The Four Political Treatises of the Yellow Emperor (Monographs of the Society for Asian & Comparative Philosophy) 0824820088, 9780824820084

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The Four Political Treatises of the Yellow Emperor Start of Citation[PU]University of Hawaii Press[/PU][DP]1998[/DP]End of Citation

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The Society for Asian and Comparative Philosophy Monograph Series was started in 1974. Works are published in the series that deal with any area of Asian philosophy, or in any other field of philosophy examined from a comparative perspective. The aim of the series is to make available scholarly works that exceed article length, but may be too specialized for the general reading public, and to make these works available in inexpensive editions without sacrificing the orthography of non-Western languages. Start of Citation[PU]University of Hawaii Press[/PU][DP]1998[/DP]End of Citation

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The Four Political Treatises of the Yellow Emperor Original Mawangdui Texts with Complete English Translations and an Introduction Monograph No. 15 Society for Asian and Comparative Philosophy Leo S. Chang and Yu Feng with a Foreword by Benjamin I. Schwartz

Start of Citation[PU]University of Hawaii Press[/PU][DP]1998[/DP]End of Citation

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© 1998 University of Hawai'i Press All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America 03 02 01 00 99 98

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Chang, Ch'un, 1935 Oct. 17The four political treatises of the Yellow Emperor : original Mawangdui texts with complete English translations and an introduction / Leo S. Chang and Yu Feng ; with a foreword by Benjamin I. Schwartz. p. cm. — (Monograph no. 15, Society for Asian and Comparative Philosophy) English and Chinese. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-8248-2008-8 (alk. paper) 1. Huang—ti ssu ching. 2. Philosophy, Chinese—To 221 B.C. 3. China—Politics and government—To 221 B.C. I. Feng, Yü. II. Huang-ti ssu ching. English. III. Title. IV. Series: Monograph . of the Society for Asian and Comparative Philosophy no. 15. B126.C4466 1998 181'.112—dc21 97-48960 CIP University of Hawai'i Press books are printed on acid-free paper and meet the guidelines for permanence and durability of the Council on Library Resources The costs of publishing this monograph have been defrayed in part by a Pacific Cultural Foundation subsidy Camera-ready copy prepared by the author Start of Citation[PU]University of Hawaii Press[/PU][DP]1998[/DP]End of Citation

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For Steven, Thomas, and Qi Feng Start of Citation[PU]University of Hawaii Press[/PU][DP]1998[/DP]End of Citation

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Contents Foreword

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Acknowledgments

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Abbreviations

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Introduction

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Chapter 1. The Sociopolitical Milieu and Theoretical Heritage

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Chapter 2. The Central Concern of the Four Texts: The Art of Rulership

19

Chapter 3. Guidelines for the Art of Rulership

28

Chapter 4. The Relationship of the Ruler to Ministers and to the People

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Chapter 5. The Balance between Xing and De, and between Wen and Wu

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Chapter 6. Strategies and Tactics

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Conclusion

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Notes and References

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The Four Texts of the Yellow Emperor Original Texts and Complete English Translations with Annotations

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1. The Constancy of Laws

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2. The Classics

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3. Aphorisms

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4. On Dao the Fundamental

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Appendices

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1. The Works Relevant to the Yellow Emperor Recorded in Yiwenzhi

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2. A Quantitative Analysis of the Philosophical/Political Contents of

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the Four Texts 3. Parallels between the Works of Guanzi and the Four Texts

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4. Parallels between the Sayings of Fan Li and the Four Texts

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5. Establishing the Date(s) of the Four Texts

212

Bibliography

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Index

225

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Foreword In The Four Political Treatises of the Yellow Emperor: Original Mawangdu; Texts with Complete English Translations and an Intro· duction. Leo Chang and Feng Yu provide us with a most significant and thought-provoking contribution not only to our understanding of the complexities of pre· Qin Chinese thought but also to a much richer comprehension of the nature of what might be called "State Confu· cianism" in the whole history of post-Qin China. The book consists of two parts: "Introduction" and English trans· lations of the Four Texts. The second half of the book provides us with a most pain staking scholarly translations of the most exciting texts found among the "manuscripts in silk" found al the famous Mawangdui Tomb in 1973. The translations are accompanied by five appendices which relate Ihe texts to the lively discussion now taking place among scholars about the significance of that strain of ancient Chinese thought referred to as the "Teachings of the Yellow Emperor and Laozi. " In the accompanying five appendices. we find a most convincing scholarly effort to relate these texts 10 OIher well known texts of the pre-Qin period and to place the texts within the general context of pre-Qin thought. The "Introduction " of the book goes well beyond what we generall y expect concerning introductions. It is in effect a sustained analysis of the implications of this strain of thought for the entire evolving discourse of pre-Qin thought. Above all . it also forces us to rethink the entire nature of what I would call the development of "Stale Confucianism " over the course of centuries. To the extent that the term "Confucianism" has come to be wholly identified with Confucian "idealistic" ethic of personal virtue. family morality and proper ritual behavior. the emphasi s of the "realistic " art of rulership which is so much a part not only of actual behavior but even explicit official writings on statecraft must be considered to represent a kind of "covert" unacknowledged aspect of official doctrine. Leo Chang and Feng Yu suggest that thi s "covert" tradition owes much to the strain of thought represented in these texts. The book thus raises fundamental questions concerning the nature of "Stale Confuciani sm" over the course of centuries.

Benjamin I. Schwartz

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Acknowledgments During the academic year 1991-2. the authors were both in Beijing and about to undertake a research project based on the Four Texts. or political treatises. preceding version B of the Luou. These texts were unearthed in 1973 from the number 3 forme r Han tomb at Mawangdui. Fortuitously. ou r colleagues Chen Guying and Yu Mingguang persuaded us to tran slate the Four Texts before attempting an interpretive essay on them. Thus began our project. Little did we know how difficult the translations would tum out to be. We are indebted not only to Chen Guying and Yu Mingguang but also to Ren liyu for hi s numerous and erudite notes on some five hundred pages of Yu Mingguang's handwritten commentaries on the Four Texts. Their generous help was invaluable to ollr enterprise. Since 1993. both the translations with extensive annotat ions and the interpretive essay underwent four revisions. The much-needed revi sion wou ld not have been possible without the unfailing support and encouragement of our learned coll eagues, in particular. Benjamin Schwartz and Roger Ames. We are, moreover, grateful for the suggestions made by two anonymous readers of our manuscript. Above all . we are much indebted to Henry Rosemont, Jr.. for his careful reading, expert editing and rigorous critique of our manuscript through its various stages. Without his big heart as well as his insistence on scholarly standards. we would not have accomplished what we set out 10 do. We wish to take this opportunity 10 express our appreciation to Pacific Cultural Foundation for a publication grant. We would also like to thank Lin Tongqi , Litl Xiaogan, Ma Dianjun. Yang Kai, and Geoffrey Austrian for all their kind assistance. We were fortunate to have the rich resources of the Yenching and Widener libraries al our disposallhrough our affiliation wilh the Fairbank Center as Associates in Research as well as the resources of the National Ubrary of China in Beijing. Lastly. we are grateful to our spouses Li Bing and Anneliese for their unwavering support and boundless patience. For any elTOrs in this WOrk. we, of courSe. remain solely responsible.

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Abbreviations BSI ~ Mawangdui Hanmuboshu Yi J!;::!:Jiifi;l,l;Ill1!J- (Silk Manuscripts Unearthed in Mawangdui Han Tombs, Volume I), Beijing: Wenwu Press, 1980.

=+=r

(The Works 0/ Twenty-two Masters) , Shanghai: Shanghai Ancient Classics Press. 1986.

ESEZ ::; Ershi'eni

)F ~ Mawangdui Hanmuboshu lingfa

J!;:EJiiiti;l,l;I1l;!!t. 1 This sayi ng teaches that people should assume the properly designated roles and live up to the appropriate behavior and the re spective responsibilities ~ named" by the specific position o ne occupies in a network of familial and sociopolitical relationships. This is. in a certain sense. similar to the discussion concerning the relationship between the ruler and hi s ministers and that between the father and his sons in the Four Texts. (1.4.1 -4, 1.5.1 -4 , 1.7.8) In following chapte rs we shall detail the similarities and differences between Confucianism and the Four Texts.62

Chapter 2 The Central Concern of the Four Texis; The Art of Ruler.hip "There is now ferocious contention in AII -under-Heaven." (2.3.3) The description found in the Four Texis may well characterize the time of its composition: the late Warring States period. Over five centuries of recurrent sociopolitical chaos and warfare. commencing from the end of the Western Zhou dynasty. was fast approaching its culmination. Seven powerful Slates emerged to contend for paramount leadership. If the Shiji is to be believed. especially the latter half of the Warring States period witnessed wars of progressive intensity and of enormous proportions. It was not unusual for nearty a million strong to be fielded in one battle. and if not tens of thousands. hundreds of thousands of them would perish in mortal combat I The Warring Slales period was becoming increasingly more chaotic not only because of deadl y interstate struggles but also because of savage political conflicts and vicious intrigues within each Slate. The real political authority of a slate was often wielded by certain powerful ministers; some of them even managed to usurp the throne. For example. the Tian IE family seized the government of Qi in 391 BC 2 Rebellions by commoners became more frequent and formidable. 3 Nevertheless. it is not correct to perceive this chaotic period as an entirely stagnant dark age. Besides tremendous enhancement in social mobility. the frenzied contention of the powerful states prompted accelerated socioeconomic reforms. in part initiated by the statesmenthinkers of the Spring and Autumn period. and resulted in phenomenal economic growth as evidenced by much more rapid accretion of cultivated land. remarkable growth and extension of commercial activities. rapid improvement and invention in cutting edge techniques and tool s of production . and unprecedented development of large cities."

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It may well be that such a protracted crisis of cataclysmic proportions as well as the rapid developments served as catalysts for stimulating baijia ::.hengming a~ ~~. or the "contentions of a hundred school s of thought, " an unprecedented flourishing of remarkably bold and original ideas in Chinese intellectual history. Response to this cataclysmic crisis was understandably varied. Some thinkers entenained a vision of a just and o rderl y society brought about by moral cultivation. while others grappled with the fundamental questions of life and death from a radically individualistic standpoint. And there were the realists who envisioned a unified and orderly empire pacified by pragmatic policies of Realpolitik.

Different visions of what constitutes a good society or "what o ught to be" are reflected in the way the prevailing crisis is perceived. The very same crisi s is differently perceived because of the varying visions of "what ought to be." and different perception s. in tum. result in dissi milar diagnoses of the root causes of the crisi s. And. of course . the prescripti on/remedy based on varying diagnoses would call for different measures to bring about the institution and/o r restoration of "what ought to be. " For o ur present purpose of characterizing the Four Texts. we shall briefly categorize the thinkers into the following groups:

m*

Ya ng Zh u and Zhuang Zi 5 represented thinkers of the first group. Unremitting violence of interstate warfare devouring countless lives in seemingly senseless slaughter provided the motif for Yang Zhu and Zhuang Zi ts reflection o n the meaning of life and death from the standpoint of an individual. Although the system of Zhuang Zi's philosoph y is mo re comprehensive and profound . its central concern is not all that different from that of Yang Zhu. Both are indiv idually oriented. Yang Zhu taught that one should care about nOlhing but individual existence.6 Zhuang Zi yearned for a mystical realm beyond society and even beyond space and ti me where an individual might secure and enjoy maxi mum freedom.7 As for government. he considered it dregs and nuisance to man's sponta neous nature.R All cosmological .

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epistemological and ethical discourses are excoriated in the Zhllflngti. which ultimately aims at transcending the miseries of this worldly life and reaching the mystical rea1m.

Mo Zi (c.a. 480-400 Be) and such eminent Confucians as Meneius (372·289 Be) and Xun Zi (fl. 298-238 Be) represented the thinkers of the second group. Although Confucians and Mohists regarded each other as rivals. in contrast to the first group. they were intensely interested in political and ethical issues. For them, ethical and political issues are integrated: the basis of good politics is the proper ethical relationship between various members of a society. Thus their theories were designed for both the rulers and the common people. and they acted as teachers 10 both rulers and commoners.9 Moreover. they believed that the efforts to transfonn society into a better one of peace. stability. and harmony should start with individual moral cultivation. as prescribed by a noted Confucian maxim: 10 Their persons being cultivated, their families were regulated. Their families being regulated, their states were rightly governed. Their states being rightly governed. the whole kingdom was made tranquil and happy. The thinkers who were later called "Legalists" such as Shang Yang jft!¥!k. (390-338 Be). Shen Buhai $1'=~ (c.a 38>337 Be). and Han fei .oJ!=- (280-233 Be) represented the third group. Clearly. their central concern was the art of rulership. and the works attributed to them are primarily treatises on the practical political affairs of the state. viz .. how to attain supremacy over other states and how to establish powerfully centralized political authority and its corollary insti tutions and practices. Shang Yang and Shen Buhai were respectively chief ministers of Qin and Han: it is no wonder then that they were largely preoccupied with the critically urgent issues of the state. Han Fei. ho wever, did engage in serious philosopt'lical exploration; II his philosophical discourse served to provide the theoretical underpinning for practical political conduct of the state. 12

The last group of thinkers were certain specialists who paid attention 10 Iheir respective areas of inlt:resl. viz., professiOflal and technical issues such as logic. semantics. agriculture. military art, astrology. geograph y. etc. n While their speciali zed ex.pertise met particular needs in their respectively defi ned areas. none among them offered a comprehensive vision for transforming the Chinese world in crisis. Is there a significant similarity between the characteristic pattern of thought of the Four Texis and any of the groups specified above? Some scholars seem to have viewed the Four Texts as essential ly philosophical writings. Hence. they have tried to analyze and evaluate th e metaphysical. cosmological. epistemological andlor moral philosophical significance of the Four Texts. For instance. there were heated debates about the nature of Dao mentioned in the f'our Texts: Some believed it is a M materialist" concept whereas some others thought it "ideali st. "14 Such a perception of the Four TexIS and the methodology that naturally foJl ows fro m thi s questionable premise fai ls to discern the true orientati on or central concern of the Four TexIs. T he central concern of the Four TexIs is z.hushu .:tUr o r the art of rulership. This is not to say that the Four Texts has nothing to do with metaphysics. cosmology, etc. It does. but not as its central concern. What then is :hushu or the art of rulership? Etymologically, zhu .t denotes the ruler and shu fifJ deno tes method o r technique. In Chi nese history. thi s concept has also been call ed zhudao .:tm or the way of rulers hip. and nanmianshu mOOfiJj or the "art of those facing southward. "15 Modem scholars often identify thi s concept with quanshu tWlUj, a term burdened with pejorative connotations, for it often refers to. if not immoral . at least amoraJ techniques and intrigues of the powers that be. in ex.ercising effective control over the rul ed and in eliminating political adversaries. 16 To be sure. zhushu may well include quanshu. but it is a more comprehensive conccpt. Zhushu connotes the followi ng: I) the reali stically crafted policies wh ich lead a) to supremacy over rival stales and then 10 unique rulership over "AII-under-Heaven ." b) poI iticaJ stability, a nd c) well -being for all; 2) the prope r strategies which

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guarantee successful implementation of the correct policies: 3) efficient skill s or lactics a) 10 strengthen the position of ruler in political struggles and b) to control bureaucracy ; 4) the spiritual training or cultivation to enable the ruler 10 nurture sufficient energy to govern the country ,17

The art of rulership is a practical art dealing with human behavior and events. Human behavior and events are in constant flU)(,1 8 and they do

not lend themselves to precise replication in laboratories because of the very nature of human data that are inherently volatile, contingent and Iransilory :19 human behaviors are driven by unpredictable will, feelings. passions. beliefs as well as reason. We humans are highl y complex beings. The Four TexIs tries to distill general lessons from China's history that tell us about: I) the nature of human beings and the human polity caught in a constant state of flux: 2) the art of rulership as a practical art grappling with ever-shifting vortices of events and personalities: and 3) what worked and what did not work under sim ilar but not replicable circumstances. thereby providing some kind of guidelines for the imponderables of the future . These are the human events that cannot be neatly managed by the great progenitors of Rationalism. namely. Descartes and Bacon. presumably armed with the watertignt techniques (viz. Novum Organum) designed to guarantee certitude. 2o We should no te with care that disproportionately large segments of the Four Texis are devoted to practi cal guidelines on direct political issues. with onl y a passi ng mention of philosophical thoughts or themes. and also to the concrete political applications of philosophical theo ri zing to public policies and strategies. These two categories are exclusively presented from the perspeclive of a s upreme ruler. These categories constitute approximately 92 percent of the Four Texts.21 There are indeed significant sections of the Texts thai pertain 10 metaphysical. cosmological . or ethical themes. These issues. however. are almost always discussed in the context of zhushu. In o ther word s. the empnasis is clearl y on the reali stic. pragmatic22 political relevance of metaphysical. cosmological and/or ethical thoughts and themes.

