Yan's Family Precepts

Author: Yu Zhengping
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Publishing Date: 2004-06-01
Features: The Family Precepts of Yan Shi consists of seven volumes and twenty chapters. Chapters "Name and Reality," "Engaging in Affairs" in Volume 1, Volume 2, and Volume 4, and "Final Arrangements" in Volume 5 and Volume 7, or "Discussing the Methods of Establishing Oneself and Governing the Family, Debating the Errors of Social Customs, and Advising the World," are strictly speaking family precepts. Based on Confucian thought, the author emphasizes self-cultivation and benefiting others, loving and understanding people, upholding the ethical order of filial piety, fraternal affection, and friendly trustworthiness. At the same time, he advocates practical application of knowledge and opposes the ignorant and reckless aristocratic customs of the time, as well as the unrealistic and arbitrary interpretations that detached from reality. He stresses that scholars and officials should "understand the essence of the Six Classics" and apply knowledge to practical use, becoming versatile talents needed by the state—such as court officials, literary scholars, military personnel, envoys, and builders.
Additionally, the author recognizes the influence of environment on family education. He believes education must start early, and parents should pay attention to teaching by example and self-discipline. "The moral cultivation of a society begins with the leaders and spreads downward." He advocates loving and kind parenting without losing authority, and warns against spoiling children. During the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, when taking elixirs was popular, Yan Zhipu also taught his children that daily care was the way to maintain health, rather than relying on alchemy or medicine to live a superficial life. It is particularly noteworthy that Yan Zhipu believed women should participate in labor, opposing son preference and marriage for profit. These views remain positive both in his time and today.