洛阳测影与“洛州无影”——中古知识世界与政治中心观

Measuring the Shadow: The Connection between Astrology and Political Legitimation in Medieval China

义净《南海寄归内法传》所云"洛州无影,与余不同",多被学者阐释为作为外来传统的佛教与中国本土认同的冲突,是关于中国和印度谁是世界中心的争论。不过,这只是其中的一个面相,而且未必是义净本人的真实意图。要理解"洛州无影",需要深入剖析贯穿中古时代的洛阳测影传统,其内涵远远超出中国、印度文化冲突说,归根结底还是不依王法则佛法难立的思想意识在发挥作用。政治学说往往建立在当时被认为是先进的"科学"知识体系上。"洛州无影"和洛阳测影的传统揭示的中古知识世界和政治的关联性,是理解中古知识与信仰的重要层面。

Yijing, the eminent monk who was known for his pilgrim to India during the Tang, in his The Record of Buddhist Religion as Practiced in India and Malay Archipelago said that the length of the shadows differed owing to different situation of places. In Luoyang there fell no shadow and the case was different in other places. It has been conventionally accepted that the theory of no shadow on summer solstices noon in Luoyang reflected the conflict between domestic Chinese tradition and Indian Buddhist tradition, focusing on which is the center of the world. The paper argues that the main reason lies in the connection between astronomical measurement and political legitimation. Since the legendary Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties Luoyang has been described as the center of the world and the place that should been the capital for a legitimate Chinese ruler. Such a theory was based on Confucian classics, Chenwei prophecy texts, and traditional astronomy and astrology. Political legitimacy usually was built up on the base of the knowledge that was broadly acknowledged and this is an important aspect of the intellectual and political history of medieval China.