prosperous age

Chapter 1010 Chapter 1101 The Dispute over the Sacrifice

Confucius's name was Qiu and his courtesy name was Zhongni. He was a native of Zouyi in the State of Lu during the Spring and Autumn Period. His ancestral home was Liyi in the State of Song. He was an ancient Chinese thinker, politician, and educator.

Confucius lost his father at the age of three, and his family fell into poverty. In his early years, he worked as a minor official in charge of granaries and pastoral care.

He "loved etiquette since he was young" and was familiar with traditional etiquette since childhood. When he was young, he was famous in Lu for his extensive knowledge of etiquette and music. He engaged in the work of a Confucian scholar and made a living by performing funeral and sacrificial ceremonies.

In his middle age, he gathered disciples to give lectures and engage in educational activities.

At the age of fifty, he once served as the Sikou of Lu State and acted as the prime minister. He actively promoted his own political ideas. Soon he resigned from his post and left Lu because of his political differences with the rulers. He traveled around the countries with his disciples to publicize his political ideas and ideological theories, but they were never used.

In his later years, he returned to Lu State and devoted himself to education. He sorted out the "Book of Songs" and "Book of Documents", edited and revised the "Spring and Autumn Annals", and made the transmission of the Six Arts his lifelong career.

Confucius once led some of his disciples to travel around the countries for fourteen years and revised the Six Classics.

After his death, his disciples and their disciples recorded the words, deeds and thoughts of Confucius and his disciples, and compiled them into "The Analects of Confucius". The book is regarded as a Confucian classic and has a profound and lasting influence on later generations.

In Chinese history, Confucius is revered as the founder and sage of the Confucian school, and is honored by later generations as the "Great Sage and Teacher."

Confucius' thoughts mainly include benevolence, courtesy, righteousness, wisdom and trustworthiness.

He believed that people should focus on benevolence, respect etiquette, abide by morality, and focus on education and self-cultivation in order to achieve personal perfection and social harmony.

He emphasized the virtues and behavioral norms that a "gentleman" should possess, such as loyalty, integrity, humility, diligence, etc., and also advocated the idea of ​​"governing the country with virtue."

His educational theories include "learning for practical use" and "Three Bonds and Five Constant Virtues", emphasizing that education should aim to cultivate people's morality, intelligence, physique and beauty.

However, there have been some controversies and differences in the evaluation of Confucius in history.

Some have criticized Confucius's thoughts and educational theories for being too focused on etiquette and hierarchy, and not respecting and showing enough equality for women and the lower classes.

Some people think that Confucius's thoughts are too conservative and lack enthusiasm for reform and progress.

Some people also believe that Confucius' political ideas are too idealistic and cannot solve practical social problems.

As for Confucius's travels around the countries, many people believe that he did so in order to seek an official position. Although those who respect Confucius believe that he was acting for his own ideals, he traveled around the countries to sell his ideas to the rulers of various countries.

And the ideas he peddled, in the eyes of others, were Confucian etiquette and hierarchy.

In a nutshell, Confucius traveled around the states in order to become an official, and preaching was just a side job. From this, we can conclude that Confucius was actually an official-obsessed person.

After all, he had just been deprived of his official position in Lu, so he ran away from Lu to seek an official position in another country.

  What is this behavior?

Although the Spring and Autumn Period, historically speaking, still belongs to the Zhou Dynasty, and although it was divided into many vassal states, the unified Zhou Dynasty still existed. It is hard to say whether his behavior was considered treason.

Wei Guangde also thought so. It is really hard to judge whether Confucius' actions were for the purpose of becoming an official or for the purpose of implementing his policies and establishing his ideal country after becoming an official.

But judging from the behavior of Confucius' descendants, it is really hard to say anything.

At that time in the Ming Dynasty, the version of Romance of the Three Kingdoms was selling like hot cakes. Everyone was familiar with the contents of the book, and the evaluation of Lu Bu, "a slave of three surnames", was also deeply rooted in people's minds.

Well, because of the influence of Confucianism, the people were very disgusted with the capricious behavior of a villain like Lu Bu, and the court also encouraged the people to be loyal to the emperor and patriotic.

However, Wei Guangde was influenced by later generations and had some complaints about the descendants of the Great Sage.

But after all, these are things for future generations, so of course I can’t talk about them now.

Therefore, he was not very supportive of Zhang Juzheng's suggestion that the young emperor Zhu Yijun wanted to summon Duke Yansheng to the capital to support the worship of Confucius Temple.

After racking his brains, he finally remembered the news reported by Shandong before. It was just the right time to bring it up now to stop this matter.

When Zhang Juzheng heard Wei Guangde say that the current Duke of Yansheng, Kong Shangxian, was in mourning for his grandmother's death, he knew that it was inappropriate to summon him to the capital at this time.

Filial piety is also a very important part of Confucianism, and Duke Yansheng must certainly set an example.

"I didn't know about this at first. If he really was in mourning, I really couldn't issue an imperial decree to summon him to the capital."

Zhang Juzheng spoke slowly.

