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Crisis and Hermeneutics: Wang Fuzhi's Interpretation of Confucian Crisis and Hermeneutics: Wang Fuzhi’s Interpretation of Confucian Classics in a Time of Radical Change from Ming to Qing Dynasty by Mingran Tan A Thesis Submitted in Conformity with the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Graduate Department of East Asian Studies University of Toronto © Copyright by Mingran Tan 2010 Crisis and Hermeneutics: Wang Fuzhi’s Interpretation of Confucian Classics in a Time of Radical Change from Ming to Qing Dynasty Doctor of Philosophy Mingran Tan East Asian Studies University of Toronto Abstract In an effort to explore how hermeneutic reason functions in cultural crises, and more specifically, how a Ming loyalist Wang Fuzhi dealt with the political and cultural crises at the Ming-Qing dynastic transition, this dissertation critically examines his commentaries on Confucian classics and historical writings as well as his criticism toward other Confucian scholars and heretical schools. My conclusion is that, unlike his peers’ iconoclastic criticism of Neo-Confucianism, Wang’s uniqueness consists in that he attempted to reconstruct it through such criticism. Through this reconstruction, he tried to provide a solution to the political and cultural crises of his time by promoting universal harmony/he and humanity/ren. In his opinion, humanity originated from the harmonious qi in the universe, was identical with human nature, and demonstrated in the humane governance. Thus, he established a comprehensive system that incorporated cosmology, human nature, and political governance. Wang insisted that human beings’ destruction of the universal harmony caused the rise of perverse qi that gave rise to natural disasters and social conflicts. In order to decrease the amount of perverse qi and in turn the number of bad people and conflicts generated, Wang thought that man could cultivate his own harmonious qi or humanity and thus increase the universal harmonious qi through self-cultivation. Individually, the measures were dependent upon complying with ritual propriety and awakening one’s innate knowledge. Politically, it depended upon the ruler’s humane governance—the cultivation and extension of humanity to the people. ii Wang’s motivation of reconstruction was also powered by his arrogance. From his slogan, ―the Six Classics require me to start a new phase‖, he tacitly assumed himself to be on par with Confucius, justifying his criticism of others. Regrettably, his criticism of other non-Confucian schools was often impertinent and biased although his criticism of Neo-Confucianism was to the point. Key Words: Crisis, Wang Fuzhi, Harmony, Humanity, the Kingly Way, nature, Neo- Confucianism iii Acknowledgments In the process of writing this dissertation, my supervisor Professor Vincent Shen, has given me patient and careful direction, including selecting topics and methodology, organizing materials, revising drafts and proofreading the whole work. Professor Graham Sanders and Professor Johanna Liu help me to restructure the chapters to make them more coherent, and advise me how to use and explain details and make the whole work more concise and readable. My colleague David Chai patiently proofread my many drafts, offering invaluable advice on how to improve them. Here, I express my sincere thanks to all of them. I also would like to thank Chiang Ching-kuo Foundation for International Scholar Exchange (USA). Without the foundation’s dissertation fellowship, I would have been under greater economic pressure during the process of finishing my dissertation. iv Table of Contents Abstract .......................................................................................... Error! Bookmark not defined. Acknowledgments .......................................................................................................................... iv Chapter 1 Political and Cultural Crisis: Wang Fuzhi’s Response .................................................. 1 1.1 The Political and Cultural Crises in the late Ming .............................................................. 2 1.1.1 The Political and Social Crises ................................................................................. 3 1.1.2 The Intellectual and Cultural Crises ......................................................................... 8 1.2 Wang Fuzhi’s Response to Political Crises ...................................................................... 14 1.3 Wang Fuzhi’s Response to Cultural and Intellectual Crises ............................................. 19 1.4 The Methods and Necessity to Write This Dissertation ................................................... 29 Chapter 2 Common Concerns and Inter-textuality at the Ming-Qing Transition ......................... 35 2.1 Common Concerns in Wang Fuzhi’s Time ...................................................................... 36 2.1.1 The Practical Turn in Scholarship ........................................................................... 36 2.1.2 Neo-Confucianism as a Common Target of Criticism ........................................... 40 2.1.3 Qi-monism ............................................................................................................... 47 2.1.4 Criticism on Factional Struggle ............................................................................... 50 2.2 The Unique or Original Contributions of Wang Fuzhi’s Peers ........................................ 52 2.2.1 Gu Yanwu: Creating a New Academic Atmosphere ............................................... 52 2.2.2 Huang Zongxi: A Revolutionary View on the Monarch-Subject Relation............ 55 2.2.3 Fang Yizhi: Openness to Western Culture, Buddhism and Daoism ........................ 58 2.2.4 Yan Yuan: An Uncompromising Attack toward Neo-Confucianism from the Point of Practice .................................................................................................... 62 2.3 Wang Fuzhi: Constructing a New Neo-Confucian System with the Attempt to Solve All Political and Cultural Problems .................................................................................. 66 Chapter 3 Cosmological Harmony: An Ultimate Appeal to Deal with Crisis and Struggle ......... 74 v 3.1 Harmony, Great Harmony and Heaven ............................................................................ 74 3.2 Different Definitions of Heaven ....................................................................................... 78 3.2.1 Heaven as the Pure, Void, One and Great/qing xu yi da 清虛一大 ......................... 78 3.2.2 Heaven as What Spirit and Transformation can Reach (Great Harmony) ............... 79 3.2.3 Heaven as the Impartial and Impersonal Agent ....................................................... 80 3.2.4 Heaven as an Humane Agent from the Perspective of Initiating Things ................. 81 3.3 The Necessity to Assist Heaven ........................................................................................ 84 3.3.1 The Insufficiency of Heaven .................................................................................. 87 3.3.2 The Blame of Man ................................................................................................. 93 3.4 The Feasibility of Assisting Heaven ................................................................................. 95 3.4.1 The Similarity Man Shares with Heaven ............................................................... 96 3.4.2 The Difference between Man and Heaven ........................................................... 101 3.5 The Means to Assist Heaven ........................................................................................... 106 3.5.1 Man Embraces Harmony to Transform Disharmonious Things .......................... 106 3.5.2 To Preserve Harmony through Complying with Ritual Propriety........................ 108 3.5.3 Preserving Spirit for the Maintenance of Harmony ............................................. 111 3.5.4 Knowing Heavenly Endowment, Life and Death to Preserve Harmony ............. 113 3.5.5 Transforming Bodily Temperament/Bianhua Qizhi 變化氣質 ............................ 115 3.6 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 119 Chapter 4 Humanity: the Meaning of Human Life ..................................................................... 121 4.1 The Origin and Definition of Humanity ......................................................................... 121 4.1.1 Humanity Originated from Heaven ...................................................................... 122 4.1.2 Humanity as the Mind of Compassion ................................................................. 123 4.1.3 Humanity as the Content of Human Nature ......................................................... 127 4.1.4 Humanity as the Love Complying with Principle ................................................ 128 4.1.5 Humanity as Filial Piety and Fraternal Affection ................................................ 130 vi 4.2 Humanity, Righteousness and Mind ............................................................................... 131 4.2.1 The Origin and Structure of Mind ........................................................................ 132 4.2.2 Rectifying Mind/zheng xin 正心 and Making Intention Sincere/cheng yi 誠意 .. 135 4.2.3 Preserving and Fully Unfolding One’s Mind, the Recovering of the Lost Mind . 140 4.2.4 Mind and Righteousness .....................................................................................
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