A Source Book in Chinese Philosophy

by Wing-Tsit Chan

  76--According to Ch’eng Hsüan-ying (fl. 647-663), Chuang Tzu shu (Commentary on the Chuang Tzu), this means identifying with Tao, and according to Hsi T’ung’s (1876-1936) Chuang Tzu pu-chu (Supplementary Annotations on the Chuang Tzu), this means the Great Transformation.

  77--See below, ch. 31, sec. 2.

  78--The punctuation here follows that of Fung, History of Chinese Philosophy, vol. 1, p. 224.

  79--Cf. Lao Tzu, chs. 10 and 65.

  80--See below, ch. 13, especially sec. 4, Selections from “Remarks on Certain Trigrams,” ch. 1.

  81--A famous saying by Zen Master Wen-yen (d. 949). See Ogato, Zen for the West, p. 109. The translation “dirt cleaner” by Ogato for the dried human excrement-removing stick is evidently a Zen accommodation to Western decency!

  82--Commentators do not agree on what these are. The theory that the six ultimates means the six directions and that the five constancies means the Five Agents of Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth seems to be the most reasonable.

  83--Wang Hsien-ch’ien quoting Ch’eng Hsüan-ying, interpreted the word chi to mean “how many.” Hu Shih understands it to mean “the minutest form” or germs, partly on the authority of the Book of Changes (see his Development of the Logical Method in Ancient China, p. 136). Following Yen Fu (1853-1921), Chuang Tzu p’ing (Critique of the Chuang Tzu), I read chi as chi (originative or moving power). This is the word used at the end of the paragraph. This interpretation seems to be more in keeping with Chuang Tzu’s concept of the incessant transformation of nature.

  84--See his Development of the Logical Method in Ancient China, pp. 131-139.

  85--This work is now lost.

  86--Wang Hsien-ch’ien said, “From the fact that later in the chapter it is said, ‘The Grand Master asked Lao Tzu. . .’ we know this refers to Confucius.”

  87--Same as Feng I in Chuang Tzu, ch. 6.

  88--About one-third of a mile.

  89--The Hsia, Shang, and Chou.

  90--Empty in the sense of having no bias or selfish desires. For a discussion of this term, see Appendix.

  91--See Paul Demiéville, “Le miroir spirituel,” Sinologica 1 (1948), especially pp. 117-119.

  92--References to Lao Tzu and Confucius, respectively?

  MO TZU’S DOCTRINES OF UNIVERSAL LOVE, HEAVEN, AND SOCIAL WELFARE

  1--Often spelled “Mohism,” although the “h” is entirely superfluous.

  2--The name Mo Tzu has been variously written as Moh-tse, Meh-tse, Micius, etc.

  3--Mencius, 3A:5, 3B:9.

  4--On this question, see Dubs, “The Development of Altruism in Confucianism,” Philosophy East and West, 1 (1951), pp. 48-55.

  5--The Mo Tzu is similar to the Hsün Tzu and later philosophical works in style in devoting each chapter to a particular subject. Originally there were seventy-one chapters but only fifty-three are extant. They cover subjects like “Condemnation of Confucianists,” “Condemnation of War,” etc., and military defense. Chapters 40-45 are on dialects, including the definition of terms and the explanations of major and minor causes, and are believed to have been by Mo Tzu’s pupils. There was no commentary until the eighteenth century. For English translation, see Mei, Ethical and Political Works of Motse, which contains most of the chapters. Some chapters have also been translated by others. For a German translation of chapters 40-45, not translated by Mei, see Forke, Mei Ti.

  6--Read ch’ung (honor) as ch’a (examine), according to Yü Yüeh (1821-1906), Chu-tzu p’ing-i (Critique of the Various Philosophers), ch. 9, 1899 ed., 9:18b.

  7--According to Sun I-jang (1848-1908), Mo Tzu chien-ku (Explanation and Commentary on the Mo Tzu), these words are probably missing from the original text.

  8--See Analects, 4:11, 16; 15:17; 17:23.

  9--R. 636–628 b.c.

  10--R. 530–527 b.c.

