Sixth Century BCE to Seventeenth Century
Page 74
growing and ever-
deepening infl uences of the ideas originating in the Axial Age, especially Confu-
cian and Daoist ideas, on all aspects of Chinese life down through the centuries, it
may not be too much an exaggeration to suggest that Dao and history constitute
the inside and the outside of Chinese civilization.
a p p e ndi x 379
Taking the Chinese cultural tradition to be essentially one of indigenous ori-
gin and in de pen dent growth, I have tried over the de cades to study Chinese
history along two main lines. First, Chinese culture must be understood in its
own terms, but at the same time, also in a comparative perspective. By “com-
parative perspective,” I refer to both Indian Buddhism in the early imperial
period and Western culture since the sixteenth century. Needless to say, Chi-
na’s second encounter with the West in the nineteenth century was a historical
event of world- shaking magnitude. Since the beginning of the twentieth century,
the Chinese mind has been largely preoccupied with the problematique of China-
versus- the- West. To interpret the Chinese past solely in its own terms without a
comparative perspective would surely run the risk of falling into the age- old trap
of simple- minded Sinocentrism.
Second, in my study of Chinese intellectual, social, and cultural history,
from classical antiquity to the twentieth century, my focus has always been
placed on periods of change when one historical stage moved to the next.
Compared to other civilizations, China’s is particularly marked by its long his-
torical continuity before, during, and since the Axial Age. But continuity and
change went hand- in- hand in Chinese history. Therefore, the purpose I have
set myself is twofold: fi rst, to identify the major intellectual, social, and culture
changes in the Chinese past and, second, to discern if at all pos si ble the unique
pattern of Chinese historical changes. More often than not, such broad and
profound changes in Chinese history transcended the rise and fall of dynasties.
Thus, the notion of “dynastic cycle,” long held in traditional China but also
briefl y in vogue in the West, is highly misleading. In the early years of the twen-
tieth century, Chinese historians, following the example of their Japa nese col-
leagues, began to reconstruct and reinterpret the Chinese past according to the
historical model of the West. Since then it has been generally assumed that
China must have under gone similar stages of historical development as shown
in Eu ro pean history. In the fi rst half of the twentieth century, Chinese histori-
ans adopted the earlier Eu ro pean schemes of periodization by dividing Chinese
history into ancient, medieval, and modern periods, which has been replaced
since 1949 by the Marxist- Stalinist fi ve- stage formulation. The latter remains
the orthodoxy in China up to this day, at least in theory if not always in actual
practice. This procrustean approach, what ever merits it may other wise have,
cannot possibly do full justice to Chinese culture as an indigenous tradition.
Only by focusing on the unique course and shape of Chinese historical changes,
I am convinced, can we hope to see more clearly how that great cultural tradi-
tion moved from stage to stage, driven mainly, if not entirely, by its internal
dynamics.
Now let me turn to the question of how, as two diff er ent systems of values,
does Chinese culture stand vis- à- vis Western culture in historical perspective?
My earliest exposure to this question occurred in the late 1940s when the prob-
lematique of China- versus- the- West, mentioned earlier, dominated the Chinese
380 a p p e ndi x
intellectual world. It has not been out of my consciousness ever since. Living in
the United States for half a century, the question has acquired a truly existential
meaning for my life as I move between the two cultures from moment to
moment. With some initial psychological readjustments, I have long been able
to enjoy the American way of life while still retaining my Chinese cultural iden-
tity. However, the best guide with regard to whether Chinese culture is compat-
ible with the core values of the West can only be provided by Chinese history.
China fi rst encountered the modern West at the end of the sixteenth century
when the Jesuits came to East Asia to do their missionary work. The culturally
sensitive Matteo Ricci, who arrived in China in 1583, was very quick to discover
that the Chinese religious atmosphere at that time was highly tolerant; Confu-
cianism, Buddhism, and Daoism were generally regarded as one and the same
thing. As a matter of fact, under the infl uence of Wang Yangming (1472–1529),
late Ming Confucians fi rmly believed that each of the three religions in China
captured a vision of the same Dao (Way). It was this spirit of religious tolerance
that accounted for Ricci’s extraordinary success in his conversion of many lead-
ing members of the Confucian elite, notably Xu Guangqi (1562–1633), Li Zhizao
(1565–1630), and Yang Tingyun (1557–1627)— the “three pillars of evangeliza-
tion.” The Confucian faith in the sameness of human mind and the universal
accessibility of Dao to every human person anywhere led some Chinese con-
verts to promote a synthesis of Chris tian ity with Confucianism. The Chinese
Dao was now further expanded to include Chris tian ity. This early relationship
between China and the West at the religious level can by no means be described
as a confl ictual one.
