In the first year of the Republic of China, I published an article in Chengdu's Public Opinion Daily, titled "The Thick Black School", saying: All successful heroes in ancient and modern times are thick-faced and black-hearted. This was originally a playful word, but since then, the three words "thick black school" have spread to Sichuan and become a common noun. I myself was puzzled and thought: such a statement can be popular with the general public, it must be related to psychology. After continuing to study, I learned that the thick black school originated from the theory of human nature being evil, which is theoretically based, but I still have doubts. I searched for and read all the psychology books in China and abroad, but none of them could solve my doubts. So I swept away the statements of ancient and modern people and used the laws of physics to study psychology. I felt that the changes in human hearts always follow the laws of mechanics. From the deeds of ancient people, today's politics, daily trivialities, my own heart, physics, chemistry, mathematics, ancient Chinese books, Western theories, and all directions, I can verify that everything is applicable, so I created a conjecture: "Psychology changes according to the laws of mechanics." In the ninth year of the Republic of China, I wrote an article called "Psychology and Mechanics", which I kept in a box and did not dare to publish. In the sixteenth year, it was published in my book "Adrian Li Yi Tan". I have specially reorganized it and expanded it into a single volume.
I started writing this book "Psychology and Mechanics" in the 9th year of the Republic of China, and now it is the 27th year of the Republic of China, which took 18 years. This book is rooted in the Thick Black School. I started studying the Thick Black School in the late Qing Dynasty, so it can be said that it took 30 years to complete this book. I remember that Jia Dao of the Tang Dynasty wrote two lines of poetry, "Walking alone at the bottom of the pond, counting breaths by the tree." He commented: "Two lines in three years, two tears flow when I recite them." I published this book today, and I really have the same feelings as him.
My thoughts are like a tree. Thick Black Theory is the starting point of my thoughts, which is like the tree root. Thick Black Theory gave rise to a hypothesis: "Psychology changes according to the laws of mechanics", which is like the trunk of the tree. Other articles I wrote, such as "Discussion on Social Issues", "Discussion on the Examination System", "Trends in Chinese Academics", and my recent "Constitution Making and Anti-Japanese War", are all based on the hypothesis that "Psychology changes according to the laws of mechanics", which is like the branches, leaves, flowers and fruits on the tree. Therefore, although what I wrote is different, it is actually consistent.
Last year, I met Professor Jiang Chaoxi from Sichuan University, who specializes in physics and likes to study Yijing. He is a scholar who is well-versed in both Chinese and foreign literature. I showed him all the manuscripts and asked for his advice on all the doubts. He gave me advice one by one and thought that my explanation made sense. He also wrote a preface for me. I am very grateful. However, I am still not confident, so I hope readers will give me advice.
I have been studying this issue and have been confused. I have no idea whether the various statements in the article are right or wrong. I focus on explaining the doubts in my heart: the more severe the readers' criticisms, the more grateful I am, and I dare not say a word in reply. The texts you have given me can be published in any newspaper or magazine. After publication, please give me a copy and send it to Chengdu "Huaxi Daily" for correction.
January 13, 1938
Fushun Adrian Li in Chengdu
After I published this book, I received a lot of criticism, which benefited me a lot. I am very grateful. In addition to those who fully agreed and those who fully disagreed, there were those who thought that it was generally correct, but some points should be revised. I have revised them accordingly. There are some places that I think should be discussed even though I have been instructed. I will keep them as they are for now. Please correct them. Please send all the comments to Chongqing National Gazette for revision.
