释“为与士大夫治天下”

lucidating“Governing the Country with the Scholar-bureaucrats”

北宋神宗时文彦博所云“为与士大夫治天下”,今学界一般认为其指天子与士大夫“共治天下”,但也有认为此语当解释作“(天子)是替士大夫治理天下”者。通过详细引证比勘诸史料,可知文彦博语远绍孟子“巨室之所慕,一国慕之”语,而自汉宣帝言“与我共此(治天下)者,其惟二千石乎”以来,“共治天下”说为包括宋朝的历代君臣所普遍接受,只是文彦博代之以“士大夫”而已。故文彦博所说之“治天下”及其他宋人所云之“共天下”“同治天下”,大抵皆为“共治天下”之意。

During the reign of emperor Shenzong of the Song dynasty,Wen Yanbo said“governing the country with the scholar-bureaucrats.”The current academic community generally believes that it refers to the emperor and the scholar-bureaucrats“ruling the country together.”However,some scholars think that this sentence should be interpreted as“(the emperor)governs the country for the scholar-bureaucrats.”Comparing literature and historical materials,I argue that Wen Yanbo’s words come from Mencius’s“what the scholar-bureaucrats admire,the whole country will admire.”Emperor Xuandi of the Han dynasty said that“only officials can govern the country with me,”after which this theory of“governing the country together”has been generally accepted by all dynasties,including the Song dynasty,and Wen Yanbo replaced it with“scholar-bureaucrat.”Therefore,the words“governing the country”mentioned by Wen Yanbo and the other words“commonly(govern)the country”and“commonly govern the country”mentioned by Song people generally should be interpreted as“governing the country together.”