| As one of The Four Books,Mencius,a Confucian classic,had an important influence during the Song Dynasty in China,the Edo age in Japan and Joseon Dynasty in Korea.Its benevolence theory,the Good Nature theory,Immobility theory and the benevolent government theory had a profound impact on the trend of social thoughts,the establishment of social system and the formation of national cultural psychology in China,Japan and Korea.The great Confucians from China,Japan and Korea all entered the field of annotating Mencius with their practical feelings and sense of historical mission.They expressed their views on the issues of heaven,human nature and society in the way of annotating Confucian classics,and leading the ideological trend of the Times.Among them,Zhu Xi(1130-1200),Ito Jinsai(1627-1705)and Jeong Yak-yong(1762-1836)are the most representative.In the Song Dynasty of China,under the trend of Han study transferring to the Song study,Zhu Xi’s Mencius Variorum established the new Mencius,which based on The Mencius Annotation of Zhao Qi,inherited Han Yu,Zhou Dunyi,Cheng Yi and Zhang Zai,also adopted Zhang Shi,Yang Shi,Fan Zuyu,Lv Xizhe,Yin Tun,LV Dalin,You Shi,Xie Liangzuo,Hou Zhongliang and Zhou Fu Xian,etc.So Mencius Variorum which based on the spirit of neo-confucianism,gathered many different ideas and turned the focus of the Confucianism interpretation to the micro nature of mind,the exploration of the universe theory.It deeply influenced Yuan,Ming and Qing dynasties for more than 700 years.Moreover,with the spread of Zhuzi doctrine in the Chinese culture circle,Mencius had an important influence in Japan and Korea.At the end of the Kamakura period(1192-1333),there was a distinction between Han study and Song study.After entering the Edo age,Zhuzi doctrine gained the official status with the support of the Shogunate.In the 18 th century,the anti-Zhuzi school became stronger.Ito Jinsai,the founder of Japanese ancient study,established the ancient school ideological system with The Analects of Confucius and The Book of Mencius as the core,established the ancient study’s Tao of daily life and human relations,and started the process of the Japanese Confucianism.As a work in the mature period of Ito Jinsai’s thought,the Ancient Meaning of Mencius is not only the representative of Ito Jinsai’s ancient thought,but also the reflection of Japanese Confucianism trying to get rid of the influence of Zhuzi doctrine,which clearly reflects the changing form of Confucianism in the background of foreign culture.The earliest record of the introduction of Confucianism into Korea is that in 640 AD,when the Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty set up Chongwen hall,Silla,Goguryeo and Paekche sent their children to study in the Tang Dynasty.The earliest record that can be verified about Mencius is Cui Zhiyuan’s(857-?)Six Quotations in the Inscription of Monk Wuran in the early days of Goguryeo(about the 10 th century AD).The official acceptance of Mencius was during the Joseon Dynasty.As a master of the practical school,Jeong Yak-yong thought that the practical thought and spirit could best reflect the true meaning of Confucianism.Mencius Essentials,which is annotated with painstaking efforts,not only inherits the achievements of Confucianism in the early days of the Joseon Dynasty,but also absorbs the contents of Western learning,and becomes the ideological carrier that can embody the theories of Zhuzidoctrine,Yangming school,Korea’s Northern Learning school and Western learning.It also reflects the efforts of Korean Confucianism in the 19 th century to understand the western ideological system with the world view of Confucianism.However,Zhu Xi,Ito Jinsai and Jeong Yak-yong’s interpretation of Mencius does not exist in isolation,but is based on their understanding of“Tao”from different perspectives.Zhu Xi integrated the natural phenomena such as the origin of the universe,the transformation of the world,the movement of birds,mountains and rivers,etc.into the understanding of“Tao”,and then provided the metaphysical cosmological basis for the thought of“the integration of human and nature”,which combines the natural order and human ethics in traditional Confucianism.Both Ito Jinsai and Jeong Yak-yong are opposed to the metaphysical view of“heaven”to understand“tao”,instead,they turn the“Tao”perspective back to the daily use of human relations,emphasizing the separation between natural order and human ethics,which constitutes the ideological basis for the interpretation of Mencius.If the understanding of Tao embodies Zhu Xi,Ito Jinsai and Jeong Yak-yong’s different understanding of the relationship between human beings and the world,then the different interpretation of“Li”highlights the various reflections caused by Zhuzi doctrine’s spreading in the Chinese culture circle.Both Ito Jinsai and Jeong Yak-yong re-understood the meaning of“Li”with the