Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
DR.
PAUL CARUS
SECOND EDITION
CHICAGO
THE OPEN COURT PUBLISHING COMPANY
LONDON
:
c
PREFATORY NOTE TO THE SECOND EDITION.
THIS essay,
tion of the
which appeared
first in
VI., No.
:
2, is
an exposi-
of Chinese thought
it is
a sketch, not
an exhaustive
treatise,
in terse
and
intelligible language.
The
brevity
is
meant
to give a bird's-eye
nese world-conception.
of the
them
to their source.
its
recommended by
the Tsungli
Yamen
of Peking, the
Im-
informal communication
Pekin,
:
May 6th,
1896.
Your Excellency
have had the honor to receive Your Excellency's note, wherein you state Yamen a copy of The Monist an American Magazine. Your Excellency further states that it contains an article on " Chinese Philosophy " and the author asks that it be delivered to H. M. the Emperor.
We
In reply we beg to state, that the article in question has been translated into Chinese by order of the Yamen and has been duly perused by the members thereof. The article shows that the writer is a scholar well versed in Chinese literature, and has brought together matters which indicate that he fully understood the subject
he has treated.
The book
will be placed
on
file in
Yamen.
IB
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
INTRODUCTORY.^
JoufcA. \)
CHINESE philosophy
derstand
its
is
and
difficult for
its
Western people
to un-
nature or to appreciate
a rare mixture
of valuable ideas
and useless
;
subtleties.
grand
start
a promising seed-time
its
and a
poor harvest.
The heroes
of
foundations,
were so much admired that none dared to excel them, and thus before the grandeur of the original genius
which looms up
is
in the pre-
dwarfed into
timid insignificance.
The Chinese
language
is
rigid
and
inflexible,
new
in
words extremely
difficult.
And
new
who
us
are
hampered
in their
let
conception of
new
But
remember
that this
drawback
its
of the
Chinese script
extraordinary advantages.
in
Chinese speech,
e., in
nese scholars of to-day can read without great difficulty the books
their
ideographic script
The Chinese
made by Mr. H. H.
5462
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
of writing in
method
which the
letters
must be translated
into
sound
(p.
u)
"As
quicker,
sight
is
quicker than hearing, so ideas reaching the mind by the eye are
more
striking,
and
progress of sound.
sociations
is
The
or,
by early
as-
The Chinese
incapable."
But
it is
is
at the
is
it
The
power
of their tradition
is
has been to
From time immemorial the highest ideal of Chinese thinkers bow in modesty and submission to the insuperable granof their ancient traditions.
is
deur
of
Criticism
is
thought
strangled ere
it
them
as insanity.
It is
as
a Christian
would dare
to
In a
and
institutions.
we
we hope
that
it
comprehend how
both their
hampered by
their
mode
of notation in
For,
much
that ap-
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
of course, that to free
Chinese
religious
lore of
some
known
of the
Ifml
H T*u and
Y
the uyZ.
.
map
-pEJ-
Loh
shu,
"the
of the (river)
Loh."
All Chinese scholars
map
istic
of the
Ho
who have attempted to reconstruct the of the Loh agree in adopting a_dual-_
Ijc^r
Yang means "bright," and Yin "dark." heaven, Yin is the principle of earth. Yang Yang is the principle of Yang is, as we should say, positive; Yin is the sun, Yin is the moon. Yang is, as the Chinese say, masculine and active is negative. Yin is feminine and passive. The former is motion, the latter is
and P4> YIN. 3
rest.
YANG
Yang
is
is
sive, wifelike.
Yang was
originally represented
(),
by a small, bright
"
"
.
circle (o),
and "
were replaced by
full
and broken
."
The symbols
of
I
in
5
or "ele-
two J
:
twos are
They
T
are as follows
The
spiritits
scription,
2 J7o,
however,
is
misleading in English.
Hoang Ho,
'jJ^V
4
side of a hill."
is
"the shady
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
the great
Yang
the small
Yang
Groups
of three or
are called
Kwa
-jpL
The eight possible trigrams, or permutations of three I, possess their own names and meanings, which (according to Legge) are as
follows
:
REPRE-
STANDING FOR
SENTED EY THE
ch'ien.
Heaven
or sky.
Strength.
Horse.
Lake (water
a basin).
li.
collected in
Pleasure
tion.
or
satisfac-
Goat.
Brightness.
Pheasant.
chan.
Thunder.
Energy or mobility.
Penetration.
Dragon.
Wind.
kan.
Bird.
Moon, streams
Mountain.
of water
Pig-
kan.
Arrest, standstill.
Dog.
kw'un.
Earth.
Compliance or docility.
Ox.
man
compounds
things
of
In this
way
the Chinese
Yang and
Yin.
FUH-HI 1H-HI
\/\ |A
tdL 2pt
AND YU
of the
As
state at
to the
map
of the
Ho
Loh, we must
Only this
civilisa-
The
character
3^P
divine."
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
tion (about 3322 B.
B.
C, according
with .*F
to
latter
Yfi the
We
of
Works, labored
life
Kwen was
banished for
to
Mount
Yii,
2286 B.
C,
who
C, succeeded
Emperor
of
own
and bequeathed
When
Shun,
in
2208 B.
C, C,
whereupon he
in
Much may
of civilisation which,
probably
in
the Chinese.
rivers,
were undertaken, and the sciences of mathematics and astronEclipses of the sun and
omy
flourished.
moon were
calculated
we know
Hi and
Ho
planetary revolutions
and we possess
for
by
Yii's
Kan
in
famous address
Leuthen.
No
wonder
remembered
in the
Yao and
the
Map
of
Ho fcX
Loh
\[$
|6
Yii personally,
we can
I,,
No. 900.
76-78.
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
these two documents (whatever their nature
to the ages represented
may have
been) belong
by Fu-Hi and
Yii.
THE YIH
The
f?7)
"JJ*
ancient kwa-philosophy, as
call
of the
and
their superstitions.
With
its
help the
is
made.
of the kwa-philosophy,
As
to the original
its
meaning
positive evidence of
kwa themselves.
civil
It
is
to
in
was
's
inter-
Says Chu Hi
T'ai Kih
T'u: 1
"After the Cheu (dynasty) [which ruled 1122-255 B.
C]
perished and
Meng-
Kho
"
When
further the T'sin were succeeded by the Han, passing the T'sin, Sin,
to arrive at our
and T'ang, so as
Sung
lived]
and
the five planets met in the K'wei (constellation) so as to usher in an age of science
came."
The
e.,
oldest
work
of
/^j
Yih),
we
kwa combined
times eight
peculiar
in eight
its
name
and
1
significance.
To
kwa hexa-
See Gabelentz's
German
Kih
T'u, p. 14.
and ^v (yih) means " permutation "; the character shows the sun above the moon, the latter in its archaic form. The translation " change, "which is commonly adopted by sinologists, does not always convey the right idea.
2
^n?
Mi
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
grams an explanatory
first
text
is
added consisting
2
of seven lines. 1
The
as a
line,
written by
Wen Wang,
six,
applies to the
hexagram
written by
the
first
The
full lines,
representing
that in
its
present
purpose of divination.
The most
pended
to the
book
in the
called
T'wan
Siang, to his
Ten Wings. The first addition of two sections, commonly ascribed to Wen Wang, the second called son, Cheu Kung, while the rest belong to later periods,
is is is
one
of the
earth, the
of solu-
considered by
many beyond
all
hope
and yet
of the
it
minds
Its divine
authority
it
confiis
dent that
contains the
sum
of all earthly
wisdom.
There
is
no
Chinese scholar
in science or
who
any truth
and rationally
The
official
Book
of
Permutations
is
made
in the
records of the
1 1
nasty in
22 B.C.
We
J
read
The
first
They
i.
line,
2
which
Wen means
" he
who pursues
the arts of
Wang means "king." Wen Wang received the posthumous title Si Peh, peace." " Chief of the West." His proper name is Ch'ang; but as it is not respectful i. e., to use the proper name, he is commonly called " Wen Wang."
