Taoist philosophy
China people call themselves "descendants of the Yellow Emperor", and "Yellow" refers to the Yellow Emperor, the master of the ancient Chinese nation. On one occasion, the Yellow Emperor swam to the north of Chishui, climbed the top of Kunlun Mountain and looked south. As far as the eye can see, the snow-capped mountains, grasslands and blue sky set each other off, which is refreshing. But on the way back, the Yellow Emperor found that his Zhu Xuan was lost. He sent a clever god of wisdom to look for it, but he didn't find it; He also sent an eagle-eyed Zhu to look for it, but he didn't find it; I sent an eloquent and powerful person to look for it, but I still couldn't find it. He had to let the ignorant, ignorant and ignorant elephant look for it, but he didn't expect to find it soon. The Yellow Emperor said, "Strange! How can I only find elephants? "
Interpretation 1: Taoism can be roughly divided into two factions: Laozi and Zhuangzi, Huangdi and Laozi. The school of Laozi and Zhuangzi has a strong spirit of criticism and transcendence, while the school of Huanglao is keen on real politics and advocates quietness and autonomy. No matter which school, it emphasizes the spirit of doing nothing. Ignorance, ignorance and ignorance are symbols of doing nothing and doing everything. So, how can we do nothing and do everything? The answer lies in another important concept of Taoism-self-transformation. Heaven and earth depend on the self-realization of all things, and society depends on the self-realization of all people. Inaction is the basis and condition of self-transformation, and self-transformation is the purpose and destination of inaction. Only by relying on the self-realization of everything and all nations can we achieve nothing.
Interpretation 2: Strange! How can you only find an ignorant, ignorant, ignorant elephant? Huang Lao-dao's masterpiece "Lv's Spring and Autumn Annals" said: "Without wisdom, you can inspire everyone's wisdom; Incompetence can give play to everyone's ability; You can make a difference by doing nothing. " Leaders, officials at all levels, company bosses, school teachers and other managers can achieve the best management results, instead of being hands-on, smart-headed, and headstrong, always playing the fool and pretending to be crazy. Only in this way can we give full play to everyone's wisdom and rely on everyone's strength to achieve success.
Interpretation 3: Laozi said: "Heaven does not abandon people, and things do not abandon things." Everyone and everything have different nature and ability, depending on where they are used. Compared with the wise god of wisdom and Zhu's penetrating and eloquent criticism, those without wisdom, indifference and ignorance are the most incompetent and timid, but only he can find them. Since God has given talents, let them be used! For the average person, it depends on whether you can find the most suitable position in society; For managers, it depends on whether you can use people.
Interpretation 4: After the Yellow Emperor lost Zhu Xuan, why didn't he look for it himself, but sent people to look for it again and again? This involves an important theory of Huang-decentralization theory. In Huang's eyes, the responsibility of top managers is to employ and manage people, while specific affairs should be handed over to subordinates. This theory of decentralization was eventually inherited and carried forward by legalists and became China's unique management theory.
Interpretation 5: The most precious thing in life is your own life and health. You fight for the world every day, and you are trapped by personnel every night. In the whirlpool of vanity fair, either you hurt others or others hurt you. It is better to be ignorant, ignorant, ignorant, independent, let nature take its course, protect your life and avoid the harm of all kinds of things outside.