"Yes, it would be best if the Great Saint Teacher's sacrifice could be presided over by the descendants of Duke Yansheng. Unfortunately, Duke Yansheng is in mourning at home, so it may be difficult to carry out the ceremony in the past two years."

Wei Guangde said expressionlessly, "Your Majesty, I'm afraid I'll have to ask my uncle to explain a little, so as not to upset His Majesty."

"Well, I know how to do this."

Zhang Juzheng nodded and said.

Having said that, Zhang Juzheng was still worried when he looked at Wei Guangde's expression. He felt that there was something wrong with Wei Guangde's expression when he heard him talk about this.

Scholars, even those who are followers of the School of Mind, should all show admiration when talking about the Great Sage, but all he saw on Wei Guangde's face was indifference.

It seemed as if what they were talking about was just an ordinary family.

Isn’t Wei Guangde considered a scholar?

This is obviously impossible.

Without reading the Four Books and Five Classics, there is no hope of passing the imperial examination, because the imperial examination tests these things.

As long as you study with a teacher, it is impossible not to pay homage to the great sage. It is not an exaggeration to say that he is the teacher of all ages.

His thoughts have spanned thousands of years and influenced dozens or even hundreds of generations, which is why he is praised as "the teacher of emperors for thousands of years and the model of human ethics for all ages."

Even those who oppose Confucianism cannot deny the lofty status that Confucius holds in people's minds.

Wei Guangde's indifference to this matter made Zhang Juzheng have other thoughts.

It's funny to say, because there was an undercurrent surging in the court at that time.

The source of the surge is precisely the tablets of the sacrificial offerings in the Confucius Temple.

Confucius is the "Teacher of All Ages". All dynasties have attached great importance to the Confucius Temple where Confucius is worshipped.

The layout of the Confucius Temple, in addition to the tablets and statues of Confucius himself, also includes arrangements for his "attendants".

The Confucius Temple enshrines not only Confucius. In addition to Mencius, the second sage, and Confucius' disciples, "great sages and scholars" recognized in later dynasties can also be given the status of "subordinate worship" with the emperor's approval.

After death, their names are written on a tablet and placed in the Confucius Temple, where they will forever enjoy incense and offerings.

Being enshrined in the Confucius Temple is the ultimate honor for scholars in their lifetime, which means that their knowledge is recognized by others and they must be recognized as "masters" by the political, academic and civilian circles. Now, there is a request in the court to change the tablets of Confucius Temple enshrined.

Who is qualified to be enshrined in the Confucius Temple often requires debate, careful consideration, and negotiation among multiple parties.

The key point is that this person is a very influential person, he is Wang Yangming, the master of the School of Mind.

After Wang Yangming's death, many of his disciples emerged, and more people in the world depended on Wang Yangming for their livelihood. In fact, in later generations, there are still many people who make a living by selling Wang Yangming's stories.

Therefore, the question of whether Wang Yangming could be enshrined in the Confucius Temple was, on the surface, a question about Wang Yangming's status and influence in the Confucian community, but secretly it also became a major issue concerning the future and destiny of many people.

Only when Wang Yangming became honored did his disciples follow suit; only when Wang Yangming entered the Confucius Temple did Yangming's philosophy of mind truly become a "prominent school of thought."

Initially, although there were people who were worshipped in the Confucius Temple, it had not formed a system.

In the Tang Dynasty, under the decree of Emperor Taizong of Tang, the system of worship in the Confucius Temple was improved to a great extent.

Originally, only Confucius' direct disciples such as Yan Hui were entitled to be worshipped in the Confucius Temple and receive sacrifices.

Emperor Taizong of Tang enshrined the tablets of Zuo Qiuming and 21 other people in the Confucius Temple, which suddenly expanded the scope of worship. It also meant that being worshipped together with Confucius was no longer the exclusive privilege of his direct disciples.

Anyone who has made contributions to Confucianism will be qualified to become a "sage" and be worshipped by future generations after his death.

Since then, the list of deities worshipped in the Confucius Temple has been supplemented and changed in successive dynasties.

Among them, Wang Anshi was relatively unlucky. He had briefly obtained the qualification of "sharing the honors", and his status in the Confucius Temple was second only to Yan Hui and Mencius, but he was soon withdrawn.

In the Southern Song Dynasty, several representative figures of Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism, namely Zhu Xi, the two Cheng brothers, Zhang Zai, and Zhou Dunyi, the "Five Sons", were also included in the list of those to be worshipped.

This arrangement undoubtedly proves the lofty status of Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism at that time.

The Neo-Confucianists of the Song Dynasty all entered the Confucius Temple, and of course the Neo-Confucianists of the Ming Dynasty followed suit.

During the Longqing period, Xue Xuan, a great Confucian scholar in the early Ming Dynasty, was enshrined in the Confucius Temple. Now, some censors have proposed that the list of enshrined figures should be updated again. The reason for the change is that they hope to add Wang Yangming to the list of enshrined figures.

Who is this Xue Xuan?

Xue Xuan, whose courtesy name was Dewen and pseudonym was Jingxuan, was a native of Hejin, Hedong. He was a famous thinker, rationalist, and writer in the Ming Dynasty, the founder of the Hedong School, and was commonly known as "Xue Hedong".

