“本质”观念及其生存状态分析——中西哲学比较的考察

The Notion of Essence and an Existential Analysis on It——Comparation of Chinese and Western Philosophy

"本质"观念是西方哲学一个极为重要的观念,它与"普遍性"、"客观性"、"真理"、"规律"等观念互相渗透。然而,中国传统哲学中并不存在本质的观念。对"本质"观念的生存状态分析表明,本质观念是人类自己面对纷繁复杂、变化多端的世界而欲看出其中的"一"和"不变"的结果,这种追求事物确定性的态度肇始于柏拉图、亚里士多德。当把这种对物的态度移用到人文学科方面时,就产生了本质主义。而面对同样变化和多样化的世界,中国古代的先哲较多采取了接纳变化、顺应变化的态度。这表明,求变还是求确定,不纯粹是由人自己决定的,而是要根据生存状态的态势灵活措置。出于这种需要,中国哲学提出了"明明德"的任务,为的是使人自己保持高度的敏感以便鉴照万物、研幾通变。围绕有无"本质"观念,中西两种传统哲学显示出形态上的差异:西方哲学旨在获得某种确定性的知识,中国哲学则直指生命的自觉。所谓事物本质的知识只有在自觉生命的引领下才会有积极的效能。

While the notion of essence played so important a role in traditional Western philosophy, there was no such term in traditional Chinese philosophy at all. An existential analysis of the notion of essence shows that this notion comes from a way to seek the one out of many or unchangeable from changeable. Essentialism is the result of using the same way of doing philosophy on humanities. The reason why the traditional Chinese philosophy had no idea of essence lies in that the ancient sages recognized and took it ayailable the ever-changing world. To those sages, philosophy is not a way restricted in knowing the world, but a way of surviving according to the Dao, which is more important than essence is the initiate and subtle of events impacting on the life.