China's Philosopher's Theory of Personality Cultivation and Its Enlightenment

Ancient philosophers in China have rich theoretical exposition and practical principles on self-cultivation. For these theories and principles, we should not only make a historical study, but also "choose the best and use them" according to the needs of the times (Xunzi Wang Ba), that is, select their essence, clarify their modern significance and apply them to the cultivation life of modern people. Below, we will make some investigations on the scope and methods of cultivation mentioned in the Confucian theory of cultivation, and discuss whether there is anything worthy of our reference, absorption and development today.

The cultivation of Confucianism is mainly moral cultivation, but what they call morality is a kind of morality in a broad sense, which includes all the basic qualities that a person should have in a society. Therefore, the scope of cultivation mentioned by Confucianism actually includes a person's culture, art, personality, morality and other aspects of cultivation. Confucianism has many profound expositions in this respect, which are worthy of our choosing and using.

Cultural literacy, of course, is the acceptance and improvement of general cultural knowledge first. Because Confucianism emphasizes moral education and cultivation, many people think that Confucianism despises the education and cultivation of general cultural knowledge. Actually, this impression is not comprehensive enough. In the history of China, Confucianism is a school whose main occupation is social and national education. Their educational objects range from young children to all kinds of professionals. Their educational content ranges from children's literacy to the teaching of various professional knowledge. According to the Analects of Confucius, Confucius educated students in four aspects, and the first thing he taught was historical documents [14]. He also believes that by studying the Book of Songs, we can not only learn a lot about being a man, but also increase a lot of knowledge about birds, animals and plants [15]. Confucius attached great importance to "teaching students in accordance with their aptitude". Among his students, there are Yan Yuan and Min Ziqian who are famous for their virtue, and You Ran and Lu Ji who are good at politics. At the same time, there are also experts in language, such as Zaizai and Zigong, and experts in literature, such as Ziyou and Xia Zi [16]. It can be seen that Confucianism still attaches great importance to cultural knowledge education. They just oppose the tendency to learn knowledge for the sake of knowledge, and emphasize that learning knowledge should help improve people's moral quality. In today's information age, where new knowledge emerges endlessly and changes with each passing day, people will be eliminated by the times if they can't constantly improve and update their cultural knowledge. However, when people constantly improve and update their cultural knowledge, we can't avoid the question: Will these high, new, sophisticated and sophisticated knowledge help to improve people's overall living environment and spiritual life while rapidly improving their material life? At present, more and more popular research topics in the world, such as the emerging "ecological ethics" (I think "science and technology ethics" should also be put forward) and the ancient "life value theory", are all put forward from this. In this way, the traditional Confucian concept of linking general cultural knowledge with ethics still has guiding significance to the hot issues that people care about and think about today.

The cultural accomplishment mentioned by Confucianism is not only the level of knowledge, but also a person's manners and demeanor. I think it seems necessary to mention this point in particular today. Today, many of us seem to particularly appreciate those who are informal and think this kind of pretense is "chic". In our general cultural education for teenagers in primary and secondary schools, knowledge is the main thing, but it is not enough to cultivate their basic etiquette norms. What is even more worrying is that some "little emperors" now, under the doting of "two" (parents) and "four" (grandparents), will not know what etiquette is. Confucius is "don't sit if you sit irregularly", "don't eat if you cut irregularly", "eat without saying, sleep without saying" (The Analects of Confucius, the hard-working township party). Taking this example does not mean that we people today should do exactly like Confucius. However, I think a person who doesn't sit, stand or eat doesn't even say hello when he meets his elders, which is very annoying to others and doesn't even say a word of thanks. He can't be said to be a well-educated man, can he? Politeness, appearance and demeanor are important aspects of a person's cultural quality. In Confucian classics such as "Rites" and "Book of Rites", as well as the family instruction and study rules of many famous scholars, there are a lot of etiquette norms about daily food, clothing, housing and transportation, and treating people with things. A considerable part of them, after new interpretation, can be used as etiquette education or cultivation today. Moreover, it can be used not only for the education and cultivation of teenagers' basic morality, but also for the education and cultivation of adult professional etiquette in all walks of life.