For instance. a phiiosophicaJ discourse on cosmologicaJ process aims at establishing perennially recurrent and natural cosmological pallern as a nonnative model so as to rationalize the appropriateness as well as the timeliness for the fmIDulation and implementation of particular policies and strategies under consideration. The analysis of yin and yang aims at devisi ng correct strategies and modus operandi for the ruler to guarantee the desired outcome. The logic behind the necessity of correcting by means of "name" and "reality"23 likewise aims at providi ng the ruler with an efficient means of appointing. investigating. and evaluating the performance of hi s ministers and thereby effectively controlling the various affairs of the state. The discou rse on ethical concepts aims at inculcating the people with proper values so that they will do thei r utmost for the ruler on their own. Whi le largely preoccupied with the art of rulership. the teachings of the Four Texis a re essentially prescriplive: they are not purely descriptive. Therefore. it speaks of "what men ought to do" not simply "what men do."z" However. the Four Texts does not specifically argue against the prescription of "government by virtuous example" or "government by righteousness." nor does it explicitly deliberate on politicall y relevant philosophical questions concerning the origines) of civil society. the nature of human beings. the problematic relationship between the individual and society. the nature and function of polilical power and authority. the vision of the good society or "what ought to be." as. for instance. Confucius's vision of the good society. Mo Z;'s account of the origin of civil society.2S and Xun Zi's theorizing on human nature and society.26 However implicilfy. the Four Texis does address these political and philosophical queslions: 21 in particular. il shares Ihe common concern for peace and sociopolili caJ order. economic security and the general well-being of the people and harmonious social relations with Confucians. Mohists and other great thinkers of the class ical period. The difference is that while these thinkers studied human nalure and society from the critical perspective of phil osophers and teachers. the

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authors of the Four Texts studied the same issues from the practical perspective of chief ministers or advisors 10 the supreme ruler. Hence. the prototype of the Four Texts should be traced back to Guan Zhong, Zi Chan. and Fan U. This influence suggests that the author(s) of the Four Texts placed g reater emphasis on practical political lessons learned through the "comprehensive mirror" of Ch inese history than on idealistic mora] philosophy or abstract political theori zing. This is understandable inasmuch as the Four Texis was crafted as a handbook for the ruler and the ruling elites. The distinction between a philosopher/teacher of Confucian-Mohist persuasion and a statesman-thinker. however. should not be overstated . On the one hand . the fonner is not merely an idealistic philosopher who criticizes the sociopolitical pathologies from the perspective of a n outsider. Quite a few Confucians and Mohists were involved in political administration o n various levels. Confucius himself. for example. once served as a minister of Lu. On the other hand . the latter is not merely a consummate practitioner of statecraft who rejects any attempt at speculation. Guan Zhong. Zi Chan. and Fan Li were among the most profound thinkers of their time. Zi Chan. for instance. provided us with a sophisticated exposition of guishen 9il.1* or spi ritual being and the relationship between lian 7C (Heaven) and man. Inasmuch as the Four Texts inherited the tradition of the Spring and Autumn thinkers. the salient thoughts and themes of the Four Texts do not remain strictly in the realm of concrete. practical political issues. Such philosophical concepts as Dao and Ii (principle) serve as theoretical and normative principles underpinning practical political action. However. the emphasis of the statesmen-thinkers is clearly on practical political action and action consequences. In the Four Texts. as in the thoughts of the Spring and Autumn statesmen- thinkers. the prescriptive values and norms are very much couched in terms of action consequences. This is no t to say that the Texts entirely discount the motive undergirding action o r policy, but it does mean that a pursuit of ethically pure motives as an end in itself. regardless of action consequences. is rejected because it is not neces-

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sa ril y good. An ethically well -intentioned act o r policy may even

produce a consequence that is precisely the opposite of what is intended . T herefore. what constitutes an ethically good act or policy is differentl y perceived a nd hence prescriptive values and norms would vary accord ingly,28

In the Four Tex/s. the practical political success or failure of an enterprise is the center of concern. A policy or strategy is good because il produces beneficial results for the ruler and the ruled. not because it accords with some moral standard regardless of consequences. Therefore. such terms as success and failure, rise and fall . gain and loss. that occur with ge nerous frequency thro ughout the Four Texts refer to practical. political action consequences. The prescriptive fonn ula [or a successful political action read s: A ruler must do X and must not do Y because by doing X success will be achieved while by doing Y failure is unavoidable. The seventh sectio n of the Rrst Text is entitled Wa ng/un -L ~ or "Discourse on the Ruin (of Countries)" which enumerates a series of political maJpractices (which also happen to be villainous) and warns the ruler to refrain from commining them because they shall certainly lead 10 undesirable political consequences. such as the ruin of the country. And Ihe prior section focu ses on the correct political conduct thai leads 10 s uccess. By contrast. Confucians placed great emphasi s on motives of polilical actio n. Once Mencius persuaded a ruler of a smal l state to carry OUI the policy of benevolence and righteousness. and he was asked by the ruler if success may be secured by such action. He then answered. a ruler should onl y consider if the way of government is correct. "As for success. that is the business of Heaven." Confucianism represented by Menciu s stressed the centrality of moral culti vation. The Confucian virtues of human -heartedness. righteousness. loyalty. sincerity. public-spiritedness. elc .. were tho ught to be innate in the original nalure of man. If everyone realized this and fo llowed their innately good nature. then social relations would nOI be dri ven by selfinterest. lust for wealth and poWer. arrogance. jnhunlanilY al ~ d vio lence.

27 and there would be no cause for rebellion and disorder in the world . Xun Zi. another Confucian master of the time. stressed the role of ceremonies and music. If all the classic riles and ~remonies are properly observed, the ruler would find no difficulty in governing. Similarly. Mohism believed that the rOOI cause of c haos was in the egois m and haired among people. If on ly they could replace egoism and hatred with uni ve rsa l love , there would be great harmony and peace. The prescriptions of these thinkers for remedying the prevailing ills were considered quite idealistic and could hardly be adopted by the rulers of

the lime.

Confuciani sm. especially of the Mencian persuasion . is an ethically oriented ideali sm.29 whereas the dominant pauem of thought in the Four Texts is best characterized as pragmatically oriented political reali sm predicated on the primacy of a calculus of interest as the driving force behind human conduct . Therefore. we can conclude that the Four Texts is similar to the third g roup of Shang Yang and Shen Buhai becau se of their rommon cenlrai concern, namely. zhushu or the art of rulership. More specifically. there are remarkabl e similarities between the Four Texts and the HanfeW inasmuch as they espouse similar philosophical approaches 10 the art of rult:rship, whereas Shang Yang's political discourse remains strictly in the realm of concrete, practical political issues. devoid of philosophical speculation.

Chapter 3 Guidelines for the Art of Rulership Throughout the Four Texts , we find a series of ideas that constitute the basic tenets of the art of rulership. I. Holding to Dao, and Following Li (Principles)

m

The word Dao appears in the Four Texts 62 times. Although Zhuang Zi warned that one will never fully apprehend Dao,1 inasmuch as it is the central thought under consideration. we shall attempt to approximate it. Transliterated as Oao, and often rendered as the Way. the word originally deno tes a road which. without being teleological. leads to a destinat;on.2 Later. il is extended to imply established rules or laws.) As a philosophical concept. Dao denotes the general and objective law of change and transformation, which is considered by certain thinkers4 as the source or epitome of a1lthings. Dao described in the Four Texts is not differe nt from the common understanding in much of pre -Qin literature. There are several descripti ons of the features of Dao and the longest one appears in the last Text. In short . the following features are allri buted to Dao: First. it exists without a beginning. (2. 12.4. 3. 1. 1. 4 . 1.4)5 Even before the creatio n of Heaven and Earth, Dao was already there. (4.1.1) As mentio ned above. Dao is the general law of change and trdnsfonnation. Matters big and small all have their beginning and end . but the law of c hange itself will never change. ( 2.9.1) In thi s se nse. the Four Texts reflects. like all of classical Chinese thought. an idea of Dao as everlasti ng. Second. Dao gives birth to all things. and Ihey wi ll relurn 10 Dao when their lives come to an end. (4. 1. 1) Thus. Dao is the ultimate source of all things. and nothing can be compared to it. (4.1.4) To give birth to things does not cause any decrease in Dao itself; nor will Dao increase when all things return to it. (4. 1.4)

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Third. Dao is formless and invisible. (1.1.2) yet is omnipresent. (4.1.3)

All the things are what they are because they partake of Dao's principles (Ii. Jg!) and must observe the law without exception. Dao is empty and nameless. (4.1.3) However. it responds to aJllhings. (3.1.1)

Fourth. Dao exists independently. (4.1.2) Nothing can change its function or order it to do something. (4.1.2) All things have to follow Dao but it does not depend on things. 6 These descriptions seem ontological and cosmological. perhaps even mystical. They may be influenced by lao Zi.7 and si miiardescriptions can be found in many other works of the Warring States thinkers. For example. in chapter 6 of the Zhuangz;. we read: s

The Way (Dao) has its reality and its signs but is without action or form . You can hand it down but you cannol receive it: you can gel it but you cannot see it. It is its own source. its own root. Before heaven and earth existed it was there. firm from ancient times. It gave spirituality to the spirits and to God; it gave birth to Heaven and Earth. However. the emphasi s of the Four TexIS in discussi ng Dao is different from such thinkers as Zhuang Zi who was primarily interested in the abstract speculation on Dao as well as taking an individualist ani tude toward Oao. On the contrary, the Four Texts discu sses Dao in the context of the art of rulership. Therefore. immediately following a lengthy description of Oao. the last Text concludes that to know and (0 ho ld (0 Dao is vitaJly important because: When a sage king applies this (Oao) in governing. AII-underHeaven will obey him .... If the ruler grasps Dao and observes the regulations. All-under-Heaven will be united as one. (4.1.6-4.1.8) Thus. the Four Texts discusses Dao from the perspective of a ruler. Although all the ordinary people are because of Oao. they are not aware of it. (4.1.3) We do not find any mention in the Four TexIs about how the common people sho uld cultivate themselves in compliance with Oao.

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In some sections. it is said that a ruler should pay respect to those who know DaD. (e.g.• 1.4.23) However. it is the ruler alone who call Zhiduo

fA. ill or "hold 10 Dao." (I. J .11.

1.8.4. 4. J .8)

To hold to Dao is the mosl fundamental requirement for a ruler. The Four Texts reiterates this theme again and again. For a ruler holding to Dao is 10 model after DaD. The descriptions of the fealUres of Dao aim al telling the ruler how to emulate il. in other words. how to approximate

and model himself after Ihe salient features of DaD. Of course. the ruler. as a mere mortal. 9 can never equal Oao, for it "is peerless." (4.1.4) But modeling after Dao is the way of mastering the art of rulership. Dao is One. nO( many. Thus, in mooeling after Dao, it is the ruler alone who must exercise the unique authority. Ruling by one/oneself (auto+kratos. afrtos Kj)(nos) is precisely autocracy. an absolute. centralized power and

authority. Moreover. a ruler ought not allempt to micromanage the myriad concrete affairs of the slate but firmly grasp the key to governing. In so doing. he will come to exercise a full control over the various affairs of the state. The Second Text says: (However). a hundred words have their basis. a thousand words have their epitome. and ten thou sand words have their conclusion. So many are the myriad things yet all of them come out of one hole. Who can understand this truth except a person of rectilUde? It must be a person of rectitude who can take no rmality as measures to rectify the abnormal. It is he who can hold the One in order to know the many. (2.9.4) Furthermore. Dao is empty. formless. lVuwei Jffl:~ or without unnatural activity. and harmonious. These are the feature s that the ruler ought to emulate. At this point. we need to examine the interrelationship between three concepts: U WI. or Principles. shun l'i or compliance. and ni ~ or rebelliousness. as a logical extension of the theme of modeling after Dao. Dao. as noted above. connotes the most general law of change transforming all things. Principles mean "that which makes a thing what it is" or specific laws -- - understood in the sense of the nature of things ---

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which are (he particularized manifestations of Dao in myriad concrete beings. Like Dao. principles are also objective: All things ( having laws) of their own {thai accord with Dao}

are called principles. (To abide) where principles exisl is called (compl iance). Doing things not according wilh Dao is called losing principles. (To abide in) where principles are losl is called rebelliousness. (1.6.7)10

This saying clearly defines principles. compliance. and rebelliousness. A ruler of compliance leads to the security, stability. and rise of hi s counlry while a ruler of rebelliousness leads to the ruin a nd extinclion of

his nalion. Therefore. the same section says: Rebelliousness and compliance manifesl lhemselves and Ihereby existence and death. the rise and fall (of countries). can be understood. (1.6.7) In the Four Texts . compliance and rebelliousness are often analyzed in terms of gains and losses. existence and death. orderliness and chaos. and rise and fall. (e.g .. 1.5.2) II strongly suggests that the benefit of holding to Dao and following the principles is a manifest conclusion inductively distilled from historical experiences. and not a purely logical deduction from abstract ideas of metaphysics. The teachings of the Four

Texis arc predicated on taking actions in one's interest. They teach the rulers that they have to hold fa st to Dao and to follow the principles: otherwise. losses and disasters will be unavoidable. There are many such warnings in the Four Texis . Section 5 of the First Text. for example. advances a serious warning: When internal (domestic) affairs are administered in compliance (with Dao and principles) while external (foreign) affairs are rebelliously managed. success will be achieved accompanied with harm . When internal affairs are rebellious ly managed while external affairs are administered in compliance (with Dao and principles). success wi ll be achieved. accompanied with (the prospect of) ruin . If both internal and external affairs are (conducted in a) rebellious (manner). it is called a double disaster. The ruler himself will be so endangered as to be killed. and hi s country so endangered as to be ruined. (1.5.5)

Therefore. holding to Dao and following principles for a ruler is primarily driven by interest considerations rather than complying with metaphysical or moral imperatives. If a ruler does not want to be killed and have hi s throne usurped by another. he must behave in compliance with 030 and the principles. The theory of the application of Oao as well as principles to gove rnment taught in the Four Texts is similar to the Guanzi and the HanJei'l.i which are perhaps respectively prior and jX)sterior to the Four Texts. The Guanzi says: II There is a constant Dao in governing people. and there is a constant law for the growth of state revenue. Dao is the key to myriad things. When a ruler hold s the key in dealing with hi s subjects. they will not dare to usurp hi s authority even though they are evil and hypocritical. In the "Yang Quan" mtt. "lie Lao" m;.g; and " Ya Lao" ~~ chaplers. Han Fei advances lengthy discussions on Oao. and the aim of his discussion is precisely (he same as the Four Texts: learning how to apply Dao to (he art of rulership. Things have their respective principles and therefore cannot trespass against each other. Inasmuch as thing s have their respective principles and therefore cannot trespass against each other. principles are determinants of things and everything has a uniquc principle. Inasmuch as everything has its unique principle and Oao disciplines the principles of all things. 10aoi has to go through the process of transformation. Inasmuch as 10aoi has to go through the process of transformation. 10aoi has no fixed frame lof activity I. Since 10aoi has no fixed frame lof activity). the course of life and death depends ujX)n Oao: the wisdom of the myriad kinds confonns to il. and the rise and fall of myriad affairs is due to 11.12 It is worth noting that Guan Zi and Han Fei's ideas of principles (Ji llM}

including their definition of principles. \3 are very simi lar to the teachings of the Four Texts while other thinkers of the pre-Qi n times seldom use this concept in their writings.

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II. Modeling after Heavea and Earth The theme of modeling after Dao and Ii is now extended to lion 1C and di Jt!!.. A dyadic pair or a pair of conlraposed lenns, lion and di frequently occur with the all-important term Dao in the Four Texts. The word lian occurs 241 times and 68 times it is paired with di. In most

inSlaIlces lion appears to connole a natural substance which consists of a series of astro-meteorological phenomena such as the movement of the heavens, the four seasons. and the sunshine and rain. For instance. the

First Tex.t says: The schedule of the sun. the moon and the stars. the specified periods of the four seasons, the modes of (moving and resting]. the space of inside and outside. are the rules of heaven. (1 .5. II )

In a few sections. however. (e.g .. 2.5.2) lian is endowed with some power to punish o r to reward people. In one place. the term -huanglian ~:7i:: or "Lord Heaven" is used: Of old. Lord Heaven sent its emissary phoenix to transmit nothing but one word to the world. (2.9.2) Here. "Heaven " seems like a personal God . Is there any inconsistency? We should endeavor to understand it in the context of Chinese thought. Tian is one of the most significant categories in the history of Chinese reli gion and philosophy. In different systems of thought and in different periods, it has been so diversely or ambiguo usly explained that we can hardly specify a precisely parallel term in the English language that conveys the range of complex and nuanced meanings in Chinese. 14 In different contexts. it may be respective ly rendered as God. Heaven. heavens. sky. Nature. the nature of man. spontaneity. elc. IS As we have seen in foregoing discussion. during the Western Zhou period. lian was understood mainly as a personal deity. In the Spring and Autumn period. however. this tern} was transfonned by some thinkers to denote a natural entity just as described in the Four Texts.

34

[)j

itt!. denotes the earth.

Section I of the First Text says:

The constant (patterns) of heaven and earth are: the four seasons. day and night. nourishing and withering (according to the four seasons). the soft and hard attributes (of yin and yang ). (1.1.10)

Obviously. heaven and earth. when mentioned together. are mainly natural entities. Nevertheless. the discussion in the Four Texis on heaven and earth is not irrelevant to politi cs inasmuch as it focuses on the art of rulership. The Four Texis reiterates thaI a ruler must model himself after heaven and eanh in governing his country. The first section of the Second Text. for example. describes that when the Yellow Emperor ascended the throne. he pledged to "follow the example of the eanh in being vasl " and 10 "follow the example of heaven in having great illumination. " (2.1 .3) Why mu st a ruler fo ll ow the examples of heaven and earth? And how is this done? On the one hand. heaven and earth manifest Dao in the most demonstrative way. The movements of the heavens and earth vividly illustrate (he general tendency of change and transformation. namely, the cyclical movement of returning to the starting point when the climax is reached. Section 5 of the First Text. obviously inherited from the Gunnzi and Fan U's sayings on Ihe Dao of Heaven.to says: To climax and to return. to flouri sh and to wane is the Dao of heaven and earth as well as the principle of human affai rs. ( 1.5.9) Therefore. in making political plans. a ruler ought to investigate and refer to the movements of heaven in order to ascertain success. If a ruler goes again st heaven and earth. i.e .. ignores the objective tendency of change. he will suffer great loss. Section 8 of the First Text says: If one's achievement transgresses (the ways of) heaven. then there is punishment by death. If one's achievement is not enough as heaven requires. then one retreats without any fame . If one's achievement accords with heaven. one will thereby atlain great fame. It is the principle of (human I affairs. One who complies wi ll

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enjoy life: one who follows the principles will succeed; one who is rebellio us will suffer death: one who loses (will have nol fame. ( 1.8. 2)

On the other hand. modeli ng oneself after heaven and earth also mean s to emulate them in a more direct and concrete manner. Thi s reminds us of the lengthy slatement of Zi Chan on modeling after heaven and earth quoted above. 17 According to the author(s) of the Four Texts.

all the social institutions. policies and strategies as well as the behavior of the rulers. if they are 10 be efficacious in securing success, ought to be modeled after heaven and earth, Numerous analogies are drawn between natural phenomena and social rea lities to e lucidate the unfa iling correlati vity between the m. and the rel a ti o ns hip between the four

sea sons and human activ iti es seem s to be the most obviou s and freq uentl y used example to illustrate the poi nt. Section 3 of the First Text. for example. states that "Heaven ordai ns the time to li ve and to die. Simi larl y. a nation has its governa nce over life and death." (1.3. 5) Here the "time to li ve" connotes spring and summ er because in these two seasons li ving beings fl o uri sh. whereas the "time to die" conno tes autumn and winter. because in these two seasons li ving beings wither or go into hibernation. As for the "governance over life and death ." it mainly implies the two governing measures: rewards and puni shments. The rewards and puni shments are issued by rulers in imitation of the warm and cold seasons respectively. Social distinction between classes is considered by the Four TexIs as another important concept that the ruler established in imitating heaven and earth. the very same as what Zi Chan stated. Section 4 of the Second Text tries to demonstrate that the social distinc tion between the ruler and the ruled and between the no ble and the humble is no t onl y natural but also necessary and reasonable because heaven and earlh manifest a variety of dyadic polarities. such as day versus night. mountains versus lakes. black earth versus chal ky soil. fertile land versus barren land. elc. Therefore. a ruler must create and maintain proper social distinctions.

