What is the root of valuing literature over martial arts in Song Dynasty? What are the advantages and disadvantages?

Song Dynasty is very famous in the history of China. It is called Wen Song, which is the peak of culture. However, many people call it the weak Song Dynasty because it values literature over martial arts. Why did the Song Dynasty value literature over martial arts? This is a question worthy of reflection.

In fact, the Song Dynasty valued literature over martial arts because the previous Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms valued martial arts over martial arts, so the Song Dynasty was a little overcorrected, thus forming a situation of valuing literature over martial arts.

As the saying goes, take history as a mirror, what is history as a mirror?

Let's just say, why is the monarchical power more and more concentrated in the history of China, and even the Ming and Qing Dynasties are called dynasties with highly concentrated monarchical power?

Because the rulers of past dynasties, especially the founding emperors, after the founding of the People's Republic of China, will sum up the reasons for the subjugation of the former dynasty, especially the former dynasty, draw lessons from the institutional advantages of the former dynasty, and refer to its failures to improve the current system, so the more the later generations refer to it, the more perfect the system will naturally be, so the Ming and Qing Dynasties are called dynasties with high concentration of monarchical power.

In this process of reference, on the whole, the former dynasty had the greatest influence on the present dynasty. As far as the Ming Dynasty is concerned, why was it called Gang Ming? A big reason is that after the founding of the Ming Dynasty, it mainly borrowed the gains and losses of the Tang and Song Dynasties. Although the Yuan Dynasty was in the forefront, it mainly borrowed the advantages and disadvantages of the Song Dynasty. Because the song dynasty was too weak to the outside world, the Ming dynasty never gave in, preferring death to surrender.

And why did xianfeng in Qing Dynasty escape from Jehol and Guangxu in Cixi escape from Xi 'an? Not to mention the reasons of the Qing dynasty itself, it is based on the lesson that Emperor Chongzhen failed to move to Nanjing or even died when the Ming Dynasty perished. Therefore, in the event of danger, the Qing emperor ran faster than the rabbit, firmly believing that the green hills were not afraid of burning without firewood.

Let's go back to the problem itself. Why did the Song Dynasty value literature over martial arts? Let's take a look at the chaos of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms before the Song Dynasty and before the Tang Dynasty.

No matter in the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms or in the late Tang Dynasty, they all have one thing in common, that is, the military commanders made an insurrection, the Tang Dynasty had a buffer region regime, and the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms were ruled by a samurai. It is common for military commanders with military power to rebel and become emperors. Even Song Taizu and Zhao Kuangyin launched mutiny and usurped the throne to become military commanders.

It is precisely because of such a bloody example that the Song Dynasty took history as a mirror and restricted the power of military commanders in many ways in the system, even at the expense of suppressing military force with words and overcorrecting it.

It can be said that the Song Dynasty's emphasis on literature over martial arts was a great rebound during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period.

Although the Song Dynasty was criticized by many people today because it valued literature over martial arts, as far as the background of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms was concerned, if the Song Dynasty did not value literature over martial arts, it would be a short-lived dynasty, which could not end the chaotic era of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, and I don't know when it would be chaotic again.

It can be said that attaching importance to literature over martial arts still has its positive side, that is, it limits the power of military commanders, so that they can't make an insurrection, and the Song Dynasty will not follow the old road, because military commanders rebelled and became short-lived dynasties. Because of its own stability, the Song Dynasty just ended the troubled times of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, and generally unified China.

Of course, the disadvantages of attaching importance to literature over martial arts are also obvious, that is, the external losses of the Song Dynasty were in a mess. Although literally, the winning rate is very high, in fact, the key battles that affected the national movement were basically lost in a mess, so they were defeated by Liao and Jin successively, and even by Xixia, a tiny place in the northwest. It's just humbled. Although valuing literature over martial arts has avoided the rebellion of military commanders, it has also caused a sharp decline in the combat effectiveness of the army. You can say that.

It is precisely because of taking history as a mirror that the history of Song Dynasty, which values literature over martial arts, tells us a truth, that is, when absorbing the gains and losses of predecessors, we should be objective and rational, and we must not overdo it, otherwise it will become a living lesson.