People often say that China traditional culture is a culture full of ethical spirit, but they don't know that China traditional culture is still a culture full of artistic spirit. It is no exaggeration to say that in the comparison of China's traditional literature, ethical spirit and artistic spirit. Just like the two wheels of a car and the wings of a bird, they complement each other. Confucianism attaches importance to art education and cultivation. No less than the education and cultivation of ethics. In their view, artistic accomplishment contributes to moral accomplishment, and it is also an indispensable basic component to realize perfect personality. In pre-Qin Confucianism, the main contents of art education and cultivation are "poetry teaching" and "music teaching". Confucius taught his son Apollo: "If you don't learn poetry, you have nothing to say" (The Analects of Confucius Ji Shi), which means that if you don't learn ancient poetry, you will get no reward. In his view, studying ancient poems carefully can help us feel the mind of the initiator, improve our observation ability, cultivate our gregarious nature and learn how to express our feelings. Besides, the truth in the poem can be used to serve our distant parents. In addition, when learning poetry, you can learn more about the names of birds, animals and plants (see Note 25). For music, Confucianism attaches great importance to it and always compares it with ceremony. They think that music embodies a harmonious spirit, which can deeply touch people's hearts and quickly change people's temperament, thus playing a role in changing customs [17]. Confucius, Mencius and Xunzi all noticed that different concerts have different effects on people and different social effects. Some people are sad, some are tragic, some are lewd, and some are dignified [18]. Therefore, Confucianism attaches great importance to the style and taste of music, and thinks that a good musical work should be the unity of beauty and goodness [19]. With the development of the times, the style and content of art are becoming more and more diversified, such as calligraphy, painting, drama, novels and so on. It has also become a means and way for people to express their feelings, cultivate their temperament and improve their style.

Influenced by the theory and thinking mode of metaphysics in Wei and Jin Dynasties, such as advocating nature and enjoying images, "conception", "expressive spirit" and "seeking rhyme" are the important characteristics and fundamental spirit of China's art. China's artistic works are rich in connotation and profound in philosophy. It entrusts the deep affection of the creator and inspires the infinite feelings of the appreciator. Artistic activities, whether creation or appreciation, are the most direct expression of a person's inner feelings, reflecting his understanding and pursuit of nature, society and life. The good and evil in artistic creation and the level of appreciation interest will also reflect or influence the good and evil in a person's character or realm. Therefore, cultivating noble artistic appreciation interest through artistic accomplishment is of great and positive significance for pursuing and establishing noble personality and ideal life realm. The pursuit of artistic perfection and the pursuit of life perfection are interlinked and consistent in the ultimate sense, which is the embodiment of artistic spirit in China traditional culture.

Through artistic accomplishment, people can not only cultivate noble interest in creation or appreciation, but also learn many natural, social and life philosophies from it. Artistic accomplishment can not only improve people's spiritual life, but also improve people's practical ability to manage affairs. The perfection of art is inseparable from harmony. Artists take great pains to achieve some perfect harmony, such as the level of poetry, the sequence of movements, the management layout of pictures, and the scheduling of characters on the stage. The degree of harmony of artistic works reflects the level of an artist. By extension, all activities that achieve perfection and harmony through business arrangements can be called an artistic creation activity. Therefore, a person who truly understands and grasps China's artistic spirit will be able to skillfully use artistic techniques to manage and arrange various complex relationships between nature, society and people, so as to achieve a reasonable and optimal state of harmony. The importance of artistic accomplishment to life can be seen here.