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Thus. the idea of modeling oneself after heaven and earth is repeatedl y and elaborately stressed in the Four Texts , and. to be sure. it plays a significant role in the art of rulership. We should nOle. however. that Ihis idea was quite common during the Warring States period. Mo Zi. for example. stales in the chapter 4 of his works: 18 What should be taken as a model for government? I have said that the best is to model oneself after Heaven. The movement of Heaven is all -embracing without personal favorites. its endowment is rich without self-praise. and its illumination lasts long without cessati on. Therefo re. the sage-kings modeled themselves after Heaven. Since we know one should model oneself after Heaven. one must refer to Heaven to determine one's actions. One must do what Heaven desires and stop doing what Heaven does not desire.

Many Confucian works of the Warring States period al so advocate the idea of modeling oneself after heaven and earth. A typical e xpressio n is fo und in the " Music ~ chapter of the Records of RUes. 19 According to it. rites. music. benevolence. righteousness. as well as the di stinction between the ruler and the subjects. and between the nobl e and the humble. were all establi shed by ancient sages in imitating heaven and earth. In Lush; Chunqiu 8 ff.!fitX(Lil's Almanac).20 the most represen tative work of the :ajia or the Eclectic School. modeling oneself after heaven and earth is one of the central ideas: 21 In ancient times. both those who concentrated on se lfcultivatio n and those who engaged themselves in government over All -under-Heaven necessaril y modeled them selves after heaven and earth. According to Lush; Chunqiu. both the ruler and those devoted to self-cultivation should model themselves after heaven and earth. In the Zhuangz;. ho wever. the emphasis is exclusivel y on individual selfcultivation. The chapter 18 of this book says: 22 The inaction of heaven is its purity. the inaction of earth is its peace . So the two inaction s combine and all thin gs are

37

transformed and brought to birth. Wonderfully, mysteriously, there is no place they come out of. Mysteriously. wonderfully, they have no sign. Each thing minds its business and all grow up o ut of inaclion. So I say. heaven and earth do nothing and there is nothing not done. Among men, who can get hold of this inaction?

Contrary to Zhuang Zi. the Four Texts discusses the ideas of modeling oneself after heaven and earth only in the context of the art of rulership; it has nothin g to say a bout ordinary people mode ling themselves after heaven and earth and engaging in self-cullivation. Again. in this regard. the Four Tuts follows the teachings of the Spring and Autumn slatesmen-thinkers. 23

The concepts of Oao. principles. mooeling oneself after heaven and earth . and of compliance and rebelliousness. taught by the Four Texts,aJl suggest that a ruler not act according to his personal likes and dislikes. These concepts constitute objective model s or standards for the ruler to follow. This teaching, which can be traced back as early as the Z hou concept of ze and seems a direct heritage f rom the Spring and Autumn statesmen-thinkers. is central to the Four TexIs. The existence of these objecti ve standards by no means suggests that the ruler be completel y passive. The Four Texts mai ntains that the superior ruler plays such an active and majestic role in the universe that he is comparable to heaven. (2.1.2)

III. Abiding by Laws and Regulations As the fi rst sentence of the Four Texts clearly states, when Dao is applied to government. it directly produces fa it or laws.24 "It is o ut of Dao that the law comes into being." (1.1.1) Another term similar to fa is du 1.l o r regulations. If the ruler competently governs hi s country with clearly establi shed laws and regulati ons, it will lead to orderliness. prosperity and strength. Section 3 of the First Text states: Laws and regulations represent the supreme rectitude. Those who govern with laws and regulations can never suffer chaos and instability. (1.3.7)

3" Since laws and regulations are born of Oao, they are also objective model s and standards. For thi s reason. the Four Texts often resorts to metaphors and similes in comparing laws and regulations to yardsticks. rulers. compasses. scales. a nd o ther tool s. (1.1.7. 1.5.11) With the establishment of objective criteria. the ruler can establish and main tain order and control over hi s domain. no ma uer how numerous and complex the affairs of the slale may be. In this manner. a ruler handles state affai rs with ease without perplexity. The Third Text says: To measure with surveying equipment will avoid mi stakes. To observe with astrono mical instruments will remove perplexity. A country governed according to laws will not be in disorder. (3. 1.5) The Four Texis emphasizes the constancy of laws. ( 1.1.10) When laws and regulations have been form ul ated. there is no reason to change them frequentl y. Since heaven and earth have their constant ways of functioning without c hange. the rulers should follow their examples in upho lding law s and regulatio ns as consta nt rules. (1. 1.10) The Four Texis. therefore. warns that any attempt to capricio usly change constant rules will be disastrous. The Third Text says: To change Dao will not lead 10 benefit but to detriment. It does not lead to progress but to regression. Disasters will befall the one who initiates the changes. (3. 1.4) Another emphasi s of the Four Texts is that the ruler himself must observe the laws and regulations he promulgates. It is in this context that the Four TexIs points out the antithetical tension between oppositi on

gong i; and si fL. . Generally speaking. gong mean s public interests whereas si means private interests. In the Four Texis. however. gong mainl y connotes o bjective rules. i.e,. laws and regulations while si mainl y connotes the personal likes and dislikes of the ruler. To govern the country well . a ruler must bridle and bring under control hi s subjective. personal preferences so that he is di sciplined enough to adhere to the o bjective standards of laws and re gulati o ns. Altho ugh law s are formulated by him by mode ling the m after Dao and Principle s. nevertheless. he "dares not violate them." (1 . 1. 1) If a ruler casts away the

39

laws and regulations but runs hi s country as he pleases. be will suffer disasters. The Third Text warns:

In general. one must not discard laws and replace them with personal desires. Personal desires must not be used (as standards of conduct), Otherwise disasters will befall. (3.1.18)

Clearly. the teachings of the Four Texts inherit the ideas of fa from the Spring and Aulumn statesmen-thinkers. and parallel those of Shen Buhai. Shang Yang. Sheo Dao and Han Fei. A few selections should serve to illustrate our point:

Sheo Buhai says:!..'i The sage -k ings depended on law s instead of wisdom in government. And they employed quantitative measures instead of (impractical) theories. When the Yellow Emperor ruled over AIIunder-Heaven. he formulated laws and never changed them in order to make the people satisfied and pleased with the laws.

Shang Yang says:26 The early kings hung up scales with standard weights. and fixed length of feet and inches. and to the present day they are followed as models. because their divi sions were clear. Now dismissing standard scales and yet deciding weight, or abolishing feet and inches and yet forming an opinion about length . even an intelligent merchant would not apply thi s system , because it would lack defi niteness. Now, if the back is turned on models and measures. and reliance is placed on private appraisal. in all those cases there would be a lack of definiteness. Shen Dao says:27 Even if laws are not good enough. still to have them is better than to have no law at all because there is no o ther means except laws to unify the minds of people .... Laws and rites are established to manifest the public interests in order to remove private interests. And Han Fei says:28

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The skillful carpenter. though able to mark the inked string with his s urveying eyes and calculating mind. always takes compasses and squares as measures before hi s marking; the great geni us. though able to accomplish hi s task with swifl move. always takes the law of the early kings as the ruler before his accomplishment. Thus. if the inked string is straight. crooked timbers will be shaved; if the water- level is even. high gnarls will be planed down .

Similarly. if weights and balances are well hung up. what is too heavy will be decreased ; once pecks and bushels are established. what is 100 much will be decreased and what is too liule will be increased. Hence to govern the state by law is to praise the right and blame the wrong. The law does nOI fawn on the noble: the Siring does nOI yield 10 the crooked. Whatever the law applies to.

the wise cannot reject nor can the brave defy. Punishment for fault never skips ministers. rewa rd for good never misses commoners. Allhough these Warring States thinkers and the Four Texts share many ideas in common. the differences between them should be noted. It is the Four Texts that explic:illy states that Dao is the source of laws while this notion is only implied in the other writings. In addition. the Four Texts does not consider standardi zed laws and prudential wisdom as mutually exclusive. The ruler should be wise. He should be able to in vestigate and handle both things normal. i.e .. within the bounds of fixed laws and regulations. and those abnonnal . i.e.• outside the fixed laws and regulations. In thi s sense. the First Text prai sed the ruler with sagely wisdom: Dao is the source of mysterious wisdom.Z9 Mysterious wisdom is the ability for one to stand inside the measure and to see those outside the measure. Being able to stand (inside I the measure. he is trusted though uttering no word. Being able to see those outside the measure. he makes his words indisputable. Being able to stand inside the measure. he is free from motion when in tranquillity. Being able to see those outside the measure. he is free from transformation in activity . Because he is free from motion in tranquillity and free from transformation in activity. we call his wisdom mysterious. Mysterious wisdom is the key to correctly seeing and knowing. (1.9.1) By contrast. Shang Yang and Shen Dao believed thai whether a ruler is intelligent or not is not important as long as he follows laws.

Chapter 4 The Relationship of the Ruler to Ministers and to the People Requiring the rulers to abide by laws did not imply that socia] distinction between the ruler and the ruled should be eliminated. GeneraJly. the transition from feuda] system to the centra]ized imperial system was to strengthen the power and authority of the ruler. not the contrary . During the chaotic process of development. however. the relationship between rulers and subjects became uncertain due to the unprecedented social mobility and the breach of the obsolete system s during the Warring States period. Quite a few rulers. as mentioned in the foregoing discussion. lost their powers to usurpers. At least one case is mentioned in which a ruler esteemed a worthy so highly that he willingl y yielded hi s throne to him. and thereby plunged hi!'> state into a civil war. I Meanwhile. there appeared theories which challenged the absolute authority of the ruler. Mo Zi proposed that the king should be selected from among the most worthy. Mencius counseled that a ruler should be replaced if he was moraJly reprehensible and no longer fit to govern. Hui Shi advocated eliminating the distinction between the noble and the humble. What then is the correct relationship between a ruler and hi s subjects? The Four Texis clearty understands the critical need to uphold political authority especially in a precarious and volatile milieu . and responds to the question from the standpoint of a ruler. The ruler ought not be replaced by anyone considered the most worthy and capable. Rather. he need s able assistants and advisors. not usurpers. As Hobbes warned in hi s Leviathan. without an effective political authority. a political community would disintegrate. The correct relationship between the supreme ruler and the mini sters prescribes that the ministers must be absolutely loyal to the ruler. This is. of course. in sharp contrast 10 the Mohist notion that the position of the "Son of Heaven" should be selected from among the most talented and Mencius' idea that an incompetent ruler should be dismissed. 2 Therefore. the Four Texts si ngularly stressed the political significance of we; or the uniquel y authoritative position of the ruler even as sociopolitical hierarchy was

40

becoming increasingl y merit-based vis-a-vis hereditary claims. (3.1. 15. 1.3.3)

I. Wei, or the Unique Position of the Ruler Throughout the Spring and Autum n and the Warring States perioos. the Chi nese world witnessed a progressive intensificat ion of power struggles among the ruling elites and within the royal ho useholds. Under such a silUalion. it is no surprise that the discussion on wei UZ, "position." is emphasized throughout the Four Texts. for it is a key concept underunderpinning the ruler's uniquely au thoritative power. The Four Texts idealizes a paramount ruler who governs over AII-

under-Heaven as an exemplar. For instance. the Second Text portrays th e Yellow Emperor as such a ruler. In Ihis Text. the Yellow Emperor says: "I am the on ly one who united AII - under-Heaven as one." (2.4.1) Undoubtedly . the Four Texts advocates autocracy. as we have already noted. In the First Text. we find a description of a country governed by an ideal-type autocratic ruler: AII-unde r-Heaven will be peacefu l and luminous virtue will serve as an exemplar. According with heaven and earth. he universall y covers and sustains (the world) without selfishness. Therefore. he is able to govern AII -lunderJ-Heaven ... As the ruler. he will sit facing south. Hi s ministers will pay him due respect and will not dare to deceive their superior. The multitude will be in hannonyand happy to serve their lord above. A country such as thi s will have a vast territory. large population. and a powerful army; (thus) no enemy in AII -under-Heaven (dares to challenge it). ( 1.4.5-1.4.6)

To strengthen the position of the supreme ruler. social distinctions between the ruler and ruled must be made clear. We noted that the Four Texis tries to prove the legitimacy of such distinctio ns by drawing analogies between the human world and the natural order. There is an interesti ng story in the Second Text that Guo Tong a minister or adv isor of the Yellow Emperor. turned himself into a beggar in order to demonstrate that there must be some who are humble and poor ill

*Jit.

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contradistinction to those who are noble and powerful. especially the supreme ruler. (2.4.2)

Analogous to the long lasting notion of hierarchy. which was established by the Western Zhou rulers. transformed by the Spring and Autumn statesmen -thinkers. and specially emphasized by Confucianism. the First Text states: "Every rank should have its own gannents which

should not be intermixed, since superior and inferior ranks must be clearly classified," (1.3 .4)3 The Four Texts not only endorses an elaborately demarcated system of social hierarchy. but aJso regards il as

natural. The Four Texts is particularly sensitive to potential threats to the hierarchical relationship between a ruler and his ministers as well as the members of the royal family. Disorders and chaos will occur if this relationship becomes abnormal. The Four Texts li sts a number of improper or abnormal relationships that must be avoided: a) a son takes over the role of his father: b) a minister usurps the position of a ruler: c) wise mini sters are outside the inner court; (1.4.3) d) the wife and/or the concubines of the ruler struggle for power with the ruler; (1.4.5) e) one minister monopolizes the ear of the ruler. (1.7.10) etc. All these would undermine the authority of the supreme ruler and ruin the country. These analyses are very similar to Han Fei's opinion that all the persons around the ruler. including hi s consorts and sons, are hi s potential adversaries." Both the Four Texts and Han Fei based their theory on the political lessons di stilled from the rich reservoir of historical experiences. Therefore, the Four Texts warns the rulers to rectify their relation ships with the members of the ruling elites. Otherwise. their governments would collapse. II. Promoting Worthies

We have seen how the hereditary system of the Western Zhou dynasty was gradually replaced by a merit-based officialdom with the increasing call by the reformers of the Spring and Autumn period for promotion of worthies. Just as the administration of laws and regulations

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is predicated on o bjective standards, a merit-based bureaucracy. both civil and mililary. relies on competent performance. It became acceptabl e

for a ruler to appoint a commoner as c hief minister or chief advisor. if proven capable. as ellemplified by Cae Gui l¥.Il. a common peasant. who helped Duke Zhuang of Lu to fi ght successfully against the invasion by the Qi .s As related in thi s Siory. the mililary affairs had traditionally been the business of the "meat-eaters. "6 But Cac despised them. saying. "the meal -ealers are poor creatures. and cannot form any far-reaching plans. "7 He then successfully ma pped o ut strategies for the ruler of his country 10 defeat the invaders.

To be s ure . the Warring Stales, due to larger territo ry and more comp lex ad mini stration and military tasks. needed to expand bureaucracy. which increased the need for more capable office rs. Meanwhil e many states continued to vie with one anothe r in thei r effort to auract the greatest worthi es who could function as the advisors to the ruler. In the capital of Qi. an academy was establi shed to accommodate ce lebrated worthies as resident sc holars. H In the capital of Van. the king even built a gilded plalfo rm to honor eminent scholars.9 1t was a common belief of the time that the wise counsel of the worthy in crafting correct poli cies could dramatically ameliorate the fortunes of the state. Given this milieu. it should come as no surpri se that a legion of "worthies" traveled about "peddlin g~ their advice to the rulers of various states. Altho ugh almost all the rulers practiced respect for the worthies. the outcome was not always feli citous. II was not at all unusual for a rul er 10 have invited numerous "worthies only to di scover that their view s were M

bot h confusing a nd contradictory. Thus. the ruler became befuddled as to whose advice to follow . Some scholars deluded the rulers with entirel y fa ncifu l but grand des ign s. Ho w then should a rule r recruit both tru stworthy and tal e nted individual s to assist him to achie ve real success? T hi s issue remained one of the most controversial topics of political debate during the Warring States period. although many Spring and Autumn thinkers had already di scussed it. This issue of shang,dan

!'hi rei: or promo tio n of worthies may be discussed in two aspects: I ) By

45 what slandard is one to be regarded as a worthy? and 2) How should the

worthies be treated?

For Confucians. the worthies are scholars of ex.emplary virtues embelli shed with literary excellence. And the rulers were expected to pay

due respect to the worthies. According to Mencius. a ruler should nOI wait for the worthies to visit him. Instead. he should di sregard hi s power and authority and pay frequent visits to the worthies. He must Hbeg the ft

worthies 10 counsel him. JO

For Mohists. the worthies are those whose ideas are identical with the

will of Heaven. Not only the positions of ministers should be granted to these worthies but also the throne itself shou ld be yielded to the best of them .! I Shang Yang. Shen DaD. and some Olhers regi stered strong objection to promotion of worthies. Shen DaD, for example. was of the opinion

that the worthies. if promo ted. wo uld constitute threats to the supreme ruler. saying: 12 While the authority of the ruler is already established. but at the same time. the worthies are highl y revered... such a situation must lead to the struggle for power between the worthies and the ruler. and the disorder thi s will cause is even greater than when there is no ruler at all. Therefore. a country whose government is in compliance with Dao will formul ate laws while it will stop the theoretical discussions by individual s; it will follow the authority of the ruler while it will pay no respects to the worthies. The

people will then unite under the sole authority of the ruler and all state affairs will be judged in accordance with laws. Shang Yang bluntly states that "the aim of establishing the authority of the ruler is to make the worthies useless." 13 Here. the term "worthies" designates Confuci an scholars. According 10 Shen Dao and Shang Yang. the rich knowledge of anci ent classics these scholars possess is largely irrelevant to running an efficient government. and their normative views, divergent from the established laws. are very harmful 10 the stabi lity of the state. For these reasons.

