试论“三纲”的两种含义及其历史演变

The Two Different Meanings of the Three Cardinal Guides:A Historical Survey

中国历史上的“三纲”,本义并不是所谓“君为臣纲,父为子纲,夫为妻纲”,而是指君臣、父子、夫妇这三大伦;因为这三伦被视为一切人伦中最重要的,为人之大伦或人伦之纲,故称“三纲”。这一“三纲”本义承《尚书》《诗经》的纲纪传统以及先秦的“大伦”思想而来,经董仲舒阐发、《白虎通》界定,在汉代以来一千多年里占统治地位。宋代以来,狭义“三纲”概念,即“君为臣纲,父为子纲,夫为妻纲”,由于朱子等人影响而日益流行,但严格说来,很难说后起的狭义代替了本义,而最多只能说狭义合并了本义。正因如此,一直到清末,仍有大量学者从本义而不是狭义使用“三纲”一词;即便朱熹、吕祖谦、真德秀、吴澄、宋濂、丘濬、湛若水等许多认同狭义“三纲”概念的人,也同时把本义作为狭义的宗旨,经常自觉或不自觉地从本义使用“三纲”一词。因此,忽略本义,将“三纲”不加分辨地等同于“君为臣纲,父为子纲,夫为妻纲”,就无法理解古人“三纲”的真实含义和思想,进一步导致其被现代人歪曲甚至妖魔化。

As the three highest interpersonal principles of Confucianism,the three cardinal guides has long been popularly misunderstood as“ruler as the guide of subjects,father as the guide of son,husband as the guide of wife”,especially in the last century.This article aims at correcting this misunderstanding and proves that the three cardinal guides initially refer to“the three kinds of relationships of most importance”,i.e.the relationship between ruler and subject,between father and son,and between husband and wife.Originated from pre-Qin Confucian traditions and interpreted by Dong Zhongshu and Bai Hu Tong,the three cardinal guides had ever been understood in this way for more than one thousand years in Chinese history since the 2rd century BC till the end of 13 century,and some people continued to understand sangang in this way till the beginning of 20th century.The paper argues that Zhu Xi is the most important person who changed the meaning of the three cardinal guides from“the three kinds of relationships”into“the three guides”,but still insisted on its original sense in various occasions.After Zhu Xi,the two meanings of the three cardinal guides showed a very complicated relations in China and the newest meaning as“the three guides”had been popularly seen as the worst part of Confucian tradition as against the modern values of equality and freedom.