The Book of Mountains and Seas Thoughts Series: The Routine of Ancient Emperors
Finally, I have time to sort out the Classic of Mountains and Seas.
There are so many things to know, let's introduce the Five Emperors first.
One of the five emperors generally considered, there is no Dayu.
Yu's title is 'Da', which means great.
The most official five emperors are naturally ranked by Sima Qian. They are Huangdi, Zhuanxu, Diku, Yao, and Shun.
But this is not the earliest. The earliest should be the Lu family in the Qin Dynasty: Taihao, Yandi, Huangdi, Shaohao, Zhuanxu.
Among them, the Qin Dynasty ranks this one, which is the most orthodox five-party god. Taihao is the Qingdi, Shaohao is the White Emperor, Zhuanxu is the Black Emperor, and Yandi and Huangdi are like gold, wood, water, fire, and earth, respectively, east, west, north, south.
Sima Qian added Yao and Shun, as well as Emperor Ku, which is obviously biased towards Yanhuang, and directly excluded Taihao and Shaohao, the two Dongyi.
Five emperors do not refer to these five people, but to the five ancient emperors with the greatest achievements.
And no matter which version, there is no Yu, which is outrageous!
So the three emperors in my mind are Nuwa, Shennong, and Fuxi. The Five Emperors are Huangdi, Yandi, Zhuanxu, Dijun, and Dayu.
Yao and Shun, in terms of achievements, are not ranked at all. He is just an emperor, but not one of the five emperors.
Yao and Shun were completely promoted by Confucianism into the ranks of the five emperors, and they preached the virtue of abdication.
Before talking about the five emperors in my heart, I must first talk about Yao and Shun who were excluded by me, and let you understand them first, so this is a side story...
First of all, the five emperors ranked in Shiji, Huangdi, Zhuanxu, Diku, Tang Yao, and Yushun.
Among them, Huangdi's surname is Ji, Zhuanxu's surname is Ji, Emperor Ku's surname is Ji, and Tang Yao's surname is Ji, all of which are orthodox... only Yu Shun's surname is Gui (gui).
But Yu Shun himself is also a descendant of Zhuanxu, just a side branch, and his ancestor, Qiongchan, is the son of Zhuanxu.
Only legitimate sons will inherit the father's surname, because the ancient surname is not just a surname, as I said before, it is also a status symbol.
The concubine can only be granted other surnames. The Yellow Emperor granted fourteen, and Zhuanxu also granted several. The emperors of all dynasties will have a bunch of surnames.
Zhuanxu has many children, several sons, dozens of grandsons, and his descendants are divided into several big families. Passed down to Shun's generation, it is the common people among the common people.
In fact, Yu Shun's surname was not GUI. Because Zhuanxu's concubine, Qiongchan's descendants were enshrined in the Yu State, and they were called Youyu Clan, which can be understood as the Youyu Clan.
Shun is from the Yu clan, so his surname should be Yu.
But it is a pity that the Yu family has a main line and a side line that continues to grow.
Shun is not a direct son, so he didn't even get the surname Yu. Because he was born in Yaoxu, his surname is Yao... This kind of surname based on the place of birth is the commoner class.
He is the first person with the surname Yao. When he was just a fisherman, he belonged to a surname of no status.
Others hear it, what? Your surname is Yao? After thinking about it, they thought that this surname had never been sealed, oh, you are a commoner.
But in general, Shun is still a commoner, not a pariah, and has a relationship with the emperor. At least he is eligible to have a surname.
Later, because of his ability and filial piety, he was appreciated by Yao, assisted Yao, and got an official position.
Yao admired him very much, married his daughter to him, and sealed her to the shore of the GUI River.
So Shun became official and had a noble-level surname in the form of a prince, that is, Gui.
What an inspiring story...
As a descendant of Zhuanxu, his surname is not Ji, and as a member of the Youyu clan, his surname is not Yu.
First surnamed Yao, then surnamed Gui. Judging from this detail, it can already be seen that Yu Shun rose from the bottom of society and finally rose to the top. His whole life is a process of climbing up, step by step to reach the pinnacle of life by himself.
Yu Shun finally ascended to the throne of God and ruled the world. So that later, the surnames Yao and Gui became the eight major surnames in ancient times, which are beyond words.
Talking about Yao and Shun, I have to mention the system of abdication. I can only say that despite the act of abdication, the blood and conspiracy behind it are no different from those of Wang Mang, Cao Pi, and Sima Yan.
First look at the Classic of Mountains and Seas, and intercept a section of the original text of the "Shan Hai Jing" about Emperor Yao and Emperor Shun: "Taiwan of Emperor Yao, Terrace of Emperor Ku, Terrace of Emperor Danzhu, and Terrace of Emperor Shun, two towers each, four in each direction, in the northeast of Kunlun."
There are very few records about Yao and Shun. Shun still has some deeds, but Yao has almost none. Only Emperor Yaotai is mentioned, let us know that he is an emperor.
In addition, there is nothing about abdication throughout the article.
However, even so, only three words are used, which indirectly negates the abdication of Confucianism.
'Emperor Danzhu'.
Danzhu is the son of Emperor Yao, and he is Emperor Danzhu, which means that after Emperor Yao died, Emperor Danzhu succeeded to the throne.
Then for some reason, after Emperor Danzhu, Emperor Shun succeeded to the throne.
Why did all dynasties record that Emperor Yao abdicated to Emperor Shun after the exclusive respect for Confucianism?
First of all, Emperor Yao, Emperor Danzhu, and Emperor Shun, these three people have almost no achievements in the Shan Hai Jing.
Early authors wrote about the various achievements of various emperors, who invented this, created that, this miracle, that miracle, and they were conferred gods, immortality, flying into the sky, and changing nature.
It's the turn of these three emperors, but they have almost no achievements?
Or, because it involves Yao, Shun and Yu, the records about them are too subversive in the Shan Hai Jing, so Liu Xin deleted it?
Let’s just assume that Emperor Yao and Shun have no achievements.
According to my guess, since Zhuanxu became the **** of heaven, the emperor is no longer a mythical generation of great merit, but depends on who has the most support.
I don’t look at ‘Mandate of Heaven’ anymore. After Zhuanxu, the Mandate of Heaven has become the human heart.
Zhuanxu's actions have led to the fact that imperial power is higher than divine power, politics is higher than religion, and interests are higher than faith. This idea is one of the core humanistic thoughts of China after four thousand years, and it has been branded into the bones.
I'm doing fine, God open. I'm not doing well, God has no eyes.
Egypt has historical records that there were countless sacrifices to abolish the pharaoh, not to mention India, religious people are the best people. ****The highest is the caliph, the religious leader, who governs everything in the world.
But in China, the emperor can also serve as a religious leader, but the religious leader can never override the emperor.
Whoever becomes the emperor is most in line with the interests of the clan, and whoever has the hearts of the people.
Abdication is not enough, it is probably the combination of hereditary, designation, and voting.
It was probably Confucius who first proposed abdication.
Confucius praised Yao, Shun and Yu all his life, saying that they were benevolent, respectful, good at employing people, frugal and self-restraining, in short, he said a lot of virtues.
However, Confucius did not write down the abdication...
This is very strange. Confucius praised Yao, Shun and Yu all his life. Why didn’t he put the greatest virtue of surrendering the world to people on the bamboo slips?
Of course, later generations say that Confucius often talked about the abdication of Yao and Shun, so he probably really said it.
But Confucius did not make Yao and Shun courteous to the world, and wrote it in "Spring and Autumn" and "Book of Changes", maybe... dare not?
Just restoring Zhouli, no one paid attention to his political opinions, so that he was in exile for half his life, not to mention abdicating?
I'm afraid it's even more unreusable!
In order to be reused by the monarch, promote Confucianism, and reorganize rites and music, Confucius only praised Yao and Shun on the bamboo slips, but never elaborated on Yao and Shun’s specific achievements.
If you want me to say, it’s okay to write it, the princes won’t care, can it still turn the world upside down? Confucius was too cautious.
So, who was the first person who wrote about Yao and Shun's abdication in his works without caring about the opinions of the princes?
Mozi.
After Confucius, Mozi's disciples wrote Mozi's words and deeds into the book "Mozi".
Among them, "Appreciation of the Virtuous" mentioned: "The ancient Shun farmed in Mount Li, by the Tao River, and fished in Lei Ze. Yao won it and subdued the sun of Ze Ze, and raised him to be the Son of Heaven. He took over the government of the world and ruled the people of the world."
Looking at the title, you can tell that Shangxian is based on the deeds of Emperor Yao to express Mozi's proposition that the monarch should love talents and seek talents.
Mozi’s idea of appraising the worthy was extremely rebellious at the time. He believed that not only high-ranking officials such as the Sangong should be selected for their positions, but even the emperor should select the most sage.
Awesome, if he didn't know how to defend the city and was good at making military equipment, this person would have been oppressed in a miserable life.
Things cannot be created out of nothing, Confucius talked about it, and "Mozi" was put into bamboo slips.
Could it be that Yao really abdicated to Shun?
This question was also asked by Mencius: "Yao took the world and Shun, are there any?"
It means that Yao gave up the world to Shun. Is there such a thing?
Mencius replied: "No, the Son of Heaven cannot give the world to others."
Translation: Shut up! Old bearded thief! How can the emperor give up the world to others!
The man asked again: "But Shun has the world, who will give it to him?"
means: strange, but Shun won the world, he is not the son of Emperor Yao, who gave it to him?
Mencius said: "Heaven and it."
Translation: Mandate of Heaven is Shun!
This is playing hooligans. Mencius explained this: "The emperor can recommend people to heaven, but he cannot make heaven give him to the world... In the past, Yao recommended Shun to people, but heaven accepted it, and violence to the people, and the people accepted it." After the death of Yao, after three years of mourning, Shun avoided Yao's son to the south of the Nanhe River. The princes of the world did not honor Yao's son but Shun. Those who litigated prisons did not honor Yao's son but Shun. He is the son of Yao and eulogizes Shun, so it is said that the sky is also, and the husband will follow China, and he will be the son of heaven."
It's very long, roughly speaking: the emperor can recommend suitable people, but he can't just give up the world to others. When Yao recommended Shun, Heaven recognized him. It was announced to all people in the world, and the people also approved it. After Yao's death, Shun stayed in mourning for three years, avoided Yao's son Danzhu, and fled to the south of the Nanhe River. As a result, the tribal leaders did not pay homage to Danzhu, but to Shun. Matters that should be judged according to the law should not be judged by Danzhu, but by Shun. Everyone did not praise Danzhu, but Shun. So it is said: This is God's will, so later Shun entered the central kingdom and sat on the throne.
Wow, Wang Mang was imitating Shun.
In fact, Mencius here indirectly denied Yao’s abdication to Shun, because after Yao’s death, Shun kept his filial piety for three years, then stayed away from Yao’s son, left the capital, and ran to the south of the Nanhe River to stay. .
Smart people, avoid their edge, save people's hearts, and finally ascend to the throne of God.
Mencius was quite tactful, and did not directly refute the abdication statement.
But when it came to Xunzi, he was very strong.
"Xunzi": "The husband said that Yao and Shun abdicated, which is a false statement, a legend of the superficial, and a theory of the humble."
The meaning is very clear: you people, always want to make big news! To say that Yao Chan gave up to Shun is pure nonsense! It is a group of superficial people spreading nonsense, a group of ridiculous people talking nonsense!
Xunzi is still fierce, directly refuting one of the most fundamental theoretical foundations of Confucianism, Yao Chan and Shun.
This person is still very objective. Confucius has been advocating the rule of the Three Dynasties all his life, saying that the ancient times were so good, but now the Dao has collapsed. Cheng Tang and King Wen were all destined by heaven, while Xia Jie and Shang Zhou did not practice virtue and were abandoned by heaven.
As a result, Xunzi came up with a sentence: Heaven has permanence, it does not survive for Yao, and does not perish for Jie.