Readers often refute me by saying, "Human psychology is unpredictable, how can there be any rules?" I say, "Physics is also unpredictable, how can there be any rules?" Today's scientists are very good at studying physics. Let's take a porcelain cup, put it on the ground, and hold a hammer in hand. Please ask: How many pieces will the cup break into when the hammer is hit? What shape will each piece be? I am afraid that if scientists from all over the world study it, no one can predict it. What we know is that the cup will break when the hammer is hit. Why? The structure of the molecules inside the cup is impossible to predict, so we cannot say that there are no rules for physical changes. People hide their minds and cannot be measured, just like the molecules in the porcelain cup. Therefore, psychological changes are like beads rolling on a plate, horizontal, oblique, curved, and straight, and we cannot know it. What we can know is that it will not go outside the plate. People hold a bow and arrow and shoot east or west. We cannot predict it, but once it is shot, the arrow will follow a parabola. This is the law of force. What I mean by the rules of psychological changes is also this.
My statement that "psychology changes according to the laws of mechanics" was originally a conjecture and cannot be said to be a general rule. A general rule means that there are no exceptions. When Newton first invented the law of universal gravitation, he established three examples, but many people did not accept them. Later, they were gradually proven and accepted. Finally, all kinds of phenomena in the universe were in line with Newton's laws, except Uranus. With this exception, it still could not become a general rule. It was not until 1846 that an astronomer proposed that Uranus was in line with Newton's laws. He studied the part that was not in line with the laws and concluded that there was another planet besides Uranus. No matter what its shape and position were, when the gravity of this planet was added, Uranus would conform to the laws. As soon as this statement was published, many astronomers searched according to the statement and found Neptune immediately. It was indeed correct. Newton's statement became a general rule. Psychological changes are more complex and more wonderful than physics. The reason why my statement is not accepted by the general public is that there are too many exceptions. I don't think my conjecture is wrong, but I think there are too many Neptunes in people's hearts. We can also just hold on to the big principles to search for the Neptune in everyone's heart.
Someone said: You want to integrate human affairs and physics. Many people have done this before, but this way is not feasible. I said: Many people said that the Suez Canal could not be dug before, but it was finally dug. Many people said that the Panama Canal could not be dug, but it was finally dug. I believe that the natural world uses the same principle to create human beings. The laws of physics must be applicable to human affairs. However, I am not knowledgeable enough to integrate them. Academics are public goods of the world. They should be studied by the whole world. It is not something that can be accomplished by one person. I hope that readers can study together. If my way does not work, I hope that readers can use other ways to make it work. I am studying this problem like falling into a fog. Can you pity my ignorance and teach me?
Physics is extremely complex. Newton found the laws, and the complex physics became clear, and science made great progress. The world is extremely chaotic. If we can find the laws in human affairs, then the world's theories can be unified, the disputes in the world can be avoided, and civilization will surely make great progress. This is what I hope you will study together.
October 8, 1931
Adrian Li in the Temporary Capital
1. Spirit and Magnetism
Many scientific theorems were originally hypotheses. Based on these hypotheses, they are consistent with all kinds of tests, so these hypotheses become theorems. For example, the earth has existed since the beginning of time. After millions of years, people have lived on it and regarded it as a matter of course. They did not seek to understand the composition of the earth. Two or three hundred years ago, Newton discovered gravity and said, "The center of the earth has gravity, which attracts soil and sand into a ball to form the earth." No one has seen whether the center of the earth has gravity. Newton's statement was originally an assumption. However, according to his statement, no matter how he tested it, it was consistent, so his hypothesis became a theorem. From then on, everyone knew that all tangible objects would be attracted by gravity. When Einstein came along and invented the theory of relativity, he expanded Newton's theory and said: "The light emitted by the planets in space will also be attracted by other planets when passing through them. Because the planets in space attract each other, the light that travels in a straight line becomes a curved shape." This is also a hypothesis, but it has been tested in practice and proved to be correct, so it has become a theorem. From then on, people generally know that the visible but intangible music line will also be attracted by gravity. When we study psychology, why not expand Einstein's theory and say: "There is also a kind of gravity in our hearts that can attract the invisible and intangible things that we hear and see to become a heart. The structure of the heart is similar to that of the earth." With this idea, Newton's three examples and Einstein's theory of relativity can be applied to psychology, and all changes in human affairs can be examined based on the laws of mechanics.
