The virtue of tolerance and the beauty of harmony

Li Dazhao’s view of Chinese and Western cultures is based on the philosophy of harmony. In Li Dazhao's early works, there were many articles involving the issue of reconciliation. He advocated the "virtue of tolerance", praised the "beauty of harmony", advocated "differentiating forces" and "accommodating other forces". Li Dazhao quoted the words of Western philosophers as the definition of "harmony": "The words of the Quasi Four Masters (Spencer, Muller, Morley, and Gu Litiansen) are trying to define the word harmony; those who harmonize, that is, Each person in his group, because of his stubbornness, chooses one half position in politics or academia, and identifies conservative or progressive as his unshakable beliefs; at the same time, he reaffirms these beliefs; it is appropriate to coexist. Bandits can come and go, just as a chariot has two wheels and a bird has two wings, and they pull each other to control the world on the track of evolution." ("Putting Off False Reconciliation", "Collected Works of Li Dazhao", p. 503, People's Publishing House 1984 edition).

As for the philosophical meaning of harmony, Li Dazhao said, "There are two opposite qualities and forces in the universe, all natural and omnipresent. From one perspective, it is confrontation; from another perspective, it is harmony." ("Reconciliation of Transcripts", "Collected Works of Li Dazhao", p. 555, People's Publishing House, 1984 edition). He believes that the most powerful tool for resolving contradictions in things is "reconciliation", and respects reconciliation "to correct deviations" and "be careful not to overdo it." "The old and new forces each maintain their own limits to confront each other, and do not go to extremes" ("Putting Puppetry and Harmonizing", "Collected Works of Li Dazhao", p. 499, People's Publishing House, 1984 edition). Create a harmonious environment and unify the opposing forces. "As long as the opposing forces have not been used, it is inevitable that they will conflict with each other; that is, the four-word reconciliation will be ineffective. If the two forces have reached the realm of canceling each other, then the way to maintain each other's peace and harmony will be abandoned. No place to stay” (ibid.). He even said that this means "a fool can believe it without any doubt" (ibid.). I believe that Li Dazhao’s analysis highlights the dialectical view of contradiction. He not only emphasizes the opposite side of things, but also does not ignore their unified destination. Only by recognizing opposition and constantly overcoming contradictions and conflicts can balance and harmony be finally achieved. Beautiful scenery.

Li Dazhao also regarded "harmony" as the most ideal state of life. He understood "harmony" from an aesthetic perspective and called "the harmonizer the mother of beauty." He also regarded "harmony" as a manifestation of rationality and advocated "the magnanimity to tolerate the coexistence of others, but also the perseverance to be confident and independent." In Li Dazhao's view, to create a harmonious environment, the following important conditions must be met. First, "Those who talk about reconciliation must understand that although the opportunity for reconciliation arises from the give-and-take of two sides, the state of reconciliation is maintained by the preservation of both sides." Secondly, "Those who wish to harmonize must realize that the nature of the old and the new are not completely different." Third, "Those who talk about harmony must know that all elements in each force must be prepared for the virtue of harmony." "Machine its tolerant nature and the virtue of moderation." Fourth, "Those who talk about reconciliation should know that even those who take responsibility for reconciliation do not have to be aloof from the outside. They can bear the burden of one party, and they may not necessarily burden one party. The influence of reconciliation is authoritative." ("The Law of Harmony", " "Collected Works of Li Dazhao", pp. 550-554, People's Publishing House, 1984 edition).

