On The Form And Essence Of Rite In The Late Zhou Dynasty

The rite is the core idea of the Chinese culture, which emerges from the womb of the primitive religion taboo, and surmount comprehend of the religion taboo. It contains the content of ghosts and gods worship and humanity, which restrain human group and associate each other between the individual. From the Spring and Autumn Period to the Warring States Period, the system of Rite and Music break out in the era, meanwhile, people can fully understand the meaning of Rite and Music. The outstanding thinkers at that time had made deep introspection on the rite from rational principle.The most representative introspection on the rite is made by Confucianism and Taoism. They concentrate the proposition of the relation of phenomena and essence of the rite from the following three respects: Firstly, if it is necessary that rite and music system existence; Secondly, the essence of the rite; Thirdly, as one style that people exist, rite reflected essence of human being.The Wen(文) and Zhi (质) of the rite, i.e. phenomena and essence, is a couple of containing category. From macroscopical aspect, they are the whole epitome of the social civilization state. The difference between Wen and Zhi of the rite reflected development level of the system of Rite and Music in an era. From the microcosmic aspect, the relation between Wen and Zhi reflected the relation between form and content, meaning, or relation between rite appearing style and essence, spirit, function. The rite included the great national system and daily courtesy ceremony activity, such as people social association, wedding, funeral, marriage and daily life, etc. Comparing with this kind outside concern, ancient thinkers paid more attention to the rite essence, rite function, rite spirit, rite metaphysics and the study of reflecting human essence, etc.From the rite form aspect, the sacrificial rite is extremely important, which is the best route that we study how the irrational believing in the rite transform into social reason in Zhou-dynasty. A memorial ceremony in suburb, in ancestral temple of a ruling, and in Sheji(社稷), where offering the god of land and the god of grain, held by a given people, the center has reflected people's spiritual faith of that era. The ones that offered a sacrifice to Heaven and already reflected to Heaven were revered, it also reflected that people try to find where he come from. The sacrificial rite has pray for blessings and pays a debt of gratitude two purposes. The ideal of Heaven and "God's will" have the morals content of "respect virtue" and "protect the people" in Zhou-dynasty, the desalinizing gradually of spirit of it. "Human being" and "the people" status of the political life have obvious rising. To hold a memorial ceremony for Sheji include offering sacrifices to the land and to the god of state. It has mixed people's many kinds of emotions, First, the grateful feeling to the land, Second, the attention to valley souls of gods, Third, enshrining and worship to patron saint as the nationality, country. Ancestral temple of a ruling it offers sacrifices to be one result that religious authority combines with sovereignty, it is the reason to people's irrational psychology of Saint king that is used. When as part of patriarchal system it, from the right of offering a sacrifice to an ancestor we can distinguish peoples of the same clan who is intimate and distantly. It is offered sacrifices to that this kind is taking adjusting the right reality social organizational affiliation as purpose, have already worshipped different conversion with soul. It is people that implement a way in which the morals enlighten by education.In the specific rite ceremony, the sacrificial vessel is the essential key element in the rite activity. As the form of material object, it constructed the sacred atmosphere in the etiquette activity, also shown the identity status of the saluting subject, and the specific emotion of they and target of its contacts. As a kind of system regulation, if the courtesy representative secondary respect of ceremony finally, or it concern the essence of the rite, people have had two kinds of suggestions on this all the time. A kind of view thinks that the courtesy is the minor details in the rite, and ritual purpose is important; Another kind of view thinks that the courtesy has having priority. It require bring people's different emotion into mode of the gift fixing, stipulations of weighing apparatus restrictedly, who it is no matter, too, sincere emotion, stand the inspection of the courtesy. In fact, the subject of trampling rite as etiquette regular behavior person, Becoming each other several times of he and gift. Whether the courtesy is apt, it concerns the completion of the rite directly. Courtesy of the persons who saluted must agree with their fame and position, and agree with the gift purpose that displays, could announce the relation of form and content of gift appropriately. Division the utensil with using household necessities and holding sacrificial rite, these based on a theory double worlds of sacredness and secular; Divide the sacrificial vessel into two kinds of holding sacrificial rite and burial article, it is according to the theory about the double world of human being and ghosts and gods. People bury using these two kinds of utensils concurrently in Zhou-dynasty; it is soul taboo that demonstrates reason and emotion two reflection of contradiction potential, contain deep gift purpose under the utensil of the gift.Whether rite is an external system of body and mind, or an implement which people expressed their emotion by specific ceremony, it is the subject that is key element completing etiquette. Only people's activity did not make the system design of the rite be realized. On the contrary, subject activity of people regard as pure ceremony view of performance. Moving forward, or being towards the back, they are not only the form of completing rite, but also the tools of restraining human nature and cultivating the heart and nature culture. Everyone must restrain