First Remove Lust Then Abandon Do-nothingness

Li Rong is a famous philosopher of Tang dynasty and he is well-known for his duplicate metaphysics. The study of his thoughts has not been systematic yet, and needs a further advancement. This treatise is divided into three parts and tries analyses his ideas in detail. The first part is chapter one. This part mainly introduce Li Rong’s life story with the research of other scholars. The second part is from chapter two to chapter five and this part is the core of the treatise. It analyses Li Rong’s ideological system in the order of The Tao, The Lost of Tao, The Cultivation of Tao, The obtaining of Tao. The third part of the treatise is chapter six and this part presents Li Rong’s idea of ethics.Chapter one mainly introduces Li Rong’s life story and his works. Li Rong was born in Sichuan province and he was active mainly in the period of Tang Gaozong. He was smart and humorous. He was born in a family of Tianshi Taoism. He absorbed both the idea of the group of Lingbao and Louguan Taoism and the idea of Confucianism and Buddhism. He finally became a famous theoretician of duplicate metaphysics in Taoism. His work mainly includes The Annotations of Laozi and The Annotations of Xishengjing.Chapter two introduces Li Rong’s ontology. The core of Li Rong’s ontology is based on the idea of Tao. And his idea of Tao is speak in the sense of nature and cosmology. This chapter mainly introduces his idea of Zhongdao and his explanation of Tao as the state of vacancy and the spirit of vitality. And this is the characteristic of his explanation of Tao.Chapter three analyses Li Rong’s idea of the secular human nature. And this idea if based on his thought of life. He thinks that the secular life is full of substance and common people uphold the gorgeous surface and ignore the intention of morality, uphold fame and ignore the real life, that is the way of the corruption of our nature. The obsession of the secular life is the signal of that one can hardly realize the real Taoism. Because it makes people lost his real nature gradually and finally get into the state of death. While repudiate the secular life vigorously, Li Rong also affirm that the common people can cultivate the real Taoism.Chapter four introduces Li Rong’s idea of the cultivation of Tao. The goal of the cultivation of Tao in Li Rong’s thought is the transcendence in the heart. The cultivation starts from education.Li Rong thinks that the saint can educates the common people realize the Tao. But this stays in the step of knowledge and is not the real Taoism yet, it still needs the endeavor of the practice in action. If one can fulfill the demands of Tao in his action, he was then succeed. Li Rong brings forward the idea of’abolish the desire first and abolish the abolishment second’ as his orientation of the cultivation of Tao according to the thinking style of duplicate metaphysics.Chapter five describe the finally state of duplicate metaphysics in Li Rong’s thought. The cultivation of Tao is the return of the real nature and the unceasing abolishment of the obsession and aims at the state of the cleanness of our heart which at the characteristic of both forget the outer life and the inner thought. This is the definition of the state of duplicate metaphysics. It is beyond life and death and it also can be achieved in the word, because it is not in the sense of human flesh, but in the sense of human heart. The immortal being which he describes is a saint who has a very high spirit, and different from the common people.Chapter six introduces Li Rong’s idea of ethics. His thought of the ideal country is based on his thought of cultivation. He thinks that the emperor plays a important role in the charge of a country. Whether a emperor can manage a country is based on his moral cultivation. If he is saint as Li Rong describes, he can educate the common people come over and pledge allegiance to him. If he is not, the country would be corrupted. That is the way of ’the saint cultivate the common’ and it is the way of a country stay a long period of stability and comply with Tao.