Step 2 step over your shoulder
Yao wanted to give up the world and said, "The sun and the moon are rising and the fireflies are not stopping. Is it too presumptuous?" ? It's raining now, but irrigation is still necessary. Isn't that unnecessary? If Mr. Wang ascended the throne, the world will be ruled, and I am a vegetarian here. Isn't that too ignorant I know I am not competent enough, so please don't refuse, but accept my request. Xu You said: "You manage the world very well; I want to replace you. Isn't this for fame by hook or by crook? Names are secondary things that come from reality. Should we pursue secondary things? Wren nest in the depths of the forest, but occupy a branch; The mole went to Okawa to drink water, but only to eat. You'd better go home, the world is useless to me! Even if the chef doesn't cook, the body won't take over! "
Interpretation 1: Decentralization theory is an important viewpoint in western political science. In China, the idea of decentralization was first put forward by Taoism. Laozi, the founder of Taoism, believes that monarchs overstep their authority and exercise war power instead of judicial personnel, just as ordinary people cut instead of big carpenters, few of them do not hurt themselves. Shen Dao, the representative of Huang Laodao, clearly put forward the idea of decentralization. Later, Han Feizi, the representative of Legalism, further improved this theory and formed the theory of decentralization with unique China characteristics. Although this theory was distorted by the autocratic rulers in the confrontation of actual interests, the ideal of "an empty monarch * * * and an' official who is light' is the closest to constitutionalism in China's ancient political theory.
Interpretation 2: Wren nests in the deep forest, but occupies a branch; The mole went to Okawa to drink water, but only to eat. You'd better go home, the world is useless to me! There are sacred boundaries between official power and civil rights. For ordinary citizens, as long as they can farm, work, earn a living, support their families, win lawsuits and further expand their careers, they have done their duty. For officials, taking people's livelihood as the normal state, paying attention to accumulation and recuperation, and not forgetting to take care of the elderly, the weak and the widowed have done their duty. Ordinary people should not call on the state to uphold justice whenever they encounter difficulties, but should try to solve problems through themselves and civil society. Similarly, the government should not interfere with people's freedom and damage people's right to self-realization in the name of the state and the collective.
Interpretation 3: Everything and everyone are always in the process of self-transformation, which includes both promising and inaction; It includes both joining the WTO and being born. Some people like to join the WTO, some people like to be born, some people like to do the cause of joining the WTO with the attitude or spirit of being born, and some people like to do the cause of being born with the attitude or spirit of joining the WTO. These are the rights of the people of all ethnic groups, and as long as they do not harm the interests of others, others are not allowed to interfere.
Interpretation 4: Regarding the relationship between inaction and promising, Guo Xiang, a scholar in Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, believes that inaction is relative, and workers do it with axes instead of woodcarving; The monarch has nothing to do with marriage, but with ministers. I can marry, and the Lord can use ministers; Axes can carve wood, workers can use axes, and each can do his own thing, which is natural and not deliberate; If the monarch is engaged in specific affairs instead of liegeman, it is not a monarch; Instead of the monarch in charge of the power of employing people, it is not the courtiers (the monarch and courtiers can be regarded as the relationship between the manager and the managed, the educator and the educated respectively). I wish you a vegetarian meal, and each department has its own responsibilities; Take your positions, Mr. Xu Yao. This is the true meaning of inaction.
3. Shenmu Dream
Stone, a craftsman, and his disciples went to Qi State. In Quyuan, they saw an oak tree that was regarded as a shrine by the local people: the top of the tree stood high on the top of the mountain and branched again after ten mowings; The shade covered the sun, enough for thousands of cows to enjoy the cool; The trunk is so thick that only a hundred people can enclose it; If you use it to build ships, ten dollars is not a problem. The audience under the tree flooded, and the masons enjoyed it beautifully. The craftsman himself did not look back, and his feet continued to move forward. The carpenter's disciple ran to catch up with him and said, "I have never seen such a magnificent tree since I picked up a knife and axe to follow my master." But Mr. Wang didn't care. He didn't even slow down. Why? "Masons replied," forget it, don't say it again! "This is the standard pine. Taking it as a ship is doomed to sink, taking it as a coffin is doomed to rot quickly, taking it as a container is doomed to damage, taking it as a door is doomed to deformation, and taking it as a pillar is doomed to be eaten by insects. This is a timber tree, which is useless, so it grows so high. "
When the stonemason came back, he dreamed that the holy tree said to him, "What do you compare with me? Are you going to compare me with something that can be made? Fruit trees such as peaches, plums, oranges and pomelos, once they are ripe, will be picked without dignity, and even their branches and trunks will be broken. Having both ability and political integrity, I worked hard all my life, but I died halfway and couldn't enjoy my old age. And I've been hit by the world, and everything is like this. So I tried my best to make myself useless and almost got hacked to death in the middle. Now I finally found that useless use is my greatest use! If I am useful to people, can I still grow this big? Besides, you and I belong to one of all things, how can we look at other objects like this? You are just a dying scattered person, how can you really understand useless scattered wood! "
Masons wake up and let everyone interpret their dreams. Disciple said, "If you want to be a useless pine tree, why do you want to be a holy tree?" The craftsman stone said, "Shut up and stop! This is only a last resort, but it has attracted insults and injuries from ignorant people. If it is not a community tree, won't it be cut down? It just saved itself in an unusual way. Is it too much to look at all this with common sense? "
Interpretation 1: In an authoritarian society, useful people often become tools of others, and their lives and dignity are not guaranteed. On the other hand, those who are mediocre and those who protect themselves wisely enjoy prosperity.
