The great man Shao Yong
The rolling water of the Yangtze River passes eastward, and the waves wash away the heroes. If historical figures are compared to the waves of the long river of history, then he must be one of the bright ones. If historical figures are compared to stars, then he must be the brightest one among them. He was not an official all his life and lived a semi-reclusive life. The reason why he was semi-reclusive was because he did not "not know where to go in the depths of the clouds" as the boy said. He has a fixed residence. In his dynasty, he worked with Zhou Dunyi (the author of the middle school text "Ai Lian Shuo"), Zhang Zai (who is most famous for "Four Sentences on Hengqu"), Cheng Yi, and Cheng Hao (the two brothers are collectively called Er Cheng, The great masters of Neo-Confucianism) are also known as the "Five Scholars of the Northern Song Dynasty". Later, together with Sima Guang, they were called "Mr. Six". How can a person who can be compared with the above-mentioned people be compared to ordinary people? Moreover, both the "Five Sons of the Northern Song Dynasty" and the "Sixth Master" respected him extremely (maybe not very accurate, because Zhou Dunyi was far away from them and left few deeds of interaction). When he lived in Luoyang, many officials came to Luoyang and instead of visiting the local officials, they went to visit him first. Among his fan groups, the Emperor of the Song Dynasty was one of them, as was the Emperor Kangxi who was the most awesome in the Qing Dynasty. , as well as literati, poets, celebrities and people with lofty ideals, there are countless others. His works are included in Sikuquanshu, and there are 667 volumes of documents citing him, appearing 1114 times. This shows the great influence of his works. This is the protagonist we want to introduce, the awesome Shao Yong!
Shao Yong, the greatest philosopher, Neo-Confucianist, poet, and representative of the Xiangshu school of Yi studies in the Northern Song Dynasty (Yi studies are divided into two schools, the other is the Yili school, and the representative is Kong Shengren). He was born in Hengzhang (now Lin County), Henan, and his ancestral home was Fanyang (now Zhuozhou), Hebei. He was born in the fourth year of Dazhong Xiangfu, Zhenzong of the Song Dynasty. He died in the 10th year of Xining, Emperor Shenzong of the Song Dynasty, at the age of 67. Throughout his life, he was extremely influential at that time. When he lived in Luoyang, all the celebrities and dignitaries wanted to live next to him. What achievements has such a person achieved? How is steel made? Let me tell you slowly.
1. A studious boy
Shao Yong was born into a scholarly family. But neither his grandfather nor his father passed the imperial examination. And his father loved to read Zhouyi. Shao Yong loved reading when he was a child. When he was 16 years old, he moved to Henan Province with his father (today's Huixian County, Henan Province). During this period, he "showed off his talent, generously wanted to establish a reputation, and read everything in books. Knowledge is learning, that is, hard work, hard work, no stove in the cold, no fan in the summer, and no sitting at night for several years." It can be seen that he studied manner. If it hadn't been for the visit of a guest, maybe Shao Yong would have taken the exams to gain fame like students all over the world. However, there is no if in history, so his life trajectory has undergone major changes.
2. Accepting the True Tradition
This visiting guest is Li Zhicai, the magistrate of *** City. He heard that Shao Yong was good at reading, so he came to see what was going on with this young man. Just ask this young man, you are so eager to learn, which direction do you plan to develop. Shao Yong replied that he had not decided on the direction yet. Li Zhicai asked him if he wanted to learn the physics of the operation and development of all things in the universe? Shao Yong expressed his willingness to be taught. A few days later, Li Zhicai came over and asked him if he wanted to learn about life. Shao Yong thanked Li Zhicai again and expressed his desire to learn from him. Li Zhicai saw that he was a talent that could be developed, so he carefully taught him the Spring and Autumn Annals and the core tenets of the Five Classics. Finally, he taught the "Book of Changes". During this period, he interspersed the "Hetu", "Luoshu" and the Sixty Years of Fuxi Bagua. Four hexagrams images, etc. Shao Yong finally came to the world with this kind of knowledge.
There are two important reasons why Shao Yong was able to achieve such achievements: First, what he learned was true. The content he learned was passed down from Chen Tuan, who was also a legendary figure and was as knowledgeable and talented as Gui Guzi in the pre-Qin Dynasty. Chen Tuan passed it on to Zhong Fang, Zhong Fang passed it on to Li Gai and Mu Xiu, and Mu Xiu passed it on to Zhou Dunyi and Li Zhicai (Zhou Dunyi passed it on to Cheng Yi and Cheng Hao). Therefore, its origin is authentic. Second, Shao Yong’s learning method is different from others. Shao Yong didn't let his husband explain too much. After he established the principles, he would understand the essence of the rest by himself. In this way, he is not simply learning, but transforming it. Therefore, he has a profound understanding of this knowledge and is far superior to others in attainments. While reading thousands of books, he also traveled thousands of miles to many places visited by the ancients, and personally felt the wind that blew by the sages before him to experience and understand. A few years later, he finally said, "The Tao is true" and found the truth he was looking for, further sublimating his thoughts. It has laid a solid foundation for the next step towards glory.
