How to understand the Confucian gentleman's personality in China's traditional virtues

Reflections on Confucian "Gentleman's Personality"

Confucian philosophy is the mainstream of China's traditional philosophy, and axiology is the core of Confucian philosophy, while "gentleman's personality" is related to its axiology and is an important part of its axiology. Confucian axiology yearns for the nobility of individual morality and the popularization of social morality, that is, the pursuit of an ideal personality and an ideal society-a gentleman's personality and a benign society. This value goal has had a far-reaching influence in the process of shaping the character and personality of the Chinese nation. Even now, it is still rooted in the psychological bottom of a large number of China people. Although there are many negative factors in Confucian axiology, it is not conducive to the development of reform and opening up and market economy until someone shouts "Confucian culture should retire". Perhaps because of this, I think it is necessary to reflect on China's traditional culture, cut open the value system of Confucian philosophy, distinguish gains and losses, merits and demerits, and establish people's correct attitude towards it.

We know that Confucianism has created an ethical value system and pursued an ideal personality. From the historical data, we can also know that there are many sayings about this ideal personality in Confucianism: "sage", "sage", "benevolent" and "ambitious". However, the most typical and ideal is the "gentleman". The basic characteristics and lofty values of a gentleman's personality have been fully discussed and highly respected by Confucianism from Confucius and Mencius to Song and Ming Dynasties. So, what is the "gentleman" pursued by Confucianism? In other words, what conditions should the "gentleman" pursued by Confucianism have? Below, I will talk about my immature views from four aspects:

(1) Benevolence, wisdom and courage

Confucian philosophers believe that a gentleman should have three virtues: benevolence, wisdom and courage. In other words, it is often said: "The benevolent is not worried, the wise is not confused, and the brave is not afraid." "Benevolence" here refers to morality. Regarding benevolence, the "gentleman" shaped by Confucianism almost includes all the virtues. Xie Wuliang once selected 48 books on virtue scattered in The Analects of Confucius, Poems and Books: Sincerity, Respect, Forgiveness, Loyalty and Filial Piety. These books all came from the mouth of Confucianism (many of them came from the mouth of Confucius), and the most clear one was Confucius' answer to Yan Yuan's question about benevolence, which should be regarded as a comprehensive and positive exposition of benevolence. "Asked Yan Yuanren. Confucius said: self-denial is benevolence. A day of self-denial and self-denial, the world returns to benevolence "("Yan Yuan "). In addition, there is a passage written by Confucius to Zigong: "If you want to stand up, you want to achieve it, which is close to analogy, and you can be said to be a benevolent person" ("Ode to Leaves"). Of these two paragraphs, the former one is about self-denial and self-denial. The latter is about self-improvement. In terms of self-discipline, the former focuses on the political tendency of benevolence, while the latter focuses on the positive side, but it is also inseparable from self-discipline and self-discipline principles. Mencius also said: "Benevolence is also a human being, and the way to combine words is also." ("exclusive"). In other words: the way to be a man is, in a word, benevolence. After Mencius, Dong Zhongshu's benevolence thought was most clear in Han Dynasty. He distinguishes benevolence and righteousness from others and himself, loving others for benevolence and strengthening the righteous for righteousness. In essence, benevolence is the way of doing things. However, this Tao has a lofty realm. Mao Zedong once interpreted it as friendship and unity, which is reasonable.

Wisdom: the meaning of talent and wisdom. "The wise are not confused". Only by mastering comprehensive knowledge can a person not be confused by fantasy, and it is possible to move from the inevitable realm to the free realm. Confucius advocated learning on the basis of predecessors, "no practice, no room" (advanced). He emphasized "erudite in literature" (Ode to Leaves), "tireless in learning, not regretting others" (Book II), "forgetting suffering but not eating", and "a gentleman does not eat, does not seek peace at home, is sensitive to things, and is cautious about words, so he can be said to be eager to learn." (learning). He himself is such a studious person all his life. "The deceased is like a husband, staying up all night" ("Zi Han") is proof. Therefore, he became an unparalleled scholar than his contemporaries and even for a long time to come. He himself said: "I am determined to learn nine times out of ten, stand at thirty and not be confused at forty." "Know your destiny at fifty, listen to your ears at sixty, and do what you want at seventy, without exceeding the rules." ("Politics") shows that he is studious.

Yong: From the perspective of the whole Confucian philosophy, Yong doesn't talk much, but it is an important part of achieving benevolence and becoming a gentleman. "The brave are not afraid", "If you don't do the right thing, you will be brave." It can be seen that the courage mentioned by Confucianism mainly refers to a person's temperament and courage. If a person is timid, he can't achieve great things in any case.

