On Wang Chuanshan's Interpretation Of The Great Learning

The interpretation of The Great Learning has become a focus of neo-Confucianism since the period of Northern Song Dynasty. Zhu Xi and Wang Shouren, two great scholars of Confucianism, have interpreted The Great Learning from the perspectives of neo-Confucianism and the study of Wang Shouren respectively. Their interpretations make the issue of interpreting The Great Learning share the characteristic of a dualism pattern. Many scholars in the late period of Ming Dynasty have advanced their own ideas on the interpretation of The Great Learning in accordance with the confrontation of Zhu Xi School as well as Wang Shouren School. Different ideas on interpreting The Great Learning emerge and it turns out to be a pluralized problem.Wang Chuanshan's interpretation of The Great Learning appears under the academic atmosphere in the late period of Ming Dynasty. As an outstanding scholar of neo-Confucianism, he firmly follows the thought of neo-Confucianism and makes an overall comment on the two different schools in way of"interpretation". On the one hand, in order to fight against the empty academic atmosphere, he raises the viewpoint that the interpretation of The Great Learning should be based on both exegetics and argumentation. On the other hand, he emphasizes that the most efficient standard of interpretation is scholars'"Dao"in light of making one's thoughts meet the general scope. In interpreting"illustrious virtue", by using the concept of"heart"to express"natural tendency", Chuanshan utilizes the two concepts to interpret"illustrious virtue"and establishes that The Great Learning is basically a text about natural human tendency. In interpreting"investigation of things", he addresses that"investigation of things"is the first step of achieving virtue and points out that"know what is the highest excellence"is the prerequisite of"investigation of things", through which he makes the unification of the theory of knowledge and the theory of value. Chuanshan also employs his own interpretation on human natural tendency in history and politics to illustrate"renovate the people", making his interpretation of"renovate the people"independent from Zhu Xi's political interpretation and Wang Yangming's ethical one.It seems that Chuanshan's interpretation of The Great Learning shows a strong dissatisfaction of Wang Shouren school's idea and reveals the characteristic of relying on the thought of Zhu Xi school from a superficial level, but his way substantially starts a new dimension of interpreting The Great Learning which is more persuasive...