Kneeling for several personal cultivation in ancient China

A nation after a long period of development, must have its own characteristics, this characteristic is often a **** the same concept of embodiment. A concept, unknowingly recognized by the majority of the people of the nation, and for the generations to inherit, become the nation's "*** with the concept". The formation of this **** the same concept, in addition to the survival of the nation has a close relationship with the regional environment, mainly with the traditional culture of the nation connected.

Traditional Chinese culture is the formation of the Chinese nation's "**** the same concept" of the material basis; and "**** the same concept" is the theoretical basis of the nation's traditional cultivation. This traditional cultivation is rooted in the deep soil of Chinese social life. From Yao Shun Zen to the Spring and Autumn and Warring States academic disputes, from the strike of the Hundred Schools of thought, the sole respect for Confucianism to the Song and Ming Dynasty prosperity, the Chinese people generally decided their own way of life, the formation of their own unique cultural connotations and cultivation guidelines, this guideline in the Manchurian Qing Dynasty after nearly three hundred years of "filial piety to rule the country," the strategy is constantly strengthened after the more complete.

Some people position the pattern of traditional Chinese culture as Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism, and Confucianism has always been the mainstay of traditional Chinese culture among these three schools. Liang Shuming pointed out in his "Introduction to Oriental Scholarship" that human scholarship mainly studies three problems: first, the problem of man to things. Second, the problem of man to man. Third, the problem of man to himself. Generally speaking, the theme of the first type of problem is to develop science and technology; the second type is to solve the interpersonal relationship; and the third type is to recognize and position oneself. According to Liang, Chinese Confucianism does not focus on solving the first type of problems, but goes straight to the second and third types of problems, which is the earliest sociology of interpersonal relationship and the earliest self-cultivation in China. Since the Renaissance, the West has been focusing on the first and third types of problems, and has made great progress in science and technology and the emancipation of human nature. As for human relations, they were completely neglected until the post-industrial era, when the American Carnegie published his treatise "How to Sell Yourself". Chinese Taoism, like Confucianism, is an academic discipline between the second and third categories, except that Taoism is more concerned with regulating human beings themselves. Buddhism, on the other hand, is entirely a third category.

Confucianism of the three principles, three from the four virtues, loyalty, filial piety and righteousness, because it is conducive to the political rule of the feudal dynasty and social stability, Confucius and Mencius doctrine by the successive dynasties again and again rise, Confucius and Mencius status was mentioned again and again. Since the Tang Dynasty, China's successive selection of talents of the imperial examination system are to the four books and five classics as a criterion, including science and technology, including other disciplines, said that the three religions and nine streams, carving small skills. Thus formed the traditional connotation of the Chinese nation's own spiritual civilization, which established its own unique mode of cultivation.

This mode of cultivation is conducive to making people "diligent and thrifty", "modest and prudent", "law-abiding", "loyalty to the emperor and love of the nation "This makes the family "orderly" and the society "stable and harmonious". However, the downsides and side effects it ultimately brought to Chinese society are incalculable.

One of the side effects is that the whole nation did not pay much attention to the development of science and technology. Since ancient times, the Chinese have had a brilliant performance in the field of science and technology. Copper refining was invented in the sixth century B.C., iron refining in the fourth century B.C., followed by the launch of the four great inventions, such as gunpowder, compass, papermaking and printing. At the same time, Li Bing and his son in the Warring States period built the Anlan Bridge and Dujiangyan, which were the best in terms of technical standard at that time; Zhang Heng in the Eastern Han Dynasty created seismographs and invented quantitative cartography; and Zu Chongzhi in the Southern Han Dynasty extrapolated the pi to the eighth decimal place. This shows that Chinese people have the genius and wisdom to climb to the top of science. However, since the Tang Dynasty, Chinese science and technology have been stagnant. When the West experienced the Renaissance, straight to the industrial revolution, science and technology by leaps and bounds, changing day by day, starting from the invention of the steam engine, the internal combustion engine, to the field of sound, light, chemical and electrical inventions, such as the spring, everything, to put a human society on an unprecedented new platform. This series of inventions are not the scientific and technological achievements of the Western world. The Chinese Zhan Tianyou, Hou Debong, Yang Zhenning and Li Zhengdao could only emerge and make scientific and technological contributions by studying and working abroad.

From the end of the Qing Dynasty to the beginning of the People's Republic of China, the abolition of the imperial examinations in education, the foreign affairs movement in industry, the May Fourth Movement in culture, and the convergence of Chinese and Western medical science ．．．． All were attempts to get rid of the thousand years of traditional cultivation, trying to develop science in the development of the West close to. However, due to the deep-rooted traditional concepts, although their initiatives have had a certain effect, but after all, a drop in the bucket, not for the big picture.

