Speaking of Guan Yu, everyone knows that in addition to the laurels of the Martial Saint, he also has two dazzling halos, namely the two words of loyalty and righteousness.
Some people say that Guan Yu is "unparalleled in loyalty", "loyal to the sun", "red in face and heart", "righteous as thin as the sky"... These words are all praises for his loyal life. For more than a thousand years, he has been not only a representative of loyalty and righteousness, but also an example and model for Chinese people to conduct themselves in the world.
With more than a hundred years of westward wind spreading eastward, especially during the "Cultural Revolution", China's excellent traditional culture was almost destroyed, and to this day, the remaining poison has not been eliminated. Today, historical nihilism is popular, and it is considered fashionable to dismember and discredit all excellent traditions. It is conceivable that in the minds of quite a few people, the concept of conducting oneself and doing things according to the standards of loyalty and righteousness has long been lost. The consequences are moral decline and customs corruption. That's why some people shouted, "Guan Yu is fake loyalty and righteousness!", "The worship of Guan Yu must be limited to those outside the modern literary sect!" and so on.
In addition to those who have ulterior motives, most of the people who shout such slogans are ignorant and fearless young people. They have long been cut off from Chinese history, and they don’t know what loyalty is? Where does righteousness come from? It seems that in order for them to understand Guan Yu's loyalty and righteousness, they have to start from the origin of the word loyalty and righteousness.
According to the research of Mr. Hu Xiaowei, a late researcher of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, in ancient times, the popularity of the word "righteousness" should have preceded the word "loyalty". Everyone knows that the "Five Constants" proposed by Confucius - "benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trustworthiness" mention the word righteousness, but there is no word loyalty. However, at that time, righteousness still generally referred to appearance, dignity, appearance, and suitability.
The word righteousness has gradually evolved into a criterion for people to do things, an evaluation of human character and morality, and even an unspoken rule that is difficult to escape from in the world. It should be traced back to Mozi in the Spring and Autumn Period. As we all know, most of Mozi's academic views run counter to Confucianism. Confucianism has the theory of "mandate of destiny". Mozi had the theory of "non-fate". Confucius didn't talk about "weird power that confuses the gods", but Mozi said "doing things with ghosts"...
Mozi once went all over the world to promote his views, "non-attack", "universal love", "interaction" "It's mutually beneficial"... In the end, no king or prince accepted his point of view.
If his ideals and concepts are not accepted by any higher-ups, Mozi will definitely feel very entangled in his heart. However, what he did not expect was that the court and officialdom ignored his advice, but his views became popular among the people and the world, and even bore fruit. Especially his famous saying "There is nothing more important than righteousness", which immediately turned the word righteousness mentioned by Confucius into the evaluation benchmark and criterion for life and work.
Actually, the reason here is very simple. Because only ordinary people hope to live a stable life and hope to "non-offensive". Relatives and friends can stay together only if they love each other. Because of the concept of "unfate", traffickers and lackeys dared to shout, "Princes, generals, Xiang Ning, do you have the guts?" People with some ability dared to "violate the ban with force." As a result, "Xia" appeared in the world.
Finally, history turned into a whirlpool during the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, and Confucianism majestically entered the royal palace, dominated by one family. While the teachings of Mozi and other scholars were deposed, only Mozi's chivalrous spirit was deeply integrated into the people and the world, becoming the invisible spiritual pillar of society.
To become a chivalrous person, one must not only be highly capable, but more importantly, must perform righteous deeds, eliminate violence and bring peace to the good, kill the rich and help the poor, and spread wealth through justice. Knights and righteous men have always been disliked by the court and officialdom. They can only live in the Jianghu and the underworld, becoming the leading force of the invisible social trend. For example, in the martial arts novels "Little Five Righteousness" and "Three Heroes of the Sword", the knights and righteous men all contribute to the court, which are just special cases.
The word "loyalty" was originally mainly used between the monarch and his ministers, between climbing mountains and deploying. At that time, there was no clear concept of country, and the thousands of miles of territory under the jurisdiction of the dynasty were collectively called Jiangshan or Tianxia. Loyalty at that time was first of all loyalty to the court, and then loyalty to the master, or it was also called loyalty to the country, the country, and the country.
