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AUTHORSPREFACE
ASHORThistoryofanysubjectshouldnotsimplybeanabridgementofalarger
one.Itshouldbeapicturecompleteinitself,ratherthanamereinventoryofnames
and"isms/Toachievethis,theauthorshould,asaChineseexpressionsays,nhavethe
wholehistoryinhismind.Onlythencanhegivethereaderanadequateand
well-roundedaccountwithinhischosenlimitedscope.
AccordingtoChinesehistoriography,agoodhistorianmusthavewide
scholarshipinordertomasterallhismaterials,soundjudgmenttomakeproper
selectionofthem,andliterarytalentinordertotellhisstoryinaninterestingway.In
writingashorthistory,intendedforageneralpublic,theauthorcertainlyhasless
chancetodisplayhisscholarship,butheneedsmoreselectivejudgmentandliterary
talentthanhewouldforwritingalongerandstrictlyscholarlywork.
Inpreparingthiswork,IhavetriedtousemybestjudgmentinselectingwhatI
considerimportantandrelevantfrommaterialswhichIhavemastered.Iwasvery
fortunate,however,tohaveaseditorDr.DerkBodde,whohasusedhisliterarytalent
tomakethestyleofthebookinteresting,read-able,andcomprehensibletothe
Westernreader.Hehasalsomadesuggestionsregardingtheselectionand
arrangementofthematerial.
Beingashorthistory,thisbookservesasnomorethananintroductiontothe
studyofChinesephilosophy.Ifthereaderwishestoknowmoreaboutthesubject,I
wouldreferhimtomylargerwork,AHistoryofChinesePhilosophy.Thefirst
volumeofthishasbeentranslatedbyDr.Bodde,andheisnowtranslatingthesecond
one;alsotomymorerecentwork,TheSpiritofChinesePhilosophy,translatedbyMr.
E.R.HughesofOxfordUniversity.Bothworksarementionedinthebibliography
compiledbyDr.Boddeattheendofthepresentbook.Acknowledgementsaredueto
bothDr.BoddeandMr.Hughes,fromwhosebooksIhaveborrowedsome
translationsoftheChinesetextsappearingherein.
Inpublishingthisbook,Iwelcometheopportunityofexpressingmythanksto
theRockefellerFoundationforthegrantwhichmadeitpossibleformetocomefrom
ChinatotheUniversityofPennsylvaniaasVisitingProfessorduringtheyear1946-47,
andwhichresultedinthewritingofthisbook.Also,Iwishtothankmycolleagues
andstudentsintheDepartmentofOrientalStudiesfortheircooperationand
encouragement,andespeciallyDr.Bodde,AssociateProfessorofChinese.Iam
likewisegratefultoDr.A.W.Hummel,ChiefoftheAsiaticDivision,Libraryof
Congress,forhisencouragementandhelpinmakingarrangementsforthepublication
ofthebook.
FUNC.YU-LAN
June,1947
UniversityofPennsylvania
CHAPTER1
THESPIRITOFCHINESEPHILOSOPHY
THEplacewhichphilosophyhasoccupiedinChinesecivilizationhasbeen
comparabletothatofreligioninothercivilizations.InChina,philosophyhasbeen
everyeducatedperson'sconcern.Intheolddays,ifamanwereeducatedatall,the
firsteducationhereceivedwasinphilosophy.Whenchildrenwenttoschool,theFour
Books,whichconsistoftheConfucianAnalects,theBookofMencius,theGreat
Learning,andtheDoctrineoftheMean,werethefirstonestheyweretaughttoread.
TheFourBookswerethemostimportanttextsofNeo-Confucianistphilosophy.
Sometimeswhenthechildrenwerejustbeginningtolearnthecharacters,theywere
givenasortoftextbooktoread.ThiswasknownastheThreeCharactersClassic,and
wassocalledbecauseeachsentenceinthebookconsistedofthreecharacters
arrangedsothatwhenrecitedtheyproducedarhythmiceffect,andthushelpedthe
childrentomemorizethemmoreeasily.Thisbookwasinrealityaprimer,andthe
veryfirststatementinitisthat"thenatureofmanisoriginallygood."Thisisoneof
thefundamentalideasofMencius1philosophy.
