Chapter 10 Chapter 10 Handed down classics, thick characters first

The first sentence of the classics of Chinese national studies is that life is alive, and thick characters come first. Where is this sentence in the classic? The core of the classics of Chinese studies is the Four Books and Five Classics; the first of the Four Books and Five Classics is a summary of thought in notes written by Confucius' disciples. The first sentence of the opening chapter: Confucius said: "Isn't it a pleasure to learn and practice it from time to time? Isn't it a pleasure to have friends come from afar? Isn't it a gentleman to be a gentleman without knowing it?"

The meaning of this sentence, as everyone knows, is to be a person, learn and master ideological knowledge down-to-earth, apply these ideological knowledge to practice, use knowledge to change destiny, and use thought to enlighten life.At this time, many people will come here especially to ask you for advice, or to discuss and learn together with you.But sometimes, your efforts have not been recognized by the public, and your dedication has not been recognized by everyone, so despite your efforts, no one cares about you. In this case, what should you do? The whole point of this sentence falls on the last half of the sentence: People don't know but are not stunned, isn't it a gentleman?

It means: Even if others do not recognize your efforts, achievements, or contributions, then you should not get angry, but be calm and wait patiently. want to be recognized by others.If that's the case, then you will be miserable. All your previous efforts and efforts will be in vain because of this thin skin, and you will get a bad reputation of "not a gentleman". People don't know but don't feel stunned, isn't it a gentleman?The real meaning of this sentence is that unless your skin is thick enough, otherwise, you will never be a gentleman.And if you want to be a gentleman, you can't do it if you have a thin skin.

Gentlemen are thick-skinned, which is the core essence of Confucianism that has been passed down for nearly three thousand years. It feels weird to say this, but is real life like this? Let's look at a story: During the reign of Emperor Xiaozong of the Ming Dynasty, there was a man named Yang Shouchen who held the official position of the prince washing horses in the court. This official position means the prince's attendant, similar to today's secretary. In short, he is the prince. Leading cadres with higher positions around them.One year he asked for leave to go home, and when he arrived at the post station, the postman asked, "What official position are you?" Yang Shouchen replied, "The prince washes the horse." He washes horses for the crown prince, how many horses can he wash in a day?" Yang Shouchen knew that the postman was a fool when he heard this, so he had to perfunctoryly say: "This horse wash... wash a few more horses every now and then, If you are lazy, you can wash a few less horses, and there is no way..."

Just as he was talking, a senior censor came, and Yi Cheng hurriedly stepped forward to greet him, and ordered Yang Shouchen to kneel with him quickly, but when the censor saw Yang Shouchen, he was so frightened that he knelt down first. down.It turns out that Yang Shouchen's official position is much greater than that of Yushi. Now Yicheng was terrified, begging Yang Shouchen to spare his life.But Yang Shouchen said: "It's not your fault, let's forget it." In this matter, Yang Shouchen encountered the embarrassment of "people don't know". The postman thought that the prince washed the horses for the prince full-time, and even yelled at him and pointed fingers at him. To say the least, it's an embarrassing thing.But no matter how embarrassing he was, he had to follow the teachings of Confucius and endure the humiliation to express his "not stunned".If he couldn't hold his breath, couldn't bear this kind of humiliation, and exploded on the spot, and this matter spread to other people's ears, then Yang Shouchen would become a domineering and bullying person.

It can be seen that if you want not to be regarded as a villain with no morals, you must have a thick enough face to be able to calm down in the eyes and insults of others. If you fail to do this, it will be difficult to obtain the beauty of a gentleman. name. No one can figure out the saying that a gentleman is thick-skinned most thoroughly than Lou Shide, the prime minister of Wu Zetian in the Tang Dynasty.He is famous for his good temper in Chinese history. No matter how others insult him, he never gets angry.Someone once called him a country bumpkin, but he smiled and said: "Of course, I was born as a farmer. I am not a country bumpkin, so who is it?"

Once, Lou Shide's younger brother went to Daizhou to serve as the governor. Lou Shide said to him: "My elder brother was the prime minister, and now your younger brother is the governor. We have won too many honors. If someone How do you deal with yourself when you say irresponsible things to you?" The younger brother replied: "This matter is easy to handle. Even if someone spits on my face in the future, I will at most wipe it off by myself, and it will never cause you any trouble." Lou Shide shook his head and said: "It's bad, you're bad, how can you wipe off the spittle that people spit on your face by yourself? You know, since people spit on you, it's because they hate you, how could you Dare to wipe off the saliva by yourself, wouldn’t it make the other person even more angry? Listen to me, if someone spits on your face in the future, don’t wipe it off, let the saliva dry on its own.”

This is the origin of the idiom resignation.Regarding Lou Shide's approach, there have always been good ones and bad ones.A good way to say it is to praise Lou Shide for being too tolerant, but a bad way to say that Lou Shide's face is too thick, and he has lost even the most basic dignity of being a human being.But whether it is a good statement or a bad statement, one word is fastened: thick! This thick character is the highest state where people do not know but are not stunned. Unless you can realize the human wisdom in this state, otherwise, even if the Confucian classics are piled up like a hill, they may not be of much value to you.