  11--FI. 452 b.c.

  12--See above, ch. 3, comment on Mencius, 3B:9 for a discussion on the doctrine of love with distinctions in relation to the doctrine of universal love.

  13--This is a reference to Mencius, 1A:7.

  14--Founder of the Hsia dynasty (r. 2183–2175 b.c.?).

  15--Founder of the Chou dynasty (r. 1751–1739 b.c.).

  16--The word tse means to fulfill or accomplish, said Sun I-jang.

  17--Son of King Wen (r. 1121–1116 b.c.).

  18--R. 1175–1112 b.c. He was responsible for the fall of the Shang dynasty (1751–1112 b.c.).

  19--Cf. Analects, 20:1.

  20--Wang Nien-sun (1744-1832), Tu-shu tsa-chih (Miscellaneous Notes from Reading), 1933 ed., bk. 9, p. 71, reads men (gate) as hsien (leisure) and Pi Yüan (1730-1797), Mo Tzu chu (Commentary on the Mo Tzu) reads it as chien (brook), both without improving the text.

  21--Cheng, ordinarily meaning to govern, here means to be correct or to be a standard, according to Wang Nien-sun, Tu-shu tsa-chih, ibid., and Sun I-jang, Mo Tzu hsien-ku, ch. 7.

  22--Sun I-jang interprets tz’u as forthwith but Pi Yüan reads it as tzu, to indulge in.

  23--The text says “generals and officials” but Sun I-jang says that means great officials.

  24--The grand protector, the grand preceptor, and the grand tutor.

  25--Hsia, Shang, and Chou.

  26--Founder of the Shang dynasty (r. 1751–1739 b.c.?).

  27--He (r. 1802–1752 b.c.) lost the Hsia dynasty.

  28--R. 781–771 b.c.

  29--R. 878–842 b.c.

  30--According to Sun I-jang, cheng, which ordinarily means to govern, should be cheng, meaning the way to control.

  31--The idea of effort is found in pts. 2 and 3, or chs. 27 and 28 of the Mo Tzu.

  32--In chs. 36 and 37 of the Mo Tzu, fa is used instead of piao as it is here. According to Sun I-jang, they all have the same meaning as i, which is translated as “standard” above.

  33--These inserted words appear in a similar passage in the opening paragraph of Mo Tzu, ch. 36.

  34--According to Wang Nien-sun, ibid., p. 87, fei and fa were interchangeable, meaning to issue forth.

  35--According to Pi Yüan, the word yen (salt) is a misprint for chin (all).

  36--The text has “five” but it should have been three, according to Pi Yüan.

  37--A li is about one-third of a mile.

  38--Sun I-jang said that cheng here means to be a leader.

  39--According to Sun I-jang, these words should have been added to the text.

  40--Paraphrasing History, “Announcement of Chung-hui. Cf. trans., Legge, Shoo King, p. 178.

  41--The text of this sentence is obscure. This is Pi Yüan’s interpretation based on the phraseology of a similar passage at the end of ch. 36.

  42--The whole quotation is a paraphrase of History, “Great Oath.” Cf. Legge, p. 286. The last sentence does not appear in History.

  43--Legendary rulers (3rd millennium b.c.).

  44--According to Sun I-jang, te (virtue) is to be read te (can).

  45--Read po (extensive) as po (thin), according to Yü Yüeh, Chu-tzu p’ing-i (Textual Critiques of the Various Philosophers) ch. 9, 1899 ed., 9:20a.

  46--R. 404–379 b.c.

  47--Following Sun I-jang, read wan (ten thousand) as wu (to dance).

  48--The five offices were those of education, war, public works, civil personnel, and justice. The six departments were divisions in the treasury.

