<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="1" > Chapter 3:</h1>
If the people are not virtuous, the people will not be in dispute.
(Not respecting talented people leads the common people not to compete with each other.) ）
It is not expensive and rare goods, so that the people will not be thieves.
(Not cherishing rare possessions leads the common people not to steal.) ）
It is not desirable to see what is desired, so that the people will not be disturbed.
(Not showing off things that are enough to cause greed leads to the people's hearts not being confused.) ）
It is precisely with the rule of the saints that they are humble in their hearts, their stomachs are solid, their aspirations are weak, and their bones are strong.
(Therefore, the principle of the sage's governance is: empty the hearts and minds of the people, fill the belly of the people, weaken the people's competitive intentions, and strengthen the bones and bones of the people.) ）
ZhengHeng makes the people ignorant and desireless.
(Often leaving the common people without ingenuity and desire.) ）
If the husband knows that he does not dare to do it, he will not be cured.
(So that those who have the intellect do not dare to do anything.) The saints do it according to the principle of "doing nothing" and conform to nature, then the world will not be unpeaceful. ）
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="15" > [fourth sentence].</h1>
The original text: It is the rule of the saints, the humility of their hearts, the truth of their abdomen, the weakness of their aspirations, and the strength of their bones.
01
We should note that the Lao Tzu order is:
First humble heart, then solid abdomen, first weak ambition and then strong bones.
That is, Lao Tzu believed:
Spirit first, material second.
However, the order in the Pipe Herdsman is reversed:
Cangmiao knows etiquette, and enough food and clothing knows honor and disgrace.
That is, the tube thinks:
Material first, spiritual second.
02
Before writing the book "The Road to Happiness", the great British philosopher Russell had visited all over the world. The results found:
The so-called rich are not as happy as we think, and some are even more miserable than the poor.
So he sighed:
If even the rich are unhappy, what is the point of making all the poor rich? ①
So Russell argues:
Sartre, a famous French philosopher, lived through two world wars and ate in a Nazi prison for ten months. So I said a quote that was contrary to Russell's view:
When children are about to starve to death, what is the point of literature? ②
So Sartre argues:
03
I am afraid that it is difficult to determine whether the two views are right or wrong. Because there is a fundamental problem involved, that is:
Which is more evil that human beings do to get rid of the suffering of poverty, or the evil that they do to get rid of the boredom of richness? Is the poor people of Lai terrible? Or is the poor-hearted rich and powerful more terrible?
Pipe and Sartre tend to the former, and Lao Tzu and Russell tend to the latter. In fact, both of these views can find loopholes and evidence to the contrary. Like the chicken and egg question, there must be no answer.
So let's take one of Britain's greatest economists of modern times, Marshall, at the beginning of his book Principles of Economics:
The history of the world is constructed and shaped by both religious and economic forces (3).
Isn't the so-called religion the spiritual power of man? Isn't the so-called economy the "material motive" of man? The two complement each other and cannot be extracted separately to affect people.
04
Well, now back to the point, why should we be humble, solid,weak-minded, and strong-bones?' Because:
(1) To be humble is not to argue:
If everyone is humble, humble and humble, and does not think that they can, will the loyal and virtuous be excluded?
(2) In fact, its abdomen is not stolen:
If everyone were well fed, well fed, and could not bear to starve, would the people of Li become thieves?
(3) Weak ambition is not chaotic:
If everyone is weak-minded, scrupulously abides by their duties, and does not pursue the desire for non-division, the country will naturally be healthy and peaceful.
(4) Strong bones are not invaded:
If everyone is strong in bones, strong in body, and not pampered, will the country be invaded by foreign enemies?
In particular, the last point, "strengthening its bones", is very important, and it is the "martial spirit" on which a nation depends for its survival, but it is often ignored by the rulers. We can almost conclude that whenever a region's civilization reaches a certain height, it becomes weak and weak, and even vulnerable.
Like what:
China's Northern Song Dynasty was destroyed by the barbaric Jin Dynasty; the Southern Song Dynasty was wiped out by the barbaric Mongols; the civilization of ancient Babylon was destroyed by the barbaric Assyrians; the ancient civilization of Egypt was destroyed by the barbaric Romans; the ancient civilization of India, Persia and Greece were all invaded by barbarian peoples several times, and eventually went into decline and destruction.
Why does civilization often end in failure whenever it encounters barbarism? In fact, the history of world civilization has a spiraling development law, that is:
In the chaotic world, the martial arts and light literature are gained, and the prosperous world is heavy on literature and light on weapons, so the world is lost. Dynasties and dynasties have been in a cycle between gains and losses.
Chinese Confucianism, in particular, is too obsessed with etiquette and morality, and the legacy cannot be underestimated.
05
Let's take an example, the most important dynasty in Chinese history was the Great Song Dynasty, especially the Northern Song Dynasty, and the preferential treatment of literati doctors was unprecedented, and the founding emperor Zhao Kuangyin even set an ancestral family law for his descendants:
"Don't kill the doctors and the people who write!" The offender will be destroyed! ”④
This means:
No intellectuals or those who write to them! Those who disobey will be punished by Heaven!
So if you have the opportunity to interview contemporary intellectuals, ask them which dynasty they would most like to travel to? They will surely answer in unison: Song Dynasty. Because of this, the Song Dynasty was poisoned the most by the Confucian mentality of "emphasizing literature over martial arts".
How do you mean that? As everyone knows:
In 1005 AD, in order to coexist peacefully, the Northern Song Dynasty and the Great Liao Dynasty concluded the famous Liaoyuan Alliance.
