First of all, you do nothing.
(A) the relationship between the monarch and ministers
Dong Zhongshu absorbed the Taoist understanding of "being" and "nothing" and demonstrated the pragmatic relationship between monarch and minister. Laozi's "being" and "not being" can be traced back to the Book of Changes at the earliest. Taoist thought originated from the two hexagrams of Gankun in Zhouyi. Dry represents the origin of all things, and Kun represents all things. As the saying goes, "When you start, Kun makes things happen" [1]. Laozi absorbed this idea and pointed out: "Nothing is the beginning of heaven and earth; Yes, the mother of all things "[2]. Nothing is noumenon, not to say nothing, but a pure realm (doing is pure yang divination); Existence, that is, everything, appears as existence when the ontology plays its role, so it is represented by Kun Gua. This theory is embodied in pre-Qin works and can be called the fundamental principle of all religions. In order to "cover everything", most of the ancients explored this theory deeply. Dong Zhongshu applied this theory to politics. Establish a Confucian ontology with heaven as its ontology. "Journey to Heaven and Earth" said: "Heaven holds its way and is the master of all things", thinking that Heaven can rule all things, and ordering four o'clock, "Heaven is warm in spring, nourishing in summer, killing in autumn, and storing in winter. Warm summer and cold, different qi and the same work, are the reasons for old age "[3]. Compared with the ontology of Taoism in the pre-Qin period, Dong Zhongshu endowed heaven with moral attributes and made it more human. The sky is "nothing" and everything is "existence". Dong Zhongshu used it as a metaphor for the monarch and the minister, and thought that the monarch had nothing and the minister had it. Theoretically deduce the relationship between monarch and minister.
(B) the way to achieve the monarch's inaction
In order to make the monarch reach the realm of "inaction", Dong Zhongshu put forward the idea of "attaching importance to god". The concept of God can be understood by combining the theories of essence, qi, spirit and "three talents". Essence, qi and spirit correspond to earth, man and heaven respectively. From essence to spirit, it is becoming more and more empty, and from spirit to essence, it is becoming more and more materialized. Therefore, Taoism believes that Taoism only emphasizes emptiness and advocates "modesty" to achieve the purpose of nourishing the heart. Dong Zhongshu absorbed the Taoist technique of self-cultivation and put forward extremely high requirements for the monarch, believing that the monarch should follow the example of heaven both physically and mentally.
In mind, Dong Zhongshu said: "A gentleman should be cautious at first, be cautious, be like a dying ember, be like a man in clothes, rest in peace, and do nothing alone" [4]; In behavior, we should do "no immediate effect, no sound, modesty and prudence, look at its past, seek the sages and test the people" [5]. It can be seen that in the aspect of mind and nature, Dong Zhongshu absorbed Taoist cultivation methods to enrich the theoretical deficiency of Confucian cultivation. Behavior, mainly Shang Xian's practice.
(C) the implementation of Yin's character thought
Taoism believes that the supreme ruler should be in an unpredictable position, the so-called "too high, I don't know" [6]. This is a very important idea of the ancient "Yin character". Yin Fu's idea can be traced back to the period of the Yellow Emperor, and Huangdi Neijing was handed down from generation to generation (the original version has been lost). According to records, Su Qin and both of them have studied Yin Fujing and gained something, which shows that thought is very important to the stability of the country. Dong Zhongshu's theory of "the inaction of the monarch" is the implementation of Yin's character thought. Dong Zhongshu said: "People and ministers live in Yang and are Yin, and people and ministers live in Yin and are Yang" [7]. He believes that although the monarch is the master, he should live in a "nothingness" position and have no personal relationship in his heart. Although people and ministers do something, they all obey the rule of the monarch.
