Chapter 7 Lecture 4 Luck

The above three lectures, the first and the second talk about reason and life, describe the world outlook and outlook on life in Chinese thought from the aspects of abstract theory and principles.The third lecture on virtue is the continuation of the second lecture, from the specific implementation of the principles of life to the practice of life.Today is the turn of the fourth lecture, and my topic is the word "Qi Luck".This lecture is a continuation of the first lecture, with many viewpoints and theories arising from the concrete implementation of the principles of the universe to the practice of life.In other words, what is the universe in the first two lectures in an abstract way?What is life?The last two lectures are specifically about what is life?What is the universe?Combining these four lectures, I hope to describe a general outline of Chinese thought.

one Chinese people often talk about luck, if these two words are separated, it is luck and destiny.Especially in the dark times, social turmoil, and when individuals encounter misfortune, difficulties, setbacks, and failures, they always like to talk about luck and destiny.The two concepts of "luck" and "destiny" cannot simply be said to be Chinese secular superstitions.In fact, these two concepts have a deep-rooted foothold in the history of traditional Chinese thought.This is the traditional Chinese thought that has spread to the whole society and is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. It has a solid periphery and profound connotation. We should analyze and elucidate it carefully.

Chinese people have talked about the word "Qi" from ancient times to the present. What exactly does Qi refer to?I think the word qi in Chinese thought should have at least two meanings.One is tiny, and the other is active.If all matter in the universe is analyzed to the end, it should be extremely similar.But it is extremely small, that is, when the analysis reaches the end and cannot be further analyzed, it will inevitably become similar.If they are not similar, they should still not be minimal, but still separable.The very first matter that is very similar and cannot be further analyzed is the common origin of all things in the universe. The Chinese call it Qi, so "Qi" and "Quality" are often used together.

May I ask how this kind of qi, which is very similar, can evolve into all things in the universe?This brings us to the second characteristic of qi, that is, qi is dynamic, non-stop, cannot be quiet but is always active.Only because of this, it is possible to change from the slightest similarity to the total difference. The changing activity of this qi, in simple terms, has only two forms.One is to gather and unite, and the other is to scatter and divide.In the universe, only those very slightly similar qi are moving, gathering and dispersing, separating and reuniting.When gathered together, there will be an image to be seen and a physique to point to.Divide and disperse, the image is also transformed, and the physique is also destroyed.When they come together, they will open up everything in the universe.Separating and dispersing, it is as if the gate of this universe is closed, and it is dark and chaotic.The Chinese call this gathering and combination the Yang of Qi, and the common saying is called "Yang Qi".What separates and disperses is the yin of qi, which is called "yin qi" as the saying goes.In fact, there is no yin and yang in qi, only yin and yang are dealt with in the flow of qi.Qi is always there, one yin and one yang, one closed and one opened, this is what the Chinese call Tao.Therefore, the Tao is constantly moving, and the Tao can contain both "positive" and "negative". The Tao can have both light and darkness.Reason is attached to Qi and seen.For example, two plus two equals four, and two minus two equals zero, and there is also a principle attached to it.

Since Qi is very similar, it must accumulate and change.The so-called change is just to change many differences.Those who are not similar come from the accumulated quantity.So when we say Qi number, this number refers to quantity.The accumulation of Qi can change when it accumulates to a certain amount.The process of accumulation and change is called transformation.For example, in terms of climate, the four seasons of the year, from spring to summer, autumn, and winter, are changing.But change gradually, not suddenly.It's not that spring suddenly changed to summer on a certain day, but it has been changing day by day since the beginning of spring, but the change is very small and no change can be seen.We should wait, spring will not suddenly turn into summer, but it will change slightly day by day.This kind of change, we call it transformation.Waiting for this slight accumulation to a certain stage, it will suddenly change.By then, it will no longer be spring, but summer.

In terms of heat, like cooking rice with fire, it will not be cooked immediately.But when did the rice suddenly cook?This cannot be specific to a certain time.It's still a small amount, the heat is accumulated from a very small number, we still have to wait.Although the rice in the pot is not cooked immediately, it is actually changing from second to second, but these changes are very subtle and imperceptible, as if they have not changed, so they are only called transformation.But when it is heated to a certain degree of heat, raw rice becomes cooked rice. The same is true of our life process, from infant to child, from child to youth, from youth to adulthood and old age to death.It doesn't change suddenly in a day, but gradually changes, and this gradual process is only called transformation.

Therefore, all phenomena in the universe are transformed into myriad changes.If we try to use the terminology of Western philosophy, we can also say that this is a change from quantitative to qualitative.Because the Chinese talk about Qi, it is to analyze all things in the universe to reach the most primitive slight similarity.As far as the concept of qi is concerned, there is no difference.In the universe, there is only one qi, so how can it become the myriad things?In fact, it is only the difference in the quantity accumulated by this similarity.If so, all qualitative changes are actually quantitative changes.The myriad forms and phenomena formed in the universe, if you put it in one sentence, they are all auras.

