Proud Maid Chunmei
Chapter 2 The Non-fiction Meaning of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Zhang"
Chapter 2 The Non-fiction Meaning of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" (Preface)
"Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" is originally a novel, and it is a literary work of great significance in the history of Chinese novels and Chinese culture. How can we let go of its essential attributes and talk about other issues?My idea is: This famous book is very rich in content. If we only pay attention to the plot of the characters, then we will put a lot of economic history, social history, philosophy history, religious history, ethical history, political history, art history, and custom history into the world. The connotations of other aspects are wasted; if we can read this masterpiece from the perspective of non-fiction, and strive for new discoveries and enlightenment in the various economic activities, social customs and human ethics provided by the work, Wouldn't it be better to read this masterpiece to gain a broader aesthetic experience?
Non-fiction reading is to obtain a deeper, broader and richer novel meaning.
[-]. The Economic Meaning in "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua"
I remember that more than ten years ago, I chatted with several economic history colleagues and talked about the history of the share economy. Everyone said that the share economy and the shareholding system first developed from European capitalism.Very early on, Europeans have already used one or more of the various elements of human, financial, and material elements as cooperation content in economic activities to conduct partnerships according to their own business needs.Probably at the beginning of the 17th century, due to the development of the commodity economy, the capitalist economy finally developed the original economic form of partnership into a share economy characterized by joint-stock companies, and gradually formed a standardized shareholding system.The share economy with joint-stock companies as the main form has become a typical form of capitalist share economy.So did China have any partnerships with production factors as the content of cooperation in the early days?When did the share economy and shareholding system appear in China?Everyone was at a loss for words.Some people think that there should be different degrees and different forms of partnership in China in the early stage, which cannot be denied.The share economy is relatively late, it should be after entering the modern period of China. In the late 19th century, it learned from European capitalism. For example, China Merchants Steamship, which opened for operation at the end of 1872, was the first modern China to learn the operation mode of Western joint-stock enterprises. new joint-stock enterprises.It was established by raising funds through the issuance of shares (also known as "stock certificates" at the time) and "investment and stock raising" to the private sector.
So, I told a story in "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" and asked you for advice.
Ximenqing started from opening a herbal medicine shop, made money, opened a woolen thread shop, and made money again, so he wanted to open a silk and satin shop.He has money, but lacks shops and management talents, so he discusses with Qiao Dahu.Qiao Dahu opened up his house facing the street as a storefront and warehouse; Ximenqing contributed capital; and invited Gan, Han, and Cui to be employees, to operate and manage it, which can be regarded as investment in management technology.The key is profit sharing. Chapter 58 of the book writes:
Ximenqing called General Cui Benn, and Qiao Dahu cleaned up the house and unloaded the goods, repaired and built the earth bank, and chose a day to open the business.Qiao Dahu said to Cui Ben: "In the future, for all matters big or small, just let your in-laws (referring to Ximen Qing) take care of them here, and there is no need to argue." Immediately, he approved the contract with Buddy Gan, and appointed the Earl as a guarantor. For example, [-] points is the rate of profit, Ximen Qing gets [-] points, Qiao Dahu gets [-] points, and the remaining three points are shared equally by Han Daoguo, Gan Yuan and Cui Ben.The story is very simple. This plot is only a few lines in the novel, but the participation in shares and dividends is clearly stated.
So everyone discussed it, and some people thought that this can only be regarded as a traditional partnership, not a share economy.Some people think that this is a typical share economy, in which not only materials and capital, but also management technology are used as shares, but the share system has not yet been formed.Someone asked, when did this happen?I told you that "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" came from "Water Margin", but like "Water Margin", it cannot be regarded as a matter of the late Northern Song Dynasty; According to the situation disclosed in the book, the academic circle basically believes that it is a work from the middle Jiajing period to the middle Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty.In front of the book there is a preface signed by "Soochow Nongzhu Ke", and the time stamp is "Wanli Dingsi Jidong". "Wanli Dingsi" is 1617, and according to the preface, the book has been circulated for a long time.Even if this is the lower limit of the book's writing period, the share economy mentioned in the book is at the beginning of the 17th century at the latest.
Everyone was speechless again.
Of course, we cannot say that China already had a shareholding system at the beginning of the 17th century, but it cannot be denied that the shareholding system is an important form of traditional Chinese social and economic activities. The early model of the shareholding economy has been used by some very intelligent operators. Very skillful.
"Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" has a very high status in the history of Chinese novels, and successfully portrayed a very complicated society: centering on Ximen Qing and his family, it wrote about market transactions, official exchanges, friends and buddies, Wives, concubines, and servants are written. It can be said that there are three teachings and nine streams, from all over the world. Everyone can get literary aesthetics from it according to their own reading preferences. "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" provides us with very rich economic historical materials, which is its very precious place.It vividly provides a large number of economic materials in the middle of the Ming Dynasty. Although this kind of data cannot be compared with historical materials, it has reached a level of vividness and detail that cannot be achieved by general historical materials, and records the real life that historical materials do not record.For example, what I just said about the share economy, there are also cotton, cotton cloth, silk and satin and their processing and market conditions; clothing, food, furniture processing and their market conditions.What is particularly worth mentioning is that the novel shows the transportation, commercial trade, and taxation of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal at that time, as well as the development of the service industry driven by it.Therefore, I proposed in 1990 that "the canal economy and culture in the middle and late Ming Dynasty gave birth to "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua"".
[-]. The moral meaning in "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua"
Our society's attitude towards "Jin Ping Mei" has always been contradictory, or paradoxical. "Everyone is good, and everyone is evil."It is both curious and easy to read, but also disgusting and defensive.The problem is not only that there are more than a hundred sexual descriptions of nearly [-] characters in it, or sexual stories closely related to the fate of the characters, but also that today, some people can see the so-and-so in reality, and see the reality in reality. some aspect of society.This is a headache.And the moral teaching of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" cannot be summed up simply by using words such as "feudal" and "traditional".
Ximen Qing is the core character of the novel, the No. 10 character.One of his two feet is on the market, the other on the officialdom; one of his two hands is constantly collecting money, and the other is reaching out to women.In shopping malls, he is the best at making money. In less than ten years, his family property has grown from a few thousand taels to nearly 20 taels.In the officialdom, he made friends with important officials in the capital, and connected with the four government offices of the county government. Many central and local officials were his friends, many of whom were friends he needed, and many friends who needed him.In terms of female sex, there are more than [-] women who have direct sexual relations. He is a good female sex, and eventually lost his life for female sex; Reasons to spend money and time on women.Therefore, in the history of Chinese novel criticism, as well as in the history of Chinese culture, he has received much more moral criticism than he should have received from literary criticism and cultural criticism.Later, it was simply the judgment of "rogue", "bully", and "philistine".Today, when there is a lot of impetuousness in our society, when there is a mercenary and moral decline, and when there are many people like Ximen Qing, Pan Jinlian, Li Pinger, and Chunmei who are even better than them, it is just a pity. There are even more phenomena where these characters make moral judgments without learning moral and cultural enlightenment from them.In fact, we have not studied the moral teachings in the book enough.
The moral teaching of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" is concentrated in the "Four Seasons Ci" and "Four Greedy Ci" at the beginning of the novel and the opening remarks of the first chapter, from which the preaching interspersed in the characters and plots of the book begins. "Four Seasons Ci" and "Four Greedy Ci" criticize specific alcohol, sex, wealth, and gas from two aspects, one positive and one negative, and take the fate stories of Ximen Qing and others as examples to criticize the morality they affirm. The rules and the value of life are analyzed and preached.
One is to quit drinking.Wine must be drunk, "the wine is ripe enough to drink, and the guests must stay."But it was in a quiet hut, where the state of "no glory, no shame, and no worries" was obtained, so it was possible to "sleep when tired, drink when thirsty, and sing when drunk" ("Four Seasons Ci").Don't be greedy for alcohol. Alcoholism can lead to disorder and make the drinker lose the behavioral restraint he should have. "Alcohol damages the spirit and ruins the family, and the language makes a lot of noise", "lost everything because of it" ① ("Four Greedy Ci"). "All evils and adultery are the first", but "alcohol is the sex matchmaker".Therefore, "you must be vigilant and drink the flowing clouds, if you can rely on this, there is no difference" ① ("Four Greedy Ci").Most of the sexual indulgences mentioned in the novel are closely related to alcohol.The aphrodisiacs used by Ximenqing must use wine as a guide, and he is an image of a "sex matchmaker".
