Sincerity; A sincere heart.

Book of Rites Sacrifice System: "It is also a sacrifice to the late sages to make them honest and loyal." "Biography of Yao Xiong in Northern Qi Dynasty": "Although Xiong is a military commander, he is generous and good at governing the people." Cao Huachuan, a Book of the New Tang Dynasty: "Although Hua is a martial man, he must behave with courtesy, love the scholar-officials and treat others with sincerity. People find it difficult. " Song Shi Ye's Epitaph of Shao Qing Gong Li: "Therefore, I participated in the government of Gong Li, Xing Wu, and I served Xiaozong directly with integrity." Guo Moruo's Journey to the Soviet Union on June 30th: "Great leaders don't care that every banquet has guests, but they must talk big. Honesty is blessed, thoughts move, and not talking is greater than talking. "

What is honesty?

"Honesty" is the Confucian thought of being a man. We should be honest in this world. Zhu, a Neo-Confucianism scholar in the Song Dynasty, said, "Honest people are really innocent." Affirming "sincerity" is a virtue that is true but not deceitful. In Xiu De, to ask people to do things, they must follow the example of heaven and be true. Tell the truth, do practical things and oppose hypocrisy.

What is a letter?

Shuo Wen Jie Zi advocates "people's words are true", while Cheng Yi advocates "truth is true". It can be seen that "faith" not only requires people to speak honestly and reliably, but also requires people to do things honestly and reliably. The basic connotation of "faith" is to keep promises, match words with deeds, be honest and trustworthy.

"Honesty" is mainly from the perspective of heaven, and "faithfulness" is mainly from the perspective of human nature. Therefore, Mencius said: "a loyal person is also a heavenly way; Those who think sincerely, the way of people is also. "

"Honesty" is innate, and it is the truth and law to follow the example of heaven and pursue honesty. Although there are philosophical differences between them, from a moral point of view, "honesty" and "faithfulness" are synonymous and equivalent concepts, so Xu Shen said in Shuo Wen Jie Zi: "Honesty and faithfulness are also." "Faith, sincerity." The basic meaning is honesty and trustworthiness, consistency in words and deeds, and what you look like. This is the basic requirement of being a man.

"Honesty" in a general sense means honesty and sincerity, which mainly refers to the inner moral quality of the subject's sincerity; "Credibility" means credit trust, which mainly refers to the externalization of the subject's "inner sincerity". "Honesty" refers more to "inner sincerity", while "faith" focuses on "external trust in people". The combination of "honesty" and "faithfulness" has formed a rich vocabulary, which is both internal and external, and its basic meaning refers to honesty and trustworthiness. For thousands of years, honesty has been regarded by the Chinese nation as its own code of conduct and moral cultivation, and formed a unique and rich concept of honesty on the basis of its basic meaning.

As ethical norms and moral standards, "sincerity" and "faith" were originally used separately. Mencius said, "Honesty is heaven, and honesty is humanity." "The Doctrine of the Mean" also said: "Honesty is heaven, honesty is humanity." The basic meaning of a letter is to keep one's promise, match words with deeds, and be true and credible. The first combination of "sincerity" and "faithfulness" was in Yizhoushu: "Adults don't taste it, they help you sincerely and help you grow rich." "The filial piety of father and son, the friendship of brothers, the loyalty and stupidity of the monarch and the minister, and the sincerity of the township party." The "sincerity" here actually means "sincerity". In other words, honesty in the general sense means honesty, keeping promises, and emphasizing that people should treat each other sincerely.

Honesty is a moral category, that is, treating people sincerely, being honest and keeping promises. The explanations in Shuo Wen Jie Zi are "sincerity, faithfulness" and "faithfulness, sincerity". It can be seen that the original meaning of honesty is honesty, sincerity, trustworthiness and trustworthiness, and it is opposed to concealing fraud, counterfeiting and fraud.

1. Honesty in China's traditional morality

Honesty and integrity are the basic moral standards in dealing with people.

2. Western concept of good faith

The concept of honesty originated in ancient Greece and rose in ancient Rome. It is embodied in commodity economic activities and is the basis of contract.

