China has a tradition of respecting teachers and respecting morality since ancient times. From "Respecting teachers regardless of whether they are high or low, rich or poor" in "Lu's Spring and Autumn Annals" to Ouyang Xiu's "Scholars in ancient times must be strict with their teachers" "Teacher is strict and then Tao respects", and then Tan Sitong's "Study is more important than respecting the teacher", all reflect the respect and love of the ancients for teachers. In China's more than two thousand years of history, the Chinese nation has had many famous teachers. Behind every glorious era, there are those teachers. Many influential figures in history once had the same identity, that is, students.
The teacher with the most students and the most influence in Chinese history is undoubtedly Confucius. From the perspective of personal achievements, Confucius had three thousand disciples and seventy-two sages, which can be said to be all over the world. Confucius revised the Six Classics: "Poems", "Books", "Li", "Music", "Yi" and "Spring and Autumn". When he was still alive, he was revered as the "Sage of Heaven", and later rulers honored him as the Saint of Confucius and the Supreme Saint. , the most holy teacher, the most holy teacher of Dacheng Wenxuan Wang, the teacher of all generations. The "Confucius Ceremony" to worship Confucius once became a "big sacrifice" on the same level as the Chinese ancestor gods. The only scholar who has this honor is Confucius. Judging from Confucius's contribution to society, he pioneered the style of private learning, advocated "education without distinction", and advocated benevolence, justice, etiquette, wisdom, and trust. His thoughts had a profound impact on China and even the world. Confucius has a high status in the hearts of his disciples. His disciple Yan Yuan once praised his teacher and said: "Looking up makes you taller, drilling makes you stronger. Look in front of you, and suddenly you are behind. Master, you are alluring step by step. Learn from me with writing, Make an appointment with me with courtesy, and you can't stop" ("The Analects of Confucius. Zihan") Zhu Xi, the acting scholar of the Song Dynasty, even used the sentence "If heaven did not give birth to Zhongni, the eternity would be as long as night" to elevate Confucius to the altar.
In fact, putting aside the myths about Confucius in the past dynasties, the real Confucius is even more admirable. He was a brave pathfinder who used his profound thoughts to move forward in a foggy era. , and behind him were countless disciples and literati of later generations. Confucius is not a god, he is a kind teacher and an enlightener of the Chinese nation, and this is actually more desirable and respected.
Of course, Confucius was not the only famous teacher in his era. Whether it was Laozi, Zhuangzi or the later Mencius and Xunzi, they were all the greatest enlighteners of the Chinese nation.
It is said that Confucius once asked Laozi for courtesy and benefited a lot from it. After Confucius returned to the State of Lu, his disciples asked him how he was doing. Confucius replied: "What I have seen of Lao Tzu is that he is like a dragon. His knowledge is deep and unpredictable, his ambitions are high and difficult to understand; he is like a snake that bends and stretches at any time, like a dragon. The dragon changes in time. Lao Dan is my true teacher!" Lao Tzu, who could be Confucius's teacher and whom he sincerely admired, truly deserves the reputation of a famous teacher.
Even if the story of Confucius asking Laozi for courtesy is just a legend, it does not prevent him and Zhuangzi from being ideological teachers to countless people. Both "Tao Te Ching" and "Xiao Yao You" can be regarded as peerless classics. Many literary figures still highly praise them even after they have become famous.
Compared with Laozi and Zhuangzi, Xunzi is more like a teacher, and he is indeed a good teacher. Xunzi taught Li Si and Han Xin, both representatives of Legalism. This made Xunzi criticized. Many people said that he failed as a Confucian teacher. However, the existence of Li Si and Han Fei actually shows that Xunzi is a qualified teacher. He does not care whether his disciples will deviate from the traditional teachings. He just teaches his thoughts and knowledge to his disciples. After Li Si completed his studies, Xunzi asked him what his plans were. Li Si said that he wanted to defect to Qin. Xunzi did not interfere in any way. He just respected his student's choice. As a Confucian master, Xunzi taught students like Li Si and Han Fei, which is the true "education without distinction".
However, whether it is Confucius, Laozi or Xunzi, they are all too far away from us, while Song Lian is more like a stern but serious and responsible teacher around us. Song Lian was a tireless scholar and a persuasive scholar who taught diligently. Song Lian's well-known article "Preface to Ma Sheng in Dongyang" has inspired many students to work hard. To this day, his article is still like a good teacher, persuading students to study hard. Song Lian was born into a poor family, but he was studious and tireless, and eventually became a literary master of his generation and the teacher of the prince. After becoming successful, Song Lian still maintained his integrity. He wrote on his door: "I would rather die of hunger than live for profit." Song Lian spent his whole life practicing "filial piety, brotherhood, loyalty, trustworthiness, etiquette, righteousness, "Integrity and shame", and he also taught his students with these characters, quite like a sage. "History of the Ming Dynasty" quotes: "Lian Zhen's Confucianism and Yi's fortune can be learned from his writings. He has many skills and can guide his achievements."
There is a great teacher like Song Lian who is famous for his "righteousness". Naturally, there are ancient wizards like Gui Guzi who are renowned for their "magic arts". There is indeed a Guiguzi in history, and he is profound in knowledge, possesses the wisdom of heaven, knows the art of verticality and horizontality, and understands the power of hardness and softness. Guiguzi left little writing in history, and only the book "Guiguzi" has been circulated in the world. However, through Guiguzi's disciples, his talents can be seen. Military strategists Sun Bin and Pang Juan, political strategists Su Qin and Zhang Yi are all figures that have been passed down through the ages, and they are all disciples of Guiguzi. Even the divination masters of later generations also respect Guiguzi as their ancestor.
And Huineng is also a genius and an extraordinary teacher. Huineng is a great master of Buddhism. He is revered as the Sixth Patriarch of Zen Buddhism and made great contributions to the development and promotion of Chinese Buddhism and Zen Buddhism.
Huineng's status in Zen is very high. Liu Zongyuan praised him highly in the "Stele of the Posthumous Master Dajian": "Everything about Zen is based on Caoxi. It has been six years since Dajian died. Anyone who governs a wide range of departments and is famous , count by ten. "Huineng had many disciples, and there were countless sects and doctrines derived from his ideas. Moreover, Huineng's popularization in Lingnan greatly promoted the development of literature in the southern region. However, such a master is actually illiterate. Huineng was born into a poor family. He made a living by collecting firewood when he was young. He never went to school and was naturally illiterate. However, Huineng's understanding was very good. He realized it immediately after listening to the sutras. He once said to Hongren such wise sayings as "People have north and south, but Buddha nature has no north and south." This shows how amazing his talent is. Huineng paid great attention to understanding. When he taught his disciples, he never asked them to memorize by rote. Instead, he inspired their minds so that they could draw inferences and draw inferences.
In addition to the ones introduced above, there are many famous teachers in Chinese history, such as the Neo-Confucian Zhu Xi, the psychologist Wang Yangming, etc. They are all great writers in the literary world, and even the founders of religions. Master. But they all have the same identity, that is, teachers. These conscientious and famous teachers are the intrinsic reason why Chinese civilization can continue to this day. They use the most primitive way to continue to pass on the ideological crystallization of the Chinese nation. Whether it is the "sage" Confucius or the real teachers around us today, they all deserve our respect and love.