(4) Influence
First of all, Dong Zhongshu absorbed the debate on the existence of Taoism and introduced the Taoist thought of inaction. And Dong Zhongshu's exposition is very subtle. In the Han Dynasty, when Huang Lao's thought prevailed, it was difficult for anyone to point out its defects or deficiencies, but it was introduced into Dong Zhongshu's thought, which made this theory widely accepted. Dong Zhongshu divided Jundao into body and mind, and pointed out that the mind should be more precious than the spirit, and the body should be Shang Xian, thus solving the debate between Confucianism and Taoism about whether or not Shang Xian. Secondly, Dong Zhongshu compared the monarch with the noumenon, which greatly improved the authority of the monarch and laid a theoretical foundation for the "divine right of monarch". Influenced by this thought, the monarch has the prestige above the law, and the imperial edict of the monarch is providence and an irrefutable golden rule. This caters to the needs of the ruling class and is gradually accepted by the ruling class.
Second, morality is the main punishment.
The relationship between morality and punishment is a long-standing controversial issue in the history of China's legal thought. Dong Zhongshu inherited the pre-Qin Confucian thoughts of "ruling by virtue" and "benevolent governance", expounded the necessity of the rule of law according to the four seasons of Yin and Yang, reconciled the relationship between them, and put forward the views that "virtue is the main punishment" and "great virtue is the secondary punishment", which made this debate answered by the official and mainstream.
(A) the importance of establishing the rule of virtue
Taoism believes that Tao is the noumenon and virtue is the function of Tao. Dong Zhongshu followed this view and pointed out that the relationship between heaven and virtue is the relationship between body and use, and virtue is the natural attribute of heaven. As the son of heaven, a gentleman should naturally advocate the rule of virtue and implement benevolent policies. Morality and monarchical power are integrated, and it is natural to express moral politics with monarchical power. Dong Zhongshu's moral policies include "correcting me with righteousness", "treating others with benevolence", "educating people", "failing grades" and "benevolence".
Virtue and punishment are indispensable.
The ancients believed that Yang represented the characteristics of growth, openness and endless, while Yin had the characteristics of inhibition, convergence and accumulation. During the winter solstice, the sun moves from the tropic of Capricorn to the north, and the phenomenon of "one yang returns" appears on the earth, and the yang begins to rise. It was not until spring that the sun's spirit developed from the underground to the ground, and everything was nourished by the sun's spirit. Dragons and snakes were surprised, dead branches were in full bloom, and the true sun contained in plants and animals was sprouting, forming a vibrant scene. By the solstice of summer, the vitality of plants and animals has been fully developed. The sun runs from the Tropic of Cancer to the south, and the Yin Qi begins to play a role. Plants and animals begin to inhibit life activities, plants form fruits, animals are stored for the winter until autumn, and Yin Qi has risen from the ground to the surface. Plants wither and insects lurk. Once it converges, it is chilling. In winter, Yin Qi is full of space between heaven and earth, and there is no life. Sealed underground, it will save energy for the birth of Yang in the coming year and prepare for the next reincarnation.
The ancients applied it to personnel by understanding the laws of all things. The same is true of Dong Zhongshu. On the one hand, Dong Zhongshu, through the discussion of the characteristics of Yin and Yang, thinks that the characteristics of moral education are Yang and punishment is Yin. "Yin and Yang Meaning" says: "Heaven and earth are in total, one is yin and one is yang; Yang is heaven's virtue and Yin is heaven's punishment. " Between heaven and earth, yin and yang are the root of each other, and the two are unity of opposites and indispensable. The so-called "solitary yang is not born, and solitary yin is not long." It can be seen that the rule of virtue and the rule of law cannot be neglected. On the other hand, Dong Zhongshu compares moral punishment with the four seasons, and thinks that moral punishment is similar to spring and punishment is similar to autumn. "The Vice of the Four Seasons" said: "Spring and Autumn belongs to Yang, so it is a good policy; Autumn and winter are cloudy, so punishment. " All year round, you can't lose money. Without spring, everything cannot grow. If there were no autumn, everything would be over-bred. Just like yin and yang are indispensable, although yang is at the beginning of the year, it must be yin to grow old. Although yang is born, it must be yin. Although yang is raised, it must be hidden in yin. The same is true of state governance, which must be accompanied by punishment.