The so-called mind is formed by a force that goes out through the five sense organs, pulls in external things, and gathers them together. For example, if there is an object in front of me and I look at it, it is a force that goes out from my eyes and connects with that object. When I close my eyes, I can recall the shape of that object, which is the force that pulls the object in and holds it. In this way, the things that I hear and see, as well as the things I experience, are pulled in one by one and gathered into a group, forming a mind. Therefore, the structure of the mind is exactly similar to the structure of the earth.
Most people say that they have a mind. Buddha came out and refuted this saying, saying that people do not have a mind. The so-called mind is false, and is the shadow of the six dusts. The Perfect Enlightenment Sutra says: "All living beings have been in various kinds of confusion since time immemorial, mistakenly believing that the four elements are their own appearance and the shadows of the six dusts are their own appearance." Let us think about this: if there is no gravity in the mind, then the passing of the shadows of the six dusts is like a goose flying across the sky and its shadow falling into the center of a lake. Once the goose leaves, its shadow is gone. And when we see a goose passing by and can remember its shadow, it is because there is a kind of gravity in our mind that can hold the goose's shadow.
The Buddhists say: "The shadows of the six dusts fall into the field of the eight consciousnesses and become seeds that can never leave." This is just like millet and beans falling into the soil and becoming seeds. We know that millet and beans fall into the soil because of the gravity of the earth's center, which means that the shadows of the six dusts fall into the field of the eight consciousnesses because of the gravity of the human heart. Because of the gravity, millet and beans fall into the field and can never leave. The shadows of the six dusts fall into the field of the eight consciousnesses and can never leave.
If we examine the sources of all the knowledge in our mind, we will find that all of it comes from the outside. The routes it passes through are nothing but the eyes, ears, nose, tongue and body. Although people can invent new principles, they still rely on knowledge collected from the outside as a foundation, just like those who need to buy bricks, tiles and wood from the outside to build a new house. If we can sort out the sources of all kinds of knowledge in our mind, let those that come in from the eyes go out from the eyes, let those that come in from the ears go out from the ears, and let the others go out from the way they came, then our mind will be empty. If a person's mind can really be empty, without greed or hatred for external things, it will be like the shadow of a goose in the middle of a lake, passing by without leaving. This is what the Buddhists call returning to my original appearance.
The earth is made of gravity, and consciousness is made of seeds. If we go one step further from gravity, we can trace back to before the heaven and earth existed, and if we go one step further from seeds, we can trace back to before our parents were born. Then there is only the so-called state of silence, and the two will merge into one. Gravity was born from silence, and then there was the earth, and then there were things. From silence, seeds were born, and then there was consciousness, and then there were people. Through our research, we feel that the structure of the mind is similar to that of the earth, and the laws of physics can be applied to human affairs.
If we analyze objects, we get atoms, and if we analyze atoms, we get electrons. Electrons are a kind of force, which has been proven by scientists. Humans are one of the objects, and our bodies are composed of electrons. The body and mind are one thing, so our psychology cannot escape the laws of magnetoelectricity or mechanics.
The phenomenon of the mind is very similar to the phenomenon of magnetism and electricity. Humans have seven emotions, but generally speaking, there are only two: likes and dislikes. The things that the mind likes are drawn closer, and the things that the mind dislikes are pushed away. Isn't this phenomenon similar to magnetism and electricity?
The human mind consists of knowledge, emotion, and intention. Intention is the combination of knowledge and emotion, and its elements are only knowledge and emotion. Magnetism and electricity push each other with the same charge, and attract each other with opposite charges. Their mutual attraction and push are similar to our emotions. Their ability to distinguish between the same and opposite charges is even more obvious. This shows that magnetism and electricity have knowledge and emotion, which is the same as human psychology.