Benevolence, wisdom and courage are integrated, in which benevolence is the center, the wise know benevolence and the brave act, that is to say, only wisdom and courage can achieve benevolence. And thus constitutes an ideal personality who believes in learning, is good at death and commits suicide.

(2) Pay equal attention to literature and quality.

Confucius, an outstanding representative of Confucianism, put forward: "A gentleman is gentle" (harmony), that is to say, a gentleman's personality includes two elements: "literature" and "quality". The so-called quality here refers to the internal moral quality, and its content is still based on "benevolence and righteousness". Mencius said, "A gentleman is different from others because of his intention." A gentleman is considerate with benevolence and considerate with courtesy. (Li Lou) Confucius said: "The righteousness of a gentleman is the foundation" ("Wei Linggong"), and said: "The business of a gentleman is based on this and born of the Tao. Filial piety is also the foundation of benevolence! " (Xue Ji). Besides, the virtues of a gentleman are wisdom and courage. The so-called "Wen" refers to the knowledge literacy, high cultural accomplishment and elegant and solemn manners of ancient cultural classics, with knowledge, etiquette and manners as the content. Therefore, "literature" is always associated with "learning" and "music". "A gentleman is knowledgeable in the text, and makes an appointment with him to benefit"; (Yongye), "Writing with courtesy and music", "Courtesy with deeds, discouragement with words" (Wei Linggong); "The color is gentle, and the appearance is respectful." If you look at it, it will be warm. "Just dress your clothes and respect your vision" and so on all belong to the quality content of "Wen". Sima Guang said: "The so-called literati in ancient times were poems, books, rituals, music, ups and downs, the sound of elegant songs, and praises" (Answer to Secretary Wenzhong Kong) can generally summarize all aspects of the quality of the gentleman's "writing" mentioned by Confucianism. Confucianism believes that the quality of a gentleman's personality should be the perfect unity of benevolence, righteousness, morality (quality) and knowledge and culture (literature), so Confucius opposes having only one quality and ignoring the one-sidedness of the other. As the saying goes, "quality is better than literature, and literature is better than quality" (Chanting Leaves). That is to say, a text with benevolence, righteousness and moral quality, though simple, is rather dry, poor and rustic and unworthy of being a gentleman; On the contrary, only the culture of rites and music without the quality of benevolence, righteousness and morality is flashy hypocrisy and unworthy of being a gentleman. Of course, among the two quality structures, Confucianism emphasizes "quality"-that is, moral quality, which requires a gentleman to be "upright" and "not disobeying benevolence". It also points out that "literature" should serve "quality" and advocates that "a gentleman should learn his way", "learn to be an excellent official" and "take literature as his friend and help others with benevolence". "

(3) Value righteousness over profit

Value righteousness over profit is the basic values of Confucian gentlemen. A gentleman does not lose his righteousness, but a weak man does not lose his will. "A gentleman is poor, a villain is poor and extravagant" (Wei Linggong). This is not to say that Confucianism does not understand the relationship between lust and people, but only attaches importance to righteousness, that is, the cultivation of people's moral quality, as opposed to profit. Confucius is a very practical person. He not only admitted that being rich and expensive is what people want, but also said, "Being rich and seeking, although I am a whipping man, I will do it" (Shu Er). However, he still regards interests lightly, and regards the distinction between righteousness and interests as the dividing line between gentlemen and villains. He put forward: "A gentleman is righteous, and a villain benefits" ("Establishing a Man"), "A gentleman is virtuous, a villain likes soil, a gentleman is pregnant with punishment, and a villain likes profit" ("Establishing a Man"), and Mencius is more righteous than Confucius. He believes that all actions must be based on righteousness, not to mention other concerns. "My Lord, you don't have to believe what you say, and what you do doesn't have to be fruitful. What you mean is lies. ""An impolite gift is improper, only adults do it "(Li Lou). "Gao Zi" also mentioned: "Seek advantages and avoid disadvantages, and treat others with benevolence". Since Confucius and Mencius, most Confucian scholars have regarded the debate between justice and benefit as the fundamental difference between a gentleman and a villain, and regarded the view of justice and benefit as the basic symbol of "gentleman's personality" Zhu Zeng, a famous philosopher in the Southern Song Dynasty, once said: "The theory of justice and benefit is the first meaning of Confucianism." (Zhu Wengong Collection, Volume 24, A Letter with Mr. Li Yanping) Until Wang Fuzi still insisted on this value concept, thinking that "the debate between a gentleman and a villain, the difference between a man and a bird, is righteousness and benefit." (History as a Mirror, page 6 1) The value of valuing righteousness over profit is manifested in life, that is, attaching importance to the improvement of moral realm and opposing the pursuit of material life enjoyment. Confucianism emphasizes that a gentleman's mind is not a shape, and God is not a thing. He should pursue noble spiritual realm, moral perfection and spiritual purification, and despise and belittle those who only care about petty profits. Confucius said, "Being unjust and rich is like a cloud to me." "A gentleman seeks Tao without seeking food, while a villain seeks food without seeking Tao", "A gentleman worries about Tao without worrying about poverty" and "A gentleman does not have enough to eat and is restless". He can be poor and live a poor life all his life, but he still maintains a vigorous mental state and is an example to his disciples.

