Xu Zi: The Development, Type and Characteristics of Traditional Family Instructions

徐梓：传统家训的发展、类型与特征

Traditional family precepts are an important part of the Chinese culture and have a profound impact on family development.

-----Zhuge Changqing

Family instructions are an important part of the traditional culture of the Chinese nation.

Family motto is an important magic weapon for the inheritance of Chinese culture.

To study Chinese traditional culture, we must understand the family instruction culture.

Zhuge Changqing suggested that you take the time to search and learn our family culture, such as Yan's Family Instructions, Zhu Zi's Family Instructions, and Jie Zi's Book, which will be of great significance to life growth, children's education, employee education, and family education.

Today, Zhuge Changqing shares the good article "Xuzi: The Development, Types and Characteristics of Traditional Family Instructions" by Xu Zi, a famous professor of Chinese Studies at Beijing Normal University. With this article, we can understand the family instruction culture together.

Professor Xu Zi is from the Research Center of Chinese Classics Education of Beijing Normal University.

Xu Zi, whose real name is Xu Yong, is a professor of the Department of Education of Beijing Normal University, director of the Research Center for Classical Chinese Studies of Beijing Normal University, and director of the Center for Traditional Culture Education of the Chinese Society of Education. He mainly studies traditional Chinese education and traditional culture education.

Zhuge Changqing is grateful to Professor Xu Zi and other professors for their selfless contributions to traditional Chinese culture.

As for family instructions, Professor Xu Zi pointed out:

Family precepts are the precepts of fathers and ancestors to future generations. They are the principles and regulations of the family's ancestors for future generations.

Family precepts are moral constraints imposed on descendants or ethnic groups by virtue of the authority of elders, and even have legal effect. Modern scholars also call it "clan law".

Family precepts used to have many different names, such as family education, family precepts, family rules, family etiquette, family precepts, family rules, family conventions, family rules, family management, family system, as well as family education, family management, family heirs, family management, etc. The object of its restriction is usually a large family with a large population, so it also has the names of clan model, clan model, world model, clan precept, clan covenant, clan covenant, clan style, clan ceremony, clan oath, religion, clan code, clan type, clan politics, etc.

Some family precepts were made by the elders of the fathers and ancestors at the time of their deathbed. This kind of precepts has a particularly obvious word "legacy", such as legacy orders, legacy precepts, legacy edicts, legacy orders, legacy precepts, legacy words, wills, legacy letters, and legacy notes. Most of the traditional family precepts come from the hands of strict fathers, and some come from the mouth of loving mothers, such as benevolent precepts, maternal precepts, benevolent teachings, and maternal teachings. Many family precepts are often handed down from generation to generation, usually called ancestral precepts, vertical precepts, and precepts.

The content of traditional family precepts is mainly about dealing with people, but also about managing life at home, especially the management of ancestral halls, charity houses, school houses, cultural associations, and sacrificial rites. At this time, the naming often uses ancestral rules, sacrificial rites, village rules, private precepts, private priests, and cultural association rules.

There are also some family precepts named after the statements in the Confucian classics, such as banality, mediocrity, carefree home, taking care of life, Yanyi, Yimou, court training, court gao, court language, and dying voice. According to its own logic or type evolution, the development of traditional family instruction can be divided into three stages.

The first stage: Pre-Qin family precepts remained in oral preaching

The so-called family precepts of admonition activities mean that the admonition stays in words and is not implemented in words. In contrast, family instructions in the form of documents are presented in the form of letters, rules and other words. The former is a dynamic activity, and the latter is a static document. If it is necessary to distinguish the names, the family precepts of admonition activities are often named with family precepts, family instructions, family precepts, etc., while the family precepts in the form of documents can be named with family norms, family rules, family rituals, family rules, family conventions, family rules, etc. The earliest family precepts in China are those of admonition activities. All family precepts in the pre-Qin period have the characteristics of admonition activities without exception.

Academic circles have different opinions about which is the earliest family motto. Some people said it was the "imperial edict to the prince" of King Wen of Zhou, while others said it was the "Baoxun" that King Wen of Zhou told King Wu of Zhou in the Tsinghua slips. The imperial edict Prince Fa comes from the "Wen Jing" of the "Yi Zhou Shu". The collation of the Tsinghua slips where the "Bao Xun" is located has not been completed, and the interpretation has not yet been fully published. Therefore, the author regards Zhou Gongdan's admonition to the eldest son Boqin recorded in the Records of the Historian as the earliest family discipline in China.