Frank!
Deserving of 322 chapters of "Xunzi", Liu Xin compiled 32 chapters.
It was Sima Qian's historical records that really began to officially determine Yao Chan and Shun, and there are many details. After the Han Dynasty, it was even more exaggerated. Yao and Shun became more and more powerful, and there were more and more details.
In addition, in all dynasties, there are also documents that disagree with Yao Chan and Shun, saying that Shun actually imprisoned Yao or something.
It can be said that the official admits it, but the people have been questioning it. I won’t go into the specifics, because the Confucian abdication of virtue is really unrealistic.
There is no need to continue to argue about whether it is a true abdication.
but!
At this point, I don’t think it’s okay to just deny the existence of abdication.
Because everything happens for a reason! Why did Confucius say that Yao and Shun abdicated, but you said he was for political purposes?
No, it is Mozi for political purposes! So make a note of it.
Confucius did not let people remember it on purpose, which shows that he really wanted to say that, but he didn’t dare, because the academics in the society at that time knew the truth of the matter with a clear mind.
If he had written it down, there would be countless people who would have criticized him without waiting for Xunzi to criticize him more than two hundred years later.
So he didn't write it. Since it wasn't for political purposes, why did he think that Yao and Shun gave way?
Once upon a time, I once wronged Confucius, thinking that Yao and Shun's abdication was all made up by him.
Until one day, I found out that in history, the earliest documented and the first monarch who really abdicated.
It was earlier than Wang Mang's period, during the Warring States period, Yan Wangkuai.
I don’t know when he was born, but this person succeeded to the throne about 160 years after Confucius died, and Mozi succeeded to the throne about 70 years after his death.
This person is extremely 'virtuous' and 'benevolent'. Don't worry about the joy of your children, don't listen to the sound of bells and stones, don't bury the polluted pools and terraces inside, don't hunt in the fields outside, and use Lei Lei to repair the acres.
To put it bluntly, this person is frugal and hardworking, never has a big banquet, does not go to pavilions early, and does not lead soldiers to hunt casually, disturb the people, does not have the slightest desire for pleasure, and often farms the land himself!
Such a person should be a generation of Mingjun, and everyone in the court spoke highly of him, but he did one thing, which almost destroyed the whole country of Yan.
Yan Wangkui gave the country and Zen to his prime minister 'Zizhi'.
Then it caused great chaos in the country, and the prince rebelled directly, and the army was defeated. Is it possible to give way? Qi State directly used this as a reason, and soon after, it raised troops to defeat Yan State, killed King Yan and 'Zizhi', and supported King Yan's youngest son to succeed him.
Do you know what modern people say about him? It is said that King Kuai of Yan was fooled by the Confucianists, and he really believes in Yao Chan and Shun.
Historically, the evaluation of this person is like laughing at Song Xianggong, laughing at his brain.
I thought so too, until I checked the historical materials carefully, and suddenly I had a flash of inspiration.
Another possibility that the mainstream is basically unaware of has sprouted.
First of all, Yan Wangkui actually had no intention of abdicating. You can see that this person has a very high sense of morality.
In fact, morality is also a kind of desire. He is the kind of fame seeker who wants to be recognized and admired by others, so that people can admire his lofty virtues.
To put it bluntly, show off!
King Yan went to farm in person? Anyone with a discerning eye can see what it means, but it has to be said that it is very creative. Later, in the past dynasties, many kings have learned from him to farm...to show that they love Ming as a son and value farming.
But although he is a showman, he is not a fool. demise? funny?
So why on earth did he give in?
I found out that because at that time there was a man named Lu Maoshou who gave him an idea: "It's better to use the country to let the prime minister. People are called Yao Xian, who let the world be controlled by Xu You, and Xu You does not accept it. Give the name of the world without losing the name of the world. Today the king gives the country to his son, and the son will not dare to accept it. This is the king and Yao walking together."
The meaning is: You give up the country to the prime minister. Everyone says that the reason why Emperor Yao is very virtuous is that Emperor Yao wants to give up the world to Xu You, and Xu You does not want it. Therefore, Emperor Yao has the reputation of giving up the world, but In fact, the world has not been lost. Now that you, King Yan, have given up the country to the prime minister, the prime minister must not dare to accept it! In this way, aren't you, King Yan, the same as Emperor Yao, a person of the highest virtue?
Tianxiu!
To put it bluntly, when you talk about giving in, you are actually waiting for others to refuse to gain your reputation.
Yan Wangkui thinks it is worth doing. Of course, he is not a fool. It is definitely not enough to give in to others with just a word. What if people accept it?
Then another person said to him: "Yu recommended Yi, and he used Qiren as an official. When he was old, he thought Qiren was not enough. Let the world pass it on to Yi. After Qi and the party attack Yi, seize it. The world It is said that Yu’s name has been passed on to the world for Yu Yi, but he actually ordered Qi to take it for himself. Today, the king says that the state belongs to the prince, and the officials are all the prince’s people.
This passage is complicated, but the meaning is actually very simple: Dayu recommended Boyi to succeed him, but he appointed his son Xia Qi as officials. When he was about to die, Yu said that Xia Qi was not enough to take charge of the world, so he passed the throne to Boyi. As a result, the civil and military forces of the Manchu Dynasty were all Xia Qi's people, and Xia Qi directly led his followers to attack and kill Boyi and seized the world. So the world spread the great virtues of Dayu, saying that he passed the throne to Boyi. The reason why Xia Qi succeeded to the throne in the end was because Xia Qi went to seize the world by himself, which violated Yu's intention and was not Yu's fault.
Now, King Yan, you have given up the country to the prime minister, but the civil and military affairs of the Manchu Dynasty are all princes, even if the throne is passed on to the prime minister, it is actually still the prince's.
Yan Wangkui heard it, perfect!
So I did it, and when I was old, I gave way to the prime minister because of my old age, and then I also said it.
Prime Minister's son, accept it calmly! Inherit the rule!
Yan Wangkuai is stupid...
But that's okay! And double insurance! On the prince!
The prince rebelled and was defeated...
Yan Wangkui was completely dumbfounded.
At this point, the game was off, and finally Qi State took advantage of the situation and almost destroyed Yan State. Although the youngest son of King Kuai of Yan was supported to succeed to the throne, Yan State could not hold its head up in front of Qi State and became a vassal. Without autonomy, it existed in name only, until Su Qin... far away.
In short, the reason why Yan Wangkui failed was actually the scheme of the prime minister's son.
The prime minister knew King Kuai of Yan very well, and he did what he liked, and he already had power in the court. He was able to sit on the position of prime minister because Yan Wangkui felt that he was also a person of great virtue, and the prime minister was also very good at showing off.
Many people in Yan who seem to be princes are actually the prime minister secretly.
The two people who came up with the idea were also the prime minister's people. The result is obvious, King Yan was played to death.
The prime minister has everything, but in fact there is only one status missing. Unfortunately, in that era, this status was like a gap!
He is not a royal family after all!
Zizhi, although he was successful, could not withstand the interference of foreign forces. The Qi State launched a crusade to maintain the orthodox order of the public clan and the interests of the class. All his calculations were a joke.
Returning to Yao and Shun, King Kuai of Yan was cheated. The key is that there are precedents. Emperor Yao gave way to the world, and Yu also gave way to the world.
That is to say, there is such a thing, not just Confucianism.
Emperor Yao surrendered to the world, but the other party did not accept it, but the virtues of Emperor Yao spread.
Di Yu surrendered to the world, really surrendered! But what kind of character is Emperor Yu? I'll give you the world, and you can't sit still!
In summary, even in the period of King Kuai of Yan in the Warring States Period, the world did not think that Yao and Shun were the kind of abdication that Confucianism said later.
Confucianism said comity to the world, which was a very small cognition at that time.
In this way, when I look back at "Mozi", I find that it does not explicitly say abdication.
"Mozi Shangxian": "The ancients Shun plowed in Lishan, Taohe River, fished in Lei Ze, Yao got it, subdued the sun of Ze, raised him as the son of heaven, and took over the government of the world, and ruled the people of the world."
It is said that Emperor Yao recommended Emperor Shun as the son of heaven, and wanted to hand over the government affairs of the world to him and let him govern the people of the world.
What is used is "ju think the emperor", "ju"! That is recommended.
It's just that Emperor Yao wanted to give the world to Shun. Just want to do it.
Then, that's it, what's next? Did you give it or not? Mozi didn't say anything.
Judging from the intention of Shangxian’s article, if Yao really abdicated, then he should mention something like “Shun won the world, and all the people are humbled” later, and then boast about how well Shun governed the country, It is right to use this as a contrast to Emperor Yao's "admiration of the virtuous".
Continue to disprove the meritoriousness advocated by Mozi.
Right, everyone should understand this logic, right?
After all, the purpose of the book "Shangxian" is to promote this. So after Emperor Yao's move to let the world go, Mozi should write about the benefits of this move.
Otherwise, how can we persuade the monarchs of the Warring States period to be worthy?
But no, Mozi did not write at all.
From this, we can see that what was written above is not made up, because if you want to make it up, just make up the whole set, and make up the benefits later!
Combining the matter of King Kuai of Yan, can we think that during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, there was a general understanding of Yao and Shun, that is, Yao did not really abdicate the world to Shun, but put on a show.
Of course, it can’t be said to be a show on the surface, but some intellectuals know it well, and they still have to say how great Yao is.
After all, who knows if Yao really wants to surrender? Thousands of years ago, Mozi and Mencius did not have the ability to read minds. What if Emperor Yao really wanted to abdicate?
It’s just that the other party rejected it! You can't just say that he doesn't want to let him, how do we know what he thinks? You want to slander the ancient sage?
So at that time, there must be two schools of thought regarding Emperor Yao's actions.
One faction is the ‘Zhenrang’ faction represented by Confucius.
He thought that Emperor Yao really gave in, but Xu You and Shun didn't accept it, so he had no choice but to pass on the throne to Danzhu. Later, Danzhu was no good, and Wanmin ran to the south of Nanhe, asking Shun to come back and take over the world.
Da Yu is the same way, he gave way to Boyi, all blame his son Xia Qi's ambition, the soldiers killed Boyi, this is the world! It's all Xia Qi's fault!
Above, this is the view of the Confucian school.
Why didn't Confucius write it? Because of the small crowd, at the end of the Spring and Autumn Period and the early Warring States period, most people did not think so.
The other faction is the 'Fake Concession' faction, they all think that Emperor Yao is putting on a show! He deliberately said to let the world know, but in fact he knew that the other party dared not accept it.
Do you still remember the 'Xu You' mentioned earlier?
This is a sage in the Emperor Yao period, probably the earliest hermit. He is very talented and values righteousness over profit, but he is unwilling to join Emperor Yao's leadership team.
Xu You's allusion to this person has an idiom called "Xi Er Ying Shui".
It means: When Emperor Yao was old, he sent someone to invite Xu You, saying that he would give the world to him. Xu You flatly refused, and felt insulted, and then washed his ears with the water of the Ying River.
Expresses Xu You's indifference to fame and fortune, while Emperor Yao's thoughts and feelings are eager to seek talents...
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm , in short , the "False Concession" faction in Spring and Autumn Period and Warring States Period thought Emperor Yao was a person who flaunted his virtues everywhere.
He knew that Xu You would not accept it, so he deliberately said that he would give way to Xu You in order to gain a good name.
also knew that Shun would not accept it, so he deliberately said that he would give way to Shun in order to gain a good name.
This is actually equivalent to: "Young man, work hard, after I die, you will be the emperor!"
"Well done, work harder, you are worthy of it, I will definitely pass the position to you in the future!"
In this way, just like a boss motivating his employees, Emperor Yao managed his subordinates and at the same time gained his prestige wildly.
Of course, Emperor Yao must have played very slippery, and the people he chose were all people who he could see and could not accept his abdication.
Xu You was indifferent to fame and wealth, and Shun was extremely filial. Yao saw them all clearly, so he dared to play like this.
