文明的力量--防御虚无主义的六大原则

The Force of Civilization——Six Principles Guarding against Nihilism

雅斯贝尔斯提出了人类文明防御虚无主义的三大原则:一是理性主义原则;二是所谓"个体自我主体性"即人本主义原则;三是"世界在时间中的有形存在"即历史原则。这三大原则,均统领于雅氏阐述的欧洲现代性。在此基础上可以再补列三个原则:一是生活的逻辑,历史相对主义之所以难以通向虚无主义,就在于生活逻辑在"托底"。二是经典,经典既是被文明选定的肯定性精神价值的载体与象征,也通过面向解释活动开放从而巩固和扩展肯定性精神价值,脱离经典的解释活动即有可能滑入价值虚无主义。三是超越性,这是存在论性质的原则,超越体现但不限于超验,肯定性的精神价值有自身的经验基础,但须提升到存在论与信仰层面的超越性进行确证和解释。六大原则统摄于传统中,传统本身无疑是由历史向现代的持续转化,并在此过程中实现精神价值的保存传承与推陈出新。

Karl Jaspers proposes three principles for human civilization guarding against nihilism, namely, the principle of rationalism, the so-called ＂individual self subjectivity＂, i.e., the principle of humanism, and ＂the world＇s being with form in time＂, i.e., the principle of history. All the three are included in the European modernity of which Jaspers expounded. Based on the above-mentioned three principles, the author adds three more ones, namely, the logic of life, the classics and transcendentalism. These six principles are included in the tradition, and the tradition is no doubt a continuing transformation from history towards modern time and, in such a process, the preservation, passing-on and bringing forth the new from the old of the spiritual value could be realized.