What's the use of the Book of Changes?

The ancients usually had a one-sided view of the role of the Book of Changes. They believe that the Book of Changes is a numerology theory, which is used for divination and fortune telling. When asking for blessings, the ancients really paid attention to the Book of Changes in order to achieve the goal of seeking good fortune and avoiding evil.

It should be said that this kind of consciousness of the ancients is completely understandable. Because, the ancient people's understanding of nature is quite superficial, and they admire the idea of "the destiny can't be violated". They think that nature is really magical and it determines all human behaviors. Even the wise Zhuge Liang can only often sigh "Man proposes, God disposes". The cognitive ability of the ancients can be seen in general.

As a matter of fact, ancient people believed that the Book of Changes was used for divination and fortune-telling. -It is only the role of the Book of Changes in its production process, that is, the initial stage of its function. The broader role of the Book of Changes lies in the following aspects:

First of all, the Book of Changes is the foundation of China's ancient culture. It can be said that the ideological and theoretical starting point of many thinkers in ancient China is the Book of Changes. For example, during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, a hundred schools of thought contended, whether it was the way of Confucius and Mencius, the way of Laozi and Zhuangzi, or the military strategists such as Sun Tzu, the theoretical basis of their thoughts was the Book of Changes. Confucius once said, "I'm not easy to learn, I don't know anything", not to mention Laozi.

Secondly, The Book of Changes is one of the masterpieces for people to cultivate their self-cultivation and improve their thinking. Many languages in the Book of Changes are quite profound and thought-provoking. For example, the Book of Changes insists on divination, such as saying that "Heaven is powerful and gentlemen are constantly striving for self-improvement". Consciousness means that heaven runs endlessly according to certain laws, and a gentleman should be as powerful as heaven and constantly pursue progress. And the divination that "a gentleman works all day long, and if he hesitates at night, it is completely blameless" means that a gentleman who takes learning as the way should make vigorous progress all day long according to the spirit of doing things day by day. Although at night, he should be as vigilant to himself as during the day, and there will be no mistakes.

Thirdly, I Ching tells us a scientific way of thinking, namely materialist dialectics. For example, its "close body and far body" is not only the secret of the source of the Book of Changes, but also tells us how to think. In other words, observing things should use the viewpoint of connection, proceed from self, and contact things around you thoroughly.

Finally, the important role of the Book of Changes in the history of China will be discussed in detail below.

In fact, the Book of Changes is too important to mention. Generally speaking, the Book of Changes really deserves it.

As the essence of China's ancient culture, many of its ideas and viewpoints are in line with materialist dialectics.

The Book of Changes uses the changes of Yin and Yang to explain all phenomena in the universe. It reveals the changing laws of heaven, humanity and tunnels through divination, so as to grasp the root of life in the world and avoid misfortune. Therefore, the philosophy of the Book of Changes is highly respected by later generations, and later generations interpret it with righteousness, making the Book of Changes a classic with both righteousness and rationality.

The Yin-Yang thought of the Book of Changes is the product of the wisdom of the Chinese nation. Its main purpose is to explain the laws of all changes in the universe.

Yang is represented by "one" and Yin by "-". These two simple symbols, odd and even, symbolize and explain all the changes in the universe. Masculine and feminine, masculine and feminine; All changes in nature are due to the nature of yin and yang, that is, the nature of combining rigidity with softness. Such as heaven, people, benevolence, upward, forward, bright, forward, heaven, respect, nobility and joy all belong to yang, rigidity and movement; Earth, female, righteousness, down, back, darkness, coming, night, inferiority, meanness and misfortune all belong to yin, softness and quietness. Masculinity and femininity complement each other, but they are not constant, but moving the pole is static, the static pole is moving, moving is static, and static is moving; Masculinity breeds femininity, and femininity also contains masculinity, and the two complement each other. Such as: men are strong for women and women are soft for men; The front pair is masculine, and the front pair is feminine.

It is said in "Cohesion Upload" that "one yin and one yang are the way". Everything between heaven and earth changes with time and place, either yang or yin. The law of this change of yin and yang is the law of the universe and the law of life. That is justice and humanity.