In view of the special background of Chinese culture, especially people’s easy misunderstanding of reconciliation, which regards reconciliation as an unprincipled compromise, Li Dazhao particularly emphasized: “The purpose of reconciliation is to preserve myself and not to flatter. People are tolerating others rather than destroying themselves. It is not a matter of sacrificing oneself for the sake of self and others. It is not a matter of perfunctory whitewashing. Unfortunately, such a beautiful term is because of my cowardice. The decadent nation took advantage of it, so the Huai Ju and Bei Zhi were used as a ladder to descend against the current in a roundabout way, so that they could appease the bad nature of the peaceful people, but in order to realize the comical vulgarity of the ladder, this was not the original intention of Changyan Harmony. It’s as expected” (ibid.). From the comparison of Chinese and Western cultures, it can be seen that “Western people talk about harmony and should strive to preserve themselves first without sacrificing others; Eastern people talk about harmony and should strive to preserve themselves first without sacrificing others. The meaning of reconciliation, if misunderstood or misunderstood, is close to sacrifice and implies the mentality of self-sacrifice. The result is that it can help the powerful to open their eyes and conquer the rights, personality, property, life, and belief in truth and justice. But it cannot be sacrificed. However, when the trend of despotism is established, it is wrong to talk about false reconciliation. I love the reconciliation of two existences, so I reject the reconciliation of self-destruction, and I deny the reconciliation of sacrifice." Same as above).

Based on the above analysis, it is not difficult to find that Li Dazhao's philosophy of harmony is systematic and rational. This philosophy constructed his unique "virtue of tolerance" and his unique cultural character. This kind of moral character and personality are more perfectly reflected in Li Dazhao's concept of integrating Chinese and Western cultures.

The great cause of the reconciliation of Eastern and Western civilizations

How to treat Western culture is inseparable from how to treat Chinese culture. There are indeed great differences between the two cultures, but to treat this difference correctly, we must transcend traditional Chinese values ??and ways of thinking and establish a rational cognitive orientation. Because the traditional cognitive paradigm can easily lead people to two extremes: either simply rejecting others, or simply denying themselves. In July 1918, Li Dazhao published an article titled "The Fundamental Differences between Eastern and Western Civilizations" when he launched "Reconciliation of Transcriptions" in the quarterly magazine "Yanzhi", dialectically analyzing "difference" and "harmony" in culture. It analyzes the causes of cultural differences, reveals the "disease of Chinese civilization", and proposes reflection on civilization. It points out the road to China's new cultural construction and gives people rational enlightenment.

In Li Dazhao’s eyes, the differences between Eastern and Western civilizations exist objectively and are independent of human subjective will. “There is a fundamental difference between Eastern and Western civilizations, that is, Eastern civilization is quiet, while Western civilization is active. If we trace back the history of human life and seek the reasons, we can almost say that it is based on the influence of nature." But the problem is, “Due to the different civilizations, Eastern and Western nations often rely on racial prejudice to exalt themselves and put others down.” In fact, “to put it bluntly, Eastern and Western civilizations have their own strengths and weaknesses, and it is not appropriate to arbitrarily distinguish between them.” However, we must first recognize the "shortcomings" of Eastern civilization, and then observe its "strengths" and analyze its "strengths" so that Westerners can have a profound observation and glimpse into the mysterious atoms of life. I feel calm and peaceful, so I reflect and ask myself: In the material and mechanical life, we are busy competing, creating and inventing, working tirelessly, and extending our lives in the realm of infinite competition, so that we have no time to think about the most important issues of the human soul. Why?"

When it comes to reflection on civilization, Li Dazhao believes that it cannot be denied that both civilizations are already in crisis, because “Eastern civilization has declined in stasis, while Western civilization has been exhausted by material things. ". But in comparison, "the disease of Chinese civilization has reached its peak, and the fate of the Chinese nation has reached a dying stage. There is no need to deny this." "In short, if you keep a quiet attitude, maintain a quiet concept, and live a life in danger, your person, your belongings, your country, and your system will all be shattered. There is nothing more terrifying than this."

In order to save Chinese civilization, we must proceed from the needs of the survival and development of the Chinese people and closely keep up with the development trend of the world trend, because our "area of ??life" is indeed the trend of moving civilization, material life The momentum is so great that it is almost unstoppable." Therefore, Li Dazhao said: "Material life today must not be ignored. The reason why we can eliminate this contradiction is to use a thorough awakening to fundamentally sweep away the static concepts and lazy attitudes and look forward to them. The Western dynamic world view is close to that of material life. Li Dazhao specifically pointed out that adapting a quiet life to an active life has fundamentally changed his world view. We must go forward with strong perseverance.” Li Dazhao's comparative discussion of Eastern and Western cultures reflected the Chinese people's historical desire to realize modernization at that time.