PlaceofPhilosophyinChineseCivilization
TotheWesterner,whoseesthatthelifeoftheChinesepeopleispermeatedwith
Confucianism,itappearsthatConfucianismisareligion.Asamatteroffact,however,
Confucianismisnomoreareligionthan,say,PlatonismorAristotelianism.Itistrue
thattheFourBookshavebeentheBibleoftheChinesepeople,butintheFourBooks
thereisnostoryofcreation,andnomentionofaheavenorhell.
Ofcourse,thetermsphilosophyandreligionarebothambiguous,Philosophy
andreligionmayhaveentirelydifferentmeaningsfordifferentpeople.Whenmentalk
aboutphilosophyorreligion,theymayhavequitedifferentideasintheirminds
concerningthem.Formypart,whatIcallphilosophyissystematic,reflectivethinking
onlife.Everyman,whohasnotyetdied,isinlife.Buttherearenotmanywhothink
reflectivelyonlife,andstillfewerwhosereflectivethinkingissystematic.A
philosophermustphilosophize;thatistosay,hemustthinkreflectivelyonlife,and
thenexpresshisthoughtssystematically.
Thiskindofthinkingiscalledreflectivebecauseittakeslifeasitsobject.The
theoryoflife,thetheoryoftheuniverse,andthetheoryofknowledgeallemergefrom
thistypeofthinking.Thetheoryoftheuniversearisesbecausetheuniverseisthe
backgroundoflife-thestageonwhichthedramaoflifetakesplace.Thetheoryof
knowledgeemergesbecausethinkingisitselfknowledge.Accordingtosome
philosophersoftheWest,inordertothink,wemustfirstfindoutwhatwecanthink;
thatistosay,beforewestarttothinkaboutlife,wemustfirstthinkourthinking.
Suchtheoriesarealltheproductsofreflectivethinking.Theveryconceptoflife,
theveryconceptoftheuniverse,andtheveryconceptofknowledgearealsothe
productsofreflectivethinking.Nomatterwhetherwethinkaboutlifeorwhetherwe
talkaboutit,weareallinthemidstofit.Andnomatterwhetherwethinkorspeak
abouttheuniverse,weareallapartofit.Now,whatthephilosopherscalltheuniverse
isnotthesameaswhatthephysicistshaveinmindwhentheyrefertoit.Whatthe
philosopherscalltheuniverseisthetotalityofallthatis.Itisequivalenttowhatthe
ancientChinesephilosopher,HuiShih,called"TheGreatOne,"whichisdefinedas
thatwhichhasnothingbeyond.Soeveryoneandeverythingmustbeconsideredpart
oftheuniverse.Whenonethinksabouttheuniverse,oneisthinkingreflectively.
Whenwethinkaboutknowledgeorspeakaboutknowledge,thisthinkingand
speakingarethemselvesknowledge.TouseanexpressionofAristotle,itis"thinking
onthinking";andthisisreflectivethinking.Hereistheviciouscirclewhichthose
philosophersfollowwhoinsistthatbeforewethinkwemustfirstthinkaboutour
thinking;justasifwehadanotherfacultywithwhichwecouldthinkaboutthinking!
Asamatteroffact,thefacultywithwhichwethinkaboutthinkingistheverysame
facultywithwhichwethink.Ifweareskepticalaboutthecapacityofourthinkingin
regardtolifeandtheuniverse,wehavethesamereasontobeskepticalaboutthe
capacityofourthinkinginregardtothinking.
Religionalsohassomethingtodowithlife.Intheheartofeverygreatreligion
thereisaphilosophy.Infact,everygreatreligionisaphilosophywithacertain
amountofsuperstructure,whichconsistsofsuperstitions,dogmas,rituals,and
institutions.Thisiswhat1callreligion.
