Chapter 12 Traditional Education in Chinese History

To talk about traditional education in Chinese history, we should first mention the spirit and ideals in traditional Chinese education.The spirit and ideal of this traditional Chinese education was founded by Duke Zhou 3,000 years ago and completed by Confucius 2,500 years ago.The main significance of this education is not exclusively for imparting knowledge, let alone for training occupations, nor is it exclusively for children, youth, or even those under middle age.The main object of this education is the whole society, and it can be said that it is the whole human being.Regardless of childhood, youth, middle age, or old age, regardless of gender, regardless of occupation, and regardless of race, all are included in this educational spirit and ideal.

In the Chinese cultural system, no religion was created.It was not until the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties that Indian Buddhism was introduced.During the Sui and Tang Dynasties, Islam and Christianity came to the east one after another.Chinese society does not reject foreign religions, and Buddhism especially has a large number of believers in Chinese society.It can also be said that although Buddhism originated in India, its ultimate consummation was in China.But in the Chinese cultural system, Buddhism still does not occupy an important position.The most important position is still Confucianism taught by Confucius.

Confucianism of Confucius did not become a religion, but actually endowed with extremely profound religious feelings and religious spirit.For example, Christianity, Buddhism, etc., do not involve actual politics in their teachings, but Confucianism, Confucianism, regards governing the country and the world as its ultimate ideal, so Confucianism encourages people to engage in politics.Another example is Christianity, Buddhism, etc., whose believers are detached from the general society to engage in their missionary work.But Confucius Confucianism, its believers are not included in the general society, they promote the way of teachers at the bottom, and serve politics at the top.I only want to be beautiful, not to be born.Therefore, believers in Confucianism are not organized into separate groups like other religions.

In the Chinese cultural system, education assumes the responsibility of all religions of other nations.Confucian teachings mainly teach people how to behave.It can also be said that Confucianism is a kind of humane religion, or a kind of humanistic religion, as long as it is a person, it should be taught.No matter men, women, old or young, they cannot be outside.Regardless of any kind of knowledge or any profession, this teaching should be the center and the destination should be.In its teachings, such as filial piety, brotherhood, loyalty, and forgiveness, as well as benevolence, righteousness, propriety, and wisdom, are all conditions for human beings and should be respected and obeyed by everyone.

This set of traditional education in China can replace the function of religion, but it does not oppose the introduction of foreign religions.Because in the Chinese concept, since I can abide by a set of righteous ways of life, if there are gods and gods behind me who advocate the right way, then I am also qualified to go to heaven and enter the Kingdom of Ultimate Bliss.Others believe in religion, as long as they do not do evil in the real society, I don't have to argue or oppose it with the heart of being kind to others.Therefore, in the Chinese cultural system, although religions are not created, foreign religions can be tolerated and embraced without conflict.

In Chinese Confucian teachings, there is a concept of character, which uses the meaning and value of life as a criterion to classify people into several categories.Even natural objects and even man-made objects are also ranked high and low for them.Among inanimate things, such as stone and jade, one has a high price and the other has a low price.Among living things, it is like the phoenix among birds and the unicorn among animals.Among aquatic animals, such as dragons and turtles, among trees, such as pine, cypress, plum, orchid, bamboo, and chrysanthemum.Among the man-made objects, such as the ancient bells, tripods, and Yi wares, as well as all the exquisite and noble works of art, are highly regarded by the Chinese people.As with things, so with people.Therefore, Chinese people often refer to characters in succession, also known as character.Things have goods, people also have goods.Creatures of heaven and earth should be treated equally.But people should have human nature as the standard to support the way of heaven, so it is said: "Praise the cultivation of heaven and earth."It is not for people to scorn the sky, nor is it for the sky to scorn people.In traditional Chinese education, there is a view of the way of heaven, and there is also a view of the way of humanity.It has its natural view and its humanistic view.The two are expensive and can complement each other, and the cheap ones go one way or the other.

