Kingdom of Heaven and Han

Chapter 507 What is Tao?
Looking at the crowd, Wang Xiaolie emphasized his tone, and said: "To learn knowledge and to do things, you must first learn to say that you don't know what you don't know. Don't pretend to know that you don't know, and you will harm yourself and others. This You must pay attention to one point. At work, you must also observe, and stay away from those who obviously don’t know, but still like to talk. Our yamen advocates such a spirit. To put it simply, it is seeking truth from facts. The four words of seeking truth from facts, It’s easy to say, but it’s hard to do. As an official, you can try it yourself, and for the specific things you encounter, ask for truth from facts, and everything will be very different.”

"Your work is different from administrative officials. It is easier to seek truth from facts. What you will do in the future is to collect what the people say, think, and think about society in the local area. Don't think this is easy, but it is actually very difficult. People What they say, or even word of mouth, may not be what they think in their hearts. Many times, they don’t even know what they think in their hearts. The destiny is unpredictable, and it is difficult to find out the destiny from the mouths of the people. But there is one thing, you will never make a big mistake if you change the things that the people generally hate and oppose, and promote the things that you approve of. This is basic. How to find out the destiny later depends on your actual work."

How to find out the Mandate of Heaven from the people, in fact, Wang Xiaolie didn't think about it.It's just that Wang Xiaolie thinks it can be done, but if he can't do it for a while, as long as he persists, he will be able to do it one day.

People living in the world are not just individuals, but also belong to various groups and have multiple identities.Who are the people?This question is difficult to answer.Don't choose a part of the society as the people, don't take the collective as the people, and don't count it as the people in proportion.In fact, if you define the people, you will become more and more distant from the people.

This is the essence of the middle way of Chinese civilization.The definitions and laws summarized by human beings are always applicable from time to time, not from time to time.Once you think that something is eternal, you are on the wrong path.

More than 2000 years ago, elites of civilizations all over the world emerged in large numbers, and most civilizations were imprinted at that time.The imprint of Chinese civilization is Dao, but I don’t know this.What you don't know is not knowing, don't guess.

Wang Xiaolie doesn't know what other civilizations are like, but European civilizations probably know a little because they have heard too much.They think that the world knows itself.I don't know what to do?Put an omniscient, omnipotent God there.

European theories, no matter what they talk about, think they have discovered the truth and are close to God.God can have various names and various faces, but to the end of time along these theories, is always there.Whether you believe in God or an atheist, no matter what these theories say you don't believe in God, if you follow the theory, God is always at the end of time.

After sorting out his thoughts, Wang Xiaolie said: "To govern the world, to do a thing, there must always be ideas as the source. In China's affairs, everything is inseparable from the word Tao. Government offices are always inseparable from the destiny. I have time today to speak clearly."

"What is Tao? We read the "Tao Te Ching" to explain it clearly, but it is called Tao. According to Confucius, it is said that if you hear the Tao in the morning, you will die in the evening. Other schools and schools, no one makes it clear. This is the biggest characteristic of Dao. After the pre-Qin period, many people felt that they could speak clearly, and there was even Taoism, which turned into thousands of gods. If they thought they could speak clearly, it was no longer Dao.”

"We are human beings, living in the world of mortals. To view all things in nature, we rely on seeing, hearing, smelling, and tasting. Can this clearly detect the natural things? In fact, we can't. Human knowledge, we give various names to all things in the world. These names are connected to form various knowledge. These knowledge create a world that is different from the real world. What is this called? The ancients called it It is the distinction between name and reality. In the pre-Qin period, the distinction between name and reality was very popular. The most famous ones were famous scholars, such as Gongsun Long and Deng Xi. Later generations always think that they have figured out the issues discussed by famous scholars. Is it true or not? Is it really clear? I can’t see it. The distinction between name and reality should not just be based on what they are arguing about, but should be viewed in two worlds. One is the real world and the other is the real world. A world created based on the real world. The connections and differences between these two worlds affect people's thinking all the time."

"Is the Tao the real world? Or the world of the name? Actually, it is neither. It is neither one of these two worlds, nor is it a simple sum of these two worlds. It should include these two worlds, and some we say Unclear existence. We explore the truth from the real world, the world of names, and the relationship between the two.”

"It is precisely because the Tao is clear and the Tao is not clear, so in the world of Tao, many times you have to understand. If you understand it, you understand it. If you don't understand it, you don't understand it. You have to pretend to understand it. Therefore, I feel that the creation theory of the past and present. It’s weird. Whether it’s Tai Chi producing Liangyi, or one Qi transforming Sanqing, the more general it is, the more reasonable it will be, and the more detailed it will be, the more people will think it’s old farmer’s gossip.”

The biggest characteristic of Tao is that it cannot be explained clearly.Later generations feel that being able to explain clearly is delusional.Including in later generations, many people feel that they have learned a lot of theories, understand science, and be able to speak clearly, which is just as delusional.As for some people saying that it is a law, a principle, etc., they simply do not understand.

Under the principle of Tao, the science of later generations also has another face.It's just what it looks like, no one knows.

The science of later generations grew up in European civilization and must bear the imprint of Europe.Going down the path of science, some people always wonder if the world was created by God, is there a God?This is inevitable and does not change what you believe.

In Wang Xiaolie's previous life, most people believed that science had only one form, and human society had only one form.If it is not the same as imagined, it is backward, it is a detour.There is no way, the achievements of the industrial revolution in Europe are so dazzling that people have the illusion.Some people even think that human society should be the same, and put forward global village, globalization and so on.

Under different civilizations, how can human society look the same?Some places with poor civilization background may not be able to change human society after they develop.But a region with a profound civilization like China will inevitably bring about a different look after industrialization.

When China fell behind and was beaten everywhere, people of insight actively learned the strengths of developed civilizations.This is an inevitability, as long as there is an opportunity, civilization must absorb the achievements of other civilizations.However, learning is learning, and we must not forget the fundamentals.In the process of learning, some people not only learn the strengths of European civilization, but even learn everything.He even summed up a set of theories, starting from prehistory, especially ancient Greece and ancient Rome, saying that Europe did not lead China after the Industrial Revolution, but from ancient times to the end, where it was the most advanced.It is precisely because of the light of reason passed down by ancient Greece that it led to the European Renaissance and allowed them to have the Industrial Revolution first.

This is wrong.The summary of history must seek truth from facts and cannot belittle or exaggerate.In fact, the most influential civilizations in the world have their own moments of glory.When living in a time when this civilization has the upper hand, it is said that this civilization is excellent.Then living in the bright moments of other civilizations, is it necessary to change the term again?
If China is backward, it is said that Chinese civilization is poor and culture is not good.What should China do when it catches up?Studying these must not be divorced from reality and imagined out of thin air.Instead, we must persist in seeking truth from facts and take the right path.If not, it will be nothing.

(End of this chapter)