Ifoneunderstandsthetermreligioninthissense,whichdoesnotreallydiffer
verymuchfromcommonusage,oneseesthatConfucianismcannotbeconsidereda
religion.PeoplehavebeenaccustomedtosaythattherewerethreereligionsinChina:
Confucianism,Taoism,andBuddhism.ButConfucianism,aswehaveseen,isnota
religion.AstoTaoism,thereisadistinctionbetweenTaoismasaphilosophy,whichis
calledToochia(theTaoistschool),andtheTaoistreligion{Toochiao).Their
teachingsarenotonlydif-
Godisreallytheuniverse.Strictlyspeaking,theloveofGodinChristianityis
notreallysuper-moral.ThisisbecauseGod,inChristianity,isapersonality,and
consequentlytheloveofGodbymaniscomparabletotheloveofafatherbyhisson,
whichisamoralvalue.Therefore,theloveofGodinChristianityisopentoquestion
asasuper-moralvalue.Itisaquasisuper-moralvalue,whiletheloveofGodinthe
philosophyofSpinozaisarealsuper-moralvalue.
Toanswertheabovequestions,Iwouldsaythatthecravingforsomething
beyondthepresentactualworldisoneoftheinnatedesiresofmankind,andthe
Chinesepeoplearenoexceptiontothisrule.Theyhavenothadmuchconcernwith
religionbecausetheyhavehadsomuchconcernwithphilosophy.Theyarenot
religiousbecausetheyarephilosophical.Inphilosophytheysatisfytheircravingfor
whatisbeyondthepresentactualworld.Inphilosophyalsotheyhavethesuper-moral
valuesexpressedandappreciated,andinlivingaccordingtophilosophythese
super-moralvaluesareexperienced.
AccordingtothetraditionofChinesephilosophy,itsfunctionisnottheincrease
ofpositiveknowledge(bypositiveknowledgeImeaninformationregardingmatters
offact),buttheelevationofthemind-areachingoutforwhatisbeyondthepresent
actualworld,andforthevaluesthatarehigherthanthemoralones.Itwassaidbythe
Lao-tzu:Toworkonlearningistoincreasedaybyday;toworkonTao(theWay,the
Truth)istodecreasedaybyday.*'(Seech.48.)Iamnotconcernedwiththedifference
betweenin-creasinganddecreasing,nordoIquiteagreewiththissayingofLao-tzu.I
quoteitonlytoshowthatinthetraditionofChinesephilosophythereisadistinction
betweenworkingonlearningandworkingonTao(theWay).Thepurposeofthe
formeriswhatIcalltheincreaseofpositiveknowledge,thatofthelatteristhe
elevationofthemind.Philosophybelongstothelattercategory.
Theviewthatthefunctionofphilosophy,especiallymetaphysics,isnotthe
increaseofpositiveknowledge,isexpoundedbytheVienneseschoolincontemporary
Westernphilosophy,thoughfromadifferentangleandforadifferentpurpose.Ido
notagreewiththisschoolthatthefunctionofphilosophyisonlytheclarificationof
ideas,andthatthenatureofmetaphysicsisonlyalyricofconcepts.Nevertheless,in
theirargumentsonecanseequiteclearlythatphilosophy,especiallymetaphysics,
wouldbecomenonsenseifitdidattempttogiveinformationregardingmattersoffact.
Religiondoesgiveinformationinregardtomattersoffact.Buttheinformation
givenbyreligionisnotinharmonywiththatgivenbyscience.SointheWestthere
hasbeentheconflictbetweenreligionandscience.Wherescienceadvances,religion
retreats;andtheauthorityofreligionrecedesbe-foretheadvancementofscience.The
traditionalistsregrettedthisfactandpitiedthepeoplewhohadbecomeirreligious,
consideringthemashavingdegenerated.Theyoughtindeedtobepitied,if,besides
religion,theyhadnootheraccesstothehighervalues.Whenpeoplegetridofreligion
andhavenosubstitute,theyalsolosethehighervalues.Theyhavetoconfine
them-selvestomundaneaffairsandhavenothingtodowiththespiritualones.