The second side effect is that it leads to the precociousness of the Chinese people's personality. This has a lot to do with the middle way that Confucianism has always advocated. Confucius said: "Gentlemen, the middle ground; small people, against the middle ground." Zi Si said, "not partial is called middle; not easy is called mediocrity. The center, the world of the right way. Mediocrity, the world's theorem." This is the heart of Confucianism, Zi Si dedicated to this book, awarded to Mencius. Zhongyong" is a book about the middle way, originally a piece of "Xiao Dai Li Ji". It was originally written in the Xiao Dai Rituals, but later it was claimed that it was written by Zi Si. In this way, the value of the book was raised, and it was used as the theoretical basis for traditional Chinese cultivation education. The Northern Song Dynasty, Cheng Hao, Cheng Yi strongly respected the "Mean". Zhu Xi of the Southern Song Dynasty also made the "Meanwhile Collection Note" and called "Meanwhile" and "University", "Analects", "Mencius" side by side as the "Four Books". After the Song and Yuan dynasties, the Meanwhile became the official textbook for schools and the required reading for imperial examinations, which had a great influence on Chinese education. The "Meanwhile" set forth the guidelines for the cultivation of Chinese human nature and was passed down from generation to generation. It has been passed down from generation to generation and has always shaped the thinking, speech and behavior of the majority of the people. The impartiality of the "Middle Way" has always been the motto of fathers and mothers in educating their children. Thus, "the tree calls the wind", "the gun hits the bird that pokes its head out", "the shrinking rafters are resistant to decay".... Such catchphrases are y rooted in the Chinese countryside and are well known to young and old, women and children. From an early age, the Chinese are taught to be "careful with their words and follow the rules", which is in marked contrast to the "boldness of speech and action" of Westerners, and most Chinese tend to be more individualistic than others. Confucianism's theory of destiny holds that "life and death have their destiny, wealth and honor lie in heaven", and under the repetition of this teaching, Chinese people regard their future advancement and retreat as the will of heaven, so ", to plan is in the hands of man, to accomplish is in the hands of heaven" is a truth commonly believed by Chinese people. According to Lin Yutang, Confucianism and Taoism are two aspects of the Chinese mind. When a Chinese scholar was an official, he was Confucian; when he was demoted, he was Taoist. Han Yu, Liu Zongyuan, Liu Yuxi, Wang Anshi, Su Dongpo and other great scholars of the past dynasties were loyal to the ruler and loved the country when they were officials and tried to rule the country; when they went into the wilderness, they passed on their poetry and literature to their families and enjoyed themselves. They always maintained a mature and transcendent mindset. Nowadays, most intellectuals still position "half Confucianism and half Taoism" as the motto of the world. Precocious and free from personal words, there is its humiliation, not calm meaning, but for the whole nation, it is to the conservative, lack of enterprise, less endowed with the spirit of revolution. More than 10 million Manchus will be 450 million Han people ruled for nearly three hundred years, relying on the way of Confucius and Mencius, Confucianism. As the saying goes: "If a showman rebels, he will not be able to do it in three years," which also indicates a certain problem.

After liberation, the Chinese government took a series of categorical measures to carry out drastic reforms, and has made considerable contributions to all aspects of science and technology and social transformation. To be honest, the Chinese democratic revolution led by Mao Zedong was a great endeavor to break with the old and establish the new, to set things right, initially with the good intention of correcting the shortcomings of the traditional moral cultivation, but it was not easy to replace the Confucianism that was rooted in the depths of the Chinese nation's feelings, and due to a variety of reasons, it failed to achieve the desired goal in this regard. The subsequent Anti-Rightist Movement and Cultural Revolution destroyed the old moral concepts to a certain extent, but did not establish a new concept of moral cultivation. From the present situation, Lei Feng, Jiao Shilu, Kong Fansen, Ren Changxia, etc. have not brought about a new concept of moral cultivation. The glory and demonstration of Lei Feng, Jiao Shilu, Kong Fan Sen, Ren Chang Xia, and so on, have not overshadowed the "traditional concepts", and the majority of the Chinese people are still working according to the old traditions. The Three Represents and advanced education are aimed at solving the problem of the Party's advancement, and have little effect on traditional moral concepts. What should be retained in the traditional concepts of the Chinese people? Correct which ones? What should be added? Still a big question worthy of further debate.

In the 1920s, Russell, a famous British philosopher, came to our country after a year of investigation and made the following suggestion: "If the Chinese can freely absorb what they need in our civilization and reject those things they feel are not good, then they will be able to obtain an organic development in their own traditions and produce a brilliant achievement of combining our virtues with their own. They will then be able to achieve an organic development in their own traditions and produce a brilliant combination of our virtues with their own." Russell is the most influential progressive thinker of the twentieth century, can his prophecy be drawn upon? Can his prophecy be used as a reference? Can it add strength to the building of a harmonious society in our country? This is also a question worth thinking about.