My personal guess is that Xu You must have seen through Emperor Yao. Before that, Emperor Yao had used various other tricks, so Xu You felt insulted when he heard that Emperor Yao was going to give way to him, and ran away. Go wash your ears.
Haha, just guessing.
In addition, during the Warring States period, the false concession faction also believed that Dayu was also a false concession. Although he really succeeded Boyi, he was eliminated by Xia Qi in an instant, without even a bubble.
Historically, Boyi was not even worthy of the throne. After Xia Qi came to power, he wiped out Boyi's deeds.
How is this possible? Boyi is so weak?
It must be Dayu who kept his hand. Dayu played better than Emperor Yao. On the basis of Emperor Yao, he made a wave of counter-routines and gave way on the surface. In fact, everyone is Xia Qi's people. When he dies, Of course Xia Qi refused to accept it, and directly raised troops to destroy Boyi, destroying the dead, and then the world still belonged to their Xia family.
The above is the reason why I synthesized the reasons for the abdication of King Kuai of Yan, and the arguments of Mozi, Confucius, Xunzi, Mencius and others, and inferred the two cognitions of the Warring States Period.
Among them, the false concession faction is the mainstream, and the true concession faction is the minority.
Confucius may not really feel that Emperor Yao really abdicated. He just deliberately supported the statement of Emperor Yao Zhenrang, and wanted to show that at that time, "the rituals are broken and the music is broken!" Look at how simple the ancient times were, why do you speculate about the Holy King so wildly? He is clearly sincere, but you must say that he is just pretending to be a villain! How has society become like this now? Is there no place for a gentleman at all? '
Confucius wanted to restore Zhou rituals, so he had to maintain that the more ancient the life, the better the king, and the more ancient the society, the more moral.
If we want to find out what the ancient Yao, Shun and Yu were like, we must first find out what they were like in the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Periods.
Then inversely inferred, according to the law and trend of its evolution, a rough original appearance of the three emperors in ancient times was obtained.
The one who can be found, the first to evaluate Yao, Shun and Yu is Confucius.
Zi said: "It is so great that Yao is the king! So towering! Only the sky is great, and only Yao is the one. Swaying! The people are incompetent. It is so towering that it has success, and it is so brilliant that it has articles!"
I'm too lazy to translate seriously, anyway, he's so great! It's as if a small person is facing the vast sky!
What a great man this is. His rule will make the people feel the existence of the rule, and the people live so freely and naturally. There is no language to express this supreme virtue!
what! Shine bright!
Confucius used a tone of admiration from the heart to set off the "beauty of personality" of Emperor Yao, which is convincing!
Yeah, so beautiful, so what exactly is he doing?
I still mentioned one point, that is, Yao formulated etiquette. Huanhu has an article, this sentence refers to "ritual".
That is to say, in the eyes of Confucius, Yao did nothing but etiquette, and the rest was only "virtue"!
Got it, this is a charismatic king! What was built was a prestigeist empire.
This kind of virtue, this kind of personality charm, coupled with tall, gorgeous, and civilized etiquette, this is the core competitiveness of governing the world during the Emperor Yao period.
Remember this concept, because even Confucius thinks so, which means that Emperor Yao is the top, and the highest is to use things like prestige, virtue, personality and charm to stabilize all forces in the world and make people accept them. There is no other merit.
Conversely, the upper limit of Emperor Yao in Shan Hai Jing is like this, and there will be no other important credits.
Then next is Shun.
Shun had five ministers and ruled the world. King Wu said: "I have ten rebellious officials." Confucius said: "Talent is difficult, isn't it natural? During the Tang and Yu Dynasties, it was prosperous here. There are only nine women. There are two thirds of the world. Serving the virtues of Yin and Zhou can be called the highest virtue.”
To translate, it means that Emperor Shun had five virtuous ministers, and the world was governed. King Wu said: "I have ten ministers who can govern the world." Confucius said: "Talents are rare, isn't it so? In the Tang Yao, Yushun and Zhou Wu kings, talents were the most prosperous. However, one of the ten talents of King Wu They are still women, so there are actually only nine people. King Wen of Zhou won two-thirds of the world, and he still served the Yin Dynasty. The virtues of the Zhou Dynasty can be said to be the most legendary virtues, and this is what it is.”
What does Confucius mean? It is very simple. He said that Shun was a managerial monarch who knew how to employ people!
Combining Confucius’ praise of Emperor Shun’s filial piety, and Emperor Shun’s childhood was poor, his parents were stubborn, his mother was arrogant, and Shun was often squeezed out. How can he be a perfect filial son? How high is his EQ?
We can roughly understand that Shun is capable, knows how to employ people, has a broad mind and a flexible mind.
Compared with Emperor Yao's popularity, Emperor Shun is an EQ player. He knows how to refuse and give in to Emperor Yao's concession. When he refuses, he may say it sincerely, and he especially gives Emperor Yao face in his words. He always helped Emperor Yao improve his prestige, and played a great auxiliary role in Emperor Yao's rule.
That's why Emperor Yao liked Shun very much, so he always used Shun to promote virtue. This also allowed Shun to have more political capital.
Remember this concept, even Confucius did not give any actual credit to Emperor Shun, which shows that Emperor Shun capped the top, but he only knew how to employ people and was good at dancing!
I speculate that in the era of Shan Hai Jing, Shun was probably kind to others, had a very good relationship with colleagues and subordinates, and was a person with extremely high emotional intelligence.
Then he is good at employing people, who have he mastered? There are many, but the most famous is of course Dayu.
Finally, what is Yu's evaluation?
Zi said: "Yu, I am inseparable. Fei eats and eats to make filial piety to ghosts and gods, dirty clothes to make beauty a crown, and humble palaces to do their best. Yu, I am inseparable."
The translation is, Yu, impeccable. He himself had a rough meal, but the offerings to his ancestors were rich. My clothes are simple, but the sacrificial clothes are very gorgeous. My own palace is simple, but I try my best to inspect the ditches and make water myself. Yu is impeccable.
Following the charismatic monarch and the long-sleeved and good-dancing monarch, finally comes a practical and prosperous monarch.
Attention, ancestor worship cannot be avoided. From our modern values, why do we think that this thing is so rich?
But in ancient times, even in ancient times, worshiping ancestors was the most important thing. The major events of the country lie in sacrifice and Rong.
According to Confucius’ cognition, we can deduce that in ancient times, this was a king who took one step at a time and climbed to the top with sweat.
He may not have a high-level etiquette image, and may even be very vulgar. He may not be likable enough in relationships, and he may not even be very talkative.
Don't understand etiquette, not good at speech, and his appearance may be very ordinary, even after the criminal minister Gun.
He wants to reorganize the family and restore the family to the glory of the ancestor Zhuanxu's time... Yes, Dayu is also a descendant of Zhuanxu.
How to get ahead?
Da Yu understood a truth: Emperor Yao earned his reputation for a lifetime, and Emperor Shun won the hearts of the people all his life. Their countless small things combined are not as good as doing a big thing by themselves!
Subdued the Yellow River.
Note that these are the 'upper limits' of the three emperors. Looking back to ancient times, the actual situation may be worse than these three evaluations.
But the basic people are set there, and the framework is still the same.
In summary, all the clues of the human design have been collected, and combined with the "Shan Hai Jing", Yao's son Danzhu is called Emperor Danzhu.
We can speculate that the folk customs of Emperor Yao were still simple and simple. Emperor Yao was good at making big events and creating a sense of presence. Many clan leaders worshiped him and was highly respected.
He said that he wanted to pass the world to Shun, but Shun was not a fool, so he refused without hesitation.
Emperor Yao felt that it could be reused, and felt that he could control this person.
Later, Yao became older and gradually lost perfect control over the clans in various places, while Shun had a very good relationship with each clan, and made many achievements and had a high reputation.
Of course, there are still a group of clans who stand on Danzhu's side.
Emperor Yao summoned Shun one day when he felt that his time was running out.
He once again abdicated to Shun, saying that Danzhu was not enough to entrust him, and he wanted to cede the world to Shun.
At this moment, Yao became murderous.
As long as he feels that Shun really has this idea, Shun will die on the spot.
It is a bit similar to Tuogu in Baidicheng: "After I die, Danzhu is not enough to entrust the world, he can take his place."
I made up my mind, probably that's what it means.
However, with Shun's emotional intelligence, how could he not realize that if he had the slightest movement, he would be "stumbled and drowned in the Yellow River" when he went out.
Shun must have resolved this wave of temptation perfectly, with sincerity, which made Emperor Yao feel that this is really a good boy, and he was relieved.
Soon after, Emperor Yao died and the funeral was over.
Start the election of the co-lord of the world.
If Emperor Yao only appointed one person, then there is no need to recommend it, it will be that person directly. Not specified, but his son.
And Emperor Yao appointed at least three people during his lifetime, Dan Zhu, Xu You, and Shun.
So in theory, the new emperor should choose from these three people.
Why do I say that? First of all, Emperor Yao must be able to designate an heir. If his designation is not counted, and in the end, a large group of people can choose whoever they want, then it is meaningless for him to "raise himself as the emperor" to build his reputation by recommendation.
Emperor Yao gave up the world, if it is true, he can hand over the world to anyone. That's why people all over the world think that Emperor Yao is too great.
Therefore, one of the selection rules of the co-lord of the world must be that if there is only one designated successor, this person will succeed directly.
But we know from the Shan Hai Jing that Emperor Yao's son Danzhu proclaimed himself emperor.
So there must be another Danzhu among the nominees.
In fact, I added Xu You just to respect the argument of the Warring States Period.
Then the three candidates, excluding Xu You who made up the number, who will the other two choose?
From the perspective of ‘law’, select talents. But judging from the social habits at that time, the son should inherit his father's career and choose his son.
Why did you say that the mainstream should choose a son?
It's very simple. Giving up the world to others can be considered a great virtue, which itself proves that giving to others is 'should not'.
Confucius and other later generations of Confucianism boasted about Yao, Chan, and Shun. In fact, it shows that the emperors in ancient times inherited their father's career from their sons.
In ancient times, Yao was able to use the idea of "elevating himself as the Son of Heaven" to increase his prestige by recommending others to inherit his throne. In itself, Zen abdication is rare.
Other ministers and tribal chiefs who participated in the voting must first feel that Yao should pass on his son, which is natural, and then admire Yao and recommend others.
Looking carefully at the previous emperors of the past dynasties, the Yellow Emperor, Zhuanxu, and Di Ku were all Ji, and Yao also had the surname Ji.
In fact, the family world was not created by Dayu Xia Qi at all, it was completely blamed. The family of the world began with the Yellow Emperor.
That's why Yao, whose surname is Ji, recommended Shun, who had a different surname, to succeed him, which was so shocking at the time, his reputation soared, and everyone praised Yao's virtues.
Therefore, in ancient times, hereditary priority was given priority, and the son's character, ability and prestige, as long as it was reasonable, would definitely be passed on to the son.
Secondly, to vote, the major tribes can nominate other candidates, and the emperor himself can also nominate others.
Afterwards, from the son of the emperor and other candidates, everyone voted for one.
Everyone understands this vote, so it is customary to vote for the son of the emperor. It's just 'law' that allows them to vote for others.
So should we choose Danzhu or Shun?
Shun at this moment, there must be a lot of forces that can threaten Danzhu's succession, but Emperor Yao didn't kill him, which means that he is still close, and there are many people who support Danzhu.
In this regard, Shun wisely chose to quit directly and go to mourn for Emperor Yao for three years!
Let Danzhu easily succeed to the throne, named Emperor Danzhu.
But because Shun withdrew and was keeping his filial piety for the late emperor, Danzhu was unable to conflict with him, and he could not find any faults to weaken Shun's reputation, and Danzhu might not be capable enough.
So Shun's power is still great. Although Danzhu is the co-lord of the world, 30% to 40% of the power in the world actually listens to Shun!