(C) the primary and secondary relationship between morality and punishment
Although morality and punishment are both necessary means to govern the country and keep the country safe, they are different in specific application. After Dong Zhongshu matched the moral punishment with the four seasons of Yin and Yang, he deduced the moral punishment policy of governing the country from the primary and secondary relationship of Yin and Yang and the subtle application of ups and downs. "Heaven argues against man" says: "So Tokunosuke, Yin's help and Yonosuke are the masters of the times". Dong Zhongshu believes that the formation of the Lunar New Year is directly related to yang, which produces spring, reaches its peak and becomes summer. With the help of yin, it converges in autumn and forms winter through the role of yin. Therefore, the rise and fall of Yang dominates the four seasons of the year, while Yin only assists the rise and fall of Yang. Based on this theory, the proposition of "Tokunosuke the Punisher" is deduced. It is believed that in politics, the rule of virtue should be placed in a prominent position and punishment should be placed in an auxiliary position. Only in this way can it be consistent with heaven.
(4) Influence
Dong Zhongshu demonstrated the relationship between Yin and Yang with the theory of Yin and Yang, and solved this controversial topic in the history of ancient Chinese legal thought theoretically. While inheriting the Confucian thought of ruling by virtue, Dong Zhongshu regarded the rule of law by legalists as a reasonable means of governing the country, and theorized and authoritative Xunzi's thought of paying equal attention to morality and punishment. Since then, the idea of morality first and punishment second has been inherited by feudal society.
Third, heaven and man correspond.
The correspondence between heaven and man originates from the thought of simultaneous correspondence in Yi-ology. Taoism believes that everything is interlinked and corresponding, so-called "one thing and one Tai Chi". The human body is connected with heaven and earth and society. And the corresponding parts will have mutual influence. "Ghost Story" says: "Today, those who adjust the instrument will buckle the palace and blow the horn to move. This is also true." Dong Zhongshu applied this thought and put forward the theory that the official system is like heaven and the moral punishment is timely.
(1) The bureaucracy is like heaven.
Dong Zhongshu skillfully used astronomy and the theory of Yin-Yang and Five Elements, and deduced the punishment of celebrating politics according to the operating law of the four seasons of Heaven. The official rank system of three public officials, nine ministers, twenty-seven doctors and eighty-one scholars is deduced from the number of planetarium stars. Through the four astronomical images of dragon, white tiger, suzaku and Xuanwu, the position and significance of sword, knife, arrow and crown in clothing are explained. Through the analogy of the nature of the five elements, the official position is related to the position and responsibility. In a word, Dong Zhongshu worked out a set of administrative system in line with the astronomical phenomena through a large amount of space and rigorous reasoning, with extremely extensive contents, involving official positions, uniforms, responsibilities, positions, the number of officials, and ethical norms among officials, which greatly improved the rationality and mystery of feudal autocracy.
(B) moral punishment and seasonal theory
As early as Zuozhuan, there was a record of "appreciating spring and summer and punishing autumn and winter". Later, this theory was deduced and demonstrated in detail by Yin and Yang scholars. Yin-yang scholars match the five elements with the four seasons, and think that spring belongs to wood virtue, summer belongs to fire virtue, autumn belongs to Jinde and winter belongs to water virtue. Throughout the year, there are wood fire, fire-born soil, native gold, golden water and aquatic wood in turn, and there is no end (the soil is mixed at the end of the four seasons, that is, the third month of each month belongs to the soil). Dong Zhongshu fully accepted this idea, pointing out: "Celebrating vice is as warm as spring, rewarding vice as summer, punishing vice as clear as autumn, and punishing vice as cold as winter" [9], and extended this theory to judicial practice: in spring, the judicial department should dredge prisons, remove the shackles of prisoners, stop prison proceedings and kidnap prisoners; In summer, in order to avoid prisoners' diseases and plagues, we should pay close attention to the punishment and leniency of juvenile offenders, relax management, improve food and suspend trials for recidivists; Trial verdict in autumn and winter, 10 to execute all death sentences in Meng Chun [10]; In the four seasons, judicial officials summarize judicial activities to match the characteristics of the soil. Since then, beginning of spring stopped executing prisoners from the autumn equinox of Han Dynasty, and established a system of spring pardon and autumn and winter execution, which was used by later generations.
