简论荀子以“礼法”为核心的法思想

On Xunzi's Propriety-based Law Ideology

"礼"是荀子思想体系的核心,荀子也是第一个提出"礼法"范畴的哲学家,从礼法入手研究荀子的法思想也是近年荀子研究的一种新尝试。荀子法思想的核心观点是"隆礼重法",他强调依礼治国安邦的前提下,也不能忽略法规范社会行为、惩戒犯罪的作用。对于"礼法"二字也不能简单认为是法和礼的叠加,其本质还是"礼本法表",与传统儒家保持了一致。此外,在"礼法"的基础上,荀子还形成了"明德慎刑"的施法思想,"有治人无治法"的人治思想,表明荀子虽然重视"法",但还是没有跳出封建集权统治的大框架。

Xunzi is the first philosopher who proposed the propriety-based law ideology which becomes a new research perspective worthy of exploring. Xunzi thinks that the propriety-based law system is not simply the combination of propriety and law but the conformity of legal norms in regulating social behaviors and penalties. Meanwhile, he also thinks that the crimes should be applied with prudence and the state should be ruled mainly of man instead of law. It shows that although Xunzi attaches great importance to law, he is still confined to the framework of the feudal autocratic rules.