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Problems in interpretation of Menzi 3.2 - Focusing on the relation of yanㆍxinㆍqi -

Wontae Chang 1

1서울대학교

Accredited

ABSTRACT

The interpretations of Gaozi告子’s Unmoved Mind不動心 can be classified into three kinds. (1) The interpretation of ZhaoQi趙岐and SunShi孫奭, (2) the interpretation of ZhuXi朱熹 and of followers of ZhuXi, and (3) the interpretation of LiuJiuyuan陸九淵 and of followers of LiuJiuyuan. In the interpretation of ZhaoQi and SunShi, the earliest of these, there are many problems for coherently understanding Mengzi 3.2, so after the Song Dynasty, followers of their interpretations were rare. The interpretations, among these three, influential up to the present are (2) and (3). (2) ZhuXi and the commentators who were influenced by him regarded Gaozi as a Taoist or a thinker who had a similar opinion to the Taoists. According to their interpretations, Gaozi succeeded in mind being unmoved by keeping mind from the influence of yan言 and qi氣. On the contrary, Mengzi approached this problem with an active attitude, and he thought that mind can be lead to the state of being unmoved with help of zhiyan知言 and yangqi養氣. (3) LiuJiuyuan and the commentators who were influenced by him regarded Gaozi as a Mohist or a thinker who had a similar opinion to the Mohists or Xunzi implicitly. According to them, Gaozi thought that one can succeed in mind being unmoved by bringing principles or doctrines contained in yan into mind. Contrary to Gaozi, Mengzi thought that mind is the only source of ethical principles, so one could make his/her mind unmoved by focusing on mind. In (2)’s point of view, Gaozi was a thinker who focused on mind. However, in (3)’s point of view, Gaozi was a thinker who focused on yan. From these opposite interpretations, one things we can recognize is that each interpretation aims at the other. Thinkers and commentators who follow (2) see thinkers and commentators who follow (3) as Gaozi’s successors, and vice versa.

Citation status

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