However, to understand the meaning of this concept, we should not rely on our contemporary scholars' understanding of it, but should turn to the ancients' own remarks. See what this concept really means in the ancient people's concept. The key to understanding the meaning of "harmony between man and nature" is to understand the meaning of "heaven" in "harmony between man and nature".
I found more than 200 materials clearly written "the unity of man and nature" in Sikuquanshu. It is found that the "heaven" in the "harmony between man and nature" contains the following contents: 1, and heaven can have an inductive relationship with people; 2. God-given people are good or bad; 3. Heaven is the object that people fear and serve; 4. Heaven dominates human existence, especially the fate of the dynasty (the day of destiny); 5. Heaven is the existence that endows people with benevolence, righteousness, courtesy and wisdom. Today, many people understand "heaven" as nature, so they think that "harmony between man and nature" is the content of "harmony between man and nature", but they have not found it.
I now publish these materials. For those who care about it to study and discuss. It should be noted that: 1, these materials are only a little rough, and I don't want to look closely. Because the researchers are quite proficient in ancient Chinese, I don't need to delve into it; 2, omitted some. Omitted are those that are repetitive, or those with clear views that do not need to be repeated. Fortunately, Sikuquanshu is not a hard-to-find book now. If you don't believe this information, you can look it up yourself.
It should also be noted that the concept of "harmony between man and nature" was first used, and the source that can be found now is Zhang Zai's True Dream. But Cheng Yi, who was contemporary with Zhang Zai, did not agree. He said: "Heaven and man are inseparable, so there is no need to combine words." . ("two-way suicide note? According to my own understanding, Zhang's "one" and Cheng's "no two" both refer to the harmony between man and nature, or the same way, and the humanity of benevolence, righteousness, courtesy and wisdom is endowed by heaven. In their works, this day gives people a kind nature, and it is also a day when people must respect things, a day when they can empathize with others, and a day when they can bring good or bad luck.
Going back, the inventor of this idea can be attributed to Dong Zhongshu. Dong Zhongshu's famous saying is: "Heaven also has joys and sorrows, which are in harmony with people. By analogy, heaven and man are one. " ("Spring and Autumn Story?" In Dong Zhongshu's view, the sky is a day of joys and sorrows. Of course, it is also a day to dominate the world, to be able to relate to people and to give people good or bad luck.
In Dong Zhongshu's view, the "one" of "harmony between man and nature" is "one kind". Because in Dong Zhongshu's time, due to the new discoveries of natural science, people knew that things could be sensed without contact. For example, magnets can attract iron, strings can vibrate and so on. It is believed that the induction is mediated by qi. At the same time, people also found that gas-mediated induction is conditional. For example, magnets can absorb iron, but not copper; The * * * vibration of the strings is also the * * * vibration of Gong Xian and Gong Xian, and the * * * vibration of Shang Xian and Shang Xian. Just like Niu Ming, Niu Ying and A?vagho?a Ma Ying. So it is concluded that only similar things can induce each other. In order to demonstrate that heaven and man can sense, Dong Zhongshu first needs to demonstrate that heaven and man are the same. This is the realistic background of the unity of man and nature.
Dong Zhongshu's method of demonstrating the similarity between man and nature is called "the relationship between man and nature". That is, man is a copy of the sky, "copy". For example, the sky is round, so people's heads are round; The ground is square, so people's feet are square. Why do people have two eyes? Because there are sun and moon in the sky; Why do people have limbs? Because there are four seasons in the sky; Why do people have emotions? Because it is cloudy and sunny. There are 360 days in the sky, and human bones have 360 joints. And so on. When similar concepts developed to the Song Dynasty, there was a clear theory of "harmony between man and nature". Zhou Dunyi's Taiji Map and Shao Yong's Congenital Map are both representative works of the idea of the unity of man and nature. It is also said that humanity of benevolence, righteousness, propriety and wisdom is endowed by heaven, and the order of the world is a copy of heaven.
Since then, the idea of harmony between man and nature has become the basic concept in the interpretation of Zhouyi, and the concept of "harmony between man and nature" has been added to Zhouyi. The unity of heaven and man has also become the basic concept to interpret other ancient classics. In the interpretation of other classics, the concept of harmony between man and nature has also increased. Today, the harmony between man and nature seems to have become the core of all China's ancient thoughts, and it has been endowed with unprecedented significance such as harmony between man and nature, environmental protection and sustainable development.
Another basic concept of China's classical philosophy is "the unity of man and nature". The so-called "heaven" is not dominated by gods, but the representative of "nature". "Heaven and man are one" has two meanings: first, no one is consistent. The universe is naturally a big world, while man is a small world. Second, adults correspond, or no one contacts. It means that man and nature are interlinked in essence, so all personnel should follow the laws of nature and achieve harmony between man and nature. Laozi said: "People should be everywhere, the land should follow the sky, the sky should follow the Tao, and the Tao is natural." The second edition of Laozi unearthed in Mawangdui shows the consistency and communication between man and nature. Confucianism in the pre-Qin period also advocated "the unity of heaven and man", and The Book of Rites The Doctrine of the Mean said: "Honest people have the way of heaven, and sincere people have the way of others." It is believed that as long as people carry forward the virtue of "sincerity", they can be consistent with heaven. Dong Zhongshu, a Confucian in the Han Dynasty, clearly put forward: "Heaven and man are one." (The Story of the Spring and Autumn Period: A Deep Investigation of Famous Things) has become an important viewpoint of Confucianism for two thousand years.