3. The premise of good faith

Counterfeiting and anti-fraud without harming the interests of others and the collective.

1. Integrity in China's traditional morality?

Honesty and integrity are the basic moral standards in dealing with people.

2. Western concept of good faith

The concept of honesty originated in ancient Greece and rose in ancient Rome. It is embodied in commodity economic activities and is the basis of contract.

3. The premise of good faith

On the premise of not harming the interests of others and the collective, honesty also depends on the situation!

Honesty function

Honesty is a good character that everyone must possess. A man of integrity shows that he is a civilized man. Honest people are welcome everywhere; People will ignore the existence of dishonest people; Therefore, each of us should be honest. Honesty is the way to be a man and the foundation of being a man.

people-oriented

Confucius said, "People without faith don't know what they can do. People think that if people don't keep their promises, there will be no place in society and nothing can be done.

Ways to maintain a family

Wei Zhi, a famous minister in the Tang Dynasty, said, "Husband and wife are kind, but if they are not sincere, they will leave. As long as husband and wife, father and son, and brothers are honest and trustworthy, they can live in harmony and achieve the goal of "home and everything". "If the family lacks honesty and mutual distrust, the family will gradually fall apart.

The foundation of making friends

Only by "making friends widely and keeping promises" can we achieve the goal of "trusting friends" and being honest and selfless. Otherwise, if friends are full of hypocrisy and deception, there will never be real friends. Friends are based on honesty.

The rule of law

"Zuo Zhuan" says: "Faith is a national treasure. It is pointed out that honesty is the fundamental magic weapon for governing the country. Of the three, Confucius would rather "join the army" and "go to eat" and insist on retaining "the trust of the people". Because Confucius believed that "the people can't be untrustworthy", if the people don't trust the rulers, the political affairs of the country are simply untenable. Therefore, the ruler must "win the trust of the people", as Wang Anshi said: "Since ancient times, people have been driven by sincerity, and a word is more important than gold. "

The soul of business

In modern society, when signing a contract, businessmen expect the other party to abide by it. Honesty is the best competitive means of various commercial activities, the soul of market economy and the real "golden business card" of entrepreneurs.

Medicine for the soul

As the old saying goes, "if you are sincere in turn, you will be happy." . Only by being sincere and true can we make our hearts clear, calm and peaceful, bring the greatest spiritual happiness to people, and become a good medicine for people to soothe their hearts. If people don't talk about honesty, it will lead to social disorder, mutual distrust and endless troubles. As the article "Lu Chunqiu's Return to the Heart" said, the monarch and his subjects are not trustworthy, the people slander the court, and the country is not at peace; Being an official is not trustworthy, not afraid of being long, it is light; If rewards and punishments are not believed, the people are easy to break the law and it is difficult to give orders; If you don't keep your word when making friends, you will hate each other and can't date each other; If all the workers don't believe it, the quality of handmade products will be rough, shoddy and the paint dyeing will be incorrect. It can be seen that dishonesty is harmful to society!

Generally speaking, honesty is an indispensable virtue for self-cultivation, maintaining family order, making friends, doing business and even politics, which shows the importance of honesty in human society.

Ideological origin

From tradition to modernity [3]