Fortunately,however,besidesreligionthereisphilosophy,whichprovidesmanwith
anaccesstothehighervalues-anaccesswhichismoredirectthanthatprovidedby
religion,becauseinphilosophy,inordertobeacquaintedwiththehighervalues,man
neednottaketheroundaboutwaypro-videdbyprayersandrituals.Thehighervalues
withwhichmanhasbecomeacquaintedthroughphilosophyareevenpurerthanthose
acquiredthroughreligion,becausetheyarenotmixedwithimaginationand
superstition.Intheworldofthefuture,manwillhavephilosophyintheplaceof
religion.ThisisconsistentwithChinesetradition.Itisnotnecessarythatmanshould
bereligious,butitisnecessarythatheshouldbephilosophical.Whenheis
philosophical,hehastheverybestoftheblessingsofreligion.
ProblemandSpiritofChinesePhilosophy
Theaboveisageneraldiscussionofthenatureandfunctionofphilosophy.Inthe
followingremarksIshallspeakmorespecificallyaboutChinesephilosophy.Thereis
amaincurrentinthehistoryofChinesephilosophy,whichmaybecalledthespiritof
Chinesephilosophy.Inordertounderstandthisspirit,wemustfirstmakeclearthe
problemthatmostChinesephilosophershavetriedtosolve.
Thereareallkindsandconditionsofmen.Withregardtoanyoneofthesekinds,
thereisthehighestformofachievementofwhichanyonekindofmaniscapable.For
instance,therearethemenengagedinpracticalpolitics.Thehighestformof
achievementinthatclassofmenisthatofthegreatstatesman.Soalsointhefieldof
art,thehighestformofachievementofwhichartistsarecapableisthatofthegreat
artist.Althoughtherearethesedifferentclassesofmen,yetallofthemaremen.What
isthehighestformofachievementofwhichamanasamaniscapable?Accordingto
theChinesephilosophers,itisnothinglessthanbeingasage,andthehighest
achievementofasageistheidentificationoftheindividualwiththeuniverse.The
problemis,ifmenwanttoachievethisidentification,dotheynecessarilyhaveto
abandonsocietyoreventonegatelife?
Accordingtosomephilosophers,thisisnecessary.TheBuddhasaidthatlife
itselfistherootandfountainheadofthemiseryoflife.Likewise,Platosaidthatthe
bodyistheprisonofthesoul.AndsomeoftheTaoistssaidthatlifeisanexcrescence,
atumor,anddeathistobetakenasthebreakingofthetumor.Alltheseideas
representaviewwhichentailsseparationfromwhatmaybecalledtheentanglingnet
ofthematter-corruptedworld;andtherefore,ifthehighestachievementofasageisto
berealized,thesagehastoabandonsocietyandevenlifeitself.Onlythuscanthe
finalliberationbeattained.Thiskindofphilosophyiswhatisgenerallyknownas
"other-worldlyphilosophy.1
Thereisanotherkindofphilosophywhichemphasizeswhatisinsociety,suchas
humanrelationsandhumanaffairs.Thiskindofphilosophyspeaksonlyaboutmoral
values,andisunabletoordoesnotwishtospeakofthesuper-moralones.Thiskind
ofphilosophyisgenerallydescribedas”this-worldly.Fromthepointofviewofa
this-worldlyphilosophy,another-worldphilosophyistooidealistic,isofno
practicaluseandisnegative.Fromthepointofviewofanother-worldlyphilosophy,a
this-worldphilosophyistoorealistic,toosuperficial.Itmaybepositive,butitislike
thequickwalkingofamanwhohastakenthewrongroad:themorequicklyhewalks
thefurtherhegoesastray.
TherearemanypeoplewhosaythatChinesephilosophyisathisworld
philosophy.Itisdifficulttostatethatthesepeopleareentirelyrightorentirelywrong.