These clan leaders may be very dissatisfied with Danzhu and the like, and Danzhu is not very good at building relationships, so after three years, Danzhu has achieved nothing! Do whatever you want.
Think about it, 30 to 40% of my subordinates are competitors, what big things can he do?
At the end of the three-year period, although Shun gave up the election for the throne, he took retreat as the next step, but instead became more powerful than three years ago.
However, Shun was still humble and friendly, and respected Emperor Danzhu very much, and sent himself out, away from the imperial capital, the center of political vortex, and went to work in the south of Nanhe.
In the eyes of outsiders, Emperor Danzhu may be pressing every step of the way, while Shun is retreating every step of the way.
For an unknown number of years, Di Danzhu accomplished nothing, and may have even messed up a lot of things.
And Shun did a lot of things in the south of the Nanhe River, being kind to others, even mediating the conflicts of many clans, and helping many leaders.
So Shun became more and more powerful, and finally Emperor Danzhu messed up a slightly bigger matter, which became the fuse.
The chiefs of many clans wanted to depose Emperor Danzhu, go to bring Shun back, and ask him to proclaim himself emperor.
Shun declined for a while, and finally found out that everyone felt the same way, so he could only lament the destiny. You said that I am a chief of Henan, how could I become the co-lord of the world? He succeeded to the throne and exiled the Danzhu family to a remote place.
A king who plays with people's hearts.
Note that I did not use "Bamboo Book Chronicles" here: "Shun imprisoned Yao, and returned to Danzhu, so that he would not meet his father."
This statement is inconsistent with Shan Hai Jing.
Shun, if his wings had hardened directly, would have imprisoned Yao while he was still alive, and then exiled Danzhu.
Then why is there a 'Taiwan of Emperor Danzhu'?
So Danzhu must have been emperor for a period of time, and the time was not short, at least not as short as the later Boyi, who only served as emperor for a few dozen days at most.
Shun is good at employing people and has a very high emotional intelligence. This is his most primitive and simple image and ability.
Such a person has no particularly great achievements, so why should he directly imprison the charismatic Yao of the previous generation?
There are so many clan leaders, and they are not Shun's domestic slaves. If you feel that Shun is a hypocrite, you will definitely lose your mind.
Judging from Shun's final success, he is the kind of character of Wang Mang, or Wang Mang completely imitated him.
In addition, Wang Mang is not as good as him, and Wang Mang finally played himself off.
And Shun's personality has never collapsed. No matter what a person thinks, as long as he can maintain a good relationship with people all his life and be praised by others, then he is such a person, and he is actually using this in his heart to gain What, it doesn't matter, it doesn't matter. For a lifetime, it is true.
Shun did not do any major things, mainly because the internal affairs were done well, and the reform subdivided many official positions.
His greatest achievement during his reign was to govern the Yellow River, but the Yellow River was governed by Yu, which means that he is really good at employing people.
Yu worked hard in a down-to-earth manner, determined to accomplish this great event and revive the family.
After countless hard work and sweat, the flood control was finally completed, and the prestige reached its peak at this time.
As for Shun, he didn't have to pass on the throne to his son. He maintained his personality all his life, and it didn't collapse until he died.
Maybe he still recommended his son and wanted to pass on the throne to his son.
But he didn't want his son to die in the **** struggle, so he also appointed Dayu.
After all, Dayu's contribution is too great.
In the final vote, Dayu won easily, and there were too many people who supported him.
So far, it can be said that Shun was a smart man. He used his emotional intelligence to become an emperor, and finally completed a good death.
This time, I did not adopt some non-mainstream sayings of later generations: Shun forced Yao, Yu forced Shun, Tang put Jie, and King Wu defeated Zhou. These four kings are also the ones who kill their kings.
I think this is unrealistic. Writing about Shun and Yu killing the king, and writing about them are actually very despicable, must have a political purpose.
Yes, I am standing on the mainstream view this time.
People are set there, and it is impossible for Shun to betray Yao in his lifetime.
He went from a mere commoner to the pinnacle of life, although he relied on himself, but without Yao's appreciation, Shun would not be able to rise to the top.
Yao married his daughter to him and enshrined him on the bank of the Gui River, giving Shun the princely surname '妫'.
Shun could fail the world, but he could not fail Emperor Yao.
Just like Toyotomi Hideyoshi, if Oda Nobunaga had not died, Toyotomi Hideyoshi would not have become a "man of the world". He started as a farmer and was raised by Oda Nobunaga. Tian Nobunaga's kindness is as heavy as a mountain!
Shun forced Yao to flow Danzhu? funny?
Shun also started as a commoner, was appreciated by Emperor Yao, and helped him up step by step.
If he imprisoned Yao, exiled Danzhu, and the people set up collapsed, Shun would not be enough to conquer the world.
Everyone will no longer believe in him. A person can even harm his own greatest benefactor. Can such a person be followed?
No matter how powerful he is, no matter how much credit he has made, Shun must not fail Yao, otherwise all the world will stay away from him, especially when Yao's reputation is originally good.
In the same way, so is Yu.
Although Yu is the eldest son, he was born with the noble surname Si (si).
Yu's father, Gun's family, is one of the four crimes. Yu belongs to the sin family, and is at the same level as Sanmiao, a descendant of Chi You, who is equivalent to a person who was implicated and exiled by his father's crimes.
Have you heard the story of Dayu's water control, have you ever wondered why Gun failed to control the water and was killed, and then let his son Yu continue to control the water?
Generally speaking, shouldn't you switch to other hands to control the water?
The emperor appointed a governor of water control. This person messed up the matter and was killed for his crime. Is it possible to send his son to succeed the governor of water control?
Many people have a misunderstanding, thinking that there is a flood, and then send people to deal with the ongoing flood.
Actually impossible. Floods are only a cause, and it is impossible to deal with them during the floods, and it is not modern. Only in 1993 was the period when the flood was happening, and we tried our best to block it.
In fact, there was quite a long gap between Gun's control of the water and Yu's control of the water. And when each of them controlled the water, it took more than ten years.
Gun ruled for ten years, but there was a particularly large flood, so he was killed.
During the reign of Shun, the Yellow River began to make troubles again. He promoted Yu to control the water, which was a mountain of kindness.
Yu, as the son of a guilty minister, was exiled, and was sent to control the flood, which was completely appreciated by Shun.
Without Shun's appreciation, Yu would never have had this opportunity.
Yu controlled the water for 20 years, and I am afraid he has been questioned countless times during this period. Without Shun's support and trust, there would be no Yu's outstanding achievements.
This is similar to Zheng He. Zheng He was a member of the exiled clan. Emperor Yongle appreciated him, eunuched him for his own use, continued to train him, and sent him seven voyages to the West, and his name will go down in history. Zheng He has been loyal all his life, even if he holds military power, he can conquer a country overseas, and he never thought of betraying Zhu Di. Because without Zhu Di, there would be no Zheng He.
Man is a social animal. There are some things that cannot be done. If they are done, this society will not tolerate them. Especially in ancient times.
It is not nonsense that the right is more helpful than the unjust.
Small favors and small benefits, the kind of "received by the emperor" is not bad, the monarch is not good, rebellion.
It's really the kind of person who lifts you up from humble beginnings to the sky, and you must never be betrayed.
It’s not a question of whether you want to or not. Maybe Yu just wants to be emperor, and it’s not something he can’t do. Yu must have already become very powerful at that time, because he has made too much contribution, and everyone obeys him.
However, it is absolutely impossible to do something like 'forcing Shun'. As long as you have a brain, you will know that if you do it, the world will be centrifugal.
Who can trust him? You can harm the person who has the greatest kindness to you, but who else can you not harm?
You are not a god, you were just a bum.
Shun and Yu’s virtues and reputation cannot be lost.
To sum up, the bamboo book chronicles: In the past, Yao's virtue declined and he was imprisoned by Shun. Shun imprisoned Yao and returned to Yansai Danzhu, so that he would not see his father again.
Nonsense, grandstanding.
Han Feizi said: Shun forced Yao, Yu forced Shun, Tang released Jie, and King Wu defeated Zhou. These four kings are also the ones who kill their kings.
Switching the concept secretly is only half right!
Cheng Tang may have exiled Jie, and King Wu must have crusaded Shang Zhou.
Because Jie has no kindness towards Cheng Tang, everything about Cheng Tang was developed by him, and Jie suppressed him instead.
Everything that King Wu had was given by King Wen, and King Wu had never met King Zhou, so why couldn’t he be defeated?
However, Yao, Shun and Yu have different natures and concepts.
Yao's cultivation of Shun was as high as the sky. Shun's appreciation for Yu was like the depths of the sea.
Placing King Wu's defeating Zhou together with them is to secretly change the concept, deliberately making people think that the situation of Shun and Yu's supremacy is of the same nature as King Wu's defeating Zhou.
In fact, it is far from it.
Shun is a smart man, even if he really wants to be in power, he has to wait until Yao is dead, and then use his emotional intelligence to get everyone to support him.
Yu is also a smart man. He conquered the Yellow River, which is a great achievement. Countless people are willing to support him, the world is not his but also his, there is no need to use force.
This is the most reasonable case.
To sum up, Yao knew that Shun would not accept abdication, so he always used the matter of recommending Shun as his successor to gain prestige, but in the end he passed it on to his son.
Shun, the first person to succeed in ancient times.
Insight into people's hearts, see through the world situation, everything in the world can be seen clearly. Long-sleeved and good at dancing, with a high emotional intelligence. When Wang Mang was humble and did not usurp him, Shun was very humble all his life. In the end, he just relied on the people's hearts and was put on the throne by everyone in yellow robes.
If you don’t fight, you fight. You didn’t do anything, but you actually did everything. To retreat is to advance, there is no need to force Yao, and there is no need to exile Danzhu. If he does his own thing well and improves interpersonal relationships, the world will naturally belong to him.
Not to mention Dayu, I know how much I admire him when I list him among the five emperors, second only to Zhuanxu. He has a huge space in Shan Hai Jing, so I will talk about him separately in the future.
In short, Ze was born to the common people, and his achievements in water control made him destined to be an emperor.
But he has worked hard all his life, not just for himself, but for his family.
His family has a very strong heart, so in the end he gave way to Boyi, but he only used people from Xia Qi's faction.
Yi Zen gave way to Boyi, and Boyi couldn't sit still! As soon as Dayu died, Xia Qi rebelled directly and took over the world.
At this point, there are no more elections in the world, perfect hereditary.
Shun may be really humble, but Yu must be scheming.
Boyi was killed by Xia Qi as soon as he came to power. Behind this is the road paved by Yu for his son.
This is the routine of the ancient emperors.
In later generations, Wang Mang imitated Shun and usurped Han, but he failed to end well.
Cao Cao imitated Yu, and when he died, Cao Pi replaced Han.
Whether it is Wang Mang, Cao Cao, or even various similar stories that we are familiar with, there have long been precedents in our civilization.
Everything we do, the ancients have already done it. If you are familiar with history, you will know that there is nothing new about everything in modern times, except for the ever-changing technology.
The essence of being human... never changes.
We are destined to be a nation that plays tricks and tricks.
After you have basically understood these, you can read the Classic of Mountains and Seas again.
14,000 characters, and only now have I finished writing Yao, Shunyu’s ‘Introduction’, Fanwai’s Fanwai...
As for the legends of Shun and Yu in the Classic of Mountains and Seas, yes! Shun has one, and he has a big brain. There are many Yu, involving the entire Shan Hai Jing.
For example, Shan Hai Jing: "Shunyi Dengbi's family was born with Xiaoming and candlelight, and lived in a river and a big marsh, and the spirits of the two daughters can illuminate this place for hundreds of miles."
For this passage, I have a wonderful interpretation.
But the space is not enough, I can only talk about it in the next chapter, because it is completely my own imagination, so it may be put in the newly opened extra volume, it is a VIP chapter, sorry.