Times passed by. After a hundred years of wars in the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, by the Northern Song Dynasty, due to Zhao Kuangyin's policy of advocating culture and suppressing military force, he no longer had the spirit of "anyone who offends our strong Han will be punished no matter how far away". Many ethnic minorities in the north became powerful one after another, and the Dangxiang people, Khitan people, and Jurchens all established their own countries one after another.
Especially after the Jin Kingdom destroyed the Liao Kingdom, it quickly destroyed the Northern Song Dynasty and occupied the vast area north of the Huaihe River. With the concept of country, who are they loyal to like Guo Jing and Yang Kang in Jin Yong's novels? Who to serve becomes the first priority. When it comes to the safety of the country and the survival of the court, the word loyalty naturally stands in front of righteousness. In this way, the word loyalty has become a touchstone for testing the moral character and conduct of various people at critical moments.
The emergence and popularity of loyalty and righteousness are due to the changes and progress of the social environment. The late Eastern Han Dynasty. The eunuchs monopolized the government and the government was in chaos. The Yellow Turban Rebellion caused great chaos in the world. Princes from all walks of life raised armies to protect themselves. Local forces and powerful people also gathered their troops to draw chestnuts from the fire. It was at this time that Liu Bei became sworn sworn kinsmen with Guan and Zhang.
The reason why Liu Bei was able to become sworn friends with Guan and Zhang was because he was a small merchant at the bottom of society who weaved mats and sold shoes. He needed to hug Guan Yu and Zhang Fei to keep warm.
Because of an injustice in his hometown, Guan Yu killed a bully and his whole family had to flee the country. This shows that he has a strong sense of chivalry. Because he had been familiar with classics such as "Spring and Autumn" since he was a child and received a good education, Guan Yu's performance of loyalty and righteousness throughout his life was more in line with the highest traditional Chinese moral standards.
Wei Zheng Zhong
In the late Eastern Han Dynasty, the princes were divided and Dong Zhuo had exclusive power. Loyalty to the court was no longer realistic. Most of the famous ministers and generals found their own families. Guan Yu followed Liu Bei because Liu Bei was a clan member of the Han Dynasty and was loyal to the Han Dynasty. At that time, ministers who were loyal to the court were called loyal ministers. Guan Yu was familiar with the classics, especially the Spring and Autumn Annals, which he could recite by heart. In his eyes, the Han Dynasty is orthodox, and being a loyal minister loyal to the Han Dynasty should be his value orientation. Since ancient times, he has been loyal and traitorous. When he was hunting in Xutian, he saw Cao Cao's treason against the emperor and wanted to kill him. This was a reflection of his mood.
In the first month of the fifth year of Jian'an, Guan Yu was trapped in Tushan and made an appointment with Zhang Liao on three things, one of which was to surrender to Han but not to Cao. In Cao Ying, Cao Cao's gifts to Guan Yu were unprecedented. Whether it was gold for mounting a horse, silver for dismounting, a big banquet or a small banquet, in the end he still "sealed gold and hung a seal" to protect his two sisters-in-law on their journey to find their brother. It stands to reason that Cao Cao was far more generous to him than Liu Bei. If we follow the popular career choice view of "whoever gives me more money, I will be loyal to him", Guan Yu will definitely be sincerely convinced of Cao Cao and willing to bow to his knees. . However, the development of things could only make Cao Cao stunned. Guan Yu always dismissed Cao Cao's temptation and wooing. It turns out that the standard for Guan Yu's loyalty is not whoever gives me more benefits, I will be loyal to him. In his eyes, Cao Cao was a Han traitor who wanted to usurp power, and he could never be loyal to him!
The fact is that Cao Cao gave Guan Yu unprecedented courtesy, but Guan Yu was unmoved and had to follow Liu Bei, who was living under someone else's roof. Not only was it because of his original promise, but it also showed that Guan Yu had clear criteria for choosing who to be loyal to. of.