Takingamerelysuperficialview,peoplewhoholdthisopinioncannotbesaidtobe
wrong,becauseaccordingtotheirview,Chinesephilosophy,regardlessofitsdifferent
schoolsofthought,isdirectlyorindirectlyconcernedwithgovernmentandethics.On
thesurface,therefore,itisconcernedchieflywithsociety,andnotwiththeuniverse;
withthedailyfunctionsofhumanrelations,nothellandheaven;withman'spresent
life,butnothislifeinaworldtocome.Whenhewasonceaskedbyadiscipleabout
themeaningofdeath,Confuciusreplied:"Notyetunderstandinglife,howcanyou
understanddeath?(Analects,XI,IL)AndMenciussaid:Thesageistheacmeof
humanrelations'1(Mencius,IVa,2.),which,takenliterally,meansthatthesageisthe
morallyperfectmaninsociety.Fromasurfacepointofview,withtheidealmanbeing
ofthisworld,itseemsthatwhatChinesephilosophycallsasageisapersonofavery
differentorderfromtheBuddhaofBuddhismandthesaintsoftheChristianreligion.
Superficially,thiswouldseemtobeespeciallytrueoftheConfuciansage.Thatiswhy,
inancienttimes,ConfuciusandtheConfucianistsweresogreatlyridiculedbythe
Taoists.This,however,isonlyasurfaceviewofthematter.Chinesephilosophy
cannotbeunderstoodbyoversimplificationofthiskind.Sofarasthemaintenetofits
traditionisconcerned,ifweunderstanditaright,itcannotbesaidtobewholly
this-worldly,justas,ofcourse,itcannotbesaidtobewhollyother-worldly.Itisboth
ofthisworldandoftheotherworld.SpeakingabouttheNeo-Confucianismofthe
SungDynasty,onephilosopherde-scribeditthisway:Itisnotdivorcedfromdaily
ordinaryactivities,yetitgoesstraighttowhatantedatedHeaven.0Thisiswhat
Chinesephilosophyhasstrivenfor.Havingthiskindofspirit,itisatoneandthesame
timebothextremelyidealisticandextremelyrealistic,andverypractical,thoughnot
inasuperficialway.This-worldlinessandother-worldlinessstandincontrasttoeach
otherasdorealismandidealism.ThetaskofChinesephilosophyistoaccomplisha
synthesisoutoftheseantitheses.Thatdoesnotmeanthattheyaretobeabolished.
Theyarestillthere,buttheyhavebeenmadeintoasyntheticwhole.Howcanthisbe
done?ThisistheproblemwhichChinesephilosophyattemptstosolve.
AccordingtoChinesephilosophy,themanwhoaccomplishesthissynthesis,not
onlyintheorybutalsoindeed,isthesage.Heisboththis-worldlyandother-worldly.
ThespiritualachievementoftheChinesesagecorrespondstothesaintsachievement
inBuddhism,andinWesternreligion.ButtheChinesesageisnotonewhodoesnot
concernhimselfwiththebusinessoftheworld.Hischaracterisdescribedasoneof
sagelinesswithinandkinglinesswithout.1Thatistosay,inhisinnersageliness,he
accomplishesspiritualcultivation;inhiskinglinesswithout,hefunctionsinsociety.It
isnotnecessarythatthesageshouldbetheactualheadofthegovernmentinhis
society.Fromthestandpointofpracticalpolitics,forthemostpart,thesagecertainly
hasnochanceofbeingtheheadofthestate.Thesaying^sagelinesswithinand
kinglinesswithout**meansonlythathewhohasthenoblestspiritshould,theoretically,
beking.Astowhetherheactuallyhasorhasnotthechanceofbeingking,thatis
immaterial.
Sincethecharacterofthesageis,accordingtoChinesetradition,oneof
sagelinesswithinandkinglinesswithout,thetaskofphilosophyistoenablemanto
developthiskindofcharacter.Therefore,whatphilosophydiscussesiswhatthe
ChinesephilosophersdescribeastheTao(Way,orbasicprinciples)ofsageliness
withinandkinglinesswithout.
