The wisdom of I Ching

Chapter 115 Don't Experiment with Yourself in the Face of Temptation

【Original Code】

Six three, that is, the deer has no danger, but enters the forest;

"Elephant" says: That is to say, the deer has no fear, and it follows the birds.Gentlemen give it up, and go to be stingy and poor.

—— "Book of Changes Tun"

【Interpretation】

"Tun" hexagram six and three lines: When hunting wild deer, if there is no guide who is familiar with the mountain forest, when the deer escapes into the mountain forest, it is better for a smart person to give up hunting, because blindly entering the mountain forest will be dangerous.

"Xiang Ci" said: When hunting wild deer, there is no guide to guide the way, and the intention is to abandon the wild deer.Those who know how to give up know that it is dangerous to go deep into the mountains, because there is no other good way.

The sixth and third line of hexagram "Tun" uses hunting in the forest as a metaphor, which shows the principle of "knowing the current affairs and knowing how to give up".It enlightens people: in the face of temptation, one must keep a clear mind, learn to give up, do something only by doing nothing, and don't make big mistakes because of small things, and try it yourself.

From a modern point of view, "deer" can be regarded as an object that people generally pursue, such as fame, power, wealth, money, beauty and even career.In this way, "There is no danger to the deer", that is, the question of giving up and taking, refraining from doing and doing something has a strong enlightenment for us.

【Category】

Story [-]: Zheng Banqiao lost the big because of small things
Zheng Banqiao, a representative of the "Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou" and a famous calligrapher and painter in the Qing Dynasty, was very good at painting bamboo, orchid, stone, and chrysanthemum, and he was also good at writing calligraphy.So at that time, there were many people who came to ask for his calligraphy and painting, including many children from rich families.However, Zheng Banqiao is a person who is proud of his talents and despises the powerful, and often rejects some rich people and dignitaries.

A rich man built a new villa. Although it looks magnificent, it lacks elegance.So, he wanted to ask Zheng Banqiao to make two calligraphy and paintings for him to get rid of the vulgarity.But he visited the door many times, but was rejected by Zheng Banqiao.

One day, Zheng Banqiao went out for a walk, and suddenly heard the melodious sound of the piano from a distance, the music was very elegant and unusual.So he followed the sound and found that the sound of the piano came from a house.The gate of the house was half-hidden, Zheng Banqiao pushed the door open, and he was greatly surprised by the scene in front of him: in the courtyard there were green bamboos and strange stones, and in the bamboo forest an old man with a childlike face and a silver bun was playing the piano.Truly a wonderful drawing!

The old man stopped abruptly when he saw someone coming, and Zheng Banqiao was a little embarrassed to see that he had spoiled his interest, but the old man didn't care and enthusiastically let him take a seat.The two talked about poetry and piano, and the chat was very speculative.When the conversation was in full swing, Zheng Banqiao suddenly smelled a strong smell of dog meat, and his saliva couldn't help but flow down.But after a while, I saw a servant holding a jug of wine and a large bowl of dog meat exuding fragrance, and brought them in front of them.When Zheng Banqiao saw the dog meat, he even forgot the polite refusal, and couldn't wait to drink and eat it.

After eating the dog meat like the wind swept away, Zheng Banqiao realized that he didn't even know the family's name, so he just ate it here in a daze.At this time, the wine and food are full, so you can't just shake your sleeves and leave!So, he offered to make some calligraphy and paintings for the old man.

After Zheng Banqiao finished painting, he asked the old man's name, and the old man reported one. After hearing it, Zheng Banqiao thought it was familiar to him, but he couldn't remember where he had heard it before, but finally he wrote "a gift to XX" on the signature.Seeing that the old man smiled with satisfaction, Zheng Banqiao also left.

Unexpectedly, the next day, Zheng Banqiao's calligraphy and paintings were hung in the rich man's villa, and the rich man invited many guests to enjoy them together.The guests thought he had bought it at a high price, but when they saw his name on the calligraphy and painting, they believed that Zheng Banqiao had painted it specially for him.

The news reached Zheng Banqiao's ears.He followed the walking route that day, trying to find the old man to question what happened, only to find that he went to an uninhabited house that day, Zheng Banqiao realized that he was greedy for dog meat, and fell into the trap of others... As the saying goes Said: Take others' hands short, eat others' mouths soft.Some people will exchange some small favors in exchange for greater benefits.And if you accept the benefits of others, you will not be able to stand up for yourself objectively, fairly, and wisely on issues of principle, and you will appear to lack confidence, and mistakes will follow.Therefore, we should not just accept sudden benefits.

Comrade Chen Yi once said: "If you don't stretch out your hand, you will be caught." It means that once you take advantage of others and refuse their requests, you will be embarrassed to speak up, especially when facing some people who seek improper benefits by this .Therefore, it is necessary to know the choice in the face of temptation, and not to try it yourself.In the face of big right and wrong, keep an absolutely clear mind, do something and not do something, and only then can you avoid the traps of conspiracy in time.

Story [-]: The Zhuo family seeks far away
The Zhuo family is not only a well-known rich man in the Bashu area, but also a little famous all over the country.His ancestors were Zhao people in the Warring States period.In that generation, the ironware smelted by the old Zhuo family was famous far and wide.

After Qin destroyed Zhao, the wealthy people from all over the country were moved to the capital Xianyang to control it.However, the wealthy people in Zhao State were moved to Shu.As the saying goes: "The road to Shu is difficult, and it is difficult to go to the blue sky." At that time, the road to Shu was extremely inconvenient, but Zhuo and his wife were not afraid of hardships and dangers, pushed the car, and finally came to the southwest of Shu.

