Chapter 76 The Daily Use of the Common People Is the Way
Chapter 76: The common people use Tao in daily life
Author: Fat Bird Goes First
Chapter 76: The common people use Tao in daily life
Nanping is a very strange place. It is the hometown of Zhu Xi, and logically it should be the place where Neo-Confucianism flourished.
However, people at that time were quite disgusted with Neo-Confucianism, and the people even respected Lu Wang Xin Xue.
Chen Moqun, the mountain chief of Yanping Academy, and Xu Jie, the current leader of Xinxue, were both Jinshi in the same ranking, and they were also admirers of Xinxue.
Yanping Academy often invites great scholars in the study of mind to give lectures, and there are also many local scholars who discuss the study of mind.
However, academics are still too far away for four poor scholars who have not yet passed the exams.
Moreover, Hai Rui also warned them that before passing the imperial examination, it is best not to touch these high-level academics, because the imperial examination tests Zhu Xi's thoughts. If they study too much, their thinking will be confused, which is not conducive to their performance in the imperial examination.
This brings us to the unfairness of the imperial examination. Before the examination, the questions were set by each province and place.
Although the psychology and Neo-Confucianism sound very different, in fact, 90% of the things in Confucianism are common, and the only difference lies in the interpretation of some classic meanings.
For children from poor families, you don’t know whether the official who asked the question is leaning towards psychology or neo-science, so it’s best to answer the question honestly. Anyway, you can’t deduct points if you write to the standard answer.
For those readers who have resources, they can know the academic tendency of the question writer in advance. If the question writer likes to study the mind and incorporates some thoughts from the mind when answering the questions, he will be able to stand out and get good grades.
This is also the reason why Yanping Academy has far more successful candidates than county schools in recent years. The previous county school teachers did not bother to focus on teaching, let alone try to figure out the academic trends in the province and prefecture.
The headmaster of Yanping Academy is a well-known scholar in Fujian. He knows the local academic politics very well, and he has developed friendships with these academic officials.
His students are naturally more likely to win the exam than students from the county school.
Among Chen Chaoyuan, Xiong Yue and Lin Qingcai, Xiong Yue has the best family background and is the most interested in the popular psychology.
Lin Qingcai was from a branch of a wealthy family and had heard of Xinxue, so he could say a few words about it.
Chen Chaoyuan is the oldest, and he has studied too hard these years. He has no interest in the study of the mind and basically does not express his opinions.
Xiong Yue talked about the recent popularity of mind science in Nanping County, and sighed and said: "It's a pity that my family is poor and I can't go to Yanping Academy to listen to the lectures of those great Confucian scholars. I only have a superficial understanding of mind science."
Lin Qingcai said: "I have only heard of the theory of studying things to develop conscience. I have no idea how to do it specifically. I heard that someone in the Marquis built a spiritual house and refined the incense to concentrate it in the spiritual house.
Only then can you appreciate the method of studying things.”
Su Ze couldn't complain after hearing this. The popularity of psychology these days is more like some kind of qigong pseudoscience. Many people's research on psychology is performance art.
In fact, most people's pursuit of mind science is so formalistic. After all, this thing sounds too mysterious.
And these scholars talk about the study of mind, not because they really want to "help their conscience", but because the study of mind is now very popular in the court and among the people, and they can integrate into the upper class circle by talking about the study of mind.
In essence, most scholars admire the study of mind, which is similar to the way scholars in the Wei and Jin Dynasties liked to talk about metaphysics.
Xiong Yue and Lin Qingcai also don't understand the study of mind. Their yearning for the study of mind is like their yearning for red wine and Western food when they first opened the school. It is a pursuit of upper-class cultural life.
Su Ze couldn't stand listening anymore, so he said: "To study things to gain knowledge, you don't need to ask for any great principles. People can use the Tao every day. If you want to study the mind, you don't need to ask others, you just need to find your own original self."
That’s it.”
All three of them were stunned. Xiong Yue and Lin Qingcai looked at Su Ze.
At this moment, a middle-aged man's voice sounded outside the door:
“What a ‘people’s daily use is the way’!”
The door of the dormitory opened, and only Hai Rui, dressed in Confucian scholar's uniform, was seen standing at the door. The four people quickly stood up and saluted Hai Rui.
After Hai Rui returned the gift, he looked at Su Ze and said, "I didn't expect you to know Wang Taizhou's knowledge?"
Su Ze felt bitter in his heart. The era he traveled through was really terrible!
It was obvious that he was just pretending to be cool, so it was fine if he didn't copy Tang poetry and Song lyrics. Zhang Zai, Zhu Xi, and Wang Yangming had been dead for many years. He said, "The common people's daily needs are the Tao", and he was also recognized as a wise man.
Wang Taizhou is Wang Gen, the founder of Taizhou School.
This is a famous saying of Wang Gen.
Wang Gen gave lectures to Yanding potters in Taizhou and taught the people how to make daily use, but he died in the 19th year of Jiajing.
Wang Gen's Taizhou School can be regarded as a branch of Wang Yangming's philosophy of mind, and it played a very important role in the ideological circles of the late Ming Dynasty.
After all, Hai Rui is also a scholar, and he knows that the Taizhou School is normal.
Su Ze had no choice but to continue moving out his old father and said, "This is what my father told me when he was still alive."
Hai Rui didn't pursue it. He nodded and said, "Your Majesty has extensive knowledge and must be a great Confucian. It's a pity that we don't have the opportunity to meet him."
However, Hai Rui still reminded him: "Wang Taizhou's academics are also somewhat rebellious. If you want to take the imperial examination, you must not be affected by them. However, this saying that common people's daily use is the Tao does have some meaning to the true teaching of heart."
Hai Rui asked again: "What do you mean by your phrase 'reverse to seek one's own origin'?"
It turned out that Hai Rui only knew something about Taizhou School. Su Ze breathed a sigh of relief. Since Hai Rui only knew something about Taizhou School and he only knew something about it, he could just fool himself.
Su Ze recalled what he had learned about the intellectual history of the Ming Dynasty and said:
"At the beginning of man's life, his nature is good."
Su Ze continued: "Since the original goodness is good, then in order to develop a conscience, we only need to remove the essentials and find the original goodness."
Everyone was shocked.
Nothing wrong!
Although there have been debates about good nature and evil nature in history, the theory of good nature has still won the overall victory. After all, it has been written into the enlightenment textbooks.
Then "developing conscience" can become "returning to the original". This inference is also very rigorous.
Hai Rui still frowned and said, "How to return to the original state?"
Su Ze bit the bullet and said, "Of course you don't forget your original intention."
Su Ze said: "Brother Chen, what is your original intention in studying?"
Chen Chaoyuan recalled what he learned in the first class when he was studying when he was a child. His teacher saw that his family was poor and exempted him from tuition.
Chen Chaoyuan immediately said: "It makes sense!"
Su Ze asked Xiong Yue again: "Where is Brother Xiong?"
Xiong Yue thought for a moment and said, "Seeking fame."
Su Ze looked at Lin Qingcai, who immediately said: "Xing family."
Su Ze looked at Hai Rui again. Hai Rui was confused for a moment, but quickly said firmly: "May the people be safe!"