What positive electricity needs is negative electricity. Suddenly, a positive electricity comes to share its negative electricity. Of course, it will push it away. What negative electricity needs is positive electricity. Suddenly, a negative electricity comes to share its positive electricity. Of course, it will also push it away. This is like a child eating milk and cakes, and when he sees his brother coming, he pushes him and hits him with his hands. Therefore, it becomes a phenomenon of like-S3x attraction. As for magnetism and electricity, opposite S3xes attract each other, just like human men and women love each other, which goes without saying. From this, we know that magnetism and electricity phenomena are exactly the same as psychological phenomena.
Buddha said: "The true Dharma body of the Buddha reflects objects and shows their shapes." It is just like the phenomenon of magnetic and electric induction. He also said: "The nature and spirit are originally integrated and pervade the Dharma Realm." It is just like the phenomenon of magnetic and electric neutralization. He also said: "It is neither born nor destroyed, neither increases nor decreases." It is just like what physicists say: "The power is indestructible." Therefore, we can use the laws of mechanics to examine human nature, and I think it will not be wrong.
Matter is indestructible, and energy is indestructible. This is a scientific law. The matter of our body is transformed from the matter of the earth. When we die and are buried, the matter returns to the earth. The theory of the indestructibility of matter makes sense, but our spirit is a kind of energy. Where does this energy come from when we are alive? Where does it go when we die? We need to answer this question. We can create a hypothesis, saying: "The spirit of man is transformed from the magnetism of the earth." When we die, our body turns into the earth's soil, and at the same time, our spirit turns into the magnetism of the earth. In this way, the spirit comes from when we are born and goes to when we die. The theory of the indestructibility of energy makes sense. People say that those who become immortals or Buddhas may have used a kind of cultivation to condense magnetism and electricity. The popular saying "the ghosts of the wronged will not disperse" should be a kind of hatred that condenses magnetism and electricity. When the grievances are avenged and the hatred disappears, the magnetism and electricity cannot be condensed, and the ghosts are destroyed.
With the hypothesis that "the soul is transformed from magnetism and electricity", the question of the existence and extinction of the soul can be answered. When we die, the matter in our body returns to the earth, and the soul turns into magnetism and electricity, so the soul is destroyed. However, although our body is dead, the matter still exists, the magnetism and electricity still exist, and it can also be said that the soul still exists. This is what Zhuangzi said: "Heaven and earth are born with me, and all things are one with me."
Zen masters attach great importance to the four words "clear and constant knowledge". When we are quiet, our mind is clear and lucid. When things get complicated, this clear and lucid mind disappears. For those with deep learning ability, when things get complicated, their mind is still clear and lucid. This is called "movement and stillness are one". However, although they are clear and lucid during the day, they become unconscious in dreams at night. For those with deeper learning ability, they are also clear and lucid in dreams. This is called "waking and sleeping are one". For those with extremely deep learning ability, they are still clear and lucid even after death. This is called "death and life are one". When they are clear and lucid after death, it can be said that the soul lives forever.
The Shurangama Sutra says: "From the swastika on the Tathagata's chest, precious light emerges. Its light is bright and has a thousand colors. It pervades the ten directions and the Buddha world at once." This precious light is probably the electric light. Ananda said to the Buddha: "I have seen the thirty-two characteristics of the Tathagata, which are excellent and unique. The body is transparent, just like glass. I have thought to myself that this appearance is not born from desire and love. Why is that? The desire is coarse and turbid, mixed with fishy smells, pus and blood, and cannot produce the excellent pure and wonderful purple gold light." Shakyamuni has a deep cultivation and has transformed his flesh and blood body into a magnetoelectric condensate, so he can emit precious light that reaches the ten directions. The Buddha said that he has the ability to see and hear in heaven. Today, the invention of radio can prove that this is not false. Shakyamuni himself is a radio station. In the future, when electronics advances, it will be able to prove that what Shakyamuni said is true. The conjecture that "the soul is transformed from magnetoelectricity" may also be proved to be true.
