The wisdom of I Ching

Chapter 90 People have no long-term worries, but they must have near-term worries——Walking on the frost, the ice is so hard

【Original Code】

On the sixth day of the year, frost and ice are reaching.

"Xiang" says: Walking on the frost, the ice is solid, and the yin begins to congeal, and it is tamed to its way, until it is hard ice.

—— "Book of Changes·Kun"

A gentleman is safe but does not forget danger, survives but does not forget death, governs but does not forget chaos, so that the state can be preserved with his own safety.

—— "Book of Changes Colexes"

Ninety-five, rest or not, my lord.Its death and its death are tied to bud mulberry.

"Xiang" said: The auspiciousness of an adult comes from the right position.

—— "Book of Changes No"

【Interpretation】

On the sixth line of the hexagram "Kun", since the feet are covered with frost, the hard ice will not be far away.

"Xiang Zhuan" said: "Frost has been stepped on under the feet, and solid ice will not be far away. Yin Qi will start to condense, and if it develops naturally, it will eventually form solid ice."

"Book of Changes: Xici" says: When a gentleman is at ease, he must not forget danger, when he is alive, he must not forget death, and in peacetime, he must not forget turmoil, so that he can keep himself safe and the country can be preserved.

"No" hexagram nine and five lines say: the vigilance is overthrown, and it will be auspicious for nobles and princes to keep this in mind.The fate of the country seems to be tied to the weak bracts and mulberry branches.

"Xiangci" said: Noble Wang Gongan does not forget that danger is auspicious.Because people like him worry about the country and the king, talent and virtue are in their place.

In everything, "forewarning makes things happen, and not forewarning makes them useless." This is the best choice for a safe life.One must be predictable in dealing with the world, be prepared for danger in times of peace, and plan for a rainy day.Everything should be planned in advance, so that when danger suddenly comes, you will not be in a hurry and at a loss.

There will always be times in life when things go wrong, and this is unavoidable for anyone.However, as long as you can prepare early, everything will be saved.In real life, we should think of frustration when we are proud, carry an umbrella when it is sunny, and think of unlucky things when we are lucky. Only by doing this can we ensure a smooth life.

In fact, good things often breed "bad" seeds, and today's success may be tomorrow's failure.As Lao Tzu said: "When misfortune comes, good fortune rests; when good fortune comes, misfortune rests." Therefore, when we look at things, we should take a long-term view.Be far-sighted, be prepared for danger in times of peace, be born in adversity, die in peace, and look to the future, so that everything can go smoothly and auspiciously live.

【Category】

Story [-]: Fan Li resigned from office and went back to seclusion

Fan Li served Goujian, the king of Yue, with hard work and dedication, and foresight for Goujian for more than 20 years. In the end, he destroyed the state of Wu and wiped out the humiliation of Kuaiji.From this, he gave orders to all countries in the Central Plains, and Goujian became the hegemony because of this, and Fan Li was known as the "General".

After returning to Yue Kingdom, Fan Li believed that it was difficult to live in peace for a long time under the prestige.Moreover, Gou Jian is a man who can share adversity with him, but it is difficult to share happiness with him, so he wrote a letter to say goodbye to Gou Jian, saying: "I heard that when the monarch is worried, the ministers should share the sorrows; when the monarch is humiliated, the ministers should die. In the past, the king I was humiliated in Mount Kuaiji, and the reason why I did not die was for the great cause of revenge. Now that the shame has been cleared, I request to be punished for humiliating the king in Mount Kuaiji.”

Gou Jian said: "I want you to share and own the Yue Kingdom with me. Otherwise, I will punish you." Fan Li said: "The king acts according to the law, and the minister acts according to his will." So he took the boat with his servants privately Floating away over the sea, he did not return to the country of Yue in the end.

After Fan Li came to Qi State, he changed his name and surname, worked hard by the sea, and worked hard to produce.The people of Qi State heard that he was very capable and invited him to be their prime minister.Fan Li sighed and said: "If you are a commoner, you will accumulate thousands of gold, and if you are an official, you will reach the status of a minister. This is the apex that common people can achieve. Enjoying the honorable name for a long time is not auspicious." So he returned the seal and distributed all He gave his wealth to his friends and fellow countrymen, and quietly left with his family to settle in Taodi.