In the Chinese people's outlook on character, there are mainly differences between a gentleman and a villain.The king is the group.A person must behave in a large group, not focusing on his own selfishness, but taking care of the public in the large group. Such people are called "gentlemen".If a person has a small mind and a narrow vision, and only seeks his own personal selfish plans, regardless of the interests of the public, such people are called "little people".In Ban Gu's "Han Shu" "Ancient and Modern Persons List", historical figures are divided into nine classes.First, it is divided into upper, middle, and lower grades, and then each grade is divided into upper, middle, and lower grades, so there are nine grades from upper, upper, lower, and lower.In history, being an emperor was rich and powerful, but there were quite a few people who were ranked in the lower class, or even included in the lower class.The upper class is a sage, the upper middle class is a benevolent person, and the lower class is a wise person.The ancient Chinese regarded both benevolence and wisdom as saints, so the third class is actually the first class.The lowest class is a fool.It can be seen that the Chinese people's concept, the distinction of character, comes from their wisdom and ignorance.If he enlightens his knowledge and understands the value of humanity, he will be able to become a top-grade person.Because of his ignorance of knowledge, ignorance of the value of human nature, and selfishness, he has become a low-grade person.Therefore, it is said: "Be aware first and then know, and be aware first and then be aware." This requires education.If one can receive education and practice what is precious in humane ways, then everyone can be Yao and Shun.The ideal of mankind is to make everyone a superior person and a saint. This is the Chinese concept of equality.

The Chinese talk about character, and often talk about character and morality.The classification of people is based on their virtues.Mandate of Heaven is called nature, and human nature is inherently endowed, but people must be able to receive education, know how to cultivate themselves, and be able to practice this endowed nature for self-satisfaction and real self, which is called virtue.Virtue comes only from nature.The nature is the same, everyone has it.People of the same kind are similar to each other, so everyone can be Yao and Shun.Moreover, Yao and Shun were still in ancient times, when education was underdeveloped, Yao and Shun could become the first-class people. We are born in a world after education is developed. As long as education is proper, everyone can be Yao and Shun.If all human beings in the world can be influenced by this kind of education, everyone can be the first-class saint.At that time, it will be the so-called great harmony and peace in the Chinese ideal.At this point, the earth is heaven.Regardless of the heaven after death, the real world can also be heaven.Therefore, the ideal and spirit of traditional Chinese education are rooted in his deep religious interest and belief.

The ideal and spirit of Chinese traditional education, since it focuses on the virtue of human beings, should be based on the innate natural talent to achieve the acquired humane and cultural virtues. Therefore, Chinese thinking, especially Confucianism, pays special attention to human nature. Questions come up.Mencius said: "He who puts his heart into practice knows his nature. If he knows his nature, he will know the sky."But if a person wants to know his own nature, he should be able to develop his heart as fully as possible from all aspects, only then can he know his own nature.Everyone knows that eating and drinking are men and women, and eating and drinking are also human nature, but people's hearts should not be all about eating and drinking men and women, and human nature is not just about eating and drinking men and women.If a person pays special attention to food and drink, this is what Mencius called raising his small body to be a small person.

Human life has a small body and a large body.In an extreme sense, human life in the whole world, past and present, is the whole of this life.Everyone's short life is the smallest body of this life.But the whole of human life is also accumulated through the experience of each person's small life.The small body should not be obliterated by the big body, nor should the big body be ignored by the small body. Confucian teachings are based on the inherent conscience and energy that each person is born with, which can also be said to be his instinct, which is the natural innate nature.Based on this, according to the ultimate ideal of the whole of human life, to develop this natural congenital nature as much as possible, so that it can reach its highest possibility, which is the acquired nature of humanity.Make nature congenital and human beings acquired.Make humanity acquired and complete nature innate.It is the beginning to know the sky with all one's nature.If nature is called nature innate, then humanity acquired should be called virtue.Nature must become virtue, and virtue must inherit nature.Sex belongs to heaven and everyone is the same.Germany is a person, and everyone can be different.There are even differences between adults and villains.There are various personalities and various cultures.