himself and keep the rule of rite to be inherent essence of human being, and then we can sublimate the raw life. There are the relations of I and other people in the activity of completing etiquette. To keep the courtesy is right, we must keep respect to other people. The rite is closed to the respect, no respect, no sincerely rite. Meanwhile, people should express the similar emotion of respect and modest in the activity of daily life.Seeking essence of the rite and human, ancient thinkers had done different elucidation on the relation between Wen (文) and Zhi (质). In Confucius' thought, Benevolence and rite are unified, which have stipulated people's essence. Benevolence is the essence of both human and the rite. As people's essence, it depends on the person who is subject of the morals practice to appear benevolent moral integrity in daily life. On the dynamic meaning, it announces practice relation between people moral and rite normal. As the essence of the rite, benevolence include and accumulate by regulation or festival document of the rite, it display external norm of rite reflect the principle of " benevolence "at static meaning. In Confucius's opinion, regarding benevolence as the spirit of the system of Rite and Music, it gains the metaphysical meaning of ontology. In the form and essence relation of the rite, benevolence is the creation principle of the rite and its inherent basis. The form of rite is the principle of constructing and external stipulations. Rite must change and develop constantly according to principle of benevolence. So that human nature can develop in accordance with Middle Tao principle.In the thought of Laozi, Mencius, Zhuangzi, the rite essence is more important than rite form. It is inaccurate that Laozi was regarded as the anti-rite representative for the chapter 38 of his work Taodejing(道德经). In this book, What Laozi objected is the form of the rite, not the content of the rite. He elucidate to rite essence, mainly including the essence, content, spirit and function of the rite, etc. Laozi called rite the weakness of confidence and honesty and the root of confusion, which exactly indicated Laozi regarded the honesty and the confidence as the essence of rite; In the aspect of the spirit of the rite, Laozi objected to the excessive form in the rite, and demanded to remove the excessive, luxurious, extreme, however, he emphasized kindness, prudence, no world first. His opinion of knowing and practicing the custom reflected his affirmation of the established value. In function of the rite, he emphasizes the rational intercourse of "knowing to stop because of name ", therefore, the traditional rite, was not the rite of ravaging shapelessly instantly of the times, It was sage that depended on system foundation of "teaching beyond word ".Mencius prefers the rite content in the study of rite content and form. His elucidation of rite essence included human essence and rite essence two. In human essence, he thought the kindheartedness and righteousness of rite reflected a transcendent moral ration, which is the essential stipulation of human's different from animal. In essence of the rite, He thought in the contacts relation structured by the rite, associating should be respected each other between the subjects. All right stipulated by rite carried with them corresponding responsibilities. Meanwhile, he still emphasized people's morals conscientious consciousness and raised the person's life value. He thought that ethical absolute laws and decrees, take precedence over the outmoded practices of the common customs. In elucidating the one with rite form, his discussion about " the funerals of three years ", and the constructing of " mercy " system, equally, embody and pay attention to the rational principle of morals taking " kindheartedness and righteousness" as kernel.Zhuangzi's attitude toward rite is contradictory. On the essential aspect of the rite, Zhuangzi thought that the ceremonial rite and regulations was the order of Tao, such as order from nobleness to humbleness, from high rank to low rank, and it is the inherent law in the world, which is the Metaphysics basis of rite. He thought the true rite is contained in the Tao and life constructed by Yin-Yang. The death and live of human is accord with nature change. In the Tao aspect, death is yield to nature and reflected conform relation of rite. Zhuangzi didn't pay attention to the form of rite, which is only dross of the ancient administrative operation. Pursuit of rite form would be hierarchy's greed tool and cause the rite form deviating from people's disposition. This kind of deviation is reflected from two respects: common customs rite constrain to animal desire expansion and the oppression of the human nature. Therefore, in the Zhuangzi's idea, rite form is separated with the rite essence. He despised the style and expression of the ceremony and paid more attention to true rite meaning.Xunzi made a lot of judgments about rite from its function, meaning and the purpose, etc. But he mainly regarded rite as social law, norm, order, and made rational understanding of doctrine to its source. In the relation of Wen (文) and Zhi (质),he cleared up the blame of Taoist school toward the form of the rite, and emphasized its stipulations function of emotion in people, and the boundary function of the system of Rite and Music. In the essence of the rite, he had drawn the attention of Confucius' morals emotion to benevolence, digested Zhangzi' metaphysical pursuit and altered Mencius's transcendent moral reason to social intercourse reason. The form and essence of rite are perfectly unified in Xunzi's thought.Human self-essential cognition had been deepened through ancient thinker's rational demonstration of rite keeping or abolishing and introspection of the relation of Wen (文) and Zhi (质) of the rite. In the philosophy history, a series of important issues, such as Humanism Theory, relation between human and Heaven, interpersonal relation in the society, relation between Tao (道) and Concrete Thing (器), etc, all are closely associative to the introspection of the rite.