The second is to avoid lust. "Food and sex are also related to sex." ("Mencius·Gao Zi 1") Chinese people with a strong sense of offspring and health preservation do not advocate or accept asceticism.But one should not be greedy for sex, one should not indulge one's love, let alone indulge one's sexuality. Indulging in one's sexuality is not only a moral issue, but also a physiological issue. Indulging in one's sexuality will inevitably lead to ethical confusion and premature death.Ximen Qing went to Hei along this evil path.Abstinence from greed and sex does not mean abstinence, but asceticism is a manifestation of abstinence.Therefore, the question raised by the author is "less greedy for red, pink and emerald flower tins", "Don't love this, raise the dantian, and people can live a long life with few desires" ① ("Four Greedy Ci").Eroticism and pornography are closely related and cause and effect each other.When rebooting, one must suppress emotion. "The two characters of eroticism are one and the same. Therefore, the color is gorgeous in the eyes, and the emotion is in the heart. The eroticism is born together, and the eyes look at each other." ① (Chapter [-]) Emotion is born in the heart, and it is the body. Sentimental.Therefore, "from now on, let go of the idle wind and the moon, and the plum blossoms in the paper tent will sleep alone" ① ("Four Greedy Ci").This is to abstain from lust by suppressing emotions, so as to achieve the goal of abstaining from lust, "stop loving green temples and beauties, and less greedy for red, pink, emerald and emerald flowers". The biggest moral problem addressed in the moral teaching of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" is lust.
The third is to avoid greed for money.The critique standard of the author's moral teaching is not not wanting wealth, no wealth is not rich, no money is hard to live, but: first, fair share of wealth. "Money, silk, gold, and pearls are collected in the cage, if it is not fair, you should be less greedy" ① ("Four Greedy Ci"). "Wealth comes from wealth. Wealth and fame are also worrying about fame and fortune. Sometimes you must have your destiny, and there is no time to force it" ① (chapter 14).Two, don't be greedy.It's not that you can't be greedy for your fair share of wealth, or you can't have too much of your fair share of wealth.Those who are greedy for money will be unkind because of greed, and those who have a lot of money will cause disasters because of wealth. "Prostitution has always been from spoiling the rich" ① (chapter 27), "the rich are envied and the poor are humiliated", and "the morals of relatives and friends are lost because of wealth, and the love of father and son is profit" ① ("Four Greedy Ci").The third emphasizes that accumulating wealth is not as good as accumulating goodness. "To be a good person, don't accumulate wealth. Accumulate goodness to become a good person, and accumulate wealth to cause trouble. Shi Chong was rich in the day, and he would inevitably be killed. Deng Tong died of hunger, so what is the use of money!... How many rich people die without a coffin" ① (Chapter 79).Ximen Qing was criticized, the biggest crime was indulgence, but the first reason was that he was rich, he became famous because of wealth, became famous because of wealth, and indulged in sex because of wealth.Without so much money, how can he use money to do whatever he wants, and he can accomplish whatever he wants?As a result, when he died, he didn't even have time to prepare the coffin, and he didn't take a single cent of his nearly [-] family property with him.
The fourth is to refrain from exerting one's anger.Using qi can also be called "shang qi", qi is the qi of strength and tyranny. "I get angry at Wuming acupoint for a while, but later I worry about burning and hurting myself", so treat people "don't go too far, avoid disaster, and advise you to be lenient in everything. When you let go, you have to let go, and you have to forgive others"① (" Four Greedy Words").Advocates that "softness is the foundation of standing up, and strength is the womb of trouble. Without competition and competition, you are a virtuous talent, so it is no problem to lose to me" ① (the first chapter).In the novel, most of those who try to be brave and try their best will end badly.Ximenqing, Li Ping'er, Pan Jinlian, Sun Xue'e, Song Huilian, Chunmei, Chen Jingji, all of them.Especially Pan Jinlian and Chunmei are unforgiving characters who are both reasonable and unreasonable, and Chunmei has a rigid temper.
The values and outlook on life contained in these moral teachings have the standards of traditional society, which are worthy of discussion and reflection, but there are many things about the laws of life and society, which are very enlightening and cannot be completely denied.Especially when our economic development has made great and rapid progress, but social management and moral construction can't keep up; especially when some people's wealth has also made great and rapid development, but individuals cannot properly When dealing with these wealth, people are not the masters of wealth, but alienated into slaves of wealth, and the lust, material desire, and arrogance that are fueled by wealth are displayed in an extraordinary way. Natural human sensibility, indulge in lust and do everything, the time of death is coming. The warning in "Four Greedy Ci" is not without reason. "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" is not a book against the theory of wealth, but admonishes people to have legitimate means to acquire wealth and to have wisdom in handling wealth.Therefore, the philosophical implications of the outlook on life and values in the novel are revealed.
[-]. The Philosophical Meaning in "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua"
Morality is the consciousness of social ethics, in fact, it is the embodiment of outlook on life and values.The outlook on life and values depend on the world outlook or philosophical outlook that is the fundamental guiding ideology of human behavior.The moral teaching of society must not only rely on certain social ethical principles, but more importantly, it must be based on philosophical thoughts.
"Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" was written from the end of Jiajing to the beginning of Wanli.The space in which the story is written is the canal area in eastern China where the commercial economy and the burgher class were most developed at that time.The reality reflected in the story, or the object of moral preaching criticism, is the anti-traditional moral concepts and behaviors of a small commercial society composed of merchants and citizens in the very active commercial town of Hebu, which shows that in the area where the commodity economy was developing rapidly at that time, , the traditional ethical and moral system has been greatly impacted, and a new ethical and moral system that can regulate people's behavior has not yet been established.Judging from the results of the current research, the composition of the moral standards preached in "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" is mainly composed of some precepts in the Ming Dynasty as the code of conduct for the public, as well as folk doctrines that integrate Taoism, the concept of good and evil in Buddhism, and karma. Religious awareness and people's lived experience. ③The author's choice has its own philosophical basis.
One is the Confucian doctrine of the mean, neutralizing the concept of abstinence, and cultivating the mind with few desires.
Judging from the moral teaching purpose of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua", people like Ximen Qing and Pan Jinlian are bad in human desire, and they are excessively greedy. "Wealth and honor are what people admire, but there are few who don't cause adultery; sorrow and resentment, what people hate, and there are few who don't get hurt." Evil. People are not sages and sages of Yao and Shun, so they are rarely bothered by them." But it should be "joy but not lecherous, mourning but not hurt". ① (Xinxinzi's "Preface") should not be like "Jinlian died of adultery, Ping'er died of evil, Chunmei died of adultery", "I advise the world not to be the successor of Ximen" ① (Soochow Nongzhuke's "Preface") .This is exactly the specific application of the so-called "neutralization" concept of abstinence in "The Doctrine of the Mean": "When joy, anger, sorrow, and joy are not released, they are called the middle, and when they are all released, they are called harmony." Confucianism disagrees with abstinence. "Food and sex are also related to sex." "Eat and drink men and women, people's great desires exist." ④But it emphasizes the use of ethical norms to restrain the relationship between men and women and their various desires, and at the same time makes this restraint a kind of self-cultivation to promote The perfection of human morality. "There is nothing good in cultivating the mind with few desires. As a human being, there are few desires. Even if there are those who do not exist, they are few; if they are human, they have many desires, and even if there are those who exist, they are few." If you want to keep goodness, you will lose goodness if you want too much. Cultivating the heart lies in keeping goodness, so you should have few desires.
It should be explained that the relationship between the Confucian concept of abstinence and moral cultivation reached an extreme in the Song Confucian period.Since Song Confucianism not only took Confucianism as its core, but also adopted the theories of Buddhism and Taoism, it pushed the abstinence of Confucianism to the extinction of desires of Buddhism and the desirelessness of Taoism.Song Confucianism actually exaggerated the harm of human desire. "What's more, desire harms people. Human beings are not good, and they want to lure them. If you lure them without knowing it, you will destroy the law of heaven without knowing the opposite. Therefore, the eyes desire the color, the ears desire the sound, the nose desires the fragrance, and the body desires the fragrance." If you want to be safe, all these things are there to make it possible.” ⑤ Therefore, Confucianism in the Song Dynasty believed that in order to preserve the principles of heaven, human desires must be eliminated.The theories of Confucianism in the Song Dynasty were too far away from reality due to excessive requirements of abstinence and suffocation, and did not conform to the "golden mean" advocated by the classic Confucian sages, so it was difficult to implement in Ming Dynasty society. When "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" chooses the level of Neo Confucianism, it will naturally not choose it.
The second is Taoism's "Tao follows nature", and few desires are used to protect oneself, keep in good health, support relatives, and live a long life.