3
son of
4
Kung means "duke." Cheu Kung (i. Wen Wang his proper name is Tan.
;
e.,
the
Duke
of
The
original
meaning
of
/Li
kiu
is
"nine," of
S\
'"^ "six,"
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
"The Grand
them the primary
to sixty-four."
Diviner had charge of the rules for the three Yih (systems of
Kwei
ts'ang
of
Cheu
till
in
each of
each
they amounted
The third mentioned version of the Yih is ascribed to Wen Wang, 1231-1135 B. C), and his son Cheu Kung (1169-1116). 1 Wen Wang, a man of unusual piety and stern justice, was the
most powerful vassal
of the last ruler of the
house
of Yin, 2 called
^V|
--Vr
Cheu
Sin,
Wu Wang.
a beautiful
The
girl, for
While
Yew
Li,
C, Wen Wang
in their
he discovered
mysterious
died,
lines.
Fa
of his suzerain,
so intol-
own
brother
neck.
was
left
Wu
1
Wang.
He had
Shang
Ti, the
He
crossed the
Hoang-Ho
;
at
the ford of
The
of
King or IVang.
is
also
named Shang.
(i.
surnamed
Wu Wang
the
war
king),
was the
oldest son of
Wen
Wang.
4 Cheu His proper name is Sin (the dissolute tyrant) is a posthumous title. "Show." The word " Cheu" in the name Cheu Sin is not the same word as the name of the principality of "Cheu," after which the Cheu dynasty is called.
peror, sovereign.
(shang) "above," "high in heaven," or "supreme," The etymology of " ti" is doubtful.
1 1
ti)
Lord em-
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
Meng-tsin and gained a decisive victory
Sin shut himself up in his palace, at
to set
it
in the plain of
Muh.
Cheu
Luh Tai,
on
fire
and died
Thus
Cheu Kung,
Wu
first
brother, contributed
much
his
Wu Wang
and then
of
Ch'ung,
to
i,
e.,
"the Perfecter,"
imperial
Wu Wang's
death. 1
There seems
the Yih of Cheu,
Kwa
systems; and
Book
of
Permutations which
extant to-day.
in
which south
is
always top-
The
older
scheme
is
Wen Wang.
#
III
4,>
IO
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
at rest.
it
Thus he
is
have come
change which
One
in all
of the
/mhm>
till
Ullll
============ ================
==
#V
wWft
ffl
Mil
llllil
'.lllll
WW
ip
!'"!'
111111
$
Fig.
3.
= = = = == = = =
BHBBSSSS
jji
in
may be
for
to say,
on substituting
and
for full
we can read
numfigure
bers from o to
in the left
63,.,
The topmost
e.
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
the left to the right,
I I
we have
;
i,
i.
e.
oooooi;
2,
i.
e.
000010;
3,
i.
e.
00001 1
tem,
4,
i.
e.
000100
etc.
until
1 1 1 1 1 1,
is 63.
The
that those
of 63.
Thus heaven,
former
i.
e.
or 63,
i.
e.
==
bottom
of the circle.
1
Beginning
to 32, after
in the
which
There
64
is
12
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
line,
the sixty-four
kwa 1
Cheu
version, ascribed to
The design exhibits in the even columns the inverse kwa of the odd columns, with this exception, that whenever an inversion would show the same figure, all the Yang
arrangement
of the
King Wen.
by Yin
lines,
and
vice versa.
Thus the hexagram No. 44, called " Kan" == is the inverted hexagram No. 43, called "Kwai", while "K ien,"s=in No. 1,
f
is
in
No.
2.
hexagrams depend upon the comThus, No. 1 is " sky " upon "sky," viz., the active principle doubled, which means great and successful display No. 2 is "earth" upon " earth "; the receptive principle doubled, which of energy. means, great receptivity, fertility, stability. No. 3 is " rain " above "thunder," means fulness, boding prosperity to those who are constant, but threatening impending danger to those who venture to move, etc. No. 49 is " water " above fire, which means contrasts that confront one another to boil to transform (implying that fire changes the nature of water). The names of the hexagrams, according to a Japanese authority (in the Taka-shima-ekidan), interpreted in the sense given by Western sinologists, mainly by Harlez (in his Yih King), are as follows 1. K'ien, sky, success 2. kw'un, earth, stability; 3. chun, fulness; 4. meng, infancy, growth; 5. hsii, expectancy, danger; 8. p'i, friendship 6. song, litigation, lawsuit 7. sze, an army or a commander n. T'di 10. //, to march 9. hsido chuh, being clouds but no rain, little progress penetration, no obstruction; 12. p'ei, obstruction, to be besieged; 13. thong zhin union, fellowship 15. k'ien, condescension; 16. yil, satis14. taiyn, great, power
significance of the several
'
'
;*
obedience
agitation
authority
;
20.
censure
22. pi,
oppres26. tai
;
sion, deprivation
25. ivil
;
ch'uh,
k'an,
accumulation
27.
//,
i,
to sustain, to feed
28. ta
29. 33.
difficulties; 30.
harmony;
endurance;
;
fun,
35. ts'in,
to
advance
sition,
36.
ming
;
i,
oppo-
abate, to lessen
44.
k'cii,
contrariety; 39. kien, difficulty; 40. kieh, escape, deliverance; 41. sun, to gain; 43. kudi, dispersion, distribution; 0,2.. yih, aggrandizement,
to
meet
;
45. tsui, to
assemble;
46. slicing, to
ascend
to
48. (sing,
a well
49. koh,
water over
fire,
to renew,
transform
50. ting,
fire
51. chan,
;
c/iien, to in;
move apace
;
stranger, a traveller
to flow over, to
pliability,
squander
60. chieh,
55.
fang, wealth
;
56. 59.
lit,
61.
tsi,
the middle
tsi,
62. hsido
63. ki
non-consummation. [The translation of the names of the sixty-four kwa, as given here, only approximately agrees with the system elsewhere employed in this article.]
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
If
reads in
42 44
22 10
14
1
12
51 11
50
9
31
19
54
27
52
36
29
35
46
26 20
28
32
4
2
24
53
6
43
18
62
5
49
15
40
30
3
60
57 25 55
o
45
41
33
48
39
38
37 47 58
61
13
56
34
59
63
16
17
SPIRIT TORTOISE
tortoise-shell
and the
have been
in
use in
for the
purpose
of divination
practice of divination
is
mentioned
documents
of the
Yii
recommends
The
~Wi by the
the divining
(like toy
little
oblong blocks
an incision after
the pattern of the broken line of Yin and smooth like the two remaining sides
;
Yang
lines
on
further,
of fifty
six
wooden
stalks, a little
if
The
if
the incision,
uppermost.
The
Taka-
method
of divination as prescribed
by the Book
is
of
Eki
:
in the
as follows
sit
per-
may
erently.
Fifty sticks
make a complete
set,
and
are the holy implements which reveal the will of the Almighty through their math-
ematical changes.
single stick
and
let
it
l Shi tsao Ay\ -J-~ the "divining plant" is a species of shi f=f "milfoil," or " yarrow," the same plant which is cultivated at the tomb of Confucius. The sym" bol " milfoil " is composed of the three characters " plant " on the top, " old man
in the middle,
2
and
'
'
" at
the bottom.
III., p. 50.
Part
II.,
Book
14
which
is
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
to
is
referred to
fingers to the
middle of the
fingers to
sticks, the
thumb being
Lift the
Now
turn your sole attention to the affair to be divined, close your eyes, suspend your
breath,
make
yourself solemn and pure, be sure that you are in interview with the
to any-
Almighty to receive his order, and further, do not diversify your thoughts
thing else.
sticks into
is at its
The
division
must not be
voluntary.
moment when
is
apex
is,
the Al-
mighty.
The
feeling at the
moment
communication
is
impossible to describe,
It is
when
absolutely necessary that one shall divide his sticks at the very instant
the feeling specified.
tion, the
when he feels
descrip-
baffles
every
trial of
only
way
"Now,
and Earth,'
is in
to the
'Heaven
and
This one
;
be held
hand
Count the
left-
hand
it
is
to
be counted
in cycles,
When
less
will
little finger.