All the major religions in the world are not immune to the suspicion of respecting heaven and suppressing man.Only the teachings of Chinese Confucianism advocate the harmony of man and heaven.But in the crowd, value each individual.It is up to each individual to become virtuous, so that the way of humanity is in line with the way of heaven.Without the human way, the way of heaven will not be completed.Without the personal way of each individual, the way of humanity will not be complete.Modern people like to talk about personal freedom, but in fact, Chinese Confucianism advocates the highest and greatest freedom for everyone.From this, the highest and greatest freedom of each person can be used to achieve the highest and greatest equality of all mankind, that is, everyone is the first class person, and everyone can be Yao and Shun.Confucian teachings teach human beings from this ideal, which is the highest and greatest fraternity for human beings, which is what Confucius called benevolence. The educational ideal and educational spirit of Chinese Confucianism do not fully focus on imparting knowledge and vocational training, let alone obedience to laws and regulations and following the ethos. The emphasis is on being a teacher in education work, which is worthy of consideration. Ren Shidao's character and personality.Therefore, it is said: "Confucian teachers are easy to get, but human teachers are hard to find." If one person is required to teach a scripture, that person is easy to get.It is hard to find one person to guide people in the way of being a human being.Because people must first understand and practice the way of being a human being before they can guide others.One must first be able to become virtuous by one's own nature, and then one can teach others to be virtuous by one's nature. "The Doctrine of the Mean" says: "To fulfill one's own nature, one can fully realize the nature of others." Confucius is called "the most holy teacher", because His character and personality are the highest, and he is competent to be a teacher, and he can teach people to be virtuous and improve their own character and personality. Han Yu's "Teacher's Talk" said: "A teacher preaches, teaches, and solves doubts." In fact, these three things are just one thing.Everyone has their own karma, but they cannot deviate from the Dao and take their karma.If you are a king, do your best.Be a minister and do your best.Politicians have the way of statesmen.The Chinese often say that there is good faith and business, and businessmen also have the way of businessmen.All walks of life in society must be specialized and divided, but the road of life must be connected and combined.However, personnel affairs are complicated, interests are different, and each specialized division of work must come together to form a road of life. During this period, many problems will be encountered, which will confuse people, and it is very important for someone to solve the confusion.Therefore, the preacher must solve the confusion by teaching the karma.And teaching karma to solve doubts is preaching. There are four subjects under Confucius' school: morality, speech, political affairs, and literature.Speech is now called diplomacy, and foreign affairs and political affairs belong to the political department.Literature is now people impart knowledge in books.But what Confucianism taught is the highest morality in life.Zi Xia Lie literature discipline, Confucius taught: "You are a gentleman Confucianism, not a villain Confucianism." Those who govern the literature discipline must still be good at virtue.Zilu Chang governs the army, Ran You is good at financial management, Gong Xihua is proficient in diplomatic etiquette, and each can specialize in his own profession according to his talents and talents.However, Ran You was the steward of Jisun's family and managed to manage money for him, making Jisun's family richer than Zhou Gong, which has violated the political path.Confucius told his disciples: "Ran You is not my disciple, I can beat the drum and attack you." But Ji Sun can only use Ran You to manage money on his behalf. for.So Ran You still had to be regarded as a disciple of Confucianism, and he had to be listed in the Political Affairs Section.As for the subject of virtue, it is especially the highest subject of Confucianism.Just like Yan Yuan, if you use it, you can do it, if you don’t use it, you can hide it. If you learn all kinds of skills, if you make it go against the way, you would rather hide it than use it.It can be seen that in the teachings of Confucianism, morality is far more important than occupation. Hu Yuan, a great educator in the Song Dynasty, taught people to divide the scriptures and govern affairs.The classics and righteousness emphasize the great way of life, and when dealing with affairs, everyone should be close to his talent and nature, and he should deal with one thing and one thing at the same time.Such as governing the people and emphasizing martial arts, weir water calendar and so on.Chinese schools have always focused on professional education, such