On the surface, everyone agrees that Confucius advocates absolute monarchy (Confucius respects the monarch). In fact, it is better to say that after the Han and Tang Dynasties, both feudal scholars, Confucian scholars and secular people were in favor of absolute monarchy. Because Confucius agreed, who is Confucius? He is a saint, and the saint agrees. Does anyone else disagree? Or, is there anyone better than Confucius?
Therefore, this sentence is essentially borrowed from Confucius' words to refute different voices against autocratic monarchy and put an end to lingering words. Now, this statement is wrong in itself, so the author immediately said, "Even the monarchists who criticize Confucianism regard respecting the monarch as" the great sin of saints ". "If you want to understand the specific meaning of this sentence, it is suggested that the full text will be more comprehensive.
From Zhang Fentian's Modern Neo-Confucianism Is Not Real Confucianism;
In recent years, a political trend called "Modern Neo-Confucianism" has emerged in China. The general characteristics of this trend of thought are: concealing the essential attributes of Confucianism, extracting some words from Confucian classics and judging them as "democracy" and "constitutionalism", and then advocating political ideas such as "returning to Confucius and Mencius" and "promoting Confucian constitutionalism". Some scholars regard it as a new stage of the development of Confucianism. However, from its essential attributes, "new Confucianism" is not true Confucianism. It is difficult to generalize the general unique attributes of Confucianism, but it is easy to reveal the essential attributes of Confucianism. The greatest common point of Confucian scholars in past dynasties is to demonstrate the general stipulation of monarchy system, patriarchal clan system and hierarchical system, and to maintain the concept of "autocracy". One of the important evidences is that, Gou Xiang, Dong Zhongshu, Zhu and others demonstrated the inevitability, rationality and absoluteness of the implementation of the imperial system and the autocracy of the venerable. Kong Qiu is a master of Confucianism, and "Confucius respects the monarch" is the conclusion of the ancients. According to Zuo Zhuan, The Analects of Confucius, Historical Records and other records, Kong Qiu praised the royal system of the Western Zhou Dynasty, and advocated "ruling the monarch by Tao" and "Jun Jun, minister, father and son". As a statesman, thinker and educator who was knowledgeable, wise, realistic and practical at that time, respecting the monarch was Kong Qiu's political ambition and academic purpose. He is worthy of the praise of "Confucius respects the monarch". There are many non-Confucian doctrines among the philosophers in the Warring States period, but no one denies that "Confucius respects the monarch". Since the Han and Tang Dynasties, "Confucius respects the monarch" is the fixed opinion of the imperial court, the conclusion of Confucianism and the fixed evaluation of the world. Even monarchists who criticize Confucianism regard respecting the monarch as a great sin of "saints".
Monk is known as "the sage of Asia", and Mencius is a classic of imperial law. Mencius has a number of institutional propositions, such as the argument that "God bless the people, be a teacher for the monarch", the argument that there are no two kings in heaven, and the argument that the king of the world is the land of kings all over the world. Monk said, "Heaven is virtuous, then virtuous; As for the succession of the throne, the son of heaven thinks that the ultimate legitimacy of imperial power depends on "destiny", and whatever is not the son of heaven belongs to "usurpation" regardless of abdication, revolution or inheritance. The political form and power structure set by these propositions completely conform to the definition of "absolute monarchy" in modern political science. It is for this reason that Mencius became one of the main forms of the official theory of imperial system. The ancients said that "Confucius respects the monarch and Mencius respects the Tao", while Mencius' way is "harmlessly respecting the monarch". This judgment is correct. Confucianism worships Confucian classics, and "respecting autocracy" is the core concept of the Four Books and Five Classics. For example, The Book of Songs says that "all the world is a place where kings live", The Analects says that rites and music are conquered by emperors, and The Doctrine of the Mean says "non-emperors, rudeness, no restraint, no textual research" and so on. As long as we look at all kinds of Confucian classics objectively and comprehensively, it is not difficult to find that "respecting people and autocracy" runs through all propositions and categories of Confucianism. The core elements of Confucianism in the pre-Qin period, connecting Shang and Zhou Dynasties and connecting Han and Tang Dynasties, have always been the ruling thoughts of China in ancient times. For example, only by carefully comparing the theoretical structures and propositional combinations of pre-Qin Confucianism, Confucian Classics of Han and Tang Dynasties and Neo-Confucianism of Song and Ming Dynasties can we find that various theoretical elements of Mencius, including "the people value the monarch" and "the people have no two kings", have not only been completely preserved, but also occupied the position of official theory and mainstream scholarship.
Obviously, "Confucius-Mencius democracy" is a new saying after the collapse of monarchy and ethics. The key to this statement is to change the essence of Confucianism. Some people even call Mencius's "valuing the people over the monarch" the "highest democratic spirit" and even the "pioneer of world democracy". As a result, the original "Confucius and Mencius respect the monarch" has evolved into a dispute between "Confucius and Mencius autocracy" and "Confucius and Mencius democracy"