  DEBATES ON METAPHYSICAL CONCEPTS: THE LOGICIANS

  1--Chuang Tzu, ch. 33, nhcc, 10:24b. Cf. Giles, trans., Chuang Tzu, 1961 ed., p. 314. For further criticism of the Logicians, see Hsün Tzu, chs. 6 and 21, sptk, 3:14b, 15:5a (see Dubs, trans., The Works of Hsüntze, pp. 79 and 262), and Ssu-ma Ch’ien (145–86 b.c.?), Shih chi (Records of the Historian), pnp, 130:3b-4a. Little is known of Hui Shih except that he was a native of Sung, was once prime minister to King Hui (r. 371–320 b.c.) of Liang, and often debated with his friend Chuang Tzu. Kung-sun Lung, a native of Chao, was a guest of Prince P’ing-yüan who treated him well, but finally rejected him.

  2--Cf. Chuang
Tzu, chs. 24 and 33, nhcc, 8:42a, 10:35a. See Giles, pp. 246 and 319.

  3--A li is about one-third of a mile.

  4--Cf. this with Hsün Tzu’s great general name and great particular name. See Hsün Tzu, ch. 22, sptk, 16:6a-b. Cf. Dubs, The Works of Hsüntze, p. 286.

  5--This sentence also appears in Chuang Tzu, ch. 2, nhcc, 1:25b. See Giles, p. 36.

  6--Cf. Chuang Tzu, ch. 2, nhcc, 1:34a, Giles, p. 41.

  7--Kuo-ku lun-heng (Balanced Inquiries on Classical Studies), pp. 192-193.

  8--Development of the Logical Method in Ancient China, p. 113.

  9--The two physical legs and the spirit that moves them. See Wang Hsien-ch’ien (1842-1917) Chuang Tzu chi-chieh (Collected Explanations of the Chuang Tzu), ch. 33. In the Kung-sun Lung Tzu, ch. 4 (below, B, 3), the meaning seems to be the two legs and the leg as such.

  10--Chih, literally meaning finger or pointing, has been interpreted as “marks,” “signs,” “attributes,” etc. Since all the other paradoxes deal with concrete things, I prefer to translate it literally as a concrete noun rather than interpreting it too philosophically.

  11--The two colors and the animal.

  12--No. 8 is not included because it is not clear.

  13--Chung-kuo che-hsüeh shih ta-kang (An Outline of the History of Chinese Philosophy), 1919, p. 239. Cf. his Development of the Logical Method in Ancient China, pp. 118-128.

  14--The Kung-sun Lung Tzu is a short treatise in six chapters. Much of it is so corrupt that it is impossible to make it completely intelligible, and no such attempt is made in the following translation. Commentators and translators have made so many emendations in an attempt to make the work perfectly understandable that they almost turned it into their own essays. In a number of cases they have changed “is” into “is not” in order to make sense. Chapter 1. deals with Kung-sun Lung’s life, and is of no philosophical interest. It is therefore omitted from the translation. For another English translation, see Bibliography.

  15--The word ju (if) here was interchangeable with erh (yet). See Ch’ien Mu, Hui Shih Kung-sun Lung (On Hui Shih and Kung-sun Lung), 1931, p. 49.

  16--Read yeh (final positive article) as yeh (final interrogative article), according to Yü Yüeh (1821-1906), “Tu Kung-sun Lung Tzu” (“Notes on the Kung-sun Lung Tzu”), in Yü-lou tsa-tsuan (Miscellaneous Collections of Yü Tower), p. 2a.

  17--This sentence is not clear. None of the many emendations by commentators and translators seems satisfactory.

  18--The sppy edition has “not a horse.”

  19--Read chih (classifier for a bird) as hsi (what, how), according to Yü Yüeh, ibid., p. 6a.

  20--According to Ch’ien Mu, Hui Shih Kung-sun Lung, p. 64, erh (yet) here means “and.”

  21--See above, paradox, second group, no. 2.

  22--According to Ch’ien Mu, ibid., p. 66, the word i (by) here means “and.”

  23--The word li is very obscure. To understand it as mixed is the best commentators can do.

  24--The correspondence of colors is according to the commentary by Hsieh Hsishen (of Sung, 960-1279).

  25--Pao is here interpreted as conflict, following Ch’ien Mu, ibid., p. 70.

  26--History of Chinese Philosophy, vol. 1, p. 209.

  27--Another interpretation: When we touch the stone.