'
Ken
'
(==).
If
If
'
Da
'
'
(==).
'
"
Ri
==
"
(
'
Shin
'
(HZ).
(=r=).
If six
'
Kan
'
'
(==).
'
'
'
If
Gon
(==).
'
Kon
'
(=
fE).
"These
l
emblems
The
trigram corresponding to
is
and
to
be placed
at the
is
preserved.
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
bottom of the diagram.
15
The
above-stated process
is
is
now
to
called the
Outer Complement,'
and
is
to
be placed
diagram.
Now
;
you are
in possession of
a com-
plete
diagram of
six elements.
is
"
The
destined diagram
1
now
before you
is to
observe the
change
in the 'elements.'
The method
is
the
same
as be-
mode
of counting them.
to
be counted per
If
The remainder
is
thus ob-
your remainder
one,
you have
obtained the
first
if
The order
is
of the elements
first,
is
that
to say, the
bottom element
the
hexagram,
it.
the diviner turns to the book and reads the sentence belonging to
is
to
because
is
they constitute the centre of the two trigrams of which the whole
composed.
The
fifth stroke,
is
or heavenly power,
it
obtained,
in principle the
11
same.
is
In
the
empty
a small
species of Emys, three coins are shaken and thrown out in a dicelike
manner.
tails,
an element
of
outcome
of the
proposed action
anticipated.
King
as follows
line in the
hexagram."
tended
W^ kwei,
is
l6
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
"Therefore heaven produced the
spirit-like things,
1
tage of them.
(The operations
of)
many)
changes and transformations; and the sages imitated them (by the means of the
Yi).
Heaven hangs
out
its (brilliant)
figures
made
is
their
Divination
We
Shun submitted
its
the question of
decision in
somewhat the
same way
as
among
Thummim.
The seventh
"Officers having been chosen and appointed for divining by the tortoise-shell
and the
be charged
They
will
predict rain, clearing up, cloudiness, want of connexion, and disturbances, through
"In
all
five given
by the
shell,
and
two by the
stalks
all
"The
men
lowed.
officers
inaugurated, three
is to
be
fol-
"When
you have doubts about any great matter, consult with your own mind
;
common
people
and
officers,
and the
be the
shell,
and the
and
officers
and
common
"
If the
the
common
"If the
common
and the
and
officers
and the
common
and external
undertakings unlucky.
"When
the shell and stalks are both opposed to the views of men, there will
in
be good fortune
being
still,
will
be unlucky."
The
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
In justice to the original Chinese conception of divination
IJ
we
must
state that
it
but to
would be propitious.
spiritual, not
The
tortoise-shell
but because, like books and pens, they can be employed for the
tion and clarification of thought. Sz'
is
fixa-
skilful diviner in
Ming dynasty
'
to
have said
is
to
Shao P'ing
'
What
intelligence
They
The
much withered
grass
the
a withered bone.
They
man
is
more
intelligent
?
than things.
Why
mean
it
means
that which
significant or
is
possessed of meaning.
y-ff
^f
Ho
73
:
Vptl
ifltT
the
map
of
3&
Loh
We read
in the
III.,
"The Ho gave
In the
theLo
the writing."
B. E., XVI.,
7,
p. 374.
Lun
Yii (the
we read
that
Confucius said
"
again
i
in
an hour of dejection
The
1
bird
river
no
map comes up
am
disappointed in
my expectations."
to
The
first
author
who appears
have given a
definite
of
shape
is
to
map
of
Ho
Loh
K'ung
Ngan-Kwoh,
1
He
in-
This means
in other
The
Feng
(Fig. 6, p. 18)
is
like the
Phoenix a mythical
Feng, the Chinese
Phoenix, and lung, the dragon, are favorite subjects of Chinese artists. The female of the Phoenix is called Hwang, hence the generic term Feng-Hwang, which is the
emblem
power
;
of conjugal happiness.
(Fig.
5, p.
18), is
the
emblem
of
hence
it is
i8
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
its
back an arrangement
of symbols,
ruler
Concern-
that while
Yu was
of divi-
which "carried on
sions, in
back a
and a system
to nine."
There
who
of
schoolmen
to a reconstruction of the
Fig.
5.
(As
is
The lung
of the atmosphere.
kinds.
In addition
Cosmogonists mention four read of the yellow dragon (the same that emerged from the river Loh) and
we
(After a Fig. 6. The Bird Feng. Chinese drawing. Reproduced from the
Chinese Repository.)
map of Ho and
The schemes
from a Chi-
Ting who
The Ho T
bols,
u,
or
map
of the
to Ts'ai
Yuen-Ting,
1, 3, 5, 7,
2, 4, 6, 8,
and 10
symbols.
fucian
This
is
Con-
commentary
1
of the
"The number
to heaven, 5
;
to earth, 6
to heaven, 7; to earth, 8
to
to heaven, 9
"
five.
heaven are
five,
The numbers
of these two series correspond to each other (in their fixed posithat
tions),
may be
considered
its
mate.
The heavenly
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
numbers amount
together
effected,
to 25,
19
of
to 30.
The numbers
amount
and the
to 55.
m
</
fr /
H
3
+
o
Fig.
8.
<>
The Writing
to Ts'ai
of Loh.
;
Fig.
7.
(According
Yuang-ting
The arrangement
each group of dots.
Yang and
and
thirty
such as to make
for
:
the
Map
of the
Yang
-f-,
for
Yin
20
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
of the
map
of
Ho
and
Loh according to Ts'ai Yuen-Ting are spoken of as commonly accepted, we find another and almost more popular scheme of unknown origin and perhaps of greater antiquity, according to which the
map
of
Ho
on the back
of the river-horse
is
said
illustration
is
Loh on
The
the left
"Lung ma
e.
Fig.
9.
Fig. 10.
The
five
elements
-ft
water, wood,
fire,
Drawn
after the
photograph of a specimen
H. Riedel
The
is
writing of the five elements which might be similarly traced in various ways,
it
at a glance.
2 J hing= "element" exhibits two characters, "a step with the left foot,' J and "a step with the right foot," which combined denote "motion." The elements, accordingly, are "the moving ones," or "the active agents."
^|> muh, hwo, \\f. kin, and _ _^ T'u. S/iui^" water" form the picture of three ripples muh "wood," the picture of " earth" T'u a tree with its roots fac= "fire" represents an ascending flame denotes the place on which to stand and kin=. " metal or gold " is said to contain the character T'u "earth," because the metals come from the ground.
s
/j\
s/iui,
/^
is
in its original
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
21
They were,
in old
l>KA^J-_
We need little imagination to trace these characters on the
of a tortoise,
shell
10).
such as sketched
in the
The
five
thoughts of
the Chinese.
Their
in
conception
is
it
is
mentioned
the
Hiang
of the
Ku
When an
stays.
it
Such
of later generations,
em-
bodied
it
in his philosophy.
|/>
3^
IN
of Chi, the
grand master
Shang,
in
Cheu
Sin,
Wu
Wang,
released
but the
latter,
faithful to his
vow, refused
acknowledge
Wu Wang,
dent
spirit
of the
angular
22
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
Wu Wang
lator,
on the principles
of
nine divisions.
Its trans-
method by which
tranquil, in
harmony
with their condition, through the perfect character of the king, and his perfect administration of government."
is
preserved
generally supposed to
it
is
not
of
in
The
use of the
naming
and practice
or
We
its
Heaven
God gave
divisions to Yii."
is
interesting as a
fully
appreciated
it
contains a great
many confused
some very
practical injunc-
moral conduct
:
of rulers.
The nine
divisions 2 of the
The
five elements.
of water
is to
"
The nature
and
of
fire,
to blaze
and ascend
of
to yield
earth, to
salty
;
yield harvests.
that
which
is
straight
becomes sour
It
pre-
scribes (i) for deportment, a reverent attitude, (2) for speech, pro-
\/' hung, literally "vast, immense," but in connexion with Pf\^j /<z=plan, word is commonly translated "great." The character consists of "water,' which is the same radical as in the names Ho and Loh, and of "all," its original sig1
the
nificance being
"inundation."
