Reflections after reading "A Brief History of Chinese Philosophy"
Li Zhuxi, No. 13 Middle School of Yanji City
"A Brief History of Chinese Philosophy" is the most complete book I have ever read. This ideological note has made me deeply touched and benefited a lot. It is said that reading history can make you wise. To look at something, you need to understand the entire process of its formation, development and deduction, so that you can have a more thorough understanding of its current situation. Concepts of modern Chinese people It must be inextricably linked with ancient Chinese thought and philosophy. Now let me talk about my own experience.
First, Chinese people have always been considered to have no religious beliefs. This is indeed frustrating. It is a fact that is difficult for people to deny. Many people may think that most Chinese people pray to gods and worship Buddha devoutly, but it must be pointed out that these are just superstitions. For example, Chinese people are very particular about Feng Shui and are very taboo about certain things ( For example, numbers 4), etc., their piety is often full of utilitarianism, and every time they kneel down is with the hope of achieving a certain goal. This is undoubtedly a serious deviation from the spiritual essence of most religions, which is pure and ascetic, let alone idle talk. Religious. On this issue, Mr. Feng analyzed: "Chinese people are not so concerned about religion because they are too concerned about philosophy. Their religious consciousness is not strong because their philosophical consciousness is too strong. They find in philosophy They also express and appreciate the value that transcends ethics and morality in philosophy; in their philosophical life, they experience these values ??that transcend ethics and morality." Mr. Feng explained the way for Chinese people to transcend the real world and reach the other side. It is a bit far-fetched to boil it down to philosophical understanding, for two main reasons: 1. Mr. Feng overestimated the philosophical level of the Chinese people. In the West, more than 90% of people have religious beliefs; if this proportion is applied to Chinese people, In other words, "more than 90% of Chinese people have transcended the real world and reached the other side through philosophical understanding." This is not consistent with the consistent philosophical level of the Chinese people, or the level of attention to philosophy, because except for the Spring and Autumn philosophers" Except for the period when "a hundred schools of thought contended", Chinese philosophy has never become the mainstream culture in any period. In many cases, it has even tended to be marginalized and eliminated, so the 90% base cannot be obtained. 2. Mr. Feng also overestimated the Chinese people. As early as two thousand years ago, Xunzi painfully realized the sad fact that "nature is inherently evil." Two thousand years later, Lu Xun and Bo Yang ruthlessly criticized the Chinese people's bad nature. How much ugliness there is today makes us feel chilling. Mr. Feng lingers in the ivory tower he built. From his own unique emotional experience, he came to the conclusion that philosophy can help him reach the other side, but he intends to expand this extension infinitely. There is no doubt that I made a serious logical error. So I venture to think that instead of thinking about "how Chinese people transcend the real world and reach the other shore", it is more realistic to investigate "how many Chinese people transcend the real world and reach the other shore", because the latter only needs to be investigated. It is easy to get the answer by looking at how most Chinese people spend their time - or "how they spend their time". It is not feasible to explore how others engage in mental activities.
There is a very interesting phenomenon. The governments of most Western countries openly support religion. Some national leaders even take the lead in participating in some religious activities. Some countries even designate a certain religion as the state religion, but this is taboo in our country. Mo Shen is more politically sensitive. In my opinion, it is not necessary, and I think that a common religious belief will play an important role in uniting a nation, especially the Chinese nation, which is often criticized as "a piece of loose sand". This is far more effective than using words that are very "majestic" or "magnificent". In fact, most religions do not lead people to do evil, but teach people to do good. Buddhism The same is true for Christianity. Benevolence and love are the spiritual essence of their teachings. It is an indisputable fact that the overall quality of Westerners is better than that of Chinese people. Whether this is related to their common religious beliefs is worthy of careful study by Chinese people.
