The Core Values of Chinese Civilization

183 Pages·2017·2.198 MB·English

by  Lai Chen (auth.)

Lai Chen
The Core
Values of
Chinese
Civilization
The Core Values of Chinese Civilization
Lai Chen
The Core Values of Chinese
Civilization
123
LaiChen
TheTsinghuaAcademyofChineseLearning
TsinghuaUniversity
Beijing
China
Translated byPaulJ. D’Ambrosio, Robert CarleoIII,Chad Meyers,Joanna Guzowska
ISBN978-981-10-3366-7 ISBN978-981-10-3367-4 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-981-10-3367-4
JointlyPublishedwithSDXJointPublishing
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Preface
In the spring of 2007, I gave a talk at Tufts University on “Confucianism and the
Transformations of Contemporary China.” I discussed two issues. One was the
characteristicsofConfucianvalues,andtheotherwasthechangesofcontemporary
China. As the audience of American students had no familiarity with the Chinese
language, I could not quote from the Chinese classics in the way I do when
speaking in China. Therefore, I declared openly at the beginning of the talk that I
would not discuss classical texts and instead attempted a comparative approach to
elucidatingthecharacteristicsofChinesethoughtandvalues.Iidentifiedeighttotal
points: Morality is more important than law, this life more important than the
afterlife, the community more important than the individual, the spiritual more
important than the material, responsibility more important than rights, the
well-being of the people more important than democracy, order more important
than freedom, and harmony more valuable than struggle.
In the summer of 2010, I gave a report on “Confucian Thought and
ContemporarySociety”foraforumonreadingheldbyChina’scentralgovernment
at the headquarters of the General Administration of Press and Publication.
Idiscussedfourissues:ThefirstwasConfucianculture,thesecondwasConfucian
thought on governance and political administration, the third was the Confucian
perspective on human life, and the fourth was Confucianism and contemporary
China.InthisfourthpartonthequestionofConfucianismandcontemporaryChina,
I adopted a comparative method and modern perspective in looking at the char-
acteristics of Confucian values. In total, I discussed ten points: Morality is more
importantthanlaw,thecommunitymoreimportantthantheindividual,thespiritual
more important than the material, responsibility more important than rights, the
well-being of the people more important than democracy, order more important
than freedom, this life more important than the afterlife, harmony more valuable
than struggle, civilization more valuable than impoverishment, and family more
valuable than social class. This time, I discussed two points in addition to those
described at Tufts and slightly adjusted their order.
In the fall of 2012, at the invitation of the Korean Academic Research Council,
I served as a speaker for the 14th series of “Special Lectures by Distinguished
v
vi Preface
Scholars,”carryingoutacademicexchangewithKoreaandgivingaseriesoftalks.
I spoke twice in Korea, on the topics of “The Foundations of the Philosophic
Thought of Chinese Civilization” and “The Values and Worldview of Chinese
Civilization,” respectively. The latter concentrated on the values of Chinese civi-
lization, while the former, although it was devoted to the discussion of philo-
sophicalthoughtandcosmology,couldserveasanexplanationofthecosmological
andphilosophicalbackgroundofChinesevalues.Thetopicsofthesetwotalkswere
setinaccordancewiththerequirementsoftheKoreanAcademicResearchCouncil.
