“舜能化得象的傲”:阳明心学视域下的公私之辨

"Shun's Understanding of Xiang's Disrespect":The Distinction between Public and Private from the Perspective of Yangming's Theory of Mind

象为“至不仁”者,舜却“封之有库”。学者们多依据《礼记》“门内之治恩掩义,门外之治义断恩”的说法予以调和,但忽略了象受到了流放这一事实,而孟子之所以称舜的举措为“封”,是要说明舜对象的不离不弃。王阳明从公私论域对此问题进行讨论,从门内之私、门外之公转至人欲之私、天理之公,认为舜之所以能化象的傲,原因在于舜从主观上承担起了对象的绝对责任,因而中断了善恶无定的循环报复;而舜对象采取严格的惩戒措施也从客观上起到了分判善恶的作用,从而转化并消除了奸恶。人只有破除“人欲之私”而复归“天理之公”,才能达到与物同体的主客合一之境。与其说王阳明对舜化象傲的讨论化解了门内“私恩”与门外“公义”之间的困境,不如说他实现了主观上“成己”与客观上“成物”的统一。

Xiang was considered extremely inhumane,but Shun enfeoffed him Youbi.During the Song Dynasty,Confucian scholars often attempted to reconcile these contradictory records on the basis of a statement in Liji that"in family life,kindness overshadows morality;in social life,morality surpasses kindness".There are also many debates among contemporary scholars around this puzzle.However,both sides of these debates overlooked the fact that the Youbi of Shun's enfeoffment of Xiang was more remote than the Chongshan of exiled Huandou,which means that Xiang was actually exiled.Wang Yangming also noticed the matter of Shun and Xiang,but he changed the perspective of public and private,shifting from"the private of family"and"the public of society"to"the private of desire"and"the public of order",and in this way took up a dual perspective of subjective and objective.On the subjective level,people should carry the absolute responsibility towards others so as to interrupt the cycle of revenge of uncertain good and evil.On the objective level,however,there was a clear boundary between good and evil.Whoever lack filial piety and respect will endanger public order,so strict disciplinary measures should be taken to transform them.Only by breaking free from selfish desires and returning to the principle of commonality can one reach the state of unifying himself with all things.In this regard,rather than resolving the dilemma of family affection and social justice,Wang Yangming achieved the unification of subjective"self achievement"and objective"achievement of things".