The Comparative Study Of Mencius And Zhuangzi’s Ideology Of "Equality Of Human Nature"

"Equality" is an important value in today’s society.In fact,it had a similar meaning in ancient society,but the content was very different.In the early society,with the fall of ancient religious authority,"equality" representing the humanistic spirit appeared in people’s field of vision with different words.Especially in the pre-Qin period,"equality"frequently appeared from the critical perspective,the sense of worry and the product of political ideals.Although Confucianism,Taoism,Mohism,and Buddhism have all discussed ideas close to equality from different perspectives,the focus of our discussion in this paper is on Mencius,who tried to achieve the ideal personality and political aspirations from a complete theory of "human equality," and Zhuangzi,who was the most critical of the distinction between the noble and the low and the hierarchical in real society,and who strongly demanded that both human nature and politics return to inaction.In what sense do they recognize the equality of human beings,and what spiritual aspirations and ideals do Mencius and Zhuangzi have in this theory of "human equality"?What are the differences and similarities between the two ideas of "human equality" and is there a theoretical difference between the two ideas of "human equality"?With these research questions in mind,the full text is divided into four parts as follows.The first chapter briefly introduces how the idea of "equality of human nature"gradually precipitated under the interweaving of history and culture.The status of ancient religious authority declined,the human spirit awakened,and then the word"nature" became popular,but there was no unified definition of "nature" at that time.Various schools of factions have launched a series of splendid debates and in-depth explorations of "human nature",embodying "equality" in their thinking of "human nature" in order to gain spiritual peace and the pursuit of life value.The second chapter starts from the perspective of the establishment of Mencius and Zhuangzi’s "Humanity Theory":First,Mencius and Zhuangzi have different arguments.Whether Mencius directly demonstrated from the front or logically deduced from the negative,he undoubtedly put " good nature" at the highest point of the theory.Human nature is inherently "good",and everyone is created equal.Undoubtedly,looking at Gaozi’s theory of human nature from the perspective of " good nature",his conclusion of " Human nature hasn’t the feature of good or bad" is naturally not accepted by Mencius.Compared with the argument of Mencius and Gaozi,Zhuangzi’s criticism is obviously much fiercer.He points directly to "Benevolence,Justice,Ritual and Wisdom" as the source of deceptive and chaotic nature,and criticizes the secular rank of the world.With Zhuangzi’s saying "humanity is true",Tao will not make any judgments on everything in the world.Under the Tao’s observation," Everything is Equal without Nobleness or Meanness ",all human beings dwell among the heaven and earth,and there is no nobility or lowliness.Therefore,human nature and material nature are equal.The third chapter is from the perspective of the practice of "equality of human nature".Mencius discussed humanity through the heart and focused on "mindfulness and self-cultivation",and his "heart-knowing nature and knowledge" is an outward expansion of moral cultivation.Zhuangzi attributed the cause of "inequality" to the human being’s "heart" and attached importance to the return of the "heart" to the stillness of emptiness.He pioneered the cultivation of" xin-zhai" and " zuo-wang",with" you-xin" as the ultimate goal.That is why Mencius and Zhuangzi respectively adopted the principle of "equality of human beings":one is full and one is fasting,one is real and one is not.The fourth chapter is from the perspective of the development of "human equality"in individual life and politics.Mencius’ "equality of human nature " in his pursuit of ideal personality is expressed as "everyone can become Yao and Shun",and in political pursuit,it is also reflected in " the policy of benevolence ".However,Mencius’"benevolent rule" is still the supremacy of sovereignty,and the interests of the monarch are always upheld.Zhuangzi’s emphasis on the "equality of human nature" means that he wants to be free from the shackles brought about by the world,and Zhuangzi discards this as "dust and dirt".Thus,in terms of the achievement of ideal personality and political ideals,one advocates " action " and the other insists on " inaction".The issue of the theory of human nature is one of the important topics of pre-Qin philosophy,and the discussion between Mencius and Zhuangzi is particularly in-depth,comprehensive and prominent.The two differ greatly in their specific views on"equality of human nature".This aspect reflects that the pre-Qin philosophers carried out active and intense discussions around the idea of "equality of human nature" rather than being limited to a fixed model,which enriched the idea of human nature On the other hand,Mencius and Zhuangzi are devoted to the philosophical thinking of"equality of human nature",and they undoubtedly try to explore the value of life and spirit in the cruel social reality.Only because they belong to different camps of Confucianism and Taoism,the two people’s thoughts and intentions are different.Mencius’s goodness and Zhuangzi’s true thinking and pursuit provide different directions for individual life to lead to the ideal world.For this reason,Mencius and Zhuangzi’s "equality of human nature" together constitute the multiple connotations of the theory of human nature.Further research on the issue of "equality of human nature"still has profound value and significance in modern society.