This book was edited by Sima Guang in the Northern Song Dynasty. After a long-term melee since the mid-Tang Dynasty, the Northern Song Dynasty achieved national unity, social economy recovered and developed, and academic culture flourished. At the same time, the internal affairs are full of disadvantages, the imperial army is weak and the situation is unstable. This is an era full of vitality, depression, progress and weakness. At that time, the monarch and his subjects, people with lofty ideals and common people mostly considered how to live and how to find a way out. Therefore, some people advocate "judo" to rule the world, saying that the law of ancestors cannot be changed; Some are determined to reform and implement political reform; Live a hard life, be forced to take risks and rebel. People who master cultural knowledge, especially historians, such as Ouyang Xiu, Sima Guang and Fan Zuyu, often review history in the face of reality, trying to sum up historical experience and lessons, taking history as a mirror, and better solving realistic contradictions, so as to be able to govern the country and secure the country. Among them, the purpose of Tong Jian edited by Sima Guang is the most prominent and representative.
Nowadays, understanding Sima Guang and his books, studying and studying Tong Jian will help people understand the important position and value of this book in China's history and culture, help us critically inherit and carry forward historical and cultural traditions, and help people learn from history and actively create new society and culture.
First, the characteristics of Tong Jian
Sima Guang, editor-in-chief, was born in Xia County, Shaanxi Province (now Xia County, Shanxi Province) in Song Dynasty. Born in Tianxi, Song Zhenzong for three years (10 19), he died in the first year of Yuandiao, Song Zhezong (1086). At the age of six, he began to read scriptures. When I was seven years old, I listened to Zuo's Chunqiu (that is, Zuo Zhuan). I was strict with myself, studied hard, explored the truth in the book, and thought carefully and clearly before I learned. It is no accident that he is knowledgeable, full of articles and rich in writings. At the age of 20, he was admitted to the Jinshi, served as a teacher and lecturer in Tianzhangge, and knew the suggestion court. When Yingzong was a straight bachelor in Longtuge, he began to write As a Mirror. In the early years of Zongshen, he was a bachelor of Hanlin. Because of his opposition to Wang Anshi's political reform, Yu Xining met Yongxing Army (now Xi 'an, Shaanxi) in the third year (107). The following year, I changed my sentence to Xijing Yushitai and arrived in Luoyang. Since then, he has lived in Luoyang and served as a redundant official for six times, all of whom were taken from publishing houses and compiled into mirrors with great concentration. In the seventh year of Yuanfeng (1084), he wrote A Mirror, with a bachelor's degree in moving the word to the main hall. In the second year, Zhezong acceded to the throne, and the empress dowager listened to politics. He is a native of Luoyang, Beijing (Tokyo, Kaifeng today), and he is a servant of Shangshu, and the new law is abolished. Soon, he died of illness. He has many works, and Tong Jian is his historical masterpiece.
There are two main purposes for Sima Guang to compile Tong Jian: one is to write a concise chronicle general history. China's historiography has been very developed, and a new generation of historiography revision upsurge appeared in the Song Dynasty. There were too many history books at that time. Sima Guang believes that for a large number of voluminous history books, it is impossible for readers to follow them for years, and it will be difficult to understand them all their lives. So he thought of cutting the complexity and simplifying it, providing people with a brief historical reader, focusing on the political history that can be used for reference. Second, by compiling history, "the rise and fall of Syria is the life of the people", summing up historical experience and lessons in an attempt to serve politics. Because of this, Song Shenzong thought that this book was "given the resources of governing Tao in view of the past" (see the preface to Hu Sansheng's New Note on Governing Tao as a Mirror) and named it Governing Tao as a Mirror, for which he wrote a very commendable preface.
Sima Guang invited Liu Shu, Liu Fang, Fan Zuyu and other right-hand men to participate in the compilation of Tong Jian. Sima Guang chose these three people to participate in the compilation because their political views and attitudes are basically the same. At that time, everyone disapproved of Wang Anshi's political reform and tried to express his thoughts and ambitions by compiling history books. It can be said that everyone has special skills or is interested in history. Liu Shu knows thousands of years of history like the back of his hand, Liu Fang is good at Han history, and Fan Zuyu is youthful and specializes in Tang Shi. They mastered the official and folk books and materials at that time, used 19 kinds of official history from Historical Records to History of the New Five Dynasties, and also referred to more than 300 kinds of miscellaneous history, notes and anthologies. They have also made great efforts in sorting out historical materials and textual research on historical facts. Textual research on the similarities and differences of historical materials and the authenticity of historical events is integrated into textual research. They divided the work into groups and long versions. Sima Guang commanded and dispatched, arranged the work flexibly as appropriate, and finally revised and finalized the draft. He is the only one who "cuts" the right and wrong of historical events (Liu: a mirror asks questions), and "I despise the sun" is his family's view of history. Sima Guang is diligent in writing history. Over the years, "the day is insufficient, followed by the night" (A Brief Statement of Jin Tongzhi), and almost devoted his life's energy. This masterpiece has two hundred and ninety-four volumes and more than three million words. It took nineteen years to write a book (1066- 1084). If you add in the time that Sima Guang has published Tongzhi (actually the first eight volumes of Tongjian), it will be more than 20 years.