ThissoundslikethePlatonictheoryofthephilosopher-king.AccordingtoPlato,
inanidealstate,thephilosophershouldbethekingorthekingshouldbea
philosopher;andinordertobecomeaphilosopher,amanmustundergoalongperiod
ofphilosophicaltrainingbeforehismindcanbeconvertedfromtheworldof
changingthingstotheworldofeternalideas.ThusaccordingtoPlato,asaccordingto
theChinesephilosophers,thetaskofphilosophyistoenablemantohavethe
characterofsagelinesswithinandkinglinesswithout.ButaccordingtoPlato,whena
philosopherbecomesaking,hedoessoagainsthiswill-inotherwords,itis
somethingforcedonhim,andentailsagreatsacrificeonhispart.Thisiswhatwas
alsoheldbytheancientTaoists.Thereisthestoryofasagewho,beingaskedbythe
peopleofacertainstatetobecometheirking,escapedandhidhimselfinamountain
cave.Butthepeoplefoundthecave,smokedhimoutandcompelledhimtoassume
thedifficulttask.(LiishihCh'un・ch'iu,I,1.)ThisisonesimilaritybetweenPlatoand
theancientTaoists,anditalsoshowsthecharacterofother-worldlinessinTaoist
philosophy.FollowingthemaintraditionofChinesephilosophy,theNeo-Taoist,
KuoHsiangofthethirdcenturyA.D.,revisedthispoint.
AccordingtoConfucianism,thedailytaskofdealingwithsocialaffairsin
humanrelationsisnotsomethingalientothesage.Carryingonthistaskisthevery
essenceofthedevelopmentoftheperfectionofhispersonality.Heperformsitnot
onlyasacitizenofsociety,butalsoasacitizenoftheuniverse,tienmin,asMencius
calledit.Hemustbeconsciousofhisbeingacitizenoftheuniverse,otherwisehis
deedswouldnothavesuper-moralvalue.Ifhehadthechancetobecomeakinghe
wouldgladlyservethepeople,thusperforminghisdutybothasacitizenofsociety,
andasacitizenoftheuniverse.
SincewhatisdiscussedinphilosophyistheTao(Way)ofsagelinesswith-inand
kinglinesswithout,itfollowsthatphilosophymustbeinseparablefrompolitical
thought.RegardlessofthedifferencesbetweentheschoolsofChinesephilosophy,the
philosophyofeveryschoolrepresents,atthesametime,itspoliticalthought.This
doesnotmeanthatinthevariousschoolsofphilosophytherearenometaphysics,no
ethics,nologic.Itmeansonlythatallthesefactorsareconnectedwithpolitical
thoughtinonewayoranother,justasPlatosRepublicrepresentshiswhole
philosophyandatthesametimeishispoliticalthought.
Forinstance,theSchoolofNameswasknowntoindulgeinsuchargumentsasa
whitehorseisnotahorse,whichseemstohaveverylittleconnectionwithpolitics.
Yettheleaderofthisschool,Kung-sunLung,wishedtoextendthiskindofargument
torectifytherelationshipbetweennamesandfactsinordertotransformtheworld.
Wehaveseeninourworldtodayhoweverystatesmansayshiscountrywantsonly
peace,butinfact,whenheistalkingaboutpeace,heisoftenpreparingforwar.Here,
then,thereisawrongrelationshipbetweennamesandfacts.AccordingtoKung-sun
Lung,thiskindofwrongrelationshipshouldberectified.Thisisreallythefirststep
towardsthetransformationoftheworld.