The Koreans had mentioned in particular that they hoped the talks would be ori-
ented at problems that had become apparent in Western civilization and Western
modernity and seek in Chinese civilization potential alternative universalist prin-
ciples.Therefore,mytalktookancientConfucianismasaprominentrepresentative
of the values of humane love, ritual, responsibility, and community emphasized in
Chinese civilization. Through later philosophical explication, these values further
came to express universal meaning. The principle of humane love, spirit of ritual,
consciousness of responsibility, and fundamental place of the community are all
value positions opposed to individualism. They lead to the rational affirmation of
communalcollaboration,acultureofritualeducation,apoliticsofcooperation,and
aworldgovernedby“theWayoftheking”(wangdao王道).Theyoughttobecome
universal principles. Communal collaboration emphasizes the significance of the
community, which helps counter individualism. A culture of ritual education
emphasizesmoralconsciousness,whichdistinguishesitfromlegalism.Apoliticsof
cooperation emphasizes the cooperative political communication, which differen-
tiates it from a politics of conflict. Finally, a world governed by “the Way of the
king”isatype ofworld order thatdiffers fromhegemonism.Thesefour pointsare
all centred in humaneness (ren 仁). Humaneness is a fundamental principle that
takesinterrelationandpeacefulcoexistenceasitscontent.Theprincipalpurposeof
identifyingtheseistoelucidatealternativeuniversalprinciplesthatdifferfromthose
of Western modernity. After returning from Korea, I immediately published the
Chinese text of this study in an academic journal with slight adjustments. I added
thefollowingsentences:ThebasicvaluesformedinAxialAgeChinesecivilization
became the principle guides for the core values developed in later Chinese civi-
lization. Through the two millennia of development following the Axial Age,
Chinese civilization formed its own set value preferences, of which there are
principally four: the priority of responsibility to freedom, the priority of duty to
rights, the community being higher than the individual, and harmony being higher
than conflict. These four points present pronounced contrast with modern Western
culture and are adjusted and simplified from the aforementioned ten points. To a
certain extent, they also aim to express the characteristics of the values of Chinese
civilization in a more focused and succinct way.
The above views all engage with the values of traditional Chinese culture and
their characteristics. I have mentioned these often in my various works on
ConfucianismandChinesecultureinrecentyearsandhavedrawntheattentionofa
Preface vii
certain number of other thinkers. In fact, I have discussed the characteristics
of the values of Confucianism and Chinese culture many times in various lectures
since 2004.
In recent years, the fervor for guoxue 国学 (Chinese studies) has risen
throughoutChina.Passionforthestudyoftheresplendentculturepioneeredbyour
ancestors has increased consistently among the broad Chinese masses. Therefore,
this volume includes two papers on the history and concept of this area of schol-
arship, so as to help readers understand the general academic views on guoxue.
During the twentieth century’s New Culture Movement, there was a movement to
organize traditional Chinese culture and learning, and Liang Qichao pointed out
two forms of common knowledge of guoxue: a general understanding of Chinese
historyandChinesepeople’sperspectiveonhumanlife.Thatistosay,thestudyof
guoxue in one aspect requires grasping China’s history and culture and in another
aspect requires study and grasping of Chinese culture’s perspective on human life.
TheperspectiveonhumanlifediscussedbyLiangQichaoisalsovalues.Therefore,
in examining guoxue and traditional Chinese culture today, we need broad
understanding of the history of the generation, maturation, and development of
Chinese culture, recognizing its unique qualities, existential value, and universal
significance. We also need self-conscious study and absorption of the values of
Chinesecivilization,bywhichtoadvancetheculturalconfidenceofthepeopleasa
whole, inspire the spirit of the people, strengthen the cohesion and vitality of the
Chinese people,andstrivetorealize agreat renaissance oftheChinese people and
Chinese culture.