Gongdan Zhou is the son of King Wen of Zhou and the brother of King Wu of Zhou. After King Wu destroyed the Shang Dynasty, he implemented the enfeoffment system. Duke of Zhou was granted Qufu and established the State of Lu. Because King Wu died soon and his nephew, King Cheng, was young, he was regent by Duke Zhou. Duke of Zhou could not go to the fief, so he sent his eldest son Boqin to go. Before Boqin left, the Duke of Zhou gave him this admonition: "I, the son of King Wen, the brother of King Wu, and the uncle of the king, I am not cheap in the world. However, I bathe three times, hold my hair, spit three times, and feed three times, and wait for the people. I am still afraid of losing the people in the world. The son of Lu, be careful not to be proud of the country." The admonition of Duke of Zhou taught his son Boqin to treat the men of virtue and the men of virtue has spread widely; The courteous treatment of people who spit, feed and hold their hair has never been honored and humbled by the pride of the country.

The family precepts in the pre-Qin period emphasized that everyone should complete his/her own work and should not seek for pleasure; Only by being industrious and promising can we improve the performance of our ancestors, while laziness and insecurity will lead to the decline of our family. For example, during the Spring and Autumn Period, the father-in-law Wen Bo (the son of his father-in-law Mu Bo) of the State of Lu held the view that he enjoyed his own success and was fond of rest and hated work. His mother Jing Jiang admonished him: "When you work, you think, you have a good heart; when you work, you have sex, you forget the good, and when you forget the good, you have nausea." Another example is that during the Spring and Autumn Period, the State of Chu ordered Yin Zifa's mother to use the example of Gou Jian, the king of Yue, to teach his son to share weal and woe with the soldiers, so as to stimulate morale and defeat the enemy. For example, Confucius taught his son Kong Li to learn poetry and etiquette, and his mother cut off the machine to teach his son. All family precepts in this period were oral sermons, which only remained in oral form, and were not implemented in words at that time. The reason why they have spread to the present day and are known to us is only the result of later generations' tracing.

The second stage: from admonitory activities to document forms

During the Han Dynasty, China's family discipline has made great progress. This is mainly reflected in two aspects. First, the names of "family education", "family appointment" and "family instruction" appear, indicating people's consciousness of teaching children to inherit family; Second, family instruction has realized the development from admonition activities to document forms.

Perhaps it is because the admonitor and the object of the admonition are located in two places, so they can't teach face to face; Or because the admonitor wants the admonitor to treat the admonitor seriously and remember it forever, he adopts the form of handwritten or letter. Liu Bang, the founder of the Western Han Dynasty, had the Prince's Hand, which contains both his own painful lessons and his deep expectation for his son; There are not only contents suitable for all social strata, such as respect for elders and mechanics, but also the unique teachings of the imperial family. The word "hand edict" clearly shows that this family motto is written with "hand", which is different from the previous "mouth" family motto.

During the Han Dynasty, it was very common to teach children by letter. Among them, Confucius Zang's "and Zi Lin's Book", Liu Xiang's "Jie Zi Xin's Book", Ma Yuan's "Jie Brother Zi Yan and Dun's Book", Zhang Huan's "Jie Brother Zi's Book", Zheng Xuan's "Jie Zi Yi En's Book", Sima Hui's "Jie Zi's Book" and so on were the representatives.

Obviously, family precepts in the form of documents have more lasting significance and far-reaching influence than oral sermons. If the family precepts of admonition activities are the basis of the family precepts in the form of documents, then the family precepts in the form of documents are the sublimation of the family precepts of admonition activities and the embodiment of the same content at a higher level.

The third stage: from non-normative family instruction to normative family instruction

Both the oral family instruction of the admonition activities in the pre-Qin period and the document form family instruction with letters as the main body in the Han Dynasty have the characteristics of strong pertinence, clear objectives and single nature. There are specific reasons why to admonish; How to admonish has specific content; Even the effectiveness of admonition has concrete results. Generally speaking, they have no permanent and universal significance. Only in the specific environment at that time can their value be highlighted and understood by people, and their meaning is always connected with specific conditions. The author calls this kind of admonition for one person and one thing as non-normative family admonition, which includes both family admonition for admonition activities and family admonition in the form of documents.

During the Six Dynasties, China's family precepts developed from non-standard family precepts to normative family precepts. That is to say, family precepts were no longer aimed at one person and one thing, but focused on one person's life, for the sake of one family's generations. The apparent feature of this change is that the relatively short "warning book" in the past has developed into a slightly longer "family warning", even a "family warning" in the form of a special book. The introduction of nonstandard family instructions is like telling a story with complete plot; To introduce the normative family instructions represented by Yan Family Instructions, we can only show them section by section and discuss them in sections.