Li Dazhao realized that the superiority of Western civilization fundamentally stems from science. He held high the banner of scientific spirit and asked aspiring young people to "strive to eradicate the bigotry of racial roots, inspire the scientific spirit to search for the truth, and have the courage to engage in dynamic skills and industries. Such skills and industries are enough to make us Daily life is close to experimental science. If we continue in this way, scientific practice will gradually become more proficient, and the spirit of science will be lost in spiritual wisdom. This spirit is the spirit of movement, the spirit of progress. ".

On this basis, Li Dazhao criticized the people of his time for their ignorance of modern Western culture, feeling that "Chinese people are always incompatible with the most valuable modern Western doctrines and are afraid of slandering them." But those who stick to their own opinions, are arrogant, and measure distances that cannot be measured." He exclaimed: "Today, the only thing we should strive for is how to absorb the growth of Western civilization to help us. The poverty of Eastern civilization. We must not corrupt the world with the Boxer mentality and the image of my death and annihilation.

You must not sacrifice yourself for others, but criticize the fatigue of Western material civilization and do not reflect on the decadence of Eastern spiritual civilization." At the same time, "I hope that our young scholars will devote all their efforts to studying Western civilization and accept Western doctrines. At the same time, we should introduce to Europeans the comparison of our Eastern civilization and those close to the modern spirit, in the hope that it will be helpful to the reconciliation of Eastern and Western civilization, so as to make a contribution to the second world civilization." It needs to be pointed out in particular that the "welcome" here "Compared with "accept", although there is a one-word difference, it represents completely different cultural concepts. The former emphasizes the independence and positive attitude of borrowing from Western civilization, and the connotation is more profound.

In the development process of human history, the two major civilizations of the East and West were basically isolated from each other in the long past. Today, in the environment of globalization, when we discuss cultural issues, we should construct epoch-making. New concept: With the advancement of human production methods and communication methods, and the advent of the information age, various ethnic groups and different cultures are actually interacting, influencing and interpenetrating each other at all times. Li Dazhao had already discovered at that time. This trend is reflected: Today’s Eastern civilization “should strive to break its static worldview to accommodate the dynamic worldview of the West; Western civilization should consider suppressing its material life in order to accommodate the spiritual life of the East and the West.” The two cultures "must be reconciled and integrated from time to time to create new life and evolve without borders." The result of the harmonization and integration of Eastern and Western cultures can eventually produce the "third civilization", which is naturally another occurrence in the history of human culture. Leap. Li Dazhao hopes that China can create a third civilization and make a second contribution to human culture. However, the prerequisite is that the Chinese must respect "heritage habits", no matter how sacred they are. Don’t be afraid to examine and find out the truth. If you can show your excellence, you can directly take it and put it to use." And you should also "create at all times and expand at all times."

Li Dazhao especially used Indian civilization Taking Russian civilization as an example, it proves that "the great cause of harmonizing Eastern and Western civilizations must be achieved when the two civilizations themselves have a complete awakening, and use the strengths of the other schools to make up for their own shortcomings, and then the new world civilization will be radiant and fully developed." "One day". He also made it clear: "We bear the most important responsibility for the reconciliation of Eastern and Western civilizations. We should be open-minded to welcome the dynamic civilization, so that it can be transformed and transformed into a quiet civilization, and no other civilization can be created. "Uncooked noodles". The "transformation and change of quality" here has profound meaning. It can be said that it contains the content of integrating the characteristics of Eastern and Western cultures and building a new culture with Chinese characteristics. He once predicted with great expectation: "The world will be able to combine the characteristics of Eastern and Western civilizations in the future." , the new civilizers in the world of Eurasian national geniuses, none other than the Russians."