Confucianism also put forward a problem of "changing temperament" in the theory of cultivation. The so-called "temperament" is said by many Confucians to be congenital, while others think it is acquired. From the perspective of modern science, the so-called "temperament" has a certain relationship with some innate physiological characteristics of individuals, but the most important thing is the influence of the acquired environment, which is roughly equivalent to what we call "habits" today. Changing temperament and habits, that is, the character cultivation mentioned above. Zhang Zai, a famous philosopher in the Northern Song Dynasty, attached great importance to the change of temperament. He believes that the greatest advantage of learning is to make people consciously change their temperament, otherwise, learning is harmful to people. And the change of temperament is related to whether you can be modest [20]. From this point of view, the "temperament" mentioned by Confucianism contains certain derogatory meanings, which is related to the habit of impetuous arrogance. Therefore, the "temperament change" emphasized by Confucianism, if viewed from the front, mainly refers to the cultivation and exercise of self-restraint and will.

A cocky, self-righteous, overbearing, talkative person, people will definitely say that he is a person who lacks self-restraint. Therefore, the key and goal of changing temperament to become a cultivated person is to be honest with others, which is what people call cultivation time. Among Confucius' disciples, Zeng Shen is a person who pays special attention to self-cultivation. He said that "three provinces a day" (The Analects of Confucius Learn) is a well-known saying. In addition, he strongly advocates asking people who are less talented and knowledgeable than himself. And you have to act like an uneducated person with an empty stomach. Even if you are bullied by others, don't argue with others. He said that one of his former friends (Yan Yuan) practiced according to this teaching [2 1]. It is not easy for a person to be modest and prudent about anything at any time, especially to have a clear conscience as Ceng Zi said, which requires a long period of self-cultivation. Xu Gan, a thinker at the end of Han Dynasty, once said: A person's personality is like a vessel. The container can only be filled when it is empty, but it can't be filled when it is full. Therefore, a person should always be modest and respectful, and should not be superior because of his outstanding talent. See the advantages of others everywhere, but always see your own shortcomings. In this way, others will be willing to help you and teach you [22]. As the old saying goes, "Human nature is evil and modest." ("Book of Changes, Qian Gua" Xun Yue) added: "Full of losses, modest benefits." ("Shangshu Dayu Mo") "A gentleman is a virtual person. "(Meet in the Book of Changes) These are the philosophies of life advocated by Confucian scholars, and they are still the wisdom of being a man.

Liu Xiang, a famous Confucian scholar in the Han Dynasty, recorded a story in Shuo Yuan. Confucius was inspired by a vessel ("dagger") in the temple of the Zhou Dynasty, which was flat when filled with water and overturned when filled with water. Lutz's question further led to Confucius' discussion about "the way to hold the whole" as "the way to lose the whole" and how to "lose the whole". The so-called "damage it" is to scoop out some from a vessel full of water so that it will not overturn. As far as people's self-cultivation is concerned, the specific content of deviance is just as Confucius said: "High and capable, full and empty, rich and frugal, expensive and humble, intelligent and stupid, eloquent and timid, knowledgeable and shallow, bright and dark". This is called "loss without promise", that is, to maintain a certain emptiness, not to the extreme. Finally, Confucius said with great certainty: "Only sages can do this." [23] Today, we regard this story and Confucius's "all-way" and "lost-way" as teaching materials for personal cultivation, which are still quite vivid and profound.

Mencius set three signs for the "real person" (real man) in his mind, that is, "wealth can't be lewd, poverty can't be moved, and powerful people can't bend." (Mencius Teng Wengong II) Indeed, if a person can really do these three things, then he is truly worthy of heaven and earth and has noble character. However, it is not easy for a person to truly achieve these three points. He needs to cultivate his moral character for a long time and establish a correct outlook on life and values in order to do it. In this respect, it is worthy of our attention that Confucianism educates people with the most realistic value choices in life, such as "righteousness and benefit", "public and private", "bitterness and happiness" and "life and death". Because modern people's moral cultivation education is also inseparable from these basic life value choices. Many brilliant expositions of Confucian scholars in this respect can undoubtedly serve as a guide for people's moral cultivation today.

