The wisdom of I Ching

Chapter 101 Don't Repeat the Mistakes—Missing, Fierce, and Disaster

【Original Code】

On the sixth day, it is confused, fierce, and has disasters. ...

"Xiang" said: "The evil of confusion is against the way of the monarch."

——"Book of Changes·Fu"

【Interpretation】

The six lines on the hexagram of "Fu" say: If you lose your way and don't know how to return, bad things will happen, including external disasters and self-inflicted evils.

"Xiang Zhuan" said: If you don't know your way and don't return, there must be a bad omen. The way of a gentleman begins to diminish, and the way of a villain begins to come again.

"Mifu" means to lose the way back, which means that there is a mistake that cannot be corrected, so it is "fierce" and there is a disaster.The upper six lines are warning people:

If you are obsessed with obsession, it will be hard to get back, and sooner or later, catastrophe will strike.No matter what kind of mistake, no matter what sin, it has bound you since the first time you committed it.But in the beginning, it holds you loose, like a spider's web.If you repeat this sin, the web will turn into silk, and then into twine.If you commit this sin over and over again, it will ensnare you, first with the rope, then with the chain.Therefore, don't underestimate small mistakes, and don't add mistakes to mistakes, make mistakes again and again, and correct them immediately after you know your mistakes.

【Category】

Story [-]: Yang Xiu is obsessed with obsession

During the Three Kingdoms period, Yang Xiu, who relied on his talents, violated Cao Cao's taboo several times. As a result, he lost himself in showing off and was beheaded.

One year, the craftsmen of the state of Wei built the gate of the Prime Minister Cao Cao's mansion.When the door frame was finished, he was about to make the rafters on the top of the door. At this moment, Cao Cao came out to watch. Cao Cao didn't comment, but just took a pen and wrote the word "living" on the door.Yang Xiu said: "The movable type is added to the door, which is a wide type. The prime minister thinks that the door is too big." So the craftsmen tore it down and redone it.Cao Cao was very happy after watching it again, but when he knew that Yang Xiu had analyzed his meaning, he hated Yang Xiu in his heart.

One day, someone gave Cao Cao a box of cheese. After eating a few mouthfuls, Cao Cao wrote the word "He" on the lid and handed it to a civil servant.Wen Chen couldn't understand what it meant, and everyone passed it on to each other, but they didn't understand what it meant.When the box was passed to Yang Xiu, he took a mouthful of the cheese and said, "Everyone, the word 'he' means 'one mouthful for each person'. The prime minister told us to take a mouthful each!"

Cao Cao was afraid that people would assassinate him, so he often told his men not to approach him when he was asleep.One day, when he was taking a nap, he kicked the quilt to the ground, and an attendant hurriedly picked it up and covered him up.Cao Cao jumped up and drew his sword to kill the servant, and then went to bed again.Soon after he got up, he pretended to ask who killed the servant.Everyone tell him the truth.He wept bitterly and ordered him to be buried generously.Therefore, everyone thought that Cao Cao killed people in his dream, and only Yang Xiu knew Cao Cao's heart, so he told the truth.

Another time, when Cao Cao was accompanied by Yang Xiu on a tour, he passed by a place and saw a tombstone of Cao E, a martyr. On the back of the monument were engraved eight characters: "Yellow silk young woman, grandson Jijiu." Cao Cao asked Yang Xiu: "Yang Registrar (officer in charge of documents, Cao Cao's staff officer), do you understand the meaning of these eight characters?" Yang Xiu replied confidently: "Prime Minister, I understand. This..."

Cao Cao didn't wait for Yang Xiu to explain, so he interrupted him and said, "Master Yang, don't worry! Let me think about it." Then they left the tombstone and walked about thirty miles away from the tombstone. Cao Cao said at this time: "The old man already understands the meaning of the eight characters on the back of the tombstone." He asked Yang Xiu to turn around, and the two of them wrote down the meanings they understood, and then they paired up, and the two meanings were indeed the same.

So Cao Cao sighed and said: "The talent of this old man is thirty miles away from Master Yang!" The combination of "color" is "jue"; young women are girls, and the combination of "female" and "shao" is "miao".