Beijing, China Lai Chen
February 2015—First Day of Spring
Contents
1 The Philosophical Foundations of Chinese Civilization .. ..... .... 1
1.1 Correlative Cosmology.... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 3
1.2 The One Continuous Qi... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 7
1.3 Yin-Yang Complementation.... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 10
1.4 Continuously Generative Transformation .. .... .... ..... .... 13
1.5 Natural Heavenly Patterns . .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 16
1.6 Unification of Humans and Heaven .. .... .... .... ..... .... 20
2 The Values and Worldview of Chinese Civilization . .... ..... .... 25
2.1 The Ethical Spirit of Early Chinese Civilization. .... ..... .... 26
2.2 The Fundamental Values of Axial Age Chinese Civilization .... 29
2.3 The Ancient Confucian System of Moral Concepts .. ..... .... 32
2.4 The Preferences and Characteristics of the Values
of Chinese Civilization.... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 35
2.5 The Divergence Between the Value Preferences
of Chinese Civilization and Modern Values.... .... ..... .... 41
2.6 The Worldview of Chinese Civilization: Understanding
and Attitude Regarding the External World .... .... ..... .... 46
2.7 The Universal Ideal of Chinese Civilization: Pursuit
of Pluralism and Harmony . .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 51
3 A Brief Account of the Development of the Chinese
Intellectual Tradition .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 57
3.1 Chinese Script and the Early Textual Corpus... .... ..... .... 59
3.2 The Formation of the Six Classics ... .... .... .... ..... .... 61
3.3 The One Hundred Schools. .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 63
3.4 Han Dynasty Classical Learning. .... .... .... .... ..... .... 66
3.5 The Records of the Grand Historian, the History
of the Han, and the Shuo Wen Dictionary . .... .... ..... .... 69
ix
x Contents
3.6 The Broader Literary Corpus ... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 71
3.7 Wei-Jin Era Neo-Daoism and Religious Daoism .... ..... .... 73
3.8 Buddhism and Literature During the Sui and the Tang..... .... 76
3.9 Song-Ming Neo-confucianism and the Structure
of Scholarship.. .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 79
3.10 Qing Dynasty Han Learning and Large-Scale
Compilation Projects. ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 84
3.11 Early Modern Chinese Learning, Western Learning,
and Guoxue ... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 87
3.12 The Contemporary Guoxue Craze.... .... .... .... ..... .... 91
3.13 The Basic Characteristics of Chinese Civilization
and Culture.... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 94
4 The Rise and Development of Modern “Guoxue”... .... ..... .... 97
4.1 The Birth and Development of the Idea of Guoxue .. ..... .... 98
4.2 The Employment of the Concept of Guoxue.... .... ..... .... 106
4.3 The Development of the Study of Guoxue. .... .... ..... .... 111
4.4 The Great Figures of Guoxue... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 117
Appendices.... .... .... .... ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 125
Appendix A: Confucian Thought and Contemporary Society..... .... 125
Appendix B: Modern Confucianism and Universal Values .. ..... .... 151
Appendix C: The Transmission and Development of Traditional
Chinese Values . ..... .... .... .... .... .... ..... .... 161
Chapter 1
The Philosophical Foundations
of Chinese Civilization
The philosophical foundations of Chinese civilization manifest mainly as cosmol-
ogy. In contrast to modern Western mechanistic theories of the universe, the
classical Chinese philosophical cosmology emphasizes continuity, dynamism, rel-
ativity,relationships,andthetotality.Itisnotaself-centricphilosophythatassumes
a subject-object dichotomy and focuses on static, isolated, and substantial entities.
Startingfromitsorganicholism,theclassicalChineseperspectiveviewseverything
in the cosmos as interrelated and interdependent. Each thing’s own existence and
valuemanifestsonlyinitsrelationstootherthings.Thusrelationshipsofsymbiotic
harmony should be established between humans and nature, between persons, and
between cultures. This cosmology of Chinese philosophy not only provided ideo-
logicalsupportforancientChinesecivilization,butalsoprovidesthephilosophical
foundation for the values of the Chinese civilization.
What isthephilosophicalfoundationofChinese civilization?Thisisa question
we must ask in face of China’s contemporary renaissance and cosmopolitan
movement toward the world. This book attempts to respond to this question.
“Philosophical foundation” or “philosophical background” are ideas that can be
taken in a very broad sense, but I focus on two aspects of the philosophical
foundation of the Chinese civilization in my discussion: firstly, philosophical
thinkingandcosmology;andsecondly,valuesandworldview.InthischapterIwill
focus on the first aspect.
The Yangtze River and the Yellow River were the center of early agricultural
developmentinthenorthandcentralregionsofChina,andarethebasesofChinese
civilization. In the late stages of the Neolithic period, there was diversified devel-
opmentamong theregionalcultures along theYangtze River, inareas now known
This chapter was translated by Paul J. D’Ambrosio. All quotations from Chinese texts in this
chapterarealsoD’Ambrosio’s,unlessotherwisenoted.
The content of this chapter was presented as part of the 2012 series of “Special Lectures by
DistinguishedScholars”heldinSeoulbytheKoreanAcademicResearchCouncilandDaewoo
Fund.
©SpringerNatureSingaporePteLtd.andSDXJointPublishing2017 1
L.Chen,TheCoreValuesofChineseCivilization,
DOI10.1007/978-981-10-3367-4_1