3. Famous in the dynasty
In 1049 AD, Shao Yong moved to Luoyang with his father. He began a life of setting up his own forum to preach scriptures. Because of his profound knowledge and superb martial arts, scholars rushed to tell each other about him, and for a time dignitaries came to visit him one after another. At that time, Sima Guang, Han Qi, Fu Bi, Su Shi, Wang Gongchen, Wen Yanbo, Lu Gongzhu, etc. were almost all celebrities gathered, and the seats were full of guests. Since he was no longer an official in the court, he did not have his own house at first. Later, his students and those who were officials in the court bought houses for him. At the age of 52, he finally had a nice place to live. The location is south of Luoyang Bridge. It is currently located at the old site of Luoyang Normal University. He was very satisfied with his new home, so he named it "Easy Home" and called himself "Mr. Anle". Lived a carefree and leisurely life.
It is worth mentioning that in order to facilitate gatherings with Shao Yong, Sima Guang, Fu Bi and others also moved to live next to his house, and the comfortable nest became a place of Wenchang at that time.
4. Ideal Life
The ideal life I am talking about here is that I can say no to work, preach scriptures, moralize others, be carefree, and be loved by everyone.
Shao Yong lectured in Luoyang and became well-known in the capital. Later, Emperor Shenzong of the Song Dynasty issued an edict asking everyone to recommend talented people as officials. Everyone recommended him. The imperial court issued three edicts, but he refused to serve. When interacting with others, he is kind to others and answers all questions. Moreover, he never talks about other people's faults, but always talks about their strengths. Everyone who gets along with him feels like a spring breeze. This shows that although he devotes himself to studying knowledge, he is by no means a person who just studies. He is reasonable and sensible, and he is a warm person. Therefore, it is difficult for a person who is well-educated and easy to get along with not to become famous. That popularity is also good, so don’t give it up. People around him respectfully call him "Mr. Anjia". Many people create a comfortable place in their home according to the way they live, so that it can be convenient for their husband to live there when he comes to visit. How many people can enjoy such treatment?
Because he was knowledgeable, courteous, and gentle, the people around him were deeply affected and got along very well with each other. For a time, the people's customs were simple.
5. Writing and Writing
After moving to Luoyang, Shao Yong wrote a book and explained what he had learned and gained while giving lectures. So what kind of knowledge did Shao Yong do? That is to express the Dharma with one's body and practice the way of heaven of "harmony between man and nature" at all times. He emphasized that "learning is not worthy of learning if it is not related to heaven and man." His main works handed down from generation to generation include "Huang Ji Jing Shi", "Qiao Qiao Zhi Dui", "Yichuan Ji Liang Collection", "Observation of Things", etc. There is also "Observing Things Outside Chapter". At the same time, it is said that there is also "Plum Blossom Poetry" from later generations, but there is no final conclusion yet. His disciple Zhang Min once explained his works: "Mr. studied the "Yi", "Poetry" and "Spring and Autumn", and elaborated on the meanings, images and numbers, and the way of domination by the emperors of the Ming Dynasty. He wrote more than 100,000 words. , I have studied and thought deeply for thirty years, observing the growth and decline of the heaven and the earth, judging the waxing and waning of the sun and the moon, examining the degrees of yin and yang, and observing the hard and soft forms. From Tang and Yu to the Five Dynasties, the principles of heaven and earth were based on human affairs, ups and downs, and chaos. The following is a brief description of his main works
1. "Yichuan Attacking the Land". "Collection". There are more than 3,000 poems by Shao Yong. His poems express the principles of all things and human affairs through personal feelings or life scenes. There are many famous poems, so I won’t go into details here. One of them is "Mountain Village Odyssey", which I think everyone should be familiar with because he has read it in primary school textbooks. The content is as follows:
A trip of two or three miles
Four or five houses in Yancun
Seven or eight pavilions
Eighty or ninety flowers
In addition, His poems are quoted in the opening chapters of the four famous works "Journey to the West" and "Water Margin". For example, the opening poem in "Water Margin" reads: After five generations of chaos, once the clouds clear, the grass and trees will see the new rain and dew for a hundred years. , Traveling thousands of miles across the old country. Luoqi is seen in the ordinary streets, and orchestras are played on several terraces. People are enjoying the peaceful days, and the kites are sleeping high. As for the poem in Journey to the West, when will the fight for fame and fortune end? When you wake up early and sleep late, you are not free to ride on a donkey, a mule, or a horse. When you are in office and look after the princes, you are only worried about food and clothing. How can you be afraid that your stepsons will seek wealth and wealth?
< p>His poems are inspired by scenes, they are sentimental or philosophical, and they show kung fu in their plainness.2. "Yu Qiao Wen Dui" The world compares Shao Yong with Zhuangzi. There is still a real origin. Including Qian Mu in modern times, he also called him: "Zhuang Zhou in Confucianism". In "The Fisherman and the Woodcutter", through the way of the protagonist "the woodcutter asks and the fisherman answers", it involves the five elements, Contents such as heaven and earth, objects, yin and yang, four seasons, Tai Chi, Bagua, Wuwei, physical function, personnel affairs, society, etc., run through the principles of changes in the way between heaven and earth. Through the mouth of the fisherman, the woodcutter can understand "the way of heaven and earth". "Prepare for people, prepare the way of all things in the body, prepare the door of all wonders for God, and everything in the world can be completed". If Zhuangzi's thoughts are free, free and easy, full of wisdom, Shao Yong practices it personally. Practitioner. Each question and answer shows a wonderful life.
