Page 126 - Gan's Family History

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Family Instruction to the Yan
Family
37
By Yan Zhitui (531-591)
Zigong asked: "Is there a single
motto that one can live by in all
one's life?"
The Master said: "It is perhaps to be
considerate towards your fellow
men. Never do to others what you do
not want to be done to yourself”
Confucius
Yah Zhitui (531-591) was a noted
scholar of the sixth century. His
family had a long record of
government service and scholarly
achievement. Yan lived in a period of
turmoil in Chinese history known as
the Northern and Southern
dynasties. For one hundred seventy
years, China was divided into two
parts: north and south. During that
time, the ruling regime in the north
changed hands four times and in the
south, five times. Yan served fewer
than two governments, was twice
taken prisoner by opposing forces,
and lived through five regimes in his
sixty years of life.
Based on his belief in family
value, his attention to personal
growth and development, and his
moral convictions, Yan wrote Family
Instructions for his children, with
lessons drawn from his chequered
experiences in life, his personal
sufferings and the vicissitudes of his
career. The book highlights many of
37 Ectracted from the book “A Victor’s Reflection – Tales
of China’s Timeless Wisdom for Leaders” by Michael C.
Tang
the values shared by the ancient
Chinese.
The following is taken from his
Family Instructions, which has
become a handbook for Chinese
families for generations since his
day.
Child Education
It is your bounden duty as parents to
provide your children with good
education. Love does not mean just
to feed and clothe the children well
and to take care of their material
needs. To love also means to educate.
And education should start even
before the child is born.
When a woman is pregnant, she
should read the right books or listen
to good classics read to her, and be
in the right company. She should not
overexert herself or let anything
frighten her. She should not seek for
sensory satisfaction through such
stimuli as drugs or sexual
indulgence. She should avoid
quarrelling and not talk too much.
In short, she should see no evil,
hear no evil and say no evil words.
Then she will have a bright and
healthy baby born to her. Otherwise
she may cause afflictions on her
child. So a woman has a lot of
responsibility for educating the
unborn.
If a child has not received proper
education before his birth, education
should start as soon as he is able to
recognize people's faces and read
their expressions. Train him to listen
to you and follow your instructions