The disadvantages of filial piety in the culture of filial piety

In our country, being unfilial is the greatest sin, and even if a person has ten million virtues, as long as he or she is unfilial, he or she will be immediately attacked by everyone. But I'll risk universal condemnation and say honestly that Chinese filial piety is actually a big problem, and it's really not worth advocating in a hurry without being reformed.

The Xiaojing (Classic of Filial Piety) says, "Filial piety begins with serving one's parents, continues with serving one's ruler, and culminates in the establishment of one's own body." How come there is a "serve the king" article here? Don't underestimate this article, coercion, all in it. The Book of Filial Piety also says: "The body, the hair and the skin, are received by the parents, do not dare to destroy them, the beginning of filial piety; to establish oneself and to be famous in the future, to show off one's parents, the end of filial piety." In addition, the "Rituals and Sacrifices" says: "Great filial piety honors one's parents; the next one is not humiliated, and the next one is able to raise them." Disobeying the king's order may injure and humiliate the body and name at the time, which is naturally unfilial, and this is coercion. But if one is tempted to do so, one can make one's name known, as the saying goes, "If one does not leave one's parents in a bad name, one can be said to be filial. Therefore, the Book of Rites and Sacrifices says, "It is not filial piety to live in an unfaithful place; it is not filial piety to be unfaithful to a ruler; it is not filial piety to be disrespectful to an official; it is not filial piety to be distrustful of one's friends; it is not filial piety to be unafraid to fight in a battle; it is not filial piety. If one fails to fulfill these five requirements, one's family will be affected, so how dare one not honor them?" If filial piety is developed to this extent, it will become funny.

Another problem with traditional filial piety is the patriarchal system. If you say that "filial piety and brotherhood is the foundation of benevolence", the subtext of this sentence is actually "filial piety is the foundation of virtue and the reason for teaching". Why do they say that filial piety is the first of all good things? Because their logic is: you do not love your parents and relatives, who will you love? You can only be a beast! But for this reason, "the father is hidden for the son, and the son is hidden for the father", okay? It is naturally good to take care of those around us first, but this also tends to bring about a misunderstanding: Confucian love is to extend to oneself and others, and naturally, the first step is to extend to one's parents and relatives. However, this does not mean that it is not enough to extend love to parents! This is only the first step! If this is the only step, it will be extremely harmful to society! Zhuangzi said, "Selection is not comprehensive, teaching is not to", some favoritism, there is bound to be some neglect, hanging a million, inevitably. Because everyone has only the family concept but not the social concept, then the society will certainly be reduced to self-interest to maintain the patriarchal society! Self-interest is naturally not wrong, self-interest is one of the driving forces of human progress, but only self-interest without merit, and even for self-interest to the detriment of the public interest, is not to be! This kind of thinking originated in family-based agricultural production and was standardized and formed by thinkers. At this level, the monarchical autocracy came into being because of the need to safeguard the private interests of the family. There was no monarch who did not prioritize his own interests as well as those of his own family, and for that reason, they could sacrifice everything! And when we lament the weak cohesion of Chinese society, have we ever wondered why this is so? It is because everyone still has the family concept in mind. Although this family concept has now been dramatically degraded into a family concept because it is no longer a gathering of clans, it is even more y rooted because the scope of interests is much smaller! And for the kings, the people are scattered, the lack of social cohesion is what is favorable to their regime, their family interests! That's what Lu Xun said, "Their (the people's) being like sand was successfully 'ruled' by the rulers, in literary terms, 'ruling performance'."

Another issue that can be discussed is the development of filial piety from an ethical concept to a metaphysical one, represented by the great scholar of science Zhang Zai Zhang Hengqu. West inscription" is Zhang Zai on filial piety text, although longer, but very expressive of Zhang Zai's thinking, let's take a number of excerpts:

Qian called the father, Kun called the mother; I am here to defy, is mixed in the center of the place. Therefore, the heaven and earth of the plug, my body; heaven and earth of the handsome, my nature. The people, my compatriots; things, I and also. The great ruler, my parents Zongzi; its ministers, Zongzi home phase also. Respect for the elderly, so long as they are long; compassion for the weak and orphaned, so young as they are young; the holy, their combined virtue; the wise, their show. All the people in the world, including the infirm, the disabled, the homeless, the widowed, and the widowed, are all my brothers who are in a state of confusion and have no one to tell them to. If you want to protect them at the right time, you can do it with the wings of your son; if you are happy and not worried, you can do it with filial piety. Violation of the said disobedience, harming benevolence is said to be a thief, to help the evil people are not talented, and its practice shape, but also the Xiao. Knowing the chemistry is good to describe its affairs, poor God is good to follow its will. Not ashamed of the house leak for no忝，存心养性为匪懈。 If you don't want to drink wine, you will be able to raise your children; if you want to educate your talents, you will be able to fulfill the needs of the people. If you don't slacken your labor but whetstone your hesitation, Shun's merit is also; if you don't have to run away and wait for cooking, Shen Sheng's respect is also. The one who is able to receive and return to the fullness of the world is Sam! The one who is brave enough to obey orders is also Birch. Wealth and fortune, will be thick my life; poverty and sorrow, the vulgar jade girl in the success also. The first thing I'd like to do is to get the best out of my life, and then I'd like to get the best out of my life.

Many Taoists have criticized the Ximing because Zhang Zai expanded the scope of filial piety to include the care of the young, the sick, the widowed, the widowed, the orphaned, the young, the sick, the disabled, and the orphaned, which is a sign of Mozi's "love for all" idea. He even went so far as to say in Zhang Zi Zheng Meng Cheng Ming (张子正蒙-诚明), that "love must be both, and not only one, but also the other," directly mentioning the term "both" (兼愛). The word "both love" is directly mentioned. I specifically mentioned this issue of extending parents to heaven and earth because I want to say that the theory can thus be oriented towards loyalty to the Son of Heaven and the King, which is problematic in the first place. Secondly, I believe that caring for the young, the old, the sick, the widowed, the widowed, and the orphaned should be considered a social virtue in addition to supporting one's parents, but not filial piety. Supporting parents is a responsibility, while social morality is only a duty, here the concept of confusion can be a complement.