3. "The Emperor's Classics" is a masterpiece that stands at the top of the "Five Sons of the Northern Song Dynasty". The "Sikuquanshu" of the Qing Dynasty praised Shao Yong's studies as "studying the source of creation". As mentioned earlier, the number of documents quoted from "Huangji Jingshi" reached 667 volumes, and it appeared 1,114 times, which shows the great influence of his works. The book covers knowledge in history, philosophy, astronomy, calendar and other aspects, and is a specific practice of Chinese wisdom. In terms of history, the time span it covers is 86,400 years, and the personnel time span is 3,434 years. The total number of "open things" to "closed things" is 129,600 years. The content is huge and the interpretation is exquisite, which is amazing. On the basis of his predecessors, he combined the application of xiangs and numbers with astronomy and astrology, and summarized it into four characters: Yuan, Hui, Yun and Shi. Among them, 1 yuan has 12 fortunes, 1 fortune has 30 years, 1 fortune has 12 lives, and 1 life has 30 years. 1 yuan is exactly 129,600 years. And include the year, month, day, hour, etc. to make it consistent. The first meeting is 129,600 months, the first luck is 129,600 days, and the first life is 129,600 hours.
The 64 hexagrams correspond to the cosmic cycle, and the cycle continues, deducing the numbers before and after life, and understanding the phenomena of the universe. This book is a wonderful book, and its influence on later generations is huge. Many great scholars devoted themselves to research, but they were unable to overcome this high mountain. The method of "observing things with eyes and understanding things with things" in this book laid the practical foundation for Neo-Confucianism in the Song Dynasty. At that time, people in the Song Dynasty regarded Shao Yong as equal to Mencius, while Zhu Xi compared him with Laozi and Zhuangzi. People at that time listed him among the saints.
6. Legendary stories. Shao Yong believes that everything is like a god. Thousands of years have passed, but the legend still exists. I guess everyone is very tired after reading this, so I will share with you a few interesting things about Shao Yong.
1. Sima Guang admires flowers. One year, the peonies at Sima Guang's home bloomed particularly well, so he invited Shao Yong, Fu Bi, Wen Yanbo and others to come to his garden to enjoy the peonies. Fu Bi asked how many peonies were blooming in the garden. Everyone shook their heads, and Shao Yong said, "The flowers bloomed in thousands." So everyone counted them together, and after adding them up, they found that they were indeed a thousand. Fu Bi asked when the flowers would wither, and Shao Yong replied that the flowers would be destroyed tomorrow afternoon, but everyone did not believe it. The next day, everyone came to witness. By noon it was fine, everyone was a little suspicious. While they were discussing, a group of horses suddenly came and trampled all the peonies in the garden. Everyone was more and more impressed.
2. Plum blossoms are easy to count. One day, Shao Yong was sitting at home and found two magpies fighting on the plum blossom at home. Then they both fell to the ground. So he made a divination and knew that something big would happen tomorrow. No one should disturb him. At the same time the next day, a girl from the neighborhood climbed over the wall to pick plum blossoms. The family forgot Shao Yong's instructions and shouted. As a result, the girl fell to the ground and broke her leg. Fortunately, she did not lose her life. Later, people said that his method of divination was called Plum Blossom Yishu.
3. Make good plans before death. When Shao Yong was dying, he told his son Shao Bowen that after my death, everything would be simple, but I must call the little girl at the west end of the village. His son later did as he said, but he didn't understand the meaning of his instructions. Later, the girl became a grandmother. One day she heard someone talking at home. She listened outside the window and found out that her grandson and several people had dug up the graves of many people. Only Shao Yong’s grave had not been dug yet. They agreed to do it tonight. After hearing the news, she pushed the door open and said to them, you must not touch Mr. Shao's grave. When he was buried, I saw it from beginning to end, and there was nothing in it. Her grandson and the group were so frightened that their faces changed color after hearing this, and they gave up their plans to dig up Shaoyong's grave. To be honest, no one has touched Shao Kangjie's cemetery until now. I only understand this now.
There are many more stories like this. Due to the space problem, I will not go into details. Many of them are in the literature and are very authentic. If you are interested, you can search for relevant books to learn more.
Yaofu chanted, "The world is clumsy. It comes at no time and goes away at no time."
Like mountains and rivers, they cannot flow completely; they are like rivers, which flow endlessly.
Like orchid, the fragrance never stops; like the flute, the sound never stops.
There are also flowers, snow, wind, and moon.
Gentle, fierce, romantic, and passionate.
Note: References
1. "The Legend of a Generation - The Wisdom of Shao Yong" (Mi Hongbin)
2. "The Complete Works of Shao Yong" ( Shao Yong) Shanghai Ancient Books Publishing House