(D) Open-minded, the beauty of adults

Confucianism believes that a gentleman is "not small but big" (in the words of Confucius) and a person who "entrusts God's will to Sri Lanka" (in the words of Mencius). The social responsibility of a gentleman is to prepare for the realization of benevolence and righteousness in the world. "The official position of a gentleman is to carry out its righteousness"; "Different people have different opinions, and wise people have different opinions" (argument). Because a gentleman has a long way to go, he must cultivate his responsibility. In this regard, a gentleman should have a high degree of consciousness. "The gentleman is incompetent and not a confidant of the patient." "A gentleman is ill and has no reputation" (The Analects of Confucius). He requires himself to have a high sense of responsibility, be sensitive and cautious, be open-minded, be eager to learn, be brave to mend his ways, be loyal to his boss, strive for the best, be good at getting along with others and be self-disciplined. Only in this way can a gentleman shoulder the heavy responsibility of the country and complete his mission. "You can entrust an orphan with six feet, and you can send a thousand miles of life, and the big festival cannot be taken away" (The Analects of Confucius). A gentleman should be open-minded and beautiful when he grows up. We should: "cherish but not fight" and "group without party" (Wei Linggong), that is to say, we should be proud but not fight, get along with others without sectarianism, be strict with ourselves, and "be a gentleman"; "Say a big letter, not a small letter" and "A gentleman is loyal and will not forgive" (Wei Linggong). "Don't lie, don't believe, hold on." What I want to make clear here is that the so-called "indisputable" of Confucianism does not mean that we do not strive to achieve our ideal goals. At this point, Confucianism still advocates Zhang Weizhi's struggle, advocating "loyalty as a teacher", "the brave have no fear" and "the brave have righteousness". Confucianism's indisputable requirement for the cultivation of gentleman's personality is not seeking profit. The so-called "food is not enough, living is uneasy", "desire is not greedy", "abstinence from color" and "abstinence from virtue" all refer to this. Second, when dealing with interpersonal relationships, don't fight with others, be strict with yourself and value harmony. The so-called gentleman's "Thai but not arrogant", "mighty but not fierce", "proud but not contending", "harmonious but different" and "adult beauty" also refer to this. Third, it means not fighting for power and doing things that exceed one's authority. The so-called "not in place, not seeking political affairs" is spotless. These three points are the indisputable main contents of Confucianism in the cultivation of gentleman's personality. Therefore, we can't simply understand the dispute between Confucian gentlemen as a kind gentleman who wants people to distinguish right from wrong regardless of principles. When getting along with others, he is blindly harmonious. "Righteousness is quality, courtesy is action, and inferiority is out" (Wei Linggong). We know that the fundamental goal of Confucian philosophy lies in: on the one hand, the pursuit of harmony between people. Harmony between man and nature. "Man and everything in the world are one" and "all the seas are brothers". On the other hand, it has a positive and optimistic spirit. Although Confucius acknowledged the destiny, he did not wait for it passively, but actively tried to reach the highest state that human beings could reach. Confucius is a loyal realist who actively joined the WTO, emphasizing "inner sage and outer king", "self-cultivation, keeping the family in harmony, and governing the country to level the world", demanding that the inner ideological accomplishment be externalized into the work of governing the country and securing the country, and emphasizing rejuvenating the country and turning the people into customs. Yi Zhuan puts forward the important principles of "vigorous", "innovation" and "self-improvement", advocates vigorous spirit, publicizes innovation, encourages progress and constantly improves. It can be seen that the attitudes of Confucianism, especially Confucius, are inconsistent, but not contradictory, just as we advocate party spirit, principle, spirit of struggle, flexibility and unity. Confucius' attitude towards life is a reflection of the complex social reality of feudalism, constant wars, internal intrigue and intrigue between countries during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. It is in this ambivalent state of mind that he spent his life with the ambivalence of "knowing what he can't do". The "harmony" put forward by Confucianism is aimed at the chaotic struggle situation in which you have me and I have you, and exhorts people to "value harmony" in order to achieve the purpose of national security and stability.

