It is said that Confucius traveled all over the world, **3,000, and became famous all over the world. He summed up the four basic attributes of a gentleman and a villain from a distinct individual, and I think this is precisely the most precious moral and ethical code in the 5,000-year-old Chinese civilization.
The gentleman is harmonious but different, and the villain is the same but not harmonious", this sentence comes from "The Analects of Zilu". Literally, a gentleman's heart is harmonious, and even if there are differences between them, they can live in harmony; And although the villains are unanimous on the surface, they have their own ghosts in their hearts. This is the fundamental difference between a gentleman and a villain.
There was once a Chu man named Ji Bu, who was an upright man and was known for keeping his promises. At that time, people often said: "It is better to get **100 catties, than to get Ji Bu Yinuo." This is the origin of the idiom "a promise is a thousand gold". Later, Ji Bu offended Liu Bang, the ancestor of Han Gaozu, and Liu Bang ordered him to be arrested. Jib's friends ran around to intercede for him. These friends were not those who praised Jib verbally, but those who disagreed with him, but understood him. It can be seen that a true friend is the one who stands up in times of crisis. This is exactly what Confucius said about "harmony without difference".
On the contrary, those who seem to live in harmony on the outside are often not in harmony on the inside. During the Jiajing period of the Ming Dynasty, Yan Songquan leaned towards the government and the opposition, and controlled the government with his son Yan Shifan. At that time, the ministers of the DPRK and China were flattering, and no one dared to speak. Only Xu Jie dared to speak out. Although he and Yan Song disagreed politically, they did not give up their ideals because of this. He knew that the struggle with Yan Song could not be achieved overnight, so Xu Jie chose to stay in the dark and wait for the opportunity. Finally, in the fortieth year of Jiajing (1561), Xu Jie's design sent Yan Shifan to prison, and Yan Song was cut down and returned to his hometown. This also confirms the truth of "the same but not the same".
Let's look at those who are "in harmony but not in harmony." They may share the same goal, but they have different means and methods. They appear to be united, but in reality they are working separately and with evil intentions. For example, the Cao Wei regime during the Three Kingdoms period, although it nominally unified the north, it was full of internal contradictions. After Cao Cao's death, the two generations of monarchs, Cao Pi and Cao Rui, failed to effectively solve this problem. Eventually, Sima Yi launched the Gaopingling Rebellion and usurped the power of Cao Wei. This is precisely the evil result of "harmony but not harmony".
In modern society, the gentleman's spirit of "harmony but difference" is still of great significance. At work, we need to live in harmony with our colleagues, but we don't have to blindly follow their point of view; In the family, we need to live in harmony with our family, but we don't have to give up our principles. Only by achieving "harmony and difference" can we truly grow and progress in life.
To sum up, the phrase "gentlemen are harmonious but different, villains are the same but not harmonious" is not only Confucius's evaluation standard for gentlemen and villains, but also the guidelines that each of us should follow in dealing with people. Only by truly understanding and practicing this principle can we go further and more steadily on the road of life. In this complex world, the wisdom of "harmony and difference" will always be our beacon of progress. Celebrate the New Year in peace and auspiciousness