Honesty is an important concept of ethical philosophy put forward by pre-Qin Confucianists, and it is also an important category in the history of China's ethical thought. It was not until the period of Confucius that "honesty" was formed as a theoretical concept. Mencius not only formed a theoretical concept, but also had a very important position. He said: "it is sincere, and heaven is also; If you think sincerely, you will learn from others. Those who are sincere and motionless are not there; If you are dishonest, there will be no porters. " Here, honesty is not only the highest category of the ontology of heaven, but also the law and know-how of being a man. Xunzi developed the thought of "sincerity" and pointed out that "sincerity is the foundation of politics". He said; "The heavens and the earth are big, and dishonesty cannot change everything; As the saints know, if you are dishonest, you can't turn to the public; Father and son are close relatives, and dishonesty is sparse; Jun Jing, if you are not sincere, you are humble, your husband is sincere, and the gentleman keeps it. The foundation of politics is also. " In The Doctrine of the Mean, "honesty" has become the core category of etiquette and the highest realm of life: "Only honesty in the world can make the best use of it; If you can do your best, you can do your best; If you can make good use of human nature, you can make good use of things; If you can make the best use of it, you can praise the teaching of heaven and earth; If you can praise the cultivation of heaven and earth, you can go to heaven and earth. " As sincere as a god, with sincere moral character and attitude, you can infiltrate a variety of benevolence and morality, become an adult, and even achieve the nature of human beings and things, praise heaven and earth for practicing together with heaven and earth, and achieve the realm of "harmony between man and nature". The University regards "sincerity" as one of the eight items, namely, respecting things, knowing and doing, being sincere, cultivating one's morality, keeping the family in order, and governing the country. "Honesty" has become an important link for sages to abide by God's will, cultivate one's morality, and govern the country and the world. In the Song Dynasty, Zhou Dunyi further believed that "honesty" was "the foundation of the five permanent members and the source of all things." Take "sincerity", including honesty, as the foundation of benevolence, righteousness, courtesy, wisdom and faith, and the beginning of all kinds of good deeds. Cheng Yi put it more bluntly, "You can do good even if you are not sincere", and his views are incisive.

Marxist ethics critically inherits the category of "honesty" and affirms that honesty is an important norm of social morality. In the long-term social life, the main moral requirements of honesty have gradually become clear: loyalty, integrity and honesty. The main purpose of loyalty is loyalty to the motherland, people and just cause. Of course, this kind of loyalty is not blind and narrow "foolish loyalty", but identifies with lofty ideals, pursues and makes unremitting efforts to realize these ideals, thus showing the spirit of being willing to contribute and being brave in sacrifice. Integrity means integrity, fairness and frankness. Honesty means telling the truth, doing honest things and being honest.

Faith is also the category of China's history of ethical thought. The meaning of "faith" is similar to "sincerity" and "truth". From the analysis of the glyph, the word faithfulness follows people's words, which originally refers to the sincere words to heaven and ancestors during sacrifice. Liang Ji, a doctor in the Sui Dynasty, said, "Be loyal to the people and believe in God" and "May history have correct remarks and trust." Later, due to the development of private economy and private thoughts, the original simple society was gradually destroyed. In the communication between countries and people, we must conclude an oath. However, the observance of vows and commitments still depends on the deterrence of the gods and spirits of heaven and earth. In the Spring and Autumn Period, under the advocacy of Confucianism, "faith" began to get rid of religious color and became a pure moral norm. Confucius believed that "faith" was the embodiment of "benevolence", and he asked people to "respect things and believe". He said, "If you believe, you will do whatever you want" and "If you don't believe, you don't know what you can do". Confucius and Mencius regarded "trust" as an important principle of making friends, emphasizing that "friends believe in their existence" and "friends believe in their absence". Most authorities in past dynasties regarded "trust" as an important tool to maintain order. "Zuo Wen Zhuan's Four Years" said: "Abandoning faith and damaging its owner will lead to chaos in the country." "Your Letter in the Spring and Autumn Annals of Lu" makes an incisive analysis of the consequences of faith and unbelief in social life: "If the monarch and the minister don't believe it, the people will slander and the country will be uneasy. If officials don't believe in it, they will be less afraid of growing up and look down on each other. If you don't believe in rewards and punishments, people will easily break the law and can't ban it. If you don't believe in making friends, you will be separated from your troubles and can't date each other. If all the workers don't believe it, the equipment will suffer, and if it is fake, the paint will be disloyal. The husband can follow it, take it as the end, respect it, be humble and poor, and believe only! " In the Han Dynasty, Dong Zhongshu listed "faithfulness" and benevolence, righteousness, propriety and wisdom as "five permanents" and regarded them as the most basic social behavior norms. And the "letter" is discussed in detail: "I try to write my feelings without modification, so it is also a letter." He believes that "faith" needs to be honest, consistent in appearance and consistent in words and deeds. Zhu proposed that "benevolence embraces the five permanents" and regarded "faithfulness" as the function and expression of "benevolence", which is mainly the way to make friends. He said: "Honesty is the foundation", which is basically consistent with Confucius and Mencius. In Confucianism, honesty is often used as a concept. The meanings of "faithfulness, sincerity", "sincerity" and "faithfulness" are very similar.