…
The Book of Mountains and Seas Thoughts Series: The Routine of Ancient Emperors
Finally, I have time to sort out the Classic of Mountains and Seas.
There are so many things to know, let's introduce the Five Emperors first.
One of the five emperors generally considered, there is no Dayu.
Yu's title is 'Da', which means great.
The most official five emperors are naturally ranked by Sima Qian. They are Huangdi, Zhuanxu, Diku, Yao, and Shun.
But this is not the earliest. The earliest should be the Lu family in the Qin Dynasty: Taihao, Yandi, Huangdi, Shaohao, Zhuanxu.
Among them, the Qin Dynasty ranks this one, which is the most orthodox five-party god. Taihao is the Qingdi, Shaohao is the White Emperor, Zhuanxu is the Black Emperor, and Yandi and Huangdi are like gold, wood, water, fire, and earth, respectively, east, west, north, south.
Sima Qian added Yao and Shun, as well as Emperor Ku, which is obviously biased towards Yanhuang, and directly excluded Taihao and Shaohao, the two Dongyi.
Five emperors do not refer to these five people, but to the five ancient emperors with the greatest achievements.
And no matter which version, there is no Yu, which is outrageous!
So the three emperors in my mind are Nuwa, Shennong, and Fuxi. The Five Emperors are Huangdi, Yandi, Zhuanxu, Dijun, and Dayu.
Yao and Shun, in terms of achievements, are not ranked at all. He is just an emperor, but not one of the five emperors.
Yao and Shun were completely promoted by Confucianism into the ranks of the five emperors, and they preached the virtue of abdication.
Before talking about the five emperors in my heart, I must first talk about Yao and Shun who were excluded by me, and let you understand them first, so this is a side story...
First of all, the five emperors ranked in Shiji, Huangdi, Zhuanxu, Diku, Tang Yao, and Yushun.
Among them, Huangdi's surname is Ji, Zhuanxu's surname is Ji, Emperor Ku's surname is Ji, and Tang Yao's surname is Ji, all of which are orthodox... only Yu Shun's surname is Gui (gui).
But Yu Shun himself is also a descendant of Zhuanxu, just a side branch, and his ancestor, Qiongchan, is the son of Zhuanxu.
Only legitimate sons will inherit the father's surname, because the ancient surname is not just a surname, as I said before, it is also a status symbol.
The concubine can only be granted other surnames. The Yellow Emperor granted fourteen, and Zhuanxu also granted several. The emperors of all dynasties will have a bunch of surnames.
Zhuanxu has many children, several sons, dozens of grandsons, and his descendants are divided into several big families. Passed down to Shun's generation, it is the common people among the common people.
In fact, Yu Shun's surname was not GUI. Because Zhuanxu's concubine, Qiongchan's descendants were enshrined in the Yu State, and they were called Youyu Clan, which can be understood as the Youyu Clan.
Shun is from the Yu clan, so his surname should be Yu.
But it is a pity that the Yu family has a main line and a side line that continues to grow.
Shun is not a direct son, so he didn't even get the surname Yu. Because he was born in Yaoxu, his surname is Yao... This kind of surname based on the place of birth is the commoner class.
He is the first person with the surname Yao. When he was just a fisherman, he belonged to a surname of no status.
Others hear it, what? Your surname is Yao? After thinking about it, they thought that this surname had never been sealed, oh, you are a commoner.
But in general, Shun is still a commoner, not a pariah, and has a relationship with the emperor. At least he is eligible to have a surname.
Later, because of his ability and filial piety, he was appreciated by Yao, assisted Yao, and got an official position.
Yao admired him very much, married his daughter to him, and sealed her to the shore of the GUI River.
So Shun became official and had a noble-level surname in the form of a prince, that is, Gui.
What an inspiring story...
As a descendant of Zhuanxu, his surname is not Ji, and as a member of the Youyu clan, his surname is not Yu.
First surnamed Yao, then surnamed Gui. Judging from this detail, it can already be seen that Yu Shun rose from the bottom of society and finally rose to the top. His whole life is a process of climbing up, step by step to reach the pinnacle of life by himself.
Yu Shun finally ascended to the throne of God and ruled the world. So that later, the surnames Yao and Gui became the eight major surnames in ancient times, which are beyond words.
Talking about Yao and Shun, I have to mention the system of abdication. I can only say that despite the act of abdication, the blood and conspiracy behind it are no different from those of Wang Mang, Cao Pi, and Sima Yan.
First look at the Classic of Mountains and Seas, and intercept a section of the original text of the "Shan Hai Jing" about Emperor Yao and Emperor Shun: "Taiwan of Emperor Yao, Terrace of Emperor Ku, Terrace of Emperor Danzhu, and Terrace of Emperor Shun, two towers each, four in each direction, in the northeast of Kunlun."
There are very few records about Yao and Shun. Shun still has some deeds, but Yao has almost none. Only Emperor Yaotai is mentioned, let us know that he is an emperor.
In addition, there is nothing about abdication throughout the article.
However, even so, only three words are used, which indirectly negates the abdication of Confucianism.
'Emperor Danzhu'.
Danzhu is the son of Emperor Yao, and he is Emperor Danzhu, which means that after Emperor Yao died, Emperor Danzhu succeeded to the throne.
Then for some reason, after Emperor Danzhu, Emperor Shun succeeded to the throne.
Why did all dynasties record that Emperor Yao abdicated to Emperor Shun after the exclusive respect for Confucianism?
First of all, Emperor Yao, Emperor Danzhu, and Emperor Shun, these three people have almost no achievements in the Shan Hai Jing.
Early authors wrote about the various achievements of various emperors, who invented this, created that, this miracle, that miracle, and they were conferred gods, immortality, flying into the sky, and changing nature.
It's the turn of these three emperors, but they have almost no achievements?
Or, because it involves Yao, Shun and Yu, the records about them are too subversive in the Shan Hai Jing, so Liu Xin deleted it?
Let’s just assume that Emperor Yao and Shun have no achievements.
According to my guess, since Zhuanxu became the **** of heaven, the emperor is no longer a mythical generation of great merit, but depends on who has the most support.
I don’t look at ‘Mandate of Heaven’ anymore. After Zhuanxu, the Mandate of Heaven has become the human heart.
Zhuanxu's actions have led to the fact that imperial power is higher than divine power, politics is higher than religion, and interests are higher than faith. This idea is one of the core humanistic thoughts of China after four thousand years, and it has been branded into the bones.
I'm doing fine, God open. I'm not doing well, God has no eyes.
Egypt has historical records that there were countless sacrifices to abolish the pharaoh, not to mention India, religious people are the best people. ****The highest is the caliph, the religious leader, who governs everything in the world.
But in China, the emperor can also serve as a religious leader, but the religious leader can never override the emperor.
Whoever becomes the emperor is most in line with the interests of the clan, and whoever has the hearts of the people.
Abdication is not enough, it is probably the combination of hereditary, designation, and voting.
It was probably Confucius who first proposed abdication.
Confucius praised Yao, Shun and Yu all his life, saying that they were benevolent, respectful, good at employing people, frugal and self-restraining, in short, he said a lot of virtues.
However, Confucius did not write down the abdication...
This is very strange. Confucius praised Yao, Shun and Yu all his life. Why didn’t he put the greatest virtue of surrendering the world to people on the bamboo slips?
Of course, later generations say that Confucius often talked about the abdication of Yao and Shun, so he probably really said it.
But Confucius did not make Yao and Shun courteous to the world, and wrote it in "Spring and Autumn" and "Book of Changes", maybe... dare not?
Just restoring Zhouli, no one paid attention to his political opinions, so that he was in exile for half his life, not to mention abdicating?
I'm afraid it's even more unreusable!
In order to be reused by the monarch, promote Confucianism, and reorganize rites and music, Confucius only praised Yao and Shun on the bamboo slips, but never elaborated on Yao and Shun’s specific achievements.
If you want me to say, it’s okay to write it, the princes won’t care, can it still turn the world upside down? Confucius was too cautious.
So, who was the first person who wrote about Yao and Shun's abdication in his works without caring about the opinions of the princes?
Mozi.
After Confucius, Mozi's disciples wrote Mozi's words and deeds into the book "Mozi".
Among them, "Appreciation of the Virtuous" mentioned: "The ancient Shun farmed in Mount Li, by the Tao River, and fished in Lei Ze. Yao won it and subdued the sun of Ze Ze, and raised him to be the Son of Heaven. He took over the government of the world and ruled the people of the world."
Looking at the title, you can tell that Shangxian is based on the deeds of Emperor Yao to express Mozi's proposition that the monarch should love talents and seek talents.
Mozi’s idea of appraising the worthy was extremely rebellious at the time. He believed that not only high-ranking officials such as the Sangong should be selected for their positions, but even the emperor should select the most sage.
Awesome, if he didn't know how to defend the city and was good at making military equipment, this person would have been oppressed in a miserable life.
Things cannot be created out of nothing, Confucius talked about it, and "Mozi" was put into bamboo slips.
Could it be that Yao really abdicated to Shun?
This question was also asked by Mencius: "Yao took the world and Shun, are there any?"
It means that Yao gave up the world to Shun. Is there such a thing?
Mencius replied: "No, the Son of Heaven cannot give the world to others."
Translation: Shut up! Old bearded thief! How can the emperor give up the world to others!
The man asked again: "But Shun has the world, who will give it to him?"
means: strange, but Shun won the world, he is not the son of Emperor Yao, who gave it to him?
Mencius said: "Heaven and it."
Translation: Mandate of Heaven is Shun!
This is playing hooligans. Mencius explained this: "The emperor can recommend people to heaven, but he cannot make heaven give him to the world... In the past, Yao recommended Shun to people, but heaven accepted it, and violence to the people, and the people accepted it." After the death of Yao, after three years of mourning, Shun avoided Yao's son to the south of the Nanhe River. The princes of the world did not honor Yao's son but Shun. Those who litigated prisons did not honor Yao's son but Shun. He is the son of Yao and eulogizes Shun, so it is said that the sky is also, and the husband will follow China, and he will be the son of heaven."
It's very long, roughly speaking: the emperor can recommend suitable people, but he can't just give up the world to others. When Yao recommended Shun, Heaven recognized him. It was announced to all people in the world, and the people also approved it. After Yao's death, Shun stayed in mourning for three years, avoided Yao's son Danzhu, and fled to the south of the Nanhe River. As a result, the tribal leaders did not pay homage to Danzhu, but to Shun. Matters that should be judged according to the law should not be judged by Danzhu, but by Shun. Everyone did not praise Danzhu, but Shun. So it is said: This is God's will, so later Shun entered the central kingdom and sat on the throne.
Wow, Wang Mang was imitating Shun.
In fact, Mencius here indirectly denied Yao’s abdication to Shun, because after Yao’s death, Shun kept his filial piety for three years, then stayed away from Yao’s son, left the capital, and ran to the south of the Nanhe River to stay. .
Smart people, avoid their edge, save people's hearts, and finally ascend to the throne of God.
Mencius was quite tactful, and did not directly refute the abdication statement.
But when it came to Xunzi, he was very strong.
"Xunzi": "The husband said that Yao and Shun abdicated, which is a false statement, a legend of the superficial, and a theory of the humble."
The meaning is very clear: you people, always want to make big news! To say that Yao Chan gave up to Shun is pure nonsense! It is a group of superficial people spreading nonsense, a group of ridiculous people talking nonsense!
Xunzi is still fierce, directly refuting one of the most fundamental theoretical foundations of Confucianism, Yao Chan and Shun.
This person is still very objective. Confucius has been advocating the rule of the Three Dynasties all his life, saying that the ancient times were so good, but now the Dao has collapsed. Cheng Tang and King Wen were all destined by heaven, while Xia Jie and Shang Zhou did not practice virtue and were abandoned by heaven.
As a result, Xunzi came up with a sentence: Heaven has permanence, it does not survive for Yao, and does not perish for Jie.