When it comes to "justice and benefit", the general tendency of Confucianism is to value justice over benefit, put justice before benefit, and advocate using justice to control benefit, so as to see benefit [24]. In today's utilitarian world, if someone follows the precept of "taking sincerity as a friend, not seeking profit, knowing his way and not counting his merits" advocated by Dong Zhongshu, a great scholar in Han Dynasty, it will be regarded as pedantic. In fact, no matter which society, there are always some pedantic people who only ask about cultivation and don't ask about utility. Their sincerity and noble character are beyond reproach. We don't ask every member of society to do this, but to achieve this state. However, we always don't want every member of society to haggle over every ounce for utility! Of course, we don't want everyone to be mercenary and forget righteousness. Therefore, it is not too much to ask people to follow the motto revised by Yan Yuan, a great scholar in the early Qing Dynasty: "Make friends for their own benefit, know their ways and count their merits" (Four Books, Volume I, Correcting the Fallacy).

On the issue of "public and private", Confucianism has always emphasized selflessness, putting public before private, advocating public and forgetting private, and opposing false public and helping private. With the development of the times, the specific objects and contents of "public" and "private" have undergone fundamental changes. But in dealing with the relationship between public and private, I think these principles emphasized by Confucianism are still correct and effective today.

On the issue of "bitterness and happiness", Confucianism has always discussed bitterness and happiness not by the richness of material life, but by the enrichment of spiritual life; I also think that personal pain and happiness are nothing, and the pain and happiness of all people are the real greatest pain and happiness. Historically, Confucian scholars regarded "Confucius and Chu" as a kind of "happiness" that was content with material poverty and pursued spiritual enrichment [25]. Mencius, on the other hand, opposed "having fun alone" and emphasized "having fun with the people". He once took music appreciation as an example, saying that it is better to be happy with others if one is happy; It is better to be happy with a few people than to be happy with everyone. Fan Zhongyan, a great statesman in the Northern Song Dynasty, famously said: "Worry about the world first, and then enjoy the world" (The Story of Yueyang Tower), which can be said to be a concentrated expression of the Confucian concept of "bitter and happy".

Regarding the issue of "life and death", Confucius said that "life and death have a life" (The Analects of Confucius Yan Yuan) represents the basic attitude of Confucianism towards the issue of natural life and death. For the question of life and death from social reasons, Confucianism is always associated with such issues as "justice and benefit" and "public and private", and always advocates "killing for life" and "sacrificing life for justice" while opposing "drag out an ignoble existence". These basic concepts and spirits of Confucianism about "bitterness and happiness" and "life and death" are still worthy of recognition and emulation.

three

Confucianism attaches great importance to the "unity of knowledge and action" in the theory of cultivation, which means that cultivation should not only clarify the truth in understanding, but also practice in behavior. Therefore, they put forward many concrete cultivation methods in "seeking knowledge" and "practicing", and there are also many things for today's people to choose good. The following options will be introduced.

Confucianism stresses self-cultivation, and the first thing is determination. The so-called "determination" is to set up a grand and firm ambition and clarify one's responsibilities and goals. Mencius said: "Therefore, the sky is going to descend on people, so we must first suffer their minds, work their bones and muscles, starve their bodies and skin, and mess with their actions." Therefore, their patience has increased their incompetence. " This is a familiar passage. He pointed out the fact that if a person wants to shoulder the heavy responsibility of the world, he must be tempered by all kinds of difficulties and hardships. It can also be seen that only those who are ambitious and determined will consciously practice and take the initiative to accept all kinds of difficulties and hardships. Xia Zi, a disciple of Confucius, said: Learn from others, aim high, seek advice sincerely, and think with practice, and benevolence is among them [27]. When Song Ruchengyi explained the first sentence, he said: "I don't learn widely, I don't keep my word, I don't have good thoughts, I don't practice" [28], clearly pointing out the importance of firm ambition for self-cultivation. On the other hand, a person who is not determined in his ambition can't practice successfully; However, a person without ambition can only be an independent person at most.