In the late nineteenth century, it was also the open- minded Confucians who
enthusiastically embraced values and ideas dominant in the modern West, such
as democracy, liberty, equality, rule of law, autonomy of the individual person,
and, above all, human rights. When some of them visited Eu rope or Amer i ca
for the fi rst time and stayed there long enough to make fi rsthand observations,
they were all deeply impressed, fi rst of all, by the ideals and institutions of
Western constitutional democracy. Wang Tao (1828–1897), who assisted James
Legge in his En glish translation of Confucian classics, returned to Hong Kong
from Eng land in 1870 praising her po liti cal and legal systems to the sky. He
was prob ably the fi rst Confucian scholar to use the term “democracy” in Chi-
nese ( minzhu). Wang exerted a considerable infl uence on Confucian po liti cal
thinking in the late Qing. At the turn of the century, there were two rival Con-
fucian schools in China known as the New Text and Old Text, respectively.
Both advocated democracy, though each in its own way. The former was in favor
of constitutional monarchy, while the latter pushed for republicanism. Perhaps
inspired by Wang Tao, who compared the British po liti cal and judicial systems
favorably to China’s Golden Age as described in Confucian classics, both Con-
fucian schools began a systematic search for the origins and evolution of demo-
a p p e ndi x 381
cratic ideas in early Confucian texts. In so doing, it is clear that they took the
compatibility between Chinese culture and Western culture as two systems of
values for granted.
Last but not least,
I wish to say a word about “ human rights.” Like “democ-
racy,” “ human rights” as a term is linguistically specifi c to the West and non ex-
is tent in traditional Confucian discourse. However, if we agree that the concept
of “ human rights” as defi ned in the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of
1948 is predicated on the double recognition of a common humanity and human
dignity, then we are also justifi ed to speak of a Confucian idea of “ human rights”
without the Western terminology. Recognition of a common humanity and re-
spect for human dignity are both clearly articulated in the Analects of Confu-
cius, the Mencius, and other early texts. It is remarkable that by the fi rst century c.e.
at the latest, the Confucian notion of human dignity was openly referred to in
imperial decrees as suffi
cient grounds for the prohibition of the sale or killing of
slaves. Both imperial decrees, dated 9 and 35 c.e., respectively, cited the same
famous Confucian dictum: “Of all living things produced by Heaven and Earth,
the human person is the noblest.” Slavery as an institution was never accepted
by Confucianism as legitimate. It was this Confucian humanism that predis-
posed late Qing Confucians to be so readily appreciative of the Western theory
and practice of human rights.
If history is any guide, then there seems to be a great deal of overlapping
consensus in basic values between Chinese culture and Western culture. After
all, recognition of common humanity and human dignity is what the Chinese
Dao has been about. I am more convinced than ever that once Chinese culture
returns to the main fl ow of Dao, the problematique of China- versus- the- West
will also come to an end.
Prince ton University, December 1, 2006
(This talk was delivered on December 5, 2006, and published by the Library
of Congress at http:// www . loc . gov / today / pr / 2006 / 06 - A07 . html)
A C C E P TA N C E S P E E C H O N T H E O C C A S I O N
O F R E C E I V I N G T H E TA N G P R I Z E
F O R S I N O L O G Y
To be awarded the inaugural Tang Prize in Sinology is the greatest honor I have
received in my life. Needless to say, I feel grateful and elated even though deep
in my heart, I must confess, lurks an indelible sense of undeservedness.
Sinology, my own fi eld of research, writing, and teaching, calls for a com-
ment. To begin with, I must pay tribute to the Tang Prize Foundation for its
farsightedness in recognizing Sinology as one of its four prize categories. In my
382 a p p e ndi x
considered opinion, Sinology as a scholarly endeavor of ever- growing world im-
portance is more in need of encouragement and support now than ever before.
It is truly remarkable that the Tang Prize comes right in the nick of time.
In recent de cades, Sinology as a fi eld of study has been undergoing a gradual
but very signifi cant transformation. China has come to be viewed more and
more as a civilization of indigenous origin and in de pen dent growth very much
comparable to other long- lasting ancient civilizations such as India, Persia,
Israel, and Greece. Unlike in the past, we begin to move away from the practice
of reconstructing and interpreting the Chinese past according to the historical
model of the West. Instead, Sinologists, in ever- growing numbers, tend to be
interested in understanding the growth of Chinese civilization on its own
terms. It is generally assumed that only by focusing on the unique course and
shape of Chinese historical changes can we hope to see more clearly how that
great cultural tradition moved from stage to stage, driven primarily by its internal
dynamics. However, this must not be mistaken as advocacy of isolationism. On
the contrary, the importance of a comparative perspective in Sinological studies
is more emphasized today than ever before. The reason is not far to seek. The
uniqueness of Chinese civilization and its developmental pattern cannot be
fi rmly and fully established without comparisons with other civilizations, espe-
cially the Western one. On the other hand, to study Chinese history in total
isolation would inevitably fall into the age- old trap of Sinocentrism.