Therefore, Qi number is a kind of change, but at the same time it is a kind of necessity.This kind of change starts from a very small place, and no one can notice it, but when he changes to a certain stage, he can feel a sudden big change.Mencius said: "I am good at cultivating my awe-inspiring aura." How can I cultivate my awe-inspiring aura?Mencius said: "This is born of the collection of righteousness." What is the collection of righteousness?As long as you encounter something, you should ask whether it is righteous or not, and if it is righteous, it will be done, and if it is not righteous, it will not be done.Therefore, it is said: "Don't do good because it is small, and don't do it because evil is small." At first, there seems to be no big difference between doing a righteous thing and doing an unrighteous thing, but later it is different.Mencius also said: "It is harmless to support directly." What is usually called being upright and strong means that at a certain time, when encountering a certain thing, you can straighten yourself and feel stronger.But if it is well maintained and accumulated for a long time, there is never a moment when it is not straight, and nothing is not straight, then there is no time and nothing when it is not vigorous.If you accumulate to a certain stage, you will feel that you are worthy of the sky, and you are not ashamed of others. This is like when the fire arrives, the raw rice is all cooked, the climate changes, and spring suddenly turns into summer.The time for inner cultivation has come. At that time, there really seems to be an aura of awe-inspiring power, so big and powerful that it covers the sky and the earth, and nothing can resist it.That awe-inspiring aura didn't come suddenly. "The Doctrine of the Mean" says: "What has passed is transformed, and what remains is a god." The awe-inspiring aura is almost a god, but it is only born of the righteousness of the past.Because in the past tense, direct nourishment is harmless, and righteousness and directness have been accumulated for a long time and deepened. One thing after another, it seems that everything has melted and no longer exists, but suddenly there is a sense of greatness. Wouldn't it be amazing to accumulate in the chest?

This is true not only for the cultivation of personal morality, but also for the behavior of the general public.The so-called behavior of the masses in society refers to the words of the wind.The atmosphere is mass-oriented and at the same time time-sensitive.In a certain era, if everyone behaves like this, it becomes the fashion of the era.But the climate is changing all the time, and you don't notice it for a while, as if everyone is like this, but in fact, it is constantly changing in subtle ways.When it changed to a certain stage, we suddenly felt that the atmosphere had shifted.If we live in an irrational era and an unrealistic society, we must say that the atmosphere is bad and want to change the atmosphere, but we should know that the atmosphere is changing, but we should know exactly how the atmosphere is changing, then we You can also understand how we should shift the atmosphere.

two Let us first talk about how the atmosphere is formed, and then how to transfer it.Let me illustrate with a minimal example.Women's clothing is sometimes so fashionable, and everyone dresses up like that, and it becomes a fashion.Sometimes that is not fashionable anymore, and people don't dress like that anymore, so they say that the atmosphere has changed.Sometimes that attire prevails, and it seems as though one cannot go out or be seen without one's attire.But it was gone in a flash, and it was precisely because of that outfit that she couldn't go out, and she couldn't see anyone.The sleeves are suddenly big and small.Skirts are long and short.The collar is now high and now low.Everyone is arguing for these things, but these things suddenly changed, and it was the opposite change.When it's popular, everyone has to act like this.When it is not popular, no one dares to do it again.It's called ethos.But who is in charge of this atmosphere?And who is shifting this atmosphere?The success of the atmosphere seems irresistible, and almost has a terrifying power.But where is this power once the climate changes?What was terrible suddenly became shameful, and no one dared to do that again.Who gave it and who deprived it of the almost terrifying power that no one dared to defy before?

