Thesis on "University"

This paper investigates the books and texts of Daxue, and points out that Daxue has always been regarded as the most important book in modern times.

All kinds of reasons for being late can't be established. The University should be written by Ceng Zi or his disciples. By studying silk books

By comparing the classics and biographies of the five elements, it is considered that the traditional division between classics and biographies of the University cannot be established.

Learning should be an independent article. Cheng Hao's revised "University" is the closest to the truth.

The discovery of bamboo slips in Guodian has aroused scholars' interest in re-discussing the development of Ceng Zi (including Ziyou), Zisi and Mencius, and discussing the thoughts of Ceng Zi and others cannot but talk about "University". Because according to tradition, The University was written by Ceng Zi and his disciples. However, since modern times, many scholars have questioned this, arguing that The University was written in the Qin and Han Dynasties, even after Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. So, what is the actual situation? Is the University published early or finished late? On the basis of previous studies, combined with newly unearthed bamboo and silk materials, this paper makes a new discussion on this long-standing unresolved issue. If anything is wrong, please ask the parties to correct it.

( 1)

The author and date of "Da Xue" have always been controversial in academic history. Scholars in Song Dynasty believe that it was written earlier, and it can be traced back to Confucius and Ceng Zi. For example, Cheng Hao thought that "the university is Confucius' suicide note, and it is the gateway for beginners to enter morality" (quoted from Zhu's Big Sentence) and made the final volume of "University". After adjusting the chapter of this edition of "University" [66], Zhu wrote a volume of "University Chapters", thinking that "University" is divided into two parts: classics and biography, in which "Gai Confucius said, (ditto) Zhu Cheng's above viewpoint has not been demonstrated in detail [2], but it was generally responded by scholars in Song and Ming Dynasties. Some scholars, such as Wang Yangming, have great differences with Zhu on such issues as "style", but they all admit that "university" was handed down by sages. This may be related to the realistic needs of Confucian scholars at that time to strengthen their awareness of Taoism in order to resist Buddhism and Taoism. However, since the Qing Dynasty, the viewpoint that Da Xue was written by Confucius and Zeng has been widely questioned. Most scholars believe that Daxue was written after Qin and Han Dynasties, and put forward various reasons to prove it. Daxue was originally an article in the Book of Rites, but its author and year were not clearly recorded in the literature. The Book of Rites is also a compilation of Confucian works collected and discovered in the early years of the Western Han Dynasty, with complicated sources. "Most of them are ancient prose before the Qin Dynasty, and some of them were written in the early Han Dynasty. [3] On this basis, it is still impossible to determine its specific age, and it is normal to argue. However, the arguments of the later theorists are not convincing and arbitrary. Not only did they not really solve the problem, but they brought confusion to people's minds, so it is necessary to make further discussion.

It is believed that an important reason why "University" came out late is that "University" is related to "Learning Notes" in the Book of Rites, which is a reflection of the ancient school system. The university system came out late, so "University" also came out late. Chen Feng, a scholar in the Qing Dynasty, pointed out that a passage in "Da Xue" and "Xue Ji" is similar, and they both talk about "the way of university" and are closely related. Yukime's passage is:

Ancient teachers have schools, the party has difficulties, the art is orderly, and state-owned learning. Admission the following year, middle-aged exam. A year's research on distinguishing classics and records. Three years, respecting the music group, five years as a teacher and seven years as friends, that's called small achievements; I have known the class very well for nine years and stood firm and did not object. This is a great achievement. Husband is enough to change the customs, and those who are near will persuade him, and those who are far away will be pregnant. This is also the way of university.

Chen Feng believes that "knowing the class is accessible", which is well known; Stand firm and not oppose', which means sincerity and integrity; Change customs, persuade those who are near, and cherish those who are far away', which is the home of the world. Its' distinguishing classics, respecting music groups, teachers and friends' is also the way of governors. " [4] Chen Feng believes that "university" is related to the university system and may be influenced by Zhu. Zhu said in the Preface to the University: "The book of the University is the method of teaching people in ancient universities." But he believes that the university system was formed earlier. "Prosper for three generations, prepare for the law, and then learn from the palace, the capital and the lane. ..... and in ten years and five years, from the son of the son of the Emperor to the son of the official and doctor, the son of the Yuan scholar and the handsome man, they all entered the university and taught them poverty, integrity, self-cultivation and governing the country. " So he can still regard Daxue as an ancient book in the pre-Qin period. Scholars after Chen Feng are Mencius, School of Thought, Xu and Zhou Yueyao; According to the theory that learning is the work of three generations, there were only schools, schools and universities before the Zhou Dynasty, and the university system was actually formed after the Qin and Han Dynasties, so the book "University" was delayed. Lu Kuixun, a scholar in Qing Dynasty, and Yoshio Takeuchi, a Japanese scholar, even thought that Daxue was written after Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty.

