A Study On No Emotion In Music Written By Ji Kang

It is the central issue of metaphysics in the Wei-Jin period to communicate Confucianism and Daoism and mediate the conflict between the Confucian ethical code(Mingjiao名教)and naturalness.As to the problem of human, Daoism emphasizes the principle of naturalness,while Confucianism the principle of humanism.Mingjiao has a reasonable ethical implication,but it becomes exterior and hypocritical because of the one-sided emphasis of exterior rule and the neglect of kind-heartedness(Ren Ai仁爱).The alienation of Mingjiao hurts man's nature and attacks the humanistic value of Confucianism in the Wei-Jin period.Considering about this,Ji kang tries to coordinate the principle of naturalness and humanism,making mingjiao natural. Although No Emotion in Music(sheng-wu-ai-le lun声无哀乐论) discusses just formally the theory of music,it essentially reinterprets the music education of Confucianism by Introducing Daoism into Confucianism.Firstly,Ji Kang explains the essence of music in an inner principle of nature and gives music naturally harmony,thus it breaks the myth and superstition of music from sheng-you-ai-le lun and the mystery of music(Yue,乐) education. Secondly,Ji Kang rebuilds the relationship between emotion and music(Yue,乐) and it breaks the traditional rigescent connection among music, emotion(moral) and politics(culture and custom),thus he revaluates the position of music and human in music education and it's he who exemplifies consciousness of arts and human awakening.At last,Ji Kang corrects some biases in manners and music(li and yue) by combining principles of will and naturalness,and he makes manners and music natural and introduced,which embodies his ideal of coordinating the Confucian ethical code and nature. Therefore,although sheng-wu-ai-le lun is a book about theory of music,it concerns about the problem of human existence and some important arguments in the Wei-Jin period,such as words and meaning,beings and nothingness.It is very important as the theory of music because it is the emerging of the important issue of metaphysics in the Wei-Jin period.