Comment And Analysis On The Thesis About "Qi Ji Yin Qiao"

The thesis about "Qi Ji Yin Qiao" first came into being in the Spring and Autumn Period to refer to those gadgets or play things which might sap one's will if excessive attention was paid to them, or the technological products which made people get so contented that they forgot to mind their own business. In the Spring and Autumn Period, Confucianism and Taoism interpreted the term based on their own schools of thoughts. The emphasis of both were on the technological development involve national economy and people's livelihood and the prevention of developing technological products which might interfere in people's proper work. Later dynasties all adopted this idea. What's worth mentioning is that after Confucianism became the orthodox, some scholars had mistakenly equated the "Qi Ji Yin Qiao "with the common technological development, which, to some extent, had hindered the technological development of ancient China. The progressive role played by the thesis about "Qi Ji Yin Qiao" cannot be overlooked. It had helped China maintain its lead role in the world in some basis industries such as agriculture and metallurgy. It had also restrained the growth of extravagancies to some degree, so that the limited natural and human resources were reasonably allocated, which in turn, had helped stabilize society improve the technology.New problems have emerged in the process of technological development with the development of market economy. The inappropriate application of technology will greatly hinder the development of economy and society. In this situation, it's of vital importance for us to analyze the development of the history of the thesis about "Qi Ji Yin Qiao"to learn a lesson from history, the process of which will be conducive to the coordination between technology and society, and the using of technological ethics to restrict technological development.