It is not difficult to find that the views of Chen Feng and others actually contain two premises. First, the university system appeared after Qin and Han Dynasties; Second, universities, like books of learning, are a reflection of the ancient academic system. In fact, these two premises cannot be established at all, and the above inference is based on the wrong premise. First of all, whether the university system appeared after Qin and Han dynasties is controversial in itself. Now most scholars believe that the university system has appeared at least in the Zhou Dynasty. For example, Mr. Yang Kuan, who has an in-depth study of the ancient school system, thinks that "the ancient school education in China originated very early. Probably the Shang dynasty nobles had schools. " "The schools of aristocratic education in the Western Zhou Dynasty are relatively complete, with so-called primary schools and universities." He also said, "Western Zhou University is not only a place where aristocratic children study, but also a place where aristocratic members collectively salute, get together, have dinner, practice martial arts and play music. It has the nature of an auditorium, a conference room, a club, a sports ground and a school. It was actually a place for aristocratic public activities at that time. " [6] Mr. Yang's viewpoint is based on literature and accords with the reality of ancient schools. For example, the Book of Rites: "Yin people set the right school as a university and the left school as a primary school, so they are happy to teach it." "Dai Dai Li Ji Fu Bao": "The ancients left home at the age of eight, learning small arts and doing small jobs; I went to college with a bunch of hair, studied great art and performed great festivals. " Book of Rites: "The teaching of the son of heaven is followed by learning. The primary school is on the left of Gonggong South, and the university is in the suburbs. The emperor said "Bi Yong" and the vassal said "Pan Gong." More importantly, there has been a record in Oracle Bone Inscriptions that "many children have migrated, and the heavy rain can't come back" (Volume II of tortoise shell bone), and bronze inscriptions also include "Primary School" (Great Ding Yu), "Gong Xue" (Gui Jing) and "Bi Yong" (Mai Zun). Later scholars can doubt the reliability of Wang Zhi's articles, but they can't deny the materials in Oracle bones, inscriptions and unearthed bamboo slips. However, once the late scholars in the university are denied, their conclusions will naturally be untenable.

To say the least, even if the university system really appeared after the Qin and Han Dynasties, it does not mean that universities will definitely come out in the future. Because the so-called "University" and "Xue Ji" are similar in content, they are both reflections of the university system and associations of future generations, and there is not much factual basis. On the contrary, if we compare them, it is not difficult to find that there is a big difference between them. Xue Ji's "university", from the context, should refer to specific university facilities, which is based on the premise of "breaking away from (note: analyzing) classics", that is, focusing on teaching classics; The article "University" didn't mention the specific academic system at all. Zheng Xuan's Book of Rites said: "A man named' Great Scholar' can be a politician because of his erudition." Zheng Xuan's explanation is more reasonable than Zhu's, and it is consistent with the central content of The University, which should be the original intention of The University. Therefore, although both "University" and "Xueji" talk about "the way of university", they are not the same thing, which even Mr. Xu, who advocates "University", has to admit. He said that "The University" and "The Book of Learning" are completely different because their teaching is based on classics. The department of university fully represents the ideal of Confucianism. In other words, the learning content reflected in "Da Xue" has never been influenced by the study of Confucian classics in the Western Han Dynasty. ..... There is no such thing as being invented in the Book of Learning. Moreover, there is no direct connection between the two books in terms of content, scale and meteorology. [7] In fact, the origin of "cultivation, equality, governance and equality" in "university" is very early, and it will not appear until the university system is formed. Judging from Confucius' thought, although he didn't directly use the concept and language of "cultivating one's morality, keeping one's family, governing the country and leveling the world", he advocated "cultivating one's morality and keeping one's family in harmony" and "cultivating one's morality and keeping one's people in harmony", which was generally consistent with this thought (The Analects of Confucius). Confucius lived in an era when the old school system began to collapse and the new school system had not yet formed. The logic of the latecomers is that only after the formation and perfection of the university system can the Confucian thought of "cultivation, equality, governance and equality" appear and produce, but we believe that "cultivation, equality, governance and equality", as the Confucian ideal of life and practical principle, has nothing to do with the university system at all. On the contrary, this ideal can only maintain its vitality and vitality if it is independent of the school system. This point can be clearly seen by simply comparing Confucian scholars such as Confucius and Mencius with those after the Han Dynasty.