The greatest feature of Tong Jian in China's historiography is the chronological political general history. It inherits and develops the fine tradition of Historical Records General History. Historical Records is a biographical general history, while Tong Jian is a chronological general history, with more than 500,000 words in the former and more than 3 million words in the latter. Compared with historical records, Tongjian has the general historical characteristics of being slightly ancient and detailed today. When studying ancient history, China people often read Tong Jian first, which makes sense.
There are many kinds of ancient history books in China, including political history, economic history and cultural history. There are comprehensive and special histories. Tongjian is "telling the rise and fall of the country and caring about people's lives" (Volume 69 of Tongjian). It describes in detail the feelings of the national government and people, the ups and downs of chaos, political gains and losses, political accomplishment, political struggle and war. , and become a very distinctive political history. It often makes little or no mention of social economy and culture.
Second, take history as a mirror.
Historians manage history, especially great historians write history, face social reality and stress social functions. Sima Guang wrote Tong Jian, a history textbook for the emperor, with the aim of benefiting the world in historiography. What did he write on the calendar chart? In the preface, the General Records Table has been compiled. Please continue to compile the General Records and Xie Ci's Preface Table for General Mirror. I express my thoughts again and again, especially when I enter the mirror table, which makes my writing purpose very clear. He said, "I am committed to this book" and asked the emperor to take time to read it. "Looking at the ups and downs of the past life, we can learn from today's gains and losses, Jiashan repents and gives up right and wrong", which has made politics have a new improvement and the people have been happy. Song Shenzong also realized that this book has "profound admonition significance".
Sima Guang emphasized taking history as a mirror, which is roughly as follows:
First of all, it is human effort to write about the ups and downs, successes and failures of past dynasties, so pay attention to distinguish between good and evil characters. The main points are as follows: (l) Sima Guang believes that human nature has both good and evil, and education should be strengthened. He believes that people can become better through education and study. For example, a mirror describes all kinds of characters, whether they are monarchs or ministers, depending on his cultivation and treatment of people, not on his gains and losses of good and evil.
(2) He believes that people are talented and moral should be the first. He once wrote "On Talent and Virtue", and the first volume of Zi Zhi Tong Jian also talked about talent and virtue. He believes that as long as people are good at learning, they can cultivate virtue. The relationship between talent and virtue is the "endowment" of virtue, and virtue is the "handsome" of talent. Only by leading talents with morality can we give full play to talents. He called those who had both talent and virtue "saints", those who had no talent and virtue "fools", those who had talent and virtue "gentlemen" and those who had superior virtue "villains". In his view, it is better to get a fool than a villain if you can't get a saint and a gentleman in the art of selecting and employing people. Because he takes into account that villains think it is evil to do bad things, while fools are powerless to do bad things, and others can control them. He reminded the ruling candidates that they should "judge their talents and virtues and know their priorities." Tong Jian's comments on historical figures are based on this view.
(3) He believes that Taoism can be divided into good and evil, and emphasizes that believing in good and evil repels evil. He stressed that the choice of surgery should be "cautious" and not leave the "right path". The so-called right path is the way of sages, that is, the way of Confucianism. As for "the skill of explaining the old", "the words of Lao Zi and Zhuang Zi", "the skill of immortals" and "the skill of applying to Korea", they are all regarded as "witchcraft" and "the right law of non-state education". (Volume 42 of Biography of Sima Wen) He commented on historical figures, and it was on the basis of distinguishing between good and evil of Tao that he distinguished between good and evil.