Interpretation 2: Useless and useful are relative, useless to others, possibly useful to oneself, useless to oneself, possibly useful to others. In China, which lacks the tradition of individualism, we should advocate the former and guard against the latter.
Interpretation 3: It is human nature to seek advantages and avoid disadvantages. Then, how can we improve the public welfare of the whole society in the process of pursuing our own interests? Adam Smith, the founder of western economics, attributed it to the role of "invisible hand". He said: "We can't expect our dinner to come from the charity of butchers, brewers and bakers, but from their concern for their own interests." Later, western economics put forward the theory of spontaneous order and general equilibrium, and perfected the principle of "invisible hand". However, western economics has never given a complete answer to how the invisible hand works. In fact, it is very simple to explain this problem with the theory of neo-Taoism. Guo Xiang, a scholar in Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, believes that when everything in the world is self-made, they are all self-made, and the self-made of everything will affect other things, so through this self-made and interrelated role, the whole world is connected into a universal whole. If one thing's self-action makes an indirect contribution to other things, it will lead to subjective effects on oneself and objective effects on others. Like lips and teeth, they all move in isolation from each other. But the self-action of lips objectively protects teeth. Once there is no self-action of lips, it will have the effect of death of lips and cold teeth. Similarly, this oak tree has turned itself into a useless tree in order not to be cut down, and human beings also want to find a sustenance for their beliefs. They are all working for themselves and no one expects to contribute to each other. But this oak tree has become the sustenance of human belief, and human beings also protect it as a sacred tree. They are all planning for themselves, working hard for themselves, and finally helping each other. Isn't that what everyone wants?
Interpretation 4: In an authoritarian society, if you want to gain freedom, you must use some kind of power as a cover.
4. Wang Wen Ai Cai
King Wen inspected the Tibetan area and saw an old man fishing with a straight hook, which kept hanging on the water. At first glance, it seems that fishing is not intentional. King Wen wanted to grant him political power, but he was afraid that ministers and clans would not accept it. I'm going to give up this idea, but I can't stand the people's suffering. Early the next morning, I called the doctors and told them, "Yesterday I dreamed of a dark-faced wise man with a long beard, riding a mottled and impure horse, and four horseshoes were red on one side." He shouted at me:' entrust the state affairs to the old man in Tibet, and the people will live and work in peace and contentment!' Hearing this, the doctors were shocked and said, "This is your father." Wen Wangdao: "In that case, it's up to divination." The doctors said, "Your Majesty only needs to carry out your orders, so why go to divination!" "
So King Wen welcomed the old man Zangdi to Beijing and entrusted him with the management of state affairs. The laws and regulations have not changed, but he can't make partial orders. Three years later, King Wen visited the whole country, local forces collapsed, officials at all levels stopped boasting, and weights and measures were unified. There are scenes of political integrity and harmony everywhere. So King Wen worshipped the old man Zang Di as the emperor's father, and asked him as a courtier: "Can the imperial edict be spread all over the world?" The old Tibetan Emperor was silent, but he refused to accept his words. The next day, when King Wen asked him for advice again, he escaped the night before and was never heard from again.