His standard is very simple, whoever is loyal to the Han Dynasty, I will be loyal to. This kind of loyalty can be called "loyalty". (Zhen can also be interpreted as the word Zheng). To sum it up in four words, it is "Wei Zheng Zhong".
True, there are different interpretations in different historical eras, but all interpretations must be in line with the mainstream and truth of that era. The feudal system advocates that "the king tells his ministers to die, and the ministers have to die, which is loyalty." From today's perspective, this is foolish loyalty. The guards who helped the chief's wife kill foreigners were not only foolish and loyal, but also complicit. Mafia groups emphasize loyalty, and MLM organizations also emphasize loyalty. They require all members to be loyal to the leader internally, but do all kinds of bad things externally. Being loyal to such a group and leader is also foolish loyalty, or even "stupid loyalty." Loyalty in the underworld and Guan Yu's loyalty are two completely different things. When they involve Guan Yu, they are obviously "putting up a banner as a tiger skin to cover themselves and scare others."
Faced with today's reality, we can still use "only loyalty" to choose the goals to which we are loyal:
Our party is great, glorious, and correct, so we should be loyal to it she!
Our country is gradually becoming prosperous and powerful. She safeguards national dignity and national harmony and is leading us to realize the "Chinese Dream". This is the century-old dream of the Chinese people. We should be loyal to her!
The value orientation of an enterprise is to win glory for the country and benefit the people, and we should also be loyal to it!
Speaking of enterprises, I think of a story: A few days ago, at a dinner party, a young man talked about his depression. His boss treated him very well and his salary was very generous, but he What should you do if you find out that your boss is secretly doing something shady? Do you still want to follow him?
I told him the story of Guan Yu's "Wei Zheng Zhong". He also told him: "Don't care about how much you can earn by following him, but care about whether he does serious things."
A few days later, his friend told me that he resigned.
I congratulate him from the bottom of my heart!
Justice for the sake of right
“Life is what I want, and righteousness is also what I want. You cannot have both, and you must sacrifice your life for righteousness.” Mencius said in more than two thousand These words spoken years ago have inspired and educated countless people with lofty ideals to risk their lives, even throw their heads and blood, in order to safeguard truth and justice.
Guan Yu is one of such heroes.
"Huainanzi. Taizu" said: "The benefits of the world are smaller than the body. The weight of the body is lighter than the meaning." The meaning of these sentences is that the benefits of the world are smaller than the body. Lee is too small compared to the body. However, the body, which is heavier than all the benefits in the world, is still very light compared with righteousness.
Wen Tianxiang, the anti-Yuan hero, wrote a desperate poem before his execution: "Confucius said to be benevolent, Mencius said to be righteous, but only the righteousness is fulfilled, so benevolence is the most important thing. What do you learn from reading the books of sages?" From now on, I have no regrets. "Sacrificing one's life for righteousness and becoming benevolent is the highest state pursued by many people in history.
Guan Yu is known as the "perfect righteousness" in "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms". Throughout his life, it can be said that he has achieved "the most benevolent and righteous". When he was young, he killed the bullies and saved the daughter of the people, which was a chivalrous act to eliminate violence and bring peace to the people. When he was hunting in Xu Tian, ??he wanted to kill the overbearing Cao Cao, which is called loyalty.
In the twenty-fourth year of Jian'an, he was nearly sixty years old at that time, which was considered to be the twilight years of his life. He followed Liu Bei in his expeditions east and west for more than thirty years, and the Han Dynasty was easily controlled by Cao Cao. At that time, everyone knew that in order to usurp the throne, Cao Cao killed Queen Fu and the two princes for no reason. Add nine tins to the prince. Xun or the Han Shu Ling who advised him was poisoned. He is domineering and arbitrary. Wear the same hat as the emperor, ride the same dragon as the emperor. He arranged for more than 700 close soldiers to guard the palace day and night to monitor Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty... various things. Is it tolerable or not? So Guan Yu mobilized all Jing and Xiang's troops to attack Cao Cao in the north, in order to eliminate Cao Cao's clique and unify the Han Dynasty. This is both great loyalty and righteousness. In the end, due to well-known reasons, he was defeated in Maicheng and he refused Soochow's persuasion to surrender. Captured in Linju, he died heroically
Since ancient times, unification has been the common aspiration of all Chinese ethnic groups. If the country is torn apart, the people will suffer. Guan Yu led his army in a fierce battle in his sixtieth year, and finally fell on the road to achieve great unification. His heart and ambition were so sad!
