What does it mean that water is good for all things without contention, and a gentleman is good without contention?

Interpretation: The highest state of good deeds, like the nature of water, is favored by all things and does not strive for fame and fortune. The origin is this: One day, Confucius and Laozi went on a trip and saw a stream, which filled them with emotion. Lao Tzu said this: "goodness is like water, and water is the goodness of all things." Confucius said this: "The deceased is like a husband!" Explain that two different schools have different feelings about the same thing. Laozi (600 years ago-470 years ago) (Wuding was born in Shimao on February 15th at the end of the Western Zhou Dynasty), surnamed Li Minger, from Qurenli, Li Xiang, Guxian County, Chu State (now Lu Yi). He was a great philosopher and thinker in ancient China, the founder of Taoist school and a world cultural celebrity. Laozi, also known as Lao Dan, is said to be born with white eyebrows and white beard, so he is called Laozi; Laozi lived in the Spring and Autumn Period, and worked as a librarian (equivalent to the director of the National Library) in Luoyi (now Luoyang, Henan Province). Discovery197365438+February, two manuscripts of Laozi (Tao Te Ching) were unearthed from the No.3 Han Tomb in Mawangdui, Changsha, Hunan. Edit the original text of this paragraph, Chapter 8 of Tao Te Ching. Water is good water. Water is good for everything, there is no dispute, and it is evil for everyone. If the water is good, it is just a few words. Live in a good place; Heart, goodness; Harmony and kindness; Words, integrity; Politics, good governance; Things, good energy; Move, be good. Husband is just indisputable, so there is nothing special. The best people are like water. Water is good at nourishing everything without competing with it, staying in places that people don't like, so it is closest to the Tao. The best people are those who are best at choosing their place of residence, who are good at keeping calm and unfathomable, who are good at treating others sincerely, lovingly and selflessly, who are good at keeping their promises, who are good at streamlining administration, who are good at governing the country, who are good at exerting their strengths and who are good at seizing opportunities in action. The best people do what they do because they have indisputable virtues, so there is no fault or blame. Note (1) Kindness is like water: goodness is the biggest meaning. Being a good person is the best. Here I use the image of water to illustrate that "sage" is the embodiment of Tao, because the words and deeds of sage are similar to water, while water virtue is close to Tao. (2) Being in an annoying place: that is, living in a place that people don't want to go. 3 a few in the way: a few, near. That is, approaching the road. 4 depth: static depth. ⑤ Harmony and kindness: Harmony refers to communication with people. Kindness refers to educated people. 6 politics, good governance: good at governing the country for politics, so as to achieve political achievements. ⑦ Move and be good at grasping the opportunity: Behavior and action are good at grasping the favorable opportunity. Especially: blame, negligence and sin. After editing this quotation, this chapter uses the way of heaven and earth to promote human nature, and this chapter uses natural water to describe and teach people. Lao Tzu first compared the personality of noble people to water, thinking that their character is like water, one is soft, the other is to stay in humble places, and the third is to nourish everything without fighting. The most perfect personality should also have this kind of mentality and behavior, not only doing things that are beneficial to everyone, but also willing to go to humble places that others don't want to go and do things that others don't want to do. He can endure humiliation, work hard and try his best to help others, instead of competing with others for fame and gain. This is Laozi's famous thought of "conquering the enemy without fighting". Hydration shapes the body on the earth and blends life into everything. In this paragraph, the editor commented on Laozi: "Nature is good as water, and water is good for all things. This is the virtue of modesty; Therefore, Jiang Hai can be the king of all the valleys, and if he is good at it, he can also be the king of all the valleys. The water in the world is not weak, and the strong can't win. This is a gentle virtue; Therefore, softness wins, and weakness wins. Because it has nothing, it can enter nothing, which shows that the teaching without words is also beneficial. " He thinks that people who do good deeds should be like water. Water benefits and nourishes everything, but it does not compete with everything. This is the most modest virtue. Jianghai can be the destination of all rivers because he is good at being in the downstream position, so he becomes the king of the hundred valleys. The softest thing in the world is water, but it can penetrate the hardest thing, and nothing can surpass it, such as dripping water wears away a stone. This is where Rudd lies. Therefore, the weak can defeat the strong, and the soft can defeat the strong. "Good as water" means that water has the virtue of nourishing the life of all things. It can make everything get its own benefits without competing with everything, so the greatest goodness in the world is like water. As the ancients said: "Go to the river to see the guests off, and go out to Yuerun Tianmin." Whatever can benefit people and things, water will do its best. This characteristic of water can be described as "goodness". Invisible things can enter things seamlessly, from which we know the teaching of "quietness" and the benefits of "inaction" Laozi respects water the most among all things in nature, and thinks that water virtue is close to Tao. The ideal "sage" is the embodiment of Tao, because his words and deeds are similar to water. Why do you say that Shuide is close to Tao? Wang Fuzhi explained: "Water is the smallest of the five elements. Those who are good at living in the Tao are small and do not do it; " After the crowd, and Changde before the crowd. "It is the most remarkable feature of water to strive for it, selflessness and selfishness. Water nourishes everything without taking it from everything, and is willing to stay in the lowest and wettest place. The next seven compound sentence's are all about the description of water virtue, and also introduce the qualities that a kind person should have. Laozi also arranged seven words of "goodness", all inspired by water. The final conclusion is that the essence of being a man is "indisputable". In other words, it is better to live in the evil of others than to compete with others for profits, and others have nothing to complain about. In 5 16 BC, the Zhou Dynasty perished, and Laozi fled to Chu. In today's words, the 55-year-old Lao Tzu lost his job and returned to his hometown (perhaps farming, but I didn't read this passage carefully). At this time, Confucius, 20 years younger than Laozi, visited Laozi and asked him for advice. This is how the allusion "Confucius asked for gifts" came from. Confucius compared Laozi to a "dragon" to describe Laozi's unfathomable and elusive. When they saw the stream flowing in the mountains, Confucius said, "The deceased is like this", but Lao Tzu said, "Good as water". The communication between Confucius, who believed in "benevolence and morality", and Laozi, who was bent on "returning to simplicity", laid the foundation for the later integration of Confucianism and Taoism. " Xunzi Youzuo recorded a conversation in which Confucius answered a question from disciple Zi Gong about water: "Confucius watched the water flow eastward. Zi Gong asked Confucius: What is the truth that a gentleman must look at water when he sees it? Confucius said, "Being rich in water, being partial to others and doing nothing, is like virtue." . Its flow is also declining, and detention must follow its principles and be just. Its Tao Tao is unyielding, like a pottery. If there is a decision to be made, it should be quietly, and it will go forward to the valley without fear. The principal quantity must be flat, similar to the law, and the profit is not approximate, but seems positive. As for micro-touch, it seems to be observed. Go out and enter, be fresh and clean, like goodness. Its 10,000-fold will also be eastward, such as ambition. Therefore, when a gentleman sees a flood, he must watch it change. "Here, Confucius described the ideal image of a noble gentleman in his mind with water, which involves moral categories such as morality, righteousness, Taoism, courage, law, honesty, inspection, ambition and goodness. This view is obviously different from Taoism, but there are also some similarities.