Benevolence: having a heart of benevolence - Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty loved the people like his own children

Righteousness: attaching importance to friendship and righteousness - Jing Ke assassinated the King of Qin

Etiquette: understanding etiquette - Confucius Rong Rang Pear

Wisdom: Wise and Decisive - Empty City Strategy

Trust: Honesty means what you say - Weisheng Shenshui

"Benevolence, righteousness, etiquette, Wisdom and faith are the core values ??and basic requirements of the traditional virtues of the Chinese nation. They drive the development of the entire social moral system and the improvement of social moral levels, and play an important role in the traditional virtues of the entire Chinese nation.

China is a country with ancient civilization and a land of etiquette. It values ??virtue and etiquette and has always enjoyed a high reputation in the world. Since ancient times, the traditional virtues of the Chinese nation have always been the moral foundation and ideological foundation for the survival and development of the Chinese nation, and have always been an important spiritual pillar and spiritual driving force for the survival and development of the Chinese nation. The formation and development of the traditional virtues of the Chinese nation have a history of thousands of years. From oral inheritance to written records, the content is broad and profound. But to sum up, the five elements that are clarified in historical classics and have basically formed the political consciousness of all dynasties are "benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trustworthiness". Of course, there are many expressions in traditional morality, but most of them are included in these five elements, or are the extension, enrichment, or development of these five elements.

The basic connotation of "benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom and trust"

"Benevolence" refers to the mentality of sympathy, care and love, that is, "the heart of benevolence". Regarding "benevolence", it first came from "Shangshu". "Shangshu" says: "To be lenient and benevolent, to show faith to the people" means that Shang Tang used the virtue of forgiveness and benevolence to clearly trust the people of the world. The earliest meaning of "Ren" is "relatives". "Shuowen Jiezi" says: "Ren means benevolence" and "Ren means closeness". It mainly refers to the "love" between family members and clan relatives. This kind of "benevolence" is only limited to family relatives. With the evolution of history, the meaning of "benevolence" has been further expanded, from "relatives" to "lovers". Lao Tzu said: "Be kind and benevolent". It means to be friendly, sincere and selfless when interacting with others. Confucius once said: "A man with lofty ideals and benevolence will not harm his benevolence by seeking life, but will kill himself to achieve benevolence." Here "benevolence" has become the highest state of life morality. In order to maintain "benevolence", one can "kill oneself", that is, one can sacrifice one's own life to maintain this moral concept. It can be seen that while the emotional scope of "benevolence" has expanded from family to society, the moral connotation and moral status of "benevolence" have also been further enriched and improved, becoming the first element of the traditional virtues of the Chinese nation.

"Yi" refers to integrity, integrity and morality, that is, the "spirit of justice". The original meaning of "righteousness" refers to a person's appearance, and is people's pursuit of close friendship and beauty and kindness in interpersonal interactions. "Shuowen Jiezi" once explained, "Yi (righteousness) is the dignity of oneself. Follow me and follow the sheep." It means that "righteousness" is a person's external image and inner cultivation. We admire the image and image of the sheep. To be self-restrained, be as gentle, kind and beautiful as a sheep. The "righteousness" mentioned here mainly refers to a kind of beautiful and kind emotion and integrity. In our lives, sheep have been the first of the six animals since ancient times and are the most beautiful food. Chinese people respect sheep very much. When the ancients created Chinese characters, they used the word "sheep" for the most beautiful things. For example, sheep and fish constitute "fresh". In the minds of Chinese people, sheep and fish are the most delicious food and the most delicious food. The most beautiful Chinese words "beauty" and "kindness" have the word "sheep" on them, and they are all constructed with "sheep" as the main radical. This reflects people's pursuit of the beautiful realm of sheep. And regard this realm as the character that Chinese people should pursue and the morality that should be promoted. "Shuowen Jiezi" explains "righteousness" by linking it with "beauty" and "goodness". "Beauty" and "goodness" are prefixes of "sheep", and the traditional Chinese character "yi" of "righteousness" is also prefixed with the prefix "sheep". Therefore, justice, beauty, and goodness are synonymous. The ancients emphasized "loyalty", which refers to such a beautiful and kind state and the integrity of justice. Confucius highly praised the virtue of "benevolence" and advocated "sacrifice oneself to become benevolent". Mencius highly praised the virtue of "righteousness" and said that one should "sacrifice one's life for justice." "Kill oneself" and "sacrifice one's life" have the same meaning and the same realm, which shows that Mencius placed "righteousness" and "benevolence" in an equally important position. We talk about traditional Chinese virtues as the five main elements of "benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trustworthiness", which are usually simplified into "benevolence, righteousness and morality". It can be seen that the most important of these five elements are the two virtues of "benevolence" and "righteousness" , are the two most core and basic elements. The ancients said: "Benevolence is an honor, being unbenevolent is a disgrace", "being righteous is an honor, betraying righteousness is a disgrace", which shows that the traditional Chinese moral concept of honor and disgrace also takes whether "benevolence" and "righteousness" are achieved as the main criteria.