As a result, Sinology today has become thoroughly globalized. Unlike in the
fi rst half of the twentieth century, we rarely, if ever, speak of Sinology along
national lines such as Chinese, Japa nese, French, or American. Sinology is one
anywhere on the globe. At this very juncture, my memory naturally goes to my
late mentor Yang Lien- sheng, who introduced me to world Sinology at Harvard
in the late 1950s. In his 1967 introduction to Yang’s path- breaking Excursions in
Sinology [Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1969], Paul Demiéville,
the dean of Sinology in Eu rope, characterizes the latter’s scholarship as “interna-
tional, truly tianxia (
).” This clearly suggests that globalization of Sinology
was already well underway at the time, and my mentor Yang was positively
identifi ed by Demiéville as one of its earliest prac ti tion ers.
In this age of rapid globalization of ours, this new development in Sinology
urgently needs to be carried further on an ever- growing scale. It is therefore my
earnest hope that the Tang Prize may serve to attract more young talents with
vibrant minds that will bring fresh perspectives to the Sinological world.
This talk was delivered at the Academia Sinica in Taipei on September
18, 2014.
inde x
afterlife, xv, 66–77, 78n15, 83n77, 85–90.
archaeological evidence: bamboo cooking
See also soul; specifi c elements of
slips, 94, 107; feast scenes, 95, 98–102,
agricultural work, 106–110, 169, 170, 212,
126–127, 132n7; Han food and foodstuff s,
223, 230, 235, 236, 237, 249
91–95, 104, 107, 109, 112; inscriptions of
alchemy, 29, 55n135
Han underworld, 74, 75, 77n2; jade
alcoholic beverages, 103–104. See also
shrouds, 71; kitchen mural paintings,
wine and wine vessels
95–98, 115; sacrifi cial food evidence in,
Analects ( Lunyu, Confucius): concepts
67–68; silk paintings, 60–61, 69,
within, 8–9, 12, 190, 204, 231, 381;
70, 78n13, 85–89, 230; TLV mirrors,
criticism of, 174–175, 187–188, 192,
85–86, 89; wooden documents, 70, 71,
333–335. See also Confucius
86–87. See also specifi c site locations
anarchist thought vs. kingship authority,
Arendt, Hannah, 16–17
135–137
Aristotle, 14, 78n21
ancestor worship, 24, 67–68, 125
arithmetic, 219, 257–258
Ancient Script Book of History. See Guwen
ascension to Heaven, 31, 34–39, 52n105,
Shangshu
55n131, 72, 83n77. See also afterlife; xian
anfu (security of the rich), 305–307
immortality
An Lushan Rebellion, 240–242
asceticism, 169, 170–171, 179, 210,
Annals of Lü Buwei ( Lüshi chunqiu), 22
212–213, 215
Anqi Sheng, 34
Atwell, William S., 355,
357, 361–363
An Shigao, 76
Axial breakthrough (Axial Age), xiv, 5–8,
Araki Kengo, 355, 356, 368–369
10–16, 378, 379
384 inde x
Ba (white, human soul, variant of po),
book learning, 186–195, 199–200, 202,
62, 87
203n36 (Cheng Hao critique of ),
“Baben saiyuan” (Pulling Up the Root
204n38. See also knowledge vs.
and Stopping Up the Source), 285–286,
morality in Neo-Confucianism
288, 295
book market of Tang-Song dynasties,
bagu (eight-legged essay), 362, 372n14
245–246
Bai Gui (economic expert), 227
Book of Etiquette and Ceremonial. See Yili
baixing riyong ([ Dao in terms of ] the daily
Book of History ( Shangshu, Shujing), 12,
activity of the common people), 290,
87, 203n30
301
Braudel, Fernand, 211–212, 236
Baizhang Huaihai, 169, 170, 212
breath, 37; soul breath, 64–65, 72, 80n31,
Baizhang qinggui (Pure Rules of
87. See also hun (soul)
Baizhang), 169, 178
breath-soul (hunqi), 65, 66, 80n31;
Balanced Inquiries. See Lunheng
brilliant virtues ( mingde), 12
bamboo slips in Han tombs, 85, 94, 107,
Buddhism: afterworld concept of, 68–69,
116n5
77; Chan (Zen) sect of, 15–16, 167–171,
Bangtaizi mural-painted tomb, Liaoyang,
173–178, 212, 333, 369–370; on economic
96, 97, 99
activities, 212; Heavenly Principle of, 176;
Ban Gu, 36, 107
intellectual movement in, 369–371;
Banquet at Hong Men. See Hong Men
introduction of, 14; inward transcendence
Banquet
of Chinese Buddhism, 15; Jiao Hong
Baofu (protection of the rich), 305–307, 313
and, 326–328, 332–333; monastic vs. lay
Bao Jingyan, 136
life, 170–171. See also Confucianism;
Baoqiu Zi, 107
Daoism; specifi c principles and scholars
barbarian merchants ( shanghu), 240–242
Burckhardt, Jacob, 139
Baxter, Richard, 210
burial-related objects. See archaeological
beef, 94, 97, 99, 101, 103, 109. See also
evidence
meat
business culture, 236–265; Central Asian