生态哲学的范式转换:从生态中心主义到无中心主义——从西南少数民族生态哲学中得到的启示

Paradigmatic Shift of Ecological Philosophy:From Ecocentrism to Non-Centralism——Enlightenment from the Ecological Philosophy of the Southwest Ethnic Minorities

生态哲学范式经历了从人类中心主义到生态中心主义的第一次飞越性转变,但是还是没有摆脱西方哲学主客二分的思维框架,也就无法改变人与自然界的对立关系。未来生态哲学的发展还需要实现从生态中心主义到无中心主义的第二次飞越,才能真正建构人与自然界的和谐发展模式。西南少数民族生态哲学的“物我同源”本体论、“天人合一”自然观、“我亦物也”价值观和“顺应自然”实践观中所蕴藏的无中心主义思想,为生态哲学的发展指明了方向,为构建生态文明社会提供了非常值得深思的理论进路。

Anthropocentrism,which has long served as the mainstream paradigm of western ecological philosophy,advocates that human beings are the center of the world and dominate all things in the world.As such,human beings are the only object of human ethical and moral concern.As a representative of ecocentrism,deep ecology fiercely criticizes anthropocentrism.Deep ecology regards the value of anthropocentrism as“shallow ecology”,and believes that its overly optimistic attitude towards science and technology is wrong.In the view of deep ecology,the cause of the environmental crisis is not only science and technology,therefore,the progress of science and technology is not the only way to solve the crisis.Behind the environmental problems are deep-rooted and multifaceted problems such as human ethics,legal consciousness and religious beliefs.The development of western ecological philosophy first experienced the leap from anthropocentrism to ecocentrism,which realized the paradigmatic shift from anthropocentrism to nature-centered.Ecocentrism strongly opposes the core idea of anthropocentrism,which advocates human beings as the center of the world,and it has been trying to eradicate the so-called“center”of anthropocentrism.However,when it advocates that the overall interests of nature are higher than the individual interests of human beings,it actually puts nature in the“center”position.Its value still does not eliminate the thinking mode of Western philosophy which highlights the dichotomy of subject and object.Ecocentrism is nothing more than turn the anthropocentrism viewpoint that“man is the purpose and nature is the tool”into“nature is the purpose and man is the tool”.Both anthropocentrism and ecocentrism regard nature as the world of objects,and regard themselves as existential things that are free from nature.All human actions of conquering and transforming nature are regarded as actions reflecting their own values.Thus,the key to solving the ecological crisis problem must completely subvert the“subject-object dichotomy”tradition in Western philosophy.The spirit of Chinese traditional philosophy is interlinked with the idea of the future ecological civilized society.This spirit fully reflects the important value and world significance of tapping into the local knowledge of China's ethnic minorities.The ecological philosophies of Southwest ethnic minorities uphold the concept that there is no distinction of subject and object between man and nature.The relationship between heaven and man is not separate,nor contradictory.Both are integral from the beginning to end.There is no distinction between primary and secondary positions in the relationship of existence of this unity,let alone who is the center and who is the periphery.The ecological philosophies of the ethnic minorities in Southwest China are neither anthropocentric nor ecocentric,but instead are a kind of non-centrism.This concept“centerlessness”found among the thinking of ethnic minorities in Southwest China does not come out of nowhere.It is contained within their ontology of the“homology of thing-man”;their view of nature view that“man is an integral part of nature”,their placing value of“equality of all things and the‘I’”and their practical view of“conforming to nature”.“Centerlessness”is the sublimation and conciseness of these thoughts.1.The Ontology of“the homology of thing-man”Anthropocentrism has always maintained that intrinsic value is unique to human beings,and that non-human beings have no intrinsic value,only instrumental value that is or is not useful to human beings.Deep ecology advocates that non-human beings have intrinsic value just like human beings.The problem is that whereas people are of the same category,people and things are different.Ethical issues can only be applied to things of the same kind,but not to different kinds.Human beings possess intrinsic value,which does not mean that non-human beings also possess intrinsic value.This problem has plagued deep ecology for a long time.In fact,it has been resolved within the ecological philosophy of the ethnic minorities in Southwest China.In the cognitive thought of the ecological philosophies of the ethnic minorities in Southwest China,people and myriad things share the same origin,and all come from the same ancestor.People and things are the same kind,not different.The ethical