Shang Yang’s famous sayings

1. The public is like a green mountain, and I am like a pines and cypresses. I will be shattered to pieces and will never be betrayed. --Shang Yang

2. Be timid to fight in the city, but brave to fight against the bandits. --Shang Yang's "Book of Shang Jun"

3. The so-called "one punishment" means that there are no levels of punishment. --Shang Yang's "Book of Shang Jun"

4. I heard that there are many strange things in the poor alleys, and there are many debates about Quxue. The fool laughs, the wise man mourns; the crazy man rejoices, the wise man mourns. If you stick to the world and discuss it, few people will doubt it. (I heard that people who come out of remote alleys like to be strange, and people with little knowledge like sophistry. The things that ignorant people laugh at are exactly the things that smart people feel sad about. The things that arrogant people are happy with are just the things that make them sad. Talented people are worried about those comments that are stuck in secular prejudices. I am no longer confused by them) - Shang Yang's "Shang Jun Shu·Gengfa"

　5. Sages are civil laws. , it will be made clear and easy to understand, and ignorance and wisdom will be everywhere. -- Shang Yang's "Book of Shang Jun"

6. A sage king does not value righteousness but values ??the law. The law must be clear and the orders must be implemented. That's it. --Shang Yang's "Book of Shang Jun"

7. If there is no way to govern the world, the country will not follow the ancient laws. -- Shang Yang's "Book of Shang Jun"

8. To carry out the law by memorizing the law, this task is heavy and the road is long but there are no horses and oxen, and it is necessary to help the great rivers but there is no sewage. --Shang Yang's "The Book of Shang Jun"

9. "The sage can only strengthen the country, but does not follow the rules; the sage can only benefit the people, but does not follow the etiquette." --Shang Yang, "The Book of Shang Jun""

10. Doubtful actions will lead to no success, and doubtful actions will lead to no success. --Shang Yang's "Book of Shang Jun"

11. The sage is responsible for the country. He observes the customs and laws to rule the country, and observes the fundamentals of the country's affairs. --Shang Yang's "Book of Shang Jun"

Shang Yang's information

Shang Yang (about 395 BC - 338 BC) was a statesman, reformer, thinker, and legal figure during the Warring States Period. House representative.

"Biography of Shang Jun"

Doubtful actions have no name, and doubtful deeds have no merit. Moreover, those who have the behavior of an expert will definitely see things that are not in the world; those who have the worry of knowing alone will definitely see themselves as a disadvantage to the people. Fools hide things before they happen, and wise people see things before they happen. People cannot start with worry but can succeed with success. As for those who are extremely virtuous, they will not be in harmony with the common people, and those who achieve great success will not be sought after by others. Therefore, the sage can only strengthen the country but does not follow the rules; he can only benefit the people but does not follow the rules.

Translation:

If you hesitate or doubt, you will not succeed. If a person's behavior is too unconventional and outstanding, he will definitely be attacked by the world. Foolish people often remain confused even when things are successful. Smart and wise people often foresee things before they happen and achieve success. No matter what you do with the people, you cannot discuss it with them at the beginning, but you can only share the results with them after it is completed. People who pay attention to the highest moral standards and ordinary secular people cannot be gregarious. People who want to do great things cannot seek the opinions of the public. As long as the saints can make the country rich and powerful, they do not need to imitate the ancient laws. As long as they can benefit the people, they do not need to follow them. Old-time etiquette.

The ruling aristocracy opposed Shang Yang’s reforms.