Another reason for the late theorists is that the concept of "university" appeared late in relevant literature, so the book "University" was also formed late. The basic concept of "University" is the so-called "Three Programmes" and "Eight Items", among which "cultivating oneself, keeping the family in order, governing the country and leveling the world" is the core. Some scholars believe that Confucius never talked about "cultivation, equality, governance and equality" in The University. Mencius only made its ending. [8] Mr. Xu also said: "Universities are based on personal direct contact with countries around the world, which will only appear under the strong concept of the world for the public." [9] The so-called "Mencius only makes the end" refers to a sentence in "Mencius Li Lou": "Mencius said: People have a constant saying, and all say:' The country under heaven is also. "The foundation of the world is in the country, the foundation of the country is at home, and the foundation of the home is in the body. "They think that Mencius began to connect the body, the family, the country and the world, so the book" University "was first written after Mencius. It is not difficult to find that this statement is obviously wrong, because Mencius said in this passage that "the people have constant words", which shows that it is a reference to previous remarks, and this statement must have been produced earlier and spread more widely, so it can be "the people have constant words." In fact, there are related remarks in Laozi, earlier than Mencius. " "Lao zi" Chapter 54 Cloud:

The virtue of practicing in the body is true; The virtue of repairing the family is redundant; The virtues cultivated in the countryside are long-lasting; If cultivated in the state, its virtue is rich; It is a virtue to cultivate it in the world. So, look at yourself, look at home, look at the country, look at the country and look at the world. How do I know the world is natural? That's it.

This can be said to be the earliest source of the idea of "cultivation, equality, governance and equality" in universities. In the past, the reliability of this material was also questioned because of people's controversy about the date of completion of this book. The excavation of Laozi on Guodian bamboo slips proves that Laozi was written by Laozi, especially its early publication. This material happened to be in the second edition of Laozi on Chu bamboo slips, but the auxiliary word "zhi" was omitted, and it was written as "cultivation in the body", "cultivation at home" and "cultivation in the countryside". At present, although there are still some controversies in academic circles about whether Lao Zi on Chu bamboo slips is an abridged version of Lao Zi [10] or a complete version, there is no doubt that the above materials originally belonged to Lao Zi. This strongly refutes the latecomers and provides circumstantial evidence for the early publication of universities. In addition, there are many words similar to the thought of "cultivation, equality, governance and equality" in The Doctrine of the Mean, such as:

The next place can't be obtained, the people can't get it, and they can't rule. There is a saying in Gain: If you don't trust your friends, you won't get them. Trust your friends: Don't trust your friends. There is a way to follow the pro: be insincere and not follow the pro. There is a way to be sincere: I don't know what is good, but I am not sincere about my body. Honest people, heaven is also. Honest people, people's way is also. An honest man, unwilling to work hard, gets it without thinking, goes with the times and becomes a saint. Those who are sincere choose good and stubborn. (Chapter 20)