Second, the abandoned Mozi and the Mohist spirit. Mozi once practiced Confucianism, but later found that "the rituals were annoying and displeasing, he buried rich people in lavish burials and wasted money and made the poor poor, and long-term service hurt people's lives and caused trouble" ("Huainan") "Zi"), resolutely rebelled, founded the Mohist school with the principle of "promoting the benefits of the world and eliminating the harm of the world", advocating "universal love", "non-attack", "respecting the virtuous", "advocating unity", "frugal use", "Festival burial", "non-fate", "fei-happiness", etc. Among them, "universal love", that is, "loving all people equally" is Mozi's core proposition, which is consistent with the "kinship" and "respect for respect" advocated by Confucianism. The opposite of "push love". During the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Confucianism dominated, and hundreds of schools of thought
After being deposed, it is not difficult to know the conflict between the martial emperor and the Mohists who advocated "non-offensive". During the Seven Kingdoms Rebellion, because of the participation of Mohist disciples, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was furious and struck out three times to suppress the Mohists. The Mohists declined until the Tang Dynasty. It gradually began to rise again. Many people criticized Mozi and Mohist's ideas as unrealistic at that time, but today Mozi and Mohist are still abandoned by others. The essence is that today's China is still unable to implement "universal love". A report pointed out that the total number of multi-millionaires in my country is second only to Japan, ranking second in the world. However, only one person donated 2 million in a certain flood donation event. "It is not oneself who does not love", "It is not one's relatives who do not love", Chinese people have really taken Confucius's "promoting love" of "kissing" to the extreme. For this reason, I often think that if we can try to remove this "kissing", it means that the unique and powerful human relationship network in our country will be eliminated. To realize this ideal, whether our politics will be clearer and society will be more progressive, the spirit of Mozi and Mohism must be resurrected. In fact, careful readers can easily find that Mozi's "universal love" thought is closely related to the "fraternity" of many religions. "The thoughts are exactly the same, and it is precisely because of his lofty moral sentiments that Mozi has been highly respected for thousands of years, and is even known as the most moral person throughout the ages. This should be a great affirmation and praise for him.
Third, Laozi and Zhuangzi’s “doing nothing without doing anything” is not understood. Many people think that the “inaction” of Laozi and Zhuangzi means doing nothing, which is a huge mistake in understanding. Mr. Feng’s interpretation is: “Laozi He believes that things in the world are complicated and all kinds of troubles are not because things are done too little, but because things are done too much. When a sage governs a country, he does not mean to be busy doing things, but to abolish and abolish things that should not be done in the past, so as to "do nothing" ."The "rule of inaction" in the early Han Dynasty, the abolition of agricultural taxes and the reduction or exemption of various administrative approval procedures currently implemented in our country are essentially "abolition and abolition of things that should not have been done in the past", which is the embodiment of Lao and Zhuang's "inaction" thought .Recently, the management of universities has been criticized more and more, because institutions of higher learning that are supposed to be academic and scientific research-centered are now becoming more and more administrative, the academic atmosphere is getting weaker and weaker, and the "official" atmosphere is getting stronger and stronger. , more and more people miss Peking University in the past when hundreds of schools of thought contended, and denounce so much administrative interference now. To paraphrase Lao Tzu, "all kinds of troubles are caused by doing too much", which should be a strong evidence of the positive significance of the thought of "inaction" .Of course, things like those that endanger social security and the safety of people's lives and property should not only be done "inaction", but should also be done "bigly". As the saying goes, "do something and don't do something". This is what Lao Zhuang said. Complete thoughts must not be taken out of context. Lao Zhuang also has a very important ideological proposition, that is, "little desire", which is inevitably related to their "inaction" thought. According to the theory of "inaction", human activities should It is limited to the scope of "necessary and natural"; to put it simply, people should strive to be plain and simple in their conduct, and should not desire too much, otherwise they will be unable to satisfy their desires and sink into sinking. This idea undoubtedly has an impact on us and our society who are becoming increasingly impetuous. It has great enlightenment significance.
The above is what I learned from reading. It is simple to say but difficult to do. In the days to come, I will always keep my identity as a party member in mind, guide practice with theory, and start from bit by bit. Start from your own job, make progress in learning, mature in work, and hone in life.