Opening the atmosphere, presiding over the atmosphere, following the atmosphere, when the masses are rushing to adhere to the atmosphere, who is doing their best to divert the atmosphere?In fact, the success of the trend is also the accumulation of small things. First of all, it is definitely not a pre-agreement that we should change to narrow sleeves and short skirts.Therefore, opening up the trend must start with a small number of people.A few people start it, and it will never be immediately popular and imitated by a large number of people.The first to imitate this minority is still only a minority.However, the accumulation of a small number becomes a large number, and the number gradually increases. When it reaches a certain stage, they compete to catch up with each other, and the few suddenly become the majority. This is also a kind of luck! Originally, under the atmosphere of everyone dressing up like this, no one dared to disobey.Those who are the first to come up with new tricks must be a minority, very few, and only one or two people will start at first.This one or two must be very beautiful in themselves, very beautiful, but the fashionable dress may not suit her.In order to match her own beauty, she wanted to slightly change Shi Xing's attire.But her change gave people a fresh stimulus and aroused the fresh attention of others. Those who imitated her immediately must have the same beauty in themselves as her, and the fashions that also feel popular do not match her. Only interested in imitating this new outfit.To them, they were all beauties themselves, and they put on new clothes, which were strangely attractive, so the new clothes gradually became popular. If we think about it this way, the fashionable dress originally started with a few one or two people.And these few one or two people must be beautiful in nature. Only when they are beautiful in themselves and also beautiful in clothes, the combination of the two beauties will increase their beauty, so that people will envy and imitate them.But at first, beauty was added to beauty, and later it became beauty to cover up ugliness.Because the ugly girl also imitated this attire, and when others saw the new attire, they thought it was beautiful. Wouldn't this also cover up her own ugliness?But after a long time, everyone imitated each other and it became a trend.Everyone is like this, and they are used to it, so they don't find it beautiful.And after all, there are few who are intrinsically beautiful, and there are many who are ugly.That kind of fashion is worn by beautiful people and ugly people also wear it.The more ugly people wear, the more people will gradually hate the clothes because they see the ugliness of the people who wear them.At that time, instead of covering up ugliness with beauty, it will become detrimental to beauty with ugliness.At that time, the people of the society will gradually get bored, and the new fashion will become a cliché.Women who are inherently beautiful are damaged.Among them, some are not willing to follow the trend and go with the trend, so they want to be ingenious, design according to her own figure and skin color and other conditions, and create a new set of clothes, so she returns to the first stage of adding beauty to the past, and Her new clothes were therefore in fashion. However, the above-mentioned transformation has to be accompanied by other conditions.New clothes must start in big cities, and beauties try new clothes, and they must encounter grand banquets, dances or other social occasions in grand ceremonies, so that her new clothes can stimulate others and influence the public, and a new trend will soon be formed.If there are beauties all over the backcountry, there will never be new clothes.If you are a quiet woman in the boudoir, even if you have new clothes in the city, they will not be popular very quickly.Therefore, in ancient times, there were palace costumes, noble lady costumes, and prostitute costumes.In modern times, there are movie stars, courtesans, famous women of the era, etc. They are easy to attract attention in big cities and big occasions.We call these big occasions "potential".Even if she is a beautiful woman, her essence is full of beauty, her clothes are new, her grooming is beautiful enough, and all the conditions are in place, but if she doesn't have power, she still can't do it.Therefore, the formation of the atmosphere requires not only the intrinsic nature of the founder, but also the external situation.And this so-called powerful person is actually still a number.Therefore, momentum is also the number of momentum, and it must be increased to a certain level to generate momentum.Admiring the lonely and self-admired will never become a trend. From the above analysis, it can be seen that although the atmosphere changes from time to time, no matter whether the atmosphere is opened or changed, there must be some unchanging truths behind it.Just like women's clothing, the reason why it can become a fashion, first, is based on the people's love for beauty and their discrimination of beauty and ugliness.Second, based on the inner beauty and essential beauty of women, and then modifying some outer beauty with clothing, it can meet the beauty requirements of the crowd and become a fashion of the moment.But there are different people from generation to generation in Jiangshan, who are thin and fat, and each is good at winning.For example, when fat people gain power, people's interest in appreciating them is concentrated on the fat side, and those who modify the external beauty also develop in conjunction with the fat side.Thin beauty will cover up.Once the thin person gains power, the appreciation interest of the crowd will shift to the thin side, and those who modify the external beauty will also develop in line with the thin condition.Therefore, the