"Li" refers to the rules of etiquette, politeness and etiquette, that is, "the rules of etiquette". "Li" was originally a custom and ritual in primitive society for worshiping gods and praying for blessings. "Book of Rites·Biaoji" says, "The people of Yin respected the gods and led the people to serve the gods, putting ghosts first and then etiquette." This refers to a kind of ritual and custom. At that time, "ritual" was not regarded as a moral norm or morality. principles and moral concepts to be clarified and promoted. With the further development of society, the understanding and understanding of "ritual" have also undergone new changes. "Book of Rites: Biaoji" says: "The people of Zhou respected etiquette and gave to others, respected gods and kept them at a distance when dealing with ghosts, stayed close to others but were loyal.

"It means that the people of the Yin Dynasty respected the gods, while the people of the Zhou Dynasty respected the gods and kept away from them. They began to stay away from them, and "made rituals and music", gradually standardizing these etiquettes, and determining what etiquette should be implemented and what kind of events should be held under which circumstances. Etiquette and what kind of courtesy were specifically regulated, and "rituals and music" were advocated to govern the world. In the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, the content of "rituals" underwent creative changes, and "rituals" began to be promoted as moral principles in our country. The oldest collection of poems, "The Book of Songs", contains the verse "A rat has skin, but a human has no manners; a human has no manners, what will he do if he is not dead?", which means: Look at the mouse, it still has a face, how can a human being be without manners? If a person has no etiquette, what else will he do if he doesn't die? Confucius also has a famous saying: "Restraining oneself and returning etiquette is benevolence", which means that everyone should restrain their improper desires, impulsive emotions and incorrect words and deeds. "Don't look at anything that's inappropriate, don't hear anything that's inappropriate, don't say anything that's inappropriate, don't do anything that's inappropriate," so that everything you see, hear, say, and do conforms to the rules of "propriety". Guan Zhong, a famous politician and thinker in ancient times, put forward the concept of "rituals and integrity, the four dimensions of the country" and put "rituals" at the top of moral norms. , indicating that "ritual" has gradually been standardized from a custom and ritual to a moral education and moral concept, and has been elevated to the first of the four major elements of governing the country. Chinese people have always placed "ritual" in an important position. We are a country of etiquette to show that we are civilized. It can be seen that "ritual" also plays an important role in traditional Chinese virtues.

"Wisdom" refers to discernment. The ability to know right from wrong, know good from evil, and know oneself and others is the "power of wisdom." As one of the basic elements of traditional Chinese virtues, Confucius often said: "There are three ways of a gentleman." : The benevolent do not worry, the wise do not worry, the brave do not fear. "The Doctrine of the Mean" says: "Wisdom, benevolence and courage are the three great virtues in the world." The familiar saying in "The Analects" "Knowing is knowing, not knowing is not knowing, it is knowing", which means that no matter how rich a person's knowledge is, there will always be something he does not understand. question, then you should have a realistic attitude. Only in this way can you learn more knowledge and act wisely. The "knowledge" mentioned here means "this is wisdom, this is wisdom, this is wisdom." "Wise man". Confucius and Mencius enriched the specific thoughts of "wisdom" on the basis of inheriting and developing the intelligent and wise thoughts of Tang Yao, Yu Shun, Shang Tang and others about knowing oneself, knowing society, knowing right and wrong, and knowing good and evil. The content has enhanced the status of "wisdom" as a moral requirement in moral norms, making it a new moral concept and value orientation with universal significance, and one of the most basic requirements for people's ideological, moral and civilized qualities. .