SincethesubjectmatterofphilosophyistheTaoofsagelinesswithinand
kinglinesswithout,thestudyofphilosophyisnotsimplyanattempttoac-quirethis
kindofknowledge,butisalsoanattempttodevelopthiskindofcharacter.Philosophy
isnotsimplysomethingtobeknown,butisalsosome-thingtobeexperienced.Itis
notsimplyasortofintellectualgame,butsomethingfarmoreserious.Asmy
colleague,ProfessorYL.Chin,haspointedoutinanunpublishedmanuscript:
*'ChinesephilosopherswereallofthemdifferentgradesofSocrates.Thiswasso
becauseethics,politics,reflectivethinking,andknowledgewereunifiedinthe
philosopher;inhim,knowledgeandvirtuewereoneandinseparable.Hisphilosophy
requiredthatheliveit;hewashimselfitsvehicle.Toliveinaccordancewithhis
philosophicalconvictionswaspartofhisphilosophy.Itwashisbusinesstoschool
him-selfcontinuallyandpersistentlytothatpureexperienceinwhichselfishnessand
egocentricityweretranscended,sothathewouldbeonewiththeuniverse.Obviously
thisprocessofschoolingcouldnotbestopped,forstoppingitwouldmeanthe
emergenceofhisegoandthelossofhisuniverse.Hencecognitivelyhewaseternally
groping,andconativelyhewaseternallybehavingortryingtobehave.Sincethese
couldnotbeseparated,inhimtherewasthesynthesisofthephilosopherinthe
originalsenseofthatterm.LikeSocrates,hedidnotkeepofficehourswithhis
philosophy.Neitherwasheadusty,mustyphilosopher,closetedinhisstudy,sittingin
achairontheperipheryoflife.Withhim,philosophywashardlyevermerelya
patternofideasexhibitedforhumanunderstanding,butwasasystemofprecepts
internaltotheconductofthephilosopher;andinextremecaseshisphilosophymight
evenbesaidtobehisbiography.n
TheWayinwhichChinesePhilosophersExpressedThemselves
AWesternstudentbeginningthestudyofChinesephilosophyisinstantly
confrontedwithtwoobstacles.One,ofcourse,isthelanguagebarrier;theotheristhe
peculiarwayinwhichtheChinesephilosophershaveexpressedthemselves.Iwill
speakaboutthelatterfirst.
WhenonebeginstoreadChinesephilosophicalworks,thefirstimpressionone
getsisperhapsthebriefnessanddisconnectednessofthesayingsandwritingsoftheir
authors.OpentheConfucianAnalectsandyouwillseethateachparagraphconsistsof
onlyafewwords,andthereishardlyanyconnectionbetweenoneparagraphandthe
next.OpenabookcontainingthephilosophyofLaoTzu,andyouwillfindthatthe
wholebookconsistsofaboutfivethousandwords-nolongerthanamagazinearticle;
yetinitonewillfindthewholeofhisphilosophy.Astudentaccustomedtoelaborate
reasoninganddetailedargumentwouldbeatalosstounderstandwhattheseChinese
philosophersweresaying.Hewouldbeinclinedtothinkthattherewas
disconnectednessinthethoughtitself.Ifthiswereso,therewouldbenoChinese
philosophy.Fordisconnectedthoughtishardlyworthyofthenameofphilosophy.
Itmaybesaidthattheapparentdisconnectednessofthesayingsandwritingsof
theChinesephilosophersisduetothefactthatthesesayingsandwritingsarenot
formalphilosophicalworks.AccordingtoChinesetradition,thestudyofphilosophy
isnotaprofession.EveryoneshouldstudyphilosophyjustasintheWesteveryone
shouldgotochurch.Thepurposeofthestudyofphilosophyistoenableaman,asa
man,tobeaman,notsomeparticularkindofman.Otherstudies-notthestudyof
philosophy-enableamantobesomespecialkindofman.Sotherewereno
professionalphilosophers;andnon-professionalphilosophersdidnothavetoproduce
formalphilosophicalwritings.InChina,therewerefarmorephilosopherswho
producednoformalphilosophicalwritingsthanthosewhodid.Ifonewishestostudy
thephilosophyofthesemen,onehastogototherecordsoftheirsayingsortheletters
theywrotetodisciplesandfriends.Theselettersdidnotbelongtojustoneperiodin
thelifeofthepersonwhowrotethem,norweretherecordswrittenonlybyasingle
person.Disconnectednessoreveninconsistencybetweenthemis,therefore,tobe
expected.
Theforegoingmayexplainwhythewritingsandsayingofsomephilosophers
aredisconnected;butitdoesnotexplainwhytheyarebrief.Insomephilosophic
writings,suchasthoseofMenciusandHstinTzu,oned
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