(3) Influence
Dong Zhongshu formulated the official system according to the theory of astronomical phenomena, stars and five elements to guide judicial activities. Its significance lies in: on the one hand, it provides a theoretical basis for the administrative structure of the Western Han regime, improves the authority of feudal rule, and enhances the mystery of imperial power; On the other hand, it provides the rulers with the methodology of governing the country. The relationship between the rise and fall of yin and yang, and the five punishments, aggression and harm is the secret of governing the country and ensuring peace in ancient times. One of the laws followed by the ancients is that "the law is in yin and yang, and it is in tricks." Many of Dong Zhongshu's theories are based on the theory of Yin and Yang, and they still have certain guiding significance.
Four, three cardinal guides and five permanent members
(1) three basic principles
The content of the "three cardinal guides" put forward by Dong Zhongshu can be summarized as "the monarch is the minister's cardinal guide, the father is the child's cardinal guide, and the husband is the wife's cardinal guide". The three cardinal guides and the five permanent members combine Confucius' thought of "Jun Jun, minister, father, son, husband and wife" and Han Feizi's ethical concept of "minister is king, son is father and wife is husband". Dong Zhongshu discusses it like this:
First of all, Dong Zhongshu raised the Three Cardinals to the height of heaven. Dong Zhongshu said: "The three cardinal principles of Wang Dao can be sought from heaven" [1 1], and thought that monarch, minister, father and son and couple correspond to Yin and Yang and four seasons. "The sky is the king, the earth is the minister, the yang is the husband, the yin is the woman, the spring is the father, the summer is the son, the autumn is the death, and the winter is the pain." [12]. This shows that the number of benevolence and righteousness systems is taken from heaven.
Then, Dong Zhongshu demonstrated the primary and secondary relationship of the three cardinal principles with the theory of Yin and Yang. Dong Zhongshu said: "The righteousness of husband and wife, the monarch, the minister, the father and the son, all adopt the way of yin and yang. The monarch is Yang, the minister is Yin, the father is Yang, the son is Yin, the husband is Yang and the wife is Yin "[13]. According to the prevailing theory of Yin and Yang at that time, the leadership relationship between monarch and minister, father and son, and husband and wife can be deduced.
In addition, Dong Zhongshu introduced loyalty and filial piety into the three cardinal guides according to the meaning of the five elements. In "Five Elements Pair", Dong Zhongshu demonstrated that "The Classic of Filial Piety" is a classic of heaven according to the generation law of the five elements and the relationship between father and son. According to the nature of heaven and earth, it is pointed out that "the earth dare not have its name, so it must be above the sky" and "it is great loyalty to do things between heaven and earth". Demonstrate that "loyalty" is the meaning of the earth.
Dong Zhongshu's "Three Cardinals" thought constructs the vertical obedience relationship between the state and the family, and at the same time introduces loyalty and filial piety into the political field, which not only puts on the coat of heaven, but also makes the patriarchal hierarchy have a natural human color. However, later masters of Confucian classics unilaterally emphasized the leading role of Yang in Yin, ignoring Dong Zhongshu's emphasis that "ministers should be kings, sons should be fathers, and wives should be husbands" [14], making the three cardinal guides and five classics a feudal poison that bound human nature.