Learning and experience of Confucian educational thought-----Reflections after reading "A Brief History of Chinese Philosophy" Geng Xiuying of Longjing No. 4 Middle School said that reading history can make you wise. "A Brief History of Chinese Philosophy" provides a more comprehensive understanding of the development of Chinese philosophy from ancient times to the present. The mainstream philosophical thoughts in Chinese feudal society mainly include Confucianism, Legalism, and Taoism. Confucianism emphasizes human relations, Legalism emphasizes clear distinction between rewards and punishments, and Taoism emphasizes inaction. Looking at Chinese philosophy, both Confucianism, Taoism, and Legalism focus on concrete human relations, so they are considered to be typical pragmatist philosophies. As a teacher, when studying the history of philosophy, I pay more attention to the impact of philosophical thoughts on education, especially the connection between the Confucian tradition and education. Confucianism has always been highly respected in education and teaching. After more than two thousand years, It is still shining brightly and can serve as a reference for future generations. During the study, we mainly think and experience from the following aspects: 1. The essence and development of Confucian thought The traditional culture of the Chinese nation is extensive, profound and has a long history. Confucianism is an important part of the traditional culture of the Chinese nation. The Confucian spirit is a spirit of "extreme wisdom and moderation". That is to say, greatness lies in the ordinary, and ideals lie in reality. That is to say, we must have moral courage, have a strong sense of justice, dare to take moral responsibility, and even risk our lives to achieve justice.
Confucianism believes that the value of human existence lies in the achievement of moral personality. As long as we establish our moral self and use our conscience as our master, we can transcend various situations in the world, transcend our instinctual desires, and carry out daily tasks with a transcendent spirit. The basic concept of Confucianism is "benevolence". "Benevolence" is the fundamental reason why humans are human. In fact, "Benevolence is the mutual communication of life, the universal connection and mutual nourishment between people, myself, the group, and the self. "Benevolence" is also the inner consciousness of the subject. You decide yourself, so Confucius said, "Be kind to oneself"; "I want to be benevolent, so benevolence is the best." The inner benevolence has great and noble moral value. The specific meaning of "benevolence" is "loving others", that is, "benevolence". A kind of broad compassion. All people have benevolence and are born with compassion, and can respond to the pain and joy of others. People with benevolence will treat others with love, both self-love and compassion. Love others; respect others while respecting others. “Benevolence” is a spirit of tolerance, loyalty and forgiveness. Confucius said: “Don’t do to others what you don’t want others to do to you. "You have to stand up for yourself, and at the same time make others stand up; you have to make everything work for yourself, and make everything work for others at the same time. The spirit of pre-Qin Confucianism is first of all the creative spirit of life, and the human understanding of the universe. A sense of origin. The greatest virtue of heaven and earth is to keep all things alive. "Yi" takes heaven and earth as the criterion, and the function of heaven and earth to keep alive is the endlessly changing function of "yi". ", the universe is a strong and powerful trend, and people should strive for self-improvement based on this. Human beings have a strong, self-improving and endless subjective spirit that can pioneer and innovate and adapt to changes. The "Way of Heaven" and "Way of Earth" in Pre-Qin Confucianism , "humanity" thought, and the thought of the three talents of "heaven", "earth" and "man" all talk about the creation of life spirit in heaven, earth and human world; people can coordinate and stand in harmony with heaven and earth to complete their own lives ideal; and realize the value of all existence in the universe with an equal spirit, and complete their lives; and finally realize the value and meaning of life in practical actions through "righteousness, utilization, and welfare" and "establishing morality, meritorious service, and establishing words." It evolved into Han-Tang Confucianism during the Han and Tang dynasties, and evolved into Song-Ming Neo-Confucianism during the Song and Ming dynasties. The Song-Ming Neo-Confucianism transformed the tradition of commenting on the Five Classics since the Han and Tang Dynasties into a tradition that emphasized the principles of the Four Books and discussed the cultivation of body, mind, and life. Relying on the academies of free private lectures, the traditional elite culture was further secularized. The Neo-Confucianism of the Song and Ming Dynasties elevated morality to its essence and rebuilt the philosophy of man. "The spiritual realm of the Song and Ming dynasties. Neo-Confucianism in the Song and Ming dynasties played an important role in establishing the subject's will structure, such as cultivating integrity, paying attention to moral character, emphasizing the use of reason to unify emotions, self-control, and striving for determination. It integrated moral self-discipline, people's sense of social responsibility, and the sense of historical mission. and human beings are superior to nature, etc., it has been elevated to the height of ontology, and it has unprecedentedly established the majesty and greatness of human moral subjectivity. 