Language,
p. 236.
If (ch'eu
= division) consists of
'
'
field "
and
' '
long
life.
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
23
priety, (3) for seeing, clearness of vision, (4) for hearing, distinction, (5) for thinking,
acumen.
By
cumspection,
3.
(4)
They
are (1) the provision of food for the people, (2) the acquisition of
The
They are
It
is
moon,
(3) the sun, (4) the planets and the zodiacal divisions, and
The
characterised in the
following lines
"Without
Without
selfish preference,
Without
selfish prejudice,
"This
itis
is
command;
yea,,
command
of the
Lord on High.
"All the multitudes of the people, instructed in this ideal of perfect excellence,
will,
by carrying
it
Son of Heaven.
They
all
will say:
'The Son
Heaven
"
is
The
clemency.
The
first
must be practised
in
second serves to put down disorder, and the third applies to high-
minded persons.
24
7.
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
The examination
of
of divi-
16.)
The
eight
ways
prevention of misfortunes.
must be seasonable,
duces
in season.
the
months, the
If
order to insure
the seasonableness
If great men are kept in obThe chapter concludes: "The stars should be observed by the people at large. Some stars love wind, and others love rain the courses of the sun and moon determine winter and summer. The way in which the moon follows the stars
be unrest.
The
five sources of
happiness are
(3) health and equanimity, (4) virtue, and (5) obedience to the will
of
heaven
and the
six sources of
life,
and
(6) lack
In spite of
its
its
the straight path of sound logic, the Great Plan has exercised, on
account of
its
moral ingredients, a beneficial influence upon the deYet even here there
is
velopment
of China.
a drawback, in so far
and
for authority in
any form
it
pendence
bold progressiveness.
THE
T'AI KIH,
..* /y\
The
contrast of the
J
principles,
It is
hard
to
why
in
and
in
an other
six
sources.
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
very early, for the Chinese philosophy, as
sics,
it
25
appears
monism.
in a process of differentiation
is
Gabelentz translates
das Urprinzip,
Legge and
extreme."
Its
symbol
T'ai,
";
is
a circle, thus
Ois
The word
"great
" or
akin to Ta,
is
~~T\~
"large
not of
size,
but
of dignity.
fify
Kih 1 as follows
its
is
indicated by
radical (which
it is
is
No.
75,
'
tree,'
wood
'),
Because
used of
all
Since
we cannot
go beyond the top of the gable, but only cross over to descend on the other side of
the roof,
Kih means
'goal,' or 'turning-point.'
is
This
latter
As
is
Thus Kih,
as ad-
means
The
T'ai Kih
~TC
;jjj5j
is
text of the
is
commonly believed
to
secret teaching.
who
is
Yih
is
elementary forms
eight trigrams.
Yang and
the
The
and from
70-71.
is
their determination
III.,
Legge
no way
criticises the
and broken
lines,
representing
is
we grant
that there
Yang-and-Yin dualism
its
to the
appropriate symbol.
Nevertheless,
we can
Wang
Pi, 2 a cele-
S.
D. of the Ch.
L., p. 393.
Although
Wang
was so great
that he
is
modern school
of divination.
/.,
No. 812.
26
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
Wei dynasty
(born 225 A.
DO,
(as quoted
by
Legge,
id.)
says:
Thai
grand terminus]
As
it
takes the extreme point of anything that exists as an analogous term for the Thai
KV
Kih]
'
Thai A'i
[viz. T'ai
that
and then he
Tao-TehThai A'i
to give to
The
now
Sung
being immaterial,
calling
it li,
now
tao,
the
now
Ti, the
the spiritto
these
names are
be referred
to that of
many
different concepts."
We
Kwa
reproduced
in
jf^k^l w||+^c
11
11
11
Dmi II
Jl
II II
n
I
O
Fig. 11.
*
of the
The
title in
Fig.
to the left
|A Fub
Si
Hi
'
^N six
I
7'
ty-Kl four
represented.
3t
Kwa 'J\
serially
for in their
development)
/J
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
27
great ex-
two/"
The
in the
second
line
and two white rectangles, "the great yin," "the small yang," "the
small yin," "the great yang," in the third line "ch'ien,
siuen, k'an, kan,
tui,
li,
chan,
of the eight
Kwa,
as quoted above.
of the sixty-four
The
thirty-two
Kwa
have no names.
in the
The
names
Chinese original
are here omit-
They
ted because they would have appeared blurred in the present reproduction, which
If
is
considerably reduced.
we
fold the
diagram
in the
yang
which
will illustrate
To them
that
it
represents
It is
which remains
unchanged
in all changes,
chaos, the eternal in the transient, the absolute in the relative, the
universal in the particular, and rest in motion.
We
says:
Thus Goethe
in Gott
dem Herm."
all
[Yet
all
resistance
eternal rest.]
M*
in
28
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
EXPLANATIONS:
Cheu-tsz' says in the T'ai kih t'u
i.
:
[This statement may be compared to Spinoza's theory of the uncaused causa sui.]
yang
|
vin
moves
2. "The grand cause moves, thus producing Yang. Having reached the limit, however, it rests. Resting Having rested to it produces Yin. the limit again, it moves. Once moving, once resting; one state being conditioned by the other. In
separation
ration
it is
^^
are fixed."
fire
" Yang changes, Yin is added. 3. Thus are produced water, fire, wood,
metal, and earth. The five kinds of weather are distributed. The four seasons come forth."
earth
[Fire and wood belong to the Yang, water and metal to the Yin while earth, standing in the centre,
;
wood
metal
is
neutral.]
^{j
normjgl
norm
1S
"The five elements if united Yin and Vans arj d Yang. united are the grand cause [Kih). The grand cause is without cause, The five elements receive at their origin, each one its own nature."
4.
if
[The
male
-k u male
fe-
when combined, can be regarded as magnitudes of plus and minus which in their sum equal the
elements,
zero of the T'ai kih.]
" The truth of that which has 5. no cause, the efficacy of the Two and and (viz. the two forms
of things
Wm
rO
/Al
through J\t
of the Five (viz. the five elements) in a wonderful way, now combine and now separate. The K'ien's (=)norm ismale.the Kw'un's .5 =]
change
originate
norm is female. Both aspirations quicken one another, and through transformations they produce all things. All things are produced in
a
process of
production.
Thus
in-
IThe
'
is
common
phrase in Chi-
finite."
Fig. 12.
Cheu-tsz'
's
[After
Von Gabelentzl
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
tsz',
i.
29
e.
Cheu
the Sage,
is
who
the
lived 1017-1073.
first
We
do not hesitate
;
to
he
in
title,
Tao-Kwoh-Kung, "Prince
after death.
the
Empire
of
Lao-tsz'
versatile,
may be
deeper, Confucius
is
more
influential,
Mencius more
of
them
is
more
is
precise
and clear
who,
in
only one
Chu
Hi.
Whatever
the an-
may have
now understood
in
China
Rebellio?is, p. 358.
in
annotations and
it
unnecessary
countrymen,
and
number
two
Jk<l
friti T'ai
1
Kih
T'u, or the
\m
3eI
in
Chuinto
Hi (1130-1200 A.
German
W.
Grube.
is
12, p. 28.)
XHl
fr=f
Shu, writing,
li
treatise,
book
The T'ung
Sing
ta tseuen.
When
ical
encyclopaedia was published in 1717, both treatises of Cheu-tsz' were again embodied in the collection in their complete form together with Chu-Hi's annotations.
This proves the high esteem in which these two thinkers are held in China, and,
indeed, their opinions are recognised as the standard of Chinese orthodoxy.
