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The Wisdom of Inclusiveness
The Wisdom of Inclusiveness
Sages and men of virtue throughout China's history of numerous dynasties have honored the spirit of inclusiveness. There are good examples of it in traditional Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism. Lao Zi said that a person with great virtue is able to be all encompassing and is compatible with the "Great Way," whereas the models of great virtue are "Tao." Lao Zi also said that the reason why great rivers and oceans are broad and deep is that they seek the lowest level so as to take in all the water from streams and creeks. Confucius said, "If you are compassionate, you win people's hearts." There was a saying in the book of Shang, an ancient official book of history, "If there is a capacity, it's called great."
"Great" land, "great" mountain, "great" river, and "great ocean" – the word "great" in these instances conveys a quality of extreme depth and compatibility. There are the following sayings in Buddhism: "One thought changes the atmosphere," "gratitude is always in the mind," "solving problems with compassion," and "the spirit of inclusiveness." To include everything, one must have a compassionate mind. The more broadminded one is, the greater the world one encompasses.
To be all encompassing is a virtue. Humility is one aspect of it. Because of their different characters and personalities, people have different perspectives on things and judge things differently. Back in the old days, sages and men of virtue respected others' perspectives. They thought of others first when they encountered anything, leaving respected role models for later generations.
Take the dynasty of Western Zhou, for instance. The Duke of Zhou, while assisting King Cheng of Western Zhou, exerted himself with vigorous effort to make the nation prosperous. Desperately seeking righteous intellectuals, many answered his call. He was so busy greeting guests that he didn't even have time to dry his long hair after washing it. He had to stop several times while dining so as to greet his guests. He often advised his son, Boqin, "King Cheng asked you administer the state of Lu, so you have to abide by the principles of humility and respect! You must know the principle of heaven that anyone with pride and prejudice will lose and that humble people will benefit. Everyone respects humility; nobody respects arrogance and prejudice!"
As another example, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty accepted advice with a humble attitude. He accepted advice with humility while seeking it broadly. He was able to find satisfaction in hearing about his wrongdoings. He tolerated direct criticism from the likes of Wei Zheng and promoted the beneficial advice. He collected wisdom from the world over, enabling him to establish a strong and prosperous country during the period of Prosperity of Zhenguan (627 – 649 AD).
Inclusiveness is about forgiveness. Forgiving others' past mistakes allows others to make mistakes, but it doesn't mean turning a blind eye to rights and wrongs. It is the greatest encouragement for others to change and improve. For example, during the Warring States period, Lin Xiangru's tolerance towards Lian Po in the State of Zhao became a well-documented story. Lian Po was a decorated military general, however he was unhappy that Lin Xiangru, a strategist, was given a higher rank than him. Lian often ridiculed Lin, but Lin never retaliated because he placed the state's well-being above personal quarrels. Lin told his aides, "The stronger State of Qin dares not to attack our State of Zhao because of myself and General Lian. If the two of us disagreed and Qin heard about it, they will take the opportunity to attack. This is a national security issue." After Lian Po heard about this, he was deeply ashamed. Lian sought out Lin and said, "I am a ruffian with a low level of tolerance. I couldn't imagine that you would tolerate me so much!" Lin replied, "You flatter me. Both of us are important ministers of the country. Our words and actions are all for the benefit of the country. It's enough for the general to understand me, yet you go beyond that to ask for forgiveness?" The two of them became inseparable friends thereafter, and the Qin abandoned their war plans against Zhao.
Inclusiveness helps others with education and persuasion, a kind of "loving care and concern." Take Yang Zhu (1369 – 1453 AD) of the Ming Dynasty, for instance. One night he dreamed that he was walking around in a garden and he casually picked two plums to eat from a tree. After waking up, he scolded himself, "It was because I didn't understand enough about righteousness and profit that I stole the plums in the dream!" From then on, he focused more on cultivating his mind. Whenever it rained, one of his neighbors would channel dirty water from his own yard into Yang Zhu's yard. When Yang Zhu's family told him this, he advised his family members, "There are more sunny days than rainy days." When his neighbor heard this, he was quite moved by Yang Zhu's forbearance.
When Yang Zhu was the head of the Minister of Rites, three feet of his land was taken by his neighbor. His family argued with the neighbor and hoped that Yang Zhu would intervene, but Yang Zhu laughed it off and wrote a poem about it, "Do not fight for the small piece of land that I have; One wall can be shared by both families; all the land in society belongs to our King; I wouldn't mind if you took another three feet." Yang Zhu gave precedence to his neighbor out of courtesy, and his humility and demeanor helped to change his neighbor's thinking. This led him to give up the fight and also to let go of three feet of his own property to make a six-foot alley possible. This story has been passed on from generation to generation in China.
Inclusiveness is an aspect of compassion, bringing people closer together and improving the relationships between them. There's an old saying, "People with great morality (virtue) can carry a big mission and responsibility." This is because such people are unselfish and reliable. In other words, the greater the moral value, the greater the power of inclusion will be, the more all encompassing. People with a high moral standard will not be influenced by desire for profit and are more willing to help and care for others because they are more compassionate and inclusive.