There are different views among the pre-Qin scholars on the attitude towards various human desires. "Laozi" advocates "ignorance and no desire", the reason is not complicated, "five colors make people blind; five tones make people deaf; five flavors make people delicious; galloping field hunting makes people mad; rare goods make people hinder. If you don’t do it for the sake of your eyes, then go and take this.” ⑥ (Chapter 12 of Laozi) Therefore, “If you don’t honor the worthy, the people won’t fight; "Empty their minds, fill their stomachs, weaken their ambitions, and strengthen their bones, often making the people ignorant and without desires." ⑥("Lao Tzu" Chapter 3) Lao Tzu's philosophy of ignoring people's ignorance to achieve desirelessness is too rational. It probably didn't work in the reality of "chickens and dogs hear each other, and don't communicate with each other when they grow old and die". Later, the economy developed , the society has progressed, it will be even more unfeasible.However, it talks about the origin of material desires and the significance of abstinence in social ethics, as well as the idea of “humans follow the earth, the earth follows the heavens, the heavens follow the Tao, and the Tao follows nature” ⑥ (Laozi, Chapter 25) is an inspiration. influenced other philosophers and greatly influenced posterity. "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" also has a lot of "wide-mindedness and magnanimity. After a few years, life and death are in front of your eyes. Follow the high and the low and follow the fate, whether it is long or short, don't complain; you have to sigh endlessly, and the family is poor. Wealth always depends on the sky; the clothing and salary in life depend on fate, and one day is free and one day is immortal" and other preaching. ① (Chapter 49)
Same as Laozi, Zhuangzi advocates few desires and a return to nature; different from Laozi, Zhuangzi combines few desires with respect for life and health preservation.Zhuangzi pursues his "happy excursion", hoping to obtain boundless leisure with a limited life.But at the same time, he also knows very well that "if there is a limit, follow the limitless, and there will be no end", so he pays attention to protecting one's life, whole life, supporting relatives, and enduring life. ⑦ ("Zhuangzi·Health Master No. 18") Zhuangzi believes that life has a limit, which essentially affirms the natural attributes of human beings. Therefore, what he discusses in terms of self-preservation, whole life, raising relatives, and end-of-year is the maintenance of the natural body, which is different from Confucianism. Moral perfection is not the same as wanting less. "A rich man, if his body suffers from illness, accumulates a lot of wealth but cannot use it to the full, his form is also outside. A rich man, day and night, thinking about whether it is good or not, his form is also sloppy... What the common practice is today Instead of pleasure, I don’t know the fruit of joy, joy or evil? Is it joy or evil?” ⑦ ("Zhuangzi Zhile No. [-]") Desire for rebirth is light, and life is valued for cessation of desire.Zhuangzi's thoughts have had a great influence on later generations, and the author of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" is no exception.What is the meaning of life?The latecomers have different views. Of course, there are many people who pursue the freedom and carefree life, and there are also many people who develop the precious life into health preservation, or even the art of health preservation. But for the general public, health and life preservation are the main thing. The "Four Seasons Ci" in "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" promotes the realm of few desires and health preservation, and many preaching in the book focus on the goal of seeking health and preserving life.
The third is Yang Zhu's view of adapting (tempering) desires and following life.
Yang Zhuzhi believed that human desires are closely related to the survival of human life, and the relevant viewpoints are mainly preserved in the chapters "Guisheng", "Respecting Self", and "Lust" of "Lu Shi Chunqiu". "Every life is long, and it is also smooth. Those who make life not smooth, have desires. Therefore, a saint must first satisfy his desires." ⑧ ("Focus on Self") "Fitness of desires" means "abstinence." "A sage thinks deeply about the world, and nothing is more valuable than life. The ears, eyes, nose, and mouth are the battles of life. Although the ears desire sound, the eyes desire color, the nose desires fragrance, and the mouth desires taste, the harm to life is stopped." "The so-called Whoever lives in full, the six desires are all suitable.” ⑧ ("Guisheng") "Human beings are born with greed and desire, desire with emotion, and emotion with restraint. The sage cultivates restraint to stop desire, so he only acts on his emotion. Therefore, the ears desire the five sounds, the eyes desire the five colors, and the mouth desires the five tastes, which is emotion. These three, the noble and the humble, the foolish, the wise, and the wise, have no respect for them, and their desires are as one. Although Shennong Huangdi is the same as Jie and Zhou. The reason why the saints are different is that You can get your love. If you are alive, you will get your love. If you don’t let your life be alive, you will lose your love. These two are the foundation of life and death." ⑧ ("Lust") Here, it is believed that greed and desire are also born in human beings Yes, no matter who you are, if you want to survive, you must restrain your inborn greed and desire.What the sages get from practicing abstinence is the feeling of restraint, so they can survive; but those who fail to survive are because they cannot practice restraint and lose the feeling of restraint, that is, they indulge their own desires. "The vulgar lord is in a bad mood, so every movement is a failure. The ears cannot be supported, the eyes cannot be tired, the mouth cannot be full, the body is exhausted, the muscles and bones are stagnant, the blood vessels are congested, the nine orifices are few, and the music is out of place. Although there is Peng Zu, it is still It cannot be done." ("Lust") The interest relationship between human desire and human existence explains the relationship between human beings as nature and the laws of nature, which is in line with natural principles and easily accepted by people.Therefore, it also became the ideological basis of various theories including TCM diagnosis and treatment to prevent diseases caused by greed. (Sun Simiao's "Thousands of Gold and Prescriptions" Volume [-] has: "Pleasure and indulgence, extreme intentions in the room, a little older, kidney qi is exhausted, and all kinds of diseases breed." There is: "If you indulge your lust, you will be destined to be the same as the morning dew.") The guiding ideology of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" exhorting people to abstinence in the preaching is of course related to this.
The fourth is the concept of the connection between man and nature and the unity of man and nature proposed by Confucians from the pre-Qin to Han dynasties.
The world view of the connection between man and nature and the unity of man and nature developed from the pre-Qin to the Han Dynasty is an idealistic view, but it believes that man and nature are very closely related. "Man (being) man is born of heaven." ⑨ This is still meaningful for understanding the natural attributes of man.Therefore, when talking about the relationship between man and nature, there is also a basis for a crude epistemology of nature.Therefore, in Xinxinzi's "Preface", it is said: "Therefore, there are spring, summer, autumn and winter in the sky, and people have joys and sorrows. No wonder it is so. Those who are in harmony with the weather will have long-lasting descendants if they are far away, and enjoy life if they are close; Misfortunes never follow. People in the world, although not out of the metabolization of world fate, but those who do not experience disasters and shame are fortunate."
This is the philosophical basis of the moral teaching of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua", and anyone who understands traditional Chinese philosophy knows that these philosophical bases are also traditional propositions of Chinese philosophy.
[-]. Reflection on the Philosophical Meaning of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua"
"Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" is not a philosophical work, but its moral teaching takes the traditional propositions of Chinese philosophy as its basis. The moral teaching of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" is popular and popular, and it also has quite a lot of backward and negative elements.However, as a kind of cultural thinking accumulated over a long period of time, the philosophical propositions in the ideological basis of moral teaching still have an important enlightening value for the progress of human civilization. "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" has become a masterpiece handed down from generation to generation, not only because it truly reflects the social conditions in China in the 16th and 17th centuries, but also because it discusses a philosophical problem of universal significance to human beings in a special way. The explanation of this conundrum has a universal meaning that transcends time and space.The purpose of its preaching is not to maintain or make up for or rebuild the traditional ethical and moral system that has been impacted by the economic society, but to focus on people and their own destiny.Therefore, this work will have the aesthetic charm and philosophical connotation beyond time and space.
One is to deal with the rationality of the relationship between life and desire.
The author of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" is not only confronted with a reality in which human nature is distorted due to rational repression, but also a reality in which inflated desires are vented due to economic development. The traditional ethical order has been impacted, and traditional morality Norms have also lost the power they once had to restrain people's hearts and conduct.The author’s moral teaching can neither take the Neo-Confucianism of the Song Dynasty as the standard, nor copy the texts of the official Confucianism of the Ming Dynasty. Therefore, he chose the Neo-Confucianism at the public level, folk religion, and acceptable dialectical statements about the relationship between life and desire. , Anti-greedy for wine, sex, and money, use qi to abstain from desire, abstain from desire to protect oneself, in order to achieve the harmony of life and desire.