The essence of the alliance is actually to spend money to buy peace. The Northern Song Dynasty had to provide the Liao with 300,000 coins (about 300,000 taels of silver) a year, but at the time, it was a very successful and cost-effective transaction. Why? Because the annual fiscal revenue of the Northern Song Dynasty at that time was as high as 100 million yuan, that is, 100 million taels of silver (5), the indemnities supplied to the Liao State accounted for only 0.3% of the total national revenue, which was simply a dime.
This is equivalent to your annual income of 100,000 yuan, and you only need to spend 300 yuan per year to pay the protection fee.
And most critically:
Trade between the two countries – from then on, there can be trade.
Since it is a business, of course, the Han people naturally have an advantage.
At that time, the annual trade surplus of the Northern Song Dynasty to the Liao State was more than 400,000 taels (6), so that the conversion also earned 100,000 taels, and at the same time, it could save tens of millions of military expenditures for consecutive years of war, and even after the signing of the "Alliance of The Liaoyuan Alliance" sixteen years later (1021), the arable land area of the Northern Song Dynasty also reached its peak - 5.24 million dumps, which was 60% or 70% larger than the beginning of the founding of the country (960), and it cannot be said that the "peaceful environment" played an important auxiliary role (7). Isn't it the best of three things?
in other words:
The signing of the Alliance of the Yuanyuan is not only not a loss of power and humiliation of the country, but a great thing that benefits the country and the people.
But wait, can this account be counted this way?
Yes, purely from the perspective of economic interests, the Northern Song Dynasty signed the alliance of The Yuanyuan and indeed made no loss. But what if we look at it from the perspective of national spirit? I'm afraid it's not optimistic. Although this covenant brought peace between the two countries for more than a hundred years, the consequences were:
From the emperor to the bureaucrat, the entire country of the Northern Song Dynasty was ideologically more satisfied with the status quo than before, more emphasis on literature and light on force, so that the armament was abolished, the imperial court had no generals who dared to fight, and the people had no martial style (8), completely immersed in the dream of hypocrisy and glitz.
Therefore, when the Western Xia Kingdom invaded decades later, the Northern Song Dynasty repeated the same trick and continued to spend money to buy peace. A hundred years later, the Jin Kingdom invaded, still so, the result was not only did not buy peace, but also stimulated the other side's greater ambitions, thus attracting a larger invasion, and finally, the history of the Northern Song Dynasty was crushed by the iron horse of the Jin Army, forever frozen in 1127 AD.
06
Of course, I am not saying that the Alliance is completely worthless and has no positive significance. On the contrary, the covenant itself was a good thing for both Song and Liao. The question is, what attitude should we take to face it?
If we reflect on the truth, it is:
It turns out that spending money can buy peace, and from then on, there is no need to develop military and armaments, so this is undoubtedly a gouge and stealing security;
If the lesson we learned is:
In fact, spending money can only buy temporary stability, so it is more important to strengthen the army and strengthen its own hard power, then this is in Taoguang to cultivate obscurity.
Therefore, the same thing, with different attitudes, has completely different meanings. In the final analysis, the attitude of being reckless and stealing is sad, seeing only material benefits but ignoring spiritual gains. He only knows "the real belly", but ignores the "humble heart". Taoguang's attitude of raising obscurity is both, and both culture and martial arts are attached, because only when a country does not indulge in the leisure and desire in front of it can it obtain greater peace and well-being. This is what the Art of War says:
"Although the world is safe, forgetting the war will be dangerous." ⑨”
This is what Lao Tzu called the ideological level of the state:
"Weak its ambition, strong its bones".
Therefore, the rule of the saints must be both civil and military, if the country is a train, then civilization and force are two tracks, and they must not be abandoned. If there is a problem on any track, the road ahead is worrisome, and there is a danger of car destruction and death at any time.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="144" >:</h1>
1. Russell's Road to Happiness Chapter 1
2. "Sartre's Self-Description • Six • Life: Experiences and Experiences • 11 • Facing a Child on the Verge of Starvation"
3. Marshall' Principles of Economics • Introduction I • Chapter I • Section I
4. "Song Shi • Biography of Cao Xun", "Compilation of the Northern League of the Three Dynasties • Volume 98", Lu You's "Summer Escape", "Records of the Lineage Since Jianyan • Volume 4 • 30", Wang Fuzhi's "Song Treatise • Volume 1 • Taizu III", Ding Chuanjing's "Compilation of Anecdotes of the Song Dynasty • Volume 1", (Song) Lou Key's "Fan Zhongyun Chronicle • Qing Calendar Three Years"
5. Zeng Gong's "Discussion of Funds and Fortunes", "History of Song • Food and Goods", "Miscellaneous Records of the Dynasty and the Wild Since Jianyan • Volume XIV • Jia Ji • Cai Fu I"
6. "History of the Song Dynasty, Volume 186• Chronicle of Food and Goods, and Mutual Market Shipping Law"
7. (Yuan) Ma Duanlin's "Literature Examination • Volume IV • Tian Fu Examination"
8. Li Tao's "Continuation of The Zhizhi TongjianChang Compilation • Volume 150 • Fu Bi < Hebei Shouyu Twelve Strategies >", Zhao Ruyu "Song Mingchen Song Discussion • Volume 134 • Qing Calendar Fourth Year May with the Privy Council Envoy Han Qishang"
9. Sima Hoang Tho "Sima Fa Ren Ben"
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