From this point of view, traditional ethics regards honesty as a basic quality of human beings, and believes that honesty is a good strategy to win people's trust and the cornerstone of success. In short, this is the rule of personal life.

Classical exposition

In China's Confucian classics, there are many expositions about the way of honesty. Now, select the important ones to elaborate.

"People don't believe what they say." ("The Book of Songs Zheng Feng Yang Zhishui")

People should not believe what people who are dishonest say. Therefore, to make others believe in themselves, we must be honest.

"The gentleman's words are faithful and have rules, so hate is far away; The words of the villain are arrogant and have no sign, so they are responsible. (Zuo Qiuming's "Eight Years of Zuo Zhao")

"Make friends and keep your word." (Confucius "The Analects of Confucius")

A gentleman's words are well-founded, so resentment goes far beyond his body; The villain's words became more and more absurd and unfounded, so he was accused. Please be frank and well-founded, and avoid nonsense without factual basis.

"Teach four things: literature, conduct, loyalty and faith." (The Analects of Confucius)

When teaching students, Confucius advocated "literature" (that is, classic works such as poetry, calligraphy, ceremony and music), and emphasized both "conduct", "loyalty" and "faith", hoping that students could be knowledgeable (literature), diligent (conduct), loyal (loyalty) and honest.

"Confucianism is not gemology, loyalty is treasure." (Dai Sheng, Editor-in-Chief, Book of Rites Confucianism)

Confucianism values virtue, so it values "loyalty" rather than jade. It can be seen that Confucianism regards "faith" as a magic weapon to cultivate self-cultivation and govern the country at home.

"The ancient Yutang ruled the world in good faith, treacherous and treacherous, and there was chaos in the world. So, if you are an expert, you will be cautious and loyal, and then you can do it. This is also the foundation of this gentleman. " ("Xunzi")

Xunzi Power ")

The ancient sage, Tang, speaks the truth according to justice and rules the world; The tyrant is stubborn and treacherous, and the world is in chaos. Therefore, as a monarch, we must be cautious, loyal and loyal in order to govern the country. This is "the great foundation of the monarch." This proves that honesty is the foundation of governing the country.

"or ask a letter and say," don't eat his words. " "(Yang Xiong's" Chong Li ")

The so-called faith means not breaking your word, not forgetting your promise, and being sure to do what you say and match your words with your deeds.

"Believers are sincere and unwavering." (Ban Gu, "White Tiger Yi Tong, Temperament, On Five Sexes and Six Emotions")

In a sense, faith is honesty, and honesty is faith. The two are interlinked, and the basic connotation is true. No matter what you say or do, you are honest and trustworthy.

"Honesty is the foundation of the five permanent members, and the source of every line. (By Zhou Dunyi and Zhou Ziquan, Shu Tong and Cheng Xia)

Honesty is the foundation of the five permanent members (benevolence, righteousness, courtesy, wisdom and faith) and the root of people's doing all kinds of good things. It can be seen that "sincerity" is important in the Confucian moral system.

"Believers are true." (Cheng Hao, Cheng Yi "Henan Cheng suicide note" Volume 1)

The so-called "faith" means that there is no "false" meaning. Never tell lies or do false things; Neither deceive oneself nor others. All words and deeds are based on honesty, and all hypocrisy and falsehood are excluded.

"A husband with faith is a great asset to people. The country is protected by the people and the people are protected by trust. It is impossible to convince the people, and it is impossible for them to defend the country. Therefore, the ancient king did not bully the four seas, and he did not bully his neighbors. Good for the country, not bullying its own people; A good family doesn't bully relatives. (Sima Guang's Zi Zhi Tong Jian, Volume II)

"Honesty" is a magic weapon for people, because "the country is protected by the people and the people are protected by trust". Without credit, people cannot be achieved, and without popular support, the country cannot be defended. Therefore, the ancient holy king did not bully the four seas, and the five tyrants did not bully their neighbors. Those who are good at governing the country do not bully their people; A man who is good at maintaining family order will not bully his relatives. It can be seen how important faith is in governing the country.