Confucianism regards "self-seeking", "improvement" and "thinking about morality" as the essence of self-cultivation. Confucius said, "A gentleman seeks for himself, while a villain seeks for others." (The Analects of Confucius Wei Linggong) So he always emphasized that "if you don't know what others don't know, you can't suffer from it." And it has always been "don't complain about the sky, don't treat people" ("The Analects of Confucius"). Mencius said more specifically: if you love others and others are not close to you, you should reflect on whether your kindness is sincere; If you govern others and others do not obey your governance, you should reflect on whether your wisdom is enough; If you are polite to others and others don't respect you, you should reflect on whether your behavior is sincere or not. In short, if all actions fail to achieve the expected results, we should "seek for ourselves" [29]. Self-criticism is to be able to find your own shortcomings or mistakes, make up for them, and have the courage to correct them. Confucianism allows people to make mistakes, but only asks people to correct them. Just as Confucius said: "Too much is too late, not afraid of change" (The Analects of Confucius, Learning and Thinking) "Too much is too late to change." (The Analects of Confucius Wei Linggong) When explaining this idea, Cheng Yi further developed and said: "There is no other learning method. If you know that it is not good, you will quickly change it. " He also said, "The way for a gentleman to cultivate himself should be like this." Zhu also said: "If autonomy is not brave, evil will grow, so if it has happened, we must correct it quickly and don't be afraid of difficulties." [30] To make up for the shortcomings, we must be good at discovering the strengths of others and actively learn from their strengths. This is what Confucianism often says: "See Si Qi". And if you see the "immoral" side of others, you should quickly reflect on it in order to correct it [3 1]. Self-cultivation is to adapt and transform the environment through long-term self-exercise and self-transformation in peacetime. Therefore, Confucianism's emphasis on "self-discipline", "self-criticism", "teaching four qualities" and "improvement" is still an effective way for us to cultivate today.

In the aspect of "being strict with oneself", Confucianism also put forward the cultivation method of "being cautious and independent". The so-called "cautious independence" mainly means to lead an honest and clean life. For example, Mencius said: Ancient people were generous to the people when they succeeded, and cultivated their moral character when they failed. When a person is not enlightened, he should be "immune", and when enlightened, he should "help the world" [32]. Mencius' so-called "being alone" means "leading an honest and clean life". Xunzi first put forward the proposition of "cautious independence" and linked it with the concept of "sincerity" (sincerity does not deceive). He believes that the most important thing in a person's cultivation is "sincerity". A gentleman puts virtue first, so he is understood, close and respected because he can be cautious. However, only sincerity can be cautious, only caution can show the highest moral character, dominate everything and educate the people "[33]. Later, the important Confucian classics "Daxue" and "The Doctrine of the Mean" also emphasized "cautious independence", which further developed the "sincerity" thought emphasized by Xunzi. For example, "being cautious" is interpreted as "sincerity", and "sincerity" means "not deceiving yourself"; In other words, people should be extra careful not to do bad things where they can't see or hear [34]. Later generations extended this meaning, and there was the so-called "don't cheat the darkroom." Neo-Confucianism in Song and Ming Dynasties highly praised the cultivation method of "cautious independence", so it was often criticized and denied by people in modern times. However, I remembered what Zhu said when explaining the sentence of "cautious independence" in "University": "Independence is a place that people don't know but they only know. It is reasonable to say that people who want to practice know that they are good in order to exorcise evil spirits, so it is necessary to use their strength to prohibit themselves from deceiving themselves. How can a person who can't even "deceive himself" talk about self-cultivation?