Shang Yang and Han Fe i viewed scholars as vermin.14 What a ruler needs is a pool of loyal. gifted and proficient functionaries, rather than a group of peripatetic speculative philosophers, to assist him in managing Ihe practical affairs of the state. They should be doers. both resourceful and efficienl in implementing publi c policies and the requirements of the establi shed laws and regulation s. How does the ruler go about recruiling these qualified individual s? By performance. If an infantryman kills many enemies, he shall be appointed a captain: if an official in a local government proves himself exce plionally competent. he shall be promoted to an important posil ion in Ihe central government. IS As appointed functionaries. Ihey are necessarily beholden to the ruler. They muSI be loyal to the ruler while th e ruler need not pay respeci to them as if they were Confucian worthies. The relalionships between a ruler and his subordinates were essentiall y held together by mutuality of interest. The ruler needs them for hi s inlerest. and they need the ruler for their interests. On the issue of wonhies. the Four Texis expressed views similar to Ihose of the thinkers discussed above: as a whole. however, il is different from any of Ihem. The Four Texts suggests Ihat a ruler pay respect 10 Ihe worthies and be adept at li stening to their advice. a sharp contrast to the opinions of Shen Dao. Shang Yang and Han Fei. The First Text, for exam ple. says: He who rules over AII-under-Heaven is less concerned aboul gaining territories than placing importance in (employing) scholaradvisors. Therefore. his country is respected and he himself has security. He regards wealth as insignificant while highly valuing Ihose who possess wisdom. Success is thereby achieved and wealth created. He regards himse lf as unimportant and highly esteems those who undersland Dao. Conseq uently. he is honored and his orders are carried out. ( 1.4. 10) Again, the Third Text says: A minister of an e mperor is, in fact. a teacher of the emperor although he is a minister in name. A minister of a king is, in faci . a friend of the king although he is a minister in name. A minister of a

47 powerful lord is. in fact. (a guest) of the lord although he is a minister in name. A minister of Ian imperiled ruler) is. in fact. a hired laborer of the ruler although he is a minister in name. A minister of a ruler whose state is going to disintegrate is. in fact . a slave of the ruler although he is a minister in name. (3. 1.9)

Obviously. these worthies are not simply functionaries but scholars who are not wholly dependent on any particular ruler. The way a ruler should pay respect to them is similar to the Confucian concept. Le .. 10 treat them as teachers or friends. However. the gesture of esteeming the worthy and the talented is an art of rulership and is. as evident in the quotations. very prdgmatic: only because a ruler will thereby achieve gains in a long run. does he "esteem " the worthies. The Second Text shows us a vivid example of how a ruler should pay respect to worthies through the example of the Yellow Emperor: He consulted very honestly with his worthy mini sters such as Li Mo :JJ~. Guo Tong. and Yan Ran ~ ft.. He did not stick to hi s own opinion but often changed hi s mind after listening to the suggestions of these worthies. With their help. he finally became the king of AII -underHeaven. a handsome reimbursement for the respect he paid to the worthies. Of course. in the Four Texts, paying respect to worthies does not at all mean that the ruler ought to relinqui sh hi s position of absolute authority to the best of the worthies as advocated by the Mohists.1 6 Furthennore. the Four Texts advocates employing the worthies and other subordinates in accordance with their respective competencies. Some may be competent in military affairs while others are talented in civil administration. The criterion of "officiaJ appointments not exceeding the abilities" (1.5. 11) likewise applies to the employment of the worthies. The Four Texts provided the rulers of the Warring States period with the art of securing wi se co unsel. in that it established an objective standard with which to evaluate the counsels of hi s chief mini sters or the worthies. It was obviously inspired by the rich political experience of the Spring and Autumn statesmen-thinkers and developed their ideas to a more specific art of rulership.

III. Governing by Means of Forms and Names In order to recruit the subordinates who are both loyal and able. and more importantly. to investigate and evaluate their functionally specific performance within a complex bureaucracy devised to superintend a vast domain.17 the Four Texis offers an appropriate art for the rulers. namely. the art of xingming m~ . Literally. xing ID denotes fonns;18 ming -t denotes names. In the Four Texts. these two terms, respectivel y appear 27 and 53 times. Xingming. frequently used together. 19 specifically refers to the art of controlling bureaucracy. Thus. the art of xingming is designed for the ruler to efficiently and successfully investigate affairs/events and subordinates by means of forms and names. In other words. it is a way of j ian:hi RJIJ or seeing and knowing things. (1. 1.4) The Four Texts reiterates that the art of xingming is so important that all governing affairs can be settled with it. The First Text. for example. says: Therefore. he who grasps Dao in investigating AII-underHeaven must carefull y examine the beginning of affairs and minutely scrutinize their forms and names. Once the forms and names are determined. the rebellious and the compliant will have their respective positions: life and death will have their respective di stinctions; and existence and nonexistence, the rise and fall (of countries) will have their respective places. Then he will refer to th e constant Dao of heaven and earth and determine the di stinctions between good fortune and mi sfortune, death and life, existence and nonexistence. and the rise and fall (of countries). Therefore. even though he may deal with ten thousand affairs, he will not lose (one) principle. And he will be able to di scuss all affai rs under heaven without miscalculation. (1.8.4) The art of xingming has two phases: A) the obse rving phase and B) the tallying phase.

49

Observing

When a new event occurs or a new talenl appears on the scene. a ruler should carefully refrain from premature judgment. Otherwise. he would be apt to make mistakes and his authority thereby diminished. The

best way is to observe the new event or lhe new talent in silence and lei the event unfold itself or lei the new talent define and prove himself by actual pelfonnance. If the ruler indulges in premature judgment. the event will nOI be comprehended in its full dimension. and the person may well conceal his true colors by deluding the ruler with s hameless flattery and plausible prevarication. Thus. the Four Texts suggests that a ruler keep himself wordless and actionless. In due course. the new event will reveal its true nature and the newcomer will expose hi s true colors. To use the terminology of the Four Texis. the person will. on his own accord. designate himself a name. For instance. if an official claims thaI he can build a bridge across the Yangtze River at a given geographic point X in three years. then the ruler. on the basis of the official's claim (and presumably hi s proven reco rd of successful bridge building). gives the name: "the official in charge of bridge building at point X in three years. " Inasm uch as the official made the claim and set the affair in motion. he designates himself a name. The official will be called into account in the tallying phase. The First Text says: (All things) necessarily possess their forms and names as soon as they come into exi stence even though they are as small as autumn down. As soon as forms and names are established. the di stinction between black and white becomes manifest. Therefore. he who has mastered Dao. while investigating the affairs of AII · underHeaven. holds no (fixed ) opinion and occupies no (fixed) place : he does not do anything (until the completion of the investigation ) and is selfless. Thus. when there are affairs in AII under· Heaven. they will assume their forms . names. sounds and tilles of their own accord. As soon as their sounds and titles are established. there will be no way to escape from them without a trace or to hide from regulation. ( 1. 1.4-5) Thus. the art of xingming specifies a technique of objective and dispassionate investigation. requi site for the correct perception of reality. and hence prudent judgment. An arbitrary ruler easily swayed by hi s

50

likes and dislikes would be the least successful ruler. Through the art of

xillgming. the ruler. reposing in wuwei. conserves his energy. and yet effectively controls the performance of his subordinates and the flow of contingent events thaI affect the well-being of his domain. The ruler holds to Dao in quiescence. and the ministers do their utmost in attending to myriad affairs of the state. Dao is formless and invisible; likewise. the ruler. resembling a dragon shrouded in clouds. does not readily disclose hi s color but lets the s ubordinates name themselves and then hold them to perform lvouwei. f.j~ ) the tasks assigned according to their names. (2.13 .2) The Second Text describes the Yellow Empero r as a consummate practitioner of the art of xingming: From the center. he extended in all four directions and inve stigated fro nt and back. left and right : he was ellgaged III investigation even afler he had ascended the throne. (2.1.1) Obviously. no single ruler can be comprehensi vely informed without the assistance of hi s subordinates. Hence the ruler. even as he faces southward in quiescence. li sten s with ten thousand ears and sees with len thousand eyes. According to the Four Texis. this is precisely what the Yellow Emperor did. He ordered Li Mo to travel secretly about the countries in all four directions in order to investigate. (2.2. 1) Here lies the root of the later development in imperial China. namely. the establi shment of the cen sorate system and baojiu f~£p. or a mutual respon sibilit y security network . Tallying When a new e vent or a newcomer has fully shown its o r hi s true colors. the observing phase comes to an end and the next phase begin s. If the actual performance tallies with. the name. an appropriate reward is ill order: if il does nOI. an appropriate puni shment is in order. If the official succeeded in building the bridge across the Yangtze River al point X in three years. then the name would tally with the form. i.e .. the reality of promised perfo rmance. and an appropriate reward would be in

51

order, and vice versa. The appropriateness of rewards and punishments are determined in accordance with the promulgated laws and regulations. This is called xunming jiuli tm1;~~ or to observe the pame and to judge according to relevant principle. (1.9.6) During the Warring States period. there were mainly three kinds of approaches towards the theory of names and rom s. The first approach was the Confucian theory of "rectification of names" which requires all the people to properly behave themselves in accordance with their respective titles or statuses. Thi s was an ethical -political approach. The

second approach. that of the Sophists. primarily focu sed on epi stemological or semanlic issues. The xingming theory was the third approach whose central concern was the 3rt of rulers hip , and which was represented by the Four Texis as well as by some thinkers who later came to be called "Legali sts." namely. Shen Buhai . Shen Dao. and Han Fei. (Shang Yang does not mention xingming theory.) The commentaries by Shen Buhai and Han Fei on xingming are very similar to those found in the Four Texis. Shen Buhai says: 20 Names constitute the main cord of the net (containing all the phenomena 00 heaven and earth; they are the talli es of the sage. (giving him authority over all things). (When the ruler) casts out (this net and holds firml y to) the main cord. (thus controlling all phenomena) of heaven and earth. and make use of the tallies of the sage. then no aspect of all the ten thousand things can elude him. Again. he says:21 Names rectify themselves: affairs settle themselves. Therefore. one who has (the right) method (starts) from names in o rde r to rectify things. and acquiesces in affairs in order to settle them. Han Fei says:22 Therefore, by virtue of resting empty and reposed. he waits for the course of nature to enforce itself so that all names will be defined of them selves and all affairs be settled by themselves. Empty. he knows the essence of fullnes s: reposed he becomes the

52 corrector of motion. Who utters a word creates himself a name ; who has an affair creates himself a form . Compare forms and names and see if they are identical. Then the ruler will find nothing to worry about as everything is reduced to its reality. The art of rulership is unmistakably the central focus of these commentaries. The Four Texts. however. presents a more elaborated version.

IV. Showing Aff'edion toward People

and Benenting Them

From the vast reservoi r of historical e"periences. the Four Texts garnered the view that human beings are naturally interested in their own well-being as "role-bearing" persons in a network of sociopolitical relatio ns. T he term "interest" is relational in that the term derives from

=

=' "in between" and est "is." T he implicit argument in the Texts runs: while it is equally nalural for a polity to be hierarchicall y

infe r

constituted of those who rule and those ruled. it is in the interest of the governing elite to benefit the people, for without their support. those who rule will not be able to sustain themselves as the governing elite for 10ng.23 What "isM "in belWeen" the ruling elite and the ruled is a mutually benefiting interest or common interest that intersects the individual interests of all members .-- those who rule and those ruled ali ke --- of that sociopolitical community. Anot her them e of the Four Texts needs to be analyzed in its historical con te xt. namely, its economic policy of wuwei. A stron g economy was the prerequisite of military victory because war-related expenditu res were enormous. Hence. all the Slates did their utmost to stimul ate economic growth and thereby increase state revenue. At that time. the size of the population served as an index of productivity. The more the population, the more prosperous the country. Very importantl y. more population meant more soldiers to field in battles and more farmers to cultivate the land and to pay taxes. The natural population growth. however, could not meet the need. Hence, each state tried to devise special policies to attract people to emigrate from other states. Menciu s,

53

for instance. argued for a philosophy of government. namely . a "Government by Righteou sness"24 that would prove attractive to people. if a ruler would refrain from ruthless oppression and capricious slaughtering of the innocent. he would attract a flood of immigrants 10 hi s country. He even suggested a "restoration" of the obsolete jinglian system --- presuming that it had actually existed --- to implement an equitable system of economic di stribution. Hi s suggestions. however. were considered by the rulers as "pedantic and impractical. "2.5 In the Second Text. the Yellow Emperor is described as a benevo lent king who reaffirms hi s "intimate affection" for his people. (2.1.3) We can find a series of ethical concepts mentioned in the Four Texts such as ren t: or benevolence. ci ~ or affection. ai ~ or love. and hui lY. or benefiting. As is well known. these concepts are all laught by Confucian masters. Does this suggest that the ideas of the Pour Texis are similar to the ethical doctrines of Confucianism? While Confucians. especially the Confucians of Mencian persuasion. considered the ethical concepts as constituting the very foundation of good government. the Four Texis appears to regard them as means adopted by the ruler to realize hi s political ends . In other words. when discussing benevolence and affection, the Pour Texis is very pragmatic. To love people by munificence is to urge them to better serve the ruler. As stated in the Second Text. if the ruler is able to demo nstrate his affection toward s his subjects. they will not try to escape from him . (2. J .3) Almost every mention of benevolence or affection in the Four Texis is followed by specific action consequence. as for instance. the gains achieved thereby for the rulers. This art of rulership reminds us of a very famous story about Wu Qi an eminent slatesman and a renowned commander during the Warring Slates period. Once a soldier suffered from an ulcer and Wu Qi sucked out pus for him . The mother of that soldier. however. cried with grief. saying. previously Wu Qi did the same for her hu sband. then her husband fo ught forward steadfastly until he was killed by the enemy. ~~.

54

Now Wu Qi. by sucking out the pus was hoping her son would do the same for him as well. 26

T he story of Wu Qi is quite aprojX)s in that the calculus of interests appears to prevail in the Four year plan " we have quoted. the ruler is advised to the beginning. The aim of benefiting them is shown People will be able to hold their ruler in esteem and the point of death . The Rrsl Tex.t concludes:

pragmatic ethics of a Tu/s. In the seven_ benefit hi s people in in the last two years: fight for him even 10 ft

(If a ruler) does not possess the exemplary conduct of a father, he will not be obeyed by hi s sons and daughters (his people). If he does not have the moral character of a mother. he will nOI be served whole-heartedl y by hi s people. (1.3.8)

Moreover. benevolence and affection in the Four Texts, in essence . boil s down to providing adequate material benefits for the people by the ruler. and there is lillie mention of moral education of the whole society as advocated by Confucians. Therefore. we view that the ruler's "i ntimate affection " for his people and his benefiting them are. first and foremost. the essential comJX>nents of the art of rulership. What are the adequate. if not substantial . material benefits provided by the ruler for the people? The Four Texts advised the ruler: to limit the use of the corvee labor to a reasonable measure. to reduce tax. and to relax government control over commerce. (1.3.2. 1.3.6) In so doing. the income of the ruler will be lowered in the shon run. but eventually. these measures will stimulate the development of production. will win the support of the people, and will finally strengthen the JX>wer of the ruler and increase hi s wealth. With a long-term benefit in view . the ruler must learn to lead a relatively frugal life. Otherwise he will ri sk the ruin of hi s government. The First Text says: ( FOI'" a ruler), accumulatillg 311d hoarding gold, pearl s and pieces of jade is a rool of resentment : ( hi s) traveling about with a

55 multitudinous retinue of beauties. musicians and playthings. is a source of disorder. ( 1.5. 15) There is a seeming similarity between the Four Texts and The Works

of Moltu which calls for jieyong lW m or reducing expenditure. consonant with a life of frugalilY.27 Their aims. however. are different. The ideas of frugality taught in The Works of Mot:u are criticisms by the lower classes directed against the extravagance of the no bility. whereas the ideas of frugality taught by the Four TexIs are purposive and pragmatic: it teaches the art of rulership based on enlightened. long-term

interest considerations. It is noteworthy thai in terms of economic policy. the

Four Texts

does not set forth any measures to restrain commerce. unlike Shang Yang and Han Fei. both of who m called fo r restraining commerce while promoting agriculture alone.28

Allhough based on purely pragm atic considerations. the policies advocated in the Four Texts benefits the peo ple. Therefore. what is "in between" the ruler/ruling elite and the ruled is a mutuall y beneficial inleresl or common interest that intersects the individuaJ interest of all members --- those who rule and those ruled alike --- of that sociopolitical community.29 Inheriting the teachings of the Spring and Autumn statesmenthinkers. the Four Texts taught the art of winning over the support of the people by benefiting them. In this regard. the Four Texis and "Legali sts" texts are quite similar. But their concrete policies are different. "Legalists" stressed state control over the economy with an emphasis on agriculture. If one cleared fo rests or transformed wastelands into arable land, he would be rewarded by the govemment. 30 The Four Texts recommend s an economic policy of wuwei or nonactio n. one that is analogous to the Physiocrats' "laissez nous faire. laissez nous passer." ("Let us do (Leave us alone). let us go on." that is. without bureaucratic interference.) This meant a surprisingly loose control over the econo my. Moreover. the Four Texts counsel s the ruler to reduce taxes and corvee

labor to the minimum and to lift bans on commerce. "Legali st" policies may be more efficient in meeting the exigent military needs in the short run: however. in the long run, the policies taught by the Four Tuts seem more promising for raising the overall economic pn:xiuctivity of a cou ntry and the general well -being.

Chapter 5 The Balance Between Xing and De, and Between We nand W u When a ruler kno ws what is right and what is wrong. through investigation by means of names and fonns. he must reward those who are right and puni sh those who are wrong. This involves two pairs of concepts: xingJflJ and det!, and wen;iC and wuit. In the Four Texts. xing means "to punish." De frequently connotes "virtue" in various classical texts; however, it means "to benefit." or more concretely, "to reward" in the Four Texts. t As for wen and WU, we find definitions directly from the Texts: Following the vitality of life ordained by heaven to nourish life. is caJled wen. Following the (destiny) of death ordained by heaven to administer the severe sanction of death to those who sho uld be killed, is called wu. (1.3.5) Obviously. wu means something quite similar to xing or punishment. However. wu primarily connotes "external" puni shment, Le., punitive military expeditions against countries which should be punished. while xing mainly connotes ~internal" puni shment, i.e .. administration of penalties against criminals within the state. In some cases. however. the two words are used interchangeably. Similarly, the term wen. generally understood to mean "civ ility " or "culture." in the Four Texts. connotes what is practically synonymous with de, i.e.. "to benefit" or "to reward, " though, like wu. primarily connotes "external" actions or the preparation for "external" actions. I. Internal Punishments and Rewards Punishments and rewards are the most basic instruments or the "two handles" of government. The art of governing by the "two handles" is predicated on the premise that human beings are powerfully motivated by interest considerations.

The problematique of regulating interest-oriented human behavior by means of legally prescribed rewards and punishments, so as to achieve a fruitful convergence of public interest and private interests, is more precisely articulated by Han Fei than the Four Texts' treatment of xing and de. Nonetheless. both the HanJeizi and the Four Texts share the view that the ruler ought to effectively employ the "two handles " of reward and punishment in governing a polity beneficial for all. T hroughout Han Fei's writing --- which Graham characterizes as "ruthlessly prosaic" --- one finds a recurrent emphasis o n "correcting" anarchic behavior. engendered by a calculus of interest. by enforcement or "bendi ng" so as to bring about the dovetailing of individual interest and the common interest. To the questions: Given the natural tendency to be self-interested . how many people would spontaneously harmonize their concern for private welfare with public interest? And how is the convergence and dovetailing of private and public interests to be effec ted ? Han Fei replies: ''Though in hundred generations there are neither an arrow that is straight of itself nor a wheel that is round of itself. yet how is it Ihen thai people of every generation ride in carts and shool birds? It is because the tools for straightening and bending are used. "2 The "tools" are. of course. fa. Fa to one who governs is like the carpenter's L-square and compass --- objective. impersona l and prescriptive instruments for "straightening and bending " --- in short. for remolding and channeling the general tendency of self-in terested human behavior toward the realization of public purposes. Graham writes:3 "The Legalist Han Fei also sees natural desires as anarchic (as Hsiin-tzu does). but as manipulable for the common good by a system of reward and punishment..." Graham notes elsewhere:-- "When asked by a disciple about government (cheng a31: 'enforcement of the correct,' di stinguished from cheng .If 'correct' by beating radical associated with fo rce ), Confucius who prefers an unforced order. surprises him (Tzu-Iu) by saying that the first thing he would correct is names." He further elaborates::'> "Nor am I persuaded that the reference to

59

punishment (in his reply to Tzu-Iu) implies a later Confucianism coming to terms with Legalism . The AM/eels accepts puni shment as a practical necessity, and to declare thai it will be misapplied if ceremony and music are inert seems to me fully consistent with its thought."