Yan's Family Instructions was honored as the "ancestor of family instructions" and was written in the Sui Dynasty, but the title was "written by Yan Zhitui, the chamberlain of the Yellow Gate of the Northern Qi Dynasty". In fact, before it, there were not only many non-normative family instructions, but also normative family instructions. As for the "Ren Gong's family agreement" mentioned in the Records of the Historian, there are two ways to read it in the academic world: "Ren Gong's family agreement" and "Ren Gong's family agreement". Let's put it aside. The admonition of Dongfang Shuo in the Han Dynasty, in neat rhymes, tells the principles of "changing with things", "being appropriate at any time" and so on. It is no longer a specific admonition for specific problems. After entering the Wei and Jin Dynasties, family precepts taught the general principles and methods of dealing with people, such as Wang Su's Family Commandments, Wang Chang's Family Commandments, Ji Kang's Family Commandments, Li Bing's Family Commandments, Yang Chun's Family Commandments, Wei Shou's Pillow Middle, Wang Bao's Children's Commandments, and so on. Since the Tang and Song Dynasties, family instructions have been socialized, and influential family instructions are often not belong to one family name, but belong to the whole society.

Compared with non-normative family instruction, normative family instruction has got rid of the limitations of direct motivation, specific content and clear pertinence. It is no longer only aimed at one person and one thing, nor limited to one time. Formally, it rarely lists exemplary examples, and often appears in principled articles. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, the family instructions in the genealogy paid great attention to the written form, and each article was used as the title of a paragraph with a limited number of three or five words, such as respecting ancestors, harmonizing clans, teaching children and grandchildren, marrying cautiously, working hard, striving hard, and advocating frugality. The form was neat, eye-catching, and the outline was concise, which was easy to read and remember. These articles are often the summary of the life experience and family management experience of several generations, and have guiding significance for the life and furniture management of future generations.

This article was originally published in China Social Science Journal

传统家训，是中华民族文化重要组成部分，对家族发展影响深远。

----- 诸葛长青

   家训，是中华民族传统文化重要组成部分。

  家训，是中华民族文化的重要传承法宝。

  研究中国传统文化，必须了解家训文化。

  诸葛长青建议大家抽时间搜索学习一下我国的家训文化，譬如看看《颜氏家训》、《朱子家训》《诫子书》等等，会对人生成长、子女教育、员工教育、家族教育，具有重要意义。

  今天，诸葛长青分享北京师范大学、国学著名教授徐梓的好文章《徐梓：传统家训的发展、类型与特征》，借助这篇文章，我们一起了解家训文化。

   徐梓教授，来自北师大国学经典教育研究中心。

   徐梓本名徐勇，北京师范大学教育学部教授，北京师范大学国学经典教育研究中心主任，中国教育学会传统文化教育中心主任委员，主要研究中国传统教育、传统文化教育。

  诸葛长青感恩徐梓教授等各位教授对中华传统文化的无私奉献。

  对于家训，徐梓教授研究指出：

  家训是父祖长辈对后代子孙的训教，是家族先人为后人制定的立身处世、居家治生的原则和规条。

  家训，是借助尊长的权威加之于子孙或族众的道德约束，甚至具有法律效力，现代学者也称之为“宗族法”。

  家训曾有众多不同名称，如家教、家诫、家规、家仪、家训、家法、家约、家矩、家则、家政、家制，以及教家、治家、传家、齐家等。其约束对象通常是人口众多的大家族，故而又有宗范、族范、世范、宗训、宗约、族约、宗式、宗仪、宗誓、宗教、宗典、宗型、宗政等称谓。

  部分家训是父祖长辈在临终之际做出的，这类训教带有一个特别明显的“遗”字，如遗令、遗戒、遗敕、遗命、遗训、遗言、遗嘱、遗书、遗疏。传统家训大多出自严父之手，也有的出自慈母之口，如慈训、母训、慈教、母教等。很多家训往往是一代又一代、一辈又一辈传下来的，通常名为祖训、垂训、训言等。

  传统家训的内容主要关乎为人处世，也涉及居家治生，特别是祠堂、义庄、学塾、文会、祭祀等的管理，这时的命名往往使用祠规、祭仪、庄规、塾训、塾铎、文会规条等。

  还有一些家训以儒家经典中的语句命名，诸如庸言、庸行、闲家、顾命、燕翼、贻谋、庭训、庭诰、庭语、将死之鸣等。根据其自身的逻辑或类型的演变，传统家训的发展大体可分为三个阶段。

