Research On Zigong

Zi gong was an important student of Confucius,and more information about him than Zi lu,Yan hui and others,is the most information among the students.Using this material,we can explore two issues: the Zi gong as a historical real man and the Zi gong as a symbol used by people to convey ideas.Born around 520 b.c.,Zi gong grew up in the "lower class" society.He was smart and confident,good at words,and respected teachers.Through his own efforts,he gained knowledge,wealth and social status.It is generally accepted that Zi gong has a business,which is based on "HuoShi" in the analects of Confucius,some scholars think "huoshi" as "zhihui",but I think "HuoShi" should be explained as "goods increase",In the doctrine of the mean,"financial and goods reproduction" can be taken as a proof.To simply understand "HuoShi" as "doing business" is a misunderstanding of the context of The Times.The diplomacy of the spring and autumn period is different from that of the warring states period.The wrestling of national interests should be carried out in the ceremony,alliance,engagement and banquet that reflect the image of the state.The diplomats involved in it need a high degree of cultural accomplishment to display their language skills and achieve the best results,but they can’t fight for interests naked.So pure talent and eloquence cannot succeed in the diplomatic activities of the spring and autumn period.Zi gong can get certain achievements because he applied the culture of rites and music to actual diplomacy.His wealth accumulation should also be related to his diplomatic activities.Gong xihua also participated in diplomatic activities.His image in the analects of Confucius was very similar to that of Zi gong and he was also a rich man.Generally speaking,the zi gong documents in the middle and late warring states period should not be regarded as the historical data of zi gong itself,because these documents were not intended to preserve the history of zi gong,but to express their views on society,politics,life and soul through the symbol of zi gong.We can use these materials to study the shaping and change of the image of zi gong.A batch of zi gong story created by various means,through the Zuozhuan,Mozi,Shuoyuan,Records of the Grand Historian we can see the general process of the development and evolution of the story of "zi gong lobbying";The experience of zi gong during the siege of Chen CAI recorded in the historical records and other documents is not true;The story of zi gong’s visit to Yuan xian recorded in Han Shi Wai Zhuan is obviously from the analects of Confucius,"zi hua went on an envoy to the state of qi".Zi gong’s criticism of Yan zi in the Yan Zi Chun Qiu,is actually from Zi gong’s criticism to Zhu yingong and Lu dinggong,what is recorded in Zuo zhuan.At the same time,there were some subtle changes in the image of zi gong.In thewarring states period,the image of zi gong in people’s mind was closer to a sophists,neglected his accomplishment in the culture of rites and music.In addition,zi gong is closely related to the "distinction of culture and nature" in the intellectual history of the pre-qin dynasty.As an ideological symbol,he is an important tool for Confucianism and Taoism to express their views on this issue.Finally,this paper makes a collection of relevant unearthed documents,and a brief introduction and discussion,in order to facilitate the use of Zi gong researchers.