Lao Tzu often used water as a metaphor when he preached. Buddha also often used water as a metaphor when he preached. We might as well use air as a metaphor. Air has all the phenomena of no birth, no death, no dirt, no cleanliness, no increase, no decrease, no past, no present, no boundaries, no inside or outside. If we go a step further and use neutralizing magnetism and electricity as a metaphor, it will be more accurate. If we go a step further and assume that "the human spirit is transformed from magnetism and electricity", we will find that everything is solved easily when reading Lao Tzu's book.
We think we are superior to all other things, but this is just human exaggeration. In fact, humans and things are both born from the earth. The elements of our bodies are all made of earth's matter. From the perspective of the earth, there is no difference between humans and things, just like two sons born by parents. The eldest son is called a human and the second son is called a thing, but the eldest son is smart and the second son is paralyzed and deaf. When we experiment with physics and chemistry, the shape and properties will change when the temperature changes or a certain substance is added. When we encounter a drastic change in the weather, we feel irritable, which is related to the temperature; when we drink alcohol, our temperament will also change, which is because a certain drug has been added and a chemical reaction has taken place. From these points of view, what is the difference between humans and things?
The material of the human body and the material of the earth are both composed of electrons. We have souls, and the earth also has a soul. Magnetism and electricity are the soul of the earth. The so-called gravity is the manifestation of magnetism and electricity. The material of the earth turns into plants, and at the same time, the magnetism and electricity of the earth turn into the vitality of the plants. We eat plants, and the material turns into the hair, bones and flesh of our bodies, and at the same time, the magnetism and electricity turn into our spirit. From soil and sand to plants, and then to hair, bones and flesh, we become higher and higher. At the same time, the magnetism and electricity of the earth turn into the vitality of plants, and then into our spirit, and at the same time, we become higher and higher. Although we have undergone many changes, the original nature remains. Therefore, the elements of our body are the same as the elements of the earth, and the psychological induction is the same as the induction of the magnetic field. Therefore, the phenomena in the A, B and C diagrams in Chapter 2 of this book are the same as the magnetic field and the gravity. However, after many changes, the hair, bones and flesh of our bodies are different from the soil, sand and stones of the earth, and our spirit is also different from the magnetism and electricity of the earth. Why is that? It is a dead thing on the earth, but it is a living thing in our body. Therefore, when we use the laws of mechanics to study human affairs, we should use them flexibly and not rigidly.
Laozi said: "There is a thing that is mixed and formed before the heaven and the earth. It is silent and lonely, independent and unchanged, and it goes around without end. It can be the mother of the world. I don't know its name, so I call it Tao, and I force it to be called Da." What Laozi called Tao is what Buddhists call Zhenru. Buddhists say that mountains, rivers, earth, sun, moon, stars, the inner body and outer objects are all manifested by Zhenru not keeping its own nature. Their view is exactly the same as Laozi's. Zhenru is empty and has nothing (in fact, it is neither empty nor not empty). Suddenly, Zhenru did not keep its own nature, and manifested as neutral magnetic electricity, and then manifested as gas, swirling in the space. After several changes, the earth was born. Plants, animals, and humans were born from this. The state of the so-called Alaya consciousness in Buddhism is exactly the same as the state of neutral magnetic electricity. Both are empty and without trace, and all things are majestic, that is, silent and motionless, and can be sensed and connected. We can say that the manifestation of the True Suchness is neutralized magnetism and electricity in objects, and Alaya consciousness in humans, just like the same substance is dirt, sand, and stone in the earth, and hair, bones, and flesh in humans. Nowadays, people often say that the human spirit is completely different from magnetism and electricity, just like people without scientific knowledge see hair, bones, and flesh and think they are dirt, sand, and stone, which are completely different. Neutralized magnetism and electricity are the first manifestations of the True Suchness. The True Suchness cannot be seen. When we read Buddhist and Taoist books, we take neutralized magnetism and electricity as the form of Tao and the True Suchness, and feel that it can be applied everywhere.
