Chapter 15 Section 4 Donglin Academy and Late Ming Academy were banned

The academies in the late Ming Dynasty were the most prosperous in Huizhou, Jiangyou, Guanzhong, and Wuxi, among which Donglin Academy in Wuxi was the most famous.It is said that at that time, people did not know that there were academies in various places, but only knew that there was Donglin, and all academies were called Donglin. Donglin Academy was originally the place where Cheng Yi's disciple Yang Shi gave lectures.In the 32nd year of Wanli in the Ming Dynasty (1604 A.D.), Gu Xian built Donglin Academy on his site, where he gave lectures with Gao Panlong and others.According to records: Donglin Academy, also known as Guishan Academy, is located in the southeast corner of Wuxi County.When Gu Xiancheng and Gao Panlong gave lectures, there were two meetings at the age of two and one meeting every month for three days each, all following the academic regulations of Bailudong Academy, "Famous sages from far and near respond to each other at the same time, and scholars all over the world return to Donglin."

The Donglin School formed by Donglin Academy is basically based on Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism, and opposes the indulgence, willfulness, non-pragmatic learning, and homeless bad habits of Wang Xuemo, and advocates that everyone advocate integrity, and everyone should pay attention to practical learning . "Together with each other and seek rejuvenation", "to respect the sage's model", "to reap the victories of Luo, Guan and Min".Gu Xiancheng personally formulated the "Donglin Meeting", which clearly stated "four essentials, breaking two confusions, advocating nine benefits, and eliminating nine losses".

The "four essentials" are: knowing the roots, making aspirations, respecting the scriptures, and examining the principles. "Two confusions" are: confusion when you should not be confused, and confusion when you don't need to be confused. "Jiuyi" refers to the nine benefits of lectures, such as: learning from each other with morality and righteousness, refreshing and invigorating, broad knowledge, planning for the future, and drawing new ideas from the old. "Nine damages" refer to the mistakes that people often make in teaching and studying. Scholars are reminded to be more vigilant and try to avoid them, such as: playing with each other, fighting against differences, pretending to be public and acting privately, commenting on right and wrong, talking about trivial things, explaining mistakes, talking too much People pass, deacons dispute, hearsay.

Donglin Academy was famous at that time, not only because its academic ideas were timely, but more importantly, it closely combined academic activities with political struggles.Actively participating in the political activities at that time expanded the influence of the Academy, improved its social status, and attracted the hatred of opponents.According to the "History of the Ming Dynasty Gu Xiancheng Biography": "At that time, the scholar-bureaucrats who embraced the way and disobeyed the time, retreated to the forest, heard the wind, and the school could not accommodate... In addition to lectures, they often satirized the government and judged people. Those in the court who admire his style will respond to each other from a long distance, because it is a famous work of Donglin, and there are many people who avoid it."

"Satire discussing government affairs and judging people" is a new style of study established by Donglin Academy. Donglin Academy is not only an educational organization and academic organization, but also a center of public opinion and political activity.Therefore, at that time, all the people who had relations and contacts with Donglin Academy were accused of being the "Donglin Party". "Donglin Party" and suffered persecution. Huang Zongxi said in "Ming Confucianism Case Donglin Study Case": "Donglin lecturers are no more than a few people's ears, and its lecture hall is no more than a county's ears. . . . Exactly, if a person does not follow the popular customs, everyone is called Donglin. If it is Donglin, it is everywhere in the region and has been extended for several generations. How unfortunate is Donglin that there is such a thing, and how fortunate is Donglin to have this.”

It is precisely because Donglin Academy adheres to the style of study of "satire discussing government affairs and judging people" that it arouses the hatred of some people in power.During the reign of Tianqi (AD 1621-1627), the eunuch Wei Zhongxian monopolized power, was politically corrupt, repeatedly imposed unjust prisons, fabricated the Donglin Party case, and killed Zuo Guangdou, etc., which brought disaster to Donglin Academy. For the same party, it is strictly forbidden to destroy.It is said in history: In August of the fifth year of Tianqi, "demolish the academy of the world, and the head reaches Donglin".

It was the fourth time that Donglin Academy was banned and destroyed in the late Ming Dynasty.As early as the 16th and 17th years of Jiajing (AD 1537 and 1538), when the academy was booming, Yu Shi Youju respected Shangshu and criticized the official secretary of Nanjing, Zhan Ruoshui, for advocating evil learning and recruiting rascals. Private academy.It is suggested to ban and destroy the academies he founded to correct people's hearts.In the following year, Xu Zan, Minister of the Ministry of Officials, proposed again: "Fuyongsifu built more academies, gathered students, and provided for hundreds of millions of subjects to disturb, so it should be demolished urgently." The imperial court approved the performance and ordered the academies to be demolished.

In the 16th and 17th years of Jiajing, the academies were banned and destroyed twice in a row. Because the rulers at that time respected Zhu's learning more and opposed Wang and Zhan's learning, they built academies for Wang, Zhan and others to gather disciples to give lectures. With grudges in mind, accusations were made arbitrarily, and destruction was strictly prohibited, which opened a bad example of suppressing academic development by political means. The third time the Academy was banned and destroyed in the late Ming Dynasty was when Zhang Juzheng was in power in the seventh year of Wanli (AD 1579). "History of the Ming Dynasty" stated: "On the fifth day of the first month of the seventh year of the spring, the imperial edict destroyed the academies of the world." Change it to a public house." "Ming Tong Jian" further explained the reason for the ban on destruction. "On Wuchen of the first lunar month in the seventh year, the academies of the world were ordered to be destroyed. First, Shi Guanmin, the former magistrate of Changzhou, used science to amass people's wealth, founded an academy privately, and was convicted of dismissing [sisi]. Change the provincial academies into public houses, and destroy sixty-four academies in Yingtian and other prefectures." Zhang Juzheng's main purpose of banning and destroying academies is to rectify and strengthen ideological control.He made it very clear in "Applying for the Old Chapter to Order Education and Politics to Revitalize Talents": "The sages use the scriptures to teach, and the country uses the scriptures to guide people. If you can understand the scriptures, you are explaining learning. Why bother?" Mark the door and gather the party for empty talk. From now on, everyone will nominate academic officials, supervise and lead the instructors to learn Confucianism, and make sure to pay attention to the principles of the classics and books that they study every day, practice them, and use them in the future. It is not allowed to create academies, gather party members, and Calling on those who wander and eat without doing anything, talk about waste karma." Zhang Juzheng made it more clear in "Answer to Nansi Chengtu Pingshi on Wei Xueshu": "Fu Xizhi was a comrade (referring to the Neo Confucianist who taught in the academy at that time) The servant also tried to circle around and listen to his arguments. However, if you look at its subtleties, you will gather the party and good reputation, and act quickly. The so-called moral theory is empty and useless. Zhuangzi said that the one who speaks is like wow, the Buddha The so-called toad Zen ears. And his disciples are numerous, leading to things. The big ones shake the court, (Shuang word to change women) mess up the name and reality, and the small ones hide the ugliness and seek profit to escape the name. " "Gathering party members", "empty talk", "disciples are prosperous, leading the trend to do things" are the crimes imposed on the academy. "Shake the imperial court, (Shuang word to Yao for women) mess up the name and reality".

The fourth ban on the destruction of academies, that is, the ban on the destruction of Donglin Academy created by Wei Zhongxian, was extended to academies across the country, and it had a more obvious political color. The academies of the Ming Dynasty went from years of silence in the early Ming Dynasty to unprecedented prosperity in the middle of the Ming Dynasty, and then they were banned and destroyed in succession at the end of the Ming Dynasty. crisis, it is worth pondering.