  28--While most commentators agree in this interpretation, the original sentence is quite obscure.

  29--The whole passage is not clear.

  30--These words appear in certain editions.

  THE YIN YANG SCHOOL

  1--Literally “five actions or operations.” Therefore the rendering “Five Agents” is preferred.

  2--Ch. 74.

  3--Tso chuan (Tso’s Commentary on the Spring and Autumn Annals), Duke Hsi, 16th year, Duke Hsiang, 28th year, and Duke Chao, 4th, 7th, and 21st years. See Legge, trans., Ch’un Ts’ew, pp. 540, 597, 618, 688; Lao Tzu, ch. 42; Chuang Tzu, chs. 2, 4, 6, 11, 13, 16, 21, 24, 25, 33, passim; and Hsün Tzu, chs. 9 and 17, passim.

  4--History, “Oath of Kan” and “Great Norm” (Legge, trans., Shoo King, pp. 173, 320); Mo Tzu, chs. 41 and 43; Hsün Tzu, ch. 6 (sptk, 3:14b [not translated in Dubs, The Works of Hsüntze]); Tso chuan, Duke Chao, 20th and 25th years (See Legge, trans., Ch’un Ts’ew, p. 708); Kuo-yü (Conversations of the States), ch. 4 (sppy, 4:7b).

  5--Hsün Tzu, ch. 6 (sptk, 3:14b [not translated in Dubs]).

  6--Mencius, 2B: 13.

  7--Ch. 24.

  8--See below, ch. 31, comment on sec. 1.

  9--For this book, see below, ch. 13, n.1.

  10--For this book, see below, ch. 1, n.4.

  11--A book in 26 chapters, supposedly written by Lü Pu-wei (d. 235 b.c.) but actually a collective work of scholars who were his retainers. It deals with various subjects and contains the doctrines of many schools, especially the Confucian and the Taoist. There is a German translation by Richard Wilhelm. See Bibliography.

  12--Ta-ya has been interpreted to refer to the section of the Book of Odes by that title and more especially to ode no. 240, which extols the moral influence of King Wen (r. 1171–1122 b.c.). But this interpretation is not based on any evidence. In none of the editions which have special marks for titles is ta-ya treated as a title. Its ordinary meaning of “a gentleman” is both natural and clear here.

  13--A legendary emperor of the 3rd millennium b.c.

  14--Insertion following the Shih chi so-yin (Tracing the Hidden Meanings of the Records of the Historian), by Ssu-ma Chen (fl. 727). According to both the Shih chi so-yin and the Shih chi cheng-i (Correct Meanings of the Records of the Historian), by Chang Shou-chieh (fl. 737), ta-pang (not pronounced ta-ping) means following the general outline.

  15--Founder of the traditional Hsia dynasty (2183–1752 b.c.?), who spent nine years in conquering China’s great flood.

  16--Between father and son, elder brother and younger brother, and husband and wife.

  17--According to the Shih chi so-yin, this sentence means, “These are the source and foundation for later ages,” a rather far-fetched interpretation.

  18--For a fuller translation of the “Great Norm,” see above, ch. 1, sec. 3.

  19--Founder of the Shang dynasty (1751–1112 b.c.).

  20--Founder of the Chou dynasty (1111–249 b.c.).

  LEGALISM

  1--Legendary rulers (3rd millennium b.c.).

  2--Founder of the Hsia dynasty (r. 2183–2175 b.c.?).

  3--In Ssu-ma Ch’ien’s (145–86 b.c.?) autobiography in the Shih chi (Records of the Historian), ch. 130, pnp, 130:3b. For the term fa, see Appendix.

  4--English translation by Duyvendak, Book of Lord Shang.

  5--The work consists of fifty-five chapters in twenty books. For a complete translation, see Bibliography. An incomplete translation of chs. 49 and 50 by Y. P. Mei is found in de Bary, Sources of Chinese Tradition, pp. 138-150.