Honesty is close to self-cultivation, obedience to relatives is close to maintaining family order, trust friends and success is close to governing the country, and governing the people is close to leveling the world. The former is the condition between the two, which is manifested in the extrapolation from honesty to governing the people. So, which is earlier, The Great Learning or The Doctrine of the Mean? We think it should be a university, not the doctrine of the mean, as can be seen from their exposition of "sincerity" The word "sincerity" in Daxue only refers to "sincerity" and its connotation is relatively simple, while the word "sincerity" in The Doctrine of the Mean refers to the innate practical ability of "not thinking hard", which distinguishes between "sincerity" and "sincerity", which is not only richer in connotation, but also more philosophical than the former. From "sincerity" in The Great Learning to "sincerity" in The Doctrine of the Mean, it reflects the development process of ideological understanding. Therefore, this passage in The Doctrine of the Mean may have been further developed in philosophy under the influence of The University. The Doctrine of the Mean was written by Zisi [1 1], so the book University was written at least before Zisi. In the past, scholars thought that the publication of "University" was late, mainly because they didn't really understand the historical roots of "cultivation, equality, governance and equality" and mistakenly linked it with the unrelated university system. The idea of "self-cultivation, keeping the family in order, governing the country and leveling the world" actually stems from the social organization form of "isomorphism of family and country" in ancient patriarchal society, which is a reflection of this special social organization form in people's ideas. Social existence determines social consciousness. Due to the early emergence of the ancient patriarchal society, the social ideal of "self-cultivation, keeping the family in order, governing the country and leveling the world" adapted to this social organization form also appeared earlier. This is natural in itself, and there is nothing strange about it.

In addition, some other ideas of "university" have also been proved to appear earlier. In the past, people often thought that "stop at the best" in Great Learning originated from "stop at the best" in Xunzi Jiemu. However, there is a saying in the Bamboo Slips of Guodian in Series 3: "Good days lead me, life leads me, and sages stop here." "There is human nature? Stop at its filial piety. " It shows that "stop" is an ancient meaning in the pre-Qin period, which appeared after Xunzi. The "Zhi Zhi" in The University should be related to this. "Jing" in Da Xue is often traced back to "Xu Jing" in Xun Zi Zheng Ming, because it is suspected that Lao Zi was published late. However, Guodian bamboo slips "Sex Paradox" said: "I want to be quiet and not pull out." There are also many references to "quietness" in A, B and C of Laozi, a bamboo slip of Chu: "Whoever can be quiet and turbid is Childe Xu." ("Laozi" A) "Knowing quietness, everything is determined." (ditto) "Quiet people live in the world." ("Laozi" B) shows that the idea of "quietness" also appeared earlier. Later people think that the idea of "university" appeared late because they didn't see or ignore some important materials, and its conclusion is naturally untenable.

(2)

Since the late publication of Daxue cannot be established, its author and age are worth rethinking. However, before that, we need to discuss the text of the university. As we know, Zhu Zeng divided The University into two parts: classics and biography, and supplemented the biography. Although Zhu Xin's new edition of Da Xue is controversial, his viewpoint of dividing Da Xue into classics and biographies has been recognized by most scholars and has become the basic premise of discussing Da Xue. However, we believe that there are many doubts about dividing The Great Learning into two parts: classics and biographies, which are worth further discussion. First of all, the communication style is not uniform. Zhuzhuan is divided into two parts. One is poems, books and Confucius' sayings, such as Gao Kang, in which Ke Mingde said. "As the poem goes, although Zhou was an old country, he was born new." "Confucius said, I am still a human being and will not litigate!" Zhu believes that these are the scriptures "Mingde", "Pro (new) people" and "This is called the basis of knowing and doing" in Biography. The first is the author's direct exposition, such as "the so-called sincere person …", "the so-called self-cultivation is in mindfulness …" and "the so-called self-cultivation is in the right body …", which are regarded as biographies of honesty, mindfulness and self-cultivation. It is inappropriate for Zhu to refer to these two different styles as "biographies" in general. In fact, the former is a quotation rather than a biography, while the latter is an explanation and play of the scriptures, and it is also not a biography.

Secondly, transmission and classics cannot be unified. Since "Da Xue" includes two parts: classics and biographies, its biography should be unified with the classics, but in fact, the chapters of "Da Xue" can't be rearranged no matter how. For example, "Poetry" says, "Look at him, stand up, stand up, stand up, stand up. It is really awkward to have a Fijian gentleman, such as cutting, cutting and grinding. You can't make trouble with Fijian gentlemen! "Those who are' original as measures' are Taoist priests. Those "as sharp as a mill" practice self-study. People who are' sad' are also embarrassed. People who "He Xi announces Xi" have dignity. Those who' have a gentleman, don't make noise', morality is the best, and the people can't forget it. " "Poetry" said:' In the play, the former king never forgets!' A gentleman is virtuous and affectionate, while a villain enjoys pleasure, which means not forgetting the world. It turned out that under the condition that "a gentleman must have a pure heart", Zhu adjusted it to the front and thought that this chapter was "stop at perfection". However, it is not difficult to find that this chapter mainly talks about "self-cultivation", "dignity" and "loving relatives with the utmost virtue", and it has no direct relationship with "stopping at the utmost goodness". Some scholars noticed this, so they rearranged it and thought that this chapter was "explaining people" [12], but it could not be explained. In addition, there are also such problems in paragraphs such as "Therefore, a gentleman should be cautious about morality first" and "Therefore, a gentleman should have a way", which shows that the division of classics in universities is worthy of reflection.