The word; the grandson is the daughter of the daughter, and the combination of "nv" and "zi" is the word "good"; the mortar is a vessel used to hold five kinds of spicy condiments, which is the word "ci" .Therefore, the meaning of these eight characters is "excellent good words".

In the 24th year of Jian'an (219), Cao Cao and Liu Bei competed for Hanzhong, but failed repeatedly. Cao Jun didn't know whether to advance or retreat, so Cao Cao used the word "chicken rib" as the night password.The soldiers didn't understand what it meant, but only Yang Xiu understood: "Chicken ribs are the meat between the chicken ribs. They don't taste very good. It's a pity to throw them away. The prime minister meant to ask the troops to withdraw." He told everyone to clean up in private After packing, the generals will also prepare to go back.

Not long after, Cao Cao ordered the withdrawal of the troops. Cao Cao knew that Yang Xiu had told everyone the secret, so he beheaded Yang Xiu on the charge of "leaking his words and teaching to the princes".

Yang Xiu's death was rooted in his ingenuity.Mistake again and again, do not know vigilance. The event of adding "living" to the "door" is "very jealous" towards Yang Xiu; the "Yihesu" event is "hateful";He hated Yang Xiu more and more time after time, and Cao Cao justifiably cut off his old grudge by spreading military orders indiscriminately.Later generations have poems lamenting Yang Xiu, and two of them are: "The cause of death is a mistake, and it is not about wanting to retreat." This is very close to Yang Xiuzhi's point.

Story [-]: Huan Wen's stench for thousands of years
According to the "Book of Jin·Huan Wen Biography", Huan Wen was already powerful in the Eastern Jin Dynasty, powerful and powerful to the monarch, but he was still not satisfied.He once stroked his pillow at night and sighed: "Neither can it last forever, but it can't be left behind forever!" In order to claim credit, he ignored the opinions of the court and led his troops to the Northern Expedition when the country was not recovering and the situation was in dire straits.In the Battle of Fangtou, he was chased by 3 cavalry from the Murong army. "The Wen army was defeated and [-] people died."Since then, the ruling and opposition parties have been shaken, and the country is declining day by day.Huan Wen failed to achieve fame, but was blamed, and soon died of illness.

Many people are obsessed with their mistakes, and think that continuing to walk after making mistakes is a manifestation of their fortitude; some people regret their mistakes in their hearts, but they cannot show them on the outside.At the beginning of their mistakes they are considered inattentive, but at the end they are considered fools.Temporary rash promises and wrong decisions should not limit our progress, but some people continue their foolish behavior after making mistakes, which is the manifestation of a complete fool.

Story [-]: Han Yuzhou is obsessed with obsession

During the Southern Song Dynasty, when Han Yuzhou was a county captain in Nanhai County, he hired a wise scholar, and Han Yuzhou trusted him very much.But after Han Nizhou was promoted, the two broke off contact.During the Ningzong period, Han Yuzhou was a foreign relative, Ren Pingzhang, in charge of state affairs, and when he encountered difficult things, he would often think of that scholar.

One day, the scholar suddenly asked to see Han Nizhou.It turned out that he had already won the Jinshi, and after resigning, he was at home.Han Tuozhou asked him to stay as an aide and give him generous treatment.The scholar didn't want to enter the officialdom again, but Han Tuozhou was determined not to let him go, so he had to agree to stay for a while.Han Tuozhou regards him as his confidant and talks about almost everything.Soon, the scholar proposed to leave. Seeing that he was determined to go, Han Tuozhou agreed and held a farewell banquet for him.While drinking, the two recalled the scene of working together in the South China Sea, and had a good chat.In the middle of the night, Han Tuozhou stepped back, moved his seat in front of him, and asked him, "I am in charge of state affairs now, and I am seeking national rejuvenation. What do the public opinions outside say?"

The scholar picked up a glass of wine, drank it down, sighed and said, "Pingzhang's family is in danger of perishing, what else can I say?" Ask: "Is it really so serious? What is the reason for this?"