fashion of clothing changes from time to time, and it should never be explained in a shallow way based on the end of people's liking for the new and dislike the old.You should know that what is new is not necessarily beautiful. If you focus on innovation, it may not be able to become a trend. Laozi said: "Everyone in the world knows that beauty is beautiful, but it is not beautiful." In fact, how do people in the world really know why beauty is beautiful?Xishi holds her heart and frowns, Dong Shi also holds her heart and frowns, and the atmosphere of frowning is formed from this.But if everyone frowns, the more you see the ugliness of frowning, so the atmosphere of frowning has to be changed.Fruits will rot when they are ripe, flowers will fade when they are fully bloomed, people will decline when they are old, and customs have to change when they become popular.But ethos must start with a few people, and the few who create the ethos must start from the individual personalities of the few.There are many beautiful women in the world, but they have different personalities and different conditions for beauty.Those who have the upper hand ascend to the top and call out, and when they respond to all calls, it becomes a trend.But she must also be able to breathe.Even if you are at a high place, you can't breathe, but it still doesn't matter.Being able to breathe is her essential beauty, and she has power if she occupies a high place.In short, the creation and transfer of the atmosphere must start with the minority and be determined by the personality of the minority.Therefore, respecting individuality and cultivating individuality are the prerequisites for developing and changing the atmosphere. The Chinese often call it the era, also known as the current situation.When you know this moment, that moment, that moment will inevitably replace this moment, and there is a momentum for the transfer opportunity of the replacement.The Chinese often say: "Times create heroes, and heroes create times." In fact, there is not much difference between the two terms.All heroes must be able to create the current situation, and heroes must also be created by the current situation.But if we turn to the current situation theory, the same is true.Even with the current situation, without heroes, it is still not possible.When the fashion of the world becomes a cliché, it has to be changed, but a real beauty has to be born, and the new beauty has to be powerful.Generally speaking, movie stars are easy to influence everyone's ladies, and everyone's ladies are not easy to influence movie stars.And those beautiful women in the empty valley are even more difficult to influence people.Therefore, a change in the atmosphere requires a meeting of circumstances.The cloud follows the dragon, the wind follows the tiger, and the wind and cloud come to the side of the dragon and the tiger.But Qianlong still can't have a big effect, the flying dragon must be in the sky, at that time, the sky full of clouds will gather around him. As far as the artistic style is concerned, for example, there have been Mei School and Cheng School in Pingju Danjiao for decades.It is precisely because Mei Lanfang and Cheng Yanqiu have different personalities and voices that they have different accents and charms, so there are two schools of danjiao.But no matter whether it is Mei or Cheng, both of them are in a good position.You should know that those who have a good voice can form their own school, and they are by no means limited to Mei and Cheng, but Mei and Cheng can gain power in Beiping and Shanghai. They have the influence of the environment and the appreciation of the public.Everyone holds it, isn't it still counting?However, Mei and Cheng suddenly appeared in Pingju Danjiao, which is also a sign of luck.As far as those who sing Danjiao, if they don't learn from Mei, they learn from Cheng. The new tune gradually becomes a vulgar tune. After a period of time, a new character with a different personality from Mei and Cheng will come out.At that time, there will be a new tone, there will be new tricks, and a new atmosphere will emerge on the stage. three The above are words that everyone can understand. Let us explore further. When it comes to academics and ideas, they are also in the spirit of the times.Academic thinking was definitely created by one or two masters. The person who created academic thinking felt that he had to speak to his era.What he said, at the time, was often never said in this way.Before Confucius, there was not a Confucius first.The words of Confucius are recorded in the book and said in the book, not in one of them before.But in Confucius, it is not intentional to be unconventional and to say this.It's just that when he was there, he felt something in his heart and had to say it.Even though no one had ever said it like this before, he felt in his heart that he had to say it.He spoke, and then Yan Yuan, Zilu, and Zigong's generation of outstanding young people followed him to speak, so that people noticed and made a good speech.But if it becomes a trend, and everyone says it like this, it will become a cliché. The success of ethos must be accompanied by momentum, but if the ethos becomes cliché, what remains is only snobbery.So Mozi came forward to oppose it.What Mozi said, there are also truths on Mozi's side. It is by no means accidental that Mozi was able to develop a different trend and form another school.His own personality is different from that of Confucius, and his age is also different. He also grasps some truths, and the truths he grasps are different from Confucius.Then another group of young people, who were like birds and slippery people, followed Mozi and talked about Mozi's stuff.Mohism gained power and became famous, and then Yang Zhu and Mencius came, and then Zhuang Zhou, Xun Qing, and