Detailed Analysis of "The Analects": For All Those Who Misinterpret Confucius (26)
2006/11/9 12:00:01
Ji Kangzi asked Confucius about governance. Confucius replied: Governance is rectification. If you follow and rectify, who would dare not be rectified?
Detailed explanation: Ji Kangzi, a grandee of Lu, asked Confucius about governance. The usual interpretation goes roughly like this: "The meaning of governance is uprightness. If the ruler takes the lead in being upright, sets an example and serves as a model, who would dare not follow the upright path?" Such interpretations are all part of the age-old misunderstanding that turns Confucius into a "Lu-model" thinker. Here, interpreting "帅" as "to set an example, to lead, to guide," and "正" as "upright," turns "governance" into the Christian art of shepherding the populace. This whole bag of tricks, ancient and modern, East and West, has deceived countless innocent young men into becoming replicas of some ideology or model. Under different banners but with the same swindle, at best they become geese mistaken for ducks, at worst they become slaves and ghosts — truly pitiable. The greatest slaves are those enslaved in thought, and the most despicable among thought-slaves are those who willingly throw themselves into fire, serving as cannon fodder for garbage abstract concepts like "democracy, freedom, human rights."
In truth, this chapter follows entirely from the previous chapter's "为政以德譬，如北辰居其所而众星共之." "帅" means to follow, to comply with. "帅以正" is an abbreviation of "帅之以正之" — the omitted "之" refers to the present reality in which people participate. What can be followed is only the present reality in which people participate; what can be "正" (set right/rectified) is also only the present reality in which people participate. All the tricks that take abstract concepts and models as their starting point are merely tricks in the face of reality. "正" is an ideographic character — the top component "一" represents direction and goal, the bottom component "足" (止) represents walking toward that direction or goal without deviation. For Confucianism and The Analects, this direction or goal is practicing the "Way of the Sage" to achieve it. "以" means "and," expressing a parallel relationship. "帅" and "正," "帅之" and "正之," are parallel — indicating that neither can be neglected and that they are mutually complementary. "帅以正," in modern terminology, means following the logic of reality, starting from reality, and practicing the "Way of the Sage" to achieve it.
Similar to "北辰居其所而众星共之" — reality and the logic of reality are like the North Star. When people determine the position of the North Star, they hold that position and can correspondingly determine the positions of other stars. When people start from reality and analyze and grasp the logical structure of real-world relationships, "孰敢不正?" — other problems will correspondingly find solutions based on this foundation. No a priori or abstract principles are needed here; rather, it is "generating the foundation from no fixed position, and generating position from no fixed foundation." But people are not slaves to reality — reality must be something people participate in. Without people, there is no reality to speak of, much less any logic of reality. Reality in relation to people, according to its logic, offers various different choices. How exactly to choose constitutes the various colors of politics. The logical fulcrum of various political structures all comes from reality. This logical fulcrum is also like the North Star — once established, everything else is correspondingly built upon this foundation. For Confucianism and The Analects, this logical fulcrum of reality, where "正之" resides, is practicing the "Way of the Sage" to achieve it.
"政者，正也" — governance means establishing the logical fulcrum of practicing the "Way of the Sage" to achieve it. "子帅以正，孰敢不正？" — those who govern, by following the logic of reality, starting from reality, practicing the "Way of the Sage" to achieve it, will find that other problems correspondingly find solutions based on this foundation. What must be made clear here is that reality is the most fundamental fulcrum. The logical fulcrum of practicing the "Way of the Sage" to achieve it must and inevitably rests upon the fulcrum of reality. Separated from reality, there is no "Way of the Sage." The "Way of the Sage" is not a utopia divorced from reality. Those who dress up the "Way of the Sage" as some kind of slogan, banner, or goal, using it to drive people and making them toil for it — all have nothing to do with the "Way of the Sage," The Analects, or Confucius. Just as turning the "Communist movement" into some kind of slogan, banner, or goal, using it to drive people and making them toil for it, has nothing to do with Marx. "It is man who can broaden the Way, not the Way that broadens man" — Confucius and Marx are always so much in accord.
(To be continued)
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Replies
缠中说禅 2006/11/9 12:06:46
Today's topic is not easy to understand. Throughout history, countless so-called great thinkers have failed to penetrate this barrier. Reality versus ideals — grasping at both extremes has brewed countless tragedies.
缠中说禅 2006/11/9 12:46:06
[Anonymous] 常来看看
2006-11-09 12:38:38
There's a flavor of "non-action is action" here.
Not sure if my feeling is right. Please comment, blog host.
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Non-action and action are both just labels. One must thoroughly break free from the trap of labels; otherwise, one will forever go in circles within them.
缠中说禅 2006/11/9 12:48:19
Just noticed someone left a comment with a link again — it'll get deleted by Sina shortly. Please be aware, everyone.
Market's opening, heading off first.
缠中说禅 2006/11/9 12:04:22
Still open for business, enjoy your meal everyone.