Interpretation 1: Jiang Taigong goes fishing-the willing takes the bait. This is a well-known story of China women and children. Here, the old Tibetan brother fully demonstrated his excellent planning ability and promotion ability. This ability to do the opposite is also very useful for advertising, news, marketing, military, politics, diplomacy and other industries.
Interpretation 2: Tao is an important concept of Taoism. So, how can Taoism be natural? There are two answers: one is to let nature take its course, and the other is to follow the trend. The former is negative on the surface, but actually helps to improve the enterprising spirit of subordinates. The latter uses an important concept of Huang family-potential, so what is potential? Potential is power, status quo, interest, reputation, custom and power, which is often closely related to the degree of self-organization of a group. Taking advantage of the current situation means taking advantage of the current situation, interests, reputation and power to achieve your goals. King Wen took advantage of everyone's reverence for his father and successfully realized the purpose of using the elderly in Tibet.
Interpretation 3: After the old man Zang Di came to power, the code law remained unchanged and could not be biased, which was in line with the Huang family's principle of "being simple and polite according to customs, being quiet and self-determined". Is he Jiang Taigong? There is no explanation in the article, but we know that after defeating Yin Shang, he was named Qi State, and he established the policy of "because of his customs, frugality, commerce and industry, fish and salt benefit", which laid a solid theoretical and practical foundation for the vigorous development of the Huang family in Qi State. After Qin Shihuang unified China, Taoism, like other schools, suffered a heavy blow, but among the people of Qi, the academic fire in Huang's hometown was not completely extinguished. Shortly after the establishment of another dynasty, the Han Dynasty, the prime minister at that time rediscovered the kindling of these thoughts from Qi State and spread it to the whole country, which became the guiding ideology of the whole country at that time and made great contributions to the emergence of the first prosperous period of China, the rule of Wenjing.
Interpretation 4: Why didn't the old Tibetan emperor change the original code after he took office? This is because the original church law was made by Jizhou Society. No matter how unreasonable and ignorant these religious rules are to outsiders, they are the products of the long-term self-made Jizhou society, closely combined with their own conditions, cognitive level and living environment, and have broad and tenacious adaptability and vitality. If we change all this rashly, it will destroy the original social ecosystem and cause social unrest. This in turn led to the failure of the reform. In fact, in the view of Neo-Taoism, not only the whole nature, the whole society, morality, law, literature and art, and various ideologies are created by all things and all peoples themselves, but also by all things in the universe. It is no exaggeration to say that the concept of self-realization is a treasure house of Taoist thoughts dedicated to all mankind.
Interpretation 4: The self-realization of all things includes many types, such as self-creation, promising, inaction, cooperation, games, self-study, autonomy, aesthetics, self-control and so on. It can be roughly divided into two types: individual self-realization (so-called self-realization) and system self-realization. Among them, the former includes a special self-organization, which is a bridge between individuals and systems. Through self-organization, many individuals will organize themselves into systems. Once the system is formed, it will suppress the individual's self-realization, which is the so-called self-realization paradox. For example, in this fable, the degree of self-organization in Jizhou suddenly improved after the governance of the elderly in Tibet, but in turn began to suppress the self-organization of local forces. Although this has caused a situation of unity from top to bottom in the short term, in the long run, it will deal a heavy blow to local autonomy and suppress the enthusiasm of all localities.
5, sink fish and fall wild goose
Qiang Mao and Li Ji were recognized beauties during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. According to legend, when they washed gauze by the stream, all the fish sank to the bottom; When they went to the forest to pick mushrooms, all the birds flew high; When they went to play in the mountains, all the elk flew away. People say that fish are attracted by their beauty, stunned and forget to swim, so they sink into the water. Birds can't compare with them, so they fly high; The elk were shocked by their beauty and flew away. In fact, only fish, birds and elk know that they hate fur and Li Ji. They don't like their looks and figures, so they sink into the water and fly away!