In the biography of divination, it is said: "When sages make changes, they must follow numerology. Therefore, the way to establish heaven is yin and yang; The way to stand on one's feet, softness with rigidity; The way to establish people is benevolence and righteousness; There are three talents and two. " The changes of heaven, Tao and human beings in the Book of Changes are consistent with the laws of action, that is, human beings follow the laws of the universe, which is the so-called "harmony between man and nature". From this point of view, "Yi" contains the meaning of change, simplicity and difficulty. It is not easy for everything in the universe to change because of the unity of yin and yang, softness and stillness of time and place, complexity and simplicity, contradiction, opposition and harmony; The theory of yin and yang is to clarify this law, and it is also the central idea of the Book of Changes.

Yin and Yang in the Book of Changes are antagonistic, not antagonistic, but harmonious and unified.

In China's ancient traditional thought, it is precisely from this point that we do not advocate struggle, and harmony is precious.

"Upload" said: "It is easy to have Tai Chi, and it is to give birth to two instruments, two instruments give birth to four elephants, and four elephants give birth to gossip. Gossip will determine good or bad luck, and good or bad luck will achieve great things. " "Life" is not produced here, but evolved. That is to say, gossip evolved from four elephants; The four elephants evolved from two musical instruments; So gossip is four elephants, four elephants are two instruments, and yin and yang are Tai Chi.

What is Tai Chi? Judging from the original meaning of the Book of Changes, Kong Ying Da said in the Theory of Justice in the Tang Dynasty: "Taiji is the vitality of mixing heaven and earth." The vitality of this chaos, whether masculine or feminine, changes endlessly; While Yang dominates Yin, and Yin follows Yang. This is the theme of the Book of Changes.

The earth and the sun will be destroyed in hundreds of millions of years; But new planets and galaxies will be born and grow in the big universe. The universe itself has no beginning and no end, and it is endless, which is the central idea expounded in the Book of Changes. From the human point of view, the size of the body is insignificant, but the thinking activities of small people can contain the infinite universe; Therefore, the Book of Changes is widely prepared.

Confucianism advocates the vitality of Yang, while Taoism values the emptiness and quietness of Yin. However, Confucianism also has a modest and quiet side; Taoist thought also contains strength in nothingness and softness; In a word, vigorous and soft are two sides of our traditional thought.

Gan Kun represents heaven and earth, which is the space of clouds and rain, the root of all things and the fundamental sun of nature. Opposite to the sun in the sky is the yin on the ground. The vitality of the earth is the root of all things; But the function of the earth follows the function of heaven. The sky is yang, the main and kinetic energy; And the ground is cloudy and passive.

Heaven is ever changing. The interaction between masculinity and femininity makes all things come into being, while yin and yang maintain harmony, so that all things can develop, change and evolve smoothly. "Guimei" divination said in Biography that "heaven and earth never meet, and everything is not prosperous", which is a comparison of the generation principle of yin and yang in heaven and earth. In the copula upload, it is said that life is easy. The next biography said, "Heaven and earth are great virtues."

The Book of Changes plays an important role in the formation and development of heaven and earth. It is vigorous and upright, persistent and vigorous.

The Book of Changes also talked about life and death, and by combining them, expounded the great virtue and infinite vitality of heaven and earth.

In a word, the subtle influence of the combination of rigidity and softness between heaven and earth is the foundation of the emergence and development of all things. The value of the Book of Changes is to clarify this principle and apply it widely to all changes in the universe and life, so that people can change, adapt, turn evil into good and avoid evil.

The biggest image that the universe can emulate is heaven and earth. Therefore, the ever-changing laws of heaven and earth are the code of conduct of human society. The Book of Changes takes heaven and earth as the criterion, establishes the norms of life, and exhorts people to strive for self-improvement and benefit the society with the eternal and orderly spirit of the universe. The Book of Changes has both normative and practical functions. The moral cultivation of life should be based on the principle of heaven and earth, follow the universal spirit of "heaven and earth are healthy, and gentlemen strive for self-improvement", make unremitting efforts to make achievements in moral cultivation, and then display their ambitions in their careers, thus promoting social development. The heaven and earth function of the counselor is the supreme cause in morality and career.

"copula upload" said: "It's very simple! Fu Yi, a sage, therefore worships Germany and Guangye. Know the courtesy and respect the sky, humble. " Here tells us that wisdom should be as brilliant as the sky; Behavior should be as humble as the earth; Familiar with the hearts of sages, follow the rules of this day, advocate wisdom and etiquette, and make achievements in moral cultivation. Not only can you be independent, but you can also use it in your career and benefit the world. Putting moral cultivation and wisdom into practice in the cause, so that people and things can get help together, should conform to the law of the change of heaven and earth and the endless spirit of the universe, which is the "great cause of virtue."

