Approaching The Primal Confucianism-On The Confucianism Of Chu Bamboo-slips In The Warring States Period

As a spirit production of its time, the Chu bamboo-slip Confucian documents of the Warring States Period contain special perspectives and thoughts, compared with the traditional Confucian documents and ideas, in philosophy, art, politics, ethic, natural laws and other aspects of the life.In philosophy, the Chu Bamboo-slip Confucianism of the Warring States Period focuses on the"mind-nature"and"nature-feeling"theories."Nature"in the bamboo slips refers mainly to the natural human nature, and some previsions of moral human nature can also be discovered in it. The Chu bamboo slips consider human life as the origin of human nature."Under the sun, human nature is alike; people's mind differs owing to different education."This sentence points out the sameness of human nature, the transformability of human nature, and stresses the importance of education in the shaping of human nature. In its analysis of"mind", the bamboo book perceives the differences in"moral mind,""cognitive mind"and"mental mind."On the relationship between"body"and"mind", it emphasizes their differences and the function of"mind,"while admitting the oneness of"body"and"mind."As to the relationship between"mind"and"nature",it says"mind comes out of nature"and pays much attention to the effect of"mind"in the gradual emerging of"nature"from the inner to the out. The Chu bamboo slips also bring up some theories in cultivating mind and nature, such as"keep mind away from vanity,""cultivating mind,""caution in alone"and so on. The slips advocate that the immanent quality of"feelings"should be"honesty,"and bring forward that"laws should be based on feelings, and feelings come out of nature."This fully reveals the importance of"feelings"in the mind-nature theories of the Chu bamboo-slip Confucianism, and shows its difference from the"nature is good but feeling is damned"opinion of the later Confucianism (from the Han Confucianism to the Neo-Confucianism).Under the philosophy influence of mind-nature and nature-feeling theories during the Warring States Period, the Chu bamboo-slip Confucian documents acquire notable distinctions from the later Confucianism in their ideas of art. Confucius Poetics is known as the best among the works on The Book of Songs in Southern Chu during the Warring States Period. Confucius Poetics gets a particular position in the history of The Book of Songs studies in China for its abundant thoughts and theories. Both its ways of explanation and its theories give obvious influences on the study of The Book of Songs in the Song dynasty and even later. The bamboo slips have achieved the shift from explaining The Book of Songs by quoting out of context to exploring the original meanings. The slips separate the words from the music, and divide the songs into categories, and this marks the very beginning of the divisions in the history of the studies on The Book of Songs. It is also the first time to take The Book of Songs as an independent subject of study. By interpreting The Book of Songs with feelings and stressing the emotional elements in The Book of Songs, the bamboo slips have accomplished a breakthrough in the study of The Book of Songs, while the traditional studies emphasize"starting with feelings and reaching to etiquette."And henceforth, the literary values of The Book of Songs are going to be revealed. In the area of art and aesthetics, the bamboo slips advocate real nature and true feelings, insist on expressing true feelings thoroughly in the works of art, and challenge the neutral beauty in"being happy but not excessive, being sad but not overly distressing"favored by traditional Confucianism. As far as music is concerned, the bamboo slips connect human feelings with music composing, link etiquette up with music, and emphasize the effect of music in humanization, self-cultivation, and moral education. The"soundless music"theory of the Chu bamboo slips give emphasis on the metaphysics of music, and this is peculiar in the traditional Confucian ideas of music.In political area, the Chu Bamboo-slip Confucianism of Warring States Period advocates demise and ruling by the sages. The bamboo slips review the existence of demise in history, and confirm the necessity of it. The slips also provide demise with theoretical foundation as for the benefit of the people, and provide it with moral significance by connecting it with the Confucian principles of"benevolence""loyalty"and"sage."The slips propose a doctrine of"being devoted and honest"as the way of ruling. The doctrine of"being devoted and honest"in the slips is prescribed for the rulers, including the lord for the benefit of the people. There is nothing in common with the traditional Confucian proposition of"being loyal to the lord"set for the lieges. As for the lieges, the slips praise those who can always tell the errors of the lord. This manifests the dominant position of the scholars in the Warring States Period and their remonstrant spirit, and is widely divergent from the idea of"never a word on the Lord's errors"since the Han dynasty. On managing state affairs, the bamboo documents insist on ruling with morals. The slips advise the rulers to cultivate their moralities, suggesting them to "mind their behavior"and"be cautious in speech."Based on the principle of"love one's families,"the slips specify that a man"should alienate the lord for his father's sake, but never alienate father for lord; should alienate his wife for his brother, but never alienate brother for wife; should weaken his friends for the clan, but never weaken the clan for friends."To the contradiction between family morals and social morals, the bamboo slips provide the solution:"use love within family, and justice without,"which shows the great wisdom of the Confucian scholars in the Warring States Period.The basic idea of the"division of heaven and man"in the bamboo slips have succeeded and developed the Confucius thought of"knowing the wills of heaven."It provokes Mencius idea of"distinguishing nature from life"and the thought of"division of heaven and man"by Xunzi. The slips relate wills of heaven and natural laws with humanism and human relations, which helps Confucian ethic find its roots in heavenly will and makes it possible for natural laws and wills of heaven to be fulfilled in human society. In the rituals for ghosts and gods, the bamboo slips pay equal attention to the rituals and the function of human work, which shows some influence from the Southern Chu belief in ghosts and grand rituals, and shows some clues of the later Confucius idea of"educating people through the rituals for ghosts and gods"in the Warring States Period.In conclusion, the Chu bamboo-slip Confucian documents of the Warring States Period have gained great values and special position in the history of Chinese intellectual, for their abundant and profound thoughts. The specific and peculiar ways of thinking detected from the slips are rarely found in the traditional Confucian documents.