论孟子思想中“天”对于人之所“求”的二重作用

The Dual Role of"Heaven"in Mencius'Thought for What People"Seek"

孟子将人之所“求”划分为“求在外者”与“求在我者”,以“天”为“求在外者”之失的归因,从而豁免人在事功失败上的责任;以“天”为“求在我者”之得的保证,从而赋予人在道德成就上的信心。孟子对作为最高存在的“天”深怀尊崇,此理论构建可成为其面对“在外者”之失仍能求“在我者”之得的最终根据。而经历“祛魅”后如何解释求得舍失的关系及其根据,成为现代人需要思考的问题。在这个问题未得到确切答案之前,以对孟子生命力量的感触接补现存解释系统的裂隙,或许是一种面对不确定生活的有用方案。

Mencius divided what man seek into the things in oneself and the things without oneself,using Heaven"as the cause of the failure of the latter,thus exempting man from the responsibility of failing in his deeds;using"Heaven"as the guarantee of the success of the former,thus giving man confidence in his moral achievement.Mencius still has respect for"Heaven"as the supreme being,and this theoretical construction can be the ultimate basis for his ability to seek the success of the things in oneself in the face of the failure of the things without oneself.How to explain the relationship between gain and loss and its basis after"disenchantment"has become a question for modern people to consider.Until this question is definitively answered,mending the fissures in the existing interpretive system with a sense of Mencius'life force may be a useful program for facing an uncertain life.