On The "Yizhuan" Philosophy Of Production And Reproduction

The Yijing(Classic of Changes), not only an important classic of the pre-Qin era,but also an important influential work for Chinese philosophical thought in general,has for its authoritative, rational interpretation the Yizhuan(Great Commentary of the Classic of Changes), which because of its rationality and authority has also been ranked a classic. As such, the Yizhuan and Yijing together are known as the Zhouyi(Changes of the Zhou). The Yizhuan not only carried forward the basic thought of the Yijing, but also developed a new theoretical system from such concepts as the eight trigrams, the yin and yang, and the yaoxiang(line images) that occur in the Yijing.This transformed the Yijing from a work principally focused on divination to one that placed equal stress on divination and yili(meaning and principles) and shows how important the Yizhuan is for understanding the Yijing.This study begins with a brief account of the author and dating of the Yizhuan,controversial subjects since Ouyang Xiu wrote about them, so they warrant a general discussion before anything else. At the same time, the relationship between the Yijing and the Yizhuan is analyzed and presented to demonstrate that the Yizhuan and Yijing so merged together that the Yizhuan became an absolutely indispensable part of the Zhouyi. Although to some extent the Yizhuan began as a commentary, it quickly acquired the status of a classic in its own right, and though it carried forward and developed the content of the Yijing, it still retained its basic logic thought. However, it also cannot be denied that the Yizhuan itself formed its own system to explain the Changes, and to understand the composition of that system, we must first clarify what actually constitutes the Changes as a work itself. Therefore, this study comprehensively and in detail discusses three essential approaches to the Changes:“Exegesis of the Changes,” “Divination of the Changes,” and “Meaning and Principles of the Changes.” In “Exegesis of the Changes,” the author argues that the original meaning of the word yi(change) refers to the process of pouring liquid from one container into another, and so images are transformed and meanings change. In“Divination of the Changes,” it is argued that the word yi(change) in the title Yijing(Classic of Changes) consists of a combination of the meaning of “change” as it occurs in divination and “change” in the initial and simple sense of the word as it occurs in the tradition of meaning and principles thought. As far as meaning and principles are concerned, the author refutes the two traditional interpretations of“change,” namely that it consists of yin and yang and that “change” in the title Classic of Changes means three things, namely “easy,” “change,” and “unchanging.”Following that, he brings forward for discussion a view which throughout the ages has not attracted particular attention, that “the capacity for production and reproduction is what is meant by change.” What then does this “capacity for production and reproduction” mean? This study analyzes and presents interpretations and expositions made in successive ages of what “the capacity for production and reproduction” means and concludes that interpretations offered by traditional commentaries fall into two categories: ① “The capacity for production and reproduction” refers to the condition in which constant creation of life of all things occur thanks to the flux and interaction of yin and yang. ② “The capacity for production and reproduction” refers to the condition in which change and transformation continually link up, the one with the other forever, that is, movement unceasing. However, since these two interpretations still seem to fail to account for all the profound meaning of “the capacity for production and reproduction,” the author of this study attempts here a new interpretation of his own.In explicating ““the capacity for production and reproduction is what is meant by change” the present study abandons the inadequacies of earlier interpreters and advances a new view that has “the capacity for production and reproduction”explaining the Changes in three ways, that is, starting with “easy,” “change,” and“unchanging” the author then combines “the capacity for production and reproduction” with these three meanings of yi, which results in the comprehensive and rational “easy is the capacity for production and reproduction,” “change as a function in the capacity for production and reproduction,” and “the unchanging capacity for production and reproduction.” As such, this thoroughly conveys how “the capacity forproduction and reproduction” is embodied in all three aspects of yi.“Conform to the principles of Heaven in order to clarify the Way of man” is a persistent model for the way ancient people thought. Discussions of “the capacity for production and reproduction” for the Way of Heaven focused on how the principles underlying the capacity for production and reproduction are embodied, and those for the Way of man focused on how the capacity for production and reproduction should be implemented so the virtue of production and reproduction were fully realized. Realization of the virtue of the capacity for production and reproduction has three aspects: original human nature never fails to be good; one fully realizes one’s original nature by joining with Heaven; and one is helped by Heaven.The present study argues that the principle of “the capacity for production and reproduction” runs through the Yizhuan from beginning to end, while at the same time advancing the proposition that the three divergent concepts of taiji(supreme ultimate),daoqi(the Way and phenomenal reality), and sancai(the three realms [Heaven, earth,man]) also reveal various aspects of the thought of the Yizhuan. It concludes that the Yizhuan constructs both a philosophical system and a cosmogony that have “the capacity for production and reproduction” for essence and yin/yang for functionality.