In addition, Confucianism also regards the thinking mode of "grasping one thing and using two things" as a necessary condition for a gentleman's personality. Confucianism requires gentlemen to think in accordance with the principle of "the doctrine of the mean", which means that "gentlemen are moderate and villains are against the doctrine of the mean" (the doctrine of the mean). The "golden mean" way of thinking here refers to: directly combining the two ends of contradictions, so that the two sides are in a state of harmony and unity, and each side develops within its own appropriate limits, and cannot break through its own limits and overwhelm the other side, so as not to cause the destruction of the unity of contradictions. Therefore, it is also called "double use" (the golden mean). Therefore, Confucianism has both opposition and opposition, and thinks that both of them are out of control, that is, going too far. Confucianism believes that the golden mean way of thinking is the most ideal way of thinking and the noblest morality. It advocates that gentlemen apply the golden mean to their own work and cultivation, so as to achieve "week without comparison", "harmony without difference", "group without party", "Thailand without arrogance" and "pride without contention" (The Analects of Confucius

To sum up, the "gentleman" entrusted the ideal personality of Confucianism and extracted the fine qualities of the people of China in previous dynasties, which almost became the embodiment of China's traditional morality, laid the foundation for the formation of traditional morality with strong oriental colors and played a very important role. Marx said: "The whole history is nothing more than the constant change of human nature" (The Complete Works of Marx and Engels, Volume IV, p. 174). After thousands of years of evolution, China's traditional morality has finally formed the crystallization of China people's fine morality, such as loyalty, firmness, integrity, enthusiasm, courage, fortitude, modesty, caution, self-denial and fortitude. As a category of traditional morality, these fine qualities have been deeply condensed in the traditional morality of China people, and at the same time, they also inspire people to practice with corresponding moral behaviors. Personally, it can constitute a person's noble moral sentiment; From the perspective of the whole society, it is bound to form the unique good customs and habits of the Chinese nation, which are different from other foreign nationalities. In the history, those people with lofty ideals who fought selflessly for the motherland, the people, the truth and gave their lives for righteousness are the brilliance of China's traditional morality. Obviously, the image of "gentleman" created by Confucianism has set an example in the old traditional culture and morality and has far-reaching influence. However, a historical investigation of the Confucian ideal personality, the gentleman, is obviously branded with feudal morality, exposing the great servility of the gentleman and the blind belief in propriety, loyalty, filial piety, chastity and righteousness in the feudal patriarchal clan system similar to religion. Therefore, the "gentleman" advocated by Confucianism will inevitably become the victim of the old ethics criticized by Mr. Lu Xun. Yes, Confucianism says, "A gentleman can't eat enough, and he can't live in peace; Ethical norms such as "sensitive things and cautious words", benevolence, courtesy and wisdom, filial piety, loyalty, softness, respect and courtesy. Absorbed the Taoist thought of inaction, contentment and not being the first in the world, and formed a very strict and perfect coordinated Taoist system. Benevolence, courtesy and wisdom, to put it bluntly, require people to live in the feudal hierarchy that has been formed, and don't try to cross the hierarchy or destroy it, otherwise it is heartless. Filial piety to parents, filial piety to brothers, the relationship between up and down, left and right are bound by moral norms. Everyone is fixed in a crisscross knot and becomes a point on the unshakable ethical relationship network. " I can't think of my position. Don't say or do anything crazy. I shouldn't even have any crazy ideas beyond my position. The whole morality is used to coordinate the interpersonal relationship between the ruler and the ruled, between all classes and among family members. All this has not restrained the development of people's personality, and it is certainly not conducive to the development of market economy. We know that to develop a market economy, we must first emancipate our minds and dare to think, speak and do. The general trend of China's ethical life holds that what is needed is the strong. The strong are no longer the result of the rulers' ignorant policies, but the embodiment that the people dominate their own destiny, not only coordinating interpersonal relationships, but always transforming nature and society and being brave in innovation and development. This is the result of the development of the times, the result of human evolution and the requirement of the development of market economy. I hope that more powerful people will emerge in the tide of market economy.