(2) Five permanent members
When Dong Zhongshu answered the question of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, he put forward the principle of five permanents and made a detailed demonstration with the theory of Yin and Yang in Fan Lu in the Spring and Autumn Period. He combined the "benevolence" of Confucianism with the "heaven" of the theory of Yin-Yang and Five Elements, and compared benevolence, righteousness, courtesy, wisdom and faith with the five elements, believing that these ethics are eternal. "Wang Dao Tong San" said: "An old friend is proud of Heaven, and his father, brother and son's relatives are loyal, courteous and have the right and wrong. The arts and sciences are brilliant and profound, knowing that the broad masses of people have knowledge and knowledge, and only human nature can ascend to heaven. " Moreover, "the way of the five permanent members should be decorated with kings;" The five decorations are blessed and enjoy the spirit of ghosts and gods. Virtue is applied to all students. "He believes that as long as you follow the five principles, you can be in harmony with heaven, be blessed by heaven, and get help from ghosts and gods. The' five permanent members' have established a horizontal relationship between people. " The three cardinal guides and the five permanent members intersect vertically and horizontally, and * * * together constitute the ethical norms for maintaining the feudal autocratic order.
(3) Influence
Dong Zhongshu's thought of three cardinal guides and five permanent members framed the vertical and horizontal relationship of feudal rule with the theory of Yin and Yang, which was established as the fundamental principle of moral education and legislation. The three cardinal guides and the five permanents corrected the utilitarian and tyrannical side of legalist thought, and at the same time made ancient Chinese legal thought dominated by Confucian morality, confusing legal rules with morality [15].
V. The scourge of disasters
As early as ancient times, people began to interpret the development of everything in the world with various theories of the relationship between heaven and man, and this interpretation has never been interrupted. However, most of these theories are lost because they are too abstruse or impractical, and some records of deducing disasters remain in the Spring and Autumn Annals, handed down by Confucianism. Dong Zhongshu's theory of natural disasters mainly comes from two aspects: one is the records in Spring and Autumn Annals; Second, the theory of Yin-Yang and Five Elements and the Yi-ology of image numbers were popular at that time. He used a lot of space to explain the causes of the disaster and the remedial measures.
(1) There is a corresponding reason why people are connected with heaven.
Dong Zhongshu said: "People have 360 knots, and the number of days is several; The flesh and blood of the body, even the thickness of the land; There are eyes and ears in the world, and the image of the sun and the moon is also; The body is empty, but the pulse is clear, and the image of the valley is also; There are joys and sorrows in the heart, air and so on [16], thinking that man is a replica of heaven. According to various phenomena in nature, Dong Zhongshu explained the truth that "qi is the same, sound is the same". Based on the above theory, Dong Zhongshu linked natural events with political reality.
(B) the internal relationship between political and judicial activities
Dong Zhongshu divided the relationship between the five elements into three categories: mutual development, mutual victory and mutual obedience, and according to the nature of the five elements, he divided political and judicial activities into five categories, such as "those who are wood and farmers", "those who are fire and horses", "those who are soil and king", "those who are gold and Stuart" and "those who are water and sheep" [/kloc] For example, according to the image of water, Dong Zhongshu thinks that "people simply worship the temple without praying and offering sacrifices" will lead to "people's illness, swelling, water swelling, paralysis and ignorance" [18], which will affect nature and blame insects.
(3) Remedies
Dong Zhongshu said: "The transformation of the five elements, with virtue to survive the world, when giving the world, will be blamed" [19]. It also explains the specific remedies, such as "spring declines and autumn flourishes", "serving the public, enriching the public, the people are poor and rebellious, and the road is too hungry". We should use the method of "saving labor, taxes, leaving the library and vibrating the poor" Other problems in the Five Elements can be analogized by the Five Elements Theory.
Dong Zhongshu also used the theory of catastrophe to interpret the phenomenon of catastrophe described in Spring and Autumn Annals, so as to explore some connection between heaven and man. Whether there is a connection between political behavior and natural disasters is controversial in ancient times. However, through his profound understanding of the theory of Yin and Yang, Dong Zhongshu not only demonstrated the causes and consequences of various disasters in the Spring and Autumn Annals, but also used his own theory to prevent and control natural disasters, which has been effective repeatedly (see the rain-seeking, rain-stopping and related historical materials in the Spring and Autumn Annals). In my opinion, many contents in catastrophe theory are still reasonable and cannot be completely denied.