Imitating the spirit of the universe and striving for self-improvement is the moral ideal of the Book of Changes. Yin and Yang, rigidity and flexibility, movement and static, make the universe generate, develop, evolve, harmonize and unify in the endless changes; It is good to conform to this universal spirit. The benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom and faith in traditional morality are good, and so is the universal spirit.

The Book of Changes' interpretation of various virtues such as benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, faithfulness, respect, honesty, chastity and obedience is based on the idea that the moral law is consistent with the natural law, which advocates the vitality and integrity of Yang, and of course reminds Yin of modesty and stability repeatedly.

The Book of Changes also advocates "being in the middle of time". Mencius said, "Confucius is also a saint." The law passed from Yao to Shun. Knowing the meaning of time is easy to think more than half! "From this perspective, the Book of Changes attaches importance to the time factor with an impartial golden mean.

Only those who know the spirit of the universe and thoroughly understand the principle of dynamic and static changes of yin and harmony can understand the mystery and finally reach the realm of peace of mind, worry-free and happiness. The God mentioned in the Book of Changes refers to the subtle and unpredictable mystery of the dynamic and static changes of Yin and Yang between heaven and earth. Therefore, only intelligent and reasonable people in the world can understand the magical function of the truth explained in the Book of Changes. Only when they are careless, fearless and sincere, and reach the extreme silence where people forget each other, can they see all good and evil, that is, they can reach the gods, and they will certainly be in charge of the world.

In the "Cohesion Upload", it says: "Heaven is humble, and Gan Kun is determined!" This is the basic concept of the Book of Changes. Yin and Yang are opposite, but they respect Yang, and Yang has both Yin: Yang is king, Yin is minister, Yang is dominant, and Yin is obedient; Kings are as majestic as the sky, and ministers are as humble as the earth. This is the relationship between monarch and minister expounded in the Book of Changes.

The foundation of country and society is family, and the foundation of family is husband and wife. The Book of Changes not only advocates that men are superior to women, but also advocates that both men and women should give full play to their materials and fulfill their responsibilities. When the family is in chaos, we should respect the affection between father and son, but not parents can abuse violence. Only when the family is right can the world be stable, and the family is the foundation of the country and society. The thought of the Book of Changes is familism and nationalism, and then it is devoted to world peace and seeks a world of great harmony for mankind.

Family members are "inside" and friends are "outside", which is the closest and most fundamental interpersonal relationship of mankind. The attitudes of gentlemen in the world are often inconsistent due to different objective conditions, but how to choose? How to improvise depends on people, success depends on self-encouragement, failure depends on days, and days depend on opportunities and opportunities.

Almost all the sixty-four hexagrams in the Book of Changes are admonished by the truth that things will go to extremes and decline, so as to remind people that life must always be cautious and alert to the importance of the doctrine of the mean, so as to ensure a long and peaceful future.

The Book of Changes aims to explain the dynamic changes of natural yin and yang in the universe, which is easy but not easy, complex and simple, generates and develops in changes, and maintains unity and harmony in repetition. Vigorous, upright, endless, eternal vitality is the spirit of the universe. The changeable, simple and difficult laws of the universe and the endless spirit of the universe cover everything. These are consistent with the principle of human existence in the world, and people establish the norms of human behavior according to the natural laws and spirit of the universe. If we discover the laws of the universe and nature, we can constantly strive for self-improvement, and we can change, adapt and adapt to various complex situations, thus promoting the development of human society and benefiting all mankind. We can understand why The Book of Changes has become the root of China's traditional culture, the source of all academic thoughts, and regarded as the source of Taoism and the head of the group classics.

The principles of the Book of Changes not only have a key and far-reaching influence on the emergence of ancient materialist philosophy, but also all kinds of predictions, including the study of names, are produced and developed on the basis of the theory of Yin-Yang and Five Elements in the Book of Changes. In the theoretical system of jurisprudence, the theory of yin-yang and five elements is everywhere. It is used to explain the innate five-element structure of human life, the changing law of life quality and life movement, and to improve the quality of human life by scientifically applying the law.