2
T'ai
Kih T'u
Tschu-HV s Commen-
30
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
The
first
m % m a
"Truthfulness 1
[is]
*
root."
is
the holy 2
man's
What
ing to a
deep and
!
expressed
in
And
yet Cheu-tsz'
Western
He
says in
" Great
is
*
the Ch'ien's -$\j
"
!
origin.
(It is)
/* Ch'ien is
and stands
the
first
in contrast to jjfl
;
Kw'un
combination
of
"earth, stability,
This
is
womanamong innu-
Chinese
literature, of
how deeply
up
at the
even the most powerful minds, with the sole exception of Lao-tsz',
are entangled in the
that looms
still
Empire
CHU
HI'S
DOCTRINE OF
LI
>jE
AND
K'l
Fu
tare.
Tsz',
Cheu-tsz'
11
fell
Chu
30-1 200 A. D.
T'ai
The
Kih T'u
is
first
li
ta tsenen
(literally,
nature principle in
full
philosophical encyclo-
Ming dynasty.
-fr.
9h|*
1
t}/*Xi ch'i>ig
"word "and
"perfect."
^zj
che,
as does the English word "one" in such clauses as "the true one," "this one," or " that one." Accordingly the two words mean " the truth essence," the most appropriate translation of which seems to be " truthfulness."
SO
2
1
'
shing
= " holy
"
it)
'
and good,
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
sics
31
and
of Cheu-tsz'
's
works,
Chu Hi 1
monism
quest of
(i.
of his philosophy.
Emperor Kanghi
Shu
e.,
among
other
(It")
and Primary
Matter
(A''/), 2
the
first
Meadows's translation
(/.
p. 373):
/P L
(K'i),
devoid of the
immaterial principle
(li)
Williams
Language ex-
k'i as follows
;
Fume or vapor
steam
;
ether
breath, air
vital force
spirit,
temper, feelings
for explaining
in
supposed
to
k'i is
li
^\
(heart)
and
is
3
conditioned by
form
(king).
opposed
to chi
*W
(matter),
"as
Zoor/
or
spirit is
opposed
to the
body
it
animates."
1 See Mayer's Chinese Reader's Manual, s. v., Chu Hi, No. 79, and Chow Tuni, No. 73 Chinese Repository, Vol. XIII pp. 552 et seq. and 609 et seq.; also Williams, The Middle Kingdom, I., 683 et seq. Compare also Mr. Meadows's strictures
;
,
/. /. pp. 372-374. Mr. Meadows's voluminous book Having served as an interpreter in H. M. Civil Service, he knows the people and describes the conditions with great impartiality. However his criticism of other sinologists, even though correct, is too severe. He forgets the difficulties under which they labored and underrates the power of both religious and national prejudice. When we remember how greatly the nearest Western nations, such as the Germans and French, the English and Americans misunderstand one another, we must confess that the misrepresentations of sinolo-
valuable in
many
respects.
The weakest part of Mr. Meadows's article on Chinese philosophy is what he is pleased to call "the unfailing pass-key to the comprehension of all difficult passages
in
sists in
the Chinese sacred books, as understood by the Chinese themselves," which conthe proposition that the differences between T'ai kih (ultimate principle),
KH (ether),
Hen
2
(heart),
Sing (nature),
teh (virtue),
(heaven),
ming
(fate),
"K'i"
/PL
it
The
character
taels
appear.
Thus
may be
32
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
VS.
"
li is
p.
519) as
The governing
;
that
which
;
is felt to
on force
reason
sing,
directing principle
principle of organisation."
Job
of things,
The word
sing
is
composed
is
of
to
is
regarded as the lord of the body and one of the senses, but also the
core of things, as the wick of a candle, or the heart-wood of trees,
and source
of all activity.
:
Chu Hi
"
When
is
no
"The primary
present.
to
come
into action,
is
"
No
priority or
you
insist
to the question
priority;
it is
just contained
within the primary matter, so that were there no primary matter, then this
terial principle
imma-
of attachment.
"When
in
terial principle
it is
seen
and emmets."
is in-
Chu Hi
word
to express
(i.
precedence or superiority
(i.
e.,
priority in rank) to
anteriority,
"... And
If
e.
it
appears
be impossible
subsequence.
you
insist
on
it,
immaterial principle
there
"
is
still
a priority
and a subsequence.
is
but after
this is
what
is
called the
mysterious junction."
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
Mr.
33
Meadows
problem
of the prior-
ity of the //
over the
KH as
follows
first
existed
The immaterial
to
principle
is
matter matter
what
is
what
is
subsequent
form."
is
Chu Hi
perceives that he
and we
feel in the
many
repetitions
which
fill
his treatise
how he
in his
sees inseparableness
and
distinctness.
omnipresent
in all things,
and yet
says
:
it is
different
from matter,
in ex-
planation of which
Chu Hi
"
We
The
li
purely formal, 1 the laws of which remain true not only of this actual
if
:
nothing
Chu Hi attempts
came
into being
You cannot
and non-existence
was
just the
same."
The immaterial
non-existence, but
it
cannot manifest
itself
primary matter.
Seen
is
is
The immaterial
is,
principle
is
wisdom
of the sage.
It
of sentient
e.,
Chu Hi
says
It is
what we define
in the
Primer of Philosophy
(p.
formal."
34
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
"That which
perceives
is
mind
enables
it
primary matter."
The immaterial
principle as
it
affects the
is
sym-
of light,
and
light con-
Chu Hi
Lao-tsz'
's
He
T'ai Kih.
says
"The
_,
great extreme
all
is
......
things
speaking of
it
with reference to
to exist within
heaven and
Speaking of
1
it
of things
' '
The
it is
found
in the
and
I
in the
myriad
ask,
what
development
;
and
after
its
manifestation
feel-
ing
when
it
principle of nature,
then
feeling or passion.
first
there
this
immaterial principle.
From
the time
when
came
myriad things
;
this
it is
not
only one
in-itself-ness] extends
use [to
is
which
manifest.
it
"Cheu-tsz' called
is
i.e.,
which
is
The immaterial
by the senses]
but,
from
the operations of the male and female principles of nature [viz. the purely formal
to Fig. 12
on
p. 29.
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
science of
35
it
;
thus the
display) on the
ask,
what
is
would
Every
man
that which
is
men and
things."
We would say,
" it
is
it
"Vor jedem
steht ein
das er werden
soil,
Und vor
[An image
of
er es nicht
it
ist, ist
what
is
So long
as that
unattained,
peace
it
cannot
find.]
We
difficulties
Chu Hi had
overcome
tional tradition.
The term
it
from
its
appli-
cation
was a triumph
of philosophical
thought
which
tion,
Chu Hi
say that
to
says
"The
yet there
is
we cannot
it
does not
exist,
and
it.
From
this point is
produced the one male and the one female principle of nature, which are called
the two powers
;
this, all
human
strength in
its
arrange-
ment.
idea.
this doctrine
may
into."
Chu Hi
are
is
in the
Western
are
world.
They discovered
call
what we would
man's mentality.
36
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
FILIAL PIETY
'c
civilisation
has struck
in the souls of
Chinamen.
It
is
reflected in their
life,
in their
all
in their ethics
which
of
Yang
\ri>*i/
yat
which
is
Hiao or Hsiao.'1
As an instance
upon the
monthly
life
have ever
"The
is
translated
by the editors
by "The Sun."
symbol
in blue
The
colors,
flag of the
appears on
p.
34)
= == ==
its
influence
is in
the
domain
The dualism
that
wisdom
in
latter
submis-
One
cated Chinaman.
ship, says:
its Yang and Yin is part and parcel of the mind of every eduEven Lao-Tsz', the greatest adversary of Confucian scholar-
by the Yin and encompassed by them harmonious." (Ch. 42.) As a thoroughly reliable description of Chinese life we recommend Prof. Robert K. Douglas's works, Chinese Stories, W. Blackwood & Sons, Edinburgh, 1893, and Society in China, A. D. Innes & Co., London, 1894.
ten thousand things are sustained
"The
The
character Hiao,
-J
filial
piety,
Sacred Books of the East, Vol. III., pp. 447-448. The book was written either by Tsang-tsz', the disciple of Confucius, or by one of Tsang-tsz' 's school.