Guan Yu's life was full of loyalty and chivalry. As an official, he cared about his subordinates and the people. We can prove this with Lu Meng’s words. Lu Meng said to Sun Quan: "When Yu ruled Jingzhou, he was very kind and trustworthy, and he managed both with great merit... It is impossible to achieve anything." This means that Guan Yu had been in Jingzhou for nearly ten years, and he was kind and trustworthy to the people, and his governance was very successful. He relied on beatings. Not coming down. It is not easy for a famous historical general to receive such high praise from his opponents who sneaked up on him.
We can clearly see that the loyalty Guan Yu upholds is "only loyalty" and the righteousness he upholds. It is "righteousness for the sake of justice". (Some people have criticized Guan Yu's "righteous interpretation" of Cao Cao. According to Mr. Hu Xiaowei's research, this is a novelist's statement and cannot be evaluated.)
"Sworn worship" began in the Eastern Han Dynasty, flourished in the two Jin Dynasties, and flourished in the Sui and Tang Dynasties. More or less correct. Sworn homage is the threshold for entering the world, and it is also a pass for entering the world.
One of its major characteristics is that it is only popular in the world and among the people, and is difficult to enter official circles and temples. The reason is very simple. Folks in the world worship each other as brothers in order to keep each other warm and take care of each other. Once people in officialdom and temples sworn sworn sworn friends, they would be suspected of forming cliques for personal gain. Because they all hold various rights in their hands, once they become brothers and "siblings" of the opposite sex, their rights can be infinitely expanded, and they can even use public power for private use. In today's terms, when the word "righteousness" enters the officialdom, it means pulling in gangs, forming sects, and forming gangs and small groups. The mutual use of power will inevitably become a taboo in the officialdom.
Liu, Guan, and Zhang were the first to establish friendship, and then to conquer the world. Soon, Liu Bei became the Prime Minister of Pingyuan and entered the officialdom. Guan and Zhang could only stand on the left and right sides. They could no longer sit on equal footing except as brothers. Liu Bei met Gongsun Zan, a fierce general whose surname was Zhao Mingyun, whose courtesy name was Zilong. The two hit it off immediately and were extremely affectionate. But because Liu Bei is already in the officialdom and has to climb up, no matter how good the two are, they cannot become sworn friends. Liu, Guan, and Zhang have always treated each other like brothers, and Zhao Yun has to call Liu Bei "lord" throughout his life.
This is a typical example of sworn loyalty and not entering officialdom.
For nearly a thousand years, gangsters, gangs, and gangs have also been cheating under the banner of Guan Gong's loyalty. Mafia leaders can kill people, sell drugs, and sell arms to the outside world. Internally, a statue of Guan Gong is enshrined, and he also talks about loyalty and righteousness, in order to make gang members loyal to him and be able to "spread the knife at both sides." In fact, all this is completely contrary to the chivalry, loyalty, and "righteousness for the sake of justice" that Guan Yu upholds. They are "trading sheep's heads and selling dog meat", "under the banner of gods and doing devil's deeds", and have nothing to do with Guan Yu's spirit. We also have every reason to exclude them from the door of "loyalty only" and "righteousness for the sake of justice".
Guan Yu’s concept of loyalty and righteousness has been passed down for thousands of years. From a modern perspective, it is remarkable. His life of loyalty and justice is an excellent example for the Chinese nation. Use "loyalty" and "justice" to replace the pan-loyalty and pan-meaning of the feudal era. "Only loyalty" and "righteousness for the sake of justice" are used to identify who is loyal in life? The touchstone of why meaning still has positive practical significance.