论柳宗元的“中庸”观——从“中”“正”概念谈起

A Discussion on Liu Zongyuan's Doctrine of the Mean——Starting from the Concept of“Zhong”“Zheng”

柳宗元是唐代少有的对《中庸》进行关注的学者。柳文频繁引用“中”“正”相关语词,强调其在修身、立身、为学、为政四个方面的意义和作用。柳宗元对《中庸》的关注并未体现在学术研究层面,主要基于实用主义视角,重在对《中庸》的利用。柳宗元对《中庸》的理解与宋代学者对《中庸》的阐释既有联系又有区别。区别主要在于柳宗元不仅将“中”视为圣人之道,而且将其视为达到圣人之道的途径,重在利用,宋代学者虽也承认“中”是修身、立身之道,乃至为政之道,但却逐步脱离了实用价值而向性理的方向发展,过于具体的阐释也将“中”局限在一个较为狭窄的空间内。

Liu Zongyuan Liu was a special scholar who paid attention to The Doctrine of the Mean in Tang Dynasty.He frequently quoted words related to“Zhong”and“Zheng”in his articles,emphasizing its significance and function in four aspects:self-cultivation,self-sustaining,learning and politics.His attention to the Mean was not reflected on the level of academic research,but was mainly based on the pragmatic perspective,focusing on the use of the Mean.Liu's understanding of the doctrine of the Mean was related to and different from the interpretation of the doctrine of the Mean by those scholars in Song Dynasty.The main difference lied in that Liu not only regarded“Zhong”as the way of saints,but also viewed it as the way to achieve the way of saints,focusing on utilization.Although scholars in The Song Dynasty also acknowledged that“Zhong”was the way to cultivate and establish one's morality,and even the way to conduct one’s government,they gradually separated themselves from practical value and developed towards the direction of Nature of Mind and Neo-Confucianism.