Preface
Preface
At the beginning of the Zhenguan Era, Emperor
Taizong (599-649) of the Tang dynasty decreed
that Qunshu Zhiyao (The Compilation of Books
and Writings on the Important Governing Principles)
be compiled. At the tender age of sixteen,
Taizong enlisted himself in the army, and
joined his father¡¦s forces to try to stop
the turmoil that was going on in the society.
For more than ten years, he dwelt himself
in military matters. After he ascended to
the throne at the age of twenty-seven, he
laid down his armor and began to promote culture
and education, paying particular attention
to the principles of governing, and bringing
peace to the country. He sought to rejuvenate
the nation from the aftermath of civil strife
by restoring order to life, lessening the
burdens of ordinary people, and increasing
prosperity.
Although Taizong was an intelligent, brave,
and eloquent man, he regretted that his
earlier military expeditions had prevented
him from obtaining much formal education.
He also learned from the mistakes made by
the fallen Sui dynasty and realized that
to start a new dynasty was no easy task,
and to sustain it would be even harder.
Hence during his reign, he encouraged his
ministers to point out his mistakes and
to candidly criticize his imperial policies.
To make up for lost time, Taizong ordered
two advisors, the honorable Wei Zheng and
Yu Shinan, to comb through all the historical
records on imperial governing principles
from the Six Classics, the Four Collections
of History and the Hundreds of Schools ,
and to extract the most important lessons
related to the cultivation of oneself, management
of family, good government, and ways to
bring about peace in the world. The result
was a collection, titled Qunshu Zhiyao,
carefully excerptedfrom 14,000 books and
89,000 scrolls of ancient writings¡X500,000
words in all, and covering sixty-five book
categories¡Xdating from the era of the Five
Legendary Emperors to the Jin dynasty.
This truly is a treasured compilation on
governing principles that can bring about
peace and order, which ¡§when used in the
present, allows us to examine and learn
from our ancient history; when passed down
to our descendants, will help them learn
valuable lessons in life.¡¨ Those were the
words written by Advisor Wei Zheng in the
preface of the completed compilation. Emperor
Taizong was extremely pleased with the broad
yet concise compilation and would not let
the books out of his sight. He said: ¡§The
collection has helped me learn from the
ancients. When confronted with issues, I
am very certain of knowing what to do. This
is all due to your efforts, my advisors.¡¨
From here we can see that the subsequent
peace and prosperity of the Zhenguan Era
was attributed greatly to this compilation!
This treasure is truly a must-read for all
politicians.
However, by the beginning of the Song dynasty,
Qunshu Zhiyao disappeared from circulation.
This is due to the fact that Chinese woodblock
printing was not well developed at that
time. The History of Song also did not show
any record of this compilation. Fortunately,
the Japanese Kanazawa Bunko museum collection
had a complete manuscript hand-copied by
Japanese monks during the Kamakura period
(1192-1330). The Japanese returned the books
to China in the 60th year of the reign of
Emperor Qianlong, and they became the master
copy for the Four Series Books published
by the Commercial Press (Shanghai) as well
as publications used by Taiwan.
At the end of 2010, I was fortunate to obtain
a copy of Qunshu Zhiyao. I read the work
repeatedly, and I was filled with immense
joy that eternal stability and peace to
the entire world can be brought about by
the cultural teachings of our ancient saints
and sages. I deeply feel this is so. The
most important thing is that the Chinese
people themselves must truly comprehend
and embrace this traditional culture, to
stop doubting and start believing. The teachings
of the saints and sages constitute an embodiment
of the true self-nature of all beings that
transcends time and space. Even now, they
still hold true. The key learning point
hinges on two words ¡§sincerity and respect.¡¨
The article ¡§Summary of the Rules of Propriety¡¨
says: ¡§Always and in everything let there
be reverence.¡¨ Emperor Kangxi of the Qing
dynasty said: ¡§When a ruler interacts with
his people, the element of respect is fundamental.¡¨
He also said: ¡§All the teachings that have
been passed down through thousands of years
is no more than sincerity and respect.¡¨
The prominent Song scholar Chengzi said:
¡§Respect triumphs over all evils.¡¨ These
sayings illuminate the fact that in order
to cultivate ourselves, advance our virtues,
help people, and benefit the world, only
sincerity and respect can enable us to perfectly
achieve these. If we lack respect and sincerity
toward the teachings of ancient sages and
virtuous emperors, little benefit will be
gained even if we had read the ancient texts
extensively. Confucius stressed that he
only cited the teachings of others and did
not create his own. He believed in and loved
the teachings of the ancients.
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