Interpretation 1: (Zhuangzi's point of view) Hairy body and Li Ji are recognized as beautiful women, but fish dive into the water when they see them; Birds soar when they see it; The elk flew away when they saw it. So, who really understands the beauty of the world? People like to eat meat, sheep like to eat grass, centipedes like to eat snakes, crows like to eat mice. So, who knows more about the food in the world? The world is relative, everything has its own standards, justice and right and wrong, and there is no unified standard. How do I know the difference between them?
Interpretation 2: Although there is no uniform standard for the code of conduct, there is no absolute truth. But human beings always have to live according to certain rules, otherwise the cost of living will increase sharply. There are two ways to produce rules, conventions and moral beliefs: one is that everyone's self-control in daily work, life and communication is endogenous; Another kind is imposed on all ethnic groups by invaders and rulers, or the result of enlightenment and propaganda by a saint. Self-made rules, conventions and moral beliefs are generally manifested in naturally formed customs, contracts and religious beliefs. Because they are endogenous, they are easily accepted by most people in society and the implementation cost is very low. The most vital, can stand the test. In addition, it will adjust itself with the development of the times, thus promoting the continuous progress of the whole society. Imposed, educated and publicized rules, conventions and moral beliefs not only fail to maintain social order, but often become the poison of social order. Poison can't be said to have no effect on the disease, but the side effects are greater in the later stage. Generally speaking, there may be two situations in the promotion of the second code of conduct: (1) these codes cannot be applied in practice, and the social cost has not decreased, but has increased; (2) These codes have been found to be feasible through practice, but because they conflict with previous customs, contracts and religious beliefs, they need to pay huge promotion costs and implementation costs. Either way, the social cost will increase sharply in a short time, which may lead to social unrest. Even if there is a good wish for reform, people will not buy it, which will lead to the premature death of reform.
Interpretation 3: Everything is relative. Some words and deeds do not please some people, but some people do not necessarily hate them. Some words and deeds cater to some people's appetite, but not everyone else likes them; Some words and deeds are correct here and now, but not necessarily in another place at another time; Some words and deeds are wrong here and now, but not necessarily wrong in another place at another time; In order to ensure that everything is in its proper place because of its nature, freedom of words and deeds is the minimum requirement. As long as it does not harm the interests of others, there should be no obstacles to freedom of speech and behavior.
6. Dig a river in the sea
I saw crazy Jie Yu. Crazy Jie Yu asked, "What did Japan and China tell you?" Shouwu said: "He said that the king must make and implement laws according to his own will, so that the following subjects dare not listen!" "
Jie Yu said, "This is a bullying practice. Governing the world in this way is like digging a river in the sea, and mosquitoes carry mountains on their backs. Don't you know how to do superficial things in the rule of saints? They conform to nature, educate others and let people show their abilities. Birds fly high to avoid bows and arrows, and mice hide in caves to avoid smoke. Don't everyone know that they are not as good as these two small animals? "
Interpretation 1: (Zhuangzi's point of view) If there are many things like arrows, snares and organs, birds will fly about in the air; There are many things like hooks, nets and cages, and fish can swim in the water; If there are many traps, fences and nets, wild animals will run around in the grass. If there are too many changes, such as deceiving the world and stealing fame, deceiving each other, arguing firmly and talking about differences, secular people will fall into sophistry, which is the sin of advocating wisdom! Horses live on land and eat by water. They rub their necks when they are happy and kick their backs when they are angry. This is the instinct of horses. You put a yoke and a bridle on it, and the horse will glare, be arrogant, vomit a bridle behind his back, or secretly remove the bridle. It is Bole's sin that horses have the ability to confront people! In ancient Fuxi Shi, all the people ate, drank and swam, and they traveled at home at will. As soon as saints appeared, they made rituals to correct the world and flaunted benevolence and righteousness to deceive all people. All people also began to struggle for power and profit, until today there is no end to each other. This is the sin of a saint!