2. The spirit and characteristics of Confucian educational thought Confucianism has a tradition of attaching importance to moral education and cultivation, and pays attention to integrity and ethics. , pays attention to the lofty spiritual realm, advocates the dedication of "working hard" and "sacrifice one's life for righteousness", emphasizes the sense of moral responsibility and historical mission, and promotes the spirit of being tireless, fearless in the face of problems, regardless of success or failure, regardless of safety, honor or disgrace, and taking the world as the best. The broad mind of one's own responsibilities, taking the social responsibility of personal fulfillment as the self-fulfillment of personal morality, has gradually formed a long-term and profound tradition of moral education: determination, self-restraint, introspection, correction, practice, subtlety, prevention, etc., forming Confucianism is different from ordinary knowledge, logic, and philosophy. It contains rich knowledge, but it is beyond knowledge; it has its own logic, but it is beyond logic; It is a profound philosophy, but it is super philosophical. It is the study of "the knowledge of life", it is the exploration of "the direction of life", it touches the deepest level of people's "soul" and "mind", and it covers the true nature of human beings. Disposition, true life, true wisdom. For the essence of traditional Confucianism, we must use our own lives to experience it, use our own body and mind to study it, use our own souls to impact it, use our own lives to echo and connect with it, and use our own lives to settle down. experience it from a perspective. What do you learn from reading the books of sages? We should grasp our own nature, keep it, never forget virtues, do good deeds, help others, abandon evil and promote good, and truly achieve: be calm as nature, practice hard, from childhood to old age, from birth to death , be selfless when dealing with things, be pure in heart, and have a clear conscience in dealing with things.
In this way, we can resist desires, overcome weaknesses, defeat evil spirits, achieve a state of tranquility and peace, and be in tune with, communicate with and respond to the traditional culture and virtues of the Chinese nation. Confucianism is the study of "the knowledge of life" and emphasizes the tragedy of the times and the feeling of true personal cultivation. Your understanding and grasp of it depends on the depth of your concern for the destiny of mankind and the nation. If you don’t have the understanding attitude of “promoting kindness and compassion, and not giving up all sentient beings”, a strong sense of history and culture, and a long-term and arduous cultivation experience, it will be difficult to grasp the true essence of its thoughts and principles. Only those who insist on true cultivation can gradually achieve absolute unity and coordination between themselves and the outside world, never consider their own narrow interests, share joy and sorrow with heaven and earth, and actively participate in serving human society. The great trend of transcending oneself completely, thereby eliminating all evil and selfish obsessions in the soul, and purifying the soul. Then his life will not be wasted in vain in desires and worries, but will lead to the life of the universe. eternal. 3. Confucian educational thought and education in today’s world Tradition and modernization are a continuous “continuum”. Modernization that abandons tradition and tradition that turns its back on modernization are both one-sided. Successful modernization is a two-way movement process, where traditional factors and modern factors complement each other; failed or less successful modernization is a one-way movement process, where modern factors simply destroy traditional factors, or are destroyed by traditional factors. A successful modernization movement is not only good at overcoming the resistance of traditional factors to reform, but is especially good at using traditional factors as a driving force for innovation. China is currently facing a new period with a large influx of foreign ideas. We should focus on the new trends in world development, clean up the valuable elements of our original cultural traditions, and integrate them with the new foreign elements needed for modernization. Therefore, we are faced with The historical task of creative transformation of traditional culture (including Confucianism). The formation and development of Confucianism have some important social foundations and cultural soil, mainly: the family-based social structure and social system, the production method of a farming society, and the long-term stable living environment. These prerequisites are no longer inevitable in modern society. , but this cannot deny the modern significance and value of Confucianism. Family relationship is the most basic relationship in human social life. Farming society can be said to be the simplest mode of production for human beings. Precisely because it is the most basic, simplest and most primitive, it is also closest to human nature and best reflects the relationship between people and each other. The basic logic of the relationship between people, between people and things, and between people and the universe. The Confucian principles with a strong sense of humanity and human touch that emerged in this context may embody human nature in the simplest and most primitive form. the true nature of human life and the basic principles of human life. The truth is often simple, and the most basic things are often the most stable and have the most constant value. In a relatively stable living environment and a long social history, Confucianism explored and practiced the most basic and noble principles of "being a human being" and formed profound humanistic wisdom. Although the human ethics order and value system of human beings are constantly changing with the changes of the times, they remain true to their origins. Amidst the changes, there are always some unchanging genes that serve as a stabilizing and supporting force, because humans can never Far from your own nature and roots. It can be said that the basic spirit and characteristics of Confucianism lie in the discovery and expression of this gene and foundation, and the principle of human ethics has greater continuity than other cultural forms. This continuity reflects the national spirit and the continuity of national life. Continuously, it is impossible to completely "transform" it away, which shows that national traditions are in fact both inseparable and inseparable, and the value of human ethics principles is of a relative nature. Nowadays, people feel the decline of morality and the decline of morality. In today's surging business atmosphere and people's pursuit of profit, our traditional culture and traditional morality are facing new challenges, especially the challenges of money supremacy, embezzlement and corruption. . A person or a nation must always have a "home" to return to when living in this world. However, the pain that industrialization, commercialization, and modernization have brought to contemporary people is that they live on the streets mentally and have no "home" to return to.