3
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
devotion
is
37
be "the
maxim of Heaven, the righteousness of Earth, and the duty of man" The idea of filial piety is widened into devotion as it applies to the five moral relations that obtain between man and man; viz.,
between
(i)
brother and younger, (4) husband and wife, (5) friend and friend. 1
When
"
man
In
is
the noblest.
piety there
Of
is
all
the actions of
man
there
is
piety.
filial
awe
of one's father.
In
the reverential
awe shown
him the
correlate of
Heaven."
The higher
an advanced plane in the evolution of mankind, unites both the governor and the governed
be his
tion
first
in
own
by an internal
who
Liberty of conscience,
free
and
by the
su-
When
filial
constraint
is
when when
disallowed, that
is
the disowning of
(all)
law
These (three
way
to
anarchy."
Rebels are punished with brutal severity, yet there are frequent
revolutions in China
;
far
:
even as
to sanc-
We
read
J The fivefold relationship which constitutes the substance of Chinese ethics is Iji)* supplemented by K'ung Ki's principle that good is the middle way between two ex- lW* ^L^ tremes a doctrine, which by Western critics has been censured as " the ethics of
38
*
'
'
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
Heaven
him
establishes sovereigns merely for the sake of the people
; ;
whom
the
whom
Heaven
reject.
"[The
"
Sovereign's] real
way
of serving
Heaven
is
When
he
people
Heaven
will, for
him out."
Thus
heaven.
is
How
illustrated
by many instances
tale,
of
We
ular
quote one
which
is at
terse,
from a pop-
Han
;
Kii,
who was
very poor.
He had
one.
Koh
We
our mother cannot be supported, for the child divides with her the portion of food
that belongs to her.
Why
to us
to object to
when
suddenly he lighted upon a pot of gold, and on the metal read the following inscription
' :
Heaven bestows
it,
this treasure
upon Koh
it
Fii,
the magistrate
may
not seize
from him.'
The
highest duties
agreement with
code
all
of morals, the
concluded to yield to
only that the
the
demands
in
of the victorious
Japanese
Empress dowager
this
be inconvenienced by a removal
of the
While on
to old parents is to
and we have
obstacles, although not the only one, to the introduction of Christianity into
of Christ's as these
I.,
p.
539.
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
"If any
children,
ciple."
'
'
39
man come
xiv, 26.
to
me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and
sisters, yea,
and
his
own
life also,
he cannot be
my
dis-
Luke,
I
am come
to set a
man
Matth.,
code
The dualism
of
of
in a rigid
ceremonial forms.
Who
demeanor?
upon
details in propriety,
quoted by Williams,
I.,
p. 540,
them
at
every door;
and
after they
bows
to
them and
enters.
He
He
"If a guest be of a lower grade, he must approach the steps of the host, while
the latter must repeatedly decline this attention
;
may
return to the
:
western steps, he ascending, both host and guest must mutually yield precedence
then the host must ascend
first,
From
must bring
right foot
those
first,
YIH.
We
tions
is
some
solu-
The
European interpretation
of the
Memoir es
de
1,
expressing 2
by
10, 3
by
1 1,
reference to
100, 5 10, 7 by 1 1 1, etc., he makes the Kwa of the Yih King, which he calls "cova." 1 He
4 by
by
101, 6
by
says
1
"Cova
" is
the
"
40
'
'
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
Ce
qu'il
y a de surprenant dans ce
calcul, c'est
que
nomme
et
que
les
Chinois re-
comme
le
II
y a plusieurs
mais
il
suffit
de mettre
ici
la figure de huit
Cova comme on
l'appelle, qui
passe
re-
pour fondamentale,
pourvu qu'on
ou
i,
ligne entiere
mb
ou
signifie l'unite
o.
et
seconde-
__
signifie le zero
^_ _
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
41
42
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
tique fait juger qu'il pourrait s'y trouver quelque chose de considerable par rapport
aux nombres
noise,
et
aux
idees, si
le
fondement de
l'ecriture Chi-
l'etablissant.
Le R.
P.
Bouvet
Cependant
je
ne sais
s'il
y a jamais eu dans
l'ecri-
ture Chinoise
un avantage rapprochant de
C'est
des notions,
pourrait etre tire de leurs caracteres par une maniere de calcul, qui serait une des
plus importans
moyens
d'aides de l'esprit
humain."
the
Kwa
He
num-
One
or the
ancient
Kwa
as numbers, or as a
indefisig-.
still
The
The
first
translation of the
^t Yih
is in
Latin.
It
was made
of
some
of his colleagues,
James Legge's
book
in its
originally
was intended
of
to
be a kind of
political
testament of King
Wen
Cheu, enlarging on
moral and social questions, but enigmatically written after the manner and fashion of diviners.
en rapport with the
He
mind
mind
of its authors
zum Kulturleben
quem
1834.
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
finds indicated in the text.
43
He
saying
that
If,
in this
way
to
make
the translation
is
after
said on the
hexagrams there
is
often
is
who
P. L. F. Philastre,
who
lays
much
stress
Hi received
method
of
Kwa
Kwa
combinations a
a translation of the
in
open
I
its
mysteries
"by
it
comparative mythology."
XVI,
p. xvii)
"Such
it,
has
are
which
in
my
notes.
They
minds
mere
Bak
families
of the
Elamo-Babylonian
P.
of the
Yih King
in his
Cursus Literaturae
Sinicae
is
an
off-
little
after the
C, and claims
script
the Yih
King
is
originally a diction-
ary of the ancient word-symbols with their lexicographical explanations, the mean-
King and
Its Authors.
London: D.
44
ing of which
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
was
later
"
of the
The book
Fuh
King Wen,
of Confucius.
From
the permutations
in the
dergo
then,
it
is
is this
From
quality of the lines, their position either at the bottom or in the middle or topmost,
their
mutual relation as being opposed and separated, or coming together, the body
;
further,
tri-
grams, from the quality or virtue of the trigrams, sometimes from the difference of
is
like
fit
lots, in
some doubt.
in the
Such
is
handed down
schools.
anything unseemly or
litical
see in
it
and
natural.
Since this book, as a reader of the original text will understand, has been
for fortune telling, one expects to gain
employed
by
it
life,
as throughout
it
and conformable
to the life of
man.
Hence
by
Confucius, although quite exaggerated, will be seen specially added in the Appendix
of the book,
if it is
common
is
the
Ch. de Harlez, the originator of the idea that the nature of the
Yih King
is
Elamo-Babylonian origin
to his
'
'
of the
of the
Yih King.
Yih
2
:
He
French translation
.
Notre systeme
nous
fait voir
dans
le
P.
n.
of the
Yih
has
inis
King which
given
is
of Brooklyn,
N. Y.
I
He
am
me much
my own
The
original
is
quoted by Legge
in his
Preface to
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
worth hearing.
I
45
deem
it
some chips
title of
Cheu-tsz'
's
T*ung Shu,
in the do-
" a universal
of in-
terest.
"calendar," and 6
is
64
of strokes in the
hexagrams)
the
number
of
year.
As
to the
insists that
is
carefully preserved
and
Hebrew
and which
little if
any attention,
is
the Yih King," and trusts to be able to prove that the circular device of
of
Here
are, in a
There
is
in
"The
in their
age
p. 100.)
And
must be expected
to
more
Now take
the
first
:
by homonyms as follows
Sz 7C
Both
$MM urn ft l
f
:
li
ching
"
but
the former
by ad-
vantageousness, " while the latter means " See the circle's path rectified
by reason."
of
The aphorism belonging to the first (viz. the lowest) Kiu line the first Kwa, which reads "Ts'ien lung wuh yung," Dr. Riedel
46
translates
:
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
through negation
is
action,"
of
which
is
meant
naught (o).
Legge
is
48).
clear
game
and
i.e.
by "latrunculi" or robbery-game.
Burden-bearers,
Other
moves," "leaving
own
chess-
board terms.
the
tsz',
i.