Xue Xuan was a Jinshi in the 19th year of Yongle, and served as Tongyi Doctor, Left Vice Minister of Rites and Academician of Hanlin Academy. He died in the 8th year of Tianshun, and was posthumously awarded the title of Zishan Doctor and Minister of Rites, and the posthumous name of Wenqing, so later generations called him "Xue Wenqing".

In the fifth year of Longqing's reign, with the support of Gao Gong, he was enshrined in the Confucius Temple.

After Cao Duan, Xue Xuan founded the "Hedong School" in the north, and his disciples spread across Shanxi, Henan, and Guanlong areas, forming a large group.

His teachings were passed down to the middle of the Ming Dynasty and formed the "Guanzhong School" led by the brothers Lu Dajun, whose influence "almost shared that of Yangming."

A person whose doctrines competed with Wang Yangming's had been enshrined in the Confucius Temple several years earlier. There was no reason why Wang Yangming, the founder of the School of Mind, could not be included.

  Are Wang Yangming’s achievements enough to qualify him for admission into the Confucius Temple?

In "Zuo Zhuan", there is a very famous theory of "Three Immortalities", namely "establishing virtue, establishing merit, and establishing words".

These three indicators became the standards for measuring achievements in later generations.

First of all, let’s talk about “establishing a reputation” which is the lowest requirement among the three standards. To put it simply, it means writing books and making certain theoretical research. If one wants to be enshrined in the Confucius Temple, one must have made outstanding contributions to Confucian thought.

Wang Yangming achieved this.

His theory of mind, which was inherited from Lu Jiuyuan of the Song Dynasty, was unique and different from Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism, and is an important part of the history of thought in the Ming Dynasty.

He accepted many disciples, and even after his death, his academic thoughts were continued to be carried forward by his disciples.

Until the late Ming Dynasty, the School of Mind still had a considerable influence.

Although some people have always said that Wang Yangming's philosophy of mind originated from Buddhism, in essence, Wang Yangming's philosophy of mind is based on Confucianism and borrows some Buddhist and Taoist ideas, but its ideological essence belongs to Confucianism.

Let's talk about "achievements". Wang Yangming's contribution is naturally unquestionable. He put down the rebellion of Prince Ning.

During the Jiajing period, Wang Yangming was even granted the title of earl, and continued to make use of his remaining energy as governor of Guangdong and Guangxi, quelling local rebellions many times.

The last item is "establishing virtue". If it is measured by the standard of "creating laws and benefiting the people", it seems that the requirements are a bit too high. Only legendary monarchs like Yao, Shun, Yu and Tang can achieve it.

However, judging from the literal meaning alone, Wang Yangming did quite well in terms of moral character.

He is a very upright person, cultivates himself and manages his family well, and his personal ethics are almost impeccable.

Being an honest official and bringing benefits to the people can also get full marks for public morality.

Even the gossip writers of the Ming Dynasty, who were the best at digging into people's privacy, could only find one controversial point: he was afraid of his wife.

From this, it can be seen that Wang Yangming had outstanding contributions, impeccable moral character, and his own unique opinions. With his level of expertise, it is only natural that he should be enshrined in the Confucius Temple.

However, there is still a lot of controversy within and outside the court about whether Wang Yangming can be worshipped in the Confucius Temple, and the main focus is on his "establishing words".

Wang Yangming's philosophy of mind caused great controversy as soon as it appeared.

  As we all know, the School of Mind is very different from Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism in many aspects. How is it possible to bypass Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism when it has held the right to speak and dominated the ideological world for hundreds of years?

Wang Yangming was very clever. He wrote a book called "Zhu Xi's Final Conclusion in His Later Years", which was a "correction" to Zhu Xi's thoughts to a certain extent.

Of course, given the authority and influence of Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism, Wang Yangming did not dare to directly accuse Zhu Xi of being wrong, but instead changed his approach. He believed that Zhu Xi's thoughts had changed in his later years, and the trend of this change was to be more inclined towards the direction of the School of Mind.

He reinterpreted Zhu Xi's thoughts based on his own understanding, and declared that your understanding of Zhu Xi was wrong and he was right.

He used this little cleverness in order not to offend Zhu Xi and bear the stigma of "slandering sages" while continuing to promote his own doctrines. It may have been a helpless choice for him.

However, no matter how much they skirt the line, there will always be huge differences between Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism and Yangming's School of Mind, and they can never be reconciled.

Therefore, it is easy to understand why the believers of Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism naturally dislike those who "distort" Neo-Confucianism and oppose Wang Yangming's worship.

However, up to now, this dispute has not really entered the court, that is, no minister has submitted a memorial.

But privately, controversy lingers.

At this time, Zhang Juzheng naturally thought that Wei Guangde was on the side of the School of Mind.

In any case, the base camp of the School of Mind is at the Bailu Academy in Lushan, Jiangxi, and Wei Guangde’s home is in Jiujiang, so naturally there should be a close connection between him and the School of Mind.

Not allowing Kong Shangxian to come to Beijing, is it because they are afraid that people from the School of Confucianism will contact him?