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Four Elements As 7L and Five Phases As <RQJ: the Historical

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Four Elements As 7L and Five Phases As <RQJ: the Historical ($670 )RXU(OHPHQWVDV7LDQG)LYH3KDVHVDV<RQJ 7KH+LVWRULFDO'HYHORSPHQWIURP6KDR<RQJ¶V +XDQJMLMLQJVKLWR0DWWHR5LFFL¶V4LDQNXQWL\L +VX.XDQJ7DL >+VX.XDQJ7DLLV3URIHVVRURIWKH,QVWLWXWHRI+LVWRU\DQG&HQWHUIRU*HQHUDO (GXFDWLRQDW7VLQJ+XD8QLYHUVLW\ DVZHOODV&KDLUPDQRIWKH+LVWRU\RI6FL HQFH&RPPLWWHHLQ7DLZDQ+LVUHVHDUFKKDVLQUHFHQW\HDUVIRFXVHGRQVHYHQ WHHQWKFHQWXU\ KLVWRU\ RI VFLHQFH LQWHOOHFWXDO KLVWRU\ DQG WKH FURVVFXOWXUDO WUDQVPLVVLRQRIZHVWHUQOHDUQLQJLQWR&KLQDHVSHFLDOO\RQ0DWWHR5LFFL;LRQJ 0LQJ\X:DQJ<LQJPLQJDQG&RQIXFLDQLVPDQG6FLHQFH.@ ,QWURGXFWLRQ In the late Ming, Jesuits transmitted western learning into China for the purpose of propagating Christian doctrines, resulting in the encounter of Aristotelian natural philosophy with the Chinese natural philosophy of TL , or the Aristote- lian-Ptolemaic worldview held by Jesuits with that of Neo-Confucianism.1 These were two different traditions on theories of matter, Chinese literati using \LQ\DQJ and five phases(ZX[LQJ ), while the Jesuits followed the Aristote- lian theory of four elements. In this paper, the author tries to explore the histori- cal background against which Ricci formed a new relationship between the four elements and five phases theories. In a paper published eleven years ago, the author found that at the end of the section 6L\XDQ[LQJOXQ (On Four Simple Elements in his 4LDQNXQ WL\L (Structure and Meanings of the Heaven and Earth), Matteo Ricci (in Chinese Li Madou , 1552-1610) regarded the four elements asWL and five phases as \RQJ , as well as the four elements as \XDQ (origin) and * The elaboration of this paper derived from a project supported, first, by the National Science Council (NSC 92-2411-H-007-017) and later by the Boost Project at Tsing Hua University. The author would like to thank these institutions for their financial support. I am grateful to Catherine Jami, Alexei Volkov, Hans Ulrich Vogel, John Moffett, Jen Hsu, and two anonymous referees for providing useful suggestions and comments. 1 Hsu Kuang-Tai (1996), pp. 369-392, especially pp. 382-385. 13 ($670 five phases as OLX (flow).2 In doing so, Ricci became the first person to adopt the two Chinese analogies of WL\RQJ and \XDQOLX to form a new relationship between the four elements and five phases theories. In my opinion, Ricci’s use of WL\RQJ and \XDQOLX in the 4LDQNXQWL\L is a form of cross-cultural borrowing or appropriation and thus raises four related and interesting questions worth further investigation: 1. From the viewpoint of the exchange between the West and China, what was the historical background against which Ricci made such a cross-cultural borrowing or appropriation of these two analogies of WL\RQJ and \XDQOLX? 2. Did there exist already a similar Chinese tradition that allowed Ricci to make such cross-cultural borrowing or appropriation? 3. If such a tradition existed, who started that tradition? What is the historical development of the tradition relating to the two analogies of WL\RQJ and \XDQOLX? 4. How did Ricci learn of WL\RQJ and \XDQOLX, and how did he then further borrow or appropriate these two analogies? Ricci was educated in Aristotelian natural philosophy at the Jesuit Roman College, learning to make arguments with adversaries.3 If a pre-existing tradition of “four-‘x’ as WL and five phases as \RQJ” was already available in China, allow- ing Ricci to more easily form his “four elements as WL and five phases as \RQJ” through cross-cultural borrowing or appropriation, the origin of this pre-existing tradition, its historical development and its historical connection with Ricci have to be elucidated. It was by chance that the author of this paper discovered a pre-existing tradi- tion of “four-‘x’ as WL and five phases as \RQJ” starting with Shao Yong (1011-1077), who was styled Yaofu and conferred the posthumous title of Kangjie . In Shao Yong’s +XDQJMLMLQJVKL (Supreme Principles Governing the World), with a commentary by his son Shao Bowen (1057-1134), there is a crucial paragraph indicating “four forms as WL and five phases as \RQJ”.4 This clue led me to undertake this research tracing back the historical connection between Shao Yong’s +XDQJMLMLQJVKL(hereafter abbrevi- ated as +--6)5 and Ricci’s 4LDQNXQWL\L. 2 Hsu Kuang-Tai (1997), pp. 347-380, especially p. 369; Ricci (1983-)juan shang, pp. 766-767. 3 Lloyd (1996), chap. 2; Hsu Kuang-Tai (2004), pp. 77-104, especially pp. 89-90. 4 Shao Yong (2003), juan 51, “guanwu neipian zi yi”, pp. 346-347. 