《礼记》论通神之道

On the Road to Gods of The Book of Rites

神灵是先民群体和个体生活的一个重要方面,《礼记》为我们的考察提供了极佳的样本。在先民那里神灵是主宰自己生命和生活的至高存在,通神的意义就在于从神明那里获得启迪和指引。祭祀和卜筮是通神的两个主要方式,祭祀作为空洞的仪轨其所通达的神明正是仪轨本身,神明也就是礼的化身;卜筮作为密实的技法其所通达的神明正是天地阴阳理则的化身,而礼正是理的现实表现。然而,祭祀和卜筮作为客体的通神之道只有被主体掌握才能得到切实的运用,儒家思想由此便进一步回到主体这个落脚点,最终就是要回到“诚”,即回到人与天的本然相合,也即回到主体的德性与德行,儒家“在世超越”的特质由此得到进一步的验证。

Gods are one of the most important aspects of ancient people’s life. The Book of Rites provides us with excellent samples for our investigation. In the ancestors, gods are the supreme existence that dominates their own lives and lives. The significance of on the road to Gods lies in obtaining enlightenment and guidance from gods. Sacrifice and divination are the two main ways of communicating with the gods. As an empty ritual, sacrifice serves as the God of the ritual itself, and the God is the incarnation of ritual. As a dense technique, divination serves as the incarnation of the principle of Yin and Yang of heaven and earth, and ritual is the real expression of reason. However, the way of sacrifice and divination as objects can only be effectively applied if they are mastered by the subject. Confucianism then goes further back to the foothold of the subject, and ultimately returns to "sincerity", that is, to the natural consistency between man and heaven, that is, to the virtue and virtue of the subject. Therefore, the traits of Confucianism "transcendence in the world" are further validated.