Lao Tzu came, all following the same route as I mentioned above.From Confucius to Han Fei, for three hundred years, you opposed me, and he opposed you, one after another, not like women's clothing, narrow sleeves changed to wide sleeves, and long skirts changed to short skirts.Is the set constantly changing?That is also the atmosphere. Academic thinking never remains the same for a long time, but changes slowly, much slower than women's clothing.In the Han Dynasty, a great change took place. People say that the academic thought of the Han Dynasty is different from that of the pre-Qin period.The Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, Sui, and Tang dynasties were different again.The Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties were different again.In the two hundred and sixty years of the Qing Dynasty, things were different again.Our current style of study is different from that of the Qing Dynasty.Those changes, in fact, are still qi, and they are still changing in a big way, and they are still rotating according to the same law like women's clothing. You should know that the creation of all new trends must start with a small number of people.And in this few people, there must be the essential beauty and inner beauty of its eternal value.This kind of essential beauty and inner beauty with eternal value must have been lurking in the hearts of most people.Therefore it will still appear in most hearts.That is to say, the beauty of a beautiful woman is the beauty that most people appreciate.The emergence of all forms of beauty cannot but be said to have planted roots in the hearts of most appreciators.So is the beauty of character.Therefore, Mencius said: "The sage first finds what my heart is like." A generation of masters, who have pioneered in academic thought, must have a heart to help the world, save the world, beautify the world, and teach the world. It can make up for the disadvantages, weed out the old and bring forth the new, and discover a new situation and new pattern that is required in everyone's heart.On the one hand, he is trying to save the atmosphere, and on the other hand, he is opening up the atmosphere.The deeper the excavation, the wider the impact on clothing and quilts.But this kind of beauty is not as good as the beauty of women's body and demeanor, which can be seen immediately and illuminated immediately. Therefore, the innovations and achievements of a generation of masters in academic thought are often unknown to the world, and they are ridiculed and rejected by others at the same time. Only a few wise and visionary people can follow Jing Cong.If the accumulation is gradually unfolded, often after a considerable period of time, the inner beauty of this essence can be understood by most people.But by that time, things have already passed, and at this moment, at that moment, another school of new academic thought will continue to create and innovate in response to reality.Moreover, the person who first created the ethos said what others did not say, and did what others did not do. In the old ethos, he was an isolated person, he was a single-minded person, he was a rebel, he was a Fortify the alien.Because of his spirit and insight, he must have gained extra brilliance from his experience and struggle because of his lonely and dangerous situation.But those who follow Jing Cong are not as lonely and dangerous as he is, and finding a way is not as difficult as him. He has already made a path. If others follow him, even if they can continue to discover and move forward, the energy required for understanding can be slightly reduced after all. Therefore, the glory is not as good as him.If it goes down and down, the number will increase and the momentum will become weaker. Every trend will gradually go downhill like this.By the time most of the scenes have been established, the trend has been corrupted, and it needs another pioneer to save it. Therefore, the cause of the minority has its value and significance for the sake of the majority.But once the majority participates, the value and significance of this cause will also deteriorate, and it is still waiting for the small number of people who come up to start anew.With regard to academic thinking, most of them are participating, and it is not easy, so this atmosphere can be maintained for a little longer.As for women's clothing, most of them participate quickly, and the atmosphere changes quickly. Four As far as religion is concerned, let me take the example of the Chinese saying that the ancestors opened the mountains.It is not easy to know that the patriarch opened a mountain.As the saying goes: "Occupy all the famous mountain monks in the world." But to occupy a famous mountain, there are all difficulties and steps.First of all, there are no traces and no roads. The so-called jungle is really a jungle.Digging mountains from the jungle is definitely not a gathering of a large number of people, and they can be done at the flick of a finger.At first, it was just a lonely person, a cliff and an ancient wall, and a group of grass.This person has a big ambition and a big determination to live here alone regardless of the years.The people nearby were all woodcutters and shepherd boys, poor docks and barren villages. They gradually knew that there was this man, and they were shocked and inspired by his great ambition and determination, and gradually gathered together to pool some money to support him. Small temples began to emerge in this uninhabited place deep in the mountains.You should know that this is the first step of the patriarch to open the mountain.Since then, the news has gradually spread, and more and more believers come to gather.Maybe some great masters followed him and inherited him, and after a long time, there was a beautiful and resplendent environment, which