Secondly, the purpose of writing Tong Jian is to learn from history and understand the importance of knowing people and establishing politics. There are many contents in As a Mirror, such as "knowing people's rise and fall" and "establishing politics's success or failure". 100 More than one "Minister light day" is mostly about the relationship between employing people in past dynasties and controlling the rise and fall of chaos. The main content is about making good use of people, being strict in classes, teaching, understanding the legal system and stressing loyalty. He believes that "it is important to be in power, not to use people first" (History as a Mirror), and based on employing people, he criticized the "first family" and the practice of following qualifications. He emphasized "courtesy" and ethical principles, that is, strict class division (Zi Zhi Tong Jian 1). He believes that education is "the top priority of the country" (History as a Mirror, Volume 68) and must be highly valued. Only by "teaching above" can we "be vulgar below", and through ideological education, the social atmosphere can be improved. He is talking about "The Public Instruments of the World" (such as Mirror, Volume 14). When the law is established, it should be observed. "Be familiar with one's family", the legal system must be strict, law enforcement must be fair, rewards and punishments must be clear, and "personal smuggling" should be avoided. He advocated "beggar-thy-neighbor, keep your word" (Ji Gu Lu 1 1 calendar), telling all ethnic groups, political power and neighboring countries to keep their word, and not to "favor one over the other, forget the righteousness", not only to safeguard the dignity of the Han nationality, but also not to oppress all ethnic groups.
Sima Guang emphasized that the key to knowing people and establishing politics lies in the monarch, which has been proved by history. To know people and establish government, you should take history as a mirror and "learn from good and abstain from evil", that is, learn from the positive figures in history and take the negative figures as a warning. By extension, everyone should study history and draw lessons from it.
Tong Jian is good at writing about war. War is the continuation of politics and the highest form of political struggle. When writing political history, it is inevitable to write about war. Such as the mirror focuses on all kinds of wars in the past dynasties. In fact, it focuses on political history and regards war as a form of political struggle. Among China's ancient historical masterpieces, Historical Records should be the first best-written figure, while History as a Mirror is the best-written war. Tong Jian's concise and vivid literary talent is concentrated in writing wars. Some chapters on war, such as Battle of Red Cliffs and the Battle of Feishui, are well-known throughout the ages. Writing about war is still an attempt to learn from history.
Third, the selected notes
Our anthology is based on the characteristics of political history as a mirror. The following five aspects were selected:
(1) Political events. Mainly some events or facts with great historical significance or certain historical lessons, such as Shang Yang's political reform, Qin Shihuang's burning books to bury Confucianism and so on.
(2) the way of governance. Mainly talking about "being an official", "establishing politics", "loving the people" and "making friends". Being an official means knowing people, selecting people and employing people. Establish politics, including suntech, law-abiding, writing, using force and so on. Huaimin refers to the attitude towards the people. Being a good neighbor refers to the relations and policies towards all ethnic groups and neighboring countries. For these problems, we should pay attention to success or failure.
(3) political life. Mainly the way of monarch and minister, focusing on the content of inviting remonstrance, coachable, refusing remonstrance and remonstrance in the relationship between monarch and minister. TongJian describes the relationship between Emperor Taizong and Wei Zhi, and it is rich in content, which is roughly collected from Zhenguan dignitaries and other books. Because of its rich and vivid content, this book has been excerpted more.
(4) Political accomplishment. Mainly the personal accomplishment of the monarch and his subjects in political activities, such as loyalty, honesty, thrift, reform, chastity, modesty, honesty, frankness, caring for the people and so on. It is a personal quality as well as a political and ideological quality. Our country has always paid attention to being a man and has a fine tradition. The so-called "self-cultivation, keeping the family in order, governing the country and leveling the world" is first of all self-cultivation, which is the basic premise and requirement. If you don't fix yourself, you can't talk about how to govern for the people!
(5) War. Selected some famous war articles, such as Battle of Red Cliffs, the Battle of Feishui and so on. History as a Mirror writes about war, paying attention to strategic principles, plans, big scenes and details, reasons for success or failure, etc. We choose to focus on this. Because there are many words describing the war and the length is long, you can't choose more; Even if there are fewer choices, there is still a feeling of talking more.
The achievements and influence of the book are mainly manifested in the following aspects.
First of all, in the field of chronicles, Zi Tong Zhi Jian created the first comprehensive chronicle of China and promoted the development of chronicles. In the process of compiling this history book, Sima Guang formulated a set of effective compilation methods, namely collective compilation, division of labor and cooperation, interlocking and chief editor's control. This editing method scientifically organizes and utilizes manpower, which not only improves the editing efficiency, but also ensures the quality of the manuscript.
At the same time, Sima Guang made clear and strict standards on a series of issues, such as chronological procedures, selection criteria of historical materials, language style, writing format and style, which is unprecedented in the compilation history of chronological history books. "Learning from the Same Resources" further improved and innovated the structure of chronological history books. In addition to the main part, Zi Tong Zhi Jian has added two important parts: the catalogue and textual research.