In the pursuit of money and power, promotion and wealth, fame and wealth, and plunder, the human soul has lost its place and the place of conscience and self, and has lost its spiritual home and homeland. The reason for being a human being, the spiritual realm and personality cultivation advocated, the integrity and moral responsibility respected, the principles of being a person and governing the world reiterated, and the meaning and value of life expounded are not only not outdated today, but also are still relevant today. It has universal value and eternal significance. A nation cannot have moral life and cultural life. If a nation wastes its moral life and cultural life, it also wastes its national life. Moral life and cultural life cannot be destroyed too much. A nation cannot withstand such destruction. What truly knowledgeable people consider is how to restore human beings, maintain human dignity, establish their own moral personality, and stand up for themselves. Moral character, adjust the current humanistic environment, and cultivate cross-century talents with sound morals and excellent quality that can support China's future modernization. As far as modernization on a global scale is concerned, it is simply impossible to succeed without relying on the spiritual and cultural resources and traditional virtues of one's own national tradition. Western modernization takes ancient Greek and Roman civilization, Christian spirit, and modern humanism as its source. East Asian modernization takes ancient Chinese Confucian culture and Neo-Confucianism of the Song and Ming dynasties as its source. China’s modernization must not abandon its traditional excellent culture. It's like a broken penis. Otherwise, it would be modernization without roots. In today's modernization drive, people have begun to exclaim about China's lack of material resources. However, more people have not yet realized the serious shortage of China's spiritual resources caused by the one-sided trampling of tradition in modern times. The shortage of material resources is a tangible problem, while the lack of spiritual resources is an intangible problem. Intangible problems are everywhere and pervasive. Therefore, it is of great significance to rediscover, excavate, and recover the rich spiritual resources of Confucianism at present. Western modernization has achieved great success, and Western "democracy" and "science" have made a series of achievements, which should indeed become an example for other countries to learn from. The most important reason why we pay attention to Western education is that after the 19th century, Western education has become an integral part of the educational development of many nations, countries and regions. From the perspective of the entire history of human educational development, studying Western education Education is also a comprehensive understanding of the entire history of human educational development after the 19th century. However, the connotation of Western cultural education is not limited to "democracy" and "science". There are also many practical problems, including over-development of individualism, the spirit of unrestricted profit, the increasingly complicated litigation system, neglect of the elderly and neglect of the elderly. The young social atmosphere, the psychological state of tension and conflict, etc., all of which are not only not necessarily suitable for other countries, but have also caused Westerners themselves to reflect deeply. From the perspective of Western countries, modernization at a certain stage requires re-adjustment of the relationship between people and things, people and people, and people themselves and their hearts. Therefore, they must learn from China’s traditional cultural education—Chinese Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. , the pursuit of moral rationality, the pursuit of harmony, and the pursuit of human values, which means that they must look for methods and principles to readjust their social relations, interpersonal relationships, and the relationship between humans and the universe and nature from China's ancient traditional cultural education. For example, there are common problems in Western countries such as communication problems between children and parents, juvenile delinquency and moral education, the upbringing of the elderly and mental loneliness, environmental pollution and ecological imbalance, etc. These are the focus issues of modern Western society. They feel that Some Chinese social ethics and family education principles may be useful. They go from Chinese family ethics education to review social ethics education and social interpersonal relationships as well as the relationship between man and nature. This is an opposite trend in Chinese society. Contemporary Chinese teenagers are just about to affirm themselves, step out from the family, and put forward the requirement to participate in social modernization. One is from east to west, the other is from west to east, and time is misaligned here. The post-modernization requirements that are emerging in Western society can be provided by Chinese traditional culture and traditional education; the modernization requirements that are emerging in Chinese society are exactly what Western culture and scientific and technological education can provide. This is a natural trend in the development of the world. Although it has multiple sources, it will eventually be unified. That is to say, from an overall perspective, a modernization requirement and a post-modernization requirement must be integrated.