completely changed this uninhabited barren mountain and desperate situation.This is the so-called kaishan. But we should pay attention, it is not that the founder of the mountain does not have a ready-made temple for him to live in and live a stable and comfortable life.Why did he decide to come to this barren mountain where there are no traces to open the mountain?You should know that it is not an easy task to open up a large temple in a remote mountain and poor valley.What did he rely on to build that temple?At least at that time, he had a great ambition and experienced a lot of asceticism, and those things were gradually forgotten by later generations.Later, people only saw the magnificent and magnificent temple, where thousands of monks gathered, the incense was strong, and the mountain was full of colors.But this big temple, by that time, has gradually embarked on a bad luck.If there is another great monk who has great ambitions and is able to practice great asceticism, he will eventually be disinterested in this magnificent building and the big Buddhist temple surrounded by cigarettes, and turn to another uninhabited place deep in the mountains to open up again.These words are not imaginary words, but a general account of a real historical relic experienced by every great monk who lived in the deep mountains and valleys as the founder of the mountain. Let me give a smaller example.The building of the Daxiong Palace is very grand. It is not unusual to plant a few pines and cypresses in front of the building to complement it.According to the usual situation, the palace must be built first and the trees planted later.It is not easy for pines and cypresses to grow. It takes more than a hundred years to become green and look like it, and it is worthy of this majestic hall.In the beginning, young pines and young cypresses were not worthy of the grandeur of this hall.But in the spirit of the founder of the palace, it was estimated that a hundred years later from the beginning.You should know that he chose the terrain and came here to open the mountain. In his mind, he had already estimated it for hundreds of years.But when the pines and cypresses in front of the hall are verdant, commensurate with this piece of gold and green, the founder of the hall has passed away long ago, and the monk's pagoda has hidden bones. Once I visited an ancient temple in Xi'an by chance, and the main hall was about to collapse, the gold and green were peeling off, and it was completely out of shape.There are two ancient cypresses in front of the hall, and one is still lush and green, probably around a hundred years old!Another tree is dead.The head of the temple is a lay monk who planted an oleander tree in Nasibokan Cave.I think this monk has no plans beyond three to five years. The main hall is not planned to be built again. At least he does not have such confidence and perseverance.Oleander is planted this year, and it will bloom next year, so enjoy it right now.He has such a short breath in his chest, and his estimated number is so small, the temple is really exhausted if he is in charge of it. Thinking about it this way, famous temples and ancient temples, that is, in terms of their landscape and weather, the founder of the mountain has already swallowed hundreds of years of changes in one go.Hundreds of years of vicissitudes of personnel, cannot escape his estimation at a glance.When we go to the temple to burn incense, we don't need to worship those clay bodhisattvas, but we should worship the man who built the temple.You should know that the person who founded the mountain and built the temple is worthy of worship. At that time, he had great perseverance, insight and true cultivation. Isn't he a living Bodhisattva?As for the clay sculptures and wood carvings of Feijin Bodhisattvas on the main hall, they are just the incarnation of the man who built the temple.If there are no people who build mountains and temples, how can those bodhisattvas go to put gold and jade on the clay to show their mighty spirit. Fives Let us change the topic from the religious founder and talk about the political founding of the country.The founding of a country is not as good as the founding of a mountain, that is, take modern history as an example, such as Mr. Sun Yat-sen, why didn't he go to the exam for scholar, exam, Jinshi, and champion?He couldn't live with the big temple in place, so he went to the Five Sacred Mountains to pilgrimage, went through untold hardships, and became a foot monk.He determined to build a big temple. To this day, the Daxiong Hall has not been completed, and the pines and cypresses in front of the temple have not yet grown up, and everything cannot cooperate. So he said before his death: "The revolution has not yet succeeded, comrades still have to work hard." What is this? A tough job!But if the country grows in scale and the society gradually becomes more stable and peaceful, the government at that time is decent, fame and wealth are also here, so everyone wants to enjoy life and join in the fun, then the government will gradually become corrupt and will soon collapse, so another Someone will come to be a monk again.The bodhisattvas painted in gold and green no longer have mighty spirits, and another batch of new Buddhas carved with clay and wood show their mighty spirits in another main hall.The history of countries in the world, the rise and fall of nations, and social chaos cannot escape this pattern.The fate of the world is always like this.The accumulation of small changes is brewing a great revolution.Accumulate small things to form a work, from potential to formation, from quantitative change to qualitative change, from the creation of a few people to the easy-going majority of the masses, the shape is fixed, the quality is changed, and the new is created.The Chinese say it