Ganlong said: "Otherwise, those who govern based on the law will have officials who are accustomed to it and the people will be in peace." Wei Yang said: "Ordinary people are content with their old customs, and scholars are addicted to what they hear. With both of these, officials can abide by the law. Yes, it is not beyond the law. The wise follow the rules, the wise are more polite, and the unruly are restrained. >

The doctor Qianlong said: "No, only by governing according to the old rules can the officials be familiar with the rules and the people be stable." Gongsun Yang said: "Ordinary people only know how to be content with the old customs, and scholars are often confused by their own Troubled by knowledge. For these two types of people, it is okay for them to be officials and abide by the law, but we cannot discuss with them any great undertakings outside of the old laws. Smart people formulate laws and policies, while stupid people will only be restrained by others; virtuous people change with time. , Incompetent people stick to the established laws. "Qin Xiaogong said: "Well said! Thousands of people. At this moment the prince violated the new law. Wei Yang said: "The new law cannot be implemented smoothly because the upper class violated it." The prince will be punished according to the new law. But the prince was the heir to the monarch and could not impose punishment, so he punished the teacher who supervised his behavior, Gongzi Qianxu (cut off his nose), and punished the teacher Gongsun who taught him knowledge with ink punishment (tattooing on the face). Jia. The next day, all the people of Qin implemented the new law.

Shang Yang was really brave to treat the prince like this. This also laid the foundation for the prince's plan to kill him after he ascended the throne.

"Capturing Young Master Yan (áng)"

Qin Xiaogong sent Shang Yang to attack the west of Wei River, and Wei sent Young Master Ang to fight. When the two armies were confronting each other, Shang Yang sent an envoy to Prince Ang, saying: "I got along very happily with Prince Ang at first, but now you and I have become generals of two hostile countries and cannot bear to attack each other. I can meet Prince Ang face to face and make an agreement." They made an alliance, had a few drinks, and then withdrew their troops, so that Qin and Wei could live in peace." Prince Ang went to the meeting happily, but was captured by Shang Yang's soldiers who ambushed him. Shang Yang took the opportunity to attack the Wei army, and the Wei army was defeated.

King Hui of Wei was forced to offer some land west of Hexi for peace, and Qin made Shang Yang the Lord of Shang.

Haha, is Shang Yang a bit shameless?

Shang Yang has a strange book "Shang Jun Shu", which records the details of the reform and mentions the five techniques of fooling the people.

"Shang Jun's Book * Weak People"

If the people are humiliated, they will be noble, and if they are weak, they will be respected; if they are poor, they will be rewarded heavily, and if they are punished by punishment, the people will be happy to use them.

Translation:

If the people are in a humble position, they will respect titles; if they are timid, they will respect officials; if they are poor, they will value rewards. The imperial court uses criminal laws to rule the people, and the people are happy to use them;

1. Fool the people: Unify their minds so that they do not know the difference between right and wrong, and only know how to follow.

2. Weak people: When the country is strong and the people are weak, the way to govern the country depends on the weak people.

3. Tired of the people: looking for things for the people, tired of running around, so that the people can take care of other things flawlessly.

4. Insulting the people: one has no self-esteem and self-confidence; the other instigates each other to report and expose, and lives in an atmosphere of fear all day long.

5. Poor people: except for the necessities of life, they are deprived of their remaining money and wealth; poor people have short ambitions. If all five are ineffective, kill them.

Isn’t it a bit hateful? Hundreds of schools of thought in the pre-Qin period all had the idea of ??obscuring the people to some extent, including Confucius and Mencius.

There is also a Chinese household registration label, which has been affixed for more than 2,000 years to the present, and was first affixed by Shang Yang. Restrict people from moving at will, facilitate management, create classes, and allow people to strive for a higher status. In the Qin State, there were actually two paths, one was farming and the other was fighting. All rewards and titles are judged by how many people were killed in battle. No wonder the Qin people's tiger and wolf troops are unstoppable.

Everyone knows Shang Yang’s final outcome: the car broke apart. But his ideas have been passed down.

Tai Shigong said: Mr. Shang is naturally mean-spirited.

Mao Zedong: Shang Yang was a great politician who benefited the country and enriched the people. He was an idealist with the sincerity and enthusiasm of a religious believer. Shang Yang's law punishes traitors to protect the people's rights, cultivates and weaves to enhance the welfare of the people, promotes military merit to establish national prestige, and eliminates corruption and neglect to eliminate consumption. This is a major policy that our country has never had before. Shang Yang can be called the first truly thorough reformer in Chinese history. His reforms were not limited to that time, but also affected China for thousands of years. The Qin government has been implemented for a hundred generations.