Also, the style of "University" is coherent, unlike classics and biographies. So far, it has been pointed out that there is an article [13] in Zhu Kao's residual volume that is not written. He objected to Zhu's division of the university into two parts: classics and biography, and said that "the whole article should have a beginning and an end, and the style should echo before and after". Cui Shu's statement is in line with reality and deserves serious consideration. From the above analysis, it seems that The University does not have two parts: classics and biographies, but seems to be a whole.

If the analysis of the text is not enough to explain the problem, then we might as well compare "Daxue" with the classics and biographies of the five elements of silk, and further explain that it is not established to classify "Daxue" as a classic and biography with unearthed circumstantial evidence. 1973 The silk book "Five Elements" unearthed from Mawangdui Han Tomb has two parts: Jing and Zhuan. The "five elements" in Guodian bamboo slips have no classics, which shows that "biography" and "classics" may not have been formed at the same time, but are the explanations and explanations of "classics" by later generations. Before and after copying the silk book "Five Elements", the behavior of "Jing" was 2 14, and then "Chuan" was 2 15. It is not difficult to find that many characteristics of Five Elements Biography are different from those of Daxue. First of all, the communication style is relatively unified. Each chapter of the five elements is the author's interpretation of the classics, and there is no direct reference to the poems or the coexistence of the two. For example, in "The sage's thought is light, and light is shape …", the essay says "The sage's thought is also light": the thinker also thinks of heaven; The lighter one is still alive. "Light is shape": shape, the shape they think. You (Liu) thinks less than Zhai, and passers-by are like beheading; You (Liu) see it like a chop, and passers-by like a stream. It's too light to speak ... "Among them,' light is too light' and' light is shape' are references to scripture. The following is an explanation of scripture, which runs through the whole process of Biography. It is worth noting that "poetry" is quoted in many places in the five elements, such as "heartless, incomprehensible. Without wisdom, one cannot think for a long time. Being heartless and unwise, not seeing a gentleman, worrying can't be refined; If you don't think too long, you won't be happy. "Poetry" says:' If you don't see a gentleman, you will worry about it. If I see him and look at him, I will be very happy. This is also called. Another example is "seeing and knowing, wisdom is also." Just smell it, Shengya. Obviously intellectually. Hehe, Ye Sheng. Obviously, the next step is brilliant' (note: the article "Shi Ya Da Ming") is also called. "From the perspective of" This is also called ",the quoted poem is an explanation and development of the previous text, but it is a classic rather than a biography, which is quite enlightening for us to understand the greatness of the university.

Secondly, inheritance corresponds to classics. Without classics, there is no inheritance. In addition to the previous chapters, every section of the silk book "Five Elements" has been handed down from generation to generation. It is often to quote the text first, then explain it, and explain every sentence. For example, in the chapter of "Often unhappy, unhappy, sad, affectionate, sentimental and unkind", the essay says "Often unhappy": those who change are also encouraged and benevolent. Change, and then you can be happy. Unhappy but not sad': After being happy, you can be sad. Don't care, don't kiss': care and then kiss. Don't kiss or love': kiss and you can love. Love without mercy': Love before benevolence. "For some sentences that really don't need to be explained, we should also add the word" stop "to show that the meaning is self-evident, needless to say. For example, "Pigeons in Mulberry": Naoya. "The reason why every sentence of the five elements should be quoted first is because the front and back parts have copied the classics and biographies. If you don't quote scripture, people won't know where it is going, which will cause confusion. The so-called "classic biography" in "University" is also copied from the front and back. If the style of biography is taken as an example, the scripture to be explained should be quoted before the text is adopted, but the words in "University" do not clearly point out the relationship between the text and the scripture, so it is obviously inappropriate to regard it as a "biography". So, are the two sentences outside the Book of Songs, "The so-called self-cultivation lies in mindfulness ..." and "The so-called self-cultivation lies in the body ...", the annotations of the scripture? We don't think so, because the sentence "cultivate one's morality and cultivate one's sexuality" here is a summary of the two sentences "those who want to cultivate one's morality first" and "cultivate one's morality and cultivate one's sexuality later". There is no such sentence in the original text, but it is an extension and development rather than a biography, and so is the sentence "cultivate one's morality and cultivate one's sexuality". More importantly, the biography of the five elements is basically around the classics, and there is no discussion outside the classics. University biographies are difficult to correspond directly to the classics, which is very different from the Five Elements. If it can be interpreted as "classics" without "biography", then there is "biography" without "classics", which is not easy to understand and does not conform to the style of biography, so it is obviously inappropriate to regard a few words in "University" as "biography".

