificial rites be cured?" Therefore, since the primitive times, the Chinese ancestors have formed a set of "rites" to maintain the order of the family and the country. The third dynasty of the Xia and Shang dynasties was the foundation period of the state of Chinese civilization and etiquette, especially the Zhou Gong's system of ritual and music, which unified the national system, social life, and the system of ritual and music in the form of civilization. It does not deny the "feelings" and "desires" that must exist in life, but limits them to the "etiquette" of rationality (the order of the family and the country), making China a developed country of etiquette and righteousness.
Fourth, benevolence.
In order to transcend the difference and compulsion of etiquette and righteousness, Chinese culture has produced the ideological concept of benevolence and righteousness, hoping to enhance the inner moral emotions of human beings, the conscience and conscience of mutual understanding, and establish a harmonious community where everyone loves each other. Benevolence is a value sequence derived from the culture of ritual music and serving ritual music, but after the formation of benevolence and righteousness, it has become a new ideological concept.
Fifth, the middle way.
The proper and appropriate norms are the so-called "middle way". In fact, "Zhong" and "Dao" can be interpreted as mutually exclusive, that is, the so-called "Zhongxing is still in the Dao", and the "Zhong" of "Allowing Attachment to the Dao", that is, the "Dao" of "the Tao cannot be deviated from", both of which refer to the moderation, appropriateness, and correctness of various types of actions. Related to this, any political action, military decision-making, and daily behavior that conforms to the "middle" and "Tao" refers to the correct process of the practitioner's action and the realization of the goal. The "golden mean" can be embodied in the way of human beings, that is, it has become a kind of etiquette system of human society; It can also be embodied in the way of heaven, which is a harmonious state of cosmic order, that is, what the "Mean" says: "To neutralize, heaven is in harmony, and all things are nurtured." "Middle" is the way of man, which originates from people's emotional desires and inner souls, and is "not necessary to be separated"; As the way of heaven, "zhong" is a transcendent metaphysical existence and universal law.
Sixth, people-oriented.
In the original sense of thought, as an ideological concept, the people-oriented is actually based on the ideological concepts of "shengsheng" and "shengmin". Heaven and earth give birth to people, and the fundamental purpose of "establishing a king" is still to "give birth to the people". Xunzi said: "The people of heaven are not for the king; The ruler of heaven thinks that the people are also. The inclusion of "Lijun" in the ultimate goal of "the people of heaven" precisely reflects that traditional Chinese political thought is based on the ideological origin of Chinese civilization.
Therefore, "winning the world," which represents the highest political ideal of mankind, is precisely based on the "people's heart" of the people. In terms of the direct relevance of ideological concepts, the people-oriented is the specific application of benevolence and righteousness in the political field, and the so-called benevolent government is actually to establish the people-oriented political goal and the political principle of "the people are the state-oriented", emphasizing that the interests of the people are the foundation of the state and politics. ”
They advocate the concept of "giving to the people and helping the people", and hope to make this the goal of national governance. The essence of benevolent government is to love the people, and it is believed that the ruler must take the interests and will of the people as the starting point in order to ensure the stability and continuation of state power. Mencius believed that adhering to the political goal of "loving the people and supporting the people" and emphasizing that in order to win the hearts of the people, it is necessary to implement benevolent government, and the idea of "people-oriented" is the embodiment of the spirit of benevolence in the political field.
Seventh, the family and the country.
The traditional Chinese value is not an atomic individual, any individual is in the relationship between the family and the state, and the value and meaning of the individual's life often rely on the value and significance of the family and the country. As the "Zhou Yi Preface Hexagram" said: "There is heaven and earth and then there are all things, there are all things and then there are men and women, there are men and women and then there are couples, there are couples and then there are fathers and sons, there are fathers and sons and then there are kings and ministers, there are kings and ministers and then there are up and down, there are up and down and then there is something wrong with etiquette." ”
Heaven and earth incarnate all things, the family of men and women is the foundation of society, and the country is the extension of the family, and the husband and wife, father and son who represent the family must precede the monarchs and ministers, up and down who represent the country. However, the Chinese ideological tradition adheres to the principle that the family and the state are isomorphic, and the home-state isomorphism means that the organization of the family and the country is isomorphic; At the same time, it also refers to the common governance structure of the family and the country. Therefore, the traditional Chinese "family and country" not only refers to the external political and social structure, but also to the internal cultural and psychological structure, which includes the so-called family feelings, hometown feelings, patriotic feelings, etc.