  第一阶段：先秦家训停留于口头说教

  所谓训诫活动的家训，是指训诫停留在口头，没有落实在文字上。与之相对应，文献形式的家训则是以书信、规条等文字形式呈现的。前者是动态的活动，后者是静态的文献。如果一定要在命名上加以区分，训诫活动的家训往往用家训、家教、家诫等命名，而文献形式的家训可以用家范、家规、家仪、家法、家约、家矩、家则等命名。我国最早的家训就是训诫活动的家训，先秦时期的所有家训无一例外地具有训诫活动的特点。

　　最早的家训是哪一则，学术界有不同说法。有人说是周文王的《诏太子发》，有人说是清华简中周文王叮咛周武王的《保训》。《诏太子发》出自《逸周书》的《文儆》，《保训》所在的清华简整理工作还没有完成，释文尚未全部公布。因此，笔者把《史记》记载的周公旦对长子伯禽的训诫视为我国最早的家训。

　　周公旦是周文王之子、周武王的弟弟。武王灭商之后，实行分封制。周公被封于曲阜，建立鲁国。由于武王旋即死去，侄子成王年幼，因而由周公摄政。周公无法前往封地，便派长子伯禽前往。伯禽临行前，周公对他作了这样的训诫：“我，文王之子，武王之弟，王之叔父，吾于天下，亦不贱矣。然一沐三握发，一饭三吐哺，起以待士，犹恐失天下之贤。子之鲁，慎无以国骄人。”周公这段教诫其子伯禽礼贤下士的训辞，流传甚广；吐哺握发的殷勤待士，无以国骄人的处尊谦卑，千古传诵。

　　先秦时期的家训强调任何人都应该完成自己份内的工作，不能自求逸乐；只有勤劳有为，才能光大先人的业绩，而怠惰偷安，将会导致家道中落衰败。例如，春秋时期，鲁国人公父文伯（公父穆伯的儿子）持有坐享其成、好逸恶劳的观点，其母敬姜训诫他：“劳则思，思则善心生；逸则淫，淫则忘善，忘善则恶心生。”又如，春秋时期，楚国令尹子发的母亲以越王勾践伐吴的事例，教诫其子要与士兵同甘共苦，从而激发士气、克敌制胜。再如，孔子教导其子孔鲤要学诗学礼，孟母断机教子等。这一时期的所有家训都是口头说教，仅仅停留在口头上，当时并没有落实在文字上。它们之所以能流传到现在，为我们所了解，不过是后人追述的结果而已。

  第二阶段：从训诫活动到文献形式

  两汉时期，我国的家训有了长足发展。这主要表现在两个方面，一是出现 “家教”、“家约”、“家训”等名称，表明人们对教子传家的自觉；二是家训实现了由训诫活动到文献形式的发展。

  或许是因为教诫者和教诫对象分处两地，无法耳提面命，当面训教；抑或是因为教诫者希望教诫对象郑重对待，永远记取，便采用手书或书信的形式。西汉王朝的建立者刘邦就有《手敕太子》，其中既有自身痛彻的教训，又有对儿子的深切企盼；既有诸如尊长、力学之类适合社会各阶层的内容，也有帝王之家特有的教诫。而“手敕”二字则清楚地表明，这则家训是用“手”写的，不同于以往的“口”说家训。

　　两汉时期，以书信教子十分普遍，孔臧的《与子琳书》、刘向的《戒子歆书》、马援的《诫兄子严、敦书》、张奂的 《诫兄子书》、郑玄的 《戒子益恩书》、司马徽的《诫子书》等，便是其中的代表。   

　　显然，以文献形式出现的家训，较之于一时的口头说教，有着更为持久的意义，有着更为深远的影响。如果说训诫活动的家训是文献形式家训的基础，那么，以文献形式出现的家训则是训诫活动家训的升华，是同一内容在更高层次的体现。

  第三阶段：从非规范性家训到规范性家训

　　无论是先秦时期训诫活动的口头家训，还是两汉时期以书信为主体的文献形式家训，都有针对性强、目标明确、性质单一的特点。为什么要训诫，有具体的原因；怎样训诫，有具体的内容；甚至训诫的效力如何，也有具体的结果。一般来说，它们不具有永久性和普遍性的意义。只有在当时特定的环境下，它们的价值才能凸显出来，才能被人们所理解，其意义总是与具体条件联系在一起的。笔者把这种针对一人一事的教诫称为非规范性家训，它既包括训诫活动的家训，也包括文献形式的家训。