In addition, there are great differences between the classics of the five elements and biographies, and it is easy to see that they are two parts. The five elements of language are fluent and self-contained; Biographies, on the other hand, are fragmented and incoherent, and some of them are purely for the interpretation of classics, which is very unnecessary, which is quite different from the stylistic coherence and up-and-down echo of The University. Although the biography of the Five Elements is not necessarily a general rule of ancient books, the basic principles it reflects are universal. From this, we come to the conclusion that The University is not a classic two parts, but an original independent part.

"University" is an independent article, so why did Zhu divide it into two parts: classic and biography, and it was recognized by most scholars? We think this may be related to the understanding of classics by scholars at that time. As mentioned above, some scholars in the Song Dynasty, out of the need to compete with Buddha and Lao for orthodox status, often like to say that some classics are from Confucius, in order to raise their status and increase their authority. Cheng Hao thinks that The University is probably for this purpose. On the one hand, Zhu agreed with Cheng Hao's practice of promoting Confucius University. On the other hand, he saw that it was difficult for Confucius to explain "Da Xue" in general, so he put forward that "Jing" covered Confucius' words, and described them, "Chuan" and "Ceng Zi's meaning was remembered by others", thus splitting "Da Xue" in two. Because Zhu's point of view is untenable, his "University" is of little value in understanding it. On the contrary, Cheng Hao's revised "University Question" deserves attention. As we all know, before Zhu, three brothers, Cheng Hao and Cheng Yi, sorted out the text of The University, among which Cheng Hao's sorting was the best. Zhu said in "University Chapters and Sentences" that "the old version is quite wrong and simple, but today it is determined, but the examination of classics is more important than the examination order", which shows that he has a certain inheritance relationship with the Cheng brothers. However, compared with Zhu, Cheng Hao's University Revision also has some fundamental differences. First of all, Cheng Hao regarded the university as an article, not two. He took the three programs "Mingde" and "Zhi Zhi Hou Ding" as the first paragraph, and the eight articles of "The Ancient Desire for Mingde and the Great Man" as the second paragraph, followed by "Sincere Man", "Moral Cultivation in His Heart", "Housekeeper", "Governing the Country Must Take Home First" and "Housekeeper". Secondly, in line with this, he regarded the poems, books and Confucius in The University as quotations, not biographies. For example, he put Yue: Ke Mingde after the first paragraph, which is considered to be a display of the above contents, while he put a controversial paragraph "Looking for Australia" in the so-called "ruling the country by leveling the world", which is considered to be a display of "the old people are happy with their filial piety and the people are happy with their younger brothers". Although Cheng Hao's view that "University" is "Confucius' suicide note" is one-sided, he avoids the interference of "classics", so he can get a more realistic reflection. Reading through Cheng Hao's "University" is coherent, consistent and seamless, which is closer to the original appearance of the university than Zhu's "Da Sentence" and should attract people's attention. (Please refer to the attached discussion for details.)

