Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, why do you want to oust a hundred schools of thought and respect Confucianism alone? Has he reached his final goal?

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was an outstanding and famous monarch. During Dong Zhongshu's reign, in 134 BC, he proposed "ousting a hundred schools of thought and respecting Confucianism alone", which was supported by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty.

And a point in "Dismissed a Hundred Schools of Thought, Respecting Confucianism Only", roughly speaking, has almost solved the troubles for more than 60 years since the founding of the People's Republic of China. What trouble is this? Answer later.

According to Yan Xiaoer's analysis, the reason why Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty "ousted hundreds of schools and respected Confucianism alone" is probably to end the "learning of Huang Lao" in the society at that time, establish a hierarchical system with "Confucianism", and at the same time strengthen centralization, weaken the power of local strongmen and consolidate their position.

As for the purpose of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, has it been achieved? "Learning from Huang Lao" was indeed replaced by "Confucianism" at that time, while the power of local strongmen was weakened and centralization was actually strengthened. His ultimate goal can be said to have been basically achieved.

In order to make everyone have a clearer understanding of "ousting a hundred schools of thought and respecting Confucianism alone", Yan Xiaoer felt it necessary to emphasize that the "Confucianism" proposed by Dong Zhongshu at that time was somewhat different from that of Confucius in the Spring and Autumn Period.

It is a mixture of other ideas, such as Taoism and Legalism.

This actually reflects the "inclusiveness" of Confucianism. Perhaps it is for this reason that Confucianism may occupy the mainstream position in the feudal dynasty for thousands of years.

1. Why did Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty "oust a hundred schools of thought and respect Confucianism alone"? The reasons behind it troubled the Han Dynasty for more than 60 years in 202 BC, the establishment of the Han Dynasty, the period of Emperor Gaozu, that is, the period of Liu Bang, the founding king of the Han Dynasty, because the people in the Central Plains were miserable after hundreds of years of troubled times, and then they could not "breathe" under Qin Ershi's "severe punishment and severe law".

The Han Dynasty faced by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was "weak".

At that time, Xiao He, who followed Liu Bang from the beginning of his farmland, suggested that Emperor Gaozu should share the interest with the people and be frivolous and thrifty, that is, take "learning from the situation" as the core of governing the country.

In addition, in the early Han Dynasty, Dou Taihou was well versed in the study of Huang Lao, and Cao Can, after Xiao He, inherited Xiao He and continued to recuperate with the people, being quiet and frugal.

Besides the royal family, so did the landlord class in the Han Dynasty.

According to Records of the Historical Records of the First Qin Emperor, the landlord class in the early Han Dynasty, who had a little talent, knew:

The way of herders is to be safe.

Here, relying on Huang Lao's theory, people's lives have gradually improved, people's wealth and resources have accumulated to some extent, and their homes have been rapidly rebuilt, but the problems have become increasingly prominent.

It can be said that "the learning of Huang Lao", as the thought of governing the country, has gradually made the "disadvantages" that have plagued Korea for more than 60 years more and more serious, mainly as follows:

By the time of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, some people did get rich because of "loose politics", but the life of ordinary people may not be so good. Under this loose policy, rich families amassed wealth, annexed farmers' land, and class conflicts intensified. If there was no "change" during the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, it is foreseeable that there would be an "uprising".

On the one hand, it is even more ambitious to collect money to oppress the people. If one party splits, it will even push the kingship, then it will be in trouble. Therefore, in order to weaken and restrain the influence of enriching the people, Jia and Hao families, restore civil discipline and maintain social order, "the study of Huang Lao" was no longer suitable for the Han Dynasty at that time.

Here, Dong Zhongshu's "ousting a hundred schools of thought and respecting Confucianism alone" was born under the actual needs of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty and the Han Dynasty at that time.

2. Dong Zhongshu's viewpoint of "judging fame deeply and respecting Confucianism alone" covers many of his academic thoughts, and the space is limited. It is emphasized here that it is the most useful and unique to Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. You can even think boldly that this view has solved the problems since the founding of the Han Dynasty.

In Dong Zhongshu's academic thought, there is such an interesting saying that "looking for a deeper name".

In Dong Zhongshu's mind, the name of a saint is the embodiment of "God's will". If people want to follow the heaven and gain insight into "God's will", they must "examine the name deeply".

What kind of "providence"?

Dong Zhongshu said:

God gave him the order of the king of heaven, so he named the son of heaven should regard heaven as his father and serve heaven with filial piety. As a vassal, we should treat each other with sincerity and courtesy, so that goodness is greater than the meaning of ordinary people, enough to change ... scholars, things, people and things.

What does this mean?

This is what Dong Zhongshu said. The right of the monarch is given by heaven, because you are the son of heaven.

The bannermen serve the emperor.

A scholar is a person who does specific things.

Where are people? It is a kind of muddleheaded existence, which needs the education of the "son of heaven" to become clear.

Here conveys an idea, namely:

"The divine right of monarchy" means that subordinates should obey the will of God, serve the monarch and be educated.

It is not difficult to see that Dong Zhongshu's "ousting a hundred schools of thought and respecting Confucianism alone" not only gave way to the "Confucianism" in Dong Zhongshu's period, but also pushed the absolute monarchy to the height of heaven and added the color of "rebellion". After all, this is "providence".

This has increased the thinking of local strongmen, or the "tightening curse" of government decrees: they must accept the management of the monarch, follow the crowd and serve the monarch.

If it is realized, won't it solve the problem that local strongmen are too powerful and intensify class contradictions?

3. The Han Dynasty reached its peak in the hands of Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty, benefiting from the magic of "respecting Confucianism alone". From the above analysis, it is not difficult to see that "ousting a hundred schools of thought and worshipping Confucianism alone" is due to the fact that Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty split into one and pushed for imperial power in order to maintain a good social order, curb wealthy businessmen's accumulation of wealth, annexation of land and oppression of the people, and prevent local gentry from becoming too powerful.

On the one hand, this is to further consolidate centralization and give people all over the world a "reason" to obey "enlightenment" and serve the monarch.

In the feudal society, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty's "ousting a hundred schools of thought and worshiping Confucianism alone" is understandable, and it has achieved good results, which has indeed played a certain role in "enriching Qiang Bing".

After all, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty pushed the Western Han Dynasty to its peak and prosperity and became the strongest country at that time.

Here, we can also think that the peak of the Han Dynasty in the hands of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty benefited from the "tight spell" of "exclusive respect for Confucianism" in some way.

This article is the original and exclusive release of Yan Xiaoer's philosophical essays. If there are any infringements such as handling and plagiarism, once found, the responsibility will be investigated.