In the Four Texts, xing and de closely parallel s Han Fei's "two handles." A ruler must be prudent --- in the sense of knowing what is Jitting --- in implementing them . And the "two handles ~ should be kept in judicious balance inasmuch as they are mutually reinforcing and interdependent. The Second Text says:

The supreme measures of rectification are punishment and reward. So manifest are punishment and reward that they are like

the sun and the moon calling on each other (in coordinated complementarity). What is proper is thereby evident If the two complementary sides lose their proper balance and coordination. the rectifier will face the situation that disasters turn against himself. Manifest as the reward of heaven is. it cannot function without (the cooperation of) punishment. Awesome as the punishment of heaven is, it will lose its efficacy without (the coordination of) reward. Punishment and reward nouri sh one another and thereby the di stinction between compliance and rebelliousness is established. (2.6.3)

Although a judicious balance between punishment and reward should be observed. the Four Texts does not advocate an absolutely equivalent balance. A ruler should give priority to reward because both puni shment and reward are set by imitating heaven and earth. Three seasons are warm in varying degrees. while only one season is truly cold. Since the warm seasons represent the time to vitalize or to benefit and the cold season represents the time to die or to punish . there should be more reward than puni shment in government. So. too. should be the balance between wen and WU. The First Text says. "He who utilizes two measures of wen and one measure of wu will become a king. " (1 .5.13) On the issue of what constitutes a reasonable balance between puni shment and reward, the Four Texts is remarkably different from Shang Yang. In The Book of Lord Slumg. we find an ironhand theory about the proportion of punishment to reward:6

H)

In a country thaI has supremacy. there are nine penalties as again st one reward: in a strong country. there will be seven penalties to three rewards and in a dismembered country. there will be five penalties to five rewards. C learly. the Four TexIs is moderate in comparison. In the Four Texis . however, we find a special emphasis on nol rescinding punishments. When punishments are in order. they should nol be rescinded. In the Four Texts. arbitraril y rescinding puni shment is called da.ring lifflJ and the TexIs reiterates objection against daxing . The First Text. for example. warns:

One who rescinds punishment will in lum hann himself. (1.5.7)

If a person should be punished. the puni shment must be carried out deci sively. Otherwise . people wi ll ri sk committing crimes. and the

authority of the ruler will be called into question . If a person truly deserves a severe punishmenl. particularly one who chall enges the authority of the ruler. he should be punished by death. According to the Second Texl. the Yellow Emperor executed Chi You tl1::.t. hi s c hief ri val. and even presided over a rather gruesome {X)stmortem ritual : (The Yellow Emperor) peeled off Chi You's ... ' skin and made with it a target for shooting arrows. He ordered people to shoot at it and awarded those who hit the target more accurately . He cut ofT Chi You's hair and set it up on a flag pole. He named it "Aag of Chi You." In addition. he stuffed Chi Yo u's stomach to make a football . He o rdered people to kick it and awarded those who scored the most goals. At last. he minced Chi You 's bones and flesh and threw them into bitter wine. He ordered the people of AII -under-Heaven to taste the wi ne. (2.5.5) Whether thi s is a true story or not. Liu Bang. the first emperor of the Han dyna sty who was deepl y influenced by ideas of the Yellow Emperor. did almost the same to Peng Vue who spearheaded a rebellion. In the Shiji. we read: H In the summer. Ithe Emperor of! Han executed Peng Yue. the King of Liang. brewed bitter wine with hi s flesh . and sent the wine to all the dukes.

61

In faci. the policy of meting out severe punishment upon the criminals most dangerous to the government was already taught by Zi Chan, as noted earlier: "When a bad person is detected, we should extirpate him in the way a hawk pursues a sparrow.oo9

The message of the Four Texis is clear: the sovereign should no t hesitate to govern by means of yanxing junla (severe punishments and strict laws). especially when the supreme authority is seriously challenged. AI the same time. he endeavors 10 strike a judicious ba1ance between :cinglwu and de/wen. (1.5.13) As noted. the ruler in the Four Texis is genuinely mindful of benefiting the people as the foundation of his political legitimacy.

II. The AlternaCion of Military and Civil Means Under the pressure of escalating and seemingly endless wars. quite understandably. not a few serious thinkers of the Warring States period . such as the Mohists. Confucians. and others. called for peace and disarmament. Mo Zi and hi s followers vehemently opposed wars of aggression because such wars would unnecessarily sacrifice countless human lives and would be so horrendously detrimental to agricultural economy of the warring parties that they WOUld. in the end. suffer famine. 10 Mencius. the most representative Confucian of the period . tried to persuade rulers to give up wars because warfare was essentially inhumane enterprise; he regarded those who engaged in them as being worse than beasts and proposed that they should be punished by death.1 1 On the contrary. some "Legalists " encouraged people to fight. According to the regulations set by Shang Yang in the state of Qin. a commoner who killed a number of enemy soldiers would be conferred a noble rank. and the more he killed the further he would be promoted in rank. 12 The attitude of the Four Texts towards warfare is a moderate one. Accordingly. a successful state would keep well and wu in judicio us balance. The Third Text suggests:

(A sage-ruler) persists in neither disarmament nor warfare. Only in case of necessity will he undertake military actions. (3.1.13) If warfare is overemphasized. and the state becomes entangled

In

continuous battles. it would certainly harm its economy. and the people would grow discontented and reproach the government. However. if a state refrained from building a strong anny. it would not be able to survive. let alone achieve a centralized government over All -underHeaven . Thus. according to the Four TexIs. an adequate military preparedness was a .~ ine qua non for survival as a state. The key strategic issue. then . was choosing the correct target of military expedition instead of becoming perennially and indiscrimina tely embroiled in endless wars. If one attacks a country with a good government. a stron g economy. and people who support their ruler. one will suffer defeat. If a country is suffering internal conflicts and natural disasters. and ils people do not support their ruler whose legitimacy has already been seriously impaired by misconduct. one must not mi ss the opportunity for a "righteous" punitive expedition. Should one mi ss such an opportunity. not only was the political gain forfeited. but one's own security may be threatened should rogue states recover their power. This is similar to the internal policy that those who deserve punishments mu st be puni shed. Otherwise. disasters will befall him. The First Text says: If motion and rest do not accord with timing. and planting mi sses the suitability of the earth. then it goes against the Dao of Iheaven I and earth. If mini sters do not love their ruler. inferiors do no t love their superiors. and if the hundred tribes (people of all kinds and walks of life) do not love their respective work. then it goes against the principle of internal affairs. (A country) where rebelliousness exists is called a dying country. and a punitive expedition should be launched against it. On the contrary . (a country) where compliance with the Dao of heaven and earlh exists is called a nascent country . and it should be nourished . ( 1.6. 12)

Obviou sly. to choose a right target of attack requires careful investigation. The Second Text tells a story that the Yellow Empero r o rdered Li Mo to travel about the countries in all four directions

63

incognito to investigate Ihe Slate of affairs. In fact , this was ex.actly what Guan Zhong practiced: 13 Eighty travelers were ordered with carts, horses. various clothes, and enough outlays, to cravel in all four directions in order to summon the worthy and the capable of AII-under-Heaven; some others were ordered to travel with furs. lUxury items and playthings in all four directions in order to observe the likes and dislikes of the rulers and ministers of various countries and to identify the most perverse and disorderly ones as the objects of puniti ve expeditions. In carrying OLiI the expedition, however. the killings should have a clear target . and should not be extended to the innocent people. The First Text warns: (If a ruler) massacres people who are obedient to him. kills the captives, and punishes the innocent. then he will bring disasters he inflicts upon others upon himself. (1.7. 5)

The Four Texts, therefore, offered the rulers of the middle phase of the Warri ng States period a set of realistic and reasonable strategies concerning wrufare. In order to carry out wu or punitive expeditions. a ruler should begin preparation with wen, i.e., to successfully handle domestic affairs and make his own country powerful. This is what is meant by ~to begin with

wen and to end with wu· as taught by the Four Texis. (1.8.1) "If there is no hannony in the internal affairs of a country, one should not speak of external affairs. " (3.1.23) In so doing, he must benefit hi s people and organize them into grassroots units consisting of five and ten households. These grassroots units serve not only as the most basic level civil-administrative units but also as ground level militia units in time of war; in short. all peasants are required to serve as members of militia units. and the most capable among them will be selected for speciaJ training to serve as the heads of the militia units. ( 1.3.2) In thi s respect. the Four Texts very obviously learned from the teachings and practice of the Spring and Autumn statesmen-thinkers.

It is interesti ng to note that although many parts of the Four TexIs

discuss the military o r IVU issues. their approach is different from the general approach taken by the works o n the art of warfare re presented by S unzi BingJa f,:f,-r.fH£ or Art of War by Masler Sun . While the works on the art of warfare are primarily manual s for general s on military strategies and battlefield tactics. the Four Texts is written for the rulers because it d iscusses military issues fro m the viewpoi nt of the rulers. The Four TexIs pays ha rdl y any auentio n to purely military techniques. strategic or tactical . but focuses on the fundamentally political aspect of mi litary poli cies. e.g .. the proper relationship between civ il and mil itary administration. the pol iti cal grounds for punitive expeditions. a polit ical calculu s guiding the policies toward the conquered territories. etc .• all from the persj)C(:tive of the art of rulership.

Chapter 6 Strategies and Tactics Shi Iitj:, or timeliness, and the cijie

mtap, or feminine conduct. art: two

distinctive and truly fascinating , if uncommon . aspects of the art of rulership taught by the Four Texis. L TimeUness The term sh i or timeliness appears 45 times and has two basic meanings. First, it means a political calendar or a schedule that a ruler ought to follow . Thi s idea is, again. closely linked to the notion of modeling oneself after heaven and earth. The First Text says:

It is the principle of heaven and earth that the four seasons have their regulalions. It is the regulation of heaven and earth that the sun, the moon, and the stars have their measures, It is the Dao of heaven and earth that there are three seasons for harvesting and one for dying. When the four seasons are set. they always function in a timely way without error and transgression. and they follow the constant order. ( 1.B.I) Heaven and earth function according to a fi xed schedule that serves as a paradigm for rulers. If they want to model themselves after heaven and earth . they ought to accord with the schedule of heaven and earth. Different political actions. therefore. should be taken in accordance with different seasons. e.g.. rewarding during the warm seasons and puni shing in winter. This constitutes a political calendar. If political actions are taken at the wrong time, di saster will occur. The Second Text says: When it is (the proper) season for growth and expansion. and activities are curtailed. then the yin period will once again prevail improperly and the qi of the earth will once again contract improperly (out of season). (Politically), if punishment is actively implemented during this growing season, animals will not bring their hibernation to term , frost and snow will reappear, the sprouts of early spring will wither. and these disasters will ... appear. Under such circumstances, no matter what one does. success will not be achieved . (2.2.9)

The political calendar described above is very similar to that recorded in the yueUng J::I ~ or "Monthly Orders ~ chapter of the RecOI'ds of Rites. as well as to a series of chapters of the Lushi Chunqiu. i However. the calendar taught by the Four Texis does not limit itself within the four seasons of a year for it envisages plans of longer duration. In the First Text we read: In the first year of governing. the king should follow the custom of the common people. In the second year, he should bestow rewards and benefits upon them. In the third year. he should enable people to gain profit. In the fourth year, he should pay attention to the promulgation and implementation of laws and decrees. lin the fifth year. he should be able to make hi s people proper in behavior through enforcing laws and decrees. In the sixth year.1 he should make his people hold him in reverence. In the seventh year. he should be able to organize his people to go out to battle. (1.3 . 1) The passage may be read to mean: Only in the seventh year of good governing. is it timely for a country to be prepared for warfare. In the overall context of 1.3. 1 through 1.3.9. however. it is clear that the king systematically planned to prepare hi s people for walfare over a seven year period . In other words. the activities done from the first to the six years are. either directly or indirectly. aiming at the warfare preparation. The SI.."Cond meaning of timeliness is that the ruler ought to be adept at maximizing o pportunity. When a successful ruler wants to take an action. he always waits for the opportune momenl. If the moment has not yet come. he will wail for it with patience: when the moment arri ves. he will act deci sively. For example. the Second Text says: The sage will never become obsolete because he abides by the principle of returning. Munificent and benevolent to the people. he is in accordance with the Dao of heaven. The sage abides in rectitude awaiting heaven . and he keeps himself in quietude waiting for (the affairs 00 people (to unfold). He will never rescind heaven's puni shment and he will never break co ntract (with other countrie s). When heavenly opportunity (for action) comes. he will make a deci sion and act accordingly . If he fail s to make decisio ns when they should be made. (opportunities) will tum into troubles to make him suffer. (2.2. J I)

67 Moreover. a sage-ruler always arranges his country and his people in the proper pattern of a1tcmation of action and rest that will lead to great

success. If a ruler embroils his people in military action without rest. hi s country cannot be stable. If he indulges himself in rest without action, he wjJ1 not achieve any success. The concept of wuwei ~~ or Rcoaction in the Four TexIs is closely linked 10 timeliness. just as it is closely interrelated with the theory of xingming. It calls for the ruler to keep himself actionless so as to accurately and objectively observe the development of affairs as well as the true colors of his subordinates. The concept of timeliness. on the other hand. requires the ruler to make necessary preparalion s for future action. while waiting for the most opportune moment for deci sive action . The ruler assumes the posture of wuwei or non-action so that he can act (yo uwei fl~) with potent efficacy when the appropriate mo ment is at hand. Thus. wuwei in the Four Texts is an art of rulership; clearly. it is purposive and strategic. It sharply contrasts to the meaning of wuwei in the Zhuang ..i which connotes stopping any purposive and artificially contrived actions. 2 II. Femiaine Conduct

One of the most fascinating aspects of the art of rulership in the Four

an

Texts is its elucidation of a strategy called cijie • or feminine conduct; sometimes it is also called roujie ~irn or soft conduct. Feminine and soft are attributes of another important concept of Chinese philosophy: Yin ~ . feminine and soft are respectively opposite to yang Il§. masculine (xiong and hard (gang IIIJJ ).3 In accordance with the Four Texts. there are two basic types of conduct or modes of behavi or for the rulers. namely. masculine conduct and feminine conduct. Masculine conduct connotes aggressive, arrogant. overt, and unyielding behavior. whereas feminine conduct connotes self-disciplined . selfpossessed. covert. and yielding behavior. The latter conduct is preferred because it leads to goo n and success.

m)

Feminine conduct suggests that the ruler. though possessing power and authority. must be modest. and refrain from initiating spontaneous action characterized by masculine conduct: instead. he waits for the most appropriate moment to act in response, while assuming the strategy of feminine conduct. In the Second Text. there is a lengthy description of thi s strategy executed by Da Ting .A:~ . a legendary king of rem ote antiquity. He remained calm . comlX'sed . upright and still. and above all he determined (to abide) in soft conduct. Tactfully yielding. respectful. frugal . modest and simple. he preferred softness. He always stood behind (others) and never in front. He practiced rectitude and sincerity to :;how benevolence. and he was kindhearted and dislX'sed to confer favors in order to show his love for his people. He was upright and brave. but he did not dare 10 take precedence over others. He was pure in heart and was not impatient. He held the One and demanded nothing else. He modeled him self after feminine conduct so that th e things produced were all soft. ... upright and impartial. he was fond of bestowing benefils and did not contend with others. He stood as if he were afraid to stand. and he moved as if he could not move. When he was about to engage in a fight. he looked as though he dared not engage in a fight. When he knew everything. he looked as though he knew nothing. By observing weak conduct. he became strong. (2. 14.2-3) Why is it that weak and soft conduct can make the ruler strong and successful ? First. feminine or soft conduct is a strategy to induce the enem y to relax vigilance. As described above. when Da Ting was about to engage in a fight. he misled hi s adversaries into thinking that he was afraid to fight. Having beguiled the adversary. he then could launch a surpri se attack on them. Second. if the ruler ado pts an unassuming conduct of modesty and yielding . he will win over a legio n of suplX'rters. The First Text says: if the noble show regard for the humble. who cannot be won over? (1.5.10) Theoretically. the ruler follOWing masculine conduct will fail while the ruler of feminine conduct should succeed. in reality. however. we do find in stances in which some rulers of masculine conduct achieve success

whereas others of feminine conduct suffer failure . To account for these phenomena. the Second Text explains:

It is called the accumulation of disasters to achieve one success after another by persisting in masculine conduct. (In the event that these successes. which are in reality) ill omens and sources of anxiety. occur repeatedly. death is not far away. On the contrary. it is called accumulation of merit to suffer losses by persisting in feminine conduct Be cautious and do not give it up in this case. for great gains will be secured in the future. (2.7.2) Since the ruler assumes feminine conduct primarily out of strategic considerations, he should not always remain passive but be prepared to asSume the active mode to engage in a combat when the right moment is at hand. This attitude is different from Lao Zi who advises one should never contend. For the Four Texts. avoiding contention is but a strategic/tactical preparation for the coming struggle. Therefore, the Second Text says: It is true that those who initiate contentions suffer misfortune. However, (those who) do not engage in struggle will have no achievement. (2.3.4)

The Second Text reiterates: Those who initiate contentions will harvest misfortune. Nevertheless. one will achieve no success if he forswears contentions altogether. (2.6.2) Soft conduct seems to run counter to human nature as portrayed by the Four Texts: people are perceived to be innately greedy, active. and contentious. Since a ruler possesses wealth and power. much more than ordinary people. it is more difficult for him to be modest and quiescent. even though he knows perfectly well that his modesty and quietude are essentially purposive and strategic. For this reason. the Four Texts devises techniques of internal cultivation for a ruler. He should suspend both physical and menlal activity and reach a slate of "Oneness." "Perfect Plainness." and "Perfect Minuteness." (1.1.11. 2.15.2) Thus. liberated from worldly desires and mundane affairs. he will attain a vi sion of shenming ;pf!1YJ or "Spi rit-like Intelligence." ( 1.9. I) and thereby comes to possess the

70

power 10 engage in perspicacious investigation of the actions of others. Thi s "Spirit-like intelligence." moreover. enables him to beguile hi s adversaries and to induce them to relax vigilance against him. The Second Text tells us a story of the Yellow Emperor bidding farewell 10 his mini sters and climbing up a mountain where he settled himself down quietly for three years of introspection. However. internal

culti vation is here a method. not a goal. The cultivation of introspection fo r three years was a prelude to a sudden attack against hi s arch rival . C hi You, who was captured in the bailie and executed later.