5 Sometimes the title of this work is also called +XDQJMLMLQJVKLVKX hereafter abbre- viated as +--6VKX . For a discussion of the editions of +--6 or+--6VKX, see Arrault (2002), pp. 43-50. In this paper the author will use Shao Yaofu’s +--6in the 'DR]DQJ (The Collected Daoist Scriptures) and the reprint of +--6VKX in the :HQ\XDQJHVLNX TXDQVKX (The Complete Library of the Four Treasuries Completed in the :HQ\XDQJH). +VX.XDQJ7DL)RXU(OHPHQWVDVTiDQG)LYH3KDVHVDVYong 7L\RQJ and \XDQOLX form two traditional Chinese analogies, yet their mean- ings may not be the same as those proposed by various authors in different con- texts in the past. <XDQOLX is easily understood, for each flow has its own ori- gin(s). In the temporal order, origin always comes into being earlier than its flow. As for WL\RQJ, Ricci regarded the four simple elements of earth, water, air, and fire as WL, out of which the myriad things in the terrestrial area are composed. In contrast to the four simple elements as WL, he thought of the five phases as their functions (\RQJ). In this paper the author will focus on the relationship between water, fire, earth, and stone as four forms (VLWL or VL[LDQJ ) and five phases as their functions in the tradition started by Shao Yong. Western scholars often use ‘substance/function’ to translate WL\RQJ.6 Chen Yufu regards the Supreme Ulti- mate(WDLML ) as substance (EHQWL ), from whichmovement (GRQJ ) and quiescence (MLQJ ),7 “\LQ and \DQJ, JDQJ > , unyieldingness@ and URX > , yieldingness@ are derived, as well as the eight entities of greater and lesser \LQ, \DQJ, JDQJ, URX” on the subsensorial level ofTL.8 According to Anne D. Bird- whistell, Shao Yong’s WL “refers to something that has an appearance perceivable through the senses,” and \RQJ is the activity that a thing exhibits.9 She uses the terms ‘form or appearance’ and ‘activity or function’ to translate WL\RQJ,10 and analyzes Shao Yong’s concept of forms and activities of Heaven and Earth on the sensorial level of phenomena and the subsensorial level of TL.11 She also employs ‘image’ as synonymous with ‘form’ or ‘entity’ occasionally.12 Thus, in this paper the author will adopt ‘substance’ for the translation of WL , appear- ance’ or ‘image’ for [LDQJ , ‘form’ for [LQJ , and ‘function’ or ‘activity’ for \RQJ In some commentaries of +--6 where their meanings are complex and lack equivalent translations in English, the author will leave‘WL’ or‘\RQJ’ as they are rather than translate them into English. This has also been done in the case of OL . In this paper, the author will present three important findings. First, Shao Yong is the pioneer who developed a cosmological philosophy with numero- logical speculations in the +--6 in which he replaced five phases with four forms by attributing a priority to the number ‘four’ over ‘five’. Second, Shao Yong’s legacy of emphasizing ‘four’ over ‘five’ was elaborated by his son and later commentators by applying the analogy of WL\RQJ, historical reasoning, or physiological (or physiologico-ethical) notions to the relation between the four 6 See, for example, Wyatt (1996), pp. 339-340. 7 Chen Yufu (1979), p. 32. 8 Birdwhistell (1989), p. 104. 9 Ibid., p. 153. 10 Ibid., pp. 316-317. 11 Ibid., p. 101. 12 Ibid., p. 104. ($670 forms and five phases. Third, while Ricci was permitted to propagate Christian- ity in China, he also familiarized himself with the Four Books (VLVKX ) and Five Classics (ZX MLQJ ) and had many opportunities to discuss natural knowledge with Chinese literati. Through them he might have learned about the “four forms as WL and five phases as \RQJ”, which he then developed into the “four elements as WL and five phases as \RQJ” or “four elements as \XDQ and five phases as OLX” through cross-cultural borrowing or appropriation. He became the first to establish a relationship between western and Chinese learnings by means of these two analogies of WL\RQJand \XDQOLX. 6KDR<RQJ&KDOOHQJHVWKH)LYH3KDVHVZLWK)RXU)RUPV Before Shao Yong, \LQ\DQJ and five phases theory was the received view con- cerning changes in the cosmos and among the myriad things. Nevertheless, largely based upon his study of the <LMLQJ (Book of Changes), Shao Yong introduced a very important shift in the +--6, switching from the five phases to four earthly forms—water, fire, earth, and stone. 7KH5HFHLYHG9LHZRI<LQ<DQJDQG)LYH3KDVHV7KHRU\ The concepts of \LQ\DQJ and five phases developed separately at first. Laozi used \LQ and \DQJ to explain changes in the universe. He believed that from Dao comes the undifferentiated TL; this is called “Dao produces the One” (GDR VKHQJ\L ). Then the One is differentiated into \LQ TL and \DQJ TL, i.e. “the One produces the two” (\LVKHQJHU ). The creation of Heaven, Earth, and human beings spring from the interaction of \LQ TL and \DQJ TL; this is called “the two produces the three”(HUVKHQJVDQ ). The myriad things come into being from Heaven, Earth, and human beings; thus, “the three pro- duces the ten thousand things”(VDQVKHQJZDQZX ).13 By the end of the Warring States Period (late third century BC), \LQ\DQJ and five phases were connected with each other systematically in the work /VKL FKXQTLX (Spring and Autumn of Master Lü).14 In the Western Han dynasty, in his study of the <LMLQJ Jing Fang (77-37 BC) adopted \LQ\DQJ and five phases theory to explain the change of trigrams, the form of three single or divided lines of a trigram (\DR[LDQJ ) and fortune as well as misfortune 13 Laozi (1993), juan 3, “dao hua 42”, pp.
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