Frank!
Deserving of 322 chapters of "Xunzi", Liu Xin compiled 32 chapters.
It was Sima Qian's historical records that really began to officially determine Yao Chan and Shun, and there are many details. After the Han Dynasty, it was even more exaggerated. Yao and Shun became more and more powerful, and there were more and more details.
In addition, in all dynasties, there are also documents that disagree with Yao Chan and Shun, saying that Shun actually imprisoned Yao or something.
It can be said that the official admits it, but the people have been questioning it. I won’t go into the specifics, because the Confucian abdication of virtue is really unrealistic.
There is no need to continue to argue about whether it is a true abdication.
but!
At this point, I don’t think it’s okay to just deny the existence of abdication.
Because everything happens for a reason! Why did Confucius say that Yao and Shun abdicated, but you said he was for political purposes?
No, it is Mozi for political purposes! So make a note of it.
Confucius did not let people remember it on purpose, which shows that he really wanted to say that, but he didn’t dare, because the academics in the society at that time knew the truth of the matter with a clear mind.
If he had written it down, there would be countless people who would have criticized him without waiting for Xunzi to criticize him more than two hundred years later.
So he didn't write it. Since it wasn't for political purposes, why did he think that Yao and Shun gave way?
Once upon a time, I once wronged Confucius, thinking that Yao and Shun's abdication was all made up by him.
Until one day, I found out that in history, the earliest documented and the first monarch who really abdicated.
It was earlier than Wang Mang's period, during the Warring States period, Yan Wangkuai.
I don’t know when he was born, but this person succeeded to the throne about 160 years after Confucius died, and Mozi succeeded to the throne about 70 years after his death.
This person is extremely 'virtuous' and 'benevolent'. Don't worry about the joy of your children, don't listen to the sound of bells and stones, don't bury the polluted pools and terraces inside, don't hunt in the fields outside, and use Lei Lei to repair the acres.
To put it bluntly, this person is frugal and hardworking, never has a big banquet, does not go to pavilions early, and does not lead soldiers to hunt casually, disturb the people, does not have the slightest desire for pleasure, and often farms the land himself!
Such a person should be a generation of Mingjun, and everyone in the court spoke highly of him, but he did one thing, which almost destroyed the whole country of Yan.
Yan Wangkui gave the country and Zen to his prime minister 'Zizhi'.
Then it caused great chaos in the country, and the prince rebelled directly, and the army was defeated. Is it possible to give way? Qi State directly used this as a reason, and soon after, it raised troops to defeat Yan State, killed King Yan and 'Zizhi', and supported King Yan's youngest son to succeed him.
Do you know what modern people say about him? It is said that King Kuai of Yan was fooled by the Confucianists, and he really believes in Yao Chan and Shun.
Historically, the evaluation of this person is like laughing at Song Xianggong, laughing at his brain.
I thought so too, until I checked the historical materials carefully, and suddenly I had a flash of inspiration.
Another possibility that the mainstream is basically unaware of has sprouted.
First of all, Yan Wangkui actually had no intention of abdicating. You can see that this person has a very high sense of morality.
In fact, morality is also a kind of desire. He is the kind of fame seeker who wants to be recognized and admired by others, so that people can admire his lofty virtues.
To put it bluntly, show off!
King Yan went to farm in person? Anyone with a discerning eye can see what it means, but it has to be said that it is very creative. Later, in the past dynasties, many kings have learned from him to farm...to show that they love Ming as a son and value farming.
But although he is a showman, he is not a fool. demise? funny?
So why on earth did he give in?
I found out that because at that time there was a man named Lu Maoshou who gave him an idea: "It's better to use the country to let the prime minister. People are called Yao Xian, who let the world be controlled by Xu You, and Xu You does not accept it. Give the name of the world without losing the name of the world. Today the king gives the country to his son, and the son will not dare to accept it. This is the king and Yao walking together."
The meaning is: You give up the country to the prime minister. Everyone says that the reason why Emperor Yao is very virtuous is that Emperor Yao wants to give up the world to Xu You, and Xu You does not want it. Therefore, Emperor Yao has the reputation of giving up the world, but In fact, the world has not been lost. Now that you, King Yan, have given up the country to the prime minister, the prime minister must not dare to accept it! In this way, aren't you, King Yan, the same as Emperor Yao, a person of the highest virtue?
Tianxiu!
To put it bluntly, when you talk about giving in, you are actually waiting for others to refuse to gain your reputation.
Yan Wangkui thinks it is worth doing. Of course, he is not a fool. It is definitely not enough to give in to others with just a word. What if people accept it?
Then another person said to him: "Yu recommended Yi, and he used Qiren as an official. When he was old, he thought Qiren was not enough. Let the world pass it on to Yi. After Qi and the party attack Yi, seize it. The world It is said that Yu’s name has been passed on to the world for Yu Yi, but he actually ordered Qi to take it for himself. Today, the king says that the state belongs to the prince, and the officials are all the prince’s people.
This passage is complicated, but the meaning is actually very simple: Dayu recommended Boyi to succeed him, but he appointed his son Xia Qi as officials. When he was about to die, Yu said that Xia Qi was not enough to take charge of the world, so he passed the throne to Boyi. As a result, the civil and military forces of the Manchu Dynasty were all Xia Qi's people, and Xia Qi directly led his followers to attack and kill Boyi and seized the world. So the world spread the great virtues of Dayu, saying that he passed the throne to Boyi. The reason why Xia Qi succeeded to the throne in the end was because Xia Qi went to seize the world by himself, which violated Yu's intention and was not Yu's fault.
Now, King Yan, you have given up the country to the prime minister, but the civil and military affairs of the Manchu Dynasty are all princes, even if the throne is passed on to the prime minister, it is actually still the prince's.
Yan Wangkui heard it, perfect!
So I did it, and when I was old, I gave way to the prime minister because of my old age, and then I also said it.
Prime Minister's son, accept it calmly! Inherit the rule!
Yan Wangkuai is stupid...
But that's okay! And double insurance! On the prince!
The prince rebelled and was defeated...
Yan Wangkui was completely dumbfounded.
At this point, the game was off, and finally Qi State took advantage of the situation and almost destroyed Yan State. Although the youngest son of King Kuai of Yan was supported to succeed to the throne, Yan State could not hold its head up in front of Qi State and became a vassal. Without autonomy, it existed in name only, until Su Qin... far away.
In short, the reason why Yan Wangkui failed was actually the scheme of the prime minister's son.
The prime minister knew King Kuai of Yan very well, and he did what he liked, and he already had power in the court. He was able to sit on the position of prime minister because Yan Wangkui felt that he was also a person of great virtue, and the prime minister was also very good at showing off.
Many people in Yan who seem to be princes are actually the prime minister secretly.
The two people who came up with the idea were also the prime minister's people. The result is obvious, King Yan was played to death.
The prime minister has everything, but in fact there is only one status missing. Unfortunately, in that era, this status was like a gap!
He is not a royal family after all!
Zizhi, although he was successful, could not withstand the interference of foreign forces. The Qi State launched a crusade to maintain the orthodox order of the public clan and the interests of the class. All his calculations were a joke.
Returning to Yao and Shun, King Kuai of Yan was cheated. The key is that there are precedents. Emperor Yao gave way to the world, and Yu also gave way to the world.
That is to say, there is such a thing, not just Confucianism.
Emperor Yao surrendered to the world, but the other party did not accept it, but the virtues of Emperor Yao spread.
Di Yu surrendered to the world, really surrendered! But what kind of character is Emperor Yu? I'll give you the world, and you can't sit still!
In summary, even in the period of King Kuai of Yan in the Warring States Period, the world did not think that Yao and Shun were the kind of abdication that Confucianism said later.
Confucianism said comity to the world, which was a very small cognition at that time.
In this way, when I look back at "Mozi", I find that it does not explicitly say abdication.
"Mozi Shangxian": "The ancients Shun plowed in Lishan, Taohe River, fished in Lei Ze, Yao got it, subdued the sun of Ze, raised him as the son of heaven, and took over the government of the world, and ruled the people of the world."
It is said that Emperor Yao recommended Emperor Shun as the son of heaven, and wanted to hand over the government affairs of the world to him and let him govern the people of the world.
What is used is "ju think the emperor", "ju"! That is recommended.
It's just that Emperor Yao wanted to give the world to Shun. Just want to do it.
Then, that's it, what's next? Did you give it or not? Mozi didn't say anything.
Judging from the intention of Shangxian’s article, if Yao really abdicated, then he should mention something like “Shun won the world, and all the people are humbled” later, and then boast about how well Shun governed the country, It is right to use this as a contrast to Emperor Yao's "admiration of the virtuous".
Continue to disprove the meritoriousness advocated by Mozi.
Right, everyone should understand this logic, right?
After all, the purpose of the book "Shangxian" is to promote this. So after Emperor Yao's move to let the world go, Mozi should write about the benefits of this move.
Otherwise, how can we persuade the monarchs of the Warring States period to be worthy?
But no, Mozi did not write at all.
From this, we can see that what was written above is not made up, because if you want to make it up, just make up the whole set, and make up the benefits later!
Combining the matter of King Kuai of Yan, can we think that during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, there was a general understanding of Yao and Shun, that is, Yao did not really abdicate the world to Shun, but put on a show.
Of course, it can’t be said to be a show on the surface, but some intellectuals know it well, and they still have to say how great Yao is.
After all, who knows if Yao really wants to surrender? Thousands of years ago, Mozi and Mencius did not have the ability to read minds. What if Emperor Yao really wanted to abdicate?
It’s just that the other party rejected it! You can't just say that he doesn't want to let him, how do we know what he thinks? You want to slander the ancient sage?
So at that time, there must be two schools of thought regarding Emperor Yao's actions.
One faction is the ‘Zhenrang’ faction represented by Confucius.
He thought that Emperor Yao really gave in, but Xu You and Shun didn't accept it, so he had no choice but to pass on the throne to Danzhu. Later, Danzhu was no good, and Wanmin ran to the south of Nanhe, asking Shun to come back and take over the world.
Da Yu is the same way, he gave way to Boyi, all blame his son Xia Qi's ambition, the soldiers killed Boyi, this is the world! It's all Xia Qi's fault!
Above, this is the view of the Confucian school.
Why didn't Confucius write it? Because of the small crowd, at the end of the Spring and Autumn Period and the early Warring States period, most people did not think so.
The other faction is the 'Fake Concession' faction, they all think that Emperor Yao is putting on a show! He deliberately said to let the world know, but in fact he knew that the other party dared not accept it.
Do you still remember the 'Xu You' mentioned earlier?
This is a sage in the Emperor Yao period, probably the earliest hermit. He is very talented and values righteousness over profit, but he is unwilling to join Emperor Yao's leadership team.
Xu You's allusion to this person has an idiom called "Xi Er Ying Shui".
It means: When Emperor Yao was old, he sent someone to invite Xu You, saying that he would give the world to him. Xu You flatly refused, and felt insulted, and then washed his ears with the water of the Ying River.
Expresses Xu You's indifference to fame and fortune, while Emperor Yao's thoughts and feelings are eager to seek talents...
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm , in short , the "False Concession" faction in Spring and Autumn Period and Warring States Period thought Emperor Yao was a person who flaunted his virtues everywhere.
He knew that Xu You would not accept it, so he deliberately said that he would give way to Xu You in order to gain a good name.
also knew that Shun would not accept it, so he deliberately said that he would give way to Shun in order to gain a good name.
This is actually equivalent to: "Young man, work hard, after I die, you will be the emperor!"
"Well done, work harder, you are worthy of it, I will definitely pass the position to you in the future!"
In this way, just like a boss motivating his employees, Emperor Yao managed his subordinates and at the same time gained his prestige wildly.
Of course, Emperor Yao must have played very slippery, and the people he chose were all people who he could see and could not accept his abdication.
Xu You was indifferent to fame and wealth, and Shun was extremely filial. Yao saw them all clearly, so he dared to play like this.