principles of orderliness,thus completing the deconstruction of Zhu Xi’s meaning of“principle of heaven”.Therefore,the different understandings of“Tao”and“Li”constitute the deep reasons for the different interpretations of Mencius in the three schools.However,Ito Jinsai and Jeong Yak-yong are not exactly the same,but there are some specific differences.Specifically speaking,Zhu Xi regards Mencius as the Confucian classics to explain the human nature of benevolence,righteousness,propriety and wisdom,based on the cosmology of integrating Qi and Li,with the study of mind as the core,and then makes Confucianism surpass Buddhism in the theory of mind and consolidate the leading position of social values.Ito Jinsai put forward the idea that Qi is the whole of the heaven.He opposed Zhu Xi’s interpretation that Mencius was talking about human nature and regarded Mencius as a Confucian classic that embodies the virtue of benevolence,righteousness and theory of benevolent government.Finally,he expressed his respect for codes of ethics.Similar to Ito Jinsai,Jeong Yak-yong also formed the way of human relations with“filial piety and kindness”as the core on the basis of opposing the universe view of the integration of Li and Qi.However,Jeong Yak-yong emphasized the practical significance of“Mind” more,believing that the value of“born nature”should be reflected in the willingness of“doing”.However,Zhu Xi,Ito Jinsai and Jeong Yak-yong’s different grasp of the main idea of Mencius is not groundless,but to fully unfold in the interpretation of the specific theory of Mencius.At the beginning of Mencius,the word“benevolence”is put forward,and the interpretation of the word highlights the different understandings to Mencius of Zhu Xi,Ito Jinsai and Jeong Yak-yong.Mencius Variorum,“benevolence,virtue of the mind,the principle of love”actually interpret benevolence from two levels,the universe and the world of human.The principle of benevolence is the natural biological mind,and the Qi of benevolence is the gentle Qi of the world.In fact,the word“benevolence”combines the Li and Qi,connecting the universe and life.Zhu Xi regards benevolence as the principle of nature and the Qi of Yin and Yang.He not only inherits Confucianism of Confucius and Mencius,but also raises the word "benevolence" to the universe,so that“benevolence”has the characteristics of connecting heaven and human,and truly embodies the unique spiritual tradition of Chinese Confucianism and the way of understanding the world.From the ancient view of human relations,Ito Jinsai thinks that benevolence is only love,not“the principle of love”.It is the real virtue of human relations emotion and the public love that is widely applied to others.The ideological basis is the separation of heaven and humanity,the separation of moral law and natural order.It can be seen that the abandonment of the relationship between heaven and human in Chinese Confucianism reveals the standards held by Ito Jinsai and Tokugawa Confucianism when they absorbed Chinese Confucianism:namely,whether it has the practicability to guide social life and system construction.This attitude of choosing culture with practicality not only quickly transformed Confucianism into a tool to promote social prosperity in the edo age,but also served as the cultural psychological foundation for the rapid transformation of the Japanese nation from the traditional culture and the acquisition of useful parts of western culture after the Meiji restoration,so as to realize the economic take-off and social transformation.Dasan regards “benevolence”as the relationship between filial piety,brotherhood,kindness and other human relations in real society,and pays special attention to the difference between Mind and benevolence,righteousness,propriety and wisdom.According to Dasan,benevolence,righteousness,propriety,wisdom and Mind are not the same.They are just external virtues,which can be truly realized by the choosing of“Mind”,thus highlighting the importance of independent choice of“Mind”and reflecting the characteristics of Korean Confucianism that attaches importance to practice.Furthermore,Dasan accepted the influence of Matteo Ricci and understood “heaven”in the sense of personality god,which was different from Zhu Xi in grasping the relationship between heaven and human,forming the characteristics of Korean Confucianism.Through the interpretation of Zhu Xi,the theory of good nature has become not only the core idea of Mencius,but also an unavoidable topic for Japanese and Korean Confucians.Zhu Xi’s“nature as ideal pattern”inherits the tradition of Confucianism in the Han Dynasty,which is based on the Cosmic schema of human and nature.His Li and the world system solves the outstanding metaphysical basis of“nature and the way of heaven”of Confucianism.The relationship between the born nature and the temperament finally recovers the theory of good nature to the