"Honesty is human and falsehood is animal." (Huang Zongxi's Mencius Teacher's Theory, Volume 7).

Honesty is one of the fundamental differences between humans and animals. Only people have the virtue of honesty, and animals don't talk about honesty. If people only seek material selfish desires without honesty, it is an inhuman animal behavior.

Laozi said: "Good words are not beautiful, but good words are not believed." ("Lao Zi" Chapter 81)

Good words are not beautiful, and good words are not true, because good words are plain.

Confucius said, "If you believe in righteousness, you can reply." (Learning the Analects of Confucius)

It is emphasized that a person's credit should conform to "righteousness" and can only be implemented if it conforms to "righteousness".

Mencius said, "Honest people have heaven. If you think sincerely, you will learn from others. " ("Mencius Li Lou")

Affirming "honesty" is the law of heaven's operation, and pursuing honesty is the truth of being a man.

Xunzi: "Shame on unbelief, shame on unbelief." ("Xunzi Fei Shi Er Zi")

Shame that you can't have the virtue of "trust", but not be ashamed of not being trusted by others.

Liu An: "People believe first, then seek energy." ("Huai Nanzi said Xun Lin")

Look at whether he is trustworthy first, and then talk about his ability, indicating that "trust" is more important than "ability".

Zhuge Liang: "Don't break your word with function." ("model")

Don't lose confidence in others just because you have merit and talent.

Wang Tong: "Push with sincerity, but don't keep your word." (Duke of Zhong Shuo)

As long as you can be honest with each other, it goes without saying that you will trust each other.

Cheng Yi: "Honesty means faith, and faith means honesty." ("Henan Cheng's suicide note" Volume 25)

Honesty leads to credibility, and credibility means honesty. It can be seen that "sincerity" and "faith" are interlinked.

Zhu: "Honest people are really innocent." ("Notes on the Four Books and the Doctrine of the Mean")

Honesty is true, not false.

Cao Duan: "One sincerity is enough to eliminate all falsehood." ("Ming Confucianism Case" Volume 44 "Quotations")

One honest act is enough to dispel thousands of hypocrisy.

Related stories

1, Ceng Zi kills pigs.

Ceng Zi's wife went to the market, and her son went with her, crying as he walked. Mother said to him, "Go home. When I come back, I'll kill the pig for you." His wife came back from the market and Ceng Zi wanted to catch some pigs to kill them. His wife stopped him and said, "It's just a joke with the children." Ceng Zi said, "Never joke with children. Children are ignorant at first, so they should learn from their parents and listen to their instructions. Now if you lie to him, you are teaching your children to lie. If the mother deceives the child and the child does not believe the mother, it is impossible to teach the child well. " So Ceng Zi killed the pig.

2. Guo Moruo and Banana Flower

Guo Moruo was naughty when he was a child, but he was very filial. Once, his mother got carsick. Guo Moruo heard that plantain flower can cure this disease. This kind of flower is very expensive and seldom blooms, so he and his brother ran to a garden to look for it. It happened that the plantain in that garden had a big yellow flower, and Guo Moruo and his brother secretly picked it and gave it to their mother. Although the mother knew that Guo Moruo was filial to her, her son's behavior made her sad. Since then, Guo Moruo has never stolen anything from others.

3. Auto repair shop

A customer walked into an auto repair shop and claimed to be the driver of the transportation company. "Write more parts on my bill. After I go back to the company for reimbursement, you will have benefits. " He said to the shopkeeper. But the owner refused such a request. The customer pestered and said, "My business is not small. I will come here often. You can definitely make a lot of money! " "The shopkeeper told him that this could never be done. The customer shouted angrily, "Anyone can do this. I think you are too stupid. " The shopkeeper was so angry that he asked the customer to leave at once and talk about it elsewhere. At this time, the customer smiled and shook the owner's hand admiringly: "I am the boss of that transportation company. "I have been looking for a fixed and trustworthy repair shop and will come here often in the future!"

