Chang Ruo has experienced | General Secretary's wisdom in using allusions ⑥, a gentleman examines oneself, a gentleman | Chang Ruo | wisdom
No matter when, problems always objectively exist. We should examine ourselves with the attitude of "a gentleman examines oneself, often if there has been a mistake", and discover our own shortcomings, so as to be brave after knowing shame.
A gentleman should always examine himself, as if he has made mistakes. The implied meaning is that cultivating oneself, observing and governing oneself, is not a matter of one or two days, but should become a conscious consciousness at all times and everywhere. This sentence comes from an ancient classic called "Kang Cangzi".
Kang Cangzi, a native of Chen during the Spring and Autumn period, is said to be a disciple of Laozi. He believes that when it comes to his own shortcomings, "wise people forgive them without saying anything, petty people speak out of love, and relatives show pity and jealousy without saying anything.". If one makes a mistake, others may not necessarily notice it, and even if they do, they may not necessarily say it. At this point, proactive physical examination becomes particularly important.
Everyone understands the truth, but not everyone can always practice it. Confucius advocated for "being humble and responsible to others" and "introspecting oneself when encountering faults", but he also said "I have never seen anyone who is aware of their own mistakes and deeply feels self blame.". It can be seen that it is not easy to restrain oneself, reflect on oneself, and face one's own mistakes when facing difficulties.
Whether a person can undergo physical examination is unknown to others and cannot be forced by the outside world. Whenever I am alone in a room, can I self analyze and ask myself? Is it possible to not conceal oneself, actively search for and correct mistakes? All of these are stored in one heart.
When the Tang Dynasty poet Bai Juyi stepped down as the governor of Hangzhou, he brought back two stones from Tianzhu Mountain. One day, while playing with it, he suddenly realized: if all the players casually took a few geraniums, wouldn't Zhushan be emptied that day? He wrote a self blaming poem: "After three years as a governor, I drank ice and ate tillers again. Only towards Tianzhu Mountain did I obtain two pieces of stone. This is worth a thousand gold, and nothing hurts my innocence."
The value of a gentleman's physical examination lies in initiative, but difficulty lies in self-awareness. During his tenure in Hangzhou, Bai Juyi achieved remarkable political achievements. He built embankments for lakes, irrigated fields with water, planted trees for shade, and benefited the people. In theory, leaving only two pieces of stone as a commemoration is not really a big deal, but he can self examine and believe that this move harms his "innocence". This attitude of self blame, introspection, and self alarm is admirable.
Throughout history, many sages have emphasized the importance of "reflecting on oneself three times a day" as an effective way to enhance oneself. During the Spring and Autumn period, Yanzi used to describe himself as a curved and bumpy piece of wood, believing that it could only be made into wood through "splitting, cutting, planing, and sawing". Similarly, everyone should also put in some time and effort to prune their branches and branches in a timely manner.
Prime Minister Wen Yanbo of the Northern Song Dynasty left behind the story of "counting beans to cultivate oneself". Wen Yanbo has been exceptionally intelligent since childhood, but often causes trouble and mistakes due to his mischievousness. So he prepared two porcelain jars, and when he did something good, he put a red bean in one jar, and when he did something wrong, he put a black bean in another jar. Slowly, there were more and more red beans, and fewer and fewer black beans. He used this as a warning to stand firm and eventually became a famous figure of his generation.
The criticism and reminders from others are certainly valuable, but the decisive factor is still internal factors. Yuan Liaofan, a philosopher of the Ming Dynasty, wrote in "The Four Instructions to the Fan": "One day is not wrong, that is, one day is content with oneself; one day is not wrong, that is, one day is not moving forward." If one only sees others not being right and ignores their own shortcomings, they will fall into a vicious circle of self satisfaction and self righteousness, let alone improve.
"Introspection without guilt, what worries and fears does the husband have?" The ancients believed that a person who can face their own shortcomings can be called a gentleman. Today's party members and cadres should also have the consciousness of "gentlemen inspecting themselves, often if they have made mistakes", and make self reflection a compulsory course.