　　六朝时期，我国的家训由非规范性家训发展为规范性家训，即是说，家训不再是针对一人一事的教诫，而是着眼于一个人的一生，为了一个家族的世世代代。这种变化的表面特征是由以前相对较短的 “诫子书”发展为篇幅稍长的“家诫”，甚至是以专书形式呈现的“家训”。介绍非规范性的家训，犹如讲故事，具有完整的情节；而要介绍以《颜氏家训》为代表的规范性家训，则只能逐节展示，分篇论列。

　　《颜氏家训》被尊为 “家训之祖”，成书于隋朝，但题署“北齐黄门侍郎颜之推撰”。实际上，在它之前，不仅非规范性家训所在多有，而且规范性家训也已经非常普遍。对于《史记》所说的“任公家约”，学界有“任公的家约”和“任公全家人约定”两种读法，我们姑且搁置不论。汉代东方朔的《诫子》用整齐的韵语，讲述了一番 “与物变化”、“随时之宜”等为人处世的原则，已经不再是针对具体问题的具体训教。进入魏晋以后，家训教导为人处世的一般原则和方法，如王肃的《家诫》、王昶的《家诫》、嵇康的《家诫》、李秉的《家诫》、杨椿的《诫子孙》、魏收的《枕中篇》、王褒的《幼训》等，不胜枚举。从唐宋时期起，家训出现了社会化现象，有影响的家训往往不再属于一家一姓，而属于全社会所共有。

　　与非规范性家训相比，规范性家训摆脱了动因直接、内容具体、针对性明确的局限，它不再只是针对一人一事，也不再局限于一时。从形式上说，它很少列举具有鉴戒性的事例，而往往以原则性的条文出现。明清时期，家谱中的家训编写非常注重文字形式，每一条均以有限的三五个字用作一段的标题，如敬祖宗、睦宗族、教子孙、慎婚嫁、务本业、励勤奋、尚节俭等，形式整齐，异常醒目，提纲挈领，既便于诵读，也便于记忆。这些条文往往是数代人生活经验和治家经验的总结，对后人的生活和治家具有指导意义。

  本文原载《中国社会科学报》 

 (This article is an original article by Zhuge Changqing, and the pictures are selected from the Internet. Welcome to forward it, and please indicate the source for forwarding)

Introduction to Zhuge Changqing: Zhuge Changqing, the inheritor and promoter of traditional Chinese culture, is willing to "learn from sages, promote virtue, revitalize China and benefit the world" together with people with the same ideals in the world.

(Zhuge Changqing: zhuge8031@163.com ）

Zhuge Changqing mailbox：

zhuge8031@163.com

Zhuge Changqing's Chinese Dream

Learn from sages and carry forward virtue

Revitalizing China for the benefit of the world

 （本文是诸葛长青原创文章，图片选自网络。欢迎转发，转发引用请注明出处）

诸葛长青简介：诸葛长青，中国国学传统文化传承弘扬者，愿与天下志同道合者一起“学习圣贤、弘扬善德、振兴中华、造福世界”。

（诸葛长青：zhuge8031@163.com）

Zhuge Changqing mailbox：

zhuge8031@163.com

  诸葛长青中国梦  

学习圣贤 弘扬善德

振兴中华 造福世界

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1The wisdom of traditional Chinese culture changes the destiny: filial piety to parents+five in one+self-improvement

1 国学智慧改命运：孝敬父母+五合一+自强不息

2Zhuge Changqing's Three Golden Keys to Changing Destiny

2诸葛长青改命运三把金钥匙诸葛长青施食仪轨 （十五步简洁版）

3Zhuge Changqing's Greeting Ritual (15 Steps Concise Version)

3 诸葛长青施食仪轨 （十五步简洁版）

4How to repent: the ritual of repentance and the method of repentance (full version)

4   如何忏悔：忏悔仪轨忏悔方法（完整版）

5How to read the Dizang Sutra: Methods for reciting Dizang Sutra (complete version)

5 如何念地藏经：念地藏经仪轨方法（完整版）

6How to release? The ritual of releasing life

6怎样放生？放生仪轨

7Zhuge Changqing's Repentance Culture: A Case Study of Repentance Methods for Changing Destiny

7诸葛长青忏悔文化：改变命运忏悔方法案例

8Free Life Culture: Free Life Culture in Ancient China

8放生文化：中国古代的放生文化

9Shocking photo of feeding: Buddha, Bodhisattva and Dharma Protector come to the scene

9施食震撼照片：佛菩萨护法神亲临现场

10Feeding Rite Return: the return is changed to simple return

10施食仪轨回向：回向修改为简洁回向