(4) Influence
Dong Zhongshu's theory of natural disasters had a great influence at that time. He affirmed this controversial theory as a government official and an orthodox scholar. Politically, this theory has a certain warning effect on the monarch, making the monarch pay attention to his words and deeds, thus limiting the imperial power to a certain extent. In the judicial aspect, the rulers of past dynasties often linked unjust imprisonment with disasters, resulting in detention, hot trial, Amnesty and other systems.
Sixth, the worship of this and the suppression of the end.
"Worship the root and restrain the tail" is a deep-rooted traditional thought of China. There were many conflicts in academic viewpoints in the pre-Qin period, but they all emphasized the importance of roots and opposed abandoning them. Taoism believes that "purity is the foundation of the world", legalists take "rule of law" as the foundation, and farmers take "agriculture" as the foundation. Dong Zhongshu's concept of advocating books is mainly reflected in the following two aspects:
(A) oriented to agriculture
In ancient China society, attaching importance to farmers' simple labor can purify folk customs and maintain social stability. "Lu Chunqiu Shangnong" said: "The people and peasants are simple, simple and easy to use. Easy to use makes the border safe and the main position respected. People attach importance to agriculture, which means less private, and less private means public law. " Dong Zhongshu agrees with this view very much.
In 120 BC, there was a flood in kanto region. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty adopted various disaster relief policies, but with little effect, he had to relocate the people in the disaster area to a slightly richer place or enrich the border. At this time, many people in Kanto found that hawking was easier and more profitable than farming. So there was a wave of profit-seeking in society. People gave up fertile land and started food business. Dong Zhongshu realized the seriousness of the problem. He cited the Spring and Autumn Annals to point out the importance of agriculture to Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. Dong Zhongshu said: "Spring and Autumn Annals doesn't write about valleys. As for the failure of wheat harvest, it is written. It can be seen that saints are the most important in the valley. " He also criticized the people for not thinking about farming, and the behavior of abandoning agriculture to engage in business is to seek the end at the expense of the root and discard the things emphasized in Spring and Autumn Annals, and the result can only be "a tool that harms the people." It is suggested that Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty send senior farmers to guide the planting of lodging wheat so as not to miss the farming season [20].
(B) Based on three talents
The thought of "three talents" can be traced back to Yi Zhuan at the earliest. "Cohesion" says: "The movement of six hexagrams, the way of three poles" [2 1]. The ancients divided heavy hexagrams into three parts: upper, middle and lower. Five hexagrams and upper hexagrams are like the sky, three hexagrams and four hexagrams are like the people in the middle, and one hexagram and two hexagrams are like the place below. They understand things by exploring the time position of yin and yang and hexagrams. Therefore, the understanding of "three talents" cannot be limited to heaven, earth and people. Everything can be analyzed in three parts, which is the way of "three talents".
Dong Zhongshu asked himself in Li Shenyuan: "What is this? Say: heaven, earth and man ",that is to say, the worship of this should be based on heaven, earth and man." "In theory, the content of heaven, earth and people is very broad. According to the relationship between heaven and earth, Dong Zhongshu concretized the three talents into filial piety, food and clothing, courtesy and joy. Filial piety is ethics, food and clothing are necessities of life, and etiquette, music, social norms and entertainment activities are all necessities of people's lives. From this, we can find that what Dong Zhongshu ultimately wants to explain is to protect people's livelihood, which reflects Dong Zhongshu's ardent hope for the ruling class and deep concern for the working people.
(3) Influence
The thought of respecting the essence and restraining the end had a far-reaching influence on feudal society. On the one hand, worshipping the original can make the folk customs pure, the society stable, prevent the secularization trend of profit-seeking, and enhance the normative role of feudal laws (farmers think that worshipping the original can prevent "clever law"). On the other hand, the idea of worshipping the essence and restraining the end is mainly against "strange skills and lewd cleverness", which finally inhibits the development of science and technology and material civilization. The ancients believed that foreign objects could not fundamentally solve people's problems, and paid more attention to the cultivation of mind and nature.