No matter who it is, it is impossible to be born with a diamond body that can withstand the destruction of any desire. The formation, growth, and death of a human body are the laws of nature.Not only is human life limited, but the endurance of the flesh is also limited.Human desire is an activity of consciousness, not only boundless, but also constantly expanding.Fighting against the boundless and infinite pursuit of desires with a bounded and limited natural life body will inevitably lead to the collapse of the body.To prevent this collapse, the boundless, infinite pursuit of desire must be limited to the bounded, limited fulfillment of desire.This is the meaning of abstinence and few desires.The rationality of the relationship between life and desire is in line with the laws of nature. The moral preaching in "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" when it performed the life of the No. [-] character Ximen Qing is just to explain such a outlook on life and values.Criticizing Ximen Qing for poisoning people's lives, taking over people's wives and daughters, corrupting officials, and perverting the law for getting money is still a superficial level of moral criticism. The deep-level criticism lies in his self-destruction of himself. He is also consuming himself.He asked Monk Hu to give him the hundred and ten aphrodisiac pills, just like he used his physical life as a bargaining chip. The gambling of consuming his own life with indulgence failed every time. Every time he used one aphrodisiac, he lost a bargaining chip. It is inevitable that the medicine will be exhausted.In order to emphasize this point, the author highlights Ximen Qing's tragic death (the deaths of Pan Jinlian, Li Ping'er, and Chunmei are also tragic and frightening).We are not discussing here whether this kind of death is a bad retribution and whether this kind of bad retribution is revolutionary or conservative, progress or regression, but must objectively affirm the reasonable explanation of this death to the relationship between life and desire.The reason why it is affirmed that it is reasonable is because this explanation is in line with the universal law of things in Ximenqing, Dongmenqing, Nanmenqing and Beimenqing before and after "feudal society" and "feudal society". sexual and positive.
The second is to affirm the harmony of the relationship between man and nature.
The harmonious development of the relationship between man and nature is an eternal philosophical proposition of human society.The harmony between man and nature is not only the symbiosis and coexistence between man and the animal world, the plant world, mountains, rivers, and polar oceans that conform to the laws of nature. Lawful survival and development.Human beings have natural attributes, and human beings are a member of nature. Humans should control their desires and behaviors beyond the limits of the natural body through their own rationality, so as to achieve a good and healthy existence.Especially when an era that restricts the free development of people and completely strangles people's natural desires is coming to an end, and when the new ethics and morality are not yet mature, human desires, supported by wealth and power, will inevitably be unscrupulous. The proposition of harmony between man and nature is even more important if it spews out, and it has practical significance to affirm the harmony between human life desire and natural life. In Ming Dynasty society 400 years ago, it was impossible for us to have such a deep understanding of the harmonious development of man and nature as we do today. However, the questions raised by the moral teachings and warnings to people in "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" are just to explain the relationship between natural man and society. There should be a harmonious relationship between people. Although the concept of abstinence in the book has a strong traditional moral color, abstinence is not abstinence, and moral teaching does not mean killing people's nature.We do not deny that the moral teachings in the Ming and Qing Dynasties that used official Neo-Confucianism as a weapon constrained human survival and development, and had the disadvantage of suppressing the liberation of human nature and the development of personality. In this era, the self-discipline that people should have and the rationality that society should have should not be regarded as feudal shackles.
Emphasizing the right to enjoy life is a modern concept, and it is correct and progressive to use this concept to criticize the asceticism of the West in the Middle Ages and the ascetic Neo-Confucianism of the Ming Dynasty in the East for the purpose of maintaining the destiny.But even in modern society, the right to enjoy life is not equal to unrestrained indulgence.On the contrary, enjoying life is more about cherishing life.Therefore, when we criticize the ruthless containment of people's legitimate life desires by the Ming Dynasty, we cannot describe people's indulgence as positive, progressive, and reasonable, otherwise, it is tantamount to denying our own behavior from theory to practice. value of person.Emphasizing the liberation of individuality, praising the freedom of love and the happiness of marriage cannot be equated with praising prostitution, polygamy, and behaviors that violate the laws of nature and social ethics.Otherwise, the paradoxical value is not only meaningless, but also will make new literature and new civilization fall into a new vicious circle of negation, making it difficult to make a reasonable explanation, which is not conducive to the lawful development of man himself.Having said that, another question comes to mind:
"Wanli Dingsi" version of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" has a preface signed "Xin Xin Zi" before the main text.Over the past seven or eighty years, most readers and researchers believe that this preface is to defend the novel "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua", especially for the novel's excessive description of male and female sexual behavior.Today, if we can calmly study and study, and combine moral preaching and philosophical meaning, the meaning will be different. "Xinxinzi" has its profound and farsightedness:
It is said that Lanling Xiaoxiaosheng's "Jin Ping Mei Biography" expresses its meaning in the customs of the time, and there is a saying.
People have seven emotions, especially melancholy.A wise man is born with transformation, the fog disperses and the ice cracks, so it goes without saying.Those who are inferior also know how to use reason to arrange themselves, so as not to make them tired.However, those who are inferior can neither understand their minds nor have poetry and books to send them away, but they will not be so sick!For this reason, my friend Xiaoxiaosheng exhausted what he had accumulated in his daily life, and he wrote a biography of it, and there are a hundred chapters.Among them, the sentences are novel and popular.It is nothing more than understanding human relations, abstaining from obscenity, distinguishing women and men, transforming good and evil, knowing the opportunities of ups and downs, and taking retribution for reincarnation, as in the present; You can just smile and forget your worries.It is unavoidable that the language involves slang and vulgarity, and the air contains fat powder.Yu Ze said: No! The work of "Guan Ju" is joyful but not lewd, sad but not hurtful.Wealth and honor are what people admire, but there are few who do not cause adultery; sorrow and resentment, what people hate, and few who do not cause injury.I have seen poets of the previous generation, such as Lu Jinghui's "Jian Deng Xin Hua", Yuan Wei's "Ying Ying Zhuan", Zhao Junbi's "Xiao Luo Ji", Luo Guanzhong's "Water Margin", Qiu Qiongshan's "Love Collection", Lu Meihu's "Huaichun Elegant Collection", Zhou Jingxuan's "Bingzhu Qingtan", and later "Ruyi Zhuan" and "Yuhu Ji", the sentences in them are correct, and readers often can't enjoy them.This story, although it is often talked about in the market, and the chatter in the boudoir, makes a three-foot boy hear it, like pulling out a whale's tooth in the sky, and it is clear and easy to understand.Although it is not as theoretical and interesting as the ancient collections, the writing and ink are quite impressive.Others are related to the morality of the world, punishing good and evil, washing away worries and washing one's heart, which is not without minor benefits.For example, everyone likes things in the house, and people who are not sages and sages of Yao and Shun seldom don't be bothered by them; people who are rich, noble and kind, hate them, so as to shake people's hearts and sway their ambitions.Look at its high halls and mansions, the cloud windows and foggy pavilions, how deep and deep; the golden screen embroidered mattresses, how beautiful; How extravagant it is; a beautiful man and a scholar mock the wind and sing the moon, so why do you have to take care of it;It is joyful, but joy is bound to be sorrowful: as if the opportunity of parting is about to flourish, and the haggard face is bound to be seen, it is unavoidable; it is unavoidable to fold plum blossoms to meet postmen, and rulers send fish books, which cannot be done without; suffering is imminent In the midst of it, there is no way to get rid of the ups and downs; it is impossible to escape if you are trapped in the sword; there are kings in the sun, and there are ghosts and gods in the dark, so you can't escape.As for the wife of an adulterer, the wife is an adulterer, the cause of misfortune is evil, and the cause of good fortune is good celebration.Therefore, the sky has spring, summer, autumn and winter, and people have joys and sorrows, so it is no wonder.Those who are in harmony with the weather will have long-term descendants if they are far away, and they will enjoy life if they are near;Although people's life in the world is not out of the metabolism of the world, it is also fortunate for those who have not experienced disasters and shame.My old saying: Xiao Xiaosheng wrote this biography, there is something to say. ① (Xinxinzi's "Preface")
Notes:
①Lanling Xiaoxiaosheng: "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" [M], Wanli Ding Si edition, Hong Kong: Photocopy of Taiping Bookstore, 1982.
②Yang Bojun's translation and annotation: "Mencius's translation and annotation" [M], Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company, 1960.
③Chen Dongyou: "The Choice of Confucianism and Religion in "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" [J], Nanchang: "Zhengming", 1993, (4).
④ "Book of Rites · Yun Pian" [M], Beijing: Photocopy of "Thirteen Classics Commentary" by Zhonghua Book Company, 1980.
⑤ "Er Cheng Cui Yan Volume 1980" [M], Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company "Er Cheng Collection", [-].
⑥Zhu Qianzhi: "Lao Tzu Xiao Shi" [M], Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company, 1984.
⑦ Cao Chuji wrote: "Zhuangzi Shallow Notes" [M], Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company, 1982.
⑧ "Lushi Chunqiu" [M], Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company "Zhuzi Collection", 1954.
⑨Written by Su Yu, edited by Zhong Zhe: "Chunqiu Fanlu Yizheng: Being a Human Being No. 40 One" [M], Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company, 1992.