The scholar looked at Han Nizhou suspiciously, shook his head and said, "The danger is so obvious, why did Pingzhang turn a blind eye? You did not contribute to the establishment of the empress, and the empress must be resentful; the establishment of the crown prince was not due to you." How could the crown prince not hate you? Zhu Wei, Peng Guinian, Zhao Ruyu and other Confucianists were called "sages and gentlemen" by the people at that time, but you dismissed them from their posts and exiled them. The scholar-bureaucrats must love you I am dissatisfied. There is nothing wrong with your advocacy of the Northern Expedition, but our army suffered heavy casualties during the war. The bones of the soldiers of the three armies were abandoned on various battlefields. I hate you; the Northern Expedition has added a heavy burden to the people in the south, and the poor can hardly survive, so the people all over the world will also blame you. Can you bear so much resentment by yourself?"

Han Nizhou was shocked when he heard this, sweating profusely, and asked: "You and I are called superiors and subordinates. In fact, I treat you like brothers and sisters. Can you refuse to save me? You must teach me how to save myself." !" The scholar refused again and again, but Han Nizhou persisted in questioning, relying on his drunkenness.The scholar finally said: "There is a solution, and I'm afraid you won't listen to me."

The scholar said sincerely: "The current sage is still free and easy, and he is not very greedy for the throne. If you can set up the East Palace for the crown prince, and then use the stories of Yao, Shun, and Yu in the past to persuade the emperor to pass the throne to the crown prince. Then the crown prince will turn to thank you. Once the crown prince ascends the throne, the queen will be honored as the empress dowager. Even if she still resents you, she will be powerless to retaliate. Then she will take advantage of the opportunity of assisting the new king to refresh the state affairs. You should chase down the sages and gentlemen who died in exile, comfort their families, and call the living back to the court for reuse. You also need to stabilize the frontiers, don't act rashly, and reward the entire army and soldiers, and sympathize with the dead. This will eliminate the gap between you and the army. If you can do this, you may be able to turn danger into safety, and turn disaster into blessing."

Han Tuozhou was greedy for power and position, and refused to let Xian abdicate.The ambition of the Northern Expedition to the Central Plains and unify the world has not disappeared, so the scholar's suggestion was not adopted.Seeing that Han Tuozhou was hopeless, the scholar left not long after.

Later, Han Tuozhou launched the "Kaixi Northern Expedition" and suffered a disastrous defeat.The Southern Song Dynasty was forced to seek peace with the Kingdom of Jin in the north, and the Kingdom of Jin made it one of the conditions for the peace negotiation to pursue the "crime" of the leader of the Northern Expedition. Han Tuozhou was executed, and his head was put in a box and given to the Kingdom of Jin.

【The Heart of the Book of Changes】

We often like to have a "no change" attitude about our opinions and actions.Of course, if your claims are truly infallible, there is no harm in having this attitude.But how many people in the world are infallible in their opinions or actions?Who dares to say that he has never missed a word or missed a thing?

So, when you are insisting on one thing, it is best to think about whether there is a flawless reason for your persistence?Or are you just "saving face"?If after careful consideration, you find that you have wrong motives involved, then you should withdraw this insistence as soon as possible, because the behavior of "saving face" is the most likely to make people lose their minds, if you continue to persist.The result can only be to let people attack to their heart's content, but they themselves have become victims who have no ability to resist.

One should not say in one's heart: "I am so far away from evil things that they will not harm me." A drop of water wears away a stone, and by doing evil bit by bit, a man will become a lunatic full of evil.

In the same way, when a man is clean of bad and wanton things, he takes care to keep away from them all.Once or twice he does something wrong, he becomes less careful, and the vice takes over.If it is dirty, clean it up and be more careful; if you have committed a crime, you must repent, and you must guard against sin.

When young people just starting out in life set out on a new path, they find paths that are unfamiliar, but smooth, inviting, and exciting.And when you think of returning to the main road from these small roads, you don't know how to do it anymore, you can only keep going, going farther and farther, until you reach the end of destruction.

Therefore, in life and actions, one should not make mistakes and be unwilling to repent, let alone make mistakes again and again, making it hard to return.

(End of this chapter)