Why did Confucius maintain the rule of the Zhou Dynasty?

The Analects records the words of Confucius, saying, "Even if I am declining!".For a long time, I no longer dreamed of Zhou Gong.

When Confucius was old, he suddenly sighed, he hadn't dreamed of Zhou Gong for a long time, Zhou Gong was a position in the Zhou Dynasty, and the Zhou Gong that Confucius dreamed of should be Ji Dan, the son of King Wen of Zhou, who was the organizer of the Zhou Dynasty's ritual and music system, and was a historical figure that Confucius admired very much. Confucius not only admired the Duke of Zhou, but also longed for the ideal society in the early Western Zhou Dynasty that could realize the royal road according to the system of etiquette and music. Confucius lived in an era where "etiquette collapsed and happiness was broken", and there was no way out in the future, but looking back was a beautiful past, how could you not be nostalgic?

Similarly, the last chapter of the Tao Te Ching, "Small countries and widows." that the people may have the vessels of the Sheber and not use them, and that the people may die heavy and not go away. Although there is a boat, there is no way to take it;Although there are armor soldiers, there is nothing to show.

So that the people can regain the collapse of the rope and use it. Willing to eat, beautiful clothes, live in peace, and enjoy customs. Neighboring countries look at each other, chickens and dogs hear each other, and people do not interact with each other until they are old and dead.

It also means the same thing, however, Lao Tzu is more nostalgic, and he misses the primitive era of the knotted rope account.

Lao Tzu and Confucius lived in the same era, and the social atmosphere and life at that time were discordant and unstable, which was not their ideal social state at all.

I sometimes miss the past, when our country was first built, when people were very simple, the first thing everyone thought about was not themselves but the collective, and there was no need to use any management system, the superior commanded the subordinate, and the subordinate obeyed the superior It was a natural thing. And what is the state of the employees in the enterprise now, especially in the enterprise of the piecework system, the employees are all about their own output, and there are some discrepancies in the salary, and there are constant opinions, except for the active activities related to the output, nothing else is active. It doesn't look like an enterprise employee at all, but more like a temporary worker or a short-term worker.

In fact, neither Lao Tzu nor Confucius lived in the era they aspired to, and neither did I. It was only from written records or from listening to other people's descriptions that I came up with this idea. The wheel of history is moving forward, and if the past is beautiful, ideal, and has strong vitality, then it will not be destroyed, changed, and replaced.

Because Confucius believed that the system of governing the world and related humanistic culture established in the early Western Zhou Dynasty was the closest to the ideal state of man and society that he identified, which was Confucius's picture of his own ideal social life.

The characteristic of the Zhou Rite is that it is a hierarchical governance method that is implemented nationwide, identifying people's class, resource allocation, rights and responsibilities, and carrying virtue through identity.

Accept your own identity, behave and do things according to your own identity, in this process, benevolence, loyalty, filial piety, and orange friends have become the consensus of the whole society, because rights and responsibilities are stable and clear, and there is no loophole to exploit.

Then the country and the people will be in peace for a long time. Behind this concept is the religious belief system of the Zhou people, the emperor of heaven appointed the Son of Heaven (the king of the world), the son of heaven on behalf of the herdsmen, rewards, the administration of the country, and the use of soldiers to farm. From the Son of Heaven, the candidates, the doctors, and the people, each according to his kind.

Because this hierarchical system is revealed to people in the form of celestial phenomena, that is, the distribution, subordination, and operation of astronomical stars. Respect for God, be happy with life, be benevolent, be courteous, know the law, and be dedicated. That is, the world is prosperous, the people are happy, the grains are abundant, all things are orderly, and civilization is there.

This is the ideal social situation that Confucius recognized throughout his life and for which Confucianism struggled.

Because Confucius believed that the Western Zhou Dynasty practiced benevolent governance, that is, the rule of etiquette, and in the Spring and Autumn Period, the vassal states advocated the rule of law, in Confucius's view, only by implementing benevolent governance, fundamentally changing people's thinking, and making them voluntarily abide by certain rules and regulations, can society develop steadily, rather than relying on the compulsory constraints of the law to restrict people's behavior. FYI, thanks.

Because of the social turmoil at that time, ethics were lost.

Under the old relations of production and the slave system, the slave owner was still the slave owner, and the slave was still the slave. Under the new relations of production and the feudal system, some slave owners were transformed into landlords, and slaves were transformed into peasants. At the same time, because land could be bought and sold, some big businessmen bought land and became new landlords, renting it to farmers for cultivation.