In addition,
we meet
in the
e.,
Legge
second
Luh
line of the
Kwa
(Its
thus
"(The second
and
great.
line divided)
of]
tageous."
more
(viz.
literal translation
by kiu f\, and luh JL nine and six. Dr. Riedel two characters which ordinarily mean
lines are designated
also
"to
bring together."
It is a
homonym
join
_
with
)/,
its
inversion,
to connect."
Further, luh
analogy with
/////
\ 'r/i,
into two,"
means
also
of a circle
or the radius
which
is
makes
it
and luh
Yang and
On
I., p.
827.
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
47
Ngan
Tsz'
Quoh
reads
"The
divisions.
In both respects
had
the digits
up
to nine."
Book of Three Characters 1 which declares that the five elements "have their origin in numbers," Dr. Riedel deduces from observations made on the carapace
Comparing
this
of a half-grown
Chrysemys
picta, 2
which on account
of its
abnormal
shan
number
of inner
class as a
Loh Shu
in its
substance
The sum of the Kiu lines is 16, of the Luh lines 29. The plates on the back of the tortoise yield the same numbers
in the
same proportion.
plates, while
we have
The symbols
ments, as written on
lines.
Now, by means
lines
of the
same
distribution of
digits, Dr.
"an anagram
number n
The use
scientific truth at
of in the his-
such
men
as
Roger Bacon,
Galileo,
thing.
The
a lusus naturae
which ap-
"Tr*
?ltzc.
Open
2
is
published in The
199-204.
See Fig. 10 on p
48
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
a spiritual being.
and
his reconstruction of
it
refu-
tation
and
belief
seem equally
number
7t
Kwa
:
of the
Hi
tsz*
(App.
1,
symbolised
by a
circle is not
mentioned
and as we have
in the
Yih King
Luh
if
I), I
number by which
e.,
the symbol
e.
"the mutations
in
(are) a
Shwoh
which
is
Kwa
is
(App. V. 2) by "making
the opposite to a
number
consummated
or "compliant."
"a we
refractory
call
number
can, in the
an irrational number."
The holy
men
light
of yore
who composed
life
They
triangulated 1
the heaven,
All
made
heaven
means the
method
"making twofold
the earth (viz., the square) indicates the primitive " of approximating n by circumscribed and inscribed squares.
of the fourth
The aphorism
"Novice, proceed.
hexagram declares
We
The
is
In
its first
(elements) divination
pro-
pounded.
Further details
(literally,
Te-
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
49
As
to the original
meaning
minds
of the
far to
"divination"
is
In addition to
the
name
is
of the
Yih
is
called,
means "periphery,
The verb
cheu
translated
It
circuit; to environ."
cannot be
ments.
His proposition
more nor
one of the other theories of the Yih King that have been advanced.
Several of his observations appear to
a great probability that the ancient
to
me
-nr.
correct.
There
is
further
trans-
lations
his
seem
forced.
Nor have
a calendar.
of the
to us a locked
Yet, though
none
of
'
we may
^>
was
scheme similar
to
some
of
them
in kind.
o>
TIEN
/\
IN A
^f^^J^
^s
x5^
^
vr
^N ^
x-J^
-.
At
first
be
much room
is
in the
Yang
for a personal
God.
^V*^
the
The
conduct
T'ien, 1
i.
divine
is
e.,
power
God above all the mythological deities. to which men look up as to their authority of
the impersonal term -Js^
Deity.,
/\
T'ien consists of
/\
50
If
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
conceived as a personal being T'ien
or the
of
is
called
High Sovereign,
N^
Lord on High.
^^
Shang
*"-*-*
Ti,
i.
e.
the
.^M pwx^
to
\S^
l/
fj^
Jp
The worship
after a severe
old, for
'
<
nasty,
Shang
which were
fell in
six.
He had
when
the rain
torrents.
is
We
must add
Shang Ti
not related as an
innovation, but as a
itself to
means
a good ruler. 1
In
Shu King
the term
" Heaven
used as
is
a personal being.
*
'
Thus we read
Counsels of Kao-Yao
;
The work
[i.
e.,
Heaven's
but
for
it.
"
From Heaven
From Heaven
and
see.
Heaven
brightly approves
and displays
ion
is
55-56.
We
Shu King
deity
is
is
in order to
of
Shang Ti
nation,
the Tartar
Forbidden
city,
and
Temple
of
Altar 3 of Heaven,
154.
Or
better
"
Consummation
is
Heaven's, but
for it."
3
it
We
misleading since
see in Catholic
altar such as
we
churches or as
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
51
which are
to the
The
Temple
grain ")
of
is
Heaven
more
height of ninety-nine
feet.
The
most beautiful
its
The symmetry of the proportions renders it dome imitates in shape and color the vault of
upon the
in
rich carvings
and paintings
of
in the inside.
Heaven
stands,
Heaven, which
cular wall
;
and
it is
our Christmas have been in the habit, from time immemorial, of worshipping
yj-j
Shang
Ti,
:
the Lord on High, " or as the Emperor " the true God." The Altar of Heaven
' '
to the first
volume
of
1
:
Wil-
210, mid-
and top go
feet in width,
balustrade.
number
three
and
its
multiples
may be
The uppermost
terrace,
slabs,
whose height
forming nine
is
about eighteen
feet, is
the inner
number
and around
each receding layer consisting of a successive multiple of nine until the square
of Chinese philosophy)
is
of nine (a favorite
It is
upon the
single
round stone
Em-
peror kneels
0>
Williams continues:
to the next
stars,
Four
lower stage,
moon, the
On
the ground at the end of the four stairways stand vessels of bronze in
which are placed the bundles of cloth and sundry animals constituting a part of the
sacrificial offerings.
But
I.,
76-77, and
mon, by
Du
Bose,
New
52
burnt-offering
is
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
the great furnace, nine feet high, faced with green porcelain, and
its
ascended on three of
sides
by porcelain
staircases.
some hundred
bullock
consumed a burnt-offering
entire
at
The
slaughter-
house of the
sacrificial
length."
Such
is
is
Shang
Ti,
which
than
But
Western philoso-
Tao
or World-Logos, of
Cheu Tsz'
's
Chu
the problem
God
in his expositions
ciple
He
(the
:
Lord on
God
" All these and such like expressions, do they imply that above the azure sky
there
is
acts thus, or
is it still
k'i
implies per-
but he adds
I reply,
it
is
that the
such.
"The primary
if
matter, in
its
again flourishes
just as
revival."
There
is
for
some Chris-
tian missionaries
have objected
Ti,
to the translation of
Shang Ti by
in its place. 1
Term
ib.
See The Chinese Repository, Vol. XVII., pp. 17-53, 57~8g ("Essay on the for Deity," by William J. Boone, Bishop of the Protestant Episcopal Church); pp. 105-133, 161-187, 209-242, 265-310, 321-354 ("Chinese Term for Deity,"
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
53
the
Roman
services
Catholic missions.
The
Chinese government so
many valuable
up rules
Chinese
rites,
memory
by an explanation
ular significance.
Ricci at the
same time
translated, as a matter of
course, the
silently
Ti,
approved
Rome.
of.
the great
Ricci's
methods
as sinful,
in 1645.
The
Jesuits
issued another
in 1665,
let
the Jesuits
drew up forty-two
;
articles.
The Dominicans
did not
issued a
ing
mandate
in
signified noth-
and
were idolatrous.
The
Emperor
of
China
for
for
an authentic explanation
of the
words
God and
Chinese
rites,
declared (in 1700) that T'ien meant the true God, and the ceremonies
of
China were
political.
But the
Pope
failed
Pope
of
Bishop Maigrot
in a bull
by Dr. Reply
1
W. H.
to
Medhurst);
ib.
ib.
pp. 357-360
a Brother
Missionary"); and
("Dr. Medhurst's
Bishop Boone").
Ricci's
"Divine
Law"
is
UIn strata,
1667.
54
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
i.
e.
Lord
of
of.
From
Roman
the.
