Chapter 81: The Method of "Number" and "Reki"

On the contrary, Wang Ting criticized the mysterious five elements of disaster compared with the delusionary sayings such as "the five elements are allocated twelve branches at four o'clock", "with five elements with five viscera and six organs", "using the five elements to name the stars and weft" and "using the five elements to create human figures". Starting from natural science knowledge, he refuted the "allocation of twelve branches at four times with five elements". First of all, he pointed out that the change of cold and summer and the cycle of the four seasons depend on the amount of sunlight: if you get more sunlight, it will be hot, and if you get less sunlight, it will be cold, which has nothing to do with "the cloth of the five qi". Secondly, in every season of the four seasons, there is gold, wood, water, fire and earth. If spring is wood, then the atmosphere of water, fire, earth and gold will be extinguished? If autumn is gold, then which of water, fire, earth and wood will stay? If the earth is prosperous in the four seasons, who will control the air of the remaining moon and not make it lucky?

His final conclusion is that "the book is based on the defense, the number is derived from the calendar, and the history is based on the chronology." Here, he regards "things" as the first nature, while the artificial "books", "numbers" and "al calendar" are not used to record the changes of "things", so he cannot leave natural changes to fabricate "books", "numbers" and "al calendars", and the false statement of "five elements with four hours" makes such a mistake. In Wang Tingxiang's view, gold, wood, water, fire and earth are just five material elements, and it is absurd to attach them to the Confucian classics. In contrast to He Wei, he explained Da Yumo from how to use these five material elements to serve human beings: "Da Yumo said: 'The government is nourishing the people, and the water, fire, gold, wood, earth and valley are only cultivated'. He said that the six can be repaired and treated so that the people can be used for health preservation. The embankment is harmful, the irrigation is beneficial, and the water is in the land. If you take out the fire and change the fire, the insects will not stalk, and if you don't use the fire field, then the fire will be repaired. Wrapped hoof spring goods, iron smelting drum casting, Jin Zhengxiu. There is a prohibition in the mountains and forests, and there is a ring for taking wood. When the axe enters, the wood government is repaired. The painting well is limited to the fields, the territory is painted, the high city is deep, and the local government has been repaired. Teach the people to grow crops, broadcast the art of hundreds of valleys, and cultivate the grain government. The six policies have been repaired, and the civilian people are sufficient, and the five have achieved the success of raising all the people.

Therefore, he emphasized the principle that "man can definitely win the sky" and fiercely attacked the fallacy of the five elements of disaster. First of all, he expounded that the occurrence and changes of natural phenomena are not governed by people's will, and there is no so-called inevitable connection phenomenon of "harmony and good-nature", which can be proved by the example of "Yaoren is like the sky, flooding disaster; Sun Hao is dizzy, and there are many Ruiying" (see Gu Huayu's five miscellaneous essays). Secondly, he stressed that as long as the laws of nature are grasped, the disaster of water and drought can be overcome, which is a clear proof: "Although Yao has been in the politics of water control, although the waves of nine years, the people are suffocating; Tang Xiu's government of saving the wasteland, although it has been seven years, there is no hunger. People are sure to be able to defeat the sky. What's the matter with the drought?" He also criticized the mysterious thoughts in the book and Zhou Dunyi's Taiji diagram. His view is that "heaven is a thing, all-encompassing, and the earth is gathered in the sky, and floating on the water" (the earth is condensed in the sky). The argument is: "The bottle is poured into the water without sinking, the urn floats in the water without falling, and the inner drum is also empty. Looking at this, it can be seen from Xuanhun's examination. If you dig ten or twenty feet, it is full of cement; and the four seas are surrounded by the outside, so you know that the earth is condensed by water and fire, and the materialized dross (the ground is condensed in the day).

"Those who learn Confucius should explain their way and stop heresy. Later generations in the world should worship righteousness and practice the right path, and do not fall into heresy; how can it be said that they are one end and do not need to argue? However, who is to blame for creating the truth and the righteous way of the saint? After criticizing Dong Zhongshu's theological thought in his book with Peng Xianchang, he also emphasized how to treat the traditional "Confucian theory" critically. He said: "Therefore, the theory of Confucians is suitable for saints, that is, saints, believe in it; those who are angry with saints, that is, alien studies, are debated and correct, and those who are good at learning Taoism. If you say that you can believe and keep the words of Confucianism, it is trivial and can't give full play to the essence of saints. How can you talk about it!" Wang Tingshang's "heterogeneity" here refers to theology and various idealism such as Wei, five elements disaster and so on. In contrast, he called it "Tao". Although the "Tao" he mentioned is not limited to the thought of Confucius, the so-called way of Confucianism is an ideological tradition inherited from the ancient system. If this order is discussed, Wang Tingshang is still the same as Cheng Zhu and others, and there is no detachment in this aspect.

And Wang Tingxiang, Han Bangqi, Yang Shen and others are colleagues and friends. Their views are coincideous, communicated and influenced by each other, especially in the theory of temperament. Theoretically, Wang Tingsang's Qiology was more systematic than his friends, and his works had considerable influence at that time. However, Wang Tingxiang did not consciously establish the so-called "qi school", because he did not want to "establish a door". Although Luo Qinshun had a breakthrough in Zhu Xi's thoughts, he still believed in Zhu Zi. Radical qi theories like Wang Tingshang were relatively isolated at that time, which also showed the originality of his ideas. Wang Tingsang is different from Zhu Xi, Wang Yangming and other thinkers. From the first year of Zhengde to the middle of Jiajing, he has been in politics for decades. Therefore, he did not have many opportunities to lecture, run academies and lead students, and disciples like Xue Hui were obviously dissatisfied with the teacher's theory that he adhered to Cheng Yi's view on human nature and criticized Wang Tingxiang's theory of "good and evil in nature". In the "Science" of the "Zhongzhou Character Examination" written in the early Qing Dynasty, Sun Qifeng believed that although Sima Guang and Fan Zhongyan were the sects of science, they could not be compared with Li Dong and Hu Juren, because the former was too important, while the latter did not become an official and took it as his life. Sun Qifeng praised Wang Tingxiang's independent thinking spirit, but disagreed with Wang Ting's words with Zhou Dunyi and his criticism of Mencius's kindness. Sun Qifeng, like many other thinkers at that time, returned to his hometown at the time of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, and repeatedly conquered officials. He seemed to prefer scholars with insipid fame and fortune. Wang Tingshang's theory of cultivation is actually adapted to the upper society centered on scholars and doctors, and the subjectivity of the people has not entered his vision. This means that his whole philosophical thinking is still based on the scholar-and-presorate class, and he is no different from Zhu Xi. On the contrary, "the logic of moral life revealed by Wang Yangming that is not bound by existing norms to affirm feelings with subjectivity or self-discipline and liveliness, and this logic of conscience that is close to everyone has a strong attraction. Of course, this is Yang Mingxue at that time, whether from upper-class scholars, officials or The reason why ordinary people, even those at the bottom of society, receive so much support.