After Fan Li left the Yue Kingdom, he sent a letter to the doctor Wenzhong in the Qi Kingdom, saying: "When the birds are exhausted, the good bows are hidden; the cunning rabbits are dead, and the running dogs are boiled. You can share troubles with the King of Yue, but you can't share joys. Why don't you choose to leave?" Where are you going?"

After Wen Zhong read the letter, he excused his illness and stopped going to court.Someone slandered that Wenzhong was about to cause chaos, so the King of Yue gave Wenzhong a sword and said, "You taught me seven strategies to defeat Wu, and I defeated Wu with only three of them. There are four kinds with you, you go to the former king to try these strategies for me." Wenzhong was forced to commit suicide.

Story [-]: Guo Ziyi's sense of crisis
The deeds of Guo Ziyi's pacification of the Anshi Rebellion in the Tang Dynasty have been well known by people, but few people know that this outstanding general is extremely cautious in his dealings with others, which is completely different from his style of commanding and ordering among thousands of troops. .

In the second year of Tang Suzong's Shangyuan (761), Guo Ziyi was promoted to the king of Fenyang County and lived in the magnificent palace in Chang'an.What is puzzling is that the door of the palace is always wide open every day, allowing people to come and go without paying attention, which is completely different from other official residences where the gates are strictly controlled.Whenever guests came to visit, Guo Ziyi invited them into the inner room without hesitation, and ordered concubine Ji to wait on them.

Guo Ziyi smiled and said: "You don't know my intentions at all. I have 500 horses, and 1000 of my subordinates and servants eat public food. Now I can be said to be an extremely human minister, and I have received all the favors." But, who can guarantee that no one is secretly plotting against us? If I build high walls, close the door, and keep out of contact with the inside and outside of the court, if someone forms a grudge against me and accuses me of having two hearts, I will There is no room for a family to argue. Now that I have opened the door of my house, I have no privacy, so that there is no room for rumors to breed, even if someone wants to slander me, there is no excuse."

After hearing this, several sons expressed their admiration for their father's foresight.

Guo Ziyi went through the four dynasties of Xuanzong, Suzong, Daizong, and Dezong, and held important positions for 60 years. Although he had experienced ups and downs in the officialdom, he finally preserved himself and his descendants. It came to a perfect ending, which cannot but be attributed to his foresight.No matter how clever a person is, he must admit that there is always an invisible side to things.In fact, the world is treacherous and unpredictable, so the ancients advocated being cautious, avoiding suspicion, avoiding disasters, and reserving a way out in everything, so that you can truly be prepared for danger in times of peace, so that you can swim freely in the ocean of life .

Story Three: Li Hang's Worries

During Song Zhenzong's time, Li Hang was the prime minister, and Wang Dan was the political adviser.At that time, the war on the northwest border was tense.Wang Dan sighed: "Alas! When will the world be peaceful and peaceful for us people?" Li Han said, "Only when there is a little worry and hard work can people be vigilant. If there is a day when everything is safe and the court There may not be nothing wrong here." Later, when Song and Khitan made peace, Wang Dan asked Li Hang, "How?" Li Hang said:

"Negotiating peace is of course a good thing. But once there is nothing wrong with the frontier, I am afraid that the emperor will gradually develop a lot of extravagance." Wang Dan disagrees, and Li Hang collects some floods and droughts, robbers, thieves, and disobedience every day to report to the emperor. , making the emperor depressed every day.

Wang Dan thought that these trivial matters should not bother the emperor.Li Hang said: "The emperor is young, we should let him know more about the difficulties in all aspects, and establish a sense of urgency. Otherwise, he is full of blood, either obsessed with beautiful women for entertainment, fighting dogs and horses all day long, or building large-scale construction projects, recruiting troops, and building shrines and temples." .And these are your worries about participating in politics in the future!"