The territory of Shu is vast and fertile, but the population is very sparse.Many people who moved here hoped to settle in Jiamengguan, which is a little closer to the mainland.To achieve this goal, they even did not hesitate to spend money to bribe local officials.Zhuo thought, since he came from such a long distance, he should find a place in Shu where he could give full play to his strengths.So he took the initiative to ask to go to the farther Linqiong area. He said: "The land in Jiamengguan is barren, and the land under Minshan Mountain is fertile. You will not be hungry until you die. The people there are good at weaving, and it is more convenient to do business." It turned out that , Zhuo had already made up his mind.The land of Shu is a land of abundance, and there is a shortage of ironware in the areas where the ethnic minorities live together in the southwest.In this way, selling ironware can make a lot of money.

The Zhuo family settled down in the Linqiong area, and he found rich iron ore resources, so he resumed his old business.The blast furnace was built, the bellows sounded, and his iron smelting and forging business became more and more prosperous. The popularity of iron in this area was much stronger than that in the interior.

The scale of his workshop was not small at that time, with more than 800 domestic slaves.In this way, the Zhuo family has earned enough money from smelting, and can travel to the beautiful virgin forests and shoot and hunt in natural pastures at any time.This kind of carefree life is not comparable to even princes and generals.

This is the story of Zhuo’s abandoning the near and seeking the far, which enlightens us: whether it is in the shopping mall or in the workplace, in order to seek development, we must not only dare to compete for the market, but also be good at opening up new territories.Fighting hard in a place where competitors are concentrated may be able to gain a place, but it is not easy.And if you change your thinking, avoid fierce competition, and open up a new market, you may get twice the result with half the effort.

Story [-]: Er Taixun's younger brother
Ertai was the governor of Yunnan and Guizhou during the Yongzheng period of the Qing Dynasty, and later served as a scholar of the Wuyingdian University.Although he occupies a high position, he lives a frugal life. He has repeatedly warned his family members not to live too extravagantly, otherwise it will cause disasters.Among them, his admonition to his younger brother is praised by later generations.

Ertai's younger brother Erqi grew up with his elder brother, but their personalities and qualities are quite different.After Ertai became an official, he remained simple as always; while Erqi began to pursue enjoyment after becoming an official.Ertai has warned his younger brother many times not to get carried away with success for a while, but out of respect for his elder brother, Erqi often puts in his left ear and out of his right ear, agrees verbally, and does not restrain himself in action.In the fifth year of Yongzheng, Emperor Yongzheng promoted Erqi to be the commander of the nine-door infantry and the Minister of the Ministry of War.Unexpectedly, Ertai was deeply disturbed when he got the good news.He knows that although his younger brother is talented, he can't put state affairs first, and the commander of the infantry and the secretary of the Ministry of War are important positions in the military. is extremely disadvantageous.So Ertai asked to see Emperor Yongzheng and asked him to take back his will.

Emperor Yongzheng asked with a smile: "Your brother is against you?" Ertai replied: "Military power is unified, and it cannot be inspired by future generations." Emperor Yongzheng disagreed and still insisted on his own opinion. idea.Sure enough, as Ertai expected, Erqi's life became more corrupt after he was promoted.Ertai has noticed and heard about this.

Once, after Ertai retired from the court, he passed by Erqi's house and wanted to go in to learn about his younger brother's life.When he walked into his younger brother's house, he felt uneasy.It is magnificent and luxurious here.He came to Erqi's study, opened the curtain, and was about to step in, but "seeing the beautiful furnishings, he followed the heroes", so Ertai was furious and "leaved without entering".

Erqi found that his brother couldn't get in through the curtain, so he immediately chased him out, "I'm anxious to ask my brother what happened."Ertai stood in the middle of the courtyard, in front of everyone, and severely reprimanded him, saying: "You remember that my brother had no house and lived in the ancestral hall? I just got my ambitions, and I am extravagant like this! I know that disasters will not follow." Erqi cried bitterly after hearing this, and immediately knelt at Ertai's feet to ask for forgiveness.Seeing that his younger brother had repented, Ertai's anger subsided.

In the future, whenever Erqi heard that his brother was coming, he would hide his treasures before he dared to meet him.In fact, he didn't really listen to his brother's warning. Although he deceived his brother for a while, he was finally convicted of embezzling and breaking the law in the 11th year of Yongzheng (1733).

If a person lives for a lifetime, if he can't "give up", he can't "take"; if he does everything, he may do nothing.In life, there are good things worth pursuing, but there should also be things we need to give up.For ordinary people, because of their interests, they are really unwilling to make up their minds to give up, and many people are paying a heavy price because of their reluctance to give up.But as a human being, you should play it by ear, and give up when you give up.If you continue to be obsessed, disaster will inevitably come.

【The Heart of the Book of Changes】

We must learn to choose and know how to give up.Mencius has a famous saying: "If a man does not do something, then he can do something." It shows that life is short, and living is not easy.A wise person knows what not to do, knows to seek good luck and avoid bad luck, and knows that certain things must not be done.

This kind of flexibility is the brilliance of a person who achieves great things.To be a person, you must choose, give up, respond to changing situations in a timely manner, and choose the way that is most beneficial to you to fight.Many people in life have the courage to give up and keep their capital for future development.The famous writers Lu Xun and Guo Moruo originally studied medicine. If they did not abandon medicine and pursue literature, they might become famous doctors of a generation, but they would never have outstanding literary achievements later; if Mao Zedong launched the "Autumn Harvest Uprising" and continued to implement The plan to attack Changsha is bound to hit a stone with a pebble, but he chose to retreat to the mountains and found a road of "encircling the city from the countryside", which can be said to be a step back.

Giving up is a kind of wisdom for those who have courage. As the line says, smart people do what they know and do not act blindly for small gains; Kangzhuang Avenue.If a gentleman wants to achieve something, he must do something and not do something.

(End of this chapter)