Laozi wrote a book, and at the beginning he said: "The Tao can be spoken, but it is not the real Tao." Sakyamuni preached for 49 years, but in the end he believed that he had not said a word, and attributed it to the inexpressible. Su Ziyou said: "The Tao cannot be expressed in words, and what can be expressed in words are all its similarities. The wise use the similarities to recognize the truth, while the ignorant cling to the similarities and fall into the falsehood." The Tao and the real nature are inconceivable, while the Alaya consciousness and the neutral magnetic field are conceivable. Using the conceivable to explain the inconceivable is what is called "explaining its similarity."
Laozi said: "Tao gives birth to one, one gives birth to two, two gives birth to three, and three gives birth to all things." We can interpret it as, Tao is nothingness, one is neutralizing magnetism and electricity, and when neutralizing magnetism and electricity is activated, there are two effects of mutual attraction and mutual attraction, so-called two. From these two effects, the third effect is born, and from this, thousands and thousands of things come out. Laozi said: "Hold one as the model of the world." He also said: "The world has a beginning, which is the mother of the world. Once you get the mother, you can know the son. Once you know the son, you keep the mother again." One and mother both refer to neutralizing magnetism and electricity, which is the Alaya consciousness in people. Therefore, it is said: "It is hazy and dim, and it is dark and deep." It is also said: "It is deep and like the ancestor of all things." Laozi specializes in the Alaya consciousness, so the book he wrote can connect the various philosophers of the Zhou and Qin dynasties, the Confucian scholars of the Zhao and Song dynasties, the Book of Changes, and Buddhism. It is also relied upon by the immortals and alchemists of later generations. According to Yan Youling's comments, it can also connect Western theories (his theory can be found in my book "The Trend of Chinese Academics"). The reason why the "Tao Te Ching" is so all-encompassing is that the Alaya consciousness has everything. Buddhism broke this theory and created the Great Round Mirror Wisdom, taking "emptiness" as its foothold. This is because Buddhism focuses on transcendence in its teachings, so it takes "emptiness" as its foothold. Laozi focuses on integrating the world and transcendence in his teachings, so he takes the Alaya consciousness as his foothold. From the Alaya consciousness, if we pursue inward, we can reach the Great Round Mirror Wisdom and empty everything. Working outward from the Alaya consciousness, one can be sincere, upright, self-cultivating, manage the family, govern the country, and bring peace to the world. These two scholars have different starting points.
If we assume that "the human spirit is transformed from magnetism and electricity", then the words that the Buddha told King Prasenajit and Ananda, as well as the sayings of the Song Dynasty Confucianists that "like a fish in water, the water outside is the water in its belly. The water in the belly of a mandarin fish is the same as the water in the belly of a carp", and the sayings of the Ming Dynasty Confucianists that "the heaven and the earth are all the heart", etc., can be explained without further explanation. The Doctrine of the Mean says: "When joy, anger, sorrow, and pleasure are not expressed, it is called the middle." The Sixth Patriarch said: "When you do not think about good or evil, that is the true face of the Danshang Seat." Guangchengzi said: "The essence of the supreme way is dark and obscure, and the ultimate of the supreme way is dim and silent." Zhuangzi said: "The heart is not sad or happy, it is the highest virtue, and it is the highest tranquility when it is one and unchanged." They are all phenomena of the Alaya consciousness, that is, the phenomenon of magnetism and electricity neutralization. The neutralization of magnetism and electricity will be activated, and it will show the effect of mutual attraction, and various things will arise. Therefore, if we want to study the changes in human affairs, we should first make a hypothesis: "The soul is transformed from magnetism and electricity." The study of magnetism and electricity cannot be separated from mechanics, so we make another hypothesis: "The mind changes according to the laws of mechanics." With these two theories, the various things have a track to follow, and the divergent theories of the world can be merged into one, and the Chinese, Western, and Indian theories can also be merged into one.
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