Significant Transformation Of Yi-ology Under The Vision Of Divination

Zhu Xi, the great master of the Sung and Ming Neo-Confucianism, did a lot of work to interpret the sages’ classics, and established his vast and delicate ideological system through interpreting the classics. In Song Dynasty, scholars begun to doubt traditional annotations on classics. In such background, Zhu Xi established his new explicative vision of classics. As the chief of the Liu Jing(the Six Classics), Zhouyi is studied by some scholars, including Zhu Xi. Zhu Xi doubted former scholars’ annotations on Zhouyi, and then established his opinion of Yi-ology under the vision of divination which caused an important transformation of Yi-ology. This thesis aims to study Zhu Xi’s new explicative vision of Yi-ology and the subsequent transformation of Yi-ology under his new explicative vision of classics.This thesis contains four parts.Chapter one briefly introduces the times background of Zhu Xi and his new explicative vision of classics formed under such background. In Han and Tang Dynasty, the unification of the confucian classics learning limited the development of Confucianism. After the period of Qingli in Song Dynasty, the thoughts of doubting traditional annotations on classics rose in the academic circles. Under such free academic atmosphere, Zhu Xi formed the explicative vision of classics which advocated studying from Jin Si Lu to the Four Books, and then from the Four Books to the Six classics. Zhu Xi established the context of neo-confucianism by the completion of Jin Si Lu. He annotated the Four Books under the context of neo-confucianism, which was similar to other moralists’method of annotation. However, Zhu Xi’s annotation on the Six classics was different from the former annotations and he tried to find out the original meaning of the classics.Chapter two describes Zhu Xi’s doubt on the former scholars’ method of annotation on Zhouyi. Firstly, Zhu Xi opposed the combination of Text and the Commentaries of Zhouyi which started from Han and Tang Dynasty. Secondly, Zhu Xi doubted authors of Zhouyi. He divided Zhouyi into Fu Xi’s Yi, Wen Wang’s Yi and Confucius’s Yi. Among these three, Fu Xi’s Yi is the best and the original meaning of Yi has been distorted since Wen Wang annotated Yi. After that, Zhu Xi described his interpretation on Yi. He thought that Yi was a book of divination.Chapter three continues and succeeds to launch discussion based on Chapter two. From the standpoint of divination, the image plays a pivotal role in Yi. Zhu Xi valued Shao Yong’s prior image-number theory that esteemed Fu Xi’s Yi, and developed the new connotation of Yi before the formation of the lines and hexagrams. Fu Xi’s Yi originated from the Yi before the formation of the lines and hexagrams. Fu Xi’s Yi showed the Yi before the formation of the lines and hexagrams through the system of symbols(the eight trigrams and the sixty four hexagrams). Zhu Xi opposed Cheng Yi’s method of explanation that interpreted Yi by Li directly, and emphasized that Yi possessed a special mode of nominal interpretation.Chapter four discusses the connotation of Yi before the formation of the lines and hexagrams. This Yi is trade, change and Tai Ji. Yin and Yang change continually and generate the whole cosmos that is on the move forever. Tai Ji is the ultimate foundation and basis of the world and is contained within everything of the world. We can make clear of the natural appearance of the cosmos where people live and what we should do in this cosmos through studying Fu Xi’s Yi.Finally, this thesis explains the significance of Yi-ology transformation caused by Zhu Xi. From the standpoint of philosophical history, this new explicative vision of Yi-ology is helpful to restore the original appearance of Yi that divides the Text and the Commentaries and promotes people to explore the original meaning of Yi. However, some scholars neglect the profound connotation of Yi before the formation of the lines and hexagrams and pay attention to divination.