as astronomy, calendar, criminal law, medicine, etc.In modern education, there is a dispute between experts and generalists.In fact, success is based on the closeness of its nature, which is suitable for specialization.Traditional Chinese education does not advocate general talents, but general morality and general knowledge.Therefore, it is said: "Scholars first have knowledge of tools, and then literature and art." With a general knowledge of virtue and general knowledge, one is a master of Confucianism and a man.Man must be one.Every business is run by people.Such as politics, such as business, must be carried out by people.The person must have common virtue, which refers to what everyone should have in common, also known as Dade.Assuming this career, you must also understand the status and significance of this career on the common standpoint of the avenue of life, which is called general knowledge.Common virtue belongs to benevolence, and general knowledge belongs to wisdom.He is a man of the highest grade who possesses universal morality and knowledge. He is called a great weapon and can accomplish great things, so he is called a master.If the person does not possess morality and general knowledge, he is just a small tool, dealing with trivial matters, and he is a low-grade person. Chinese people distinguish between refined and vulgar characters.There are two kinds of vulgarity, one is the vulgarity of space, and the other is the vulgarity of time.Limited to the region, within the customs of a certain area, it cannot be connected to another area; limited to the time, within the customs of a certain period, it cannot be connected to another period.This is called a villain.The elegant gentleman is not limited by time or place, and is connected everywhere.In the early Western Zhou Dynasty in China, the countries divided their territories, that is, they advocated elegant words and music, which led to a further great unification of the Chinese nation.Since then, Chinese literature and art have all strived to be refined.It should not be limited by geography, nor by time.This is true of literature and art and other humanistic avenues.Therefore, "The Doctrine of the Mean" says: "The way of a gentleman is based on the body, recruits the common people, examines the three kings without being obsessed, builds the heavens and the earth without conflicting, confronts the ghosts and gods without doubt, and waits for the sage for a hundred generations without doubting." The Dao, in fact, only lies in a small person, and this person becomes a gentleman.But the way of a gentleman should not be different from others, but should be common to others.Or to communicate with a large group of ordinary people.Therefore, it is said that to recruit the common people, one must be able to seek evidence from the common people.Examination of the three generations is to seek proof from history.To build the heavens and the earth is to seek evidence from nature.To question ghosts and gods is to seek proof in the spiritual world.This way, only when you meet a sage, you can get his approval and heart seal.Saints are not easy to meet, so they will wait for a hundred generations.But this gentleman is actually just an elegant person.Elegance means communication, and it is the ultimate elegance to be able to bypass the four seas and go up and down through the ages.Therefore, since he is a gentleman, he must be an elegant person.If you are an elegant person, you must also be a gentleman.But there is no vulgar gentleman, and no vulgar villain.Only the Chinese are called gentlemen, and they all refer to all practical words in their daily life.The Chinese call elegant people, which refers to every aspect of life related to literature and art.Therefore, the distinction between a gentleman and a villain is more important than the distinction between elegance and vulgarity. Traditional Chinese education can also be said to teach people to be gentlemen and not villains, and to teach people to be elegant and not to be vulgar.It is easy to say, but it contains the highest truth, and it is difficult to reach its highest state without the highest belief.Chinese traditional education is very rich in religious spirit, but it is different from religion, and this is the essence of it. Because of the above-mentioned spirit in traditional Chinese education, Chinese people attach great importance to education, often not on the schools and the courses they offer, but on the selection of teachers.In Chinese history, since the Han Dynasty, there have been national imperial schools in all dynasties.Each local administrative unit also has its own school.There are private schools and primary schools everywhere in the countryside.But generally the most important thing is to give lectures in private.In the pre-Qin period of the Warring States period, hundreds of schools of thought competed, so I don't care.In the period of the Han Dynasty, there was a teacher in the wild, and the apprentices traveled thousands of miles. They gathered in all directions, each set up a fine house, and came to ask for advice, and thousands of people could be obtained.There are also people who have traveled all over China and visited famous teachers from all over the world.Down to the Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties, the academy lectures were even more so.So in traditional Chinese education.More importantly, it is a kind of private education, free education.Its object is a kind of social education and adult education.After Confucius died, no one heard of a school being built in Qufu to continue giving lectures.After Zhu Zi's death, no one heard that a school was built in Wuyi, Wuqu, Jianyang and Kaoting to continue giving lectures.It is even more like Wang Yangming, who only lectures in his yamen everywhere, not even an academy.The main spirit of traditional Chinese education is to preach among people.There is neither a church organization like the major religions, nor does it rely on a fixed school location.Only one teacher was pulled up from the ground, and gathered in all directions.It is a characteristic of traditional Chinese education to carry out its educational undertakings informally. Zen Buddhism rose in the Tang Dynasty. They built their own Zen temples, which were different from ordinary Buddhist temples.There may be no Buddhist temple, and there may be no teaching of a Buddhist classic.But with a patriarch, monks and disciples from all over the world gathered here.In a large forest, there may be thousands of monks who come and go, and it is difficult to ask questions.Once he became a patriarch by himself, he started another mountain to teach monks and disciples.Zen is the most Chinese of Buddhism, and its missionary spirit is also Chinese. In the modern world, the power of religion is gradually declining.Modern Western education was originally initiated by the church, and now the church forces have also withdrawn from the school.Education has become a dissemination of knowledge and a training profession.Only primary and secondary schools have some educational meanings of teaching people to become citizens of a country, which are completely out of touch with the main purpose of teaching people how to behave.In the whole world, there is only division, but no harmony.The major religions are already a great division.Under the same religion, there are also sectarian divisions.Nations and nations are divided.People themselves are also split by the concept of occupation.Such as religionists, philosophers, writers, artists, scientists, politicians, military strategists, diplomats, lawyers, financial economists, corporate capitalists, etc., each profession has outstanding performance and outstanding achievements in terms of its knowledge and skills All of them belong to one family.In addition, the masses become the proletariat and employees.It seems that there is a career not for the sake of life, but for the career to start life.The whole life becomes only utilitarian and materialistic.Zhuangzi said: "Taoism will split the world." The Taoism in today's world is all for everyone to make a living and profit independently, so the profession is divided.The concept of virtue seems to have received little attention.Occupation is above, virtue is below, and virtue is divided with occupation.Being an educator is also considered a profession.As teachers, knowledge and skills are also used to distinguish between superiors and inferiors. It is not a violation of the law, and virtue is irrelevant.Science is regarded as the highest among various knowledge skills. "The Doctrine of the Mean" says: "The nature of human beings can be fully realized, and then the nature of things can be fully realized." "Great Learning" says "to investigate things", and its ultimate goal is to rule the country and make the world peaceful.Zhu Zi said: "Investigate the poor principles of things", and the principles he lacks are the great use of the whole of my heart, and the avenue of life for the husband and the country to rule the world.Modern science is only poor in physics, but ignores human nature, that is, the principles of life.Atomic bombs and nuclear weapons cannot govern the country and the world.Sending people to the moon is not what is needed to govern the country and the world. Science education only emphasizes intelligence, not benevolence.In the "Han Shu" "Ancient and Modern People's List", the highest rank is only the third class, and there are two classes above it, Shang Shang and Shang Zhong, which modern people ignore.The special ideal and special spirit of Chinese traditional education, under the situation of the real world, really need to be advocated again. Moreover, the ideal of traditional Chinese education is the most important thing about teachers.But Shi Dao also has another solution.Confucius said: "When three people walk together, there must be my teacher." Zi Gong also said: "The master does not learn, but how often does he have a teacher." It can be seen that everyone can be a teacher of others, and can also be a teacher of saints.The Chinese people's emphasis on the way of teachers is actually at the same time emphasizing