In the face of temptation, I don't feel heartbroken and confused about it. Although it is as plain as a cloud and as simple as running water, it makes people appreciate a kind of high mountain and deep sea. This is a shining character-honesty.

4. Little Sandy's Story

A.D.18th century, a rich gentleman in England was walking home late one night when he was stopped by a unkempt and ragged boy. "Please buy a pack of matches, sir," said the little boy. I won't buy it. The gentleman replied. Then the gentleman walked away from the boy. "Sir, please buy a bag. I have eaten nothing today. " The little boy caught up with him. Seeing that the boy could not escape, the gentleman said, "but I have no change." "Sir, take the match first and I'll change it for you." After that, the boy ran away with a pound given by the gentleman. The gentleman waited for a long time, but the boy still didn't come back. The gentleman went home helplessly.

The next day, the gentleman was working in his office. The servant said that a boy had come and asked to meet the gentleman. So the boy was called in. The boy is shorter than the boy who sells matches and is dressed in rags. I'm sorry, sir. My brother asked me to bring you the change. " "Where's your brother?" The way of a gentleman. "My brother was seriously injured by a carriage on his way back to find you after changing the change, and he was lying at home." The gentleman was deeply moved by the little boy's honesty. "Let's go! Let's go and see your brother! " When I arrived at the boy's house, I saw only two boys' stepmother greeting the badly injured boy. Seeing this gentleman, the boy quickly said, "I'm sorry I didn't send you the change back on time. I broke my word!" " The gentleman was deeply moved by the boy's honesty. When he learned that the parents of the two boys had died, he resolutely decided to take on everything they needed in life.

5. Sima Youzhi

Sima Yi, a great strategist of Qi during the Warring States Period, was a military general who obeyed military regulations. On one occasion, Zhuang Jia, a close confidant of the monarch, inspected the army and did not arrive at the barracks at the stipulated time. Sima Yi was ordered to behead Zhuang Jia. The monarch sent someone to intercede with Zhuang Jia, who drove the carriage into the camp gate without permission. Sima Yi killed the man's servant and the driver's horse as punishment. This style of defying powerful people and obeying military orders has established Si Mazhao's prestige. During the war, the soldiers fought bravely and finally defeated the enemy.

6. Zhao's orphan

In ancient times, there was a play called Orphan of Zhao, which was a true historical story. Two people keep their promises at the cost of their lives. During the Spring and Autumn Period, Zhao She, a loyal minister of Zhao, was framed by a traitor and died. Before his execution, Zhao She said to his two disciples, Cheng Ying and Chu Jiu, "After my death, you must try to save my son, let him avenge me in the future and get rid of Tu'an Gu, a bunch of bad guys who have ruined the country and the people." The two men solemnly agreed.

After Zhao She was killed, the two went through hardships and kept their promises. Zhao She's wife is the daughter of the prince of Zhao and lives in the palace with her son. They estimated that Zhao She's wife would not be killed, but Zhao She's son might lose it, so they tried to steal him from the palace. The child was only half a year old at that time. Cheng Ying also has a half-year-old son, so he raised him in Cheng Ying's house. However, Tu'an Gu soon found that the child was not in the palace, so he looked everywhere for a month, but he couldn't find it. This guy became angry from embarrassment, he must kill the grass and ordered a nationwide search; If you can't find out, kill all the children over three months old and under 1 year old.

When Cheng Ying and Chu Jiu saw this situation, they felt very sorry, so they discussed a way to save children and Scott orphans all over the country, and gave Cheng Ying's son to others as Scott's orphan. Who will provide it? Those who donate children will be condemned by honest people, and those who save children will certainly not live. Finally, he said in vain, "Let me die. I am old, and the task of raising in the future is very heavy and takes a long time. Besides, if you can use words and skills, staying is more useful than me. " So Chu Jiu hid Cheng Ying's son in his house, while Cheng Ying went to "report" and took people to Chu Jiu's house to search. Sure enough, he found a child lying dead in front of Cheng Ying.