is "Qi Shu" in one word. We must first be able to see through the world and understand the world before we can operate and transform the world.We have to start from the very subtle point, where everyone pays no attention to it, and work hard in the dark.People can't see it, but the earth-shattering major events and big changes all start from this invisible place.When the patriarch opened a mountain, it didn't mean that a grand palace could emerge in an instant.He didn't work hard enough on his own, and waited for his disciples and grandchildren to continue to work hard, and only worked hard from the smallest to the smallest.Before the qi number arrives, one waits, waits and waits again, when the qi number arrives, suddenly a new situation is created.If you ask when this new situation was created, it is hard to say.You must understand the connotation of the two words Qishu, and go slowly to explore and think about it.But if the count is over, there is no other way but to start again.For example, the flowers are withered, the fruit is rotten, and the raw rice is cooked, that's all there is to it, and there is no other way. The fortune mentioned above is neither a superstition nor a negative statement.But some people who have no ambition and strength also like to use this argument to comfort themselves.In the ancient book "Book of Changes", Song Confucian Shao Kangjie used mathematics to make various calculations.All numerology calculations in today's society are still in full use.It can also be said that the Chinese people have a special interest in history, and they also have their own set of profound views on historical evolution and personnel changes.Because the number of qi has not arrived, it will be urged to make it arrive.The number of qi will be exhausted, and it will continue to be inexhaustible.Earth-shattering, revolving events have been encountered from time to time in Chinese history, and the Chinese only call them "Qi Shu".It is difficult to grasp the true meaning of these two words unless we delve into the traditional thoughts and behaviors of Chinese historical figures. six Now on to fate.The Chinese talk about Qi, and they must talk about numbers.Because qi refers to a kind of very small and dynamic, but it has to wait to accumulate to a certain amount, and then it can produce great changes and great effects.Fate refers to a situation that is larger and more fixed, so fate must also be talked about luck, and luck can turn around, which can loosen and resolve this larger and more fixed situation.While the Chinese talk about luck, they must also talk about fate.In this, consider and cooperate, and weigh the two, and you must look at each other alternately, so that you can see the transformation of heaven and earth. Chinese society is superstitious and loves to tell fate. Fate refers to eight characters, and the combination of eight and characters is a big pattern. This pattern is doomed to a person's lifelong fate.But there is also luck in the process of fate, a little luck in five years, a big luck in ten years, fate is a person's character, and luck is a person's experience.Although the character is pre-determined, encounters can change at any time.Therefore, a good fate can have bad luck, and a bad fate can have good luck, and the changes here are complicated. Let us recall the last lecture on life and destiny. Human nature comes from destiny, and Confucianism evolved into yin and yang. They planted the roots of various superstitions in Chinese society for thousands of years.They say that human personalities are diverse, and so are the personalities of heaven.Like spring, it is the time of Emperor Qing, and his nature is good.In winter, the Black Emperor is on order, and he has a murderous nature.So when spring comes, all living beings compete to grow, and when winter comes, the earth chills.There are five emperors in the sky, blue, yellow, red, white, and black, and they change in due season. From this, they can be deduced in accordance with the changes of the four seasons of spring, summer, autumn, and winter, and with the five elements of gold, wood, water, fire, and earth on the earth. All the operations and blessings of the universe and life.This school of thought spreads very deeply in the whole Chinese society, is very common, very active, and very powerful, and we should also pay attention to it. The so-called five elements of this school are actually just the five natures.They generalized and classified all things in the universe, pointed out five different personalities, and cited metal, wood, water, fire, and earth as representatives.Since it is the five natures, it is also called the five virtues, but why is it also called the five elements?Because the ancient Chinese believed that when different personalities get along with each other, there is mutual generation, and there is also mutual victory and mutual restraint.Therefore, any kind of personality sometimes gains power and sometimes loses power.Gaining power can lead to another character.At the same time, another character can be restrained.What was suppressed lost power, but what was induced gained power, and the one that induced it also lost power.If so, the five natures of all things will always be in mutual generation and mutual restraint, alternating iterations, changing constantly, and will still go through a cycle in the end, returning to the original situation.For example, when wood virtue is in order, gold overcomes wood, wood virtue declines, and gold virtue is prosperous.But fire overcomes metal, water overcomes fire, earth overcomes water, and wood overcomes earth.If this is the case, the virtue of surgery is in order again.Another example is that the virtue of wood is in season, wood gives birth to fire, fire gives birth to earth, earth gives birth to metal, metal gives birth to