This idea of harmony between man and nature is embodied in martial arts, first of all, the pursuit of harmony between man and nature by martial arts practitioners. Because the idea of adult unity holds that man is a part of nature and the best part of it, everything in the world is isomorphic with man as a whole, and man is an indispensable leading factor in this system, and human nature is similar to heaven. Based on this idea, martial artists pay special attention to the unity of man and nature. In the Qing Dynasty, Yang copied the biography of Taiji and said, "Gankun is a big world, and man is a small world." And "the so-called creator of the small world, heaven, sex, earth, life, man, ethereal, god, if unknown, Wu Can matches heaven and earth as three." "We should know the principle of harmony between man and nature and be proud of the popularity of the moon." Therefore, in the process of practicing martial arts, people are always pursuing the harmony between human body and nature, making people conform to nature, and their movements should also obey the changing laws of nature, so as to achieve the balance between things and me, inside and outside, and the peace of Yin and Yang. Because of this, since ancient times, martial arts practitioners have paid great attention to the coordination between the human body and the external natural environment such as seasons, climate and geography. Take different training contents and means according to time and place, and choose a beautiful and quiet natural environment as a place for self-cultivation, so as to give full play to people's creativity and the spirit of everything and make their body and mind blend in with nature. It is not good for your health if you are in harmony with the right people against the right time. This is also one of the reasons why China Wushu forms many kinds of boxing and schools due to different regions.
In order to pursue the harmony between man and nature, ancient martial arts practitioners often learn from nature like heaven and earth, absorb nutrients from nature, and simulate the movements and postures of various things in nature. Expression, combined with the laws of human movement and the requirements of martial arts methods, creates and enriches martial arts, and describes boxing with natural phenomena, so there are many kinds of boxing and movements named after various things in nature in martial arts. For example, the tiger and crane watching boxing in Nanquan is a boxing method based on the movements of two animals, tiger and crane, combined with the characteristics of human movements and technical skills. The twelve shapes in Xingyiquan are based on the movements of twelve animals and evolved according to the movements and strength characteristics of Xingyiquan. In addition, mantis boxing and eagle claw boxing are also created by imitating the movements of mantis and eagle respectively, taking its shape and understanding its meaning. And the list goes on. As for the name of the action, such as the dragon sacrifice claw. Swallows go through the forest, and cranes flap their wings. There are many names such as the golden rooster shaking its feathers. Not only that, there are many examples of explaining boxing theory with natural phenomena. For example, Wang Zongyue said that Tai Ji Chuan is a "long-handed boxer, like the Yangtze River and the sea, who talks endlessly", which not only shows the technical characteristics of Tai Ji Chuan, but also shows that attention should be paid to developing the inner activities of "abdomen" in the drill, all of which are metaphors of boxing potential with Jiang Hai's potential. Another example is the "Twelve Shapes" of Changquan, which says, "Move like a wave, be still like a member, rise like an ape, and fall like a magpie. Stand like a chicken, stand like a pine tree and turn like a wheel. Fold like a bow, light as a leaf. As heavy as iron and as slow as an eagle. As fast as the wind ",it also uses twelve images to explain the requirements of twelve changes in movements during the drill, and most of them also use natural images to describe the boxing situation." "
Because no one is one, China's traditional culture is harmonious. Emphasize the overall thinking characteristics, which is manifested in Wushu's pursuit of "combination" of actions. "Harmony" means the harmony and coordination of actions. The most typical is the so-called "internal and external trinity", that is, "the unity of mind, heart and gas, and strength; Shoulders and straddles, elbows and knees, hands and feet. " This is actually what the heart requires. Meaning, qi to the outer limb. All parts of the body coordinate with each other. It should be noted that coordination is not only an instinct of human beings, but also an ability to consciously cultivate and train people to make their movements perfect. Harmony is a unique technical requirement and theory of Wushu.
The idea of harmony between man and nature also determines that China's philosophy advocates the consistency between human moral principles and natural principles. Zhang Zai's affirmation that no one is unified is "sincere because of Ming, and bright because of reduction". "Honesty" is the highest moral accomplishment, and "Ming" is the highest wisdom. This "sincerity" is manifested in martial arts, which is martial virtue, and "Ming" is manifested in superb skills. This is also the reason why respected martial artists have been pursuing self-moral perfection and technical perfection throughout the ages. In ancient times, people advocated martial arts, based on the code of conduct that martial arts practitioners mastered the relationship between a person and society and tried to do things that were beneficial to society. Because of this, there are often some commandments and regulations among martial arts practitioners. With the change of history, although its content has changed, its basic purpose remains the same, that is, it requires martial arts practitioners to be brave and resourceful and have high morality. At the same time, martial arts practitioners also regard the improvement of learning technology as a means of moral cultivation, and think that this is an internal cultivation. They advocate the spirit of diligent study and practice, and strive to improve their skills. In the past, people often referred to martial arts training as "practicing kungfu", which means that the level of doing one thing is also high, so predecessors often spent their whole lives practicing kungfu, which led to the spread of kungfu as a synonym for martial arts around the world, which was the result of their diligent pursuit of the essence of skills.