包容的智慧
包容的精神为历代圣贤所推崇，在传统的道、儒、佛家文化中多有论述。如老子说：“孔德之容，唯道是从”，是指有淳厚的品德才能包容万物，并能与大道相应，而大德的范式就是道；老子还说：“江海之所以为百谷王者，以其善下之，是以能为百谷王”，意思是大江大海之所以浩渺深渊，是因为它们善于居下位，以接纳涓涓细流，而成为水中之王者。孔子说：“宽则得众”；《尚书》中说“有容乃大”，认为有容量的才能称为“大”，所以，大地、大山、大川、大海等都带个“大”字，表明它们有无比深厚的兼容品质。佛家讲“一念境转”、心中常存“感恩”、“善解”和“包容”，慈悲心怀，才能包容万物，心怀有多大，包容的世界就有多大。
包容是谦逊、虚怀若谷的品德。世上的人们性格不同，个性各异，对事物的见解也是仁者见仁，智者见智。古之圣贤充份尊重他人的见解，遇事为他人著想，从善如流，为后人做出了楷模。如西周时，周公辅佐成王，励精图治，思贤若渴，前来投奔的人非常多。他有时候洗一次头，几次握著散开的头发去见客；吃一顿饭，也数次吐出含在嘴里的食物去接待客人。即使这样，犹恐怠慢、埋没了来投奔的贤士。周公告诫自己的儿子伯禽说：“圣上让你治理鲁国，你一定要谨守谦恭啊！要知道天的道理，不论什么，凡是骄傲自满的，就要使他亏损，而谦虚的就让他得到益处。地的道理，不论什么，凡是骄傲自满的，也要使他改变，不能让他永远满足；而谦虚的则要使他滋润不枯，就像低的地方，流水经过，必定会充满了他的缺陷；而人的道理，都是厌恶骄傲自满的人，而喜欢谦虚的人啊！”
再如唐太宗不仅虚心纳谏，而且勇于求谏，真正做到了闻过则喜。他包容了魏征等人的犯颜直谏，宣扬别人的善言，目光高远，集聚全天下人的智慧，成就了“贞观之治”的盛世和盛唐文化的繁荣。
包容是宽恕待人。包容他人曾经的过失，是允许别人有过错，但并非不辨是非，而是“知常明”和“上善若水”，是促其改过自新的最大鼓励。如战国时赵国的蔺相如对廉颇的包容成就了“将相和”的佳话：廉颇恃功对于封爵在自己之上的蔺相如很不服气，而蔺相如对廉颇的羞辱退让再三，是因为他以国家利益为重而不计较个人得失。蔺相如对自己左右的人说：“我想过，强大的秦国不敢来侵犯赵国，就因为有我和廉将军两人在。要是我们两人不和，秦国知道了，就会趁机来侵犯赵国，这将影响到国家的安危。”廉颇知道后很惭愧，便负荆向蔺相如赔罪说：“我是个粗人，气量狭窄，不料您宽容我到这样的地步啊！”蔺相如连忙扶起他说：“不敢当啊！咱们两人都是国家重臣，一起为国家出力，老将军能体谅我就足够了，怎么还来给我赔礼呢？”两个人从此成为莫逆之交，秦国因此不敢窥视赵国。
包容是以德感化他人，体现出一种关怀体谅，是以严律己和以宽待人。如明朝时的杨翥，平日持身谨慎，有一天晚上做梦，梦到自己在一个园林之中游览，顺手就摘下了树上的两颗李子来吃。醒了之后，他就痛责自己说：“这是因为我平时对于义和利认识不够清楚的缘故，才会在梦中梦到了偷吃人家园子里种的李子啊！”他从此更加严格修身。他的一位邻居，每逢雨天，便将自家院子里的积水排放到杨翥院中，家人告知杨翥，他却劝解家人说：“总是晴天的日子多，落雨的日子少。”邻居知道后被杨翥的忍让所感动。杨翥任礼部尚书时，有一次他家宅院的地基被一位邻居占去三尺，家人为此与对方发生争执，并希望杨翥出面干预，而杨翥一笑了之，并提笔写诗作答：“余地无多莫较量，一条分成两家墙，普天之下皆王土，再让三尺又何妨。”杨翥的礼让、谦和的气度，感化了邻居，非但不再争执，反而主动多让三尺，形成一条六尺宽的胡同，“六尺巷”的故事也一直流传至今。
包容是善的力量，它能拉近人与人之间的距离，改善彼此间的关系。古语说“厚德载物”，因德是无私的、最可信赖的，是万物皆可亲可近的媒介，这种德越淳厚，就越有承载性和包容性。因此道德高尚的人能够在任何环境中不为利欲所动，同情、爱护和帮助他人，心里总是装著别人的安危，唤醒、偕同他人一道行善、实践道义。