My personal guess is that Xu You must have seen through Emperor Yao. Before that, Emperor Yao had used various other tricks, so Xu You felt insulted when he heard that Emperor Yao was going to give way to him, and ran away. Go wash your ears.
Haha, just guessing.
In addition, during the Warring States period, the false concession faction also believed that Dayu was also a false concession. Although he really succeeded Boyi, he was eliminated by Xia Qi in an instant, without even a bubble.
Historically, Boyi was not even worthy of the throne. After Xia Qi came to power, he wiped out Boyi's deeds.
How is this possible? Boyi is so weak?
It must be Dayu who kept his hand. Dayu played better than Emperor Yao. On the basis of Emperor Yao, he made a wave of counter-routines and gave way on the surface. In fact, everyone is Xia Qi's people. When he dies, Of course Xia Qi refused to accept it, and directly raised troops to destroy Boyi, destroying the dead, and then the world still belonged to their Xia family.
The above is the reason why I synthesized the reasons for the abdication of King Kuai of Yan, and the arguments of Mozi, Confucius, Xunzi, Mencius and others, and inferred the two cognitions of the Warring States Period.
Among them, the false concession faction is the mainstream, and the true concession faction is the minority.
Confucius may not really feel that Emperor Yao really abdicated. He just deliberately supported the statement of Emperor Yao Zhenrang, and wanted to show that at that time, "the rituals are broken and the music is broken!" Look at how simple the ancient times were, why do you speculate about the Holy King so wildly? He is clearly sincere, but you must say that he is just pretending to be a villain! How has society become like this now? Is there no place for a gentleman at all? '
Confucius wanted to restore Zhou rituals, so he had to maintain that the more ancient the life, the better the king, and the more ancient the society, the more moral.
If we want to find out what the ancient Yao, Shun and Yu were like, we must first find out what they were like in the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Periods.
Then inversely inferred, according to the law and trend of its evolution, a rough original appearance of the three emperors in ancient times was obtained.
The one who can be found, the first to evaluate Yao, Shun and Yu is Confucius.
Zi said: "It is so great that Yao is the king! So towering! Only the sky is great, and only Yao is the one. Swaying! The people are incompetent. It is so towering that it has success, and it is so brilliant that it has articles!"
I'm too lazy to translate seriously, anyway, he's so great! It's as if a small person is facing the vast sky!
What a great man this is. His rule will make the people feel the existence of the rule, and the people live so freely and naturally. There is no language to express this supreme virtue!
what! Shine bright!
Confucius used a tone of admiration from the heart to set off the "beauty of personality" of Emperor Yao, which is convincing!
Yeah, so beautiful, so what exactly is he doing?
I still mentioned one point, that is, Yao formulated etiquette. Huanhu has an article, this sentence refers to "ritual".
That is to say, in the eyes of Confucius, Yao did nothing but etiquette, and the rest was only "virtue"!
Got it, this is a charismatic king! What was built was a prestigeist empire.
This kind of virtue, this kind of personality charm, coupled with tall, gorgeous, and civilized etiquette, this is the core competitiveness of governing the world during the Emperor Yao period.
Remember this concept, because even Confucius thinks so, which means that Emperor Yao is the top, and the highest is to use things like prestige, virtue, personality and charm to stabilize all forces in the world and make people accept them. There is no other merit.
Conversely, the upper limit of Emperor Yao in Shan Hai Jing is like this, and there will be no other important credits.
Then next is Shun.
Shun had five ministers and ruled the world. King Wu said: "I have ten rebellious officials." Confucius said: "Talent is difficult, isn't it natural? During the Tang and Yu Dynasties, it was prosperous here. There are only nine women. There are two thirds of the world. Serving the virtues of Yin and Zhou can be called the highest virtue.”
To translate, it means that Emperor Shun had five virtuous ministers, and the world was governed. King Wu said: "I have ten ministers who can govern the world." Confucius said: "Talents are rare, isn't it so? In the Tang Yao, Yushun and Zhou Wu kings, talents were the most prosperous. However, one of the ten talents of King Wu They are still women, so there are actually only nine people. King Wen of Zhou won two-thirds of the world, and he still served the Yin Dynasty. The virtues of the Zhou Dynasty can be said to be the most legendary virtues, and this is what it is.”
What does Confucius mean? It is very simple. He said that Shun was a managerial monarch who knew how to employ people!
Combining Confucius’ praise of Emperor Shun’s filial piety, and Emperor Shun’s childhood was poor, his parents were stubborn, his mother was arrogant, and Shun was often squeezed out. How can he be a perfect filial son? How high is his EQ?
We can roughly understand that Shun is capable, knows how to employ people, has a broad mind and a flexible mind.
Compared with Emperor Yao's popularity, Emperor Shun is an EQ player. He knows how to refuse and give in to Emperor Yao's concession. When he refuses, he may say it sincerely, and he especially gives Emperor Yao face in his words. He always helped Emperor Yao improve his prestige, and played a great auxiliary role in Emperor Yao's rule.
That's why Emperor Yao liked Shun very much, so he always used Shun to promote virtue. This also allowed Shun to have more political capital.
Remember this concept, even Confucius did not give any actual credit to Emperor Shun, which shows that Emperor Shun capped the top, but he only knew how to employ people and was good at dancing!
I speculate that in the era of Shan Hai Jing, Shun was probably kind to others, had a very good relationship with colleagues and subordinates, and was a person with extremely high emotional intelligence.
Then he is good at employing people, who have he mastered? There are many, but the most famous is of course Dayu.
Finally, what is Yu's evaluation?
Zi said: "Yu, I am inseparable. Fei eats and eats to make filial piety to ghosts and gods, dirty clothes to make beauty a crown, and humble palaces to do their best. Yu, I am inseparable."
The translation is, Yu, impeccable. He himself had a rough meal, but the offerings to his ancestors were rich. My clothes are simple, but the sacrificial clothes are very gorgeous. My own palace is simple, but I try my best to inspect the ditches and make water myself. Yu is impeccable.
Following the charismatic monarch and the long-sleeved and good-dancing monarch, finally comes a practical and prosperous monarch.
Attention, ancestor worship cannot be avoided. From our modern values, why do we think that this thing is so rich?
But in ancient times, even in ancient times, worshiping ancestors was the most important thing. The major events of the country lie in sacrifice and Rong.
According to Confucius’ cognition, we can deduce that in ancient times, this was a king who took one step at a time and climbed to the top with sweat.
He may not have a high-level etiquette image, and may even be very vulgar. He may not be likable enough in relationships, and he may not even be very talkative.
Don't understand etiquette, not good at speech, and his appearance may be very ordinary, even after the criminal minister Gun.
He wants to reorganize the family and restore the family to the glory of the ancestor Zhuanxu's time... Yes, Dayu is also a descendant of Zhuanxu.
How to get ahead?
Da Yu understood a truth: Emperor Yao earned his reputation for a lifetime, and Emperor Shun won the hearts of the people all his life. Their countless small things combined are not as good as doing a big thing by themselves!
Subdued the Yellow River.
Note that these are the 'upper limits' of the three emperors. Looking back to ancient times, the actual situation may be worse than these three evaluations.
But the basic people are set there, and the framework is still the same.
In summary, all the clues of the human design have been collected, and combined with the "Shan Hai Jing", Yao's son Danzhu is called Emperor Danzhu.
We can speculate that the folk customs of Emperor Yao were still simple and simple. Emperor Yao was good at making big events and creating a sense of presence. Many clan leaders worshiped him and was highly respected.
He said that he wanted to pass the world to Shun, but Shun was not a fool, so he refused without hesitation.
Emperor Yao felt that it could be reused, and felt that he could control this person.
Later, Yao became older and gradually lost perfect control over the clans in various places, while Shun had a very good relationship with each clan, and made many achievements and had a high reputation.
Of course, there are still a group of clans who stand on Danzhu's side.
Emperor Yao summoned Shun one day when he felt that his time was running out.
He once again abdicated to Shun, saying that Danzhu was not enough to entrust him, and he wanted to cede the world to Shun.
At this moment, Yao became murderous.
As long as he feels that Shun really has this idea, Shun will die on the spot.
It is a bit similar to Tuogu in Baidicheng: "After I die, Danzhu is not enough to entrust the world, he can take his place."
I made up my mind, probably that's what it means.
However, with Shun's emotional intelligence, how could he not realize that if he had the slightest movement, he would be "stumbled and drowned in the Yellow River" when he went out.
Shun must have resolved this wave of temptation perfectly, with sincerity, which made Emperor Yao feel that this is really a good boy, and he was relieved.
Soon after, Emperor Yao died and the funeral was over.
Start the election of the co-lord of the world.
If Emperor Yao only appointed one person, then there is no need to recommend it, it will be that person directly. Not specified, but his son.
And Emperor Yao appointed at least three people during his lifetime, Dan Zhu, Xu You, and Shun.
So in theory, the new emperor should choose from these three people.
Why do I say that? First of all, Emperor Yao must be able to designate an heir. If his designation is not counted, and in the end, a large group of people can choose whoever they want, then it is meaningless for him to "raise himself as the emperor" to build his reputation by recommendation.
Emperor Yao gave up the world, if it is true, he can hand over the world to anyone. That's why people all over the world think that Emperor Yao is too great.
Therefore, one of the selection rules of the co-lord of the world must be that if there is only one designated successor, this person will succeed directly.
But we know from the Shan Hai Jing that Emperor Yao's son Danzhu proclaimed himself emperor.
So there must be another Danzhu among the nominees.
In fact, I added Xu You just to respect the argument of the Warring States Period.
Then the three candidates, excluding Xu You who made up the number, who will the other two choose?
From the perspective of ‘law’, select talents. But judging from the social habits at that time, the son should inherit his father's career and choose his son.
Why did you say that the mainstream should choose a son?
It's very simple. Giving up the world to others can be considered a great virtue, which itself proves that giving to others is 'should not'.
Confucius and other later generations of Confucianism boasted about Yao, Chan, and Shun. In fact, it shows that the emperors in ancient times inherited their father's career from their sons.
In ancient times, Yao was able to use the idea of "elevating himself as the Son of Heaven" to increase his prestige by recommending others to inherit his throne. In itself, Zen abdication is rare.
Other ministers and tribal chiefs who participated in the voting must first feel that Yao should pass on his son, which is natural, and then admire Yao and recommend others.
Looking carefully at the previous emperors of the past dynasties, the Yellow Emperor, Zhuanxu, and Di Ku were all Ji, and Yao also had the surname Ji.
In fact, the family world was not created by Dayu Xia Qi at all, it was completely blamed. The family of the world began with the Yellow Emperor.
That's why Yao, whose surname is Ji, recommended Shun, who had a different surname, to succeed him, which was so shocking at the time, his reputation soared, and everyone praised Yao's virtues.
Therefore, in ancient times, hereditary priority was given priority, and the son's character, ability and prestige, as long as it was reasonable, would definitely be passed on to the son.
Secondly, to vote, the major tribes can nominate other candidates, and the emperor himself can also nominate others.
Afterwards, from the son of the emperor and other candidates, everyone voted for one.
Everyone understands this vote, so it is customary to vote for the son of the emperor. It's just 'law' that allows them to vote for others.
So should we choose Danzhu or Shun?
Shun at this moment, there must be a lot of forces that can threaten Danzhu's succession, but Emperor Yao didn't kill him, which means that he is still close, and there are many people who support Danzhu.
In this regard, Shun wisely chose to quit directly and go to mourn for Emperor Yao for three years!
Let Danzhu easily succeed to the throne, named Emperor Danzhu.
But because Shun withdrew and was keeping his filial piety for the late emperor, Danzhu was unable to conflict with him, and he could not find any faults to weaken Shun's reputation, and Danzhu might not be capable enough.
So Shun's power is still great. Although Danzhu is the co-lord of the world, 30% to 40% of the power in the world actually listens to Shun!