  6--Ch’en Ch’i-t’ien, in his Han Fei Tzu chiao-shih (Collation and Explanation of the Han Fei Tzu), 1958, pp. 4-5, thinks the numbers of years should be interchanged. This was done by Liao in The Complete Works of Han Fei Tzu, vol. 2, p. 299. However, Yin dated from 1384 to 1112 b.c., and Chou started in 1111 b.c It was just about 700 years to Han Fei’s time. From the time of Yao to Han Fei Tzu it was just a little over two thousand years. Therefore no interchange of dates is necessary.

  7--According to Wang Hsien-shen, Han Fei Tzu chi-chieh (Collected Commentaries on the Han Fei Tzu), 1895, 19:16a, the word shih (to depend) should read tai (to wait for). Such emendation is quite unnecessary.

  8--See above, ch. 6, sec. 3.

  9--Fung, History of Chinese Philosophy, vol. 1, p. 320.

  10--Both of the Chou period. Meng Pen was probably from Wei, once served Ch’in.

  11--Shih chi, ch. 63, sptk, 63:1b.

  12--Han Fei Tzu, ch. 20, “Lao Tzu Explained,” and ch. 21, “Examples for the Lao Tzu.”

  13--Lao Tzu, chs. 36 and 77.

  14--Jen here means ability. See Ch’en Ch’i-yu, Han Fei Tzu chi-shih (Collected Ex
planations of the Han Fei Tzu), 1958, p. 908.

  15--According to Yü Yüeh (1821-1906), Chu-tzu p’ing-i (Textual Critiques of the Various Philosophers), ch. 21, 1899 ed., 21:7b-8a, tao, ordinarily meaning “the way,” here means “the way by which.”

  16--See Analects, 2:3.

  17--The term hsing-ming, often mistranslated as “punishment and names,” means the same as ming-shih, or name and actuality. The word hsing, ordinarily meaning punishment, is interchangeable with hsing meaning shape or form, that is, the concrete or the actual as contrasted with name. For further discussion on the term, see Appendix.

  18--Tso chuan (Tso’s Commentary on the Spring and Autumn Annals), Duke Chuang, 20th year. See Legge, trans., Ch’un Ts’ew, p. 99.

  19--Source not identified.

  20--R. 494–465 b.c.

  21--The Five Emperors refer to five legendary rulers of antiquity. There are three different sets, two of which include Yao and Shun. The Three Kings are King Yü (r. 2183–2175 b.c.?), King T’ang (r. 1751–1739 b.c.?), and King Wen (r. 1171–1122 b.c.), founders of the Hsia, Shang, and Chou dynasties, respectively.

  22--The word chi is here used in the sense of combining or being equivalent. See Ch’en Ch’i-t’ien, Han Fei Tzu chiao-shih, p. 749.

  23--The word li, meaning principle, when used as a verb means to put things in order.

  24--According to Wang Hsien-ch’ien (1842-1917), quoted in Wang Hsien-shen, Han Fei Tzu chi-shih, 6:13a, the word po means to oppress or invade.

  25--Cf. Lao Tzu, ch. 39.

  26--Ch. 14.

  27--Ch. 1.

  28--Cf. Lao Tzu, ch. 25.

  29--Lao Tzu, ch. 1.

  THE PHILOSOPHY OF CHANGE

  1--The Book of Changes is one of the basic Confucian Classics. It is also much cherished by the Taoists. It is divided into the texts and commentaries. The texts consist of sixty-four hexagrams and judgments on them. These hexagrams are based on the Eight Trigrams, each of which consists of three lines, divided or undivided, the divided representing the weak, or yin, and the undivided representing the strong, or yang. Each of these eight corresponds to a direction, a natural element, a moral quality, etc. For example, ch’ien (Heaven) is heaven, k’un (Earth) is earth, chen (activity) is thunder, sun (bending) is wind, k’an (pit) is water, li (brightness) is fire, ken (to stop) is mountain, and tui (pleasure) is a collection of water. Each trigram is combined with another, one upon the other, thus making sixty-four hexagrams. These hexagrams symbolize all possible situations. For example, the hexagram with the water trigram over the fire trigram symbolizes conquest, success, etc.