无为·简朴·自然——《瓦尔登湖》与《道德经》的共通性

Inaction·Simplicity·Nature--Commonality between Walden and Tao Te Ching

亨利·大卫·梭罗是美国超验主义的主要代表人物,在其所处的时代中国的儒家思想在西方得到了广泛的译介和传播,而代表道家思想的《道德经》在当时的西方尚处于边缘化的地位。没有直接证据表明梭罗受到了《道德经》影响,但他的生活方式与其有着巨大影响的著作《瓦尔登湖》所体现的“无为”的思想、主张过简朴的生活及其对自然的态度,与《道德经》的思想有着共通之处。《瓦尔登湖》与《道德经》是不同时代不同文化的产物,却表现出了许多的相似性,这充分体现了东西方哲学思想、生活理念和对待自然态度上的共通性。

Henry David Thoreau is the main representative of American transcendentalism.In his era,Chinese Confucianism has been widely translated and spread in the West while Tao Te Ching,which represents Taoism,was still marginalized.There is no direct evidence that Thoreau was influenced by Tao Te Ching,but his way of life and his book Walden,which has a huge influence,reflect the“inaction”idea,advocate a simple life and its attitude towards nature,which has something in common with the thoughts in Tao Te Ching.Walden and Tao Te Ching are the products of different cultures in different eras,but they show many similarities,which fully embodies the commonality of Eastern and Western philosophical ideas,life ideas and attitudes towards nature.