刘蓉的“门户之见”与理学家的经世观念

Liu Rong's “Bias” and the jingshi Idea of Hu'nan Neo-Confucians

湘军集团的关键人物多是理学家出身。刘蓉是其中的代表人物之一。梳理刘蓉《思辨录疑义》对清初理学家陆世仪的批评可以发现,刘蓉是以程朱正统自居,批评陆世仪的王学倾向。刘蓉通过对程朱、陆王之辨的重新讲究,兼容汉学和经世学风的影响,完成了对其心目中理想程朱的建构,为更多包容事功的要求奠定理论基础。具体而言,对程朱陆王之辨的讨论促使刘蓉注重对现实世界的认知、对现存秩序的认同和积极参与,冷静面对现实政治中的每一个具体困难和障碍,通过合理算计,寻找最佳途径实现阶段性目标,在大本大原(仁义等差、纲常名教等)不能扭曲的前提下采取较为弹性的手段。

Many key figures of the Xiang Army were Hu＇nan Neo-Confucians. This article treats Liu Rong＇s criticism of Lu Shiyi and the Lu-Wang school of Neo-Confucianism as a case study to scrutinize how Hu＇nan Neo-Confucians＇ scholarship was connected to their idea ofjingshi （“经世” ）. I argue that while elaborating the distinctions between the Cheng-Zhu school and the Lu-Wang school, Liu incorporated the influence from Han Learning and the prevailing enthusiasm for political participation into his consideration and created an idealized version of the Cheng-Zhu school. By so doing, he laid a theoretical foundation for Hu＇nan Neo-Confucians＇ active engagement in late Qing politics. To be specific, his reflections upon the weaknesses of the Lu-Wang school enabled him to emphasize the objective understanding of the outside world and to commit himself to the existing socio-political order. These reflections also motivated him to face every difficulty in the reality of politics, to search the best strategies through calculation and to adopt flexible tactics as long as they serve but not undermine Confucian moral ideals.