(3)

We deny that The Great Learning was written late, and confirm that The Great Learning is not a classic two parts, but a whole. Therefore, The Great Learning is a traditional view made by Ceng Zi and his disciples, which deserves attention. First of all, Ceng Zi's words are quoted in The University, which shows that it is closely related to the Ceng Zi School. There is a sentence from Ceng Zi in the "so-called sincere person" section of "University": "Zeng Zi said: What you see with ten eyes and what you point to with ten hands is strict!" Mr. Li Xueqin pointed out that when the ancients or their disciples recorded their remarks, they often called them by their first names, which was the common practice of writing books at that time. For example, Mencius was written by Mencius and his disciples Gong Sunchou and Zhang Wan. It is called Mencius in the text, Zi Mo in Mozi and Tai Shigong at the end of Historical Records. However, there is "Zeng Ziyue" in The Great Learning, from which it is inferred that "it is not unreasonable for Zhu Zi to say that The Great Learning was written by Ceng Zi." Mr. Li's point of view has some truth. Although "Zeng Zi Yue" in Da Xue is the only statement, whether it can be regarded as Ceng Zi is debatable, it has something to do with Ceng Zi. In addition, Ceng Zi made it very clear that "filial piety is so important" in the Book of Rites:

Ceng Zi said, "If you die, your parents' bodies will also die. Dare you disrespect the remains of your parents? Living in a humble place is unfilial; Infidelity is unfilial; Being an official is disrespectful and unfilial; Friends who don't believe it are unfilial; Without courage in war, it is unfilial. If the fifth plan is unsuccessful, the disaster will spread to relatives. Do you dare disrespect? "

Confucius has the idea of "changing filial piety into loyalty", such as "Confucius said:' Filial piety is only for filial piety, brotherly friendship and administrative matters. "Is it also the government and the government?" (The Analects of Confucius) Ceng Zi's "filial piety, so things are also important" may be the development of this thought, reflecting Ceng Zi's understanding of filial piety. This material was ignored by scholars in the past, but it is an important circumstantial evidence of the relationship between Ceng Zi and this university.

Secondly, the thought of "University" is consistent with that of Ceng Zi. Ceng Zi invented Confucius's "consistent way" with "loyalty and forgiveness", which can be said to be the core of his thought. And "University" is more about "loyalty and forgiveness", for example, "That's it, a gentleman has his own self and then asks others, and if he doesn't have his own self, he won't be others. Hidden things are unforgivable, but they can be used to describe people. " Another example is "evil is above, not below, evil is below, not above;" Evil is ahead, not behind; What is the evil of the future, not the evil of the past; Right evil, not left; If you are left evil, don't give it to right evil; This is the so-called instantaneous way. " Some scholars pointed out, "Ceng Zi said,' The only way to be a master is loyalty and forgiveness.' ..... Confucius said,' A benevolent man has already wanted to be a man and become a man. If we can make a closer analogy, we can say that the benevolent side already exists. "The purpose of the article" University "ends here." [15] Therefore, it is entirely possible that The University was written by Ceng Zi or his disciples.

Similarly, from the perspective of academic inheritance, this university has a close relationship with Ceng Zi School. There is a certain ideological connection between Daxue and The Doctrine of the Mean, showing continuity. The Doctrine of the Mean attaches great importance to "self-cultivation" and pushes it to "governing the country", which is obviously influenced by "cultivation, harmony, governance and equality" in universities. In addition to the materials cited earlier, there are two articles as follows:

There are nine classics in all countries in the world, saying: cultivate one's morality, respect the virtuous, kiss and respect the ministers, exercise the ministers, serve the common people, work hard, be gentle and far-sighted, and cherish the princes. Cultivate one's morality is the way to stand, respect the sage without confusion, kiss for the father and brother, respect the minister without dazzle, reward the body and minister, persuade Zi and Shu Ren by the people, make full use of the money, be gentle and return far away, be pregnant with princes and fear the world. (Chapter 20 of the Doctrine of the Mean)

Confucius said: Learning is close to knowledge. Practice near benevolence. Knowing shame is almost brave. Knowing the three, you will know why you practice. If you know how to cultivate yourself, you will know how to treat people. If you know how to govern the people, you will know how to govern the country. "(ditto)

As mentioned above, the doctrine of the mean is more mature than the university, so the university should precede the doctrine of the mean. Some scholars see that the text of "Daxue" is relatively neat, and think that it is not correct that "Daxue" was written late. Because the neatness of words is often related to the nature of words, but has little to do with time. According to tradition, Ceng Zi and Zisi come down in one continuous line and belong to the same school. Since The Doctrine of the Mean comes from Zi Si, The University probably comes from Ceng Zi or his disciples. In a word, The University was published very early, probably by Ceng Zi or his disciples. Although this is the same as the traditional view, it has been re-demonstrated and supported by new materials, so it is called "new certificate".