In the process of this transformation of social classes and systems from the old to the new, slave owners, especially slave-owning nobles such as princes and princes (whether they became landlords or not), stubbornly and desperately maintained and restored the slavery system of the original Zhou Dynasty in order to maintain and restore the privileges enjoyed by their generations; The new landlords, especially the slaves and common people, were determined to smash and destroy the slavery system of the original Zhou Dynasty and cancel its privileges. Which side is Confucius on? Confucius was stubbornly on the side of maintaining and restoring slavery in the Zhou dynasty.

Confucius advocated the preservation and restoration of slavery in the Zhou dynasty. Confucius first positioned himself as a "Yimin". Of course, he advocated "the rise and destruction of the country, the succession of the peerless, and the people" (Analects, Yao Yue, 20.1).

This is where his class interests, class nature, and class position lie. Confucius's distant ancestors were Song nobles, descendants of the Yin royal family. Confucius proclaimed:

Mound, Yin people also. After King Wu of Zhou was destroyed, Wu Geng, the son of King Wu of Zhou, was the public surrender faction of the Yin clan and named Weizi as Song, which was Shangqiu. Weizi's brother Wei Zhongyan is the distant ancestor of Confucius.

Confucius's Family Language: The Explanation of the Original Surname: Weizi "His younger brother is called Zhongsi, Mingyan, or Catharsis." "Wei Zi pawn, succeeded by Wei Zhongyan.

Confucius's sixth ancestor, Confucius's father, Jia, served as the Great Sima of the Song Dynasty. According to the Zhou ritual system, the doctor is not allowed to be the ancestor of the princes, "the fifth generation of relatives, not for the princess", so his descendants take Kong as the clan. Later, due to refuge in Benlu, the position of the secretary was lost, and he was reduced to a soldier.

Confucius's father's name was Uncle Su, and he was a warrior. Confucius was a broken family descended from a traitorous family of Zhou Yin. Maintaining and restoring the slavery system of the Zhou Dynasty was the way out and class interests of Confucius and other "Yimin".

This paragraph is very important, it is the general outline of the Four Books, and it is the general evaluation of Confucius himself. Confucius was a "Yimin" of the slavery system of the Zhou Dynasty. What Confucius advocated and devoted his whole life was to "rise and destroy the country, succeed the peerless, and lift the people".

This is where his way out lies, where his fundamental interests lie. Confucius said that he was different from other "Yimin". Confucius's action strategy under the general political line of "rising and destroying the country, following the peerless, and lifting the people" is "indispensable", and there is no specific fixed principle.

At that time, the Zhou Dynasty had already declined, and the etiquette was broken, and it was difficult to find a complete set of Zhou Lili to learn, and it was already difficult to find a person who knew Zhou Lili to seek advice. Confucius had no choice but to seek out the remnants of the "sages" who "knew the great" or the "unsages" who "knew the small" and learned from them. At the end of the Spring and Autumn Period, the Zhou Dynasty's slavery classics were already so dilapidated, but Confucius wanted to fully maintain, restore, and implement it.

Confucius "said but did not do, believed and ancient" ("Analects, Narratives, 7.1"), liked "retro", turned back history, pulled the developed society backwards, and comprehensively maintained and restored the slavery system of the Zhou Dynasty.

Because etiquette is a state system and a basic rule that the people of the country abide by, and all countries in the Spring and Autumn Period have already thrown the system aside, ignored the role of the Son of Heaven, and launched wars to expand their territory without authorization, causing great disasters to the people. Therefore, Confucius insisted on restoring the Zhou rites and re-establishing the order and rules of the state.

Zi said: "I said Xia Bai ceremony, but it is not enough to sign.

du。I learn Yin Lizhi

There is Song Cunyan. I learn the weekly rite and use it today.

Return. I'm from Zhou. "A—The Mean".

Zi said: "Zhou is in the second generation, depressed, I follow Zhou." ”

Confucius has an in-depth study of the etiquette system of the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties, and he believes that history cannot be severed, and the latter dynasty must inherit and inherit the previous dynasty. Following the Zhou rites is the basic attitude of Confucius, but it is not absolute. In the previous chapters, Confucius proposed that the etiquette systems of the Xia, Shang, and Zhou should all be profitable.

In other words, Confucius believed that Zhou Li inherited the essence of the second generation of Xia and Shang, and was the master of the world, and was an ideal system for maintaining social order.

There are many reasons why Confucius's ideas cannot be reused during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period.