"Trust" refers to the character of honesty, trustworthiness, reliability and mutual trust, that is, "the quality of integrity". "Trust" is not simply honesty, but credit is the most basic of "trust". connotation. It not only requires people to be honest and trustworthy in their actions, but also reflects people’s firm and reliable understanding of a certain thing or a certain concept, and reflects the mutual understanding between people and between people and things. Relationship of trust. Without a foundation of firmness, reliability and mutual trust, it is difficult for people to be honest and trustworthy in their own behavior. As for "trustworthiness", our ancestors have known it since ancient times and actively practiced it. Advocate. The sages and sages of the past dynasties have emphasized "faith" in books, and even some classic literary masterpieces such as "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms", "Water Margin", and "A Dream of Red Mansions" also emphasize the moral concept of "faith". There are human interpretations and story descriptions about "faith". "Zuo Zhuan: The Twenty-Fiveth Year of Duke Xi" records: "Faith is the treasure of the country and the shelter of the people." This means that the ruler has "faith". , is the foundation of a country and the basis for the survival of ordinary people. Laozi said: "Words are good and trustworthy." Confucius also said, "One cannot stand in the world without loyalty." "I don't know how to believe." He also regarded "belief in words and results in deeds" and "respect and faith in deeds" as the basic requirements for regulating the words and deeds of his disciples, and regarded integrity as the basic point of being a human being. Mencius regarded integrity as As the cornerstone of society and the criterion for life, he said, "Sincerity is the way of heaven." Being sincere is the way of man. "Those who are sincere and unmoved have not yet existed; those who are not sincere have not yet moved." This is evidence of this. In "Zhenguan Zhengyao", Wei Zheng, a famous prime minister of the Tang Dynasty, said: "Virtue, etiquette and integrity are the outline of the country." "Trust" is emphasized as the outline of governing the country. "Old Book of Tang Dynasty" says that "the only thing that protects the king is integrity." The idiom of "faith" is called "faith". Such an understanding of "faith", the promotion of "faith", and the worship of "faith" have survived like an evergreen tree in the Chinese nation since ancient times. In the fertile soil of thought and culture that has been reproduced for generations, it shows that "faith", as an important part of the traditional virtues of the Chinese nation, has always been affirmed and promoted by people.

So, how to view the traditional virtues of the Chinese nation "benevolence, righteousness, and kindness". What about the five basic elements of "propriety, wisdom, and trust"? Judging from the relationship between the five elements, they are interrelated, interdependent, and mutually supportive. Together they constitute the foundation of the traditional moral building of the Chinese nation, which can also be said to be the moral building. of pillars.

From the basic connotation, "benevolence" is mainly the emotion of mutual care, mutual respect and mutual love between people. It is a moral norm for the harmony, harmony and coordinated development of all things in the world; "righteousness" is An attitude of transcending oneself, facing reality, and being righteous; "ritual" is a standard and rule for establishing interpersonal relationships and social order; "wisdom" is a person's vision and ability to understand himself, understand society, resolve conflicts, and deal with problems; "Faith" is the moral code for people to interact and deal with. "Benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trustworthiness" are the core values ??and basic requirements of the traditional virtues of the Chinese nation. They are the five most important social moral norms that we must follow well. From the comparison of various combinations of the traditional virtues of the Chinese nation, "benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trustworthiness" are the basic obligations and main conduct that people should fulfill, and they have a basic position in moral construction. Judging from the history of the emergence and development of the traditional virtues of the Chinese nation, "benevolence, righteousness, etiquette, wisdom, and trustworthiness" have an original position in the long history of the moral construction of the Chinese nation. From the comprehensive and rich system of the traditional virtues of the Chinese nation, "benevolence, righteousness, etiquette, wisdom, and trustworthiness" have a dominant position. Judging from the extensive and far-reaching impact of the traditional virtues of the Chinese nation on social progress, "benevolence, righteousness, etiquette, wisdom, and trustworthiness" drive the development of the entire social moral system and the improvement of social moral levels. plays an important role in virtue.