water, and water gives birth to wood.In this cycle, Mude gained power again, and it was time again.This is the so-called beginning and end of the five virtues.All changes in the universe, to put it bluntly, are the combination of yin and yang.Subdivided, it is the five elements that restrain each other.This is what the so-called time is the emperor in the book.The ruler of the world is also changing, sometimes wood virtue is the emperor, and sometimes fire virtue is the emperor.This is a big principle, but repeated extensions have resulted in various taboos and superstitions. Originally, the theory of Yin-Yang and Five Elements mainly talked about the big trend of the universe, and then it was implemented in the world of life, so there is the fortune of the world and the fortune of the country.And descending successively to maintain the few big families and big figures who dominate the world and the country, so there is family luck and a certain person's luck.And the next step is to descend, and when everyone falls to the ground, someone will calculate the horoscope for him, and the ranking will be lucky.Those are irrelevant.From the five elements and eight characters to geographical geomantic omen, such as Fenghao, the capital of the Western Zhou Dynasty, and moved to Luoyi in the Eastern Zhou Dynasty.Chang'an was the capital of the former Han Dynasty, and moved to Luoyang in the later Han Dynasty.The situation of the establishment of the capital is related to the rise and fall of the national fortune.And following this descending, if the above-mentioned patriarch opened the mountain, the meteorological situation of a certain mountain, the scenery and clouds, the direction of the mountains and rivers, and the traffic network, all have a great relationship with the prosperity and decline of this temple for hundreds of years.But once again, when it comes to a certain house, a tomb, or even a door, the situation in a table and chair, good or bad, good or bad, it is not enough to rely on. Zhang Zai, a Confucian of the Song Dynasty, once said: "Build a heart for the heaven and earth, establish a life for the people, inherit the unique learning for the past saints, and create peace for all generations." This is a Confucian saying.The fate of the majority of the masses depends on the luck of the great.Great luck can be transferred by one or two people.The one or two people who can preside over the transfer of this great luck are in the heart of their square inch.Why does the heart of this square inch have such power?It is due to a certain kind of education.This kind of learning has already been created by the ancient sages, and it is waiting for us to carry it forward.The foundation of eternal peace must be built on the heart of this one-two-square-inch land.If you only talk about your fate, your eyes only look out, and you forget about it when you look back, then you will have no way to calculate your fate.You should know that according to the way of heaven, sex is based on fate.From a human point of view, life comes from sex.Therefore, carrying forward the nature of perfection can create the luck of peace.You should also know that according to the way of heaven, numbers are born of qi.Speaking from humanity, the qi turns to numbers.Therefore, through the accumulation of small things, we can cultivate a noble spirit, and from the hearts of one or two people, we can dominate the fate of the world and act on behalf of the heavens. Now let us wait for the future of the Chinese nation-state to push its destiny.In terms of fate, our Chinese nation obviously has a long and good life, with endless blessings in the future.若论运，则五十年一小变．一百年一大变，这最近一百年来，我中华国家民族，正走进了一步大厄运。此厄运则交在中西两大文化之相冲相克上。但论运，指遭遇言。论命，指格局言。我中华国家民族，显然是一大格局。当知天下无运不成命，无命也不成运。当前的大危机，则在大家都太注重在目前的行运上，而忽忘了本身的八字大格局。你自己八字忘了，下面的一步运，谁也无法来推算。 seven 现在我再将气运二字，联结来谈一谈。当知气由积而运，气虽极微，但积至某程度、某数量，则可以发生一种大运动。而此种运动之力量，其大无比，无可遏逆。故气虽易动，却必待于数之积。命虽有定，却可待于运之转。 气如何积？运如何转？其机括在于以气召气，所谓同声相应，同气相求，云从龙，风从虎，圣人作而万物睹。又说：和气致祥，乖气致戾。和顺积中而华英外发，一人有庆，万民赖之。气与气相感召，由极微处开始，而可以扭转大世运。但正因为气极微而能动，又易于互相感召，所以少数能转动了多数。但一到多数势长，淹没了少数，此少数人便失却其主宰与斡旋之势，而气运又另向反面转。若我们认以少数转动多数者为一种斡旋，为一种逆转，则由多数来淹没少数者乃一种堕退，乃一种顺转。堕退是一种随顺，为阴柔之气，斡旋是一种健进，为阳刚之气。但物极必反，贞下可以起元，而亢阳必然有悔。如是则一阴一阳，运转不已。天道无终极，而人道也永不能懈怠。所以说：“天行健，君子以自强不息。” 中国人因于此一种气运观念之深入人心，所以懂得不居故常，与时消息，得意得势不自满，失意失势不自馁。朝惕夕厉，居安思危，如临深渊，如履薄冰，一刻也不松懈，一步也不怠慢。中国人因于此一种气运观念之深入人心，所以又懂得见微知著，所谓月晕而风，础润而雨，一叶落而知秋，履霜坚冰至，君子见几而作，不俟终日。把握得机会，勇于创始，敢作敢为，拨乱返治，常自乎一二人之心之所向，而潜移默化，不大声以色。中国人因于此一种气运观念之深人人心，所以又懂得反而求诸已。或出或处，或默或语，只要把握得枢机，便可以动天地。所谓枢机，则只在他自己之一言一行。若此一言一行，只要感召到另一人，二人同心，其利断金，便可以无往而不利。所以每当历史上遇到大扰动，大混乱，便有那些隐居独善之士，退在一角落，稳握枢机，来斡旋那气运。中国人因于此一种气运观念之深人人心，所以又懂得遇穷思变。所谓“穷则变，变则通，通则久。”变通者，趣时者也。又说；“通变之谓事。通其变，使民不倦。”孔子圣之时者也，则正为他知变。他虽处周末衰世，他决然预知天之未将丧斯文。所以中国人传统观念中之圣人，则必然是应运而生的。应运而生，便即是应变而生了。 犹忆我童时读，开卷便说“天下一治一乱，合久必分，分久必合”那些话。当时有一位老师指点我，说这些只是中国人旧观念，当知如今欧洲英法诸邦，他们一盛便不会衰，一治便不会乱，我们该好好学他们。在那时，我这位老师，正代表着一群所谓新智识开明分子的新见解。好像由他看来，英法诸邦的太阳，一到中天，便再不会向西，将老停在那里。但曾几何时，不到五十年，连接第一第二次世界大战，英法诸邦也正在转运了。于是五十一年后的今夭，我才敢提出中国人的传统老观念“气运”两字，来向诸位作此一番的演讲。 但所谓气运，并不是一种命定论。只是说宇宙乃及人生，有此一套好像是循环往复的变化。宇宙人生则永远地在变，但所变也有一规律、一限度，于是好像又变回到老样子来了。其实哪里是老样子。但尽管花样翻新，总还是有限。因此我们可以把它来归纳成几个笼统的大形式。譬如女子服装，由窄袖变宽袖，再由宽袖变窄袖，由长裙变短裙，再由短裙变长裙般。宇宙人生一切变化，也可作如是观。即如上述，由渐变形生出骤变，由量变形生出质变，由少数转动了多数，又由多数淹没了少数，由下坡走向上坡，又由上坡转向下坡。宇宙人事之变，其实也不出此几套。 从前西方的历史家，他们观察世变，好从一条线尽向前推，再不留丝毫转身之余地。如黑格尔历史哲学，他认为人类文明，如太阳升天般，由东直向西。因此最先最低级者是中国，稍西稍升如印度，如波斯，再转西到希腊，到罗马，西方文明自然优过东方，最后则到日耳曼民族，那就登峰造极了。他不知中国六十四卦，既济之后，又续上一未济，未济是六十四卦之最后一卦，纵使日耳曼民族如黑格尔所说，是世界各民族中之最优秀民族，全世界人类文明，到他们手里，才登峰造极。但登峰造极了，仍还有宇宙，仍还有人生，不能说宇宙人生待到日耳曼民族出现，便走上了绝境，陷人于死局呀。 最近西方一辈文化史学者，才懂改变看法，也想籀绎出几条大原则，描绘出几套大形式，来讲世界各民族文化兴衰的几条大路向。换言之，他们的历史看法，是像逐渐地接近了中国人传统的气运观。但他们总还是爱执着，爱具体，不能超然燕观，不能超乎象外，因此他们总会带有几许悲观气氛，好像一民族，一文化，衰了，便完了，仍没有转身。 中国人的气运观，是极抽象的，虽说有忧患，却不是悲观。懂得了天运，正好尽人力。来燮理，来斡旋。方其全盛，知道它将衰，便该有保泰持盈的道理。方其极衰，知道有转机，便该有处困居危的道理。这其间，有可知，但也有不可知。有天心，但同时也可有人力。所以说天下兴亡，匹夫有责。天下之大，而至于其兴其亡，系于苞桑之际。正如一木何以支大厦，一苇何以障狂澜，而究竟匹夫有责，所以风雨如晦，鸡鸣不己。鲁阳挥戈，落日为之徘徊。那是中国人的气运观。