(This article was originally a speech at a book club in Shenzhen in October 2010)
(End of this chapter)
"Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" is originally a novel, and it is a literary work of great significance in the history of Chinese novels and Chinese culture. How can we let go of its essential attributes and talk about other issues?My idea is: This famous book is very rich in content. If we only pay attention to the plot of the characters, then we will put a lot of economic history, social history, philosophy history, religious history, ethical history, political history, art history, and custom history into the world. The connotations of other aspects are wasted; if we can read this masterpiece from the perspective of non-fiction, and strive for new discoveries and enlightenment in the various economic activities, social customs and human ethics provided by the work, Wouldn't it be better to read this masterpiece to gain a broader aesthetic experience?
Non-fiction reading is to obtain a deeper, broader and richer novel meaning.
[-]. The Economic Meaning in "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua"
I remember that more than ten years ago, I chatted with several economic history colleagues and talked about the history of the share economy. Everyone said that the share economy and the shareholding system first developed from European capitalism.Very early on, Europeans have already used one or more of the various elements of human, financial, and material elements as cooperation content in economic activities to conduct partnerships according to their own business needs.Probably at the beginning of the 17th century, due to the development of the commodity economy, the capitalist economy finally developed the original economic form of partnership into a share economy characterized by joint-stock companies, and gradually formed a standardized shareholding system.The share economy with joint-stock companies as the main form has become a typical form of capitalist share economy.So did China have any partnerships with production factors as the content of cooperation in the early days?When did the share economy and shareholding system appear in China?Everyone was at a loss for words.Some people think that there should be different degrees and different forms of partnership in China in the early stage, which cannot be denied.The share economy is relatively late, it should be after entering the modern period of China. In the late 19th century, it learned from European capitalism. For example, China Merchants Steamship, which opened for operation at the end of 1872, was the first modern China to learn the operation mode of Western joint-stock enterprises. new joint-stock enterprises.It was established by raising funds through the issuance of shares (also known as "stock certificates" at the time) and "investment and stock raising" to the private sector.
So, I told a story in "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" and asked you for advice.
Ximenqing started from opening a herbal medicine shop, made money, opened a woolen thread shop, and made money again, so he wanted to open a silk and satin shop.He has money, but lacks shops and management talents, so he discusses with Qiao Dahu.Qiao Dahu opened up his house facing the street as a storefront and warehouse; Ximenqing contributed capital; and invited Gan, Han, and Cui to be employees, to operate and manage it, which can be regarded as investment in management technology.The key is profit sharing. Chapter 58 of the book writes:
Ximenqing called General Cui Benn, and Qiao Dahu cleaned up the house and unloaded the goods, repaired and built the earth bank, and chose a day to open the business.Qiao Dahu said to Cui Ben: "In the future, for all matters big or small, just let your in-laws (referring to Ximen Qing) take care of them here, and there is no need to argue." Immediately, he approved the contract with Buddy Gan, and appointed the Earl as a guarantor. For example, [-] points is the rate of profit, Ximen Qing gets [-] points, Qiao Dahu gets [-] points, and the remaining three points are shared equally by Han Daoguo, Gan Yuan and Cui Ben.The story is very simple. This plot is only a few lines in the novel, but the participation in shares and dividends is clearly stated.
So everyone discussed it, and some people thought that this can only be regarded as a traditional partnership, not a share economy.Some people think that this is a typical share economy, in which not only materials and capital, but also management technology are used as shares, but the share system has not yet been formed.Someone asked, when did this happen?I told you that "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" came from "Water Margin", but like "Water Margin", it cannot be regarded as a matter of the late Northern Song Dynasty; According to the situation disclosed in the book, the academic circle basically believes that it is a work from the middle Jiajing period to the middle Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty.In front of the book there is a preface signed by "Soochow Nongzhu Ke", and the time stamp is "Wanli Dingsi Jidong". "Wanli Dingsi" is 1617, and according to the preface, the book has been circulated for a long time.Even if this is the lower limit of the book's writing period, the share economy mentioned in the book is at the beginning of the 17th century at the latest.
Everyone was speechless again.
Of course, we cannot say that China already had a shareholding system at the beginning of the 17th century, but it cannot be denied that the shareholding system is an important form of traditional Chinese social and economic activities. The early model of the shareholding economy has been used by some very intelligent operators. Very skillful.
"Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" has a very high status in the history of Chinese novels, and successfully portrayed a very complicated society: centering on Ximen Qing and his family, it wrote about market transactions, official exchanges, friends and buddies, Wives, concubines, and servants are written. It can be said that there are three teachings and nine streams, from all over the world. Everyone can get literary aesthetics from it according to their own reading preferences. "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" provides us with very rich economic historical materials, which is its very precious place.It vividly provides a large number of economic materials in the middle of the Ming Dynasty. Although this kind of data cannot be compared with historical materials, it has reached a level of vividness and detail that cannot be achieved by general historical materials, and records the real life that historical materials do not record.For example, what I just said about the share economy, there are also cotton, cotton cloth, silk and satin and their processing and market conditions; clothing, food, furniture processing and their market conditions.What is particularly worth mentioning is that the novel shows the transportation, commercial trade, and taxation of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal at that time, as well as the development of the service industry driven by it.Therefore, I proposed in 1990 that "the canal economy and culture in the middle and late Ming Dynasty gave birth to "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua"".
[-]. The moral meaning in "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua"
Our society's attitude towards "Jin Ping Mei" has always been contradictory, or paradoxical. "Everyone is good, and everyone is evil."It is both curious and easy to read, but also disgusting and defensive.The problem is not only that there are more than a hundred sexual descriptions of nearly [-] characters in it, or sexual stories closely related to the fate of the characters, but also that today, some people can see the so-and-so in reality, and see the reality in reality. some aspect of society.This is a headache.And the moral teaching of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" cannot be summed up simply by using words such as "feudal" and "traditional".
Ximen Qing is the core character of the novel, the No. 10 character.One of his two feet is on the market, the other on the officialdom; one of his two hands is constantly collecting money, and the other is reaching out to women.In shopping malls, he is the best at making money. In less than ten years, his family property has grown from a few thousand taels to nearly 20 taels.In the officialdom, he made friends with important officials in the capital, and connected with the four government offices of the county government. Many central and local officials were his friends, many of whom were friends he needed, and many friends who needed him.In terms of female sex, there are more than [-] women who have direct sexual relations. He is a good female sex, and eventually lost his life for female sex; Reasons to spend money and time on women.Therefore, in the history of Chinese novel criticism, as well as in the history of Chinese culture, he has received much more moral criticism than he should have received from literary criticism and cultural criticism.Later, it was simply the judgment of "rogue", "bully", and "philistine".Today, when there is a lot of impetuousness in our society, when there is a mercenary and moral decline, and when there are many people like Ximen Qing, Pan Jinlian, Li Pinger, and Chunmei who are even better than them, it is just a pity. There are even more phenomena where these characters make moral judgments without learning moral and cultural enlightenment from them.In fact, we have not studied the moral teachings in the book enough.
The moral teaching of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" is concentrated in the "Four Seasons Ci" and "Four Greedy Ci" at the beginning of the novel and the opening remarks of the first chapter, from which the preaching interspersed in the characters and plots of the book begins. "Four Seasons Ci" and "Four Greedy Ci" criticize specific alcohol, sex, wealth, and gas from two aspects, one positive and one negative, and take the fate stories of Ximen Qing and others as examples to criticize the morality they affirm. The rules and the value of life are analyzed and preached.
One is to quit drinking.Wine must be drunk, "the wine is ripe enough to drink, and the guests must stay."But it was in a quiet hut, where the state of "no glory, no shame, and no worries" was obtained, so it was possible to "sleep when tired, drink when thirsty, and sing when drunk" ("Four Seasons Ci").Don't be greedy for alcohol. Alcoholism can lead to disorder and make the drinker lose the behavioral restraint he should have. "Alcohol damages the spirit and ruins the family, and the language makes a lot of noise", "lost everything because of it" ① ("Four Greedy Ci"). "All evils and adultery are the first", but "alcohol is the sex matchmaker".Therefore, "you must be vigilant and drink the flowing clouds, if you can rely on this, there is no difference" ① ("Four Greedy Ci").Most of the sexual indulgences mentioned in the novel are closely related to alcohol.The aphrodisiacs used by Ximenqing must use wine as a guide, and he is an image of a "sex matchmaker".