humanity.Mencius said: "A sage is the teacher of a hundred generations, so are Boyi and Liu Xiahui." Boyi and Liu Xiahui are not engaged in education, but they rose up after hearing about it for a hundred generations, so they are said to be teachers of a hundred generations.He also said: "The virtue of a gentleman is wind. The virtue of a villain is grass. Grass, the wind of admiration, must die." Therefore, the Confucian teachings on education have escaped formalization.As long as you are a gentleman, you are also a teacher.As long as there is a gentleman in society, others will follow suit.He also said: "The teaching of a gentleman is like the rain of the season." As long as it rains, all things will be born and transformed.People are also one person, they have the same virtues, and they all have aspirations.As long as one person goes up, the others follow.Because of this belief in human nature, the ancient Chinese developed a set of traditional educational ideals and educational spirits like the above. Don't be afraid of going against the times, don't be afraid of the few, don't be afraid of having no basis, and don't take power and power into account.Just relying on my own self, as long as the Tao is in my body, I can silently dominate the destiny of mankind.Otherwise, the world can be transferred to Thailand, and the fortune can be transferred back.Its main hub lies in the intangible educational ideal and educational spirit.This can be evidenced by the entire history of China.Three thousand years since the Duke of Zhou, and two thousand and five hundred years since Confucius, during which there have been many times of decline and turmoil, and the Chinese nation has risen again and again, but this tradition has been revived until now, and it will depend on this tradition to revive.This is the lifeblood of all human beings.The Chinese call it "Tao". "Educational system" is based on this "orthodoxy", and "political system" should also be based on this "orthodoxy".All ages, nations, major religions, major ideological systems, and major educational organizations all over the world will prosper and prosper if they are in line with this, and perish if they are apart from it.And its main motivation lies in each individual.Gu Tinglin, a survivor of the late Ming Dynasty, once said: "Everyone is responsible for the rise and fall of the world." Its connotation is also here. Due to the Chinese tradition, it has developed into the cultural system of the various ethnic groups in the East. The history of the Koreans should be traced back at least three thousand years.That is, based on Korean history, I think it can also prove what I said above.Those of our Chinese and Korean nationalities, especially intellectuals, who are responsible for education, should rise up, cheer up this traditional spirit, and carry forward this traditional ideal.From the position of education, to the future of the two nations, to the future of mankind in the world, to make the highest possible contribution. I want to say that I like the word "tradition" very much, because the word "tradition" is very important.But it is not easy to understand the tradition.It seems that sometimes it is easy for us to know others, but difficult for us to know ourselves.Moreover, it is more difficult to understand the traditions of our Orientals than the traditions of Westerners.For example, China has a tradition of more than 4,000 or 5,000 years, Korea has a tradition of more than 3,000 years, and Japan has a tradition of more than 2,000 years.In the West, such as France and the United Kingdom, there is only a thousand-year tradition, the United States only has a tradition of two to four hundred years, and the Soviet Union does not have a tradition of a hundred years. The first task of education is to enable every member of this country, this nation, to come to know their own traditions.Just like teaching a person to be able to know himself.I don't even know myself, so I don't need to say anything else. Today, the number one mistake in our Eastern education is to imitate and copy the West.I don't know that every country and every nation must have its own education.For example, the education of Koreans must teach everyone how to be a Korean, to establish a new country of Korea, to carry forward the new culture of Korea, and to create a new history of Korea.This huge new task should be borne by Koreans themselves.To undertake this task, first of all, Koreans must know and respect themselves, and everything should be self-centered and self-oriented. But this does not mean that we should remain in the dark and close ourselves.It's not that we don't know how to value others, and don't know how to learn from others' strengths to make up for our own weaknesses.But there should be a limit to all this.Never forget yourself in order to learn from others, let alone destroy yourself in order to learn from others.Today, we Orientals have such a tendency, and we urgently need to improve ourselves. (Speech at Yonsei University in South Korea, September 1974, published in the supplement of "Central Daily")