Modern society must care about human problems and affirm the value and significance of human life. Western "instrumental rationality" cannot completely replace "value rationality". Therefore, we should deeply explore the rich ideological resources of Confucianism, which is important for strengthening modern humanism. It can play a certain positive role in curbing various modern ills caused by the one-sided development of "instrumental rationality" by scientism. In this sense, Confucianism is not completely without practical significance. It is not a display in a museum with only ornamental value, but it can give modern people considerable enlightenment. The more technologically advanced a modern society is, the greater the enlightenment and warning role of Confucianism's humanistic concerns and the ideal of "harmony between man and nature" will have on mankind. The 20th century was a period of great development of human society, with both material and spiritual civilization improving at an unprecedented rate. It was also a period when human society experienced various troubles. At present, all countries in the world, regardless of their social systems and their level of socio-economic development, have generally realized that human beings have a large demand for energy, resources are increasingly depleted, and the environment is becoming more polluted. The development of human society in the 21st century will inevitably encounter several major problems: Incurable diseases continue to appear, the population is expanding viciously, the ecology is seriously imbalanced, natural disasters occur frequently, and the alliance between man and nature is severely damaged, etc. If these problems are not resolved early, they will inevitably bring great harm to the survival of human society. Relying on existing science and technology cannot fundamentally solve these problems. How to fundamentally solve these problems? In order to improve science, culture and human survival and development in the 21st century, we must update our thoughts and concepts, and present an image of the universe that is not restricted by mechanical laws and has continuous creativity. So the Western scientific community once again turned its attention to China and turned to the Eastern Confucian tradition for help. "The unity of nature and man" and "the correspondence between nature and man" are the greatest holistic view of life. Confucianism pursues the unity and harmony of human body and mind, human beings and human beings, human beings and society, and human beings and the universe and nature. This is important for improving people's character, sentiment, behavior and mentality, purifying the soul and purifying society in the 21st century, and for promoting the new concept of communication and unity between the local and the overall, the object and the subject, the spirit and the material, and the human and the universe and nature in modern science and technology. The development model and methodology are of great significance. Therefore, it is very helpful to explore the valuable concepts of Confucianism to promote the coordinated development of human beings, society and ecology, and to fundamentally solve several major contemporary problems and various confusions in the modernization process. Confucianism takes education as the foundation of a country. Education should not be understood one-sidedly as the transmission of scientific and technological knowledge, but should also emphasize the reconstruction of moral rationality and humanistic spirit. The ultimate purpose of Confucian education is to cultivate the national spirit, change the style of each generation, improve people's spiritual quality, help people cultivate their body and mind, and achieve a unified and harmonious personality state of truth, goodness and beauty. No matter how developed science and technology and business are in modern society, no matter how advanced and sophisticated the modern professions we are engaged in, the cultivation of human nature, the promotion of spiritual realm, and the transcendence of people from who they are to who they should be are always irreplaceable. This is a major issue of vital importance to mankind, the country and people themselves. Therefore, an important construction aspect of human modernization is the cultivation of human nature and the promotion of moral realm. From a long-term perspective, future education should place the construction of human psyche at a certain height. Caring for human psyche is the ultimate concern and the most fundamental concern. As the world is developing rapidly today, we should work with people from all over the world to learn from each other, support each other, absorb valuable concepts from the excellent traditional culture and traditional education of various countries, integrate humanistic education and scientific and technological education, and create a modern world civilization. Maintain world peace and ecological balance and make our due contribution.