The Old Master

A Syncretic Reading of the Laozi from the Mawangdui Text A Onward

Hongkyung Kim

• Publisher: SUNY Press
• Year: 2012
• Print ISBN: 9781438440125, 9781438440118
• eBook ISBN: 9781438440132
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Eastern Philosophy

This unique, highly contextualized translation of the Laozi is based on the earliest known edition of the work, Text A of the Mawangdui Laozi, written before 202 BCE. No other editions are comparable to this text in its antiquity. Hongkyung Kim also incorporates the recent archaeological discovery of Laozi -related documents disentombed in 1993 in Guodian, seeing these documents as proto-materials for compilation of the Laozi and revealing clues for disentangling the work from complicated exegetical contentions. Kim makes extensive use of Chinese commentaries on the Laozi and also examines the classic Chinese texts closely associated with the formation of the work to illuminate the intellectual and historical context of Laozi's philosophy. Kim offers several original and thought-provoking arguments on the Laozi, including that the work was compiled during the Qin, which has traditionally been viewed as typical of Legalist states, and that the Laozi should be recognized as a syncretic text before being labeled a Daoist one.

PART I

VIRTUE

38.

The man of superior virtue is not concerned about virtue; for this reason, he has virtue.	1
The man of inferior virtue is concerned about virtue; for this reason, he has no virtue.	2
The man of superior virtue neither takes action nor intends to accomplish anything through it.	3
The man of superior humaneness takes action, but does not intend to accomplish anything through it.	4
The man of superior rightness takes action, and intends to accomplish something through it.	5
The man of superior ritual takes action, and when people do not respond to it, he rolls up his sleeves and pulls them toward it.	6
Therefore, he loses the Way.	7
After people lose the Way, virtue arrives.	8
After people lose virtue, humaneness arrives.	9
After people lose humaneness, rightness arrives.	10
After people lose rightness, ritual arrives.	11
Now, ritual is the thin expression of sincerity and trust and the first sign of disorder.	12
Foreknowledge is the flower of the Way and the first sign of foolishness.	13
For this reason, the great man dwells with the thick, not with the thin; dwells with the fruit, not with the flower.	14
Therefore, he discards that, and takes this.	15

上德不德, 是以有德. 下德不失德, 是以无德. 上德无爲而无以爲也, 上仁爲之而无以爲也, 上義爲之而有以爲也, 上禮爲之而莫之應也, 則攘臂而扔之. 故失道. 失道矣而後德, 失德 而後仁, 失仁而後義, 失義而後禮. 夫禮者, 忠信之薄也, 而亂 之首也. 前識者, 道之華也, 而愚之首也. 是以大丈夫居其厚, 而不居其薄, 居其實, 不居其華. 故去彼取此.

There are other ways to interpret the first line, including, “The man of superior virtue does not regard virtue as virtue” by Wang Bi and, “The man of superior virtue is not virtuous” by Heshanggong. I base my translation on Su Zhe (1039–1112) and Wu Cheng because their interpretations best show that the man of superior virtue takes no action, the obvious teaching of this passage.¹

A few texts, including “Jie Lao” (“Explication of Laozi”) of Han Feizi, the Fu Yi, the Yan Zun, and the Fan Yingyuan (fl. 1246–1248) editions, use a different wording for this sentence. Their version reads, “The man of superior virtue takes no action, but there is nothing left undone.” By changing the latter part of this sentence, they convey an intriguing manifestation of Laozi's unique way of life. Including this passage, however, the Mawangdui texts never use the expression “there is nothing left undone (wu bu wei 無不爲),” whereas the later editions have it in four chapters at most (chapters 3, 37, 38, and 48), as in the Fan Yingyuan edition. Zheng Liangshu insisted that this expression was interpolated by later Daoists.² The Guodian documents, however, disprove Zheng's argument. In the passage related to chapter 48, they use this expression, whereas the passages related to chapters 3 and 38 are missing, and a passage related to chapter 37 employs a different wording.

“The thin expression of sincerity and trust” in line 12 is a puzzling phrase because “sincerity and trust” (zhong xin 忠信) are Confucian virtues and Laozi never uses them in other passages. Moreover, Zhuangzi introduces this sentence differently, as “Now, ritual is the flower of the Way and the first sign of disorder” (1056: 107d). Facing this problem, the Imperial Commentary of Emperor Xuanzong (685–762) suggested rectifying bao 薄 (“thin expression”) into bu 簿 (“register” or “sign”). Similarly, “The great man” in line 14 is a key concept in Mencius, indicating a man of invincible dedication to moral virtue. This concept also does not fit into Laozi's thought, which prefers softness and pliability to strength and firmness. This kind of inconsistency sometimes occurs in Laozi.

