Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism all draw wisdom from the Book of Changes. Why did Confucius read the Book of Changes at the age of 50?

First of all, Confucius' study of Zhouyi is closely related to his life experience and political changes in the Lu period. Before the age of 50, Confucius had been promoted in his official career and was unhappy. After 50 years old, his luck suddenly changed, and he was proud of the spring breeze. First, he became commander in chief, and then he was promoted to the position of big sheep herder, which was very high and popular. However, Confucius knew that the political arena in Lu was dangerous and changeable, and the contradiction between "public office" and "private office", between the patriarch and the retainer, and between the "three rings" was complicated, the relationship was confusing and the struggle was fierce. In just a few years, there was a "Yang Huo Rebellion" before (Zuo Zhuan Ding Gong was eight years old), and then there was a rebellion of Gongshan Fu (Zuo Zhuan Ding Gong was twelve years old), so there was almost no peace in politics.

Confucius was a great man with lofty ideals. Facing the chaotic and complicated political situation in Shandong, it really needs great wisdom to make a difference and avoid risks. How can we achieve "no greater than"? You must "know your destiny." How can we "know the destiny"? We must seriously study the "exhausted" Book of Changes and understand the philosophy of conforming to heaven and avoiding man-made disasters.

Secondly, the development of Confucianism needs theoretical innovation. Confucianism, founded by Confucius, has always been centered on the field of humanistic application, and has always adopted an evasive attitude towards the world origin and natural phenomena (Zhuangzi's theory of everything), which has resulted in a relatively weak philosophical foundation of Confucianism and restricted its development. Confucius may have realized this problem in the process of constructing the Confucian theoretical system, so he began to study the Book of Changes at the age of 50, because it contains many profound philosophies about the operation of heaven and earth, the alternation of seasons, the change of yin and yang, the responsibility of personnel, the gains and losses of politics and so on. He can realize the theoretical sublimation of Confucianism and inject new vitality into the development of Confucianism.

Third, The Book of Changes is one of the Confucian classics. After completing the revision of Confucian classics such as Shu, Li and Yue, Confucius will inevitably concentrate on sorting out and interpreting more profound classics, such as Spring and Autumn Annals, so as to set up new teaching subjects to meet the needs of disciples for further study. However, there is no professor Confucius in The Analects of Confucius or discussing the contents of The Book of Changes with his disciples, and there is no relevant record in the pre-Qin classics. Perhaps Confucius thought the content of the Book of Changes was too profound, and he never found a suitable candidate with good talent and understanding, so he had to study and enjoy himself.

In the Han Dynasty, the inheritance of the Confucian Book of Changes in relevant historical books suddenly became clear. Historical Records Biography of Zhong Ni's Disciple: Shangqu, a native of Shandong Province. Confucius is twenty-nine years younger. Confucius handed the Book of Changes to Qu, Qu Chuanchu was full of glory, Hongchuanjiang people corrected their mistakes, Yan Jia was upright, Chunyu people rode a feather, and the feather reached Zhuanghe in Qi, He Chuandong's military junior, and Yan Chuanren Yang He. He Yuanshuo treated Yi in Hanzhong. "History of the Scholars" contains: After accepting Confucius' Book of Changes, Lu merchants took refuge. Ren Zhong gave Jiangdong an arm bow. Zi Gong gave zhouyan's ugly son a home. Zijia gave Wu Dong Sun Yuzi a ride. He Zi, a monkey, was given clothes. Moreover, Qin banned learning, and Yi was a book of divination, which had to be circulated to the recipients.