These clan leaders may be very dissatisfied with Danzhu and the like, and Danzhu is not very good at building relationships, so after three years, Danzhu has achieved nothing! Do whatever you want.
Think about it, 30 to 40% of my subordinates are competitors, what big things can he do?
At the end of the three-year period, although Shun gave up the election for the throne, he took retreat as the next step, but instead became more powerful than three years ago.
However, Shun was still humble and friendly, and respected Emperor Danzhu very much, and sent himself out, away from the imperial capital, the center of political vortex, and went to work in the south of Nanhe.
In the eyes of outsiders, Emperor Danzhu may be pressing every step of the way, while Shun is retreating every step of the way.
For an unknown number of years, Di Danzhu accomplished nothing, and may have even messed up a lot of things.
And Shun did a lot of things in the south of the Nanhe River, being kind to others, even mediating the conflicts of many clans, and helping many leaders.
So Shun became more and more powerful, and finally Emperor Danzhu messed up a slightly bigger matter, which became the fuse.
The chiefs of many clans wanted to depose Emperor Danzhu, go to bring Shun back, and ask him to proclaim himself emperor.
Shun declined for a while, and finally found out that everyone felt the same way, so he could only lament the destiny. You said that I am a chief of Henan, how could I become the co-lord of the world? He succeeded to the throne and exiled the Danzhu family to a remote place.
A king who plays with people's hearts.
Note that I did not use "Bamboo Book Chronicles" here: "Shun imprisoned Yao, and returned to Danzhu, so that he would not meet his father."
This statement is inconsistent with Shan Hai Jing.
Shun, if his wings had hardened directly, would have imprisoned Yao while he was still alive, and then exiled Danzhu.
Then why is there a 'Taiwan of Emperor Danzhu'?
So Danzhu must have been emperor for a period of time, and the time was not short, at least not as short as the later Boyi, who only served as emperor for a few dozen days at most.
Shun is good at employing people and has a very high emotional intelligence. This is his most primitive and simple image and ability.
Such a person has no particularly great achievements, so why should he directly imprison the charismatic Yao of the previous generation?
There are so many clan leaders, and they are not Shun's domestic slaves. If you feel that Shun is a hypocrite, you will definitely lose your mind.
Judging from Shun's final success, he is the kind of character of Wang Mang, or Wang Mang completely imitated him.
In addition, Wang Mang is not as good as him, and Wang Mang finally played himself off.
And Shun's personality has never collapsed. No matter what a person thinks, as long as he can maintain a good relationship with people all his life and be praised by others, then he is such a person, and he is actually using this in his heart to gain What, it doesn't matter, it doesn't matter. For a lifetime, it is true.
Shun did not do any major things, mainly because the internal affairs were done well, and the reform subdivided many official positions.
His greatest achievement during his reign was to govern the Yellow River, but the Yellow River was governed by Yu, which means that he is really good at employing people.
Yu worked hard in a down-to-earth manner, determined to accomplish this great event and revive the family.
After countless hard work and sweat, the flood control was finally completed, and the prestige reached its peak at this time.
As for Shun, he didn't have to pass on the throne to his son. He maintained his personality all his life, and it didn't collapse until he died.
Maybe he still recommended his son and wanted to pass on the throne to his son.
But he didn't want his son to die in the **** struggle, so he also appointed Dayu.
After all, Dayu's contribution is too great.
In the final vote, Dayu won easily, and there were too many people who supported him.
So far, it can be said that Shun was a smart man. He used his emotional intelligence to become an emperor, and finally completed a good death.
This time, I did not adopt some non-mainstream sayings of later generations: Shun forced Yao, Yu forced Shun, Tang put Jie, and King Wu defeated Zhou. These four kings are also the ones who kill their kings.
I think this is unrealistic. Writing about Shun and Yu killing the king, and writing about them are actually very despicable, must have a political purpose.
Yes, I am standing on the mainstream view this time.
People are set there, and it is impossible for Shun to betray Yao in his lifetime.
He went from a mere commoner to the pinnacle of life, although he relied on himself, but without Yao's appreciation, Shun would not be able to rise to the top.
Yao married his daughter to him and enshrined him on the bank of the Gui River, giving Shun the princely surname '妫'.
Shun could fail the world, but he could not fail Emperor Yao.
Just like Toyotomi Hideyoshi, if Oda Nobunaga had not died, Toyotomi Hideyoshi would not have become a "man of the world". He started as a farmer and was raised by Oda Nobunaga. Tian Nobunaga's kindness is as heavy as a mountain!
Shun forced Yao to flow Danzhu? funny?
Shun also started as a commoner, was appreciated by Emperor Yao, and helped him up step by step.
If he imprisoned Yao, exiled Danzhu, and the people set up collapsed, Shun would not be enough to conquer the world.
Everyone will no longer believe in him. A person can even harm his own greatest benefactor. Can such a person be followed?
No matter how powerful he is, no matter how much credit he has made, Shun must not fail Yao, otherwise all the world will stay away from him, especially when Yao's reputation is originally good.
In the same way, so is Yu.
Although Yu is the eldest son, he was born with the noble surname Si (si).
Yu's father, Gun's family, is one of the four crimes. Yu belongs to the sin family, and is at the same level as Sanmiao, a descendant of Chi You, who is equivalent to a person who was implicated and exiled by his father's crimes.
Have you heard the story of Dayu's water control, have you ever wondered why Gun failed to control the water and was killed, and then let his son Yu continue to control the water?
Generally speaking, shouldn't you switch to other hands to control the water?
The emperor appointed a governor of water control. This person messed up the matter and was killed for his crime. Is it possible to send his son to succeed the governor of water control?
Many people have a misunderstanding, thinking that there is a flood, and then send people to deal with the ongoing flood.
Actually impossible. Floods are only a cause, and it is impossible to deal with them during the floods, and it is not modern. Only in 1993 was the period when the flood was happening, and we tried our best to block it.
In fact, there was quite a long gap between Gun's control of the water and Yu's control of the water. And when each of them controlled the water, it took more than ten years.
Gun ruled for ten years, but there was a particularly large flood, so he was killed.
During the reign of Shun, the Yellow River began to make troubles again. He promoted Yu to control the water, which was a mountain of kindness.
Yu, as the son of a guilty minister, was exiled, and was sent to control the flood, which was completely appreciated by Shun.
Without Shun's appreciation, Yu would never have had this opportunity.
Yu controlled the water for 20 years, and I am afraid he has been questioned countless times during this period. Without Shun's support and trust, there would be no Yu's outstanding achievements.
This is similar to Zheng He. Zheng He was a member of the exiled clan. Emperor Yongle appreciated him, eunuched him for his own use, continued to train him, and sent him seven voyages to the West, and his name will go down in history. Zheng He has been loyal all his life, even if he holds military power, he can conquer a country overseas, and he never thought of betraying Zhu Di. Because without Zhu Di, there would be no Zheng He.
Man is a social animal. There are some things that cannot be done. If they are done, this society will not tolerate them. Especially in ancient times.
It is not nonsense that the right is more helpful than the unjust.
Small favors and small benefits, the kind of "received by the emperor" is not bad, the monarch is not good, rebellion.
It's really the kind of person who lifts you up from humble beginnings to the sky, and you must never be betrayed.
It’s not a question of whether you want to or not. Maybe Yu just wants to be emperor, and it’s not something he can’t do. Yu must have already become very powerful at that time, because he has made too much contribution, and everyone obeys him.
However, it is absolutely impossible to do something like 'forcing Shun'. As long as you have a brain, you will know that if you do it, the world will be centrifugal.
Who can trust him? You can harm the person who has the greatest kindness to you, but who else can you not harm?
You are not a god, you were just a bum.
Shun and Yu’s virtues and reputation cannot be lost.
To sum up, the bamboo book chronicles: In the past, Yao's virtue declined and he was imprisoned by Shun. Shun imprisoned Yao and returned to Yansai Danzhu, so that he would not see his father again.
Nonsense, grandstanding.
Han Feizi said: Shun forced Yao, Yu forced Shun, Tang released Jie, and King Wu defeated Zhou. These four kings are also the ones who kill their kings.
Switching the concept secretly is only half right!
Cheng Tang may have exiled Jie, and King Wu must have crusaded Shang Zhou.
Because Jie has no kindness towards Cheng Tang, everything about Cheng Tang was developed by him, and Jie suppressed him instead.
Everything that King Wu had was given by King Wen, and King Wu had never met King Zhou, so why couldn’t he be defeated?
However, Yao, Shun and Yu have different natures and concepts.
Yao's cultivation of Shun was as high as the sky. Shun's appreciation for Yu was like the depths of the sea.
Placing King Wu's defeating Zhou together with them is to secretly change the concept, deliberately making people think that the situation of Shun and Yu's supremacy is of the same nature as King Wu's defeating Zhou.
In fact, it is far from it.
Shun is a smart man, even if he really wants to be in power, he has to wait until Yao is dead, and then use his emotional intelligence to get everyone to support him.
Yu is also a smart man. He conquered the Yellow River, which is a great achievement. Countless people are willing to support him, the world is not his but also his, there is no need to use force.
This is the most reasonable case.
To sum up, Yao knew that Shun would not accept abdication, so he always used the matter of recommending Shun as his successor to gain prestige, but in the end he passed it on to his son.
Shun, the first person to succeed in ancient times.
Insight into people's hearts, see through the world situation, everything in the world can be seen clearly. Long-sleeved and good at dancing, with a high emotional intelligence. When Wang Mang was humble and did not usurp him, Shun was very humble all his life. In the end, he just relied on the people's hearts and was put on the throne by everyone in yellow robes.
If you don’t fight, you fight. You didn’t do anything, but you actually did everything. To retreat is to advance, there is no need to force Yao, and there is no need to exile Danzhu. If he does his own thing well and improves interpersonal relationships, the world will naturally belong to him.
Not to mention Dayu, I know how much I admire him when I list him among the five emperors, second only to Zhuanxu. He has a huge space in Shan Hai Jing, so I will talk about him separately in the future.
In short, Ze was born to the common people, and his achievements in water control made him destined to be an emperor.
But he has worked hard all his life, not just for himself, but for his family.
His family has a very strong heart, so in the end he gave way to Boyi, but he only used people from Xia Qi's faction.
Yi Zen gave way to Boyi, and Boyi couldn't sit still! As soon as Dayu died, Xia Qi rebelled directly and took over the world.
At this point, there are no more elections in the world, perfect hereditary.
Shun may be really humble, but Yu must be scheming.
Boyi was killed by Xia Qi as soon as he came to power. Behind this is the road paved by Yu for his son.
This is the routine of the ancient emperors.
In later generations, Wang Mang imitated Shun and usurped Han, but he failed to end well.
Cao Cao imitated Yu, and when he died, Cao Pi replaced Han.
Whether it is Wang Mang, Cao Cao, or even various similar stories that we are familiar with, there have long been precedents in our civilization.
Everything we do, the ancients have already done it. If you are familiar with history, you will know that there is nothing new about everything in modern times, except for the ever-changing technology.
The essence of being human... never changes.
We are destined to be a nation that plays tricks and tricks.
After you have basically understood these, you can read the Classic of Mountains and Seas again.
14,000 characters, and only now have I finished writing Yao, Shunyu’s ‘Introduction’, Fanwai’s Fanwai...
As for the legends of Shun and Yu in the Classic of Mountains and Seas, yes! Shun has one, and he has a big brain. There are many Yu, involving the entire Shan Hai Jing.
For example, Shan Hai Jing: "Shunyi Dengbi's family was born with Xiaoming and candlelight, and lived in a river and a big marsh, and the spirits of the two daughters can illuminate this place for hundreds of miles."
For this passage, I have a wonderful interpretation.
But the space is not enough, I can only talk about it in the next chapter, because it is completely my own imagination, so it may be put in the newly opened extra volume, it is a VIP chapter, sorry.
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