Therefore. internal cultivation constitutes an important pari of the art of rulership. In the Four Texts it is clearly designed for the rulers as the means of achieving successful political ends. Hence. it is obvio usly different from the teachings in the Zhuangu about spiritual cultivatio n as the means of reaching the mystical realm transcending this- worldliness. Again. the Four Texts seem s to have learned from the experiences provided by the Spring and Autumn statesmen-thinkers. The teachings of the Four TexIS on strategies and tactics may be better understood by illustrating the practi ce of these statesmen-thinkers. In the Guoyu. we find that the Vue took exactly seven years of preparation after a humi liating defeat. according to the schedule set by Fan Li, prior to launching a military expedition of revenge against the Wu. In addition. the Seco nd Text teaches that an excellent ruler wo uld never intend to plunder the territory of others (2. 14.3). Again . the First Text suggests that the growing states should be nouri shed. (\.6. 12) These suggesti ons seem contradicto ry to the aim of achieving overlordship or a centralized and powerful government over All -underHeaven. Ho w could a ruler reali ze o verlordship by nouri shing o ther slates? The story of Guan Zhong and Duke Huan provides an instructive answer. When they launched punitive military expeditions, they did nOI annex the territories of the legitimate governments that were unjustl y plundered by those who in turn became the target of Duke Huan and Guan Zhong's punitive expedition. Furthermore , they helped resettle

71

certain sma]1 stales whose territories were seized by barbarians.4 The Qi then worked as an "Interstate Police." lo so doing. many neighboring slates paid homage to the state of Qi . which became. in effect, the paramount suzerain of the neighboring states. Thus, Qi was able to carry o ut a punitive expedition against its chief rival . Chu. without fearin g troubles in the rear.

Conclusion Through the analysis of the central tenets of the Four Texts. we can clearly di scern that the pattern of thought throughout the Texts is consistently focused on the art of rulership. The Four Texts prescribes a set of principles. policies. strategies. and modes of behavior for a ruler enabl ing him to achieve paramount overlordship. and to govern well according to the prescriptive nonu s of political realism. The sal ient feature s of the art of rulership in the Four Texts clearly reOect a distinct inOuence of the prominent statesmen-thinkers of the Spri ng and Autumn period. It adopts and further develops the ideas of these statesmen-thinke rs by creati ve ly applying their relevant thoughts and experiences to the exigent need s in the middle and the beginning phase of the late Warring Slales period. UnforlUnately. the frenzy of the ferociou s intersta te warfare as well as the intrastate upheavals toward the end of the Warring States period o utstripped the relevance of the art of rul ershi p offered by the Four TexIs because it proved too moderate fo r a world convul sing with unprecedented vio le nce and about to undergo a ca tacl ys mi c metamorphosis to give birth to a unified empire under the Qin . Thus. ironical ly. the Four TexIs which emphasizes timeliness proved unrimdy. A matter of life and death struggle between the more powerful of the contending states drove them to em brace the extreme and myopic foon s of "Legali st" measures which. more often than not. amounted to a gross malpractice of "Legalism" as articulated by Han Fei. Suc h was the case with Qin Shi Huangdi ~Hf'i.ID. W (reigned 246-2 JO Be) and his ~ Le galis l " Chief Mini ster Li Si 3f.Kfr (1 - 208 BC) who succeeded in establishing the first unified empire in Chinese hi story. In the wake of the political unification. the new regime effectively standardi zed the mo netary. writing. and highway systems so as to replace the ol d feudal order with a highl y centralized political system. t The extreme fonn of "Legalism" --- in egregious violation not onl y of the basic tenets of the Texts. but al so of the essential teachings of "Legalism" --- Ihal came to characteri ze the political d rama of the final

73

years of the Warring States period and the short-lived reign of Qin Shi Huangdi over the unified empire. as Sima Tan noted. "can be put into practice temporaril y but cannot meet long-term needs. "2 It should come as no surprise. then. that C hen She 1lJt!f; and Wu Guang ~Ji would rise

up in rebellion. A multistate political configuration similar to that of the Warring

States period emerged in the wake of the sudden collapse of the Qin dynasty, and as one might expect. the separate states fought against one another. Thus. once again the central question for the rulers of these states was: How to end the chaos and to establish a unified government over AII -under-Heaven? Although the military i ssue remained the most

urgent one, posl-Qin political circumstances were, nevertheless. different from the final . spasmodic decades of the Warrin g States period and allowed for a more deliberate approach. Thus. the new socioeconomi c and political milieu helped to revive the relevance of the basic tenets of the Four Texts. Liu Bang i'lJ-ffl. the founding ruler of the Han dynasty. with the help of hi s ministers Cao Can f!j~ and Chen Ping ~:>Jl. the followers of the "Yellow Emperor" teachings.) adopted the strategy taught by the Four Texts, namely, "feminine" conduct and patiently waiting for the most opportune moment to advance. It is symbolic indeed that the first act after Liu Bang started a rebellion against the Qin was to worship the Yellow Emperor.4 Alt hough the Han was militarily weaker than the Chu in th e beginning. adoption of the correct policy and strategy enabled the Han 10 increase its strength in due course. Finally. Liu Bang adroitly o utwitted and defeated hi s most formidable rival . Xiang Yu Jf,{~. the Lord of Chu. who preferred to assume "mascul ine" conduct. s Even as the in terstate wars raged. Liu Bang and his mini sters paid much attention to the economy. a prerequisite for mil itary success. In so doin g. they crafted policies to stimulate production and. as taught by the Four Texts . managed to avoid any interruption of productive activity while reducing corvee labor and taxation.6 After unification. the Han was so exhausted economically that its royal house could hardl y find four horses of the same color for the

74

emperor's carriage and the mini sters often had to use oxen instead of horses for their carriages.? Hence. the Han rulers were clearly aware that levying heavy taxes on the people and exacting crushi ng corvee labor from them would undermine popular support fo r their political legiti macy. Thus. the ruler pursued the policy of reducing taxes and adopting a relativel y frugal way of life by drastically curtailing governmental expenditure to help revive the economy. The concept of wuwei. or nooaction. which in the Four Texis implies non-intervention in people's activ ities of production. and the emphasi s on quietude in both the Four Texts and the Laozi, provided the rulers

with appropriate guidelines for thi s post-Qin period . Therefore . the socalled "Huang- l.ao" thought fl ourished during the early phase of the Han dynasty. A nd the implementation of the se policies proved s uccessful. The economy recove red quickly and the Han enjoyed unprecedented prosperity. The innuence of the teachings of the Yellow Emperor on the Han dynasty was not limited to the restoration of the economy. The wUlVei policy of econom ics was accompanied by the gradual centralization of political power and autho rity,1i another theme that fin ds its theoretical precedent in the Four Texts. The Early Han . however. was noted for establishing Confucian orthodo)(y. Do ng Z hung shu 1f f.pff (I;.a . 190-105 BC). the greate st representative of Han Confucian ism. offered hi s famou s advice to EmperorWu i1t: (reigned 141 -87 BC) to proscribe the "hundred schools of thought a nd uphold the e)(clusive orthodo)(y of Confuciani sm."'} Hi s s uggestion was grea tl y appreciated by the emperor, though not fully implemented until the rei gn of the Emperor Yuan :7C (reigned 48-33 80.10 who established Confucia ni sm as the "official" ideology of imperial Chi na until 1911. The rise of the Neo-Daoism in the third cen tury AD and the introduction and n ourishing of Mahayana Buddhism durin g the fourth to the eighth centuries had a major impact o n such field s as metaphysics and religion. Nevertheless. the orthodo)( positio n of Confucianism in politics seemed immune from challenge. We could not find even a single person in nearl y two millennia to have suggested {hal

75 Confucianism be replaced by another system of thought as the guideline of government unlil the end of the last century.

Does this imply that Chinese political thought since the reign of the

Emperor Yuan was monolithicall y Confucian'? We are inclined to think that the situation was considerabl y more complex. Zhu Xi * ~ (1130-

1200 AD), the greatest synthesist of Song Neo-Confuciani sm,1I repeatedly observed that no emperor in Chinese history. since the Han dynasty, had really practiced the Confucian theory of politics. Although

some emperors were considered to have govemed the stale well. e.g .. Li Shimin * t!! ~ (reigned 627 to 649 AD), the second emperor of the Tang dynasty (6 18-896 AD). their Confucian "Government by Virtuous

Example" was no more than -hypocritical benevolence and righteousness." and. in reality. they based their policies on an unyielding calculus of interests. t2 Zhu Xi's statement may well be overstated; nevertheless, it should make us pause and think. In carefully examining Chinese hi story. we can discern a pattern of political activity that Chinese rulers regularly practiced. They fonnulated policies, strategies, and tactics for consolidating and sustai ning their power base by means of effectively controlling their subjects. securing their support by benefiting them , and, of oourse, channeling the support of their subjects to practical political ends, systematically eliminating their political opponents, etc. What Zhu Yuanzhang *7C:Ot (reigned 1368 to 1398 AD), the first emperor of the Ming dynasty (1368-1644 AD), did was. by and large. an emulation of the successful practice of Liu Bang i'J$B (reigned 206 to 195 Be). the first emperor of the Han dynasty some J.500 years ago. I) Numerous hi storical examples in Chinese imperial poli tics strongly suggest that a realistic tradition alongside idealistic Confucianism had been espoused by the s upreme rulers of C hina, especially the successful ones. Unlike Confucianism, this tradition had not been one of public knowledge, for it was passed o n as a covert tradition among the ruling elites. 14 The basic tenets of this covert trad ition are succinctly articulated in the Four Texts.

76

Confucianism as the official political philosophy so dominated the political scene for the past two millennia that it became conventional wisdom to define the Chinese state as the Confucian slate. The present research, therefore. is an attempt 10 reevaluate this conventional wisdom

and reex.am ine the texture of the millennial Chinese political tradition through a study of the Four Texis that unwittingly discloses for us a more refined version of the covert tradition. a tradition that has always been a s ignificant part of traditional Chi nese politi cal thought and practice.

The primary aim of Confucianism l5 has been to nurture internalization of Confucian mo ral virtues a nd role-specific behavioral codes through j iaohua. $!{ { t or " transformation through education." T he Confucian j iuohua is an essential aspect of the public enterprise of lizh;, tam or "govern ment by virtuous example," entrusted to jum;, ~T who ideally person ify the cardinal Confucia n moral virtues and thereby become legitimate exemplars for others to follow. Hence, we may characterize thi s mode of gove ming as yang ru. llt}~ or "overt Confucianism." In contrast to yang ru. or "overt Confucianism." the Four Texts will be characterized as yin. ~i or "covert," in that the Four Texts is primarily

concerned with :.hushu, :E {fi or "the art of rulership," although zhushu may involve overt aspects. such as publicly promulgated law s and statutes. The Four Texts is clearly written for the ruler and the ruling or "the art of governing, " eli tes as an "internal document" of shu. obviously not intended for public oollsumptioll .

m

As A. Graham notes: "Han Fei distinguished between law as public and method as private . the arcanum of the ruler. "'6 The designatio n of the term "esoteric" may indeed be appropriate fo r the term "covert" in that the "covert tradition" is intended to pass on shu primaril y to the uniquely authoritative sovereign a nd to an exclusive. restricted. small ruling elite group. As we have seen . the sovereign alone :.:hidao,fAill or "holds to Dao," and thereby is uniquel y empowered to practice "the art of rulership" b y

TI

wuwei.

#!«:~

or

" nonaction .~

as if the sovereign is the cenler point of a

scale. a mirror that remains xujing. l1iiO or "empty and quiescent," or the hub of a wheel that remains mo tionless while the spokes . i.e .. the

mini sters. are in constant mo vement of youwei. 1§j ~ or "action." of fulfilling their functionally designa ted specific responsibilities. Zhushu is primarily and essentially the arcanum of the ruler. intrinsically "cover'" and predicated on the interest-centered Realpolitik.

As Lao Zi says. "Fish should not be taken o ut of the depth s; the slate's sharp weapons should not be shown to the people." !? The Four Texis was. in all likelihood. passed on as an infernal document among

the ruling houses: thi s may. in part. help explain the reason why the Four

TexIs was subseq uently losl. in all probability due to wars. sometime between the Han and Tang dynasti es. Inasm uch as the Four Texts constitutes a di stillation of hi storical lessons as well as theoreti cal summary of these lessons that proved particularly useful for the subsequent ruling houses. the covert tradition has become a significant part of Chinese political culture and histo ry. The covert tradition. moreover. became incorporated in major hi stori cal works such as A Comprehensive Mirror of Historical Lessons for Government and other historical classics. In other words. the hi storical books have replaced the Four Texis as indispensable sourcebooks for generations of Chinese rulers. It is no wonder then that Chinese rulers. even in mooem China. have always emphasized the significance of reading historical

classics.

Notes and References Inlroduclion I. The man buried in the tomb was, tho ugh there is nQ unanimous agreement

about this, the son of a chief minister of the local government, who !i\'ed in the first half of the S(X;ond century Be. For details of the excavation , sec the Hunan Provincial Museum and IAAS (Inslilule o f Archaeology. Academ ia Si nica): "E.'(ca\'alion of the Han Tombs Nos. 2 and 3 at Mawangdui , Chang, s ha. ~ Wt'11 wu x.f1j, 218 ( 1974) 7:39-48. Cf. Karen T urner, footnote 4. 'l E.!!., Zhouyi Itl M (/ Ching) or the Book. of Changu. There arc numerous differences betwecn this earlicst \'ersion and the later versions. 3. Two \'ersions or the Lao1.i were uneanhed and there arc some minor lcxtual differences between them and the cu rrent \'ersion as well as between themselves. Neither o r the two versions has a book tille. However, both (;()flStst of two dearly tilled pans: dt!' or "Power" (often rendered iL~ ·V irtuc ") and Dao or thc ·Way." Virtually nonc of the manuscripts ha.~ a book title but some have chapter or section Ii ties. For the Mawangdui versions of the Laozi, sec Henricks. 4. Pre\'iously, the title of this lext was read as Shidajing +*~ o r the Ten G reat Classics. Sec JF. Late r , some specialists su rmi sed It as Shiliuji ng +T;".!§! or the Sixteen Classics. See Editor's Notes, in SSt T his opinion has been accepted by most scholars although a fe w still persist in the pre\' jous supposition. In a recent stud y, however, Li Xueqin ~*llJ argues that the tille should be si mply Jing !1:1! or the C lassics, and "sllida " k or the ~Ten Significances· be consi dered a sectio n titlc, sec Li Xueqi n (II), pp. 274-:!82. We think Li is correct. 5, T he first le.xt L"OnsisLs of 9 polilicaltreatiscs. each of which is tilled according to the ""'"tents discussed without mentioning any historical persons or c\·cnts. T he second text consists of 15 sect ions, most of which arc the stories of the Yellow Emperor and the conversati ons between him and hi s ministers or advisors. The third tellt (.untains about SO short sayi ngs, quite similar to the style of the "Dal/ll!" *~ chapter o f the Kunti fiiT, i.e., quotations and/or notes. And the last te:'(t. which is the shortest, focuses on a phi losophical approach towards the art of rulership. 0, In this work. we adopt B. Schwartz's usc of the term IhouXhl. He says: "I use the tcrm 'history of thought' rather than 'history o f idea,,' or 'i ntellectual hi story' prociscly beeause of the indeterminate boundaries of the wo rd 'thought. ' II is a word which may be used to encompass cognition and reaso ning as well as intentionality. imagination, se ntiment, wonder, pualement, and many other aspects of the conscious life which cannot be readily progrolmmed o n a r..:omputer." Sec Schwartz, p. 423. There are places where wa is used interchageably with IIIolIght, when idea is understood as

+

"formulated/hol/xht.• The word ('Qlleept is used in a more widely shared understanding of the

ternl , that is, any "pruc.luct of mental apprehension or aclivi ty. e:'(isting in the mind as an object of knowledge.~ (Oxford Englis" Dieliotlary). The Icon /hell/I! denotes "a subject of discourse" o r "a propositio n to be cJ1Sl:ussed. " The term calegory refe rs to "any of scveral fundame ntal and distinct classcs to which entities or concepts belong." While Pcerenboom agrees that "the fou r essa~"S do evince a high degree of unity of thought: he observes that the Lllnylu f'ietf.J .Scd as a rhetorical question with the ai m of affirming the naturalness of hierarchical di vision between the ruler and the ruled as well as the rich and the poor. 7. Sec: JF.. pp. 150-154, also Wen WU , 220 (1974) 9:45-47, and Vu Mingguang (I). ( 11).

8. Ban Gu, p. 440. Yiwenzhi is the first extant Chinese bibliography compiled by Ban Gu m:~ (32·92 AD) from materials first completed by u u Xiang I'JJ~ (71-6 Be) and his son Li u Xin

j'lJflX (55 BC-23

AD) now found in Honshu

Chapler 30. Cf. Fens Youlan, (Ii), Vol. I, p, 412, 9, Sec Appendix I. 10. Some scholars have tried to link the four texts with works ascribed 10 the Yellow Emperor and/or his ministers OIher than the Four TexIs o[ the Yellow Emperor. Gao Heng and Dong Zhi'an suppose that the second lext might be the Huangdijunchen Jt1?itH2 (Yellow Emperor and his Minislers) ; Feng Youlan ((I), Vol. 2 , p. 195) agrees with cenain scholars who thin k that the Second Text may well be Huangdi Waijing JiWi9!-~. We think the latter supposition is not correct because Huangdi Waijing is classified under the calegory of medicine. II . Chinese people call themselves "the descendants of the Red and Yellow Emperors. - The Red Emperor was another legendary king of remote antiquity. 12. See Wu Guang, pp. 110-8; Waley, pp. 100·4 , 134-5. 13. See Tang Lan (1) (II), Long Hui , Wu Goang (pp. 133-4), etc. 14. There exist major- discrepancies among scholar.> engaged in the Four Tuts research on the date of the work's composition: the early or middle period of the Warring SlaleS supposition represented by T ang Lan and Yu Mingguang; the latc o r end 0( the Warring States period supposition represented by Wu Guang, Rcn Jiyu, and somc others; and the early Han period supposition represented by Kang Li. For details see their respecti ve writings. IS. For philosophical/metaphysical approaches, see the works by Yu Mingguang, Ren l iyu , Peerenboom, and many others. For the approaches that emphasize the transient innuence on the J):)litics of the early Han, sec Yu Qian. 16. In adopting this term, we acknowledge our reference to the work by Roger T. Ames, Th~ Art of Ruh"hip: A Stud, in Ancient Chinelt Political

Thought. 17. Sima Tan was a historiographer o f the Han dynasty. Upon the materials he collected and the ideas he set forth , hi s son, Sima Qian, wrote the famo us Ta;shigongshu :;t~1H~ o r The Wor.ts of Ih~ Grand Hisloriographu whic h was later re-titled Shiji 1!~ or Historical Records. For an incomplete English translation, sec Records 0/ lhe Grand hislo,;nn of China, 2 Vols. , by Burton Watson. New York: Columbia University Press, 197 (. 18. Some lC. 1i! ~ ar 17b-18b; NeT 47. When the orders are issued. they are surely obeyed by the common people immediately. This is because it has become habitual for people to do so. It is for love that the male and female encourage each other. It is because of their timeliness (in complying with the ways of heaven) that the orders will always be obeyed by the people. no matter whether they are put into action or (relaxed) at rest. t h is because they are appropriate that awards are nol considered a s peciaJ favor and puni shments do not cause resentment. It is delineation between the worthy and worthless that differentiates nobles from commoners. Every rank should have its own garments which should not be intermixed. since superior and inferior ranks must be clearly classified. It is because people are well -fed and adequately clothed and punishments are administered without any I. Whelher they go o ut 10 fight or render cor\'ce service. or stay in their land 10 culti\·alc.

