It is said in "Zeng Guofan's Family Instructions" that when Zeng Guofan was studying at Yuelu Academy in Changsha, he had a classmate who was a son of a wealthy family and was domineering. Zeng Guofan's desk was against the window. This classmate deliberately made trouble and said: "The light for my study comes from the window. You are blocking my light. Get out of the way." It was obvious that he was making trouble unreasonably. Zeng Guofan didn't Argued with him, moved the table, changed places. Zeng Guofan's diligence is well known to the world. He likes to study hard at night. Because he is dull by nature, he can only make up for it through diligence. One night when Zeng Guofan was reading vigorously, the classmate came to stir up trouble again and said: "I don't usually study, but I make a lot of noise late at night..." Zeng Guofan still didn't talk back and read silently. Soon, Zeng Guofan won the imperial examination. The man was even more furious and said: "The feng shui of this room belongs to me, but I asked you to take it away from me, otherwise I should have won the imperial examination." The classmate on the side couldn't stand it anymore and asked him: "It's not you who calls the position of the desk." Did someone set it up? Why should you blame others?" The classmates all complained about Zeng Guofan, but Zeng Guofan just looked at him in a friendly manner and tried to stop the quarrel, as if he had nothing to do. From here we can see Zeng Guofan's ambition.
Zeng Guofan taught his family to be patient and patient when encountering difficulties. Not only must we be patient, but we must endure tens of millions of people. Zeng Guofan's enlightened tolerance is actually two words, and there is a difference. One is to endure humiliation and bear the burden, and the other is to make concessions to benefit others. To endure humiliation and bear the burden is when you encounter difficulties, setbacks, contradictions and pressures, you endure it yourself. But the problem is that if you endure it, you only solve your own problems, not the pressure problems. One possibility is Because you have tolerated it, the pressure and conflict have faded over time, but there is another possibility. Tolerance is actually inaction. You have no control over the pressure and have no effect. The pressure may also intensify over time. The more you endure, the heavier the pressure will be. , the greater the contradiction. Faced with these two possibilities, a passive approach is not the smartest, you must be proactive. This proactive approach is to let.
"Putting others before yourself is called giving way." Zeng Guofan was able to endure when the other party was angry with him, and gave in to the person several times, which showed the tolerance contained in "giving in". This kind of magnanimity is an essential character for those who achieve great things. Only when you can "endure" can you "give in". The ancients understood this truth long ago. Zeng Guofan's generosity achieved his ideals of self-cultivation, family order, country governance, and world peace.
As the saying goes: endure the calm for a while, and let the sea and the sky expand with one step. Tolerance is not cowardice, but tolerance. It is a combination of great realm and great wisdom. Learn to be patient and the road will become wider and wider!