Consider: We have described several important
things about the world that you need to learn and understand. Everyone
has their own nine generations to whom they owe filial duty, and we end
with ten principles that prescribe the harmonious and proper
interaction of all people.
Proper behavior within a family is
governed by the Three Basic Principles you have already learned: the
duty between sovereign and subject, the love between father and son,
and the harmony between husband and wife. These relationships are not
symmetric, the proper relation of a father to his son is not the same
as that of the son to the father. In some ways, this treats of the
duties between higher and lower and the reciprocal relationships that
should hold. Thus the Three Basic Principles define six proper
relationships.
To these we add relationships between brother and
brother, friend to friend, and generation to generation. In all, we get
ten behaviors that describe the proper relationships among all people.
Earlier
we talked of Kong Rong and his knowledge of the way younger brothers
should act towards their elder siblings. Elder brothers serve as
examples for their younger brothers. The younger treats the elder with
respect. This is a model for the relationships between generations as
well.
Friends are more than mere acquaintances. They
share their experiences good and bad, they feel what the
other
feels. They become extensions of each other in many ways. Friendships
last forever.
Indeed:
49. Kindness between
father and son, harmony between man and wife,
50. . . . friendliness from elder brother
to younger, respect from younger brother to elder, . . .
51. . . .
proper relations between generations, mutual support between friend and
friend, . . .
52. . . . respect from
sovereigns, loyalty from subjects, . . .
53. . . . these ten
behaviors bind all people.
Consider:
You have now come to the end of the first part of your study, and what
you have learned most recently is of the utmost importance. Let us
recall the important things you have learned in terms of numbers:
One – That which preceded and precedes everything.
Two – The fundamental opposition of forces, yin and yang.
Three – The Three Fundamental Forces, The Three Bright Things, and
Three Basic Principles.
Four – The Four Seasons and The Four Directions.
Five – The Five Locations, The Five Elements, and The Five Basic
Virtues.