issues applicable to human beings apply equally to all things.For example,Le-e-te-yi,an ancient text of the Yi regards all life on the earth as descendants of the“Snow People”,which can be divided into twelve kinds.In the ancient Maple Song·Twelve Eggs,the ancestors of the Miao proposed a common ancestor for man,god and beast,and considered that dragons,tigers,elephants,cattle,snakes and people were brothers hatched by the same mother.2.The View of Nature that“man is an integral part of nature”Western ecological philosophy always regards the relationship between man and nature as the relationship between subject and object.This perception is obviously very wrong.The ecological philosophies of the ethnic minorities in Southwest China have a completely different understanding of the relationship between heaven and man.They firmly believe that man is an integral part of nature,and the two have never been and will not be separated.The ancestors of the ethnic minorities in Southwest China placed more hope in the natural world,and fully integrated themselves into the natural world.This special dialogue between man and nature reflects that the view of“man is an integral part of nature”.It also reflects the close relationship between man and nature in an intuitive form.It appears simple and plain on the surface,but in essence it has profound implications.The direction of contemporary ecological philosophy research is to shift from the cognitive mode of“subject-object dichotomy”found in Western philosophy to the existential mode of“man is an integral part of nature”found in Chinese philosophy.3.Placing Value on the concept of the“Equality of Things and the‘I’”The ecological philosophies of the Southwest ethnic minorities have always believed that the“I”(the self)is thing and things are the“I”.There is no essential difference between“I”(the self)and“things”(matter).It is a brotherly and sisterly relationship with equal status.Only by fully endowing each life with intrinsic value and emphasizing the equality of human and all things,can the existence and development of the whole ecosystem be maintained.This value is based on the homology of man and all things,and the identity of the essence of life.The value of“equality of things(matter)and‘I’(self)”is the same as the theory of“ecological equality”in deep ecology.However,we believe that the essential difference between people and things is neglected in essence,whether it is the“equality”of the ethnic minorities in Southwest China that reduces people to the status of things or the“equality”of the deep ecology that elevates things to the status of people.Human sociality is the essential difference between human beings and things.If the inequality between people and people in actual society cannot be resolved,the equality between people and things can only be a good expectation.4.The Practical View of“Conforming to Nature”There are written or unwritten“taboos”in the hunting activities of ethnic minorities in Southwest China.The Lisu,Dulong,Nu,Bulang and Achang ethnic groups have regulations which prohibit their killing pregnant animals or those who are laying eggs or hatching young.They furthermore should show mercy to mammals who are breastfeeding;and should choose to hunt in autumn,avoiding hunting in spring.This is because many animals give birth in the spring.The“Stele of the Six Bans of the Bai stipulates that”“slaughtering cattle,cooking dogs,selling loach eels,poisoning fish and shrimp,hunting spring birds and picking of tree tips are prohibited”.The Yi text called the“Sutra of Advising Goodness”teaches people to pity livestock,wild animals,birds,insects and so on.Naxi people have local customary rules and regulations that specify“no tiger hunting if one is not hunter,no crane hunting if one is not an archer,no logging if one is not woodcutter,no reclaiming wasteland if one already has a good harvest.”The Miao people avoid fishing with more than three nets in deep pools.The Zhuang people avoid hunting frogs and swallows.These“taboos”have played a positive role in protecting the ecological environment in ethnic minority areas.In addition,most of the buildings and transportation facilities in the Southwest ethnic minority areas are made of local materials and use their natural resources reasonably.For example,there is the Yao's“half-landed dwellings”,Zhuang's stone slab roads,Tibetan suspension rope bridges,Qiang's trestle roads,Dong's wind and rain bridges,Wa's bamboo bridges,Tujia's hanging wooden building,and the Dulong's rattan bridges.These are the embodiment of the practical view of“conforming to nature”.The practical view of“conforming to nature”in ecological philosophy of the ethnic minorities in Southwest China still has very important value for guiding people's practice today.