III

leniency that there are no thieves and bandits in the country. that there is neither cheating !lor cunning. and that people do not entertain perverse thoughts. Defense of a nalio n e njoying prosperity cannot be broken. whereas launching an atlack on others when suffering fro m want is lanlamounl 10 attacking oneself. 1.3.5 'Ii '''E~ Z \I!i ' 1!!l1HE~ Z lE (lJ() • 11l'li Z~1!lfji!1 ~ , iii!

ZX ' I1l'liZIit1!WtUE, iIIIZjj\',·

(X) jj\',ltifT '

~11'liHt~·

or

19a-b; Ncr 47.

Heaven ordains the lime to live a nd to die.! Simi la rly. a nalion has its governance over li fe a nd death. 2 Following the vitality of life o rdained by heaven to no uri sh life is called wen (govern ing by civi l

admini stration). Following the (destiny) of death o rdained by heaven 10 admini ster the severe sanction of death to those who should be killed is called wu (governi ng by coercive administration). If both [wen [ and wu function well, then All-under-Heaven will obey the ruler.

\.3.6 AZ:>I:'ifI1ll' JllZ:>I:tEll:, ll:Z~tE\I!i ' !lliZl!ltE~ , ~ZI!I .l£JJ 'IJZI!I'if!iil ' ""11llll:' ''i1!11iffiilll! ' !iil~:JJWi' ' ~ljl!t~ . iiii'< 'Ii 1l! ' ~II~ 11; • lUI RIHHb ' 'fjJl(,RIjIjJt~ 11< fliffii JIlltt (1l1) ;pre· !lit ~ bJdlfffii JIlH:t (1l1) ;Plll ~IJ'il'JllI tI!IIZll!1!!' OT 19b-2Ob; Ncr 47. The basis of man is the earth , and the basis of the earth lies in knowing what is fitting. What is fittin g iss ues from timeliness) The fun ction4 of ti meliness depends on people. The fu nction of people lies in their strength. The function of people's strength lies in frugality . With the knowledge of what is s uitable or fitting to be planted in a certain land , what is the right season for various planting in time and how to make use of the people's strength through saving it, one sees the emergence of I. Heaven ordains all things to grow and mature in spri ng, summer and autumn and wither and die in winter. 2. Governance or a nation is almost the same in that benevolent rule gives Jenerous rewards while corporal punis hment brings about severe sanctions . . . The \'ery rundamental issue of making full use of land concerns carrying o ut planting in line wi th local conditions and being in accord wi th farming seasons that arc suitable for growing crops. 4·Pr.x:tical use.

112

wealth. By collecting taxes within proper limits, people will become rich. By becoming rich, people will nurture a sense of shame (and honor), they will become accustomed to obeying orders and will not risk breaking laws and being punished. The fact that people habitually obey orders and refrain from breaking laws is the reason for their tenacity when on the defense and victories when on the offense. 1.3.7 $!lt'l'i ' lEZ",1ll" ffiW$!lt~'I'i ' l'''J.L1ll" i!ii!t$!lt'l'i' l'

"U L1ll" III0I!!tt'.i!iiIU11i1 ' Z'!i Of 20b-2Ib; NCf47.

flit~~1ll"

';\j'>IJ

'fi!~f!

' rolil'Jl!" ,

~

Q

Laws and regulations represent the supreme rectitude. Those who govern with laws and regulations can never suffer chaos and instability. Those who formulate laws and regulations are not allowed to create confusion (in formulating them). Only when pure impartiality without self- inte~st (is given priority). and all punishments and rewards are fully carried out. is a good government achieved. [Do not] burden people with harsh corvee labor. Reduce taxes. and do oot interrupt people in farming seasons. If a nation can be administered in this way, it will become stable.

I!!t:X:ZiT' l' i~FrZJll " l!!taZlili ' l'h!;lIIJl!ZtJ " :x:az iT Illi ' N'J7iIt!!Z ft;1ll " .:=: 'l'i 1l1J ~'J"'I!!§i1 " ar 21 . -22a; Ncr 47. I.3.R

(If a ruler) does not possess the exemplary conduct of a father. he will not be obeyed by his sons and daughters. If he does not have the moral character of a mother. he will not be served whole-heartedly by hi s people. If one possesses the moral character held by father and mother. one can be considered as having the virtue of heaven and earth. Only if a ruler ~sses three kinds of virtues, can he be assured of achievements.

,'Mll7i-nHI! ( lit ) JI! (Ill It, ~'J"I'!lIJ ( !!i') Z lllil'l§i1" 111 ~i'iX;ll:Z!!i ' ~'J7;H! §i1"I),t~it~Jl!'(.. ' P'JJl!8!~ " .l'tl!!tt'. ' 1.3.9

j:llJ~Wl:

.. OT 22a-b; NTC 47.

If one is able to recruit outstanding heroes in the world, one will be well prepared for defending one's country. If one is performing the ways

113 of wen and wu carefully, one will gain the aJlegiance of all peoples under

Heaven. If a ruler promulgates laws and decrees which are in confonnity with the will of the people, he will be obeyed by them. If he loves universally wilhoot selfish consideration. people will cherish him .

Section Four: The Great Dividing Lines l 1.4.1

1II!1ll~lIItt

22b-23a;

·1l1it1lli:·

t;g1>Ill~IJ t;t;t!, 1' . t;t;t!,;j meaning "six.· This emendation is problematical because we cannot find all ·six (kinds o r governing) that compl y with (Dao o r principle)." In the Original text. only five are listed. Again. quile plausibly, what has been emended may very well be da as it appears in the original tex t. Otherwise, o ne has to assume that the text on "Six (kinds of govcrning) that comply WIth ( Daoor principle)" is incompletc since one o f the six is mIssing. 2·Cf. Yu Mingguang (II ). p. 32.

117

The six (kinds of) compliance and six (kinds of) rebelliousness fonn the dividing lines between the survival and death and (the rise and fall) of a country. A ruler should be in charge of these six dividing lines. taking them as the basis by which (he makes decisions) to preserve or deprive life. to {punish}! or reward and to determine whether it is necessary to launch a punitive expedition.2 In so doing. All-under Heaven will be peaceful and luminous virtue will serve as an exemplar. According with Heaven and earth. he universally covers and sustains (the world) without selfishness: therefore. he is able to govern AII(under I-Heaven.

1.4.6 ,£;Iinted to positions (of power and authority) is called disorder. Moving and resting not in accord with the proper timing (of the four seasons) is called t.eL Yu Mingguang (2). p. 37. 2·Sunn ised according to sentence structure. 3. Four Principles denote I) quietude, 2) recti tude/impartiality, 3) wen (X), and 4) Wit (lit).

121

rebelliousness. Inappropriate judgment over life and dealh is called brutality.

1.5.2 Jl! ~IJ*,"" IL~IJ*,IIil ' Jl!~IJ*,'I< ' ("'l ~IJ*,A' *,"'M'J *,1Iil~IJ~ . *''I-42a; Ncr 51. That which is appropriate has lits guiding principleJ.3 To climax and to return, to flouri sh and to wane is the Dao of heaven and earth as well as the principle of human affairs. Rebelliousness and compliance have 10 do with the same Dao but different principles; profound knowledge of rebelliousness and compliance is caJled the guiding principle of Oao.

1.5. iO mlirii'i' i'lI!'l1'l'l? V),rFIII· i'lA1'l!!? V)'l'ir1' J'j.

( M } 0 4'0 ? Of 42a·b; Ncr 51.

If a powerful (country) demonstrates modesty toward weak (countrie!». which country can not he overcome? If the noble show regard for the humble. who can not be won over? If the worthy retiring towards the unworthy ...4 not... 5 ?

1.5. 11 IllZI'lBA

( l1li )

.j!; (!I'!) zl'lB (;In • (@) z rBJE ·

*Z L tJ B'I'· I< '1'z!ll: B'i'*Il1Rc 'lI!ltizfiliBll!lli1'I'! . 46z11 B'I,

(~) ~ffll1J 1II1!! - Jj'dil< ii!!1Il • $ti!l>'U! . i1IIIi!l>1!Y (.;) · 000 oooooooo l1,j~Ji!l> 1\t . ;I('!Jli/W1>iIi . ffifllll1iJHf OT82a0

""

0

83a; NCT 62.

I. ln ancient Chi na, blac k and white were often used to re present ri ght and wrong or good a nd evil . 2.Surm iscd in reference of 2.4. 1.

148

The Yellow Emperor said: " the masses ... in a (primeval and undifferentiated) lump; there was neither night nor day; neither yin nor yang. Since yin and yang were not determined. I could not name them. Now it begins 10 divide into two (heaven and earth), yin and yang are distinguished and the four [seasons) separated .... I (these are to be) taken as constant (measures). That which is luminous o ught to be followed as laws a nd that which is covert ought to be followed in carrying out (punishments).

fi'$l!l D ' DDlttt • ltttllDl< • fllW!I!z!tlfl' IJ!

lJ!!tk !l-87.; NCT 62. Thus. do not put people into corvee labor service in an unnaturally forced manner: do not make excessive demands on yang when (military) actions are undertaken . and do not exhaus t y in when the land is cultivated. If yin is exhausted, crop failure will take place in the land. If excessive demands are made upon yang. (the ruler) will be deprived of I. The missi ng characlers are surmised by referring 10 lhe similar structure and sentence of 2.2.8. 2The missing character is surmised according 10 the sentence structure.

150

his fame . If people are deployed in corvee labor service in an unnamrally forced manner. (the ruler) will suffer (the chaos of) war. ~. ~ .8

itlI" ;1(", .

);"\",,,A,,'li ' 11Iili = !j! . flIAL ~Jj] • flIl!!7J 7\ iii · Il!1li'1l11""!Il1A Z 1Il. !Il1A Of'" . 111i lit

.

li!"J' • I§ *""~ !IHI"III! • l!1AlEW't (f;l) x . IjIj:..lJIlA • 'I'll xlfiJ . HliOfflll· llixo;· Ili!Zti'Ii · 1iI1i1'1i' 1it'lt:lUl· or 89a-90b; Ncr 6::!-3.

Since the Dao of heaven is comprehensively established. the earth will provide its resources. It is the sage's undertaking to di sperse and circulate (the qi of yang and the qi of yin to make the (wo) compJemenl one another and complete (all things). The sage will never become obsolete because he abides by the principle of returning. Munificenl and benevolent to the people, he is in accordance with the Dao of heaven.

The sage abides in rectitude awaiting (orders from) heaven. and he keeps himself in quietude waiting for (the affairs of) people (to unfold). He will never rescind heaven's punishment, and he will never break contracts (with other countries). When heavenly opportunity (for action) comes, he will make a decision to act accordingly. If he fails to make deci sions when they should be made. (opportunities) will tum into troubles to make him suffer.

152

lilE Section Three: Five Kinds of Rules

2.3.1 Jili'ir.~IIIIf1jB: ftil1:"'!I!i'liJE . lllll:lIilll? fiB: 1Iltf.m: ... .pl;JEll! ' ~lUIA · 91-i'J9:W' l'JJEm:1l!Zilflili:· >II!A • ~ 'Ii T:Ie ~'~~~ ' 1fi~m ~~~?iYifllB:~ ~ 'IlI'J? " B: ~ 'llm~

~·~~~m ~ ~· ~'Il"'Q · ~ ~ ~~ . lli·1fi~*~'ll·M~1'J ht~~ 0 or 92a-93 b; Ncr 65.

The Yellow Emperor said : "Suppose I do not know myself (as clearly as I should). What should I do then?" Van Ran said : "If you, my lord. do

not know yourself. you should hide yourself in the depths' so as to seek When the order within is achieved. you, my lord. I wHIP naturally know how to "bend yourself. "3 The Yellow Emperor said: "I do indeed wi sh 10 obey. But how do I go about this?" Van Ran answered : "Those who advocate the same ideas (as you) will do the same (as yourself) while those who advocate different ideas (from yours) will conduct their affairs differently. There is now ferociou s contention in AII-under-Heaven. and the opportunity (for controlling AII -under-Heaven). is at hand. Will you. my lord. be cautious and not engage in the struggle (for controlling AII-under-Heaven)?" The Yellow Emperor said : "How can I avoid thi s struggle?" Yan Ran responded: "Anger is (the function) of the blood and qi. whi le struggle is (the function) of the fat and skin outside. When one is angry but restrains its expression, one will suffer from ulcers. warts and piles. If you, my lord. are without4 the four (blood. qi. fat. and skin . what is there left but dried up bones, and) how could such bones engage in thi s struggle?" an order within the inner (heart/mind).

2.3.4 illflllfl< • li!!z iii : ~, ( !!! ) I! . '" tI ( Jt ) r . fl/ 1lIJ1 ) • flIJ!!± . H1J!!±J1J . H1lIH'!'!Il' OT 124b-125o; NCT 74. For one's actions 10 be without constancy is forbidden by heaven. For a fanner not

(0

engage in farming according to (seasonal) timeliness is

forbidden by the earth. For ordinary people not to observe laws and regulations is forbidden by their ruler. When all three prohibitions function well. a country approx.imates good governing. The prohibitions

of the earth are u follows: Do not (decrease) the high land (arbitrarily). Do not increase the low land (at will). Do not obstruct rivers (at will), Do

not hinder people engaged in planting crops and trees (according to local conditions and seasonal timeliness). Do nOI construel buildings in wrong seasons, t Do not stifle the intelligence of the people.

e.lD.e jlHtIO · :;)''''... ~ (l!I!) ~&jjj. C@;~*J;g. A!1!M~ · ..1 1'JU) ' ~~'Ji! fIJ~ .

,,6>

0

All cou ntries that build up their military forces have their waysl of warfare. There are three maj or ones: waging war for profit; waging war for righteousness; and waging war to vent anger and resentment. I. Difrerent reasons for wagi ng war.

172

2. 11.2 "'1II"""J'If ' J!. (It.A. ~ ) Ill· lIliiFfifi· Lr'f1it . !Ill< i'lf~Z· PIt (It) III\*.,J • ;JFIII\* \!1l!i. '" III """". 'If • rtlL:!Ul • Ie 'If IIH I!f • "'lIIilt!! • ( il) 'If • l!( Z "':lEt!!. Ji! 11m- 1IllJ1 '" 1" ~lIi (Z) 'tDD1/;T-i3Jtiil· ~IU· ( ~) $.(.. Z!lit!!· ill i'lflit (18) >11. "'liIifil.l:'If· ,(,·Dll.l: · HI!~!E\' !E\I1. '~l!it!!. OT 127.-129.; Ncr 75.

z·

It is called waging war for profit when a country is perceived las its

people beingJl in hunger. its people are weighed down and the relationship between its ruler and its ministers is improper. and hence a military expedition is launched against such a country. In doing so, one cannot garner great profit. However, it will not s uffer great harm. It is called waging war for righteousness when a military ex.pedition is carried out to suppress disorders. to prohibit atrocities. to promote the worthy and to dismiss those without ability and political integrity. Thi s is called righteous (war). It is for a (righteous (cause)] that the multitude will strive even at the cost of laying down their lives. Thus. a ruler (of) a country with ten thousand chariots wishing to conquer AII-under- Heaven ... always starts with (the pretext 00 righteousness. However. seldom does such a ruler achieve the end he has in view. This is not because he does nOI have perseverance but because things will develop in the opposite direction when pushed to extremes. and the ruler who launches the war will suffer in tum. It is called waging war to vent anger and resenlment when a ruler's heart is so obsessed with anger that he is unable to control his anger without letting it off, and therefore he is compelled to give venl to his anger (by waging war). Even if he achieves success, he does not know what it is that he seeks. Insofar as he manages to annex territories. rebelliousness begins, for it goes against the Dao.

I1!Z fit!! . EIIHlJE • EIIHIE • ~IJIII\Jl! • IilrDtt . M'If ( t!! ) 'Jil;tt · fi!'o/!.t!! • JH.l:l>n'f\\'l · OT 129a-b; Ncr 75.

1.11.3

1. Surmised according to the sentence structure.

173

The rea1ization of Dao follows the tendency of necessity.! When the tendency of necessity is followed. his actions will not be pushed to extremes. ITo restrain) (in certain aspects) implies to exploit (in other aspects), and to prohibit implies allowing certain actions. 2 For this reason (the army that acts in accordance with Dao) will be able to prevail without hindrance.

00 Section Twelve: ... 3 2. 12. 1 lilt fA) !IIl!l1!!. . 15-ift'l:'li!! . -'iift" . l1'iftJ1!J!Ii· ~"I"l fi) . i!\5\'fi!Z . llili!!ft1!!· ,U, ~ii1J . 1:1:I!lZ . *fIJJ~lliIl'li:lZlj(" ( fiO

f''FIj O! ill Z 'll' ' lit or ~ t!l " N. "lOU!lZ'l' ' 1Itlj(~ t!l •

:!LlE"" (111) 't ' 'f!J!'N.¥ IU•• :!LlEiII'lf ' 'f!J!'I$'ll' Iillli"

( '1(2 )

1""1: )

*1!!7'1Ii ' R')"'tr.I!" BI!I7'

iii ' R'Jll1:JUJ •

~1Ii*'E

' R'J!I!tr.1! " 1Itl!!

:Jt1li'!i:Jt~,ij ( !t )D

( ~ )

RIJ • (1"11: )

HiL 7'1Ii,"tl'iiliiJ!: '

Hl'k7'1Ii'!iI!I"t) l'iiliiJ!:"

J1!'t ' "~ZffrVl' nJ'tJJ" ( S ,L' )

A I'mz ' .ll:nJ)1;f; "

1["11: )

([6]1: )

(ll!@ )

Appendix 4 Pa rallels between the Sayings of Fan Li and the Four Texts

'" l!I1 A!!fllli tAft . ll!lI'I'i'fllli • 'lt ij> .!!\ 'E Jiilli:!O! III ± if!'; 'l' Z, *"'" iFf is f!: l!I1II )I: (Annotations of the Lost Ancient Texts Preceding the Version B of the Book of Laozi Unearthed at Mawangdui Han Tomb. Changsha). Wenwu . 221 (1974), 10: 3()..42 .

