Chapter 12 Six, different routes lead to the same goal
The choice of road is like sailing, and different nations have different charts.
All countries in the East have chosen monarchy.Moreover, they all first changed from tribes (or tribal alliances) to tribal states, then from city states to territorial states, and finally from silos to centralization, dynasties and empires.
The first to establish a centralized system was Egypt, and this is it.Then there are two river basins, which are the Akkadian kingdom of Sargon and the ancient Babylonian kingdom of Hammurabi.The Mauryan Dynasty in India and the Great Qin Empire in China were much later.Also, the kings of India were not gods or "sons of gods".They belong to "Kshatriya" and their rank is lower than that of "Brahman" (priest).It was not until the end of the Warring States period in China that the king called himself "the favored man of the gods".
China's path is different.
The Chinese monarch is not a god, but a saint.They are "sons of heaven", called "sons of heaven".The Son of Heaven is a "dragon among men" who only proclaims himself a minister in front of Heaven.Of course, there is no such thing as a priest or pope who can override them.Therefore, the Chinese Empire is the most stable and perfect empire, so stable that it is impossible to be conquered by barbarians, and it is impossible to have an institutional revolution within itself.
Nautical charts are indeed diverse.
Greece and Rome is another way.There are actually many kinds of their political systems, including aristocracy and oligarchy.Simply put, Athens chose democracy and Rome chose republic.
Routes are also varied.
However, the elements that constitute a chart are the same for all nations in the world.Most importantly, public relations, public affairs, public power, public agencies, and public regulation.The rules include the citizen's contract law, the monarch's king's law, and the Chinese etiquette law.In principle, the laws of etiquette, royal laws, and contractual laws should all be written laws.The exercise of public power also depends on decrees and documents.Therefore, each ancient civilization has its own writing, such as the "pictorial writing" of ancient Egypt, the "cuneiform writing" of Sumer, the "linear writing" of Crete, the "seal writing" of the Indus River, and the "oracle bone writing" of China. Character".This is the "Boundary Monument of Civilization".
So, what are the beacons for choosing a course?
Safety and freedom.
The problem is that security can be solved by technology, but freedom can only be guaranteed by institutions.Therefore, all nations in the world will lead to the same goal by different routes, and will eventually move towards democracy.It's just that before that, everyone has to go a long way, including the West and China.
However, no voyage is a detour, and no exploration is pointless.The courage and ups and downs of all nations are the common wealth of all mankind, and they can learn from each other.To do this, I'm afraid we'll have to walk other people's shipping routes and visit a few ports by the way.
Such as Athens, such as Philadelphia.
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