How To Administer A Country: Sima Guang's Political Thoughts In The History Discussions Of ZI ZHI TONG JIAN

The thoughts 0f Sima Guang mainly embodied in the "what subject Guang's sayings". My article may explore and expound the thought of Sima Guang about how to administer a country systematically. So we can carry on it critically. The components thought Sima Guang about how to administer a country as follow: qualified personnel thoughts; etiquette and ethics thoughts; democracy thoughts; national thoughts idealism emperors' viewpoints.Si Ma-guang expounded his qualified personnel thoughts sisterly in the "Subject Guang's speaking" of ZI ZHI TONG JIAN. Talent had played a great role not only in the keeping forging ahead stage but in the maintaining the achievements of a dynasty's processors, he thought .The criterion of selecting talent: he emphasized the ruler must select a person who has both ability and political integrity .The method of selecting talent: he thought the ruler must be sincerely and courteously to the talent and rely on the electing talent by everybody .The principle of applying talent: he considered that applying talent should not swayed by personal considerations and not confined in family status and without suspicions .He said the ruler must asses the talent though the fact work .There are a lot of shortcomings in the qualified personnel thoughts of Si Ma-guang ,such as he exaggerated the affects of the talent unilaterally ;the content and extensions are very narrow.He thought highly of the etiquette and ethics. He stressed the core about how to administer a country was "footing statements with etiquette and ethics." The etiquette and ethics had played a great role in a society,where etiquette and ethics were, there was a country。On the other hand, where didn't exist etiquette and ethics, there didn't exist a state. The center of the etiquette and ethics advocated by Sima Guang were "staunch" and "filial piety". Thought enlightened on the relationsbetween "staunch" and "filial piety", what he appreciated was the integration of them. The etiquette and ethics advocated by Sima Guang mainly were that of the three ancient dynasties'. Sima Guang exaggerated and embellished it. It was idealism.Attaching importance to publics, Sima Guang held that common people were the roots of a country; the country should take publics as its foundation. The common aspiration of the people decided the rise and fall of a country. Losing the common aspiration of the people, the consequences were unthinkable. Sima Guang showed sympathy for the miserable situation of the peasantry. Sima Guang stood for offering amnesty and enlistment to the uprising peasants. He maintained to comfort all of the publics. And he regarded Protecting the common person and cherish them as an important standard to access a feudal politician benevolent or not. Richen the common person and benefiting them. On question of richen the popular, he emphasized the integrity between "righteousness" and "profit" In a word, there were three very rigorous logic arrangements in his democracy thoughts.Sima Guang promoted the national concord viewpoint. He deepened "transform of virtue" of Confucian in XianQin and put forward national integration viewpoint, which developed from Huan Kuan who had regarded HuaXia and SiYi or Zhong Yuan and frontier as an integral whole. He developed national equality viewpoint, who thought that national minority were equal on person-character and humanity, which came from "SiYi are members of a family" of Tang Tai Zong, and so on. He epitomized the achievements of refuting orthodox ideas. He made the national confidence viewpoint rich. He applied the "honesty and confidence" of Confucius to deal with national relations. And he took it as a basic principle. He promoted the national integrity viewpoint. As the integrity viewpoint and spirit of "Da Zhang fu" of Meng Zi was permeated through, Sima Guang's national viewpoint, Sima Guang advocated national integrity vigorously.Sima Guang posed his view: "emperor determinates the prosperity and decline of a country." He held that only wise emperor could unde...