The second is to avoid lust. "Food and sex are also related to sex." ("Mencius·Gao Zi 1") Chinese people with a strong sense of offspring and health preservation do not advocate or accept asceticism.But one should not be greedy for sex, one should not indulge one's love, let alone indulge one's sexuality. Indulging in one's sexuality is not only a moral issue, but also a physiological issue. Indulging in one's sexuality will inevitably lead to ethical confusion and premature death.Ximen Qing went to Hei along this evil path.Abstinence from greed and sex does not mean abstinence, but asceticism is a manifestation of abstinence.Therefore, the question raised by the author is "less greedy for red, pink and emerald flower tins", "Don't love this, raise the dantian, and people can live a long life with few desires" ① ("Four Greedy Ci").Eroticism and pornography are closely related and cause and effect each other.When rebooting, one must suppress emotion. "The two characters of eroticism are one and the same. Therefore, the color is gorgeous in the eyes, and the emotion is in the heart. The eroticism is born together, and the eyes look at each other." ① (Chapter [-]) Emotion is born in the heart, and it is the body. Sentimental.Therefore, "from now on, let go of the idle wind and the moon, and the plum blossoms in the paper tent will sleep alone" ① ("Four Greedy Ci").This is to abstain from lust by suppressing emotions, so as to achieve the goal of abstaining from lust, "stop loving green temples and beauties, and less greedy for red, pink, emerald and emerald flowers". The biggest moral problem addressed in the moral teaching of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" is lust.
The third is to avoid greed for money.The critique standard of the author's moral teaching is not not wanting wealth, no wealth is not rich, no money is hard to live, but: first, fair share of wealth. "Money, silk, gold, and pearls are collected in the cage, if it is not fair, you should be less greedy" ① ("Four Greedy Ci"). "Wealth comes from wealth. Wealth and fame are also worrying about fame and fortune. Sometimes you must have your destiny, and there is no time to force it" ① (chapter 14).Two, don't be greedy.It's not that you can't be greedy for your fair share of wealth, or you can't have too much of your fair share of wealth.Those who are greedy for money will be unkind because of greed, and those who have a lot of money will cause disasters because of wealth. "Prostitution has always been from spoiling the rich" ① (chapter 27), "the rich are envied and the poor are humiliated", and "the morals of relatives and friends are lost because of wealth, and the love of father and son is profit" ① ("Four Greedy Ci").The third emphasizes that accumulating wealth is not as good as accumulating goodness. "To be a good person, don't accumulate wealth. Accumulate goodness to become a good person, and accumulate wealth to cause trouble. Shi Chong was rich in the day, and he would inevitably be killed. Deng Tong died of hunger, so what is the use of money!... How many rich people die without a coffin" ① (Chapter 79).Ximen Qing was criticized, the biggest crime was indulgence, but the first reason was that he was rich, he became famous because of wealth, became famous because of wealth, and indulged in sex because of wealth.Without so much money, how can he use money to do whatever he wants, and he can accomplish whatever he wants?As a result, when he died, he didn't even have time to prepare the coffin, and he didn't take a single cent of his nearly [-] family property with him.
The fourth is to refrain from exerting one's anger.Using qi can also be called "shang qi", qi is the qi of strength and tyranny. "I get angry at Wuming acupoint for a while, but later I worry about burning and hurting myself", so treat people "don't go too far, avoid disaster, and advise you to be lenient in everything. When you let go, you have to let go, and you have to forgive others"① (" Four Greedy Words").Advocates that "softness is the foundation of standing up, and strength is the womb of trouble. Without competition and competition, you are a virtuous talent, so it is no problem to lose to me" ① (the first chapter).In the novel, most of those who try to be brave and try their best will end badly.Ximenqing, Li Ping'er, Pan Jinlian, Sun Xue'e, Song Huilian, Chunmei, Chen Jingji, all of them.Especially Pan Jinlian and Chunmei are unforgiving characters who are both reasonable and unreasonable, and Chunmei has a rigid temper.
The values and outlook on life contained in these moral teachings have the standards of traditional society, which are worthy of discussion and reflection, but there are many things about the laws of life and society, which are very enlightening and cannot be completely denied.Especially when our economic development has made great and rapid progress, but social management and moral construction can't keep up; especially when some people's wealth has also made great and rapid development, but individuals cannot properly When dealing with these wealth, people are not the masters of wealth, but alienated into slaves of wealth, and the lust, material desire, and arrogance that are fueled by wealth are displayed in an extraordinary way. Natural human sensibility, indulge in lust and do everything, the time of death is coming. The warning in "Four Greedy Ci" is not without reason. "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" is not a book against the theory of wealth, but admonishes people to have legitimate means to acquire wealth and to have wisdom in handling wealth.Therefore, the philosophical implications of the outlook on life and values in the novel are revealed.
[-]. The Philosophical Meaning in "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua"
Morality is the consciousness of social ethics, in fact, it is the embodiment of outlook on life and values.The outlook on life and values depend on the world outlook or philosophical outlook that is the fundamental guiding ideology of human behavior.The moral teaching of society must not only rely on certain social ethical principles, but more importantly, it must be based on philosophical thoughts.
"Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" was written from the end of Jiajing to the beginning of Wanli.The space in which the story is written is the canal area in eastern China where the commercial economy and the burgher class were most developed at that time.The reality reflected in the story, or the object of moral preaching criticism, is the anti-traditional moral concepts and behaviors of a small commercial society composed of merchants and citizens in the very active commercial town of Hebu, which shows that in the area where the commodity economy was developing rapidly at that time, , the traditional ethical and moral system has been greatly impacted, and a new ethical and moral system that can regulate people's behavior has not yet been established.Judging from the results of the current research, the composition of the moral standards preached in "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" is mainly composed of some precepts in the Ming Dynasty as the code of conduct for the public, as well as folk doctrines that integrate Taoism, the concept of good and evil in Buddhism, and karma. Religious awareness and people's lived experience. ③The author's choice has its own philosophical basis.
One is the Confucian doctrine of the mean, neutralizing the concept of abstinence, and cultivating the mind with few desires.
Judging from the moral teaching purpose of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua", people like Ximen Qing and Pan Jinlian are bad in human desire, and they are excessively greedy. "Wealth and honor are what people admire, but there are few who don't cause adultery; sorrow and resentment, what people hate, and there are few who don't get hurt." Evil. People are not sages and sages of Yao and Shun, so they are rarely bothered by them." But it should be "joy but not lecherous, mourning but not hurt". ① (Xinxinzi's "Preface") should not be like "Jinlian died of adultery, Ping'er died of evil, Chunmei died of adultery", "I advise the world not to be the successor of Ximen" ① (Soochow Nongzhuke's "Preface") .This is exactly the specific application of the so-called "neutralization" concept of abstinence in "The Doctrine of the Mean": "When joy, anger, sorrow, and joy are not released, they are called the middle, and when they are all released, they are called harmony." Confucianism disagrees with abstinence. "Food and sex are also related to sex." "Eat and drink men and women, people's great desires exist." ④But it emphasizes the use of ethical norms to restrain the relationship between men and women and their various desires, and at the same time makes this restraint a kind of self-cultivation to promote The perfection of human morality. "There is nothing good in cultivating the mind with few desires. As a human being, there are few desires. Even if there are those who do not exist, they are few; if they are human, they have many desires, and even if there are those who exist, they are few." If you want to keep goodness, you will lose goodness if you want too much. Cultivating the heart lies in keeping goodness, so you should have few desires.
It should be explained that the relationship between the Confucian concept of abstinence and moral cultivation reached an extreme in the Song Confucian period.Since Song Confucianism not only took Confucianism as its core, but also adopted the theories of Buddhism and Taoism, it pushed the abstinence of Confucianism to the extinction of desires of Buddhism and the desirelessness of Taoism.Song Confucianism actually exaggerated the harm of human desire. "What's more, desire harms people. Human beings are not good, and they want to lure them. If you lure them without knowing it, you will destroy the law of heaven without knowing the opposite. Therefore, the eyes desire the color, the ears desire the sound, the nose desires the fragrance, and the body desires the fragrance." If you want to be safe, all these things are there to make it possible.” ⑤ Therefore, Confucianism in the Song Dynasty believed that in order to preserve the principles of heaven, human desires must be eliminated.The theories of Confucianism in the Song Dynasty were too far away from reality due to excessive requirements of abstinence and suffocation, and did not conform to the "golden mean" advocated by the classic Confucian sages, so it was difficult to implement in Ming Dynasty society. When "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" chooses the level of Neo Confucianism, it will naturally not choose it.
The second is Taoism's "Tao follows nature", and few desires are used to protect oneself, keep in good health, support relatives, and live a long life.
There are different views among the pre-Qin scholars on the attitude towards various human desires. "Laozi" advocates "ignorance and no desire", the reason is not complicated, "five colors make people blind; five tones make people deaf; five flavors make people delicious; galloping field hunting makes people mad; rare goods make people hinder. If you don’t do it for the sake of your eyes, then go and take this.” ⑥ (Chapter 12 of Laozi) Therefore, “If you don’t honor the worthy, the people won’t fight; "Empty their minds, fill their stomachs, weaken their ambitions, and strengthen their bones, often making the people ignorant and without desires." ⑥("Lao Tzu" Chapter 3) Lao Tzu's philosophy of ignoring people's ignorance to achieve desirelessness is too rational. It probably didn't work in the reality of "chickens and dogs hear each other, and don't communicate with each other when they grow old and die". Later, the economy developed , the society has progressed, it will be even more unfeasible.However, it talks about the origin of material desires and the significance of abstinence in social ethics, as well as the idea of “humans follow the earth, the earth follows the heavens, the heavens follow the Tao, and the Tao follows nature” ⑥ (Laozi, Chapter 25) is an inspiration. influenced other philosophers and greatly influenced posterity. "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" also has a lot of "wide-mindedness and magnanimity. After a few years, life and death are in front of your eyes. Follow the high and the low and follow the fate, whether it is long or short, don't complain; you have to sigh endlessly, and the family is poor. Wealth always depends on the sky; the clothing and salary in life depend on fate, and one day is free and one day is immortal" and other preaching. ① (Chapter 49)
Same as Laozi, Zhuangzi advocates few desires and a return to nature; different from Laozi, Zhuangzi combines few desires with respect for life and health preservation.Zhuangzi pursues his "happy excursion", hoping to obtain boundless leisure with a limited life.But at the same time, he also knows very well that "if there is a limit, follow the limitless, and there will be no end", so he pays attention to protecting one's life, whole life, supporting relatives, and enduring life. ⑦ ("Zhuangzi·Health Master No. 18") Zhuangzi believes that life has a limit, which essentially affirms the natural attributes of human beings. Therefore, what he discusses in terms of self-preservation, whole life, raising relatives, and end-of-year is the maintenance of the natural body, which is different from Confucianism. Moral perfection is not the same as wanting less. "A rich man, if his body suffers from illness, accumulates a lot of wealth but cannot use it to the full, his form is also outside. A rich man, day and night, thinking about whether it is good or not, his form is also sloppy... What the common practice is today Instead of pleasure, I don’t know the fruit of joy, joy or evil? Is it joy or evil?” ⑦ ("Zhuangzi Zhile No. [-]") Desire for rebirth is light, and life is valued for cessation of desire.Zhuangzi's thoughts have had a great influence on later generations, and the author of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" is no exception.What is the meaning of life?The latecomers have different views. Of course, there are many people who pursue the freedom and carefree life, and there are also many people who develop the precious life into health preservation, or even the art of health preservation. But for the general public, health and life preservation are the main thing. The "Four Seasons Ci" in "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" promotes the realm of few desires and health preservation, and many preaching in the book focus on the goal of seeking health and preserving life.
The third is Yang Zhu's view of adapting (tempering) desires and following life.
Yang Zhuzhi believed that human desires are closely related to the survival of human life, and the relevant viewpoints are mainly preserved in the chapters "Guisheng", "Respecting Self", and "Lust" of "Lu Shi Chunqiu". "Every life is long, and it is also smooth. Those who make life not smooth, have desires. Therefore, a saint must first satisfy his desires." ⑧ ("Focus on Self") "Fitness of desires" means "abstinence." "A sage thinks deeply about the world, and nothing is more valuable than life. The ears, eyes, nose, and mouth are the battles of life. Although the ears desire sound, the eyes desire color, the nose desires fragrance, and the mouth desires taste, the harm to life is stopped." "The so-called Whoever lives in full, the six desires are all suitable.” ⑧ ("Guisheng") "Human beings are born with greed and desire, desire with emotion, and emotion with restraint. The sage cultivates restraint to stop desire, so he only acts on his emotion. Therefore, the ears desire the five sounds, the eyes desire the five colors, and the mouth desires the five tastes, which is emotion. These three, the noble and the humble, the foolish, the wise, and the wise, have no respect for them, and their desires are as one. Although Shennong Huangdi is the same as Jie and Zhou. The reason why the saints are different is that You can get your love. If you are alive, you will get your love. If you don’t let your life be alive, you will lose your love. These two are the foundation of life and death." ⑧ ("Lust") Here, it is believed that greed and desire are also born in human beings Yes, no matter who you are, if you want to survive, you must restrain your inborn greed and desire.What the sages get from practicing abstinence is the feeling of restraint, so they can survive; but those who fail to survive are because they cannot practice restraint and lose the feeling of restraint, that is, they indulge their own desires. "The vulgar lord is in a bad mood, so every movement is a failure. The ears cannot be supported, the eyes cannot be tired, the mouth cannot be full, the body is exhausted, the muscles and bones are stagnant, the blood vessels are congested, the nine orifices are few, and the music is out of place. Although there is Peng Zu, it is still It cannot be done." ("Lust") The interest relationship between human desire and human existence explains the relationship between human beings as nature and the laws of nature, which is in line with natural principles and easily accepted by people.Therefore, it also became the ideological basis of various theories including TCM diagnosis and treatment to prevent diseases caused by greed. (Sun Simiao's "Thousands of Gold and Prescriptions" Volume [-] has: "Pleasure and indulgence, extreme intentions in the room, a little older, kidney qi is exhausted, and all kinds of diseases breed." There is: "If you indulge your lust, you will be destined to be the same as the morning dew.") The guiding ideology of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" exhorting people to abstinence in the preaching is of course related to this.
The fourth is the concept of the connection between man and nature and the unity of man and nature proposed by Confucians from the pre-Qin to Han dynasties.
The world view of the connection between man and nature and the unity of man and nature developed from the pre-Qin to the Han Dynasty is an idealistic view, but it believes that man and nature are very closely related. "Man (being) man is born of heaven." ⑨ This is still meaningful for understanding the natural attributes of man.Therefore, when talking about the relationship between man and nature, there is also a basis for a crude epistemology of nature.Therefore, in Xinxinzi's "Preface", it is said: "Therefore, there are spring, summer, autumn and winter in the sky, and people have joys and sorrows. No wonder it is so. Those who are in harmony with the weather will have long-lasting descendants if they are far away, and enjoy life if they are close; Misfortunes never follow. People in the world, although not out of the metabolization of world fate, but those who do not experience disasters and shame are fortunate."
This is the philosophical basis of the moral teaching of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua", and anyone who understands traditional Chinese philosophy knows that these philosophical bases are also traditional propositions of Chinese philosophy.
[-]. Reflection on the Philosophical Meaning of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua"
"Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" is not a philosophical work, but its moral teaching takes the traditional propositions of Chinese philosophy as its basis. The moral teaching of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" is popular and popular, and it also has quite a lot of backward and negative elements.However, as a kind of cultural thinking accumulated over a long period of time, the philosophical propositions in the ideological basis of moral teaching still have an important enlightening value for the progress of human civilization. "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" has become a masterpiece handed down from generation to generation, not only because it truly reflects the social conditions in China in the 16th and 17th centuries, but also because it discusses a philosophical problem of universal significance to human beings in a special way. The explanation of this conundrum has a universal meaning that transcends time and space.The purpose of its preaching is not to maintain or make up for or rebuild the traditional ethical and moral system that has been impacted by the economic society, but to focus on people and their own destiny.Therefore, this work will have the aesthetic charm and philosophical connotation beyond time and space.
One is to deal with the rationality of the relationship between life and desire.
The author of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" is not only confronted with a reality in which human nature is distorted due to rational repression, but also a reality in which inflated desires are vented due to economic development. The traditional ethical order has been impacted, and traditional morality Norms have also lost the power they once had to restrain people's hearts and conduct.The author’s moral teaching can neither take the Neo-Confucianism of the Song Dynasty as the standard, nor copy the texts of the official Confucianism of the Ming Dynasty. Therefore, he chose the Neo-Confucianism at the public level, folk religion, and acceptable dialectical statements about the relationship between life and desire. , Anti-greedy for wine, sex, and money, use qi to abstain from desire, abstain from desire to protect oneself, in order to achieve the harmony of life and desire.
No matter who it is, it is impossible to be born with a diamond body that can withstand the destruction of any desire. The formation, growth, and death of a human body are the laws of nature.Not only is human life limited, but the endurance of the flesh is also limited.Human desire is an activity of consciousness, not only boundless, but also constantly expanding.Fighting against the boundless and infinite pursuit of desires with a bounded and limited natural life body will inevitably lead to the collapse of the body.To prevent this collapse, the boundless, infinite pursuit of desire must be limited to the bounded, limited fulfillment of desire.This is the meaning of abstinence and few desires.The rationality of the relationship between life and desire is in line with the laws of nature. The moral preaching in "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" when it performed the life of the No. [-] character Ximen Qing is just to explain such a outlook on life and values.Criticizing Ximen Qing for poisoning people's lives, taking over people's wives and daughters, corrupting officials, and perverting the law for getting money is still a superficial level of moral criticism. The deep-level criticism lies in his self-destruction of himself. He is also consuming himself.He asked Monk Hu to give him the hundred and ten aphrodisiac pills, just like he used his physical life as a bargaining chip. The gambling of consuming his own life with indulgence failed every time. Every time he used one aphrodisiac, he lost a bargaining chip. It is inevitable that the medicine will be exhausted.In order to emphasize this point, the author highlights Ximen Qing's tragic death (the deaths of Pan Jinlian, Li Ping'er, and Chunmei are also tragic and frightening).We are not discussing here whether this kind of death is a bad retribution and whether this kind of bad retribution is revolutionary or conservative, progress or regression, but must objectively affirm the reasonable explanation of this death to the relationship between life and desire.The reason why it is affirmed that it is reasonable is because this explanation is in line with the universal law of things in Ximenqing, Dongmenqing, Nanmenqing and Beimenqing before and after "feudal society" and "feudal society". sexual and positive.
The second is to affirm the harmony of the relationship between man and nature.
The harmonious development of the relationship between man and nature is an eternal philosophical proposition of human society.The harmony between man and nature is not only the symbiosis and coexistence between man and the animal world, the plant world, mountains, rivers, and polar oceans that conform to the laws of nature. Lawful survival and development.Human beings have natural attributes, and human beings are a member of nature. Humans should control their desires and behaviors beyond the limits of the natural body through their own rationality, so as to achieve a good and healthy existence.Especially when an era that restricts the free development of people and completely strangles people's natural desires is coming to an end, and when the new ethics and morality are not yet mature, human desires, supported by wealth and power, will inevitably be unscrupulous. The proposition of harmony between man and nature is even more important if it spews out, and it has practical significance to affirm the harmony between human life desire and natural life. In Ming Dynasty society 400 years ago, it was impossible for us to have such a deep understanding of the harmonious development of man and nature as we do today. However, the questions raised by the moral teachings and warnings to people in "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" are just to explain the relationship between natural man and society. There should be a harmonious relationship between people. Although the concept of abstinence in the book has a strong traditional moral color, abstinence is not abstinence, and moral teaching does not mean killing people's nature.We do not deny that the moral teachings in the Ming and Qing Dynasties that used official Neo-Confucianism as a weapon constrained human survival and development, and had the disadvantage of suppressing the liberation of human nature and the development of personality. In this era, the self-discipline that people should have and the rationality that society should have should not be regarded as feudal shackles.
Emphasizing the right to enjoy life is a modern concept, and it is correct and progressive to use this concept to criticize the asceticism of the West in the Middle Ages and the ascetic Neo-Confucianism of the Ming Dynasty in the East for the purpose of maintaining the destiny.But even in modern society, the right to enjoy life is not equal to unrestrained indulgence.On the contrary, enjoying life is more about cherishing life.Therefore, when we criticize the ruthless containment of people's legitimate life desires by the Ming Dynasty, we cannot describe people's indulgence as positive, progressive, and reasonable, otherwise, it is tantamount to denying our own behavior from theory to practice. value of person.Emphasizing the liberation of individuality, praising the freedom of love and the happiness of marriage cannot be equated with praising prostitution, polygamy, and behaviors that violate the laws of nature and social ethics.Otherwise, the paradoxical value is not only meaningless, but also will make new literature and new civilization fall into a new vicious circle of negation, making it difficult to make a reasonable explanation, which is not conducive to the lawful development of man himself.Having said that, another question comes to mind:
"Wanli Dingsi" version of "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" has a preface signed "Xin Xin Zi" before the main text.Over the past seven or eighty years, most readers and researchers believe that this preface is to defend the novel "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua", especially for the novel's excessive description of male and female sexual behavior.Today, if we can calmly study and study, and combine moral preaching and philosophical meaning, the meaning will be different. "Xinxinzi" has its profound and farsightedness:
It is said that Lanling Xiaoxiaosheng's "Jin Ping Mei Biography" expresses its meaning in the customs of the time, and there is a saying.
People have seven emotions, especially melancholy.A wise man is born with transformation, the fog disperses and the ice cracks, so it goes without saying.Those who are inferior also know how to use reason to arrange themselves, so as not to make them tired.However, those who are inferior can neither understand their minds nor have poetry and books to send them away, but they will not be so sick!For this reason, my friend Xiaoxiaosheng exhausted what he had accumulated in his daily life, and he wrote a biography of it, and there are a hundred chapters.Among them, the sentences are novel and popular.It is nothing more than understanding human relations, abstaining from obscenity, distinguishing women and men, transforming good and evil, knowing the opportunities of ups and downs, and taking retribution for reincarnation, as in the present; You can just smile and forget your worries.It is unavoidable that the language involves slang and vulgarity, and the air contains fat powder.Yu Ze said: No! The work of "Guan Ju" is joyful but not lewd, sad but not hurtful.Wealth and honor are what people admire, but there are few who do not cause adultery; sorrow and resentment, what people hate, and few who do not cause injury.I have seen poets of the previous generation, such as Lu Jinghui's "Jian Deng Xin Hua", Yuan Wei's "Ying Ying Zhuan", Zhao Junbi's "Xiao Luo Ji", Luo Guanzhong's "Water Margin", Qiu Qiongshan's "Love Collection", Lu Meihu's "Huaichun Elegant Collection", Zhou Jingxuan's "Bingzhu Qingtan", and later "Ruyi Zhuan" and "Yuhu Ji", the sentences in them are correct, and readers often can't enjoy them.This story, although it is often talked about in the market, and the chatter in the boudoir, makes a three-foot boy hear it, like pulling out a whale's tooth in the sky, and it is clear and easy to understand.Although it is not as theoretical and interesting as the ancient collections, the writing and ink are quite impressive.Others are related to the morality of the world, punishing good and evil, washing away worries and washing one's heart, which is not without minor benefits.For example, everyone likes things in the house, and people who are not sages and sages of Yao and Shun seldom don't be bothered by them; people who are rich, noble and kind, hate them, so as to shake people's hearts and sway their ambitions.Look at its high halls and mansions, the cloud windows and foggy pavilions, how deep and deep; the golden screen embroidered mattresses, how beautiful; How extravagant it is; a beautiful man and a scholar mock the wind and sing the moon, so why do you have to take care of it;It is joyful, but joy is bound to be sorrowful: as if the opportunity of parting is about to flourish, and the haggard face is bound to be seen, it is unavoidable; it is unavoidable to fold plum blossoms to meet postmen, and rulers send fish books, which cannot be done without; suffering is imminent In the midst of it, there is no way to get rid of the ups and downs; it is impossible to escape if you are trapped in the sword; there are kings in the sun, and there are ghosts and gods in the dark, so you can't escape.As for the wife of an adulterer, the wife is an adulterer, the cause of misfortune is evil, and the cause of good fortune is good celebration.Therefore, the sky has spring, summer, autumn and winter, and people have joys and sorrows, so it is no wonder.Those who are in harmony with the weather will have long-term descendants if they are far away, and they will enjoy life if they are near;Although people's life in the world is not out of the metabolism of the world, it is also fortunate for those who have not experienced disasters and shame.My old saying: Xiao Xiaosheng wrote this biography, there is something to say. ① (Xinxinzi's "Preface")
Notes:
①Lanling Xiaoxiaosheng: "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" [M], Wanli Ding Si edition, Hong Kong: Photocopy of Taiping Bookstore, 1982.
②Yang Bojun's translation and annotation: "Mencius's translation and annotation" [M], Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company, 1960.
③Chen Dongyou: "The Choice of Confucianism and Religion in "Jin Ping Mei Ci Hua" [J], Nanchang: "Zhengming", 1993, (4).
④ "Book of Rites · Yun Pian" [M], Beijing: Photocopy of "Thirteen Classics Commentary" by Zhonghua Book Company, 1980.
⑤ "Er Cheng Cui Yan Volume 1980" [M], Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company "Er Cheng Collection", [-].
⑥Zhu Qianzhi: "Lao Tzu Xiao Shi" [M], Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company, 1984.
⑦ Cao Chuji wrote: "Zhuangzi Shallow Notes" [M], Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company, 1982.
⑧ "Lushi Chunqiu" [M], Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company "Zhuzi Collection", 1954.
⑨Written by Su Yu, edited by Zhong Zhe: "Chunqiu Fanlu Yizheng: Being a Human Being No. 40 One" [M], Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company, 1992.
(This article was originally a speech at a book club in Shenzhen in October 2010)
(End of this chapter)
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