Everything should be based on equality. The monarch is not equal to the people, so there are political disputes; the saint is not equal to the scholars, so there are academic disputes. I advocate that Confucius should be brought down to the same level as the Zhou and Qin philosophers. I and the readers should join in and sit on the same level with them. We should welcome Dewey, Russell and others to come in, compete with each other, express our opinions, and consult with each other. We should not allow Confucius, Dewey, and Russell to be superior to us, and we should not be superior to Confucius, Dewey, and Russell. Only when everyone has independent thoughts can we study the truth.
Since I have doubts about everyone, I have doubts every time I read the books of the ancients. Therefore, I have set down three tips for reading as the steps for my own hard work. I have attached them below.
Three tips for reading:
The first step is to regard the ancients as your enemy. When you read the books of the ancients, think of this person as your strong enemy. If he is with you, you will lose yourself. You must fight him to the death. Look for his loopholes everywhere, and once you find one, you will attack him immediately. Then you can try to resist on behalf of the ancients. The more you fight, the more intense it will be, and the deeper you attack, the deeper you will go. This is necessary to make your reading reasonable.
The second step is to make friends with the ancients. If I have an opinion after reading, I will put forward a proposition to challenge the opinions of the ancients. I will treat the ancients as good friends and learn from each other. If my opinion is wrong, I can change to follow the ancients; if the ancients’ opinion is wrong, I will follow my opinion and continue to study.
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