Wang Yangming is called a saint, a rare master in Chinese history. However, he was born in troubled times, had no ambitions in his life, worried about the country and the people, and suffered from a lot of diseases, so that in his last years he was only a few years old. He died at the age of 57. According to the ancient standard of sixty as the lower limit of short life, Wang Yangming was indeed short-lived, but why was he like this? Let’s continue our in-depth analysis.

1. Being too harsh on yourself

Although the world is big, if you have a good intention and a conscience, even ordinary people can become saints. Wang Shouren (1472-1529) was a famous thinker, writer, and philosopher during the Ming Dynasty. He mainly studied Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism, etc. throughout his life. His courtesy name was Bo'an, and his nickname was Yangming. He lived in Yuyao County, Shaoxing Prefecture, Zhejiang Province (today's Belongs to Yuyao, Ningbo.

Judging from these titles alone, we know that he is an extraordinary figure. He has shown extraordinary talents from a very young age. Wang Yangming is a genius-level figure, and he was later called "Wang Yangming" by the Qing Dynasty. Zeng Guofan, who was half a saint, was completely different. Zeng Guofan was born with average qualifications, while Wang Yangming was different in every way.

With such good capital, it stands to reason that Wang Yangming’s life should be smooth sailing. However, according to his special abilities, his requirements are also extremely strict. He is very interested in Confucian classics, Taoism, and Buddhism. He wants to pass I want to study something more in-depth myself and want to become a saint and change the world.

First I was addicted to the habit of being a knight, then to the habit of riding and shooting, third to the habit of rhetoric, fourth to the habit of gods, and fifth to the habit of Buddha. These five drownings are basically the development process of his life. The habits of gods are Taoism, which was called this at the time.

Wang Yangming was concerned about the country and the people. When he was 15 years old, because the then emperor Ming Yingzong was captured by the Mongols, he vowed to study the art of war and serve the country. Unfortunately, no matter how deeply he studied, I made suggestions to the emperor, but none of them were approved by the emperor. I was depressed and frustrated.

Although it was not recognized by the emperor, it did not affect Wang Yangming's continued in-depth study of various ideas. It is said that on the day when Wang Yangming got married at the age of 17, he met a Taoist priest outside, and they lost control when they talked. Good rhythm, so deep that I forgot about my marriage. Later, it was my father-in-law who searched everywhere to find him. There is nothing more obsessed than this.

When he was 18 years old, he studied Confucianism and found that Song Confucian Zhu Xi and others proposed an idea of ??"studying things to gain knowledge". So Wang Yangming wanted to demonstrate by himself and study whether this idea was true. After watching After seven days and seven nights of thinking about bamboo, Wang Yangming found that he had gained nothing and was exhausted. This is the famous allusion of "Shou Ren Bamboo". After this experience, he began to doubt this kind of thinking.

These records are very interesting, but they contain Wang Yangming’s pursuit of truth and belief, which highlights his strict requirements on himself. It is precisely because of these continuous studies that Wang Yangming challenges too many physical limits. , it has no effect when you are young, but it will naturally appear when you are old.

2. Overly sad after the death of his mother

Wang Yang’s mother Zheng passed away when he was only about 12 years old next year. His mother was also short-lived. She was only 41 years old at the time. After her mother passed away, Wang Yangming Tea Not thinking about food or eating, it was the stage of physical development at that time. Such excessive sadness would certainly have an impact on the body, so the root of Wang Yangming's health was planted at a very young age.

From the death of his mother, we can also see that Wang Yangming attaches great importance to feelings and is sentimental. It is for these reasons that he is good at reflecting and worrying about the sufferings of the world and various happenings, which leads to excessive inner feelings. Suppression of sensitivity are all causes of poor health.

3. Impact of external environment

Wang Yangming lived in a relatively turbulent period in the Ming Dynasty, and he wanted to benefit the country and the people, so he was often used by the emperor and framed by some treacherous ministers. In 1506, Wang Yangming wrote a letter to plead grievances for Dai Mian, Bo Yanhui and others. As a result, he was killed by a traitor and was beaten 40 times by the emperor with a cane. These 40 blows were very serious to Wang Yangming. You must know that ancient cane punishments were very cruel. Basically, Ten blows can leave the flesh and blood bruised, not to mention 40 blows are even more brutal.

Even if he was beaten with a stick for 40 years, the emperor was still very heartless and exiled him to Longchang Station in Guizhou as a postmaster.

The living environment in Longchang, Guizhou, is very bad. According to records, "among the mountains and thorns, there are snakes, lynxes, monsters, poisons and miasma." Who can persevere in such an environment? Even a completely healthy person can't stand it, let alone Wang Yangming He also suffered 40 beatings with a cane.

In this way, Wang Yangming continued to realize enlightenment in the harsh environment of Longchang, Guizhou. He was truly a man of great perseverance and worthy of admiration. His body became even worse during this period. We can imagine that if any normal person experienced physical and mental abuse, he would get sick or his body could not bear it.

It was during this period of enlightenment and reflection that Wang Yangming understood that it was no longer possible to solve the world's problems by becoming an official. He could only educate and influence ordinary people through ideas, so that they could make some progress in their thinking. Only through change can we reflect on national affairs, and this country will not decline.

So Wang Yangming began to give lectures in his hometown, spreading his ideas, hoping to improve people. This matter lasted six years and had a profound impact on future generations. Unfortunately, the confused Emperor Jiajing thought of Wang Yangming again and wanted him to help solve some problems. In 1527, he forced Wang Yangming to leave the palace regardless of the fact that Wang Yangming was ill.

Wang Yangming refused, so he could only go to conquer the Cenmeng rebellion in Tianzhou, Guangxi despite his illness. The rebellion was finally settled, but Wang Yangming died when he arrived in Nan'an, Jiangxi Province on his way home. He was 57 years old. It was sad.

Conclusion

Although Wang Yangming only lived 57 years old, he had a great influence on future generations, because the existence of such a person gave our Chinese traditional culture and ideas The qualitative improvement also allows us to experience more classic philosophy and Confucian thought.

The quality of a person’s life does not lie in length, but in height. Throughout his life, Wang Yangming cared about the country and the people, thought about the world and the country, and tried to change the world on his own. Although he failed at the time, the results later proved that He still did what he wanted. It's a pity that for him, he struggled with those philosophical ideas all his life and did not live a good life. Compared with Yan Shifan, a talented man who also lived in the Jiajing period of the Ming Dynasty, Wang Yangming seemed to lack a lot in life.

But this may be the deep thought that history has left us. Those cynical geniuses are destined to be cast aside by future generations. Only those geniuses who truly think about the world can truly be immortal and respected by future generations. Whether a person wants to be a saint or be criticized by others is entirely up to him!

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