After Li Hang's death, Song Zhenzong saw peace with Khitan, Xixia also proclaimed his vassal to Song Dynasty. Sure enough, he conferred Dai Temple on Mount Tai, built ancestral temple in Fenshui, built palaces wantonly, collected and studied abandoned classics, and had no leisure time.

Seeing what Wang Qinruo, Ding Wei and other treacherous ministers did, Wang Dan wanted to speak out, but he was already caught in it; he wanted to leave the court, but he thought of the emperor's great love for him, so it was inconvenient to resign.At this time, Wang Dan really realized Li Hang's foresight, and sighed: "Li Wenjing is really a saint!"Therefore, one must always be vigilant in life. Before doing anything, one must have a vigilant and fearful mentality, and pay attention to the results of things.If things have good results, you should work hard; if you know that there is no good ending, you should be cautious or postpone, so that many unnecessary sacrifices and waste will be reduced.

Story [-]: Zhu Di is prepared for danger in times of peace
After Ming Chengzu Zhu Di became emperor, he was simply a person who cared about every detail, and he managed too many things, and he always seemed a little overwhelmed.However, he believes that the throne is not easy to come by, so one should be prepared for danger in times of peace, guard against the passing of time, and take care of everything, lest there be bad consequences due to mistakes.

For the sake of this "big weapon" in the world, Zhu Di did not dare to slack off in the slightest.He restrains himself everywhere in order to rule the world.He read the "Lecture Notes of the University Zhengxin Chapter" sent by the minister many times, and he especially appreciated the principle of "quietness and few desires".

Because he was busy with political affairs when he was in court every day, he often had no time to meditate, and it was easy to relax himself after he retired from court. Zhu Di often sat in meditation to control his desires.Therefore, he associated his desire with the world: "As a king, if there is no increase in palaces, chariots, clothing, and fun, the world will naturally be fine." When he thought of the world, he immediately became alert, and his self-denial heart prevailed.

Once, Zhu Di sent an eunuch to Shanxi on business, but soon regretted it afterwards, and immediately ordered the suspension.He refused to accept the tribute jade bowl from foreign envoys, and asked the Ministry of Rites to send it back.For such things that already exist in the treasury, try to limit them as much as possible, so as to prevent people from seeing what they like and rushing to contribute, which is not beneficial to state affairs.

Zhu Di was also very frugal in his life. Sometimes the underwear he wore in the court was worn out, and even the sleeves were exposed.He did this mainly for the sake of his subordinates. He was afraid that if the palace was too extravagant, the people would resent and the world would be unstable.Zhu Di was prepared for danger in times of peace and worked hard to govern, which made his economy develop during his reign and laid a solid foundation for the future "government of benevolence and propaganda".In life, only those who are good at preparing for danger in times of peace can do things better.

【The Heart of the Book of Changes】

"Look far ahead, be prepared for danger in times of peace", this is the attitude of a wise man, and it is also the result of analyzing the situation from a changing perspective.As the saying goes: "Born in sorrow, die in peace." Worry plays a decisive role in a person's growth. Worry can make people mature and smart quickly, and thus gain rich experience.

As the saying goes: "Preparing for a rainy day is the most important thing." The old saying goes: "A fool knows how to achieve things, and a wise man sees things before they are born." We must see the details, be far-sighted, follow the development law of things, make plans early, and nip bad things in the bud. state, or lead it to develop in a good direction, so as not to fall into a state of sudden appearance and feel uneasy.

Get ready for winter in summer.This is smart, and relatively easy to do.When you are lucky, be prepared for bad luck, bring dry food when you are full, and an umbrella when it is sunny.When there are ups and downs in life, there will be troughs, and when there are triumphs, there will be frustrations. When we are in good times, we must not be too arrogant.

There are pros and cons to everything, neither absolutely good nor absolutely bad.The anode produces yin, and the cathode produces yang. Under certain conditions, things will transform to their opposites. Therefore, when you are comfortable, you must think of the danger that will appear, and when you succeed, you must also think of failure.

If a person, a nation, or even a country can keep a sense of crisis at all times, then this person and this country will not be abandoned by the times, and will always be at the forefront of development.

(End of this chapter)