1. The social environment does not allow it.

In the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, because of Zhou Tianzi's incompetence, many candidates wanted to stand on their own, so many forces emerged in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. During this period, the society was in turmoil, the people were displaced, and wars broke out frequently, and the greatest wish of the people at that time was probably peace. And although Confucius's ideas are great, they are not suitable in the era of war.

Especially in times of war, as long as the people have a stutter, it is fine, and Confucius's idea is to ask the king to practice benevolent government, and at the same time let the people have something to rely on. This was simply not possible in the circumstances of the time. Moreover, for the king, because of the frequent outbreak of wars, the king at that time needed an idea that could strengthen the current state, not the benevolent government that Confucius said, which was not suitable for the environment at that time during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period.

2. Confucius's "benevolent government".

For the chaotic Warring States period, the benevolent government advocated by Confucius could not make a country strong. Much of Confucius's thought embodied the system of etiquette, which was only suitable for the era of peace. For the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, because of the division of the princes, there were many forces in the whole of China, so the king at that time only asked the country to be strong, and only when the country became strong, it would not be invaded by other countries.

3. Confucius's own reasons.

Although Confucius traveled around the world during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, he also held many official positions during this period. It's just that Confucius's personal political ability and character make it difficult for him in officialdom. And because Confucius thinks very highly of himself, he is a little unsightly, proud and conceited.

Confucius's students once persuaded him, but Confucius was unmoved and offended many people in the officialdom.

Politically, although Confucius was full of self-confidence when he persuaded the king at that time. But because Confucius was more arrogant, after being appreciated by Wei Linggong, Confucius made Wei Linggong more and more disappointed because of his attitude.

Because the era in which Confucius lived was an era of a hundred schools of thought, the doctrines believed in by various countries at that time were not the same. Therefore, Confucius's ideas are not dominant, and naturally they will not be reused.

Because these countries considered Confucius's ideas to be outdated, and also contrary to the background of the collapse of etiquette and music at that time.

Because Confucius Thought advocated the rule of virtue in politics, requiring the emperor to rule the country with virtue was contrary to the interests of the ruler, and it was not suitable for the era of war and chaos, and it could not enhance the national strength.

The Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period were turbulent and strife, and wars were frequent, and Confucius was a benevolent government thought, which was not suitable for the needs of the times at that time, so it could not be reused.

During the Spring and Autumn Period, the state of Lu reused Confucius. Confucius popularized many cannibalistic thoughts, which made people miserable and made the ** and emperor of the Lu State taste the sweetness.

There was a soldier who became a deserter, and after being arrested by **, Confucius judged him for why he ran away.

The deserter said: "What will happen to my parents if I die?" Who feeds them! Confucius listened to him, and not only did not punish him, but made him an official, praising him and setting him up as an example of "respecting the old and loving the young".

When the two armies fought again, all the soldiers became deserters, which led to the destruction of the Lu state. In the Warring States Period, no country was willing to appoint Confucius, and after the Eastern Han Dynasty, the Yuan Dynasty and the Qing Dynasty perished China, which is also evidence that Confucianism poisoned people's hearts.

His doctrine is based on "benevolence" as the core, but it is good and courteous, and it is out of place; Moreover, his outrageous and arrogant character is good, but it makes him appear rampant, unsuitable for politics, and it is inevitable that he will be excluded.

Confucius was born at the wrong time, the situation was turbulent, there were only interests between countries, there was no benevolence and righteousness, so no one used Confucianism to govern the country, and during the Han Dynasty, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty deposed the hundred schools of thought and respected Confucianism, so Confucius was born at the wrong time.

Born ahead of one's time. During the Spring and Autumn Period, it was a troubled time, when the princes competed for hegemony, killing more than once, the weak ate the strong, and the strong were respected. The fundamental interests of the vassal states lie in enriching the country and strengthening the army, either to protect themselves or to seek hegemony.

The core concept of Confucius's governance is benevolence, education, and etiquette, which is the way to govern the world, not the law to control chaos. Therefore, this is obviously not attractive to the vassal states that are in troubled times and are always facing existential crises. Therefore, if the birth is not at the right time, the princes will not use it, and it can only be the fate of Confucius.

From the point of view of Confucius's idea of benevolence. Benevolence is naturally for the native people. The idea of benevolence is conducive to the consolidation of political power and the consolidation of rule.

Not applicable externally. Therefore, in a period when it is necessary to rely on war for a long time to solve development, and in a period when war is used to achieve reunification, the idea of benevolence is not welcome.