As seen in this passage, especially in the first two sentences, Laozi often uses paradox to great effect. Paradox in general contains contradictions that puzzle readers at first and then, in successful cases, interest them in the idea implied. In Laozi, many passages begin with a proposition containing paradoxical statements to attract the reader's attention to its teaching. In almost all passages, a relatively lengthy explanation follows. This recurrent arrangement would make readers feel that each passage in Laozi can be divided into two parts: a paradoxical proposition and a commentary of it. In the “commentary” parts, Laozi attempts to convince readers of verisimilitude of the proposition by providing relevant examples that stem from a keen observation of human life and nature, instead of convincing them through logic. And, most extant editions of Laozi add a commentary to the main text. Thus, in my view each passage in the extant editions of Laozi has three layers: a proposition, an original commentary of it, and a commentator's commentary on the main text. Each of these may be distinguishable from one another functionally or chronologically.

Laozi affirms the use of paradox as a rhetorical skill, stating, “Correct words seem contradictory” (78),³ and “By taking the opposite way against things, it reaches the great compliance” (65). As a matter of fact, this skill is not exclusive to Laozi but shared by many philosophers in ancient China who discussed the matter of name (ming 名) and substance (shi 實), a fashionable subject at that time. For instance, “White horses are not horses” (Gongsun Longzi, 848: 249c), a renowned proposition in this name-substance discussion, is identical in rhetorical structure to the leading proposition of this passage. Gongsun Long here, similar to Laozi, pronounces that the substance of white horses (“superior virtue” in this passage) should be discerned from that of common horses (“inferior virtue” in this passage) so that their different names are legitimized. Earlier, Confucius discussed this matter, and later thinkers such as Mencius, Zhuangzi, Shen Buhai, and the Logicians, all arduously participated in this discussion. Thus, we should not be surprised to find a parallel between the leading proposition in this passage and the following lines in “Renshu” (“Depending on Numerical Necessity”) in Lüshi Chunqiu: “Therefore, the man of superior wisdom abandons wisdom; the man of superior humaneness forgets humaneness; and the man of superior virtue is not concerned about virtue” (848: 416b). In fact, this quotation inextricably pertains to the philosophy of Shen Buhai, a Legalist, as “Renshu” overall discusses “the tactic (shu 術) of the rulers,” Shen Buhai's main subject.

An examination of the political implication of “taking no action” (wuwei 無爲), a core concept in Laozi, also verifies the connection between Shen Buhai and Laozi. Although wuwei is here translated as “taking no action,” it does not mean literally doing nothing, but rather not doing anything against the natural order. In respect of this, Huainanzi and Guanzi, two influential texts in the interpretation of Laozi, provide the most enlightening definitions for the term, as in the following: “What is called ‘taking no action’ indicates not leading things to do anything” (Huainanzi, 848: 513a). “The Way of taking no action means to follow; to follow means neither adding nor subtracting” (Guanzi, 729: 148a). In other words, “taking no action” means to take no initiative and thereby to comply with the given circumstances, nature, or the Way. In a political application, wuwei can help rulers sustain power without defiance from the ruled. Rulers can, by complying with ministers or public opinion, devolve some of their responsibilities to their subjects, along with a limited administrative authority. “Renshu” further explains this political strategy of “taking no action” as follows: “The ancient kings took initiative action in few cases, and followed [others] in many cases. To follow is the tactic of the rulers; to take initiative action is the way of the ruled.” H. G. Creel argued, based on his redemptive research of the missing sources concerning Shen Buhai's thought, that this was the very implication of “taking no action” in the “purposive Daoism,” and suggested that this use of the term was initiated by Shen Buhai.⁴ Even though he seems to reserve some alternate definition for this term, wuwei, especially for what he called the “contemplative Daoists,” my interpretation would rather center on this political implication of wuwei.

39.

Of those in ancient times that attained the One:	1
The sky became clear by attaining the One;	2
The earth became steady by attaining the One;	3
The spirits became mysterious by attaining the One;	4
The valleys became full by attaining the One;	5
The lords and kings became the masters of all under heaven by attaining the One.	6
When I take precaution regarding this saying:	7
If the sky remains clear without pause, I say, I fear that it would rip apart;	8
If the earth remains steady without pause, I say, I fear that it would be shaken;	9
If the spirits remain mysterious without pause, I say, I fear that they would be irresponsive;	10
If the valleys remain full without pause, I say, I fear that they would run dry;	11
If the lords and kings remain nob...

Table of contents

• Title Page
• Introduction
• Part I: Virtue
• Part II: The Way
• Chinese Glossary
• Notes
• Selected Bibliography