Eighth, the world.
In traditional Chinese thought, "Tianxia" is not only the spatial concept of all heaven and earth and the human world, but also the construction of a rational world order and an idealized value system. Therefore, in the traditional Chinese world of thought, the real world is composed of Zhuxia, the country of poetry, books, rituals and music, and the barbarian Rongdi, who is not highly civilized. The barbarian Rong Di is of four descendants in the direction.
Since "Heaven" represents a universal, just, and authoritative law and decree, all living beings in the world must share this universal and just law and decree. The idealized "Tianxia" traced back to the Confucian classics in the "Three Generations" period, and the "Three Generations" represented this ideal world order and ethical spirit. The concept of the world does not care about the racial differences in the world, but highlights the importance of the ideal world order and the Tao in the world, so it particularly emphasizes the universal and eternal significance of the world as one family and the world as a whole, and emphasizes that the interests and values of the world are higher than the interests and values of races and countries.
Ninth, the royal road.
Compared with hegemony, the sign of hegemony is prosperity and strength, and the symbol of kingship is the people's heart; The process of achieving the goal of hegemony is to conquer by force, and the process of achieving the goal of the royal road is to return to the heart of the world. It can be seen that the royal road is not only a governance method of etiquette and benevolence within the scope of the family and the country, but more importantly, it is more important to rebuild the civilized order of the world, and advocate that in the process of rebuilding the civilized order of the world, the people's will and sincere convincing are precisely the fundamental signs of the realization of the royal road. Therefore, the royal road must transcend the governance of the family and the country and represent the civilized order of the world, and the scope of the royal road is the way of the world beyond the scope of the family and the country, and finally realize the virtue of life of "inheriting the way of heaven and governing people's feelings".
Its tenth, Datong.
When the royal road points to the ultimate goal, it should be the "Datong of the Great Road", and the "Book of Rites and Rites" affirms that there is a "Datong" era in history where "the road is also the journey of the Great Road, and the world is for the public". Chinese thinkers generally yearn for a "world of great harmony" in which "merit and ability are selected, faith and harmony are emphasized", and "no one is only one of his relatives, and no one is only one son". The Chinese aspire to the highest ideals, but at the same time admit that the era in which they live is the period of "moderately prosperous," and that the world of "moderately prosperous" is a last resort based on reality. Therefore, in the "well-off" stage, we can follow the principle of moral practice of being close to each other, but there is also a "Datong" era of "the world is for the public", which reflects the value of fraternity.
The integration of the above ideas boils down to the idea of the unity of heaven and man based on the "Tao". The highest belief in Chinese culture and the highest category of Chinese philosophy is "Tao", and "Tao" is essentially the embodiment of the unity of heaven and man. "Dao" is not only the natural law that the sun, moon and stars, spring, summer, autumn and winter must follow, so it is called "Heavenly Dao"; It is also the humanistic norm of the family and country system and the order of the world that people have gradually established in the practice of life, so it is called "humanity". There are many schools of thought in China, and their ideas on the unity of heaven and man are completely common, and they all hope to reach heaven through humanistic practice, and realize the way of the unity of heaven and man in the counselor heaven and earth and the cultivation of all things.
It can be said that Chinese culture contains these unique ideological elements and cultural genes, which are not only the internal reasons for the survival, continuation and development of the Chinese nation in thousands of years of history, but also the fundamental reason why the Chinese nation has been able to meet the challenges of modernization and obtain a phoenix nirvana-style rebirth after nearly a hundred years of modernization.
(The author is a professor at Yuelu College, Hunan University)
Source: Beijing Daily
