Why do people live?

If you don't know life, how can you know death?

-"Advanced Analects of Confucius"

A philosophy must answer at least two questions: First, why do people live? Second, how should people live? Otherwise it can't be called philosophy.

Once, the great disciple of Confucius, Luz, asked him how to deal with ghosts and gods. Witches were very common in those days, and the concept of ghosts and gods should be clear. Our childhood was spent in the countryside, and there was no electricity at night, so there were many topics about ghosts. Confucianism has always been rational on this issue, but it has not reached the height of materialism and atheism. So Confucius replied, "If you can't convince people, how can you convince ghosts?" It means that people should pay attention to the present and daily life. It is unrealistic to think about dealing with ghosts and gods when people are not perfect.

I didn't expect Luz to be ambushed. He said, if you don't consider ghosts and gods, how can you face death? With the idea of ghosts and gods in modern people's hearts, it is easy to understand Lutz's confusion: is there a soul alive after death? If not, a person will die after living for decades, and it will be clear. What is the meaning of life? If it doesn't make sense, why is that person alive?

But Confucius still replied indifferently with the same sentence pattern just now: "How do you know death if you don't know life?" It seems to be avoiding this question: you should live by yourself first, and then talk about it when you understand it; If you can't live well, why die?

When I was seventeen years old, I was confused and seriously thought about the fundamental problem of life. I once asked a very clever female classmate, and her answer was very similar to that of Confucius. She said that the answer to this question should be to live well now. I was not satisfied with this answer at that time. I accidentally read an article about the ant world written by a biologist in Reader magazine, which inspired me to think about the meaning of life from the perspective of an ant. Why are ants alive? The answer is: no, just because ants exist as a species. If all the ants die, then this species is finished. If all species die out, life in the universe will be over. What's the point of a cold universe if all life is gone?

I ching said: "the great virtue of heaven and earth is born with it." Survival and development are the virtue and avenue of the universe, the highest value of the universe, and the meaning of the existence of the universe. Every tiny life is alive to carry out and realize the will, value and significance of this life.

Zhouyi said, "Tian Xingjian!" The best answer to "why do people live" is to live well and live this "healthy" spirit.

How should people live?

The way of university is to be moral, to be close to the people and to stop at perfection.

-"University"

This is the first sentence in college, which answers the second important question in life, that is, how should people live?

"The way of university" is not the way of going to university today, but the way of life, which is a decent way to live in this life! What kind of living method? Mingde, close to the people, stop at the best. These three points are also known as the "three programs" of Confucianism. The so-called program, that is to say, the ideological system of Confucianism, has been said for thousands of years, and the root of efforts is these three points.

The mainstream of Confucianism believes that human nature is good, people have an innate conscience and good ability, human nature contains values and abilities such as benevolence, righteousness, courtesy and wisdom, and there are truth, goodness and beauty in nature. These qualities are people's "mingde". "Ming De" is to show these "Ming De", that is, to constantly improve people's inner cultivation and virtue and pursue the realm of saints.

We should "be close to the people" and "be kind to the people and love things with the people". We should honor our parents, care for our families, be kind to our relatives and colleagues, and let this love spread continuously, so as to benefit the society and even give it to all natural things except human beings. We should give full play to our abilities, actively practice and put these loves into practice.

In Confucian words, such a "one inside and one outside" is "the sage inside and the king outside".

On the one hand, "stop at perfection" is a summary of the first two items. People, whether internal or external, should constantly strive to achieve a perfect state. This process is endless, and it emphasizes one direction. Everyone's talent and opportunity are different, and how far they go in these two aspects is different, but what is important is this process and this direction.

On the other hand, "stop at the best" goes beyond the first two items. Transcend things and me, transcend the pursuit in real life and enter a metaphysical realm. This is similar to what Taoists and Buddhists call enlightenment or becoming a Buddha. In the words of the golden mean, it is to "cultivate heaven and earth" and integrate yourself into the natural avenue of heaven and earth.

All religions in the world tend to deny secular life to varying degrees when answering the question "How should people live". Only Confucianism positively affirms the meaning of secular life, teaches people how to live and finds the highest meaning in ordinary life.

Four life books, such as The University, The Analects of Confucius, Mencius and The Doctrine of the Mean, are the ideological basis for shaping China's traditional culture and can be called the Bible of China people. The four books of life contain almost all the problems in life, especially the problems of being a man and doing things. Throughout the ages, anyone who has thoroughly understood the "Four Books" can achieve extraordinary achievements in government, politics, learning and business. From the perspective of modern young people, this book extracts the essence of wisdom from the "Four Books", combines various problems in real work, life and study, and makes a profound and vivid interpretation from the aspects of life, world, humanity, personality, treating people, doing things, leadership, wealth, family, self-cultivation and learning, so as to enlighten readers with wisdom and help them solve various practical problems in life.