Self-cultivation, like other things, starts from bit by bit and can be done wholeheartedly and persistently, otherwise the purpose of self-cultivation will not be achieved. Xunzi once said: although the road is near, if you don't go, you won't get there; Small as it is, you can't do it without doing it. A person who often does nothing will never succeed. Therefore, it is impossible to reach a thousand miles without accumulating from half a step to half a step. Without a collection of small rivers, there would be no rivers and seas. Xunzi also believes that people should have clear goals in self-cultivation. After the goal is set, as long as you stick to it, no matter what kind of person, fast or slow, first or later, it is always possible to achieve it. A swift horse can travel thousands of miles every day, and a horse can run for ten days. Similarly, as long as you go straight ahead, a lame turtle can go thousands of miles away; As long as a basket keeps going up, it will always pile up into a high mountain [35]. Perseverance and singleness are also inseparable. Mencius told the story that Qiu Yi taught two people to play chess. One was absorbed and the other was half-hearted. Mencius cited this example to criticize the "one day's violence, ten days' cold", which is the phenomenon of perseverance [36]. Determination, concentration and perseverance are the keys for practitioners to achieve their cultivation goals. Xunzi has two very incisive words, which can be used as our motto of self-cultivation and self-cultivation: "Persevere, you can't carve a rotten wood;" Perseverance, stones can be smashed. " "People without ambition are useless; He has nothing to do with hehe. " ("Xunzi, Encourage Learning")

As the saying goes, "those who are near the ink are black, and those who are near the ink are black." The influence of environment, teachers and friends on a person can not be ignored. Therefore, Confucius regards being a neighbor with benevolent people as a beautiful thing, and thinks that if you can't choose a neighbor with benevolent people, you can't be regarded as a wise man [37]. Xunzi, on the other hand, repeatedly emphasized "being a teacher and being friends with others". In his view, no matter how good his original qualifications are and how smart he is, he must "find a mentor and do things." Choose a good friend and be your friend, and then you can make continuous progress. If you stay with the bad guys all day, even if you fall into the criminal network, you will end up in a daze! Therefore, as the saying goes, "I wonder if my son takes his friends seriously." [38] He also said that the so-called friends are helping each other on the basis of the same ideals. How can they help each other without the same ideal? So he warned: "Don't take friends casually" [39]. This is an aspect that people can never ignore in practice, otherwise their long-term practice results will be destroyed by improper teachers and careless friends.

Inconsistency between words and deeds is the most despised in Confucian cultivation theory. Confucius said: the ancients did not speak easily because they were afraid that they could not do it in action. He also said: A gentleman is ashamed to talk more and do less [40]. All these require people to be consistent in their words and deeds. A person's ambition is great, but if he is just a person who doesn't keep his word, he is not as good as those who say a little and do a little.

These Confucian cultivation methods and requirements mentioned above are only a small part of all Confucian cultivation methods and requirements. In my opinion, these training methods and requirements, after modern interpretation, can be provided for today's training for reference and adoption.

Confucianism believes that self-cultivation is the foundation of being a man. To achieve "keeping the family in order", "governing the country" and "leveling the world", we must start with "self-cultivation", so they said: "From the emperor to Shu Ren, self-cultivation is fundamental." (University) I don't think cultivation has that great effect, because the decisive force of social economy far exceeds the educational force of morality. However, I don't think we can give up our efforts in moral education and deny the necessity of self-cultivation. Humans should not be reduced to simple economic animals. He should turn himself into a slave to the material civilization he created. People should use their material and economic achievements to purify people's living environment and improve people's moral quality. Cultivation will make people realize this. The more developed the material civilization, the more important the spiritual civilization and the more indispensable the cultivation. Therefore, I think that today, primary schools, middle schools and universities should consider setting up a "self-cultivation course" as an important content of adolescent development education; As an important part of adult lifelong education, all kinds of career-related "self-cultivation" activities should be widely and regularly carried out among employees.

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