Mawangdui Hanmuboshu Jingfa ~ :E Jt tJfa R\ . ~i'! (The silk manuscripts Unearthed at Mawangdui Han Tomb, the Constancy of Laws and Others). Beijing: Wenwu Press. 1976.

. . .. (II)

Mencius. see Legge. Mo Zi . see Shi Chao. Mu Zhongjian ($ . a ). "Daojiaxueshuo yu Uupai shuyao " m*.~ Wiifti1.iBiEI! (Outline of the Theories and Sects of Taoism). Daojia wenhuayanjiu. (1992). 1:7-30. Munro. Dona ld. The Concept of Man in Early China. Stanford : Standford University Press. 1969. Peerenboom . R.P. Law and Morality ;n Ancwnt China, the Silk manuscripts of Huang.Lao. Albany: State University of New York Press. 1993. Peng Z hengsui

(J3lEt!). "Huanglao Xuepai Jingji Sixiang Chutan "

1Yi~~ttf(~iJf,E~H'!!flJ~

(A Preliminary Study on the Economic Ideas of the Huang-Lao School). J;ngji Yanj;" tli!.m:iJf~ (1984). 5:52-58. Polanyi . Michael. Personal Knowledge: Towards a Post-Critical Philosophy. NY : Harper and Row, 1962. Oakshott. Michael. Rationalism and Politics and Other Essays. NY : Basic Book ~ , 1962. Qiu Xigui ( ~ m. iE). "Mawangdui Laozi Jiayiben Juanqianhou Yi shu yu Daofajia".!!\ 'E Ji if!'; 'l' If' Z, *"'" iFf lit f!: l!I fA! lli 11; ;j( (The Lost TexIS before and after Mawangdui Laozi Versions A and B and the "TaoistLegalist" School). Zhongguo Zhexue '< (1981). 2:75-98.

Xin1.hongguo Zhongda Kaogufaxian WTt:p~:m*~i5~~ (The significant Archaeological Discoveries of ChilUl). Beijing: Wenwu Press, 1989. Zhu Xi. Zhuu Yuki *T~M:. (Classified Sayings of Master Zhu). Beijing: Zhonghua Shuju. 1986. Zhuang Zhou

HmJ, see Watson.

Zuo Qiuming (:!i:£i.B)J). Ouoyu ~~ (The Discourses of Variou s States). Shanghai : Shanghai Ancient Classics Press, 1978.

---- Zuo1.huan. see Legge.

Page 225

Index A Analects, 59, 78n5, 83n29 art of kingship, 118-9 art of rulership, 2-3, 19, 21-4, 27-30, 34, 36, 37, 47, 51-5, 64, 65, 67, 70, 72, 76-7, 79, 89n20, 126 Art of War by Master Sun (Sunzi Bingfa), 64 B ba, 89-90n22 baijia zhengming (contentions of a hundred schools of thought), 20 baojia (mutual responsibility security network), 50 Book of Lord Shang, 59, 60 C Cao Can, 73 Cao Gui, 44 Chen Liang, 89-90n22, 90n29 Chen She, 73 Chi You, 60, 70, 154, 158-60 cijie (See "Feminine conduct") coercive force (See also "wu"), 111, 126n1, 186 compliance, 30-1, 37, 101n2, 104-5, 109, 116-7, 122-3, 125, 127-8, 132-3, 138, 147, 150, 157, 161, 169, 173, 177-8, 190 Confucianism, 3, 21, 24-7, 36, 43, 45, 47, 51, 53-4, 61, 74-6, 88n9, 90n29, 95n10 Confucius, 17, 18, 24-25, 58, 83n28, 83-4n29, 84n32-3, 85n38, 87n62m, 89-90n22 Consequences, ethics of, 25-6 corveé labor, 54, 74, 107-8 covert tradition, 75-7 D Da Ting, 68, 176-8

Dao, 1, 17, 22, 28-34, 37-8, 40, 48-50, 76, 78n3, 90n3-4, 91n6-7, 92n16, 100-107, 109-10, 116-7, 119-20, 121-3, 1256, 127-32, 137-41, 143-44, 146-7, 152n2, 161-2, 166n2, 167-81, 186-7, 191-2, 198-200; Dao of heaven, 66, 90n3, 121-2, 130-1, 138-9, 151, 161, 165-8, 171, 173nl, 178; Dao of heaven and earth, 12, 48, 65, 123-4, 138-9, 162, 187-8 daojia (Daoism), 3, 79n18 daxing (rescinding punishment), 60, 134, 138, 151, 166 de (See also "Reward"), 57, 59-61, 93nl(ch.5), 93-4nl(ch.6), 111-2, 134, 147-9, 154-5, 160-66, 177, 186-7, 195 6 di (deity), 5-8, 13 di (See "Earth") Start of Citation[PU]University of Hawaii Press[/PU][DP]1998[/DP]End of Citation

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Dong Zhongshu, 74 du (See "Regulations") Duke Huan of Qi, 11, 15, 16, 70, 71, 89-90n22 Duke Zhuang of Lu, 44 E earth (See also "di"), 12, 34-8, 65, 103-6, 111-2, 116-7, 124-5, 127-8, 131-2, 138- 41, 145-51, 154-60, 162, 166-70, 173-8, 184, 187-8, 192, 195-9 Emperor Wu of the Han, 74 Emperor Yuan of the Han, 74, 75, 95n10 enfeoffment, 6, 9 F fa (See "law") fajia (See "legalism") fan (returning/reverting), 34, 104-6, 121, 124, 129-30, 133-5, 142, 161-2, 166, 185-86, 192-3, 195, 198 Fan Li, 10, 12, 14, 16-8, 25, 34, 70, 85n35 feminine conduct, 17, 65-9, 73, 163-5, 177, 195-6 G gang (See also "Masculine conduct"), 67, 94n3, 126, 142, 148, 162, 171 Gao Yang, 156-7, 160 gong (public), 38, 104, 112, 125, 143 Goujian of the Yue, 12 Guan Zhong (Guan Zi), 10, 11, 13-16, 25, 32, 63, 70, 71, 83n28, 83-4n29, 89-90n22, 92n24 Guanzi, 11, 18, 32, 34, 83-84n29, 91n16, 158n3 Guo Tong, 42, 47, 154-6 Guoyu (Discourse of Various States), 11, 12, 70, 166n1 H Han Fei, 21, 32, 39, 40, 43, 46, 51, 52, 55, 58, 59, 72, 76, 81n12, 87-88n4, 88n12, 91n13, 93n4, 92n23, 93n23, 95n16 Hanfeizi, 27, 32, 58, 93n1, 95n 16 Hanshu (History of the Former Han), 1, 80n8, 92n9 heaven, 7, 8, 12, 25, 34-8, 65, 103-8, 111-2, 115-7, 121-2, 124-36, 138-41, 144-8, 150-1, 154-62, 166-71, 173-7, 184-

5, 187, 189, 192, 195, 197-9 Huangdi (See "Yellow Emperor") Huang-Lao, 3, 74, 93n1 huangtian (Lord Heaven), 33, 82n14 Hui Shi, 41 J jiajie ("borrowing" a character), 4, 97 jianzhi (seeing and knowing), 48, 101, 143 jiaohua (transformation through education), 76 jieyong (reducing expenditure), 55 Start of Citation[PU]University of Hawaii Press[/PU][DP]1998[/DP]End of Citation

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jingtian (well field), 7, 15, 53, 81n11 junzi (sons of the ruler), 7, 76 L Lao Zi, 17-8, 29, 69, 77, 86n55, 90n4, 91n7 Laozi, 17-8, 74, 78n3, 86n55, 90n4, 91n7 law, 13-4, 37-40, 58, 92n24, 100, 100n1, 112, 128-30, 132, 138-9, 143, 147-8, 154-5, 161-3, 166-8, 166n2, 181-2, 195-6 Legalism, 3, 14, 51, 55, 56, 61, 72, 73, 92n24 li (See also "Principle"), 25, 28-33, 81n12, 91n7, 116, 122-4, 126, 132-4, 138-41, 143, 179 li (rites), 13, 18, 27 Li Kui, 85n42 Li Mo, 47, 50, 62, 146-7, 157, 160-1, 167-9, 176-7 Li Shimin, 75 Li Si, 72 Liu Bang, 60, 73, 75 lizhi (government by virtuous example), 76 Lord Emperor, 163 Lü Buwei, 87n4 Lüshi Chunqiu (Lü's Almanac), 36, 66, 87n3, 92n20, 94n1(ch.6) M masculine conduct (See also "gang"), 67-8, 163-5, 175-7 Mawangdui, 1, 78n1, 78n3, 80n21 Mencius, 21, 26, 41, 45, 52, 53, 61, 81n11, 89n29, 91n15, 92n2, 95n15 military expedition (See also "Punitive expedition" and "wu"), 172 mingjia, 88n13 Mo Zi, 21, 24, 36, 41, 61, 92n 8, 92n2(ch.4) Mohism, 21, 24, 25, 27, 41, 45, 47, 61, 88n9 N names/forms, 48-51, 57, 67, 95n10, 101-2, 104, 125, 133, 140-1, 143-4, 154-5, 159, 163, 167-8, 176, 179, 181, 197 namnianshu (art of facing southward), 22, 88n15-6, 117

ni (See "rebelliousness") O One (See also "Dao"), 91n7, 128, 168-70, 177, 179, 197-8, 200 P principle (See both "li" and "ze"), 31-2, 37-8, 81n12, 91n7, 116, 122-4, 126, 132-4, 138-41, 143, 179 proper timing (See "Timeliness") punishment (See also "xing") 8, 14, 16, 57-61, 78n6, 122-3, 149-50, 158, 161, 166-7, 171, 185 Start of Citation[PU]University of Hawaii Press[/PU][DP]1998[/DP]End of Citation

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punitive expedition (See also "wu"), 62-3, 70 Q qi (primeval matter-energy), 13, 65, 148-51, 153, 176, 198 Qin Shi Huang, 72-3, 94n1(cncls.) quanshu, 22 R rebelliousness, 30-1, 37, 101n2, 107, 113-6, 121-5, 130-4, 137-41, 147, 150, 152, 154, 157-61, 167, 170, 172, 177, 194 Record of Rites, 36, 66 rectification (See "zheng") rectitude (See "zheng") regulations, 37, 38, 39, 91n7, 111-2, 116-7, 124-5, 126-8, 137, 141, 188, 195-6, 199 reward (See also "de"), 57-9, 78n6, 110, 149-50, 154-5, 161, 163 righteousness, 154, 159-60, 172-3, 190 roujie (See "feminine conduct") S seasons (and everything in its proper time), 65, 103-4, 106, 107nl, 121n5, 123n3, 124-5, 150-1, 176-8, 198 Shang Yang, 21, 27, 39, 40, 45, 46, 51, 55, 59, 61, 159n2 shangxian (promotion of "worthies") (See also "worthies"), 43-6 Shen Buhai, 21, 27, 39, 51, 55, 61, 92n24 Shen Dao, 39, 40, 45, 46, 51, 92n23 shenming (spirit-like intelligence), 69, 70, 92n29, 141 shi (See "Timeliness") shi (warrior/scholar-officials), 9, 82-3n23, 119-20, 168n2, 173 Shiji (Records of the Grand Historiographer), 19, 60, 79n17 shu (art of governing), 22, 76 shun (See "compliance") si (private), 38, 102, 112-3, 116-7, 125, 143, 181 Sima Qian, 79n17, 86n55 Sima Tan, 3, 73, 79n17

Son of Heaven, 183-4 Spring and Autumn Annals, 9, 10 Spring and Autumn period, 12, 17-8, 33, 42, 83n24, 84n29-30, 86n55, 90n3 Spring and Autumn statesmenthinkers, 25, 33, 37, 39, 43-4, 47, 55, 63, 70, 72 Sunzi Bingfa (See "Art of War by Master Sun") T Taishanzhiji, 156-8 tian (See "Heaven") tiandao (See "Dao of heaven") Start of Citation[PU]University of Hawaii Press[/PU][DP]1998[/DP]End of Citation

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tianren ganying (Heaven's response to the behavior of man), 8 timeliness, 65-7, 72, 100-1, 110-2, 121, 126-8, 138-9, 147-8, 159, 162, 166, 174, 176-8, 185, 194, 198-9 Tzu-lu (Zi Lu), 58 W wangdao, 90n3, 93n24 warfare (See also "wu" and "Punitive expeditions"), 61-2, 64, 66, 172 Warring States period, 14, 17, 19, 29, 36, 40-2, 44, 47, 51, 61, 63, 72-73, 83n24, 87-8n4 wei (position [of the ruler]), 41-2, 88n15, 103-4, 113-7, 120-1, 123, 125, 127-9, 137, 140, 145-6, 193 wen (governing by civil administration), 16, 57, 59, 61-3, 111-2, 117, 121-2, 126, 138-9, 186n3 Western Zhou dynasty (See Zhou dynasty) Works of Mo Tzu, 55 "worthies" (See also "shangxian"), 15-6, 46-7, 110, 118-9, 120-2, 124, 175 wu (external punishment), 16, 57, 59, 61, 63-4, 111-2, 117, 121-2, 126, 138-9, 186n3 Wu Guang, 73 Wu Qi, 53-4, 85n42 wuwei (nonaction), 30, 50, 52, 55, 67, 74, 77, 102, 179, 198 X Xiang Yu, 73 xiaoren, 7 xing (See also "Punishment"), 57-61, 93nl, 94n1(ch.6), 108-9, 136-40, 147, 149-51, 154, 159, 161-2, 166, 194 xingming (See "Names/forms") xiongjie (See "Masculine conduct") xujing, 77, 199 Xun Zi, 21, 24, 27 xunming jiuli, 51, 138 Y Yan Ran, 47, 152-4 yang, 13, 24, 67, 94nl(ch.6), 107-8, 123-4, 129, 147-9, 151, 154-5, 161-2, 174, 176-7, 195-9 Yang Zhu, 20, 88n5-6

yangru (overt Confucianism), 76 Yellow Emperor, 1, 2, 39, 42, 47, 50, 53, 60, 62, 70, 73, 79n10-1, 145-8, 152-6, 158-60, 167-9, 176 yi (See "Righteousness") yin, 13, 24-5, 67, 76, 94nl(ch.6), 107-8, 123-4, 129, 147-9, 151, 154-5, 161-2, 174, 176-7, 195-9 Yiwenzhi (of Hanshu), 1, 79n8, 91n9 Start of Citation[PU]University of Hawaii Press[/PU][DP]1998[/DP]End of Citation

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youwei, 50, 67, 77 Z zajia (Eclectic School), 36 ze (See also "Principle"), 7-8, 12, 37, 81n12, 171, 182 zheng, 30, 58, 66, 102, 104-5, 108-12, 121-30, 132-3, 135, 140, 143, 147, 149-57, 159, 167, 169, 174, 177, 181, 184, 187, 192, 195, 200 zhidao (hold to Dao), 30, 76, 100, 102, 122-3, 125, 131, 143 Zhou dynasty, 6-7, 9, 12-3, 19, 33, 43, 81n5, 82n22, 93n3(ch.4) Zhu Xi, 75 Zhuang Zi, 20, 28, 29, 37, 88n8, 91n 5, 92n22 Zhuangzi, 21, 29. 36, 37, 67, 70 zhudao (See "Art of rulership") zhushu (See "Art of rulership") Zi Chan, 10-16, 18, 25, 35, 61, 84n31, 84n33, 85n42, 86n50, 86n54, 87n62, 92n24 Zi Pi, 86n50 Zuozhuan, 11, 81n8, 87n62 Start of Citation[PU]University of Hawaii Press[/PU][DP]1998[/DP]End of Citation

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About the Authors Leo S. Chang is a professor of political science at Regis College in Weston, Massachusetts, and an associate in research at the Fairbank Center for East Asian Research, Harvard University. He is co-author, with Hsiao-po Wang, of The Philosophical Foundations of Han Fei's Political Theory and A Research into the History of Han Fei 's Thought. Yu Feng received his Ph.D. from the People's University of China and pursued post-doctoral research at the University of Delhi. He is now an instructor of the Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations of Harvard University. He has published numerous works on Chinese intellectual history and comparative ideas and has won two major national academic awards in China. Start of Citation[PU]University of Hawaii Press[/PU][DP]1998[/DP]End of Citation

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SOCIETY FOR ASIAN AND COMPARATIVE PHILOSOPHY MONOGRAPH SERIES Henry Rosemont, Jr., Editor No. 1 The Sage and Society: The Life and Thought of Ho Hsin-Yin, by Ronald Dimberg, 1974 No. 2 Studies in Comparative Aesthetics, by Eliot Deutsch, 1975 No. 3 Centrality and Commonality: An Essay on Chung-Yung, by Tu Wei-Ming, 1976 (out of print) No. 4 Discourse on the Natural Theology of the Chinese, by Gottfried W. Leibniz, translated with an introduction, notes, and commentary by Henry Rosemont, Jr., and Daniel J. Cook, 1977 (out of print) No. 5 The Logic of Gotama, by Kisor Kumar Chakrabarti, 1978 (out of print) No. 6 Commentary on the Lao Tzu by Wang Pi, translated by Ariane Rump, introduction by Wing-tsit Chan, 1979 No. 7 Han Fei Tzu's Political Theory, by Wang Hsiao-po and Leo S. Chang, 1986 No. 8 The Manduakya Upanisad and the Agama Sastra: An Investigation into the Meaning of the Vedanta, by Thomas E. Wood, 1990 No. 9 Mind Only: A Philosophical and Doctrinal Analysis of the Vijnanavada, by Thomas E. Wood, 1991 No. 10 Accomplishing the Accomplished: The Vedas as a Source of Valid Knowledge in Sankara, by Anantanand Rambachan, 1991 No. 11 Nagarjunian Disputations: A Philosophical Journey through an Indian Looking-Glass, by Thomas E. Wood, 1994 No. 12 Ch'en Liang on Public Interest and the Law, by Hoyt Cleveland Tillman, 1994 No. 13 Definition and Induction: A Historical and Comparative Study, by Kisor Kumar Chakrabarti, 1995 No. 14 Let the Cow Wander: Modeling the Metaphors in Veda and Vedanta, by Michael W. Myers, 1995 No. 15 The Four Political Treatises of the Yellow Emperor: Original Mawangdui Texts with Complete English Translations and an Introduction, by Leo S. Chang and Yu Feng, 1998 Orders should be directed to University of Hawai'i Press, 2840 Kolowalu Street, Honolulu, Hawai'i 96822. Manuscripts should be directed to Professor Henry Rosemont, Jr., Department of Philosophy, St. Mary's College, St. Mary's City, Maryland 20686.

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