易学“太极”概念考论——兼论《系辞上》“《易》有太极”章的含义与解释

A Study of the Concept of“Taiji”in Changes Scholarship:A Discussion on the Meaning and Explanation of the Chapter“Yi has Taiji”in XiciⅠ

《系辞上》“《易》有太极”章及“太极”概念为何义,是易学史上颇有争议的问题。帛书《系辞》“《易》有大恒”的“恒”字应当从今本读为“极”字“。极”本指无上无限的空间“,太极”是无以复加的极限义。此义为“太极”概念的生成提供了词源基础。但作为一个哲学概念,它又是在哲学语境中生成的。在《系辞上》中,它既指揲蓍之初极,又指天地未分的至极本原。随着汉唐、宋明哲学的变化,这一概念的具体所指或为元气或为理“。《易》有太极”章包含着揲蓍成卦和宇宙生成两重次序,二者是表里、明暗关系,而这一特点又是由《周易》本为天人合一的产物所决定的。在前者中“,太极”指蓍草未分的初始状态“,两仪”指分而为二的两部分蓍草“,四象”指六、七、八、九四数;在后者中“,太极“”两仪“”四象”各有其宇宙生成的象征物。汉唐对此章的解释偏重于气化的宇宙生成论,明末清初以来的解释则过分强调其揲蓍成卦之义,都偏执于一边。

The meaning of the concept of“Taiji”(lit.,Supreme Ultimate)and the interpretation of the chapter“Yi you Taiji”《易》有太极(Yi has Taiji)in Xici(Great Treatise)are quite controversial issues in the history of Changes scholarship.The character“heng”恒in the chapter Yi you daheng《易》有大恒of the silk version of Xici should be interpreted as the word“ji”极in the received version.“Ji”originally refers to supreme and limitless space and“Taiji”means the extremely infinite.This meaning provides the etymological basis for the generation of the concept of“Taiji”.But as a philosophical concept,it is generated in a philosophical context.In XiciⅠ,it refers to both the initial state of divination and the ultimate origin of heaven and earth before separation.With the changes in philosophy of the Han(206 BCE-220 CE)-Tang(618-907)and Song(960-1279)-Ming(1368-1644)dynasties,the specific meaning of this concept was either qi(material force)or li(principle).The chapter Yi you Taiji contains the twofold universal generation sequence of the operating milfoil stalks to get hexagrams and the cosmogony:these two sequences are exterior-interior and light-dark relationships,and this feature is determined by the nature of the Book of Changes which is the unity of heaven and humans.In the former,“Taiji”refers to the initial state of divinatory yarrows,“liangyi”(yin and yang)means the two parts of the divided yarrows and“sixiang”(four images)refers to the four numbers-six,seven,eight and nine.In the latter,“Taiji”,“liangyi”and“sixiang”,each has its own cosmogonic symbol.The interpretations of this chapter in the Han and Tang dynasties focused on the theory of cosmogony,emphasizing the unfolding of qi,while since the late Ming and early Qing(1644-1911)dynasties,scholars overemphasized the meaning of the process of the operation of the milfoil stalks and each has its own biases.