Interpretation 2: China has long practiced absolute monarchy. Under this system, the emperor's words are imperial edicts. Although many laws have been formulated, under the guidance of the judicial thought of prison in the Spring and Autumn Period, the seriousness and stability of the law are often destroyed. Modern China people pin their hopes for long-term stability on the rule of law. First of all, they put forward the idea of governing the country according to law. Later, they found that this thought took the law as a tool and did not break away from the category of rule by man. Therefore, the slogan of governing the country according to law was put forward later. There is no problem in governing the country according to law on the surface, but the legitimacy of the law itself has not been solved. If the law is the will of the ruling class, then governing the country according to the law means governing the country according to the will of the ruling class, or it is not divorced from the rule of man, which is also incompatible with the current concept of freedom and democracy. In fact, during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, Huang Lao had already given a clear answer to the legality of law: Tao gave birth to law, that is, law was produced through the avenue, not the will of the ruling class. Laws made by the ruling class will inevitably be helpless. Governing the world by the law of no way, all the people will learn to practise fraud, obey the yin and obey the yang, and there will be a situation in which the law is not obeyed, the law is not investigated, and the law is incompetent, making the law ineffective.
Interpretation 3: Heaven does nothing, and everything is created by itself. Everything and all nations are constantly remoulding themselves. This kind of self-transformation is like mercury pouring down, pervasive. Even after the rulers blocked all the normal paths of self-transformation through lies and violence, the people still have a path of self-transformation, and that is to rise up and resist. Lao Tzu said it well: if people are not afraid of death, why not fear it with death? Ordinary people are not born fools, stubborn people and mobs. If the rulers blindly govern the country with their own will, the following three situations will inevitably occur: 1, increasing the cost of governance and keeping the country in poverty for a long time; 2. Distorted the nature of people of all ethnic groups, created a large number of ignorant people, stubborn people and mobs, and a large number of careerists, and then threatened the status of rulers; In the event of an emergency, the country may split, the regime will change hands, the people will suffer more, and it is impossible to achieve long-term stability.
Interpretation 4: It is one of human nature to seek advantages and avoid disadvantages. Many social problems can be clearly seen from the point of view of seeking advantages and avoiding disadvantages. Similarly, when formulating laws and regulations, implementing management and creating mechanisms, more consideration should be given to everyone's nature of seeking advantages and avoiding disadvantages, and less moral preaching and violent means will certainly get twice the result with half the effort.
Interpretation 5: Treating those simple and rude managers and rulers, ordinary people should be as soft as birds flying high and mice hiding in holes, and insist on fighting hard instead of fighting hard.
Interpretation 6: There is a typical example in game theory, which is called prisoner's dilemma. It is said that two thieves broke into a house and committed crimes together, and were caught by the police. The police put the two men in two different rooms for interrogation. For each suspect, the policy given by the police is: if both of them can confess, they will be sentenced to eight years in prison; If one confesses and the other denies, the confessor will be released immediately, and the denier will be sentenced to 10 year; If both of them deny it, the police can't convict them of theft because of insufficient evidence, but they can each be sentenced to 1 year in prison for trespassing. Obviously, for any prisoner, the best strategy is that both sides deny it, and as a result, everyone only gets 1 year. However, due to the isolation of two people, both sides will suspect that the other party will betray themselves in order to protect themselves. In the end, both of them chose to confess and were sentenced to eight years in prison. Therefore, this violates the principle of "invisible hand": starting from the purpose of self-interest, the result is to harm others and not benefit themselves. Similarly, because the interests between the government and the people cannot be completely consistent, there is always a certain game between the government and the people. If you rule completely according to your own will, it will probably lead to the prisoner's dilemma, as is the case with the autocratic history of China for thousands of years. Through computer dynamic game simulation, we know that the fewer individuals participate in the Expo, the greater the harm, and when the individuals participate in the Expo reach a certain level, the cooperators will get the upper hand. Therefore, the diversity of society helps to eliminate the prisoner's dilemma.