You think about it, although it is to deceive Tu'an Gu, how sad it is to see your son being dashed to death! And this kind of uncomfortable also can't have any performance, to pretend to be trying to please Tu'an Gu. At that time, Tu'an Gu wanted to reward Cheng Ying with a sum of money and distribute it to other officials. Cheng Ying said, "If you give me more money, I won't be an official. If I betray my friends, people will scold me. It is better to take more money, leave Beijing and find a place to live in seclusion. " Tu'an Gu mistakenly thought that Cheng Ying was a snob like him, so he agreed without much thought and gave a lot of money. Hiding in the mountains with money and orphan Zhao. After hiding for 19 years, Zhao's orphans were not only trained as adults, but also trained as literate and martial arts. Cheng Ying didn't tell the orphan 19 what happened. The orphan Scott finally got revenge with the help of Cheng Ying, killed Tu'an Gu and his gang, and overturned Zhao She's conviction. Cheng Ying and Chu Jiu can really be described as "a promise as good as a promise", which is a typical example of keeping their promises in ancient times.

7.socrates

Socrates is the first person who put forward the idea of honesty in the west at present.

It is said that Socrates' father was a stonemason in Athens and his family was poor. Socrates is very sensible and often helps his father do some blacksmith work.

One winter, it snowed heavily. One day, Socrates went out to deliver ironware to other people's homes. Mom, look at the snow.

He was so old that his son didn't wear shoes, so he wouldn't let Socrates go.

"Son, the snow is too heavy for others to use in this weather. Wait until the snow melts! "

"No, I have to go. My father and I promised to send it to others today. "

Socrates braved the heavy snow and delivered the iron to those who needed it barefoot.

When he gives his father's ironware to customers, the recipients always bring him delicious food. But they soon found that Socrates was not interested in wine and food, but in reading. Later, everyone who had books at home was willing to lend them to Socrates. In this way, Socrates gradually learned many words and read many books.

Reflection on the present situation

1, dishonest aspect

In today's world, the phenomenon of dishonesty is very serious, which leads to a credit crisis, affects economic development and disrupts life order. For example, in Chinese mainland, some government officials cheat their superiors and their subordinates, and corruption is serious. In commercial transactions, fake and shoddy goods are repeatedly banned. About 35% of enterprises in China are infringed by fake and shoddy products, and the annual output value of such products is as high as 1.3 trillion yuan. It is quite common for merchants to be indifferent and perfunctory to customers, make false advertisements, break contracts and make false accounts. These are too numerous to mention. In Hong Kong, since 1970s, there have been many amazing corruption cases, such as "Garbo case", "bribery case of senior legal officials" and "Yuanzhoujiao short pile scandal". As for street fraud, theft and credit card default, there are many phenomena.

2. Reasons for dishonesty

Modern society is eager for quick success and instant benefit, and materialistic. Although modern people use science and technology to create material wealth, they are enslaved by material wealth. In order to earn more money and improve living standards and material enjoyment, modern people go camping every day, but their moral values begin to lose. Under the impact of materialism, utilitarianism and hedonism, modern people generally believe that opportunism is more important than China's traditional virtues, such as honesty, hard work and diligence. Society advocates taking money and power as the standard to measure personal success. On the other hand, human spiritual world, life value, lofty ideals and moral sentiments are gradually forgotten.

When modern people realize that they can actively fight for their own rights and interests, they mistakenly think that freedom means doing whatever they want without rules and constraints. Therefore, people often resort to unscrupulous means for their own self-interest, harming others and benefiting themselves, ignoring moral norms, commitment and credibility and contract law, and making all kinds of selfish behaviors. For example, Chinese mainland's economy began to develop rapidly.

Because the credit system and market rules are not yet perfect, some people who forget profits will take advantage of the imperfect system and laws and lax law enforcement, and do not talk about credit, resulting in various phenomena of "forgetting to believe in profits" now.