Catholic misin
Chinese gov-
Among
to translate
Boone proposes
field
is
God^ by Shin
= Spirit,
against all
those
who
opposed by
the majority of his colleagues, Dr. Medhurst, Sir George Staunton, Dr. Bowring, Mr. Dotty, and Professor Legge.
Prof.
ject
2
;
diction:
Heaven
is
Shang Ti
five
Ti
Heaven
that
is,
is
Here then
is
is
the
absolute
vaguely expressed
name Heaven, by which the idea of Supreme Power in the and when the Chinese would speak of it by a per;
Shang Ti
saying,
in
believe,
to
is
China
five
thousand years.
^
j,
^
''^
It
'.^proper
name
like the
T
v
,^>
God
than
The
a great error.
is
opposed only
tians, the
to the
contempt that
of all the
of Confucius, Lao-tsz',
and Buddha.
How
r
2
Spirits,
Hong Kong,
1852.
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
55
deeply the simple story of Jesus and his preachings of love and
charity can impress the Chinese mind,
if it
is
from the
who could no longer stand the persecutions of the Confucian authorities. Hung Sew Tseuen, a simple schoolmaster, who in his youth had seen visions entrusting him with a religious
native Christians
its
moral truths,
toward
to
all.
He was
pay the customary worship to Confucius but he continued to preach until (a Chinese Oliver Cromwell) he saw himself at the head
of a powerful
to
overthrow
him, he might have founded a Christian dynasty. During this rebellion the English did not
So
little
China!
or five inches high, well built, round faced, regular featured, rather
in his
manners."
interpreter in
H. M.
Civil
Ping revolu1856.
and Their
Rebellions,
London,
He
My
to the dejected
admissions that
of the fruitless-
Protestant missionaries of
many
made
me
among
Consequently when
mored
body
of
'were Christians,'
me
or
(if
gealed forms of merely sectarian Christianity, and then by preaching simply the
great religious truth of
Sermon on the
and
.V.
Am.
Rev., Vol.
LXXIX,
p. 158.
56
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
Mount, obtain numbers of followers among people disgusted with the idolatry and
the immorality that they
in.
As we have
LAO-TSZ
'
*A2
"j
AND CONFUCIUS J
of the ancient
all
(j
T
,
upon
who
lived at the
before Christ.
sic
jgj Tao-Teh-King ("the ClasTao, i. e., on Reason and Virtue," that wonderful booklet on
Lao-tsz"s
J^|j*
t&
\
IS.
Word
was
in the
Buddha and
It is
whole
literature of China.
not less monistic than the doctrines of the T'ai Kih, but less a priori, less self-sufficient.
It
rigid, less
V
;
.
tao,
as follows
road, path, or
way
mind ap-
used
in early times,
up
to
e.
men
go
in a designated
path
to speak, to converse."
On
|i\g> is
a combination of the three radicals "to go," " straight," and "heart."
The
Taoists
who
beyond recognition. The Tao religion is best characterised Rewards and Punishments," translated in full only into French by Stanislaus Julien under the title Le livre des recompenses et des peines. Paris, See also Confucianism and Taoism, by Prof. Robert K. Douglas. 1835.
their master's doctrines
in
"The Book
of
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
57
of
We
old.
half a century his senior, must then have been about eighty years
"
Recompense
meaning, replied
Recompense injury with
"With what
justice (punishment),
The
;
faithful I
The
not-faithful
would
also
meet with
to
faith
Lao-tsz' objected
of
Confucian morality.
teaching them proif
Confucius expected to
priety;
if
they
ancestor-worship.
sire,
He demanded
all
and a surrender
Tao
without seeking
its
own.
Ma
Ts'ien, 4
who
C,
reports on the
wisdom
1
Lao-tsz' said
p. xviii.
We
"teh, virtue."
3 4
and Taoism,
Lao Tze has been published by Gabelentz in his Anfangsgriinde der chinesischen Grammatik, pp. 111 et seq., and has also been incorporated in the author's edition of Lao Tze's Tao Teh King, Chinese-English.
Ts'ien's record of
Ma
58
"Lord,
of
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
whom
;
their bones,
extant.
Moreover,
a sage find
like a
P'ung plant
[which
is
by the wind].
[his treas-
ures] deeply, as
if
[his
up your proud
spirit,
These
This
what
have to communicate
to you, sir
that
is all."
Sz'-Ma-Ts'ien continues
" Confucius
went
I
and he said
to his disciples
' :
Of the birds
I
know
that they
can
run.
fly,
of the fishes
know
know
for the
I
for
makes arrows.
As
to the
dragon,
I
to heaven.
To-day
saw
Lao-tsz'.
he perhaps
like the
Although his
life
had been an
His
unbroken chain
his ideal of
traits
Chinese nation.
a pity that the
What
tue
;
weakness
of
China
is
an exaggerated
is
vir-
it is
reverence run
mad a
excess.
as
much
deficient as
It
China
is in
was
characteristic of a typical
Chinaman
like
Confucius that
Gabelentz translates /> y by " dumm." /\^\ yii monkey " and "heart or mind." ary of the Chinese Language, p. 1120.
1
The
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
59
of its age,
came down
to
him from
He
said
study-
me,
shall
have applied
Liln
Yti,
fifty to
ing the Yih and thereby could be free from erring greatly."
VII., 16. 1
We
other
but
it
probable that the Yih King was to him a book with seven
seals,
the unintelligibility of
countrymen
injunction,
problems.
to be self-dependent.
book
of nature
ponto-
and even
day there are many among them who believe that the Yih King contains all the
The mistake
for
it is
who
We,
all of
and
reject the
;
errors
Chinese
thought
spects
but not
many
re-
we too
suffer
Such
:
is
I find, so far as I can judge, as literal as possible. Professor Legge "If some years were added to my life, I would give fifty to," etc.
sense as
The claim that the Yih contains all science should be interpreted in the same we might declare that logic contains al] possible rules of thought, and the
is
multiplication-tabie
the essence of
all
6o
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
CONCLUSION.
Whatever may be the
is
it
it.
do not understand
Thus in
we may briefly call the theory of constructing a world-conception from Yang and Yin elements, all their thinking, planning, and yearnand the vain hope of divination fills ing is dimmed by mysticism
;
their
beliefs
and, on the
other hand, self-satisfied in the belief that their sages alone are in
own barbarous
to
such as
submit.
is
which
is
much admired
in
We
the
"Ode
'
'
on Universal Patience": 1
Of universal patience
sings.
Can one be
patient,
summer
is
not hot
Can one be
Can one be
is
yet happy;
yet be protracted.
to great
Can one be
may
With impatience,
little evils
change
at length
becomes
wolfish.
Kow
Tan
Tseen tasted
of
gall,
for revenge
of moderation, in the
end was
let
it
lost
and perished.
dry;
Tih Chaou,
1
for
want
of patience,
p. 48,
published
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
The benevolent endure what The
other
6l
To repress anger and restrain the passions is the square of patience To wear the petticoat, 1 and be humble, is the rule of patience.
Patience Patience Patience
Patience
is
is
watchword
watchword
is
is
to
the
watchword
and
and obstinate.
:
toil
labor,
one
will
have a superabundance
will
refrain
one
Can one
abuse and
raillery,
come
in
company;
woe
is
burnt to ashes."
it
seem
is
be
like a
feet.
Nevertheless, there
Chinese
civili-
may come
to the front
to
To conquer China
in
com-
may prove
The conqueror
often
succumbs
of the conquered.
Rome and
to give the
When
all
the walls
break down which separate China from the rest of the world so as
Chinese a chance
of learning
from us
they can,
it
is
fast character,
to authority, as a wife
ought to be
to
62
CHINESE PHILOSOPHY.
If
mind which
;
is in-
and nothing
trials,
more apt
China
to
and humiliations.
is
itual rebirth.
Should she
she
would, with her four hundred millions of inhabitants and her untold
virgin resources, at once take a prominent rank
of the earth
;
among
the nations
to
and her
civilisation