Shang Ying: A contest between the wisdom of the Legalists and the power

Mondo History Updated on 2024-01-22

Shang Ying is one of the representatives of pre-Qin Legalism. Around 395 B.C., he was born into a prominent family of the Patriotic Princes. This introduced him to the jurisprudence of criminal names, however, Maxima needed Bole. Shang Ying, who was inactive in the Wei State, met Qin Xiaogong by chance, and finally ushered in the opportunity to display his ambitions.

Shang Ying said: "The public is like a green mountain, and I am like a pine and cypress".

When they first met, Shang Ying gushed about Yao Shun's way, but Xiaogong dozed off from time to time and seemed unmoved. Shang Ying tested the inner needs of Xiaogong, and whether he supported the establishment of a "country of the Tao" was not a wise move. After meeting for the first time, Xiaogong reproached Jing Jian who recommended Shang Ying, but he didn't know the intentions of Shang Ying's words.

Xia Yu, Shang Tang, King Wen of Zhou, King Wu of Zhou: The way of governing the country of the virtuous monarch of history.

Shang Ying took advantage of the situation to tell the story of the statecraft of the wise monarchs in history, such as Xia Yu, Shang Tang, King Wen of Zhou, and King Wu of Zhou. It wasn't until Shang Ying talked about the art of strengthening the country of the Spring and Autumn Five Hegemons that Xiao Gongfang became interested. Shang Ying had insight into what Xiao Gong was really pursuing was the strategy of enriching the country and strengthening the army, which made the Qin State stand out in the jungle of the Warring States.

Shang Ying advocated the establishment of a "country with Taoism".

Shang Ying elaborated on his ideas in depth, Xiaogong listened and was fascinated, and the two talked freely for several days without getting tired. Shang Ying sighed: "I use the art of the country to say the king, and the king speaks of the ear." However, it is difficult to compare virtue with Yin and Zhou. Shang Ying firmly believed that what Xiaogong pursued was not the traditional way of the holy king, but the path of Legalism to strengthen the country, to establish a "country with Tao" under the rule of law, rather than the way of Confucianism.

Reclamation Order: The prelude to the reform of the Qin State.

In 359 BC, the Qin State promulgated the Grass Reclamation Order, marking the prelude to the reform of the law. The decree was clearly biased towards emphasizing agriculture and suppressing commerce, with peasants paying taxes uniformly according to their output, and increasing the tax burden on merchants and nobles. The Shang Dynasty even forbade scholars to preach and teach among the people, in order to limit the improvement of cultural standards. How so?Shang pursued to get the peasants to concentrate on farming, and once they had the culture, their minds would be difficult to control. This is a strategy of fooling the people, making people a silent part of the state apparatus.

Shang Ying: "The people are weak and the country is strong, the country is strong and the people are weak, so the country with the Tao is in the weak people".

The obvious feature of Shang Ying's "land of the Tao" was that it rewarded agricultural warfare, and at the same time fooled the people through means such as book burning, making them an indispensable part of the state apparatus. Shang Ying emphasized: "The people are weak and the country is strong, and the country is strong and the people are weak. This is the practice of Shang Yang Legalist thought, and history also proves that the Qin State became strong. However, why did the "country of Taoism" advocated by Shang Ying not last long?

Shangle uses torture as a threat": the consequences of excessive expansion of authority.

In 221 BC, Qin Shi Huang unified the six kingdoms. However, Shang Ying's "Kingdom of Dao" lasted only 14 years, and eventually died in a peasant uprising. Anti-Qin sentiment certainly existed, but the key was that the Shang Dynasty excessively expanded the authority of the monarch and excessively narrowed the rights and interests of the people. This is an extreme approach that puts the ways of the ancient sage kings behind them. Shang martingale's "strong country and weak people" made Qin Shi Huang Xi used to torture and killing, and abandoned the way of the ancient holy king.

The contest between Legalism and power.

Although the Legalists advocated that there was no dignity in front of the law, they concentrated the authority of the law on the king. This imbalance of authority leads to the authority of one side overpowering the other, which ultimately leads to revolt. Shang Ying's "country of the Tao" did not last long, because of its extreme practice, did not consider the long-term development of the country, and eventually became the cause of the collapse of a powerful state.

Epilogue.

Shang Ying's Legalist thought played an important role in the construction of the Qin state, but its "country of Taoism" did not last long. This reminds us that while pursuing a strong country, we must not ignore the needs and rights of the people. The struggle between Legalist ideology and power has left many lessons in the long course of history.

As an outstanding representative of Legalism in the pre-Qin period, Shang Ying's concept of "the country of Taoism" had a profound impact on the historical background of that time. The article deeply analyzes the initial communication between Shang Ying and Qin Xiaogong, and Shang Ying's temptation and adaptation, which finally made Qin Xiaogong have a strong interest in the art of strengthening the country. This demonstrates Shang Ying's outstanding wisdom and sensitive insight into the current situation.

Shang Ying advocated the establishment of a "country with Taoism", and in the "Reclamation Order" promulgated during the reform period, he laid the foundation for the strength of the Qin state through the policy of emphasizing agriculture and suppressing commerce. The article provides an in-depth interpretation of Shang Ying's practice of prohibiting scholars from imparting knowledge among the people, highlighting Shang Ying's methods of fooling the people to ensure the efficient operation of the state apparatus. Shang Ying clearly emphasized the concept of "the people are weak and the country is strong", and the practice of this policy played an important role in the development of the Qin state.

However, the article also points out that Shang Ying's concept of "the land of the Tao" did not last long. In this regard, the article puts forward two key reasons: first, the Shang Dynasty excessively expanded the authority of the monarchy, weakened the rights and interests of the people, and made the authority of the state apparatus too centralized;Second, Shang Ying failed to take into account the long-term development of the country when building a "country with a way", and his overly extreme approach eventually led to the collapse of the Qin state.

Commentators agree with the article's in-depth excavation of Shang Ying's thought, especially in the interpretation of Shang Ying's exploration of filial piety, ** policy, and the analysis of excessive expansion of authority. Shang Ying's Legalist thought played a positive role in the historical process of the Qin state, but it also led to the failure of its "Daoist State" to end for a long time because of its overly extreme measures and ignoring the needs of the people. This has led commentators to reflect on the importance of balancing power and people in nation-building, as well as the need to consider the long-term development of the country in order to avoid social instability caused by overly extreme policies.

Overall, the analysis of Shang Ying's thought is both profound and comprehensive, and it provides a clear explanation of the development of Legalist thought in the pre-Qin period and its role in the history of the Qin state. The story of Shang Ying is not only a witness to history, but also a profound reflection on the concept of contemporary social governance.

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