王充《论衡》中“命”的意蕴及其当代价值

The meaning and contemporary value of “life” in “Lun Heng” by Wang Chong

儒家对“命”的理解,初始于孔子。孔子言:“君子有三畏:畏天命,畏大人,畏圣人之言。”(《季氏》)孟子云:“尽其心者,知其性也;知其性,则知天矣。存其心,养其性,所以事天也。夭寿不二,修身以俟之,所以立命也。”(《尽心上》)可见,传统儒家所认为的“天命”就是既成的,早已决定好的天意之表达。此处的“天命”是一种不可揣摩,无法改变的准则和道理,东汉的王充对“命”的内涵作了更详尽的理解。王充的“命”里包含两层意思。一是作为“天命”,“天令”的命。二是王充认为人的遭遇也是命,此处的“天命”也包括两层含义:第一是人的生死夭寿,第二是人的贫贱富贵。我们就从这几个方面剖析王充的“命”理内涵。

Confucianism’s understanding of "life" originated from Confucius. Confucius said: "a gentleman has three fears: fear of destiny, fear of adults, fear of sages."(Jishi) Mencius said: "if you do your best, you will know its nature;if you know its nature, you will know heaven.". Keep your mind and nurture your nature, so it’s natural. It’s not the same as a short life, so it’s the way to cultivate yourself(on the whole heart) it can be seen that the "destiny" that the traditional Confucians think is the established, already determined expression of good will. Wang Chong of the Eastern Han Dynasty made a more detailed understanding of the connotation of "destiny". Wang Chong’s "life" contains two meanings. First, as "destiny" and "order of heaven". Wang Chong thinks that human’s encounter is also fate, and the "destiny" here also includes two meanings: first, life and death are dead, second, people’s poverty, wealth and wealth. We will analyze Wang Chong’s "life" theory from these aspects.