Understanding Life - The Doctrine of the Mean

I have always liked Confucius' doctrine of the mean and often use it as my code of conduct. I wonder if you have noticed that people nowadays always talk about the same thing but know very little about the deep meaning it contains. It is no exaggeration to say that I am one of these people! An accidental incident made me want to deeply understand it - the doctrine of the mean.

Confucius, a great thinker and educator in ancient China, explained the Doctrine of the Mean in this way: "Nature is the mandate of Heaven, following nature is the Way, and cultivating the Way is education." This sentence succinctly reveals that the core of the theme of the Doctrine of the Mean is self-education. "Nature is the mandate of Heaven" means that human nature is kind. "Following nature is the Way" means that the way of self-education is to do things according to people's kind nature. "Cultivating the Way is education" means that self-education is to cultivate oneself according to the principles of humanity.

Why did Confucius advocate the doctrine of the mean? "The doctrine of the mean is the highest virtue, but it has been lacking among the people for a long time." This means that the doctrine of the mean is a supreme virtue, which has been lacking among the people for a long time. The main purpose of Confucius's saying this was to keep the social order and social system at that time within the norms of Zhou Li. Confucius was born in the Spring and Autumn Period when "rituals collapsed and music was in disarray." At that time, the royal family declined, princes rose, wars continued, and people were living in misery. Confucius struggled all his life to restore the social order that conformed to Zhou Li, and he also advocated the doctrine of the mean for this purpose.

Do we still need the doctrine of the mean in modern society? Confucius' doctrine of the mean has influenced China for thousands of years. It can be said that the doctrine of the mean is the foundation of Confucius' philosophy and the highest moral standard. The main idea of the doctrine of the mean is to discuss the universal principles of how to behave in the world. Do not be too much, do not be too little, just right. This is the doctrine of the mean.

Some people may say that the doctrine of the mean is just compromise without principles. In fact, it is not true. Confucius once said: "Country-loving people are the thieves of virtue." Here, "country-loving people" means being unprincipled, smooth-talking, selfish and hypocritical. Therefore, the prejudice against the doctrine of the mean is really due to the misunderstanding of later generations. It is also related to the deviation of some concepts of the doctrine of the mean in the later development process.

Therefore, the essence of the doctrine of the mean advocated by Confucius is not something "without principles" as some people understand it. Its original meaning is: "Remove the extremes and take the middle and use it." Get rid of extremes and choose the right path. It reflects the broad-mindedness and broad-mindedness of being dignified and calm, keeping good and holding the middle. The proper grasp of the doctrine of the mean, "neither too much nor too little", requires us to distinguish between black and white, and to judge right and wrong. It requires us to grasp the "middle" of things, that is, the core of things, when we do things.

Konosuke Matsushita, the "God of Business" in Japan, once said in his article "On the Doctrine of the Mean" that the true meaning of the Doctrine of the Mean is: "Not to be rigid, not to be extreme, to seek moderation and appropriateness"; the Doctrine of the Mean "is not ambiguous, but the way of truth, the way of justice." With such a belief, Matsushita developed step by step and eventually created a business empire.

Looking at the current situation of our society, due to the lack of the doctrine of the mean, the development of society is either left-leaning or right-leaning, and thus the policies are often changed from day to day; due to the lack of the doctrine of the mean, the left and the right are given a lot of space, which exceeds the scale of tolerance; due to the lack of the doctrine of the mean, our society lacks tolerance. Therefore, this society is always up and down, left and right, and in the end, it is always us ordinary people who suffer.

The true doctrine of the mean is based on human nature, which is now called "people-oriented", with the goal of respecting the harmony and unity between the individual development of an individual and the development of the whole society, while pursuing the development of the whole human race and the development of nature to achieve the state of "harmony between man and nature". This is the so-called construction of a harmonious society.

In daily life, some people are too materialistic, some are too hardworking; some people waste money without limit, some are stingy, these are not normal ways of life. Just like a hand, always clenching a fist is abnormal, only opening but not closing is also abnormal, the fist must be able to open and close freely, this is normal. Therefore, everything should be done in moderation, to be impartial, this is the doctrine of the mean. How to practice the "doctrine of the mean" in daily life, there are four suggestions:

First, don’t work too hard: life cannot be without work, so everyone has to work. Of course, you have to be diligent, but you can’t work too hard; if you work too hard, you will be afraid of difficulties and hardships in the future, and you won’t be able to work long-term or persevere. Therefore, most companies now have an eight-hour work system, with working hours from 8 am to 5 pm every day, which has a time limit; there are even holidays every week, and now they also implement a "two-day weekend", which is to tell us not to work too hard.

Second, don’t enjoy pleasure too much: People cannot live without material things, and moderate material things are an indispensable condition for maintaining life. However, some people enjoy too much and indulge in the five desires too much, for example, they want to eat delicacies from mountains and seas, wear silk and satin, live in high-rise buildings, and drive luxury cars when they go out. Excessive pursuit of material pleasures, even excessive waste, is like the savings in the bank. If you use too much, you will be in debt one day, so you should enjoy your blessings and karma slowly and not overdraw.

Third, don’t be too harsh on others: When people get along with each other, they must know how to treat others. The most important thing is to be kind to others and considerate of others. Especially as a supervisor, you should "treat others as you would treat yourself" or even "be lenient to others and strict with yourself". If you treat others harshly or are too permissive, it is not the right way to treat others.

Fourth, don’t be too extravagant: Some people like to buy daily necessities and enjoy shopping when they have nothing to do. Some people only buy branded goods. In fact, it is good to have things that are usable and sufficient. Don’t be too luxurious or extravagant. Too much material is not necessarily good. As the saying goes, “man is enslaved by material things”. Too much material is sometimes a burden.

Being moderate does not mean being idle or giving in without principles, nor does it mean being two-faced in front of others or currying favor with the powerful or looking down on others. It is easy for people to talk about the doctrine of the mean, but it is really difficult to do it! (Author: Zheng Linfang)

Source: China Broadcasting Network Henan Branch Editor: Yang Ting