meaning of life.Ito Jinsai’s theory of“likes and dislikes of nature”separates the relationship between“nature” and the virtue of benevolence,righteousness,propriety and wisdom.It holds that the temperament naturally has the tendency to benevolence and righteousness,and even raises the emotion to the position of“Tao”.It embodies the general characteristics of“emotion”of the Confucians in Dechuan,and lays a foundation for the theory of enlightenment and benevolent government.Jeong Yak-yong’s theory of“love of nature”follows the Pre-Qin Confucian model of“seeing nature from the mind”and pays attention to the cognition of the heart.It not only leaves a broad space for the autonomy of the Mind,but also makes the theory of good nature separate from the framework of Zhu Xi’s theory of nature,which has practical significance in guiding life practice and social governance.It should be said that the different understanding of good nature thoery is actually rooted in the different understanding of the relationship between heaven and human.The chapter of Immobility in Mencius has always been concerned because it puts forward such important arguments as Immobility,knowing words,“I’m good at fostering the Great Spirit”,gathering righteousness,which is an excellent sample to understand the differences and similarities in the interpretation of Mencius.Zhu Xi attached great importance to the sage’s mentality of Immobility and the noble spirit,focusing on“gathering righteousness”,which showed the character of Neo Confucianism to communicate the heaven’s Qi with people’s Qi.Taking Zhu Xi’s study as the target of inheritance and criticism,Ito Jinsai refuted Zhu Xi’s emphasis on Immobility and the noble spirit,expounded the thought of benevolence and justice as the core,and showed the practical characteristics of the ancient school,which did not talk about nature and heaven,but paid attention to the daily life of human relations.Jeong Yak-yong concentrated on expounding of“Mind”,“immobility”is just the secular mentality of people in the ethical world,and completed the separation of the relationship between principle of heaven and Immobility.Benevolence government is Mencius’ ideal of governing the world,which depicts a picture of an ideal society for Chinese,Japanese and Korean Confucians.Zhu Xi believed that the great importance of benevolence lies in the discernment of natural truth and human desire in the mind of the Son of Heaven.The sage does the good of his nature,and the world will be peaceful.Ito Jinsai thinks that the theory of benevolent government is the main idea of Mencius and even the Four Books.The theory of Moral of Generation not only inherits Zhu Xi’s view of life,but also confines it within the range of the human world,and has the characteristic of focusing on the daily life.Ito Jinsai believes that the essence of benevolence government lies in the fact that the monarch can be happy with the people,sympathize with the world,push reasonable emotional desires such as the love to the treasure and beauty to others,and form a unique theory of“happy with the people”.According to Jeong Yak-yong,the administration of country’s affairs should be based on the use of talents and financial management.Areasonable farmland system,especilly the“nine squares”system,is the basis of social economic system and political system.He also attaches great importance to the Enlightenment of Mind of the Tao,trying to describe the actual path for the change of the Korean Dynasty.In conclusion,Zhu Xi,Ito Jinsai and Jeong Yak-yong all expressed their understanding of the relationship between human and human,human and nature,as well as human and the world through the reinterpretation of the Confucian classic Mencius.This classic method of knowledge production established the East Asian spiritual tradition and ideological tradition,and maintained the dominant position of the Confucian spirit in the East Asian cultural circle.However,due to the different understanding of the core value of Confucianism,the relationship between heaven and human,the different characteristics of Confucianism is formed,which affected the modernization process of the three countries.However,both China,Japan and Korea belong to the Chinese cultural circle,which is different from the western spiritual tradition as a whole:they do not take individualism and liberalism as the foundation and goal of social development,but focus on group cooperation and interpersonal harmony.This is not only the basic meaning brought by Confucianism to the culture of China,Japan and Korea,but also the historical tradition and national cultural psychology of the three countries.It is the ideological background Shared by the three countries when facing western culture,and it also has a profound impact on our understanding of the relationship between people and society today. |
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