Secondly, in terms of ideological value, many ideas and viewpoints reflected in Zi Tong Zhi Jian have had a far-reaching impact on contemporary and later generations. The guiding ideology of Sima Guang's compilation of Zi Jian is "to cut down redundant articles, summarize confidential information, focus on the rise and fall of the country, help the people live together, be good at law, and take evil as a warning" (Zi Jian Biao), which determines that the narrative content of this history book must be centered on political and military historical events. Through the narration of political history, the author has repeatedly reiterated the importance of maintaining the feudal hierarchy and feudal ethics. Sima Guang believes that etiquette and discipline are inviolable and trampled. As an emperor, he has the responsibility and obligation to maintain the majesty of the royal family and maintain social order. This is related to the rise and fall of the country and social chaos. Sima Guang also believes that to make the country rich and strong, a very important factor is to attach importance to talents and be good at selecting and using talents.
Thirdly, in the historical epistemology, The Lessons Learned from the Same Resource embodies Sima Guang's dialectical thought of objectivity and justice. Although Sima Guang abided by the ceremony of monarch and minister, he did not conceal the political faults of feudal kings. In other words, Sima Guang not only eulogized the wise monarch, but also exposed the darkness and decay within the feudal ruling class in the spirit of realism, and revealed the image of a bad monarch who was "used to feasting, willing to be lazy, loyal to evil, mixed up without distinguishing, regardless of the gains and losses of things, regardless of the status quo and future troubles", and exposed the images of tyrants and subjugated kings as "stubborn" and even those who founded the country. Then, according to their contributions to the country or disasters, they can distinguish merits and demerits and judge good and evil. For example, on the evaluation of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Sima Guang, on the basis of affirming the achievements of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, also accused him of his faults and shortcomings, such as "extravagance, heavy punishment, extravagance in the palace, chaotic foreign affairs, and excessive wandering, which made the people tired and thieves." Sima Guang's evaluation of Cao Cao, a generation of treacherous men, deviated from the traditional view of history. He affirmed that Cao Cao was a hero created by the times, and his appearance was of positive significance to the times and society at that time. He reversed the war situation at the end of the Han Dynasty, saved the people from fire and water, and saved the country from the danger of repeated division.
Fourthly, as far as literary achievements are concerned, Sima Guang is a master of language and literature. From the historical and literary works of Zi Tongzhi Jian, we can appreciate his extraordinary ability to master words and languages. His language is both detailed and comprehensive, and concise; His writing style is exquisite and beautiful, and it does not flow in the profound ancient Olympics; His style is not only rich in ideas, but also unique.
There are also some shortcomings in Zi Tong Zhi Jian. The most obvious shortcoming exposed in the book is that Sima Guang opposes any form of reform, adheres to the conservative policy of governing the country, and denies that some political and economic reforms can not be ignored in promoting social progress. Fundamentally speaking, Sima Guang didn't see that history is constantly developing, social conditions are constantly changing, and there is no materialistic view that material determines consciousness. Therefore, it is impossible to realize that the superstructure of the feudal ruling class should serve the objective reality, and the political system and methods of governing the country should conform to the trend of social development and change.
Key knowledge points
Sima Guang provides a concise and complete general history for people to study and study history. Qian Daxin commented on Zi Tong Zhi Jian, saying, "If you read Seventeen History, you have to read Tong Jian at the same time. Most of the materials in Tong Jian are outside the official history, which can be corrected by investigating the similarities and differences of various histories. The ancients said that things are more important than before, and the text is not as good as the old, but Tong Jian can be regarded as it. " Because of its outstanding achievements in the field of history and its extensive influence in society, people have studied it in various forms and angles from its compilation to its publication. There are more and more people and works who study and annotate Tongjian, adapt, copy and extend Tongjian, and investigate and comment on Tongjian, and finally form a special knowledge about Tongjian-"Tongjianxue". The book Tong Xue Jian is the most accomplished work among annotations, textual research and comments.
The Catalogue of Tongjian and Textual Research of Tongjian compiled by Sima Guang and others are the pioneering works of Tongjian. The follow-up work of the first Zi Zhi Tong Jian is the long Zi Zhi Tong Jian compiled by Li Tao in the Southern Song Dynasty. The Zi Zhi Tong Jian written by Bi Yuan and others in the Qing Dynasty is the best among many works that continue to write Zi Zhi Tong Jian. The first book adapted from Zi Tong Zhi Jian is the Chronicle of Tong Jian compiled by Yuan Shu in Song Dynasty. As one of the prominent schools in the field of ancient history in China, the study of Tong Jian has flourished since the Song Dynasty, and has gone through the Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties.