"Disciple Regulations" was written by Li Yuxiu, a scholar of the Qing Dynasty. This book specifically lists the etiquette and norms for children at home, going out, dealing with others, studying, etc. It was a must-read for private schools in the past. Many people may know this book, but not many may have actually read it. There are many teachings on how to read that are still relevant today. By studying this book, I learned 8 reading methods.
"Love everyone and be kind; if you have spare energy, study literature." This sentence means that when getting along with everyone, you must be equal and fraternal, and you must learn from people with kindness; put these in the world After you have learned your moral character well, you will have extra energy to study and study. "Wen" refers to knowledge and skills.
The ancients valued knowledge, but they valued morality even more. Reading and learning are based on good moral character. Of course, we can also improve our moral cultivation by reading good books.
"If you don't practice hard, you can learn literature; if you are flashy, who will you become?" It means that if you don't practice hard and just study hard, you will easily develop flashy habits and you will not become a truly useful person. It seems that "having no ears to hear what is happening outside the window and only reading the books of sages" was not recognized in the past. We need to apply the knowledge we have learned to our work and life.
There is another situation, on the contrary, it is just doing it blindly and refusing to study and study, which is also not good. That way you will act based on your own prejudices. This is what the "Disciple Rules" says: "If you practice hard and do not learn literature; if you let what you have already seen, you will not know the truth."
You must concentrate your mind and not be half-hearted. Some people are reading but cannot read a few lines, and are disturbed by other factors and cannot continue reading. The effect of reading in this way can be imagined. "Disciple Rules" says: "There are three things to do in reading; heart, eyes, mouth, and faith are all important." When reading, you must do three things: eyes, mouth, and heart. All three are indispensable, so that you can get twice the result with half the effort.
"When you read this, don't admire that; before this ends, don't start that." I had a problem with reading in the past. I just started reading a book, or after reading only part of it, I put it down and started reading another one. As a result, I could read every book without a hitch. Later, I realized this problem. I would not change books until I finished reading them. Instead, I read them one by one. I actually read a lot, and the effect of reading was greatly enhanced.
Just as Disciple Gui said: "The width is the limit, so work hard; when the time is up, the stagnation will be cleared." The meaning here is that you might as well arrange the study period to be looser, but you should be tight when studying. As long as you have enough time, you will naturally understand what you don't understand.
Nowadays, some people have made plans to read hundreds of books every year. This is probably an unrealistic arrangement. You cannot fish for three days and dry your nets for two days. After reading this, I remembered my arrangement for studying the Tao Te Ching. This is an ancient philosophical work. The sentences are not easy to understand, and understanding the meaning requires a gradual process. You cannot expect to achieve it overnight. So, I read it the first time and then continued learning from other channels. In this way, over time, I feel that many aspects have been integrated.
Be open-minded and learn from others about what you don’t understand. During the reading process, if you encounter difficult problems, you should take notes and ask good teachers and friends for advice whenever you have the opportunity. This is what Disciple Gui said: "When you have doubts, keep them in your notes; ask people to ask for clarification."
Regarding "Following the Notes", someone bought a new book and it seemed like a mysophobia. Marking the book without writing or crossing it may seem like you are taking care of the book, but in fact it is not conducive to the effect of reading and learning. Books are bought for use. Of course, you must not scratch the books you borrowed from the library. This is another matter.
"If you are not a sage, don't look at it with a shield; if you hide your intelligence, you will have a bad ambition." This sentence means that any work that is not the words and deeds of sages should be discarded and should not be read. After reading bad books, the body and mind are polluted, and the mind becomes unhealthy. In modern society, there is a huge amount of information. There are tons of books published every year, and there are also many illegal publications. When we study, we cannot do without choices. Of course, the disciples' rule of reading only the books of sages was limited by the times.
In addition to reading the classics of sages, we must also read scientific books that are beneficial to social development and progress.
The last sentence of the Disciple Rules is: "Don't hurt yourself, don't give up on yourself; saints and sages can be trained." What does it mean? A person cannot help but love himself, nor can he be willing to fall. Although the realm of sages is high, it can be achieved through reading, studying and working hard step by step. Studying will not be smooth sailing, and we will definitely encounter many difficulties and setbacks. This requires us not to give up on ourselves and to persevere.
"Disciple Rules" is not specifically written for children. In fact, if adults read it and teach by words and deeds, it will be more effective.