Perhaps the most important word in the entire "The Analects" is the word "benevolence". The word "benevolence" appears more than 100 times in "The Analects of Confucius". So what exactly is "benevolence"? Once this question is clarified, you will basically understand the core of Confucianism. Today we will talk about the two connotations of benevolence and the origin of benevolence.

Not only are we curious about what "benevolence" is, but Confucius's students are also very curious. They often ask Confucius what "benevolence" is. Among them, Fan Chi is probably the most depressed disciple. In "The Analects", Fan Chi asked Confucius three times what "benevolence" is, but Confucius gave different answers.

Once, Confucius said that benevolence means "loving others". Once Confucius said: "The benevolent person first faces difficulties and then gains." Benevolence means doing difficult things well first and then talking about gains. Confucius once said to Fan Chi that "benevolence" means to be dignified and respectful in daily life, to be serious when doing things, and to be loyal to others. Even when you go to remote areas, don't give up on these principles. Confucius said something different every time, which made Fan Chi very depressed.

Not only that, Confucius's disciples Yan Yuan, Zhong Gong, Sima Niu, and Zizhang all asked Confucius what "benevolence" is, and they all got different answers. Confucius said to Yan Yuan that "restraining oneself and restoring propriety is benevolence"; Confucius said to Zi Zhang that possessing the five virtues of "respect, generosity, trustworthiness, sensitivity, and benefit" is benevolence; Confucius said to Zhong Gong that going out to do business is like going to receive distinguished guests. , asking people to do things is like holding a major sacrifice. Do not do to others what you do not want others to do to you; have no grudges in court and no grudges at home. This is benevolence. Confucius said to Sima Niu: "The words of a benevolent person are also derogatory." Benevolence means not being so panicked when speaking, and being a little more steady is benevolence.

When you read this, you may be very surprised. Why is such an important concept so casual in Confucius? Actually not, because "The Analects" is actually a collection of dialogues between Confucius and his disciples. The dialogues have scenes. Therefore, Confucius's answer is different every time because the person who asked the question and the scene are different at that time. This is what Confucius said in his speech. Teach students in accordance with their aptitude. For example, Confucius told Sima Niu to speak more slowly because Sima Niu was an outspoken person who often spoke without restraint. That's why Confucius said: "The words of a benevolent person are also destructive." So, in fact, Confucius was teaching students according to their aptitude, and Not just casually.

So what exactly is "benevolence"? It has two connotations. Zengzi said: "The way of the Master is only loyalty and forgiveness. Zengzi was a disciple of Confucius and the main successor of Confucius' thoughts. Zengzi participated in the compilation of "The Analects" and the writing of "The Great Learning". Therefore, Zengzi's grasp of Confucius' core thoughts should be relatively accurate. . If the core of Confucius' thought is benevolence, the core of benevolence is two words: "loyalty and forgiveness".

What is loyalty and forgiveness? Zhu Xi, a great scholar in the Song Dynasty, said: To do one's best is called loyalty, and to do one's best is called forgiveness. Loyalty emphasizes one's own responsibilities and obligations, and does what one should do. Forgiveness means "do not do to others what you do not want others to do to you." Do what you should do, and treat others with empathy. This is how you do it. "Benevolence", this is the ultimate judgment standard of "benevolence"

Doing what you should do is a "value judgment", not a factual judgment. It emphasizes the importance of "benevolence". What should we do most in a certain scenario, but there are no universally determined standards and principles that can be applied to any scenario, so the answer given by Confucius is different every time. So how do we make this judgment? ? The answer is: heart. The judgment of benevolence comes from the "heart", not the "brain". A person's "heart" is the essence of "benevolence". This is a prominent contribution of Mencius later. Mencius's "benevolence" "On the basis of ", we found the ontology of benevolence, which is "heart", and expanded Confucius' concept of "benevolence".

Mencius said: "The heart of compassion is the root of benevolence; the heart of shame and disgust is the root of benevolence." The principle of righteousness; the heart of resignation is the principle of etiquette; the heart of right and wrong is the principle of wisdom. "Human beings have four ends, just as they have four bodies." According to Mencius, the heart is the real subject of a person. The heart is not only the source of moral qualities such as benevolence, justice, etiquette, and wisdom, but also has the ability to judge right and wrong, good and evil. Ability. Therefore, we say that Confucianism is an aesthetic orientation. Its judgment is not made by our brains, not based on rationality and logical reasoning, but by our human hearts. The aesthetic pleasure brought to us by appreciating works of art is a kind of physical and mental pleasure, rather than a rational judgment made by the brain. Our "hearts" have natural intuition or a sense of what is good, kind and beautiful. This is a very different point in Eastern and Western philosophical thinking. Conscience and original heart are closer to a person's true self